Doctor Archive

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Zeddy_Merteer wrote:

...If prices HAVE to go up, I could, in good conscience, charge 15k, but any more than that is, plain and simple, greed. Charge 50k if you want, I could care less. I'm more than happy to plunk down beside you, with a year old rep and a former customer base that might make your head spin, and charge 10 or 15k for a better buff than you offer.

Some of us are Docs to serve the community. Some, I guess are Docs to serve themselves.

To each his own, but don't expect the real Docs to follow suit.

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Zeddy, very well put. I agree with your entire post, and only quoted the last part to save everyone else having to scroll so much. You are the kind of doctor most combat folks wanna see: you heal, treat poison, AND do buffs. Most of us non-docs have no problems paying you guys extra.

In the long run, you will still be around long after the greedy ones are gone...and probably have more credits to boot! It is too bad that docs like you are hard to find on the street....glad we got a "good" one in our guild though

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EdieBauer wrote:

I agree with Zeddy... if you look back, I said the highest I could see is 20k, but I could never do 50k.

Whoever resonded to me as said that crying of 100k profit in a day is childish is dead wrong. If almost any profession spent their entire day selling/fighting, they would likely make 5 times that. If a TKM continually paid 10k for buffs and ran missions all day, they would make probably 5 million or more in profits. Now for other crafters it is different because you cannot really sell all day.

But if I were to sit in Theed (which is where I buff usually), and buffed all day, I am talking like 12 hours, besides being bored out of my mind, I would likely not even make 1 million in profit or anywhere close to it. And in that time, I could buff enough players for them to probably make a billion credits.

So call us what you want... and don't critisize me for calling anyone names when I get called greedy, carebear (don't PvP) and others... I would like to make a bit more money. If I double my price to 20k (which I won't likely do) I would still only make half of what others can do. And do not tell me not to be a doctor then. I don't want to be TKM or such just so I can get a buff and go hit the same buttons over and over until I am rich. I do Doc so that I can gather my tools, sit and give people buffs whilst I converse with them.

As for the casual player, that is what non master docs should be for. They make or purchase lesser buffs and use them on players who cannot afford the best. The newb docs gain experience, the casual player gets a decent buff... everyone wins. And if you are a casual player and cannot afford the best, don't get mad at me. If you cannot afford a Mercedes, should they lower the price so you can? NO! There is no market for lower buffs because everyone wants the best... well guess what... if you do, you get what you pay for.

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not everyone friend... I have taken plenty of novice buffers up on their offers of buffs... lowest buff was around 1400 I think... and I was fine with that.. can't remember the price... but it was cheap, somthing like 2k give or take..... some people just want a decent buff to aid in a mission... not all of us are out hunting NS or Krayts...

just thought I point that out.

so i say there is a market if one was to advertise.....

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EdieBauer wrote:

Whoever resonded to me as said that crying of 100k profit in a day is childish is dead wrong. If almost any profession spent their entire day selling/fighting, they would likely make 5 times that. If a TKM continually paid 10k for buffs and ran missions all day, they would make probably 5 million or more in profits. Now for other crafters it is different because you cannot really sell all day.

The TKM isn't running macros all day. Good on ya (seriously) if you sit in front of the keyboard for 12 hours every day and manually buff every customer. However, most docs selling buffs are simply bots camped in front of a spaceport...running macros for the same 12 hours while the player is off doing other things. If a TKM (which most of us are NOT) were to play for 12 hours, he might make a lot of money but he'd visit you at least 4 times (probably more if he didn't have his own stimpacks) which equals at least 400K from that one player for a total of 20 minutes attention. By your ownlogic, a buffbot at 10K per buff, 5 minutes per buff, buffing 12 hours straight, you would earn about 1.5M credits. That's still 300K credits ofPROFIT per day without raising your prices over 10K.

