Architect Archive
Thread: Novice Architects: They ain't heavy, they're my brothers.
My thoughts as a independent (Non-PA) Master Architect.
Complaining about undercutting will do nothing. Accept this.
Here's what I've done, although not nearly aggressively enough, with success.
When you see someone selling houses or harvesters at an insanely low price, you could just buy it and move on, resell it and make a decent profit. I've done this, we've all done this. However, rather than just buying it and moving on, I've taken the time on afew occasions to start talking to the guy and offering them tips. If they seem like reasonable people,I make em a deal. I'll buy walls and smalls off them as fast as they can grind em out, for resale at a higher price than they were selling for before. It lowers my profits, yes, but cuts down on boring crafting time even more.
So far, I've taken on two novices and trained em all the way up to master, and I really oughta do more.I get walls and modules at a decent rate, I have all of their lots working for me, it increases my available merchandise, and I easily maxed out my apprenticeship xp. WhenI had two working for me, I was able to give up crafting completely for about three weeks and focus solely on making sales. (Hooray!)They get sales as fast as they can make it, they don't have to worry about taking time away from the grind to sell stuff, (heck they can hang around the shop and grind for that matter) valuable tips about what's bugged and not, and you can help em with parts and stuff, and maybe some harvestersbelow retailto help em grind. They also are no longer forced to sell at ridiculous rates just to maintain their harvesters through the grind. In the long run, the profession as a whole should benefit, since you're helping dry up the surplus of cheap structures.
If you help novices out, they will remember your help when they hit master. My two apprentices have long ago moved on, and set up their own shops. We still share the occasional resource when one of us runs out, and we help keep each other up to date on resources on other planets. We also send each other business if one of us is unable to make something on demand, and our clients appreciate it. My goal is to eventually have three or fourarchitects working through one shop. One selling houses, one selling furniture, one selling structural parts for other architects, and maybe one poor guy on harvesters. Harvester customers always seem to be the most aggravating, and aren't worth the hassle for me, personally.
Think of it so much as not "helping the competition" so much as "building a community around a profession".
Don't spit at the novice in the marketplace. (Tempting as it is)Offer him a hand up. For all our sakes.
Everyone will think I am here to argue with you, but it is true when I see someomne selling at less than half the price I sell at, I simply buy it myself and re-sell it.
Still at a price that is lower than many others, but yeah I am not above re-selling. I will buy that small house at 4k and re-sell it at 8.5k
However I bleieve that everyone has a right to sell at whatever price works for them.
Mostly, I do to. I'm just saying that if you move beyond that, to the next logical step, (taking them on as an apprentice/employee) there are even more benefits beyond the short term profits of a quick sale.
We would never think that of you, Dayln.
Dayln wrote:
Everyone will think I am here to argue with you
Dayln,
I am interested to hear your opinion on the idea of training up-and-coming architects.
It seems to me that the idea of supporting your future competition would be anathema to you... but i would like to hear your view.
Personally I am supporting a fellow guild member by purchasing any wall modules he wants to sell, and by helping him with loans of large harvesters. I am not sure I would be keen to help someone else though (although I have purchased walls from others befor when i needed them).
I love the idea, but have not done it myself.
I am a small outfit, at my prices, buying walls form novices would not work for them all that well. I have 3 other partners that I try to keep up with, between their needs and my own I don’t currently have time ( especially as I am what you would call a casual player )
But a Master did take me under his wing and help me when I was a novice. I do help another young architect in different ways. I think it is a great idea, someday when our own needs don’t keep me so occupied I may do that.
Loaning out equipment I have done for a customer, and I have traded resources ( he needed something I had in great supply ) with a novice friend of mine that was working his way up. I have bought things I saw at what even I would call way under priced.
I think it is a great idea and I salute anyone that does that.
Ohi helped me out up to master long ago (though I was selling at reasonable prices). Since then, I've completely surrendered artisan. Now I've bought a second account and working my way up to Master Architect again (Though it is much easier with a viable source of income from my pure-combat character).
Ohi is a great guy. Keep it up, buddy!
I agree with this tactic completely. It benefits both the novice and the master. The novice gets grinding XP, a good source of income and training. THe master gets a good source of walls that can help increase your sales. All architects get fewer cheap structures flooding the market.
If I see someone selling cheap first I ask them if they are an architect. Half the people I see shouting to sell cheap structures in cities are just non-Archtects looking to sell their old house.
If I run into an Architect selling cheap then I just buy it and then tell them that I have no problems selling such items at higher prices. Sometimes people get the point and sometimes they dont. I think a lot of the people selling cheap are doing itcause they don't know what to charge and/or because they just need to make a quick sale.
I buy walls from novices as well. Right now it seems the average price of shouted small sales is 6-8k (/shiver) I pay 10k for walls which gives the novice a much greater reward for less resources used. I've had two novices working for me but I am thinking of taking on additional.
I also offer to train those novices for free if they can catch me (I don't charge anyone for training but I never jump to train someone and have refused to train some that I know are lowballing and have refused my walls offer).
If only there were more people like you....
I can't make any money because of the economy maybe if I found someone who was willing to buy wall modules from me I might make a profit for a change.
Now I've bought a second account and working my way up to Master Architect again
That sir, is why you are INSANE. 
But thank you for you kind words and support. 
Speaking as a Novice Architect who is the student of Positronic (see earlier post from Posi about helping out a fellow guild mate), I think that apprenticing is an excellent idea, and I'm grateful for it. I benefit greatly from the experience and am happy to grind out walls and other things that Posi might need.
What can I say about low balling the prices? Sometimes I find myself having to sell things for ridiculously low prices to keep the harvesters humming and keep the resources coming so I can get the grinding going and rise up the skill trees. With Posi's help I don't need to do that. This also pulls my having to put items out on the market at low prices so that I can keep a steady flow of income coming in to keep things going.
I totally support Novice Architects (being one myself), and would hope that as a community of skilled artisans we'd push for helping one another, even though we are each other's competition.
Guide your fellow artisans along the path, and this will not only get you friends/allies/and excellent fellow peers, but will help us all keep the market afloat, and make things a heckuv'a lot more enjoyable as we go.
Just my humble opinion.