Ectoplasm Obsolete?

lacasner

lacasner

Desert Nomad

Join Date: Jun 2006

Now, this is just an observation or so that I've made.

In this game, obviously more than others, money is a problem. Not really making money, but storing it. You can only trade technically 100k at a time. Keep 1mil only in storage at a time. Pretty restricting isn't it?

Well, I have my own money storing problems, and wanted to find out a way to input more money into trades. So, i started to think what could replace the symbol of wealth in Guild Wars:Ecto.

Vioalla, it hit me. Black Dye. I have noticed a pattern of, well perhaps more than a month, or more, Black dye has been 9k or over at trader. While Ecto at around 7.5.

So, the question is, since people are struggling with money management anyway, why not just switch it to :100k+(x) amount of black dyes?

If I am buying somehting for 100k+50 ecto (yes, I am aware many people don't have this type of money), why not switch just to dyes? I believe 250 stack on one pile anyway. If you save 2k for each black dye you switch for ecto ( 2k of space), then you would only need about100k+ 39 black dyes or so to reach the equivelent. Just a thought.

Vahn Roi

Vahn Roi

Forge Runner

Join Date: Apr 2006

[HiDE]

I'd rather get ectos than black dyes for my rare perfect weapon. But that's just me.

BoredJoe

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Sep 2006

Where would all the black dyes come from though? I think the trader would run out as there aren't the thousands of black dye floating around like ectos.

Celeborn

Celeborn

Lion's Arch Merchant

Join Date: Aug 2005

England

Gameamp Guides [AMP]

Mo/Me

If you want ectos you go to the UW, if you want black dye you go...um...er...

Jetdoc

Jetdoc

Hell's Protector

Join Date: Jul 2005

The Eyes of Texas [BEVO]

D/A

Unfortunately, if the market were to crater, you actually have a use for ectos - FoW armor. This is why ectos hold some sort of value. There is only a very limited use right now for black dye, which, if the market were to crater, would have very little use (and therefore wouldn't hold its value).

Kalki

Lion's Arch Merchant

Join Date: Dec 2005

Summoners of Forgotten Gods

W/Mo

People still buy for 100k + ectos? Didn't the announcement of Inscriptions kill that market?

Anyway, people with 1,000 platinum + ectos should have a rich tax put on them. There's no reason people should be sitting on that much wealth.

Teutonic Paladin

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Feb 2006

TW

W/

Black Dye would not work because it isn't stable by any stretch of the imagination...

Kais Unduli

Kais Unduli

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Sep 2005

Room V

Make a presearing char and farm what, 2 black dyes at most a day? Or farm UW and get 2 ecto per run on a good day?

derrtyboy69

derrtyboy69

Grotto Attendant

Join Date: Jun 2005

The Clouds

Scars Meadows [SMS]

Mo/Me

105 ecto = fow
4 black dye = one dyed set

You can get a large quantity of ecto and have use for it, while black dye would just sit there once youve dyed stuff.

And you cant jsut magically have ecto turn into black dye.

Griff Mon

Griff Mon

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Nov 2005

In the Elfen Forests of Washington State

Damage Radius

N/

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kalki
People still buy for 100k + ectos? Didn't the announcement of Inscriptions kill that market?

Anyway, people with 1,000 platinum + ectos should have a rich tax put on them. There's no reason people should be sitting on that much wealth.
Great, Socialism comes to GW, next we'll open a welfare office in Lion's Arch for poor players.

Venom4112

Venom4112

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: Mar 2006

We are all pretty [Ugly]

Mo/Me

I personally dont like trading with black dyes. The market is not as stable, and people are constantly buying ectos, but no one is buying black dyes.

So, I would prefer 100k+700e rather then 100k+425~ Black dyes.

shrouded^god

shrouded^god

IGN: J C A C H E

Join Date: Sep 2006

843

[Liar]

Ive never had a problem selling black dyes...if you're having trouble... Ascalon district 1...buy'em for 8k sell'em for 9k its like the effin stock market

bart

bart

Desert Nomad

Join Date: Aug 2005

i didn't go for the preview nor have i read up much about nightfall but what if the new expensive armor in Nightfall don't use Ecto but a new kind of Material? what would all the ppl with thousands of ecto do with them?

dustbunny

Lion's Arch Merchant

Join Date: Apr 2005

I think everyone should use charcoals. The reason is simple: I've bought up 1000's of them. So I think everyone should switch from ecto to charcoals.

RudyNam

RudyNam

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: Nov 2005

SKEC

Mo/R

Obsidian armor(what ectos are used for), will most likely always be the most expensive armor in the game, also, FoW is a core area, so it is accesible from any chapter.

bart

bart

Desert Nomad

Join Date: Aug 2005

yeah but what if Anet wanted to eradicate the enourmous gap between the rich and the new people/poor ppl so they made ectos obsolete by adding new Obsidian armor that require new material?

BoredJoe

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Sep 2006

There would be no economy or rare items if they tried to do that.

If they did decide to eradicate the gap the simplest way would be to turn the servers off, because nobody would be playing the game then.