But if I were to sit in Theed (which is where I buff usually), and buffed all day, I am talking like 12 hours, besides being bored out of my mind, I would likely not even make 1 million in profit or anywhere close to it. And in that time, I could buff enough players for them to probably make a billion credits.

True, you could make up to 300K at a rate of 10K per buff. However, the arguement being made is skewed...it assumes that everyone who comes in for a buff is able to take on the big missions; ie they are a power-player.

As an average player, a solo marksman or scout at the upper end of the skill trees can expect to shell out (right now) 10K to you for a buff (another 1K to clone at the nearest city at least 1K to insure items if it is an explorer mission, plus transport costs). The mission probably lasts anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes IF they take a mission that is evenly matched to their skills. The payout is usually between 1500 and 3000 credits. The resources can maybe be sold for another 2-4K at best. Now, a lot of average players either aren't skilled or don't have the credits to buy stimpaks. Plus, to make money, you have to take a mission that is difficult...which means some of the targets will be slightly above your skill level (yellow or better). As a result, within the 2.5 hour buff they bought from you, it is very likely that they will be killed at least once. So we waste another 10 minutes tarvelling to and from the cloning center. At best, the average marksman or scout will complete3 missions per hour under this scenario. That could mean up to 21K credits earned per hour, with 11K as profit (unless the go and get re-buffed). Since the average player plays 4-6 hours per day, that totals up to a possible 66K maximum profit for a day's work....I have never made that myself, but I guess it IS possible.

So call us what you want... and don't critisize me for calling anyone names when I get called greedy, carebear (don't PvP) and others... I would like to make a bit more money. If I double my price to 20k (which I won't likely do) I would still only make half of what others can do. And do not tell me not to be a doctor then. I don't want to be TKM or such just so I can get a buff and go hit the same buttons over and over until I am rich. I do Doc so that I can gather my tools, sit and give people buffs whilst I converse with them.

I didn't and won't call you anything. My comment was that the public doctors are continuallly bashing each other in front of the spaceports. Trust me, that makes all the docs look bad, and creates no sympathy for your profession. I won't tell you not to be a doctor either. Just realize that the move to raise buff prices 500%will hurt everyone in the long run. When the hunters start raising their resource prices so they can afford buffs, and the crafters raise prices so they can afford resources, we will be right back here again.

Ironically,the call to raise prices for all buffs comes from the same people who stand to be hurt the most by it: a very vocal group of folks in this game who think the sole purpose is to get as many credits as possible. I'm not saying it is you, Eddie.

Fortunes are made two ways: by monopoly and by competition. In SWG, it is impossible to have a monopoly. That leaves competition. On the surface,asking all the docs in the game today to raise their prices to 50K sounds like a real money-maker. Force the rest of us to make pay a higher price, and your profits will go up. But there will ALWAYS be a group of players who chose to sell goods below the market price. Why? Because they know by having lower prices, they will get more customers. To complain and publicly berate docswho are cheaper than you (which I see all the time in front of starports) is like Targetcrying that WalMart's prices are too low. For a long time, all the box-stores had roughly the same prices. Then along comes Sam Walmart. Walmart knows that by having lower prices, they will get more customers than Target which in the long run means higher profits. That is exactly what will happen to the docs who charge 50K...the "walmarts" will get all their business. Funny thing about economies...sometimes charging more money does not always mean higher profits.

Sure, we non-docs have created a DEMAND for your services, but some docs realize that raising prices is not always the smartest move. It ultimately ends up driving up costs across the entire economy....which cuts right back into your profit marign.

As for the casual player, that is what non master docs should be for. They make or purchase lesser buffs and use them on players who cannot afford the best. The newb docs gain experience, the casual player gets a decent buff... everyone wins. And if you are a casual player and cannot afford the best, don't get mad at me. If you cannot afford a Mercedes, should they lower the price so you can? NO! There is no market for lower buffs because everyone wants the best... well guess what... if you do, you get what you pay for.

