Ecto Prices

Ok I am going to do my best avoind starting a QQ or Flaming thread, however I do believe for the players who may be a little naive about ecto current and future price stabillity that it would be good if some more experienced players could impart their knowledge on this subject, not including myself in this list, however I would like to try and add my 10 cents worth..

Ectos are currently floating around the 8k mark, of course there are more pressures than the impending sf nerf on ectos, i.e players wanting tormented weapons so needing to change them for ambraces, players wanting to buy higher end weapons, people needing to store more cash than the max storage 1,000,000 barrier and also botters and gold sellers, let me know if I missed something.

However unless anet plan to incapacitate every farming build which is useable in the underworld and the new team builds being used to clear underworld then the impending sf nerf, which if we are all being honest plays the largest role in the inflation of ectos, due to people stocking up expecting to make huge profits, is somewhat redundent.

I know free markets are that and will behave irratically for being so, however making the game less enjoyable for newer players, by out pricing anything high end, i.e rare weapons, obi armor prices are remaining the same in ecto valuation, so cost a lot more gold.

Sorry for rambling on but the main point is, if people who have followed ecto prices over years, instead of just months can put some light on some more observeant realistic predictions for future ecto prices, hopefully this can calm overheated speculation with the current and possibly near future rises in ecto prices.

thankyou all for your time and any input on this subject, if you feel like trolling then please start your own troll thread, this is for hopefully intelligent replies.

By the way I have plenty of ectos in storage, so I stand to lose in real terms if ecto prices stabilise again at a lower prices, so I am not trying to manipulate markets to my own advantage.

There are no other threads asking for players to input their predictions on what ecto prices will or may be in the near future, if you know of1 please direct instead of just whining. The whole point of this thread is to get some good knowledgeable input, to possibly aid in the reduction of the bubble in ecto prices making the environemt a lot more beneficial for all players and not just some players.

As written in thread, save your trolling for elsewhere...

Ty for your input Mcsnake, but I am fully aware of what ectos are used for, but this does not relate to their availabillity or rareness, fact is ectos are in a bubble, not a problem for myself as I could amake a fortune, I am just trying to get some real opinions on the true value of ectos to maybe try and stabilise the market and give new p-layers a better chance of completing their hall of monuments, ie with obby armor etc, where the price is linked to ecto fluctuation as obby armor materials are always the same...

I don't store my money in ectos, I buy rare items. If I need ectos, I just sell them at their current prices. Problem solved.

Man, your idea are so ... what was the world?

Oh yea so original i wonder why we didn't had similar thread before.

Guys...really i dont understand the real problem...A lot of ppl dont understand the role of ectos in GW...
Ok i try to explain it :
(Sry if i write something wrong, but im not english and i still learn how to write good)
Players when want trade something (weapons,tonics,materials,everithig) have a windows where you can put only 100k + 7 items.If the Items you want buy/sell worth less than 100k or 100k you can pay it without problem, you put the 100k in it and you trade. If the item worth more than 100k you must find a way to add the difference, for example if my "XXXX" worth 150k you need pay me 100k+50k..but you cant, you can pay only 100k so you need something to add for 50k because no one trust in other player to make 2 different trade to pay 100+50k.Community then choose ectos as "ADD VALUE" to pay the rest...so for example if i trade you my "XXXX" for 150k you need pay me 100k+X ectos where X is 50k/ectos Value.
If the ectos worth 1k/each you need pay 100k+50e If the ectos worth 10k/each you need pay 100k+5e...in both case (E=1k) 100k+50e=100k+5e (E=10k).
So the problem is not ectos price, because ectos are a simple "ADD" the problem is that player sold the item for same price of E=5k and E=8k...so if an items cost 150K, with ectos=5k you need pay 100+10e or 100+6e (in case of e=8k) BUT PPL sell it for 100+10e WITH e=8k so price is not 150k BUT 180K in THIS CASE...this is the problem, not the price of ectos....ectos can worth all you want, they need just to add the difference NO MORE...
Thats all guyz,think about it..its a simple thing that work in all MMORPG..in GW its different and I DONT KNOW WHY!

hai gaiz, another ectoz thread! looks like we met our quota for the week? woo..

This. People have forgotten what the role of ectos is. ANet did not intend for ectos to be another form of currency. The players made it that because they needed a way to buy things worth more than 100k. Greed is the real problem here.

Before all the campaigns flooded us with a variety of farming skills, places, and techniques, and when favor--access to the UW and FoW--was tied to PvP outcomes, ectos had been, regularly, 7-8k, with long periods of 9-10k ecto prices. I think we'll see a return to that kind of pricing, especially if both SF and Spell Breaker, Spirit Bond, or Prot Spirit take hits.

