Guild Wars 2

(chainsaw sound) My have the mods been aggressive.

I think the problem is with the notion that by the time a player collects the rest of the materials needed, they would have had a precursor dropped on them. Again it’s an issue with the perception of probability. And while using the mystic slot machine to forge one is one way to supplement the drop rate and remove the glut of lesser items, it’s as expensive as purchasing one off the TP. Without selling your unwanted precursor that dropped on you, buying one is out reach except by the most dedicated players devoted to wealth acquisition or quite a lot of disposable income than your average student.

We aren’t quite at 10g per dollar but the gem to gold rate is getting close with this latest Gem Shop restock of skins. 8000 gems, $100, is roughly 880g.

The long and short of it is precursors aren’t dropping at a rate that would give a player playing 500 hours (example) toward crafting a legendary a 50/50 chance of having one dropped on them.

It’s a long term goal and 500 hours isn’t really a lot. With that said, 500 hours at 5 gold an hour is 2,500 gold which is just enough to buy the materials off the TP and craft it.

Terrahero.9358:

This is not just a problem with precursors but one that affects all highly-rare tradeable good.
As soon as a scarcity is detected, people with more gold then you could’ve thought possible, buy them out as a future investment.

Of course, some wealthy players do this. The question is: does it happen enough that it affects the market. When John Smith has replied to similar topics, he’s said, no: there is never a single player or even an accidental consortium that controls the supply (outside of exceptions lasting hours).

So, yes, rich people speculate on high-demand items (in an effort to be much richer eventually) and they will make money. But, according to Smith, they aren’t the primary cause of the scarcity or the pricing. (As a side note: remember that many will speculate in stuff that turns out to be worthless, too.)

Ayrilana.1396:

It’s a long term goal and 500 hours isn’t really a lot. With that said, 500 hours at 5 gold an hour is 2,500 gold which is just enough to buy the materials off the TP and craft it.

500 hours of playing an level 80 perhaps, but for a player simply leveling for the first time to 80 could take 150 hours to accomplish. And it took me a while to understand which events and activities paid well. If the player got into the money pit of crafting, which rarely becomes profitable until the highest levels on certain items, he may not be acquiring a net amount of gold all that quickly. He may be the type to grind for gold but rather simply play in the world doing DEs and the occasional boss event every night.

Not everyone is willing to farm Orr for T6 mats or do the dungeon path rotation or ride the boss train every 15 minutes their entire play session. That’s min/max thinking as oppose to playing a game because you enjoy it. I’m sure it wasn’t ANet’s plan that players should adopt such degenerate play styles but rather hoped that players would simply play in the world.

Like I said, it’s a long term goal. If they think they can get it in a matter of months without any effort then they’ll be in for a shock. How much a player chooses to earn and spend is entirely up to them. It’s all about priorities.

Behellagh.1468:

Not everyone is willing to farm Orr for T6 mats or do the dungeon path rotation or ride the boss train every 15 minutes their entire play session. That’s min/max thinking as oppose to playing a game because you enjoy it. I’m sure it wasn’t ANet’s plan that players should adopt such degenerate play styles but rather hoped that players would simply play in the world.

yep, you hit the nail on the head. The reason why I dislike these activities because they remind me of farmville. Seriously, why grind simple task and press a few buttons to receive the greatest reward. I find these activities boring. I want to play the game rather than continue this continuous cycle of checking timers and progress bars.

loseridoit.2756:

Behellagh.1468:

Not everyone is willing to farm Orr for T6 mats or do the dungeon path rotation or ride the boss train every 15 minutes their entire play session. That’s min/max thinking as oppose to playing a game because you enjoy it. I’m sure it wasn’t ANet’s plan that players should adopt such degenerate play styles but rather hoped that players would simply play in the world.

yep, you hit the nail on the head. The reason why I dislike these activities because they remind me of farmville. Seriously, why grind simple task and press a few buttons to receive the greatest reward. I find these activities boring. I want to play the game rather than continue this continuous cycle of checking timers and progress bars.

I sell stuff I don’t want and use the funds generated from that to buy stuff I do want. I don’t farm foxfires, charged lodes, or armored scales; I pay others to do that for me.

I really don’t like farming for more than 30 minutes, so I’m happy to share my wealth with others that do.

loseridoit.2756:

Seriously, why grind simple task and press a few buttons to receive the greatest reward.