Sure, we all want the best buffs our money can buy. It's called value. At a certain point, the value of your buffs will drop because people no longer can afford them. It won't be worth it to spend 50K that took the average player a whole day to earn.

It would be great if there was a row of docs, each charging different prices for different quality buffs. But there isn't. There is usually a line of docs outside the starport. Many times, their spam does not reflect theactualbuff stats. So the average player picks a line and gets the buff. There is usually one guy charging more, and everyone else is charging the same. I have yet to see a doc charge substatially less because his buffsweren't that good. Noob docs are usually (not always) pretty greedy for XPand credits so they end up charging the same 10K...hoping that people will accept a lesser buff after they have stood in line.

Either way, the noob is not going to afford a 50K buff, and neither will a lot of the regular players.

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To all the docs,

I think that you have every right to raiseyour prices if you so desire. My posts are simply here to show you what can happen if you take it too far....50K for example . Please do not be short-sighted when you make your individual decisions. As I believe I have shown, if all the docs get carried away raising prices, it will end up inflating the whole economy even more. You'll end up making more money, but your profits won't increase. Don't forget about the end to solo-grouping...many of your customers will be unable to purchase as many buffs...especially if your prices go up too much.Don't forget, someof the docs won't raise their prices regardless of what you decide here. They will be the"walmarts" who continue to turn long term profit, and ultimately cause you to lose profit. So please be careful and think before you decide.

Finally, please remember that you need us as much as we need you.

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Guamarhea wrote:

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N0stalgia wrote:

I am currently a master doctor on the eclipse server, and like a lot of us I buy my buff packs, I started buffing people for 10k thinking I was going to make a healthy profit, I quickly found out that this is not the case. I buffed 1 full day and make 1million credits I then had to buy more buffs, bivoli and brandy and ended up spending 900k on all of that.

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I wish I could set a macro up for hunting and scouting. Then I could play AFK all day, and make 1M credits!

Sorry, I have no sympathy for you doctors that camp in front of starports and such. I might get online for 3 or 4 hours every other night. Except for 15 minute stretches of camping, I am unable to get any XP or credits by simply logging on. I actually have to go out and interact with other players and the game itself (and risk getting killed for very little $$$) in order to advance my character.As a marksman, there aren'tmany (i.e. ANY) missionsone can do in 5 minutes that will reward 10K...never mind 15K.

I have yet to make 100K in a "day", never mind 1M. In fact, I don't even have 100K in the bank. So, thank you in advance for raising your prices so the goal of simply saving 100K will be that much farther from the noob- and mid-level players! Instead of fixing the economy, you are helping to ruin it farther. Don't be surprised when hunters start asking 500cpu just so we can buy your buffs and still "make a decent profit."

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Guamarhea wrote:

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N0stalgia wrote:

I am currently a master doctor on the eclipse server, and like a lot of us I buy my buff packs, I started buffing people for 10k thinking I was going to make a healthy profit, I quickly found out that this is not the case. I buffed 1 full day and make 1million credits I then had to buy more buffs, bivoli and brandy and ended up spending 900k on all of that.

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I wish I could set a macro up for hunting and scouting. Then I could play AFK all day, and make 1M credits!

Sorry, I have no sympathy for you doctors that camp in front of starports and such. I might get online for 3 or 4 hours every other night. Except for 15 minute stretches of camping, I am unable to get any XP or credits by simply logging on. I actually have to go out and interact with other players and the game itself (and risk getting killed for very little $$$) in order to advance my character.As a marksman, there aren'tmany (i.e. ANY) missionsone can do in 5 minutes that will reward 10K...never mind 15K.

I have yet to make 100K in a "day", never mind 1M. In fact, I don't even have 100K in the bank. So, thank you in advance for raising your prices so the goal of simply saving 100K will be that much farther from the noob- and mid-level players! Instead of fixing the economy, you are helping to ruin it farther. Don't be surprised when hunters start asking 500cpu just so we can buy your buffs and still "make a decent profit."

