Droid Engineer Archive
Thread: Bad Game ethics?
I was flamed today by a player 'bokie', on bria for my business activities. He went on ranting and raving saying that he would get me banned from the game/forums for what I was doing. It was his belief that it was unfair game play etc etc.
I am grinding my way up to MDE and I got sick of running missions to earn money. We all know what that is like. So I found a new business opportunity. A resource re-sales person.
I comb the bazaar looking for players that are selling resources for extremely cheap prices. Like less than 3cu. I buy up all those resources, travel to all the different planets etc etc to get the best deal. Then I split them and resell them for 4cu. Flat price no matter what the resource is or it's quality. If it's the type of resource I need for grinding (like steel & fibreplast) I keep some of it. Usually I am able to grind for free and pay for my skill training.
Now bokie was putting steel up for sale on the bazaar at 3cu. I was buying it as soon as he put it there and then reselling some at 4cu and keeping the rest. I believe that this is just a good business plan and part of the game. He is getting payed for the steel he sells, no matter who he sells it to. So what does it matter what I then do with it?
Does this sound like unfair game play to you guys?
/agree with both of you
Fair play; mis-catogorized post.
I think you should really tease the guy by forwarding all your 'auction complete' emails to him whenever someone buys your resold minerals.
But I really support your actions on this. That is an excellent use of market dynamics. If he doesn't like it then let him sell his stuff at 4 CPU. There's 3 types of people in this game: those people who accept things by the look of the cover, those who will fight in vain to change what is written, and those few of us who learn to live between the lines. Enjoy living the third by selling to the first and ignoring the second 
yea, I'd say there's absolutely nothing wrong with that, I do the same thing with skill enhancing attachments (don't really need the money but I collect a lot of them too, this makes it easier). I see a few each day on the bazaar for 1-2k, buy them all up, and resell them on forum auctions or by some other means. If you ask me both people win, the original seller gets money for it quick (as opposed to having to wait around for someone else to buy it) and you get a little extra profit out of it. They're not losing any money if they were going to sell it for that price anyway.
What you are doing is retailing and speculating. This is a common business practice. If the wholeseller made profit and you made profit and the end user gets what they want, then you did nothing wrong. The only judge of right and wrong, assuming you did not deceive anyone, is the market. If you are wrong, then your product will not sell and you will lose money.
Bokie on Bria is another case entirely. He is one of those people who likes to walk into cantinas and challenge novice entertainers to duels. He seems to get off talking big to people with no combat skills and generally harrasses entertainers he doesn't like the looks of.
I think that kind of thing should be encouraged because it makes the economy in the game more dynamic and realistic. Especially if you are traveling to other planets to sell a rescource that is in shortage. Supply and demand, that is what it is all about. I guess that dude has never heard of the stock market cause that is what you are in essence doing. Buying low and selling high.
I've done that on may occasions, and will happily do so again. Just a few weeks ago, I found three (!) crates of standard Probots (!!) for 5000cr per crate (!!!!). I bought them and have been selling them on the Bazaar for 3000cr per probot. Still below cost, but I didn't make them, I'm getting 3x my investment, and it's an advertising opportunity.
I've seen other folks selling BH droids on the bazaar, charging a tenth of what they are worth; I buy 'em and resell 'em for a more proper price. I don't like people undercutting my market. 
Dont worry about that other guy. He has no idea what he is talking about. Reselling has been going on since launch day. I have done it dozens of times and I will do it many more times if the opportunity presents itself. I have found other DE's that have been selling thier probots for 6k each. I buy them up off their vendor and put them on mine for 20k and they fly off the shelves. It saves me the time and resources of building them myself.
Heck, I got my start as a DE by building all the droids I could at the level I was at and selling them to a wholesaler at 50% what they were worth. I made tons if credits while not being a MDE and he made tons of credits as well. It was a total win-win-win situation. Customers came to him because he had one shop with everything in it.
I did the same thing with vehicles too. The jokers that were undercutting on the day they were launched, I bought about 40 vehicles and put them up on my vendor with the ones I made. I still cant keep those things in stock. And my prices are more than double what they were asking outside the starport.
Business is business.
This is plain smart if you can make money at it. I see nothing wrong with it at all. As a matter of fact I have one DE on my server that makes and sells individual seeker droids for 300 credits. I run to his place every few days, buy them up and sell them for 1000 on my vendor. I see his price as absolutely rediculously low and being able to sell them at 1000 easily should prove my point.
If you can do it, go for it. You are not exploiting anything at all besides the other guys stupidity.
Hes just miffed hes not making as much money as you are