Current state of crafting

[Rudi Starnberg]

I'll start by saying I think the new mechanics are definitely a step in the right direction of a fully player controlled economy. However I have some grave reservations.

 

The level of cooperation needed between players to make this system work is simply unsupported by the game as it stands. In order for a shipwright to collect materials from his suppliers he must be online in the same port at the same time as every person who wants to supply him. Given that it takes 4+ people making resources and components to keep one shipwright fully occupied this seems from my experience with the patch to be unsustainable. Requiring people to all log on at a set time is a very good way to make the game seem like a job and kill people's enthusiasm, but at the moment there is simply no other way to transfer resources.

 

Combined with the travel times this means if I, as a shipwright say, sail away from the collection point to play the game a bit, and someone comes online to trade with me, I will have to make them wait until my battle is over then at least 10 minutes of travel probably unless very lucky. And if they've got bored during this time (and who could blame them?) then go back to stage 1.

 

That might not sound like such a huge deal, but do this every day and it is very rapidly going to become a drag for everybody concerned. I feel this game already struggles with user retention - it is truly fantastic when it all comes together but there are so many hoops to jump through to get to the good stuff. I would regard myself as someone who has above average time available for games, I can't imagine how people who can only play for an hour or so at a time can manage to find fun in this game, and I rather suspect the answer is they can't and we shall see a very high rate of attrition with such players.

 

 

Anyway this kind of wandered off a bit since I'm super tired after a day of spread sheeting and trying to herd cats into a crafting system, but I think the point stands all the same. We really really need some way to transfer resources between offline and online people. Be this a shared storage area, eve style contracts (current contract system doesn't work for this) or some other solution.

[Blacklockdown]

just use the contracts

[ulysse77]

i think a quick fix would be a private trade through in game email followed by a private contract, that only the the two parties can see... that way you could trade offline and even pick up at a different location

[Bulwyf]

This is also a problem where time zones impact a guild, those from a less populated time zone have difficulty getting the necessary backup from enough of their guild mates to acquire sufficient resources and great difficulty actually trading with guild mates from other time zones.

[TheGrey]

Yes we should be able to setup a private contract(s) . 

[Rudi Starnberg]

just use the contracts

 You can't, only the "best" contract is displayed. Say I want to sell something to my guild mate at cost, if I put that up obviously everyone will jump all over it and buy it. If he puts up a buy contract then someone will just overwrite it offering slightly more.

 

Some kind of private deals system has to be added, and quickly too. Even if it is very clumsy in it's first iteration, anything would be better than what we have now.