Two April Mornings

Two April Mornings

No Luck No Time No Money

Join Date: Nov 2005

Amherst College, MA

Scars Meadows [SMS]

Me/

Ectoplasm is not obsolete and will never be. It value might lower, but it will always hold value because of its use in armor. End of dicussion.

Alleji

Alleji

Forge Runner

Join Date: Jan 2006

Ectos can be easily turned into cash. Black dyes can't (unless you dump them to a merchant at a ripoff price) Simple as that.

Nightsear

Nightsear

Banned

Join Date: Sep 2006

Killing the game, the great equalizer.

floppinghog

floppinghog

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Oct 2005

pit of brimstone

Squad Six Six Six [ssss]

A/Me

keep in mind all new professions get their own obsidian armor, so obviously it would be plausable for ectos to always stay fairly high in value and continue to play as the "side gold" as you could call it to a trade.

VitisVinifera

VitisVinifera

Banned

Join Date: Nov 2005

Northern California

HoTR

N/Me

so noone agrees with the op so far......

add me to that list

stupid discussion really

there are many very basic reasons why ectos are much more desirable than black dyes (already been posted above)

Ozric

Ozric

Lion's Arch Merchant

Join Date: May 2005

Texas

Phoolz Like Us

E/Me

The OP does have a point. The value of black dye from what I've seen is more stable than ecto, what with ecto dipping down to, what was it, 5k some time ago. Black Dye's value has remained fairly constant, and if anything has only spiked with the release of Factions. The only argument against it would that the dye would be harder to turn over if in need of cash than ecto would. But then again, if you're having to convert your gold to ecto or black dye, that's not really an issue.

It may be viable for those that have their materials storage ecto maxed out, to then start buying up black dye instead of more ecto. If you were to do this you'd be wisely hedging your bets on one or the other's value remaining stable anyway, not a bad idea at all.

Haggard

Haggard

Desert Nomad

Join Date: Dec 2005

Urmston, Manchester, UK

Greener Pastures [DVDF]

W/Rt

Black Dyes stay consistant because far fewer people buy them - because there aren't as many in existance. If we started trading them to the extent of Ectos, they would be permanently out of stock at the trader, and worth ridiculous amounts like 20k+.

bigwig

bigwig

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Oct 2005

Nova Scotia

#Dismantle

i was about to say something similar. Black dyes are stable because of the rarity of drops and the fact nobody uses them as currency. If people began buying them and using them so in large numbers, this would change.

Sooty

Lion's Arch Merchant

Join Date: Jul 2005

Australia

Giggity Giggity Goo

I think ecto is far more practical than black dye, however I wonder if the appeal of fissure armor is still as great as it was before factions? I realise this is in the eye of the beholder but to me the 15k sets in factions are almost universally more attractive than a fissure set for that class. There will always be those who buy it for status reasons but if less people in general are tempted by fissure armor will this drive ecto value down?

My guess is actually no, because people find ecto to be such a useful form of currency and this is primarily what underpins its value. Therefore as long as supply remains fairly constant, the value of ecto should stay relatively stable or increase as more players require it to purchase high end items. For that reason imo ecto is the currency of choice for 100k + items.

prism2525

prism2525

Forge Runner

Join Date: Nov 2005

Among dead bodies.

The Republic of Sky Pirates

E/

maybe elonian leather, as I presume it will be used in elonian armor (duh). I highly doubt anything can overcome the ecto.

Undressed

Undressed

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: Sep 2006

Reich

none

W/

Quote:
Originally Posted by Griff Mon
Great, Socialism comes to GW, next we'll open a welfare office in Lion's Arch for poor players.
No, maybe you should stop dragging real world politics into a game which offers less possibilites than the real world itself or seek a cure for your paranoia. "Oh noes, Anet's now Ex-Soviet property. I won't experience the leetness of virtual wealth and will never have a feeling of great accomplishment."

Or you could get a job and feel what REAL work and accomplishment might mean.

Cebe

Cebe

The 5th Celestial Boss

Join Date: Jul 2006

Inverness, Scotland

The Cult of Scaro [WHO]

E/

Quote:
Originally Posted by lacasner
since people are struggling with money management
that really makes it sound like a lot of people are struggling with money management... There is being well off, and then there is just being obscenely wealthy. What's the point? What the hell are you going to do with it - just try to find ways to store more? I'm sure as hell not struggling with money management! I have 52k in the bank and that's the most I've had since I spent 60k on my Elementalist armor 2 months ago.

I like your Black Dye idea and if people are struggling with "money management" then, popular or not, people may have to resort to that.

Sorry if that sounded like a rant - wasn't meant to be, I just thought it was funny that people are talking about having multiple millions and having "money management issues"....if it's that much trouble being so wealthy, I'll take some ectos off your hands! I'll look after them!

Stemnin

Stemnin

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Nov 2005

Mo/Me

WTS this idea for 100k + 30 parchment..

If you want to sell stuff at 100k+30 black dyes, do it, but im not sure if anyone will follow that.. who has 30 black dyes instead of 30 ectos?

