Architect Archive
Thread: A different take on why some people sell their stuff for too cheap... does this sound right?
I don't know if this is really a new idea, but I haven't seen it here expressed quite this way, so I mention it 
As an architect, I've been following the whole "grinders selling stuff too cheap" debate for awhile. At first it seemed to me that the problem was that there area two types of income to be gotten from crafting: credits and XP. Some people are most concerned with XP and not so much with credits, so they sell stuff for as cheap as they can afford to while keeping harvesters running.
I only read some of the other profession boards, but not much. However I don't notice as much of thta type of discussion from other crafters. In fact don't architects complain that WS and AS can sell there stuff for 10+cr per resource while we are stuck selling for 3-4?
That's when it hit me...money isn't really worth much to an architect. Why? Because we can build the biggest, most potentially expensive items in the game for ourselves. I've been mostly focused on architect since launch, and I know a lot of others have been too, because they want to get to Master and build a PA hall. In the meantime, I'm only hunting a bit, so I bought some decent armor (mibari since I'm a TK) and that's about it. It cost me about what a small house would have at the time (10k).
But if I want harvesters, factories, houses, all the really big-ticket items, I just build one! Anyone else who wants one (like a Weaponsmith) has to *buy* a house, so they need to save up some cash, which means they need to sell their stuff for a profit.
On the other hand, I sell one medium house for 70k and I can afford all sorts of nice armor and weapons, and any houses I sell after that are just a bonus.
Starting to make sense? Architects don't have anything to spend all that money on, so money becomes far less valuable. XP we have to spend lots of to get our levels. But so far, besides harvesters, I've spent maybe 40k since launch on stuff for myself, and most of that has actually been on resources to build other stuff (like furniture). Besides the armor and some nice clothes, I haven't spent much at all on myself.
Perhaps this is a problem with the pure player economy. If the only sink for me is harvesters, then why would I need money beyond what they cost to run?
So how do we fix it? I've no idea. I suppose vehicles and mounts will help, and eventually space ships. But until then, for architects money is cheap, and XP is what we need. So we'll continue to see them dumping stuff for cost.
You are right that people grind for XP and not money, but I disagree that there is nothing to spend money on.
The money drains on us for maintenance are more than adequate to take all my money. I have to sell about 1/4 of my resources to break even. I would love to use those for crafting but you make more on selling resources.
The big problem is that the weaponsmiths and armorsmiths can create items that are better than competitors. On my surver Iduno can sell a scout blaster for 15k because it has 120max damage. No one can undercut his cost, because the best the can sell is 90 max damage. He can make money and has reason to continue to improve his products, so he can continue to have the best.
For us a novice architects house is just as good as someone who spent all the time to get to master architect. So while people who want skill boxes in architect are selling small homes for whatever they can get, the master architect has no way of differentiating his product. So essentially he has no reason to produce small houses, the most in demand item.
As far as architects just being able to build something and have it, you are missing all the cost necessary to get that. To build a medium house with 18,000 resources for myself, it probably costs me 10-20k in extractor and wind gen maintenance to get the resources. So money is important to me to be able to get the things I need to build for myself or others. Plus, I want the best gun and a vehicle when it comes out, so I do want money.
Last thing, now that I have hit novice architect I am leveling much quicker than I thought. The gating factor is now resources and having the money to produce them.
I just want to build medium harvesters to support my resource business.
I dont need any profit, I dont plan to be an architect as a profession beyond installations II. I could buy my harvesters, but its easier in the long term to be able to make what I need myself on the spot. A little effort now will reduce overhead in the long term.
Because of that.. I am going to be inclined to sell cheap just to move the xp along. Once I get to where I need to be, I will switch to a for-profit business model. I wont care how many I sell, it will be aide business, so I can price them to move slowly but profitably.
Personally, I think if personal harvesters were architect I, then there would be a profitable market for low end architects other then houses. Since everyone, just about, can make personal harvesters, there is little way to gain xp making and selling those.
Thats just how it seems to me.
Regards,
Artuk
Mkappus wrote:
The money drains on us for maintenance are more than adequate to take all my money. I have to sell about 1/4 of my resources to break even. I would love to use those for crafting but you make more on selling resources.
Thismeans you areeither operating under a bad business model or are not working hard enough to sellbig ticket items like factories and medium houses.I'm an architect by myself, no PA to back me up (I have a PA, but we don't share lots or anything). Yet I have plenty of cash (230k last night).
The big problem is that the weaponsmiths and armorsmiths can create items that are better than competitors. On my surver Iduno can sell a scout blaster for 15k because it has 120max damage. No one can undercut his cost, because the best the can sell is 90 max damage. He can make money and has reason to continue to improve his products, so he can continue to have the best.
For us a novice architects house is just as good as someone who spent all the time to get to master architect. So while people who want skill boxes in architect are selling small homes for whatever they can get, the master architect has no way of differentiating his product. So essentially he has no reason to produce small houses, the most in demand item.
You aremostly correct here. If experimentation made some houses better in some way (reduced maintenance costs, more storage, etc) then the experimenting architect could differentiate. But that's a demand-side issue. I'm talking about supply side. Thereused to beplenty of people willing to pay 10-12k for a small house. But you had to do a little looking. When some archs start supplying them at 4k because they just wanted to dump them quick, that drives prices down and less people are willing to pay 12k.
As far as architects just being able to build something and have it, you are missing all the cost necessary to get that. To build a medium house with 18,000 resources for myself, it probably costs me 10-20k in extractor and wind gen maintenance to get the resources.
Sure, 10-20k. And you can get 70-80K for a medium (at least I can). So you spend 20k, build one, and make 50k profit. That allows you to build 2-3 more, and you suddenly have over 200k. Then what? You want the XP, and you have plenty of cash. You want to save some cash, but if you can sell even one medium a week, that will fuel all your medium harvesters, a house, and a factory. I know because I do it. Then you become lazy. You make a couple mediums, and a week goes by and you don't sell one. So you lower your price because you want the cash for a PA hall or to lend a friend or whatever. It's the XP that's most important for the aspiring architect, and you have plenty of caash, so why not help a customer out and give him that medium house for 30k? You're still making a small profit, right?
This is why people are willing to sell so cheap. Because right now money isn't really worth much to an architect (at least a good one).