Merchant Archive
Thread: The nonskilled ‘merchant’ problem – or be careful what you ask for.
SeraphinAnnie wrote:
As I said above, my whole reason for posting was because Wire3k was making an attempt to causegriefforthe entire merchant profession due to the changes, and it's not in me to support or stand by something malicious like that. That's that.
Wire3k wrote:
Which is why I pointed out - or tried to point out to the less than helpful posters in this forum in graphic detail WHY it's probably not the best idea to heap abuse on top of everything else.
MMO players get into mischief from one of two primary reasons. Boredom and anger. Right now you have a condition where both exist and are of longtime duration - and not unjustifiably so.
The best case scenario is that they'll just up and leave the game - bad for merchants, less customers, less demand for customers.
The worst case scenario are some of what I have outlined which the system is being successfully altered to permit if someone was so inclined to do.
Neither of these are good for the game - or anyone else, including merchants.
Of course I agree that neither scenario would be a good thing. Yes, taking the ability to "poach" pisses people off that did it. I understand that to a degree. However, the focus of this argument should be around giving everyone their *own* special vendor-type ability, instead of trying to justify the need to keep skills you don't have the skills points invested in. Do you see what I mean?
The problem many merchants have with poaching isn't that others could sell stuff. The problem was that they felt that their profession was being taken advantage of, instead of it being special for those who sacrificed the skill points.
My point is: If people want the ability to have a free vendor, then they need to rally for *that*.Not to throw a fit tryingto get back what should of never been theirs, which was a piece of a professionthey didn't keep. It should of never been that way, and while it sucks to have to sacrifice now, all of us legitimate merchants did it and so can they.
Leave the Merchant profession to what little they do have, it's theirs. Poaching is bad.
Fight for your own special ability instead.
SeraphinAnnie wrote:
Of course I agree that neither scenario would be a good thing. Yes, taking the ability to "poach" pisses people off that did it. I understand that to a degree. However, the focus of this argument should be around giving everyone their *own* special vendor-type ability, instead of trying to justify the need to keep skills you don't have the skills points invested in. Do you see what I mean?
The problem many merchants have with poaching isn't that others could sell stuff. The problem was that they felt that their profession was being taken advantage of, instead of it being special for those who sacrificed the skill points.
My point is: If people want the ability to have a free vendor, then they need to rally for *that*.Not to throw a fit tryingto get back what should of never been theirs, which was a piece of a professionthey didn't keep. It should of never been that way, and while it sucks to have to sacrifice now, all of us legitimate merchants did it and so can they.
Leave the Merchant profession to what little they do have, it's theirs. Poaching is bad.
Those arguments have been met by outright hostility here for MONTHS. And hostility was the milder of the reactions. It's been tried - repeatedly.
And yeah, SOME merchants do have a problem with the idea of anyone but them selling anything. If you have a strong stomach - review this board for the past few months. Any time anyone dared stick their nose in this forum and point out how they needed this or that functionality they'd promptly get it chopped off and handed back to them.
Iannyen wrote:
Xconxors wrote:
Im so tired of merchants suggesting that I work with them to sell my wares.. Does anyone reallybelieve that kind of time sink could work out for anyone who doesn't play full time?
Lets not forget the huge up-front cash it would take to buythe relatively low amount of wares on my vendor right now. Only the established, multi-account holding, power gamers could afford to operate that way.
Which brings us to what this nerf is really about. A poorly disguised attempt by SOE to force me to get another account.
Question: What "exploit" (unfair advantage) does SOE never mention, and never will?
Answer: A second account. Pay SOE more money, and your vendor/ storage/ skillpoint issues are solved.
Hmmmm..
No, lets not forget about it.
What do you have listed, and at what prices. If its not much, it should be easy to remember, right? Just getting close will suffice.
DingoBoi wrote:
Barris wrote:
I support what he says, however people like ourselves are often met with torches of short sited ignorance who think that some how not having skills to place venders but still using them 'defaces' the profession, which is only really good for placing venders and nothing more.
You state that the profession is good for only placing vendors and nothing else. You state that placing vendors without the skill does not deface the profession.
If the only value of the profession is the vendors, how can using them without the skill NOT devalue the profession?
SeraphinAnnie wrote:
You're right, I haven't read all the posts here for the past few months. But, I have been reading the posts by non-merchants here lately, and none of them have been kind. Sure, they "ask for a vendor", but their post is also full of flames and putdowns, which people obviously won't respond well to.
But, I can't speak for the merchants who have posted here before I started to. I will go back and read some, see if I spot what you're talking about.
However, despite any hostility non-merchants have gotten from merchants on these boards, it doesn't make "poaching" fair. That's what I've meant when I said that you can't excuse poor behavior. It's still poor, despite why they behaved that way. On both sides. Merchants giving non-merchants a hard time on a forum is not a good reason that SOE should allow "poaching" to continue. That's really my whole deal on this. Someone with a combat profession wanting the ability to easily sell loot/wares IS a valid reason to want a vendor. But it is not a good reason to want another profession's skills for free.
If you discount the whole issue of the behavior of people on this board, and just look at that fact alone, you might agree.
Besides, it hasn't been done yet, and SOE hasn't said they're doing it, but that doesn't mean it's out of the question, or not being heard. You're a Tailor too, you should know by now that requests can be seemingly ignored for months even though there are plans for it.
Just the term 'poaching' is offensive when used often enough. NO ONE has a 'poached' vendor. Every single one of those had the skill at one time - or they wouldn't have been ABLE to have them in the first place.
Most of the folks this affectsuse vendors for other reasons including selling, but certainly not limited to it. The underlying systems DEMAND high storage requirements, was vendors a good work around, naw - but it was officially recognized as being preferrable to clogging up houses.
The mailbox thread is interesting - everyone both merchant and non need ways to connect to other people securely when they aren't online at the same time.
Ask most crafters (not on this board - in their own) and you will find they LIKE running their own shops, big, small - it doesn't really matter, it's their little piece of the world. Big ones tend to not fall into the category of 'poached' because they've voluntarily taken at least one other account to fill in the blanks - their volumn is enough to justify that expense in terms of their game satisfaction. I don't think 'selling' wise you'd need much facility for them to have a satisfactory solution to their problem and allow them the joy and dignity of feeling they are contributing and participating in the way they wish to - to the world. Merchants on this board have steadfastly refused that they have that right. They are no threat, in fact - they offer buying opportunities for resale. The bazaar is NOT sufficient to need, and hawking in front of starports is intrusive to everyone.
Decoration - not at the top of the list by any means, but one way some players add flavor to their establishments. These hurt absolutely no one as they usually aren't even initialized unless the player wants them to bark a message.
Then there is the whole - not all trades and SP are created equal problem. Bio's and Docs don't have the luxury of 'just get a coke machine' and sit it in the corner even at basic artisan skills - it's not in their prereq's - but the general attitude here is - oh well, so sad, guess you should wholesale to me so I can make a profit off your labors. Now, even if they do manage to scrap up enough basic points for a basic vendor - what they are restricted to in amount of sales still isn't acceptable for what anyone that has elite crafting class should have.
This isn't even a comprehensive list - but vendors filled all those needs - for all those people, those are being taken away - what's being given to address the same problems? What's being given to merchants BESIDES basic distribution function of vendors to actually make it 'worth' being an elite class?
hPulls out fire hose.h
Turns it on.
Applies liberally to forums.
Packs up hose
Rides off into sunset
h