Mr_T_bot

Mr_T_bot

Banned

Join Date: Apr 2006

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kalki
People still buy for 100k + ectos? Didn't the announcement of Inscriptions kill that market?
If Arena Net instituted an NPC in Ascalon, Shing Jea Monastary, and Kamadan that gave you a max damage weapon with skin of your choice and modifiers of your choice for free, people would be selling it in Lion's Arch, Kaineng Center, and wherever else for 100k +ectos.

XvArchonvX

XvArchonvX

Forge Runner

Join Date: Nov 2005

R/

ok, first of all, WHY in the hell would you want to replace ectos? Assuming you found something similar, the transition period would be really unstable and you would have some players only accepting ectos and some players only accepting whatever else you are trying to substitute ectos with.

Black dyes are just ridiculous. There simply are not enough black dyes available in the market for them to be used as trading pieces. If everyone started using them as such, the effect of so many black dyes in circuit would cause a a price bounce at the trader assuming the trader didn't simply just sell out.


*sigh* I don't know why I even bumped this thread....

Jetdoc

Jetdoc

Hell's Protector

Join Date: Jul 2005

The Eyes of Texas [BEVO]

D/A

Quote:
Originally Posted by bigwig
Black dyes are stable because of the rarity of drops and the fact nobody uses them as currency.
That's the key - if A-Net decided one day to dramatically increase the drop rate of black dyes (ahem - Superior Absorption), you would see the price drop back down to the Silver Dye level.

No matter how much A-Net increases the ecto drop rate, the fact that it is only obtainable in very few "elite" PvE areas will continue to make the price high.

wilson

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: May 2005

aggro bubble

[RD];[FW];[GOTS];[baed];[kiSu]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jetdoc
No matter how much A-Net increases the ecto drop rate, the fact that it is only obtainable in very few "elite" PvE areas will continue to make the price high.
I got my first Black Dye ever in the catacombs, pre-searing.


Dr Strangelove

Dr Strangelove

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Dec 2005

Wasting away again in Margaritaville

[HOTR]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Griff Mon
Great, Socialism comes to GW, next we'll open a welfare office in Lion's Arch for poor players.
Just to be contrary, every major world economy has some form of "rich tax" excessive concentration of wealth in a few people leads to inflation and economic stagnation. People with ridiculous amounts of money will pay insane amounts, leading to inflation. This is why it's possible to sell things for hundreds of plat while keeping a straight face. Rich folks tend to like to stay rich, so they won't spend all their money, or even close to it, while poor folks will blow it on the next thing that comes along.

But hey, if the LA IRS comes knocking on my Xunlai agent, I'm moving to Switzerland.


Back on topic, there's a larger supply of ecto. Ecto holds value not because it's insanely rare, but because you need so much of it for FoW. Black dye holds value because it's ridiculously valuable and is usually consumed soon after being dropped.

FrogDevourer

FrogDevourer

on a GW break until C4

Join Date: Feb 2005

In your shadow

Servants of Fortuna

Quote:
Originally Posted by Two April Mornings
Ectoplasm is not obsolete and will never be. It value might lower, but it will always hold value because of its use in armor. End of dicussion.
Let's imagine that ectos drop from a lot of NF monsters, and that you can farm them really fast, and that the average endgame white weapon/armors can be salvaged into Globs of Ectoplasm. Their price will decrease to 500g/1k (more or less like Amber or Jadeite). As simple as that.

Now let's imagine that NF includes a new Ivory armor, available only deep in the elite NF mission, and that requires tons of Rubies and Sapphires. Good bye ectos, hello new currency.

Simply put, the market price of globs of ectos is controlled by ANet. They can ruin ecto billionaires in a couple of weeks if they want. All they have to do is to make the FoW armor easier to get, and to open the doors of a new and rare elite armorsmith with sexy stuff.

That said, I don't think ANet wants to make big changes on the economy and market. They're too conservative for such a risky move, and I'm not even sure killing the ecto would serve any purpose at all.

Anyway, using black dyes as a currency instead of crafting materials cannot work. The very basic feature of an ingame currency is that it can be generated (monsters, quests, pvp reward) and destroyed (for an ingame effect, or to buy a customized item) in a large quantities. Dyes do not meet the "large quantities" requirement.

Addone_Abaddon

Addone_Abaddon

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Jun 2006

Jersey, Channel Islands

Perfection Is Everything [PiE]

W/

Quote:
Originally Posted by Celeborn
If you want ectos you go to the UW, if you want black dye you go...um...er...
catacombs

Sir Skullcrasher

Sir Skullcrasher

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Jun 2005

California

15 over 50 [Rare]

W/Mo

I don't think Ectos and Shards will ever go out like the dodo birds. I mean as long as there is a need for FOW armor. You would need to get these materials for it.

logan90

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: May 2005

Ecto will only ever become obsolete if they add more armors which cost upwards of 1mill each.


Quote:
Originally Posted by wilson
I got my first Black Dye ever in the catacombs, pre-searing.
He was talking about ecto, not black dye.

Nevin

Nevin

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Jul 2005

Black Dyes are opinion based. To me, they have no value. Simply because they're not needed? Do they make your armor statisticaly better? No.