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If I am reading your post right.....

I don't know who told you we do our job AFK but they were lying....... Thank god we can't do it afk could you imagine zombie doctors like zombie entertainers?

My comments in yellow

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N0stalgia wrote:

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Guamarhea wrote:

As a marksman, there aren'tmany (i.e. ANY) missionsone can do in 5 minutes that will reward 10K...never mind 15K.

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well thats where the idea of low lvl docs come in charging cheaper for buffs but also giving lower quality buffs for the noobs out there,

Great idea, but as I said befiore, go past any starport and you'll find this to be the exception, not the rule. Most low lvl docs on tant and cnet are charging the same as masters

and having you hunt where you are supposed to hunt, like coronet and theed as a marksman.

My comparison was based soley on places like cnet and tant, hunting the creatures right off the mission terminals on those planets. I'm talking about hunting missions where you get a mix of blue, white, and yellow, creatures not red.

You do not need to be hunting on dantooine as a marksman anyways you need to be killing bunnies in cnet, or squills or dewbacks.

That is what I'm referring to.

Sure it doesn't sounds as exciting as killing a rancor or nightsisters but hey you werent meant to be killing any of these until you were an elite proffession. I bet if you hunted in cnet or theed or tatooine you'd lvl up faster than you would on dantooine or dathomir,

I did. But that doesn't mean I wasn't killed along the way, and that the payouts weren't still crappy.

I know when I was an aspiring swordsman I tried getting buffed and hunting on dantooine, while the xp was awesome, it took me forever to kill the mob so the xp vs time was obsolete and I went back to tatooine and made it from two handed 3 to novice marksman in about an hour.

My point exactly, the whole discussion about raising buffs to 50K is predicated on the idea that the majority of the hunters ARE able to do 5 minute (okay 10 minute :smileyhappy missions for 10K+ reward.

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Message Edited by Guamarhea on 11-12-2004 03:39 PM

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Zeddy_Merteer wrote:

Good post, EdieBauer. I wish Doctor was mandatory for people to play for a month, and they would realize just what goes onto actually 'playing' a doc.

But...

50k for a buff? Gimme a break. Let's do some math, kids.

50k per buff X 30 buffs (per hour @ 2 min ea) = 1.5 million credits

minus

6 buffpacks @ 30k ea = 180,000 (an hours worth of buffs)

If you wanna throw in the insignificant cost of droid, clothing, bivoli and brandy, fine, but making this kind of money, the cost of that PER BUFF is negligible.

So, we'll top off our expenses per hour at 200k. That is 1.3 million profit IN ONE HOUR. Even at 30k, the profit is 700,000c, a 350% profit on your expenses. Put into perspective, that's 20 Rancor missions. If this is truly the amount of money you need to justify buffing, I suggest Armorsmith or Weaponsmith. You can spend hours doing the same monotonous things, without most of the human interaction, and make the money you think you're worth.

Some of us are Docs to serve the community. Some, I guess are Docs to serve themselves.

To each his own, but don't expect the real Docs to follow suit.

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Believe it or not I am here to serve the community and not myself, but I want to be able to support myself and if you are a "real Doc" then you would surely follow suit because you are infact the real deal and you know what it is like, this is why I started this thread for the other "real Docs" out there like me that are underappreciated and EXPECTED to buff at all times, have you ever had your tag up in a place that doesn't have a doc buffing?! TELL HELL!!! and then when you politely tell them you are not buffing they beg you to buff because nobody else is, then you tell them your price and get flamed because it's too expensive for their cheap asses. And once again I don't buff just for profit I do it for fun, you'll often find me buffing people for free, if they say they don't have the cash I tell them to give me what theygot (if they talk in spatial) and then send them a tell tellin them I'll just give it to them, you may ask why I do this, and the answer is simply because if I tell one person that says they do not have any or much money that I will buff them for free then I get a lot of people that have suddenly ran out of money and want their buffs for free