Architect Archive

I know that the prices are screwed up with the material pricing so high. But I think we need to set the standard.

I don't mind haveing people laugh at me when I tell them the price. as long as everyone is charging the same price.

I have been charging 15k for samall home already

35k for factories

was wondering what to charge for the medium - large houses

I would just like to stay inline, so we all can make a profit.

I was wondering... why does everyone only use unit-cost-per-resource in the pricing formula... Is it because it is just an "easy way to do it"?

I can't help but notice that the folks at Lucas Arts included a number of factors in the schematics that can be used to calculate pricing... one of them being "Complexity".

Seem's to me that any formula NEEDS to include the potential for failure and rework included... you can bet your assets that real-world manufacturers include these potential and actual costs in price-point analysis.

So... why can't a realistic formula for OUR endeavors be "something" like this:

(Number of Resources) * ((resource cost-per-unit)+ (complexity/(level of crafter)))

Where the "Level of Crafter" is1 (lowest and equates to novice) through6 (highest and equates to Master)

Seem's to me that this would help Novice Crafters and Master Crafters alike. At least the pricing would be universally competitive... andwe'd all make decent wages for the hours we spend slaving away at the keyboard

Comments, observations.. and the inevitable flames... are welcome.

ssssssssssssssSSS(:-<

If you use that forumla on a small house then a novice would be charging like 2-3 times what a master would. And I think thats the opposite of what we tend to see. THe novices are willing to sell for less more often because that is a competitive factor against the established masters. And the masters might charge more cause they dont' care to make small items and /or can afford to overlook that business or at least wait for higher profit margins. And it also doesn't matter to customers if we're a master or a novice if they're buying a house.

I do think using complexity as a factor is a good idea because the more complex the item, then theless people that can make it. So more complex items have less supply and that should increase prices.

I think your looking for formula for a price in the wrong way. There a few other items the just CPU for resources, complexity and level of crafter.

As I have before in other threads, the price shouldn’t be based on a strait CPU cost. The factors which should set the price for the item are: What skill it takes to make, does it require a special resource, does it require parts from a factory, does the resources I use matter and experimentation make a difference to the final product. Those are the key points, unlike the other crafting professions it doesn’t always matter what resources or the Experimentation in the final contraction.

Our items, Furniture and buildings it doesn’t matter what resources or how well the experimentation on them is, it doesn’t matter in the end. The fact that a Master Architect can use the best resources available to make every component for a small house and have it be just as good as some one who has just Buildings 1 and use the what ever they have on hand. That example can be used on every item we can make, with the only expectation is Harvesters.

I have never liked the strait CPU method that I seen posted over and over again. Though the reason why I think people have used is that it is simple, and they wish not to spend the time to actual price out each item.

Eirn
Master Architect
Starsider

There are lots of things that go into the cost of making something:

- the actual cost to aquire the raw resources (your cost to mine them or to buy them from someone else)

- your overhead (house and factory maintenance, vendor fees, etc)

- if you want to think about it, your investment (resources spent getting to Master Architect, amount you had to pay to get harvesters, tools, etc) spread out over the number of things you produce in your career

- if you want to think about it, the value of your time (harvesting, consulting, planning and making factory runs, etc)

The price that you charge depends on a whole different set of things:

- your cost (you can't price things under your cost consistantly and stay in business)

- your delivered value to the customer (customers have buying criteria beyond price - they consider availability (it doesn't matter if its the cheapest price around if they have to wait 2 weeks for it), they consider service, they consider long-term relationships, they consider quality of the work (right now only evident in harvesters)

- your competition (again, don't look simply at your competition's price - look at their total value package - maybe they give advice or buy materials as part of the deal)

- demand in the marketplace

- "opportunity cost" - some of the "n credits per unit" statements come from this - people say "I could take those resources that go into a house and just sell them on the open market and make n credits per unit" - so to them this represents a "floor" on the price that they are willing to set

The key point to observe is the your cost is only one of several factors in setting your price. Even for things where quality doesn't currently matter (e.g., furniture, houses) there are other things that you can do to add value to your product. Customers pay for value recieved - if it's a pistol or a couch.

One last point: harvesters are the *only* way in this game for people to make money as they sleep. They, more so than even weapons for combat types, are absolute "money machines". Once a customer pays off their purchase price to the architect, each harvester pumps up profit every day.

This seems preety good idea. Resources are sold by CPU why not have a Total defense modifier for armor sales.

You need to make sure that vulnerabilities are taken into account as well, though. I'll think about something and maybe make a posting a little later.

Any ubese that is 70% or higher will sell at around 125k per suit. People will pay for quality gear. Basing your price on the amount of resources used to make the item is a poor way of selling armor.

Many resources you will want to use can sell for 30 to 100 cpu. Don't price your armor at a 5cpu or 10cpu figure you will just be ripping yourself off in the long run and probably end up burning out trying to harvest your own resources. Go with around 80k for a non layered suit and 125k for a fully layered suit and both you and your customers will be happy.

Armani -- Corbantis

Armani's Designer Weapons - Naboo, Theed -3995 5347 - Tatooine, Bestine -1875 -3940

Resources prices affect my prices but not much.

The main thing is quality of the armor and how much I can produce compared to how much I can sell.

I have 73% light ubese at 100k

and triple layered composite at 500k and both sell as quick because the composite is the best anyone make and I am the only one to mass produce it and keep it stocked....