First, I do think people have been hoarding ecto, rather than selling at a rapid clip. Maybe not a lot, maybe just a little. This could be happening for two reasons: First, players who are "saving" for an item or armor now keep the ecto, instead of selling it. That is, in the past, this player may have sold the ecto for immediate cash, since the price was stable and the method of getting ecto was consistent and "safe." Now, the price is volatile and there's no guarantee that such a player's method of farming ecto will exist in two weeks.
Second, this could happen as a result of "investment..." That is, players who farmed or bought ecto are waiting to see what happens to the price, and considering a sale when the price rises to an acceptable level.

I do not think the ceiling for ecto is something unlimited. I'm not even sure it'll get to 10k. As long as favor is a PvE reward, and as long as access to UW is pretty much unlimited, groups and individuals will be able to go in and get ecto. Another farm build will come along, or old ones will be resurrected, and even *gasp!* balanced groups will finish Dhuum and UW in two hours or less and come back with the loot.

I DO think that price speculation will push prices upwards, and I do think that when ecto gets to 9 or 10k you'll see a bit more selling, and that will bring the price back down, and so on and so on...

I wonder when will power trading be kept in line with farming and normal play in terms of making money per period of time.

Anet kept nerfing drop rates and farm builds to counter ppl getting too much money compared to regular play.

Will Anet restore the drop rates with the farm nerfs? With the SC nerfs?

What will Anet do to "nerf" power trading?

I agree, I never saw the problem when ectos were floating at 4.5k/5k each. The average player could afford obby armor with a little work. Now it's double that, and it sure doesn't help the average person. I know obby armor is suppose to be hard to get, but it should also be a reachable goal. 400k was pretty reachable, 800k is a little far (I don't remember the exact prices, just guesstimating)

there used to be a time when ectos were 15k-20k

ectos are going up right now just because of the impending sf nerf so some people are buying and hoarding now to make a quick buck later. once whatever new farm build comes out, it'll drop again as people sell of their stock.

id store my money in zkeys over ectos

yeah and if they ever repair XTH ure cash will fall flat on its arse. (highly unlikely to happen tho as they got stuck and hope we all forget about it)

i have stopped trading till ectos stabilize as people just cant grasp the fact that ectos are an extension of plat....something that was 100k+20e when ecto was 5k...was really 200k....now they still want 100k+20e....which at todays prices adds upto 250k...i even seen a eternal blade trying to be sold for 160 ectos (WTF!)...there are more of those in game than Volty spears.

in the end people wanted farming to end...prices for the regular players will be to high and they will just give up, so not only do u lose your farmers...but alot of regular players..then u can have your deserted game all to yourself GG.

to OP i think until these nerfs happen we cannot predict the prices as with every nerf...one skill dies ...another get buffed to become a new farm..(last skill balance that was rits with SoS)...until then they willl go up...and up

Would be pretty nice if Anet just removed the cash limits (on inventories, storage and trade windows) -

gogo liquidate your assets!

No need remove all limits..just cash limits, if you want sell a item for 200k you must able to do it and not add other things as "ADD", they create only problems...

I'd /sign for this. I'm positive a cap removal has been suggested numerous times but it's still a good idea. I understand Anet expects us to work within the limitations of a 100k limit but trades well in excess of that have been going on for years. If not a cap removal why not an agreed upon reserve (not lockpicks) that isn't vulnerable to speculation. I'm pretty sure GW was never intended to be a day trader commodity sim or a no risk test lab for Goldman Sachs wannabees.

The problem is Anet not making a higher drop rate for items and a 100k cap, with that combo you are asking for barter items.

Didn't read your rant, because well, it's long and I don't really care.

Ecto prices are up because of the fear of a farming nerf...so people are holding onto them rather than selling them. So much for "what other people do doesn't effect you!!!!!".

Ectos are a "scarce resource", so if people believe the price is going to go higher, it will go higher. With Nerf speculations, prices rise. A number of months ago when ecots were 4,200 each, there was no real nerf coming, now that its "on its way" prices have risen. Once the nerf come, ecto prices will probably go even higher for the first month (or less/more) but the prices will eventually level out. I am predicting that after the nef comes, ecto prices will be about 6k. Just adding my 2 cents.

This dont change nothing.....Ectos can be 100k/each too who care?All those thigs you guyz said just confirm what i've say : PPL dont know what ectos are for...
Ectos are "ADDs" for buy "high-End Items" that worth over 100k, no more..who care if Anet overpower SF or hard nerf it?
Just to make a simple Example :
Today in Kamadan i saw ppl spamming : WTS Q9 VS (Voltaic Spear) = 60e, all ppl AGREE in this price when ectos were=4.5k / 5k...so that mean Q9 Voltaic Spear worth = 270-300k....ok untill now nothing strange...now Ectos worth=7.5k each or maybe 7k too sometimes....NOW try do 60e x 7.5k....if i did right, 60x7 / 7.5k =420-450k!!Cool!!Voltaic Spear with e=7 / 7.5k worth 150k extra!!and nothing change on last 5 months...ppl still farm it, still drop it, still sell it BUT for 150k extra!!
This is the problem as i said, not ectos price that go up.

