The Barter Area on test

[Maevenniia]

Couple other things:

- We thought about putting them in the same zone, but had to decide against it for several technical reasons not the least of which was that the bazaar zone was already overworked just handling bazaar people (and their searches, etc.). Potentially doubling the number of players in that zone was worrying. Having 2 zones where you could do both wasn't a great answer, either, as people would gravitate to one or the other, creating one full and one empty zone.

Understandable.

How about a compromise solution?

Allow /bazaar AND /barter to work in BOTH zones. (the search windows, not the ones that put you into the relevant modes)

ex: I'm in the Bazaar and want to set up a Trader for the night, but before I do so I do a quick search in the /barter window to see if anyone in the Bartering Quarter is buying this stuff. If the answer is yes, I will zone over and sell my stuff to the Buyer. If the answer is no, I can set up my Trader and avoid zoning for no reason.

Same goes for setting up in Buyer mode. In the BQ I can do a quick search in the /bazaar window, after all a trader may already have the Widget_01 I want, at a price I'm willing to pay, but if not, I will have avoided the necessity to zone into the Bazzar to check.

Obviously the "Find Trader" button in the window for the opposite zone couldnt function ("You cannot find this Trader, he is in the Bazaar", "You cannot find this Buyer, she is in the Bartering Quarter")

If this is feasible it would be great.

[Tanker]

My current information is: The Barter zone will be open to all, but only people with the expansion will be able to enter Buyer Mode. So anyone can sell to you, but only DoN owners can buy in the zone.

[edit] Must learn to read better.

[Verdandi]

My personal opinion:

Technical issues are understandable. But I do agree that having the bartering area in a separate zone from the Bazaar will be highly inconvenient. I think it will significantly reduce the value of the feature for the players, especially the large portion of frequent sellers/shoppers who cannot afford another entire account (or another computer to run it on) at the same time as their Bazaar mule.

I also suspect that once the novelty has worn off, people who go to the bartering area will be largely people who would have gone to the Bazaar otherwise. Sellers will go to the bartering area first, then go set up in the Bazaar. Buyers will check the Bazaar first, then go set up in the bartering area. People who want to do both will gnash their teeth and end up alternating, or suck it up and buy another account (and computer?). I don't think that the overall population using both features will be that different from the population using just the Bazaar now.

And further, I've noticed that the population of the Bazaar on my server (as indicated by the message on entering that tells how many Traders are active) has halved in the last six months. So even if the population did double, it would just be back where it was for a long time. Once we had the option to hide Traders, my problems there vanished (heh).

All of that said, it still sounds like a great feature with some creative options. I am savoring the possibilities. I just really wish the separation from the Bazaar would be reconsidered. I realize this is useless from a testing standpoint, but just my thoughts.

[Sanna]

When I first arrived on Tarew from Sullon, I encountered the surprising (to me) fact that, wow, I couldn't get into trader mode. There were 550 traders already up. It wasn't until after the original release of Gates hit the fan that I was able to consistantly enter trader mode. I believe now, there are ~350 traders in Tarew's bazaar.

While I understand that machines have limits to what they can process (I two-boxed on a single stick of ram for far too long : x), people have limits to what they will or even can pay for a game. I agree with Mav, after the shinie-ness wears off, having two zones will merely become a hassle... especially for those who zone slower than a sloth.

First and foremost, the two zones NEED a connection. My main trader has 500+ wt sometimes, and even my spell/spell-parts trader can weigh like 200. No way am I gonna deal with trying to go to the Barter area if I can't just zone there.

Having one search tool cross reference two zones would be /very/ conveinent, but it sounds like that runs in to the same processing problem as just sticking everyone in one zone /anyway/. However, from 'our' side of things, the one-zone answer /is/ the most convienent. There must be some kind of middle option. (Maybe if I go wash dishes, the answer will come to me... been having little epiphenies that way recently : x.)

So far, the Barter thing sounds great... but it always comes down to that one [strike]piece of really-stuck-on rice[/strike] thing that just doesn't wanna be physically possible. Such happens.

Thanks for at least not abandoning the original game, even though this means I have to find $50 within a couple of weeks : p.

-- Sanna

[Silound]

My current information is: The Barter zone will be open to all, but only people with the expansion will be able to enter Buyer Mode. So anyone can sell to you, but only DoN owners can buy in the zone.

I'd highly advise against this. Mostly because a lot of people are tired of buying expansions, and not a lot are probably interested in buying DoN just to get this potentially highly useful ability. This will probably cause another spur of disgruntled posts about Sony this, SOE that, etc. etc. somewhere similar along the lines of buying LoY for the bank space, and buying expansions just for the AA's or new classes, and all those other dead horses.

As a show of goodwill to the players, I'd think it would be more sound in a business sense to offer the ability to set up in buy mode to everyone, thus preventing more dissent and various rants that are sure to pop up. Plus it offers the point of view that Sony isn't out to gouge players for more money, thus gaining kudos (or not losing them, depending on who you're talking to) that will be valuable to future success.

Besides, wasn't the Bazaar a freebie to everyone regardless of wether they had Luclin or not?

My 2cp however.

[KyrosKrane]

Besides, wasn't the Bazaar a freebie to everyone regardless of wether they had Luclin or not?

I'm not disputing your earlier points (or agreeing with them, for that matter). However, as far as I know, the Bazaar is a Luclin zone; you can only reach it via the Nexus and Shadow Haven. Unless the Nexus is also an open zone, you can't get to the Bazaar without having Luclin.

[Silound]

I'm not disputing your earlier points (or agreeing with them, for that matter). However, as far as I know, the Bazaar is a Luclin zone; you can only reach it via the Nexus and Shadow Haven. Unless the Nexus is also an open zone, you can't get to the Bazaar without having Luclin.

Aye, I believe that the Nexus and Bazaar were open to anyone, thought my memory could be off a bit...I seem to remember taking the shards to NK and not having SoL till later.

[Cerpicio]

As someone else mentioned, the ability to zone directly from the Barter Hall to the Bazaar would be great. Having to go through the Nexus and PoK would be a royal pain.

But I haven't seen much of the Barter zone, so I don't know if it is already in.


-- C.

[Trellium]

Lol, I thought the Nexus and bazaar were only open to people with the Luclin expansion. I am pretty sure I tried to get in there once on a new account I had that was only EQ/Kunark/Velious, and not getting in to the Nexus.

My current information is: The Barter zone will be open to all, but only people with the expansion will be able to enter Buyer Mode. So anyone can sell to you, but only DoN owners can buy in the zone.

I think restricting the /Buyer mode to the expansion is fine. Would I buy the expansion just for that feature? Yes, most probably that and the guild enhancements. My wife (Sanadila) and I have been using it for the last few days in the Barter zone, and it really does seem to offer new functionality for us, and we like how it is implemented. I don't mind paying for that, what I do mind is if we pay for it only to find out its so limited (ie. only other people who have DoN can buy/sell to us) then the value is massively diminshed.

So, giving everyone access to the zone, and capping the /buyer mode is a good solution as far as I am concerned. It is new code, it is new functionality, I would use this. Charging me for that is fine.

My only real concern is that EQ not get too complex in its expansion implementation, so that people new to the game are completely befuddled by rules that aren't at all clear.

"You can buy and sell to an NPC in these zones, you can buy from a player everywhere unless they are AFK in which case you can only do it in the bazaar and with the Luclin expansion, and to be able to sell to someone else you need to have the DoN expansion. If you want to barter with another person, either you or they need the DoN expansion".

Its easy to make this all needlessly complex.

