A Question for High Skill Tailors...

[Kasanya]

My tailoring skill is finally starting to get up into the ranges where ppl are seriously talking to me about getting BD wood elf cultural items made. Personally, I think they're a little nuts as of yet and I've been politely declining for now, but it does have me thinking. I'm kind of getting the impression that one or two are interested for reasons motivated more by... um... profit than personal gear upgrades, and I dont want to get burned by combining items only to have them turn around and sell them for tons of plat.

Which leads me to my question. For those of you out there already making the BD cultural (for whatever race), what system do you use for providing combining services, if any. I realize I need to decide on something soon, so I can tell prospective customers up front what kind of deal to expect, just hoping to get a few different viewpoints to make a decision from.

Thank you. =)

[Sowfor]

I've seen different people do different things...

1) charge a fee for a combine (whether it fails or not)
2) no fee on a fail (good for people skilling up), but a fee on success
3) no fee as long as everything is provided (no running round to get everything combined using other skills) - good for skilling up, bad for your business

I'm sure you can work out a system of your own.. and if you're worried about people selling on the stuff then keep an eye on them or look at their gear.. if they sell it on you charge them more next time

[rassy fleetfoot]

a thought

if its someone i know, a friend of guildie i know wont be rushing off to the bazaar to unload it for profit, i dont have a problem doing combines even for free. People who seek you out thru other channels, who just ask you to combine something, i would have to look at the current sale price of that item, and charge maybe 1/5th of the value. even if they DO sell it at that point, you also got something out of it, if they are using it as an upgrade, you both make out better.

just my opinion..and it changes on a whim hehe

[Pootle]

I am happy at the moment to offer Free combines on all Non-Triv items if the customer brings me all the components. The only exception would be Masterdon Cloaks (but i am a bit low for those) (VallonZek Server)

You could always offer combines at say, 1/4 of the value if the customer brings all components. Free if fail.

I suppose it all depends on how much you want people to bring you stuff for combines.

[data9724]

I been selling the cultural on my server for 4/8/12K (bracer 5K, cloak 8 (cant get rid of it), and been charging 1K a success if i make for people.
Only make for people that need as upgrade, dont see any reason to make competition for myself.
Since were only 3 on server that can make, its quite easy to see if someone been using me to make the stuff for profit. Havent been the case so far.

[Nakilos]

I've found tailoring quite profitable since I maxed it. Generally, I charge nothing for a combine, but I'll hit trade if someone opens a window with me. I do the same with jewelry, have since I maxed jewelcraft.

Generally I also find doing things for free is a good way to spread word of mouth..people know they can get things made from you, they'll tell their friends, and eventually they'll look to you to purchase certain items. This is also a good way to get people to get components for you too really - generally you do someone a favor one day they might say "hey I have XXX banked to make whatever, was gonna sell in the bazaar but you made me that thing whenever, do you want it?". Also this can help you find some rather annoying to get components too for purchasing to make items for your own profit. I have a hard time finding Drop of Pure Rain for example but occasionally someone will send me a tell saying they got some and ask me if I want it rather than someone else.

I haven't really encountered the above scenario of combining for someone who will just turn around and sell it. I suppose that is left to your own discretion about who you combine for, but generally people who ask me to do combines want to make something for themselves or an alternate and not profit from your good will.

[Chaid]

my two cents

If it's not trivial for you, and you aren't at 250 skill (unmodified), don't charge.

If you're not successful with the combine, don't charge.

Otherwise, it really depends on the quantity/items.

[sir0die]

my tiloring skill is only 138, i've done sub combines for the sol robe, hired a GM for the final combine (paid 400p for a success), then put it on the market. Which of course i used the plat made to sink into my tradeskills.

To be honest, i would have put it straight on the market weather he charged for the combine or not. People have lots of options on how to make plat in this game.

as far as charging/paying for combines, i usually charge/pay a partial payment for failures, especially if the person doing the combine has to go out of their way to get to the customer.

I had one guy that wanted me to do a combine for him, not a high level one, but a combine that he was not capable of doing. He had all the materials to do this combine 6 times. I told him my fee would be 50p per combine (fair price for what he was wanting (it had 3 subcombines utilizing several TSs)). Then he ORDERED me to come to OOT to do them.

I then told him that if i had to come to him it would be 75p per combine with 45p for failures. i did not want to ride the boat, i'm sorry, but spending 45 minutes to run around to do a trivial combine for chicken scratch was not what i had in mind when i logged on that night. (guildmate, i'd do it on the drop of a dime). He agreed on these prices.
When i got there, i did the combines for him, 4 out of 6 success.
when we were trading back, he did not include the cost for the failures. i pointed out the discrepency in the amount of plat i was owed. He refused to pay for the failure. Now i'm not normally an a$$hole, but i spent pretty much my whole gaming session that day to do stuff for this guy, and then he is gonna try and short change me after agreeing on the pricing.

needless to say, he never got his items, i never got my plat. Wasted an hour and a half waiting on a gm to straighten things out. (btw, if you give anything to anyone, regardless of conditions agreed upon, he who has the items gets to keep them). Needless to say, this guy was not happy losing his 6 sets of combines for nothing. I'm sure he invested quite a bit of time farming the stuff. (btw, when the gm was dealing with us, this guy was told by both me and the gm, that if he paid the agreed upon price, he'd get his items, but he refuse.


we, after the gm left, this individual attemped to train me with a bunch of stuff. since i was a shaman and he was a warrior, i just gated out inbetween getting hit (yeah, we can tank alittle). I'm assuming that when i was gone they all aggroed him.

now, had this guy just come to me, i would'nt have charge for fails, i would have rasied the price any. time is money. heck, i might have done it for free if he came to me and was polite.

[Bakamon]

I found what works for me a long time ago. Right after Luclin came out, I was looking for a tinker to get a sewing contraption made. I had pharmed enough components for 6 combines. The tinker I found said he would do the combines for free, the first success was for me, the second success was for him. We would alternate any further successes.

This same deal has worked for me. It also makes little difference wheither the person is wanting one item for themselves or a number of items to sell in the bazaar. You get to share in your own success. Trade Skillers must Never undervalue their time; there is no shame in putting a price on it.

I have modified the arrangement on occasion. If someone comes to me with a large number of sets to combine, I may ask for 1 in 3 or 1 in 4 and on occasion do for free if I'm not interested in the item. I've also had folks just give me the remainder of the components as soon as they got their one item.

I've found this method works the best of all I've tried. You as the combiner, control the whole process. There is no argument after the fact on payment. However, if you must go a long ways to do the work, please consider getting All the components before you start if you fear the agreed upon payment might not be forthcoming.

[sir0die]

i have in the past run all over the know world to meet a jeweler to do a combine for me, just to find out that i had the wrong thing (block of velium instead of bar of velium), since we actually meet somewhere midway, instead of me going to him. i still paid for his combine even though it was a DNC. since he stopped what he was doing to meet me, i felt he still need to be paid for his tme. after all the dnc was my fault for not having the correct stuff.

[Drachenfeld]

I experienced some with making the new cultural before and after I got 250 skill. My opinion is that making it for profit before 250 skill is not going to be possible because of the costly combines/high failures. At 250 skill I did some armor but found that fronting the amount of cash you needed only to have it not sell was discouraging. All in all i recomment you only make it to orders and never premake any items.