Anet should just let us pay in cash full. Item is worth 200k you put up 200k cash in trade. Ectos are an illusion with a fluxuating price. One day your paying 200k and the next day your paying 215k for the same item.


It's kinda like being cheap/greedy irl

The easer it is to farm ectos, the lower the price. Recently with SF and other farming builds the price for ectos has been surprisingly low for an extended amount of time.
In the past the price of ectos has been as high as 20K each. The previous price of around 4K was as low as I had ever seen it. The average (since the game started) price would be between 10 and 12 plat. The all time high price I would say was just after the introduction of Sorrows Furnace at 22K per ecto. With the impending SF and 600/smite nerf I am feel that the prices for ectos will rise to about ten to twelve plat and level off there.

If you trade in ectos then the value of an ecto is, er, one ecto, the cash price doesn't really matter unless all you do is farm cash to get your ectos, which is about as silly a way of doing it as any. If you farm ectos or trade ectos then you shouldn't care. I sometimes buy ectos just to dump excess cash, but that is about dumping cash rather than acquiring ectos.

The solution, kids, is to store your money in ectos and rare weapons, and not something liquid like gold or lockpicks.

It's like when you see the stocks rising, and you're complaining about how your money is worth "less" now compared to before.

No, the problem is because ppl dont take care about how much they paying for items,they just buy item even the price of ectos rise to 10k each...how much is a vs q9?60e? ok take your 60e...600k!!!LOL!!gg!

I actually would love for the price of ectos to stay as they are. Most people will start selling their ectos once they see Anet is doing nothing, and the price will balance out. It would definitely make nostalgic farms like smite runs much more fun and profitable.

(Maybe I'm just biased because I miss doing FoW forest runs on my ranger )

why are you all wracking your brains over something that just flat out, doesn't make any sense at all? we've got a bunch of little 12 year old nostradamus' and online economic entrepreneurs with the iq of 20 controlling our economy. and you wanna sit here and tell me how you know what's up.

...oh, you guise.

There is no problem......................................... Ectos at about 8k is fine.. ppl selling stuff at same ecto rate.. who gives shit?

gg

Many people still don't see where it's all going and still think ectos are just an 'add' to make trading above 100k possible.
WRONG.
For the large part of high-end traders gold is not the main currency anymore, many traders ingame and here on guru forums don't accept gold at all! 100k+ectos is now seen far less often than quotes in just ectos, and even items below 100k are sold for ectos instead of gold.
GW Gold is slowly going the way of Diablo2 gold - more of an annoyance than a currency. It's all because of the limits. Having millions of gold doesn't make you able to buy expensive items, to do that you need to convert to a real currency.

THAT'S why the prices in ectos don't change as much as the exchange value of ECT/GWG.

@ McSnake--

What follows here assumes that both gold/plat and ecto are variations on the same currency. (So, for a moment, I will not talk about Yawgmoth's post. More later there). It also assumes that the absolute monetary value of an item-- for simplicity, let's call it a req 9 Voltaic spear-- hasn't changed in a while. And last, if I misuse any economic terms, please forgive me; I'm not an economist, and I will try to refrain from real economic idiocy.

Sure, sellers in Kamadan are ASKING the same prices (in 100k + xx ecto or whatever) as they did two months ago, when ecto was 4.5k. And sure, sometimes, they get it.

If they do, then that's the stupid fault of a stupid, or impetuous, or inattentive buyer, overpaying, or overvaluing, an item. At 1 ecto = 4.5k, then 100k +60 ecto = 100k + 270k = 370k for the spear, about two months ago. Maybe less.
At 1 ecto = 6.5k, then it's 100k + 390k = 490k.

So here, someone who buys a spear at 100k + 60 ecto--or whatever the price is-- is overpaying by more than 120k.

But I'm not sure I can call this a "problem." Someone who is attentive, or concerned with using his *fake* money conservatively, would see the 60e seller and hopefully do the math. That spear's absolute monetary value has NOT gone up. If anything, it should go DOWN-- because there are slowly more and more spears flooding the market. The VS farm really hasn't slowed down (yet...). Now, we could tie the rising price to the fear of the SF nerf that will make getting a VS harder-- one farm gone, fewer people getting the spear, fewer sellers, so the speculation on spears begins now, blah blah blah-- but I think that sellers are setting high prices without regard to the actual plat. value of ecto.

So the *problem* if you want to call it that, rests with buyers failing to negotiate.

So hey, they're setting the market for the rest of us.

Now, Yawgmoth's got a legit point, too. For many trades, ecto's the currency. I'm seeing lots of sub-100k trades listed simply as "7e" or "13e" or whatever. 1 z-key for 1 ecto. One traveller gift for 1 ecto. But again, price inflation is partly the fault of buyers not really paying attention to the market.

Which leads us to Gift3