Another question I have is what the difference is between an expansion such as Omens, and an extension such as LoY. This new release seems to me to be more of an extension than an expansion, similar to LoY. It enhances what we currently have, and adds a few more zones -- which is exactly what LoY was. When I think expansion, I think in terms of more AA's that help us deal with harder zones and expand the capabilities of our characters. As promoted so far, DoN seem smore like an extension to me, than an expansion.

[Trellium]

But I haven't seen much of the Barter zone, so I don't know if it is already in.

Its in on test server, you can go there and try it out. You can make a new character and use the /testbuff command to get to level 25 instantly (plus spells, some gear, food/water, and skills capped for that level). Then go to PoK, and go to the barter zone.

Then sell tons of stuff to "Glendelasabuyer", so we can test the barter system more for SOE

[Twistagain]

One exit from the barter zone leads directly to the bazaar.

Um, guys...early on, Sylphan said that they ARE adjacent. Is this not the case?

[Trellium]

lol, yes and no is the only answer to your question. You enter the barter zone from PoK, a new building added near the western trader building. Once inside, you can zone out through the same door ... it takes you to the bazaar at the Shadowhaven zoneline.

[Dunthor Warsmith]

Aye, I believe that the Nexus and Bazaar were open to anyone, thought my memory could be off a bit...I seem to remember taking the shards to NK and not having SoL till later.

Originally at least the Nexus was Luclin-only. Without the expansion, the Scions would either leave you behind or (more commonly) port you to the safe point in zone - you could not get to the Nexus.

PoK was a PoP zone, but they made it freely available as part of the "old world" several patchs ago. That's the only zone I'm aware of changing from expansion to "basic" game. I do not believe that they have made the Nexus free, and hence the bazaar is still unreachable wihout SoL (Bartering Quarter link nonwithstanding), and probably offlimits even if it were reachable.

I know I've heard people in PoK were complaining the Nexus stone wasn't working for them, and it later was discovered that they didn't have SoL (figured New_Expansion_of_the_Moment gave them everything) ... but that was several months ago.

[Boleslav]

To make this usable for a single character, a port from the Bazaar to the Barter area and back are necessary.

My poor bazaar mule is loaded down with 10 traders satchels, a big inventory, and (hopefully) loads of cash. She is just a tiny little gnome! As a matter of fact, I accidentally zoned her to Shadowhaven once. You know how you sometimes fall and take a little bit of damage when zoning? She got an instant warrior port to her bind (in Steamfont Montains).

It would take quite a bit of shuffling to make her mobile!

Having a two-way zone option between the two zones without having to pass through a weight-restricted (normal) zone between is essential.

Boleslav Forgehammer
Paladin of Brell in his 66th Campaign
E'ci – Sacred Destiny

[Sylphan]

You can only offer to buy a single item at a time. I suppose that's for practical and technical reasons. But you can offer multiple items in trade. That allows for some clever either-or situations in the Barter Hall.

Suppose you want a new two-handed weapon upgrade. You would accept a War Masters Bladed Staff, Windblade, or Dragorn Claw Scepter... they're all good weapons so it doesn't matter to you.

You are willing to pay 5k for it, or 2k plus your old weapon (Heavy Polearm).

You could make three seperate lines in your buyer for the three weapons... but then there's the risk that you'll end up buying all three, and you only need one. So what do you do?



I would find myself exactly seven Water Flasks. Then in buyer mode I'd enter six lines:

WTB Windblade, offering 7 Water Flasks plus 5k.
WTB Dragorn Claw Scepter, offering 7 Water Flasks plus 5k.
WTB War Masters Bladed Staff, offering 7 Water Flasks plus 5k.
WTB Windblade, offering 7 Water Flasks plus Heavy Polearm plus 2k.
WTB Dragorn Claw Scepter, offering 7 Water Flasks plus Heavy Polearm plus 2k.
WTB War Masters Bladed Staff, offering 7 Water Flasks plus Heavy Polearm plus 2k.

As soon as any one of those takes place I'll run out of Water Flasks and the other five lines will be toggled off automatically.