NOTE: Intro adjusted since it seems people either stopped reading at the word “precursor” or hung onto it like it was a cry for a quicker legendary. It’s not! Read thoroughly and then respond so there are no misunderstandings.
The scarcity of crafting materials as they are is ok. Things like Ectos to make Legendaries is fine and still under the control of the players. We can acquire a fair amount without too much hassle by salvaging. However, the Precursor situation is getting worse by the day.
Since September the price of most precursors seems to have gone up an average of 100 gold a month with Dawn and Dusk, arguably the most popular on the verge of reaching a price of 700 gold probably before March comes. This is ridiculous and will soon become too daunting, if not already for many players and they will quit. Imagine 6 months from now looking at the price of a precursor starting at 1000 gold.
What’s worse than that though is how the scarcity of precursors is inflating the market overall. It’s not just precursors that will continue to rise in price dramatically, everything will. Why? Because the near impossibility, the ultra scarcity of precursors is frustrating so many players and they are turning to the RMT companies.
Many players are already very comfortable with RMT and more will choose RMT for precursors soon. The more people become comfortable with RMT, the more money can be made from the game by RMT. More money to be made means more interest in RMT companies controlling the in game economy and drive up the price to make everything expensive and RMT a last option to buy anything of significant value….I’ve seen this before.
The good news is that it’s not too late. ArenaNet need only to crack down harder on RMT companies and permaban goldfarmers at a faster rate. Less gold farmers means less gold supply to be sold and inflation will slow. This will always be a battle for ANet though and I wish you the best of luck in fighting RMT companies.
What ArenaNet REALLY needs to do though, is work on ultra scarce items that can be sold on the trading post and that starts with precursors. Here’s a couple ideas…
1. Remove Precursors from the Legendary recipe: Probably not going to happen, but when you don’t need a precursor for a legendary, they won’t be desired so greatly and the price will plummet. Then you can buy a precursor for around the same price maybe as any other exotic.
2. Increase the supply of Precursors: More supply means more competition from more sellers and the price will go down fast.
The 2nd option is probably the only real option but I thought I’d just throw that out there about the legendary recipe.
As far as increasing the supply goes, instead of simply increasing the drop rate, Arenanet can be clever about it and simply add more ways in which precursors can be obtained. Perhaps after a long quest chain that requires traveling through all dungeon paths and a certain level fractals. Purchasing a precursor with karma or skill points from a special npc. Killing a certain number of players or some kind of points earned from WvW. Stuff like that.
Whatever doesn’t require gold. When you increase the need for gold, you increase the interest of RMT companies planting goldfarmers in the game which in a short amount of time rots the economy and nearly forces players to buy gold from them to get what they want from the game.
I’m sure you guys are putting your heads together on how to make Guild Wars 2 better in many ways and I tell you from experience…you have got to reduce the need for gold and replace it instead with effort by players.
RMT is a real threat. Precursors and anything ultra scarce that can be sold on the trading post in exchange for gold is exactly what they need to do what they do best….ruin online games. No doubt eliminating RMT completely is a near impossibility but they can be reduced greatly and Precursors is where it starts.
Edit: typos
(edited by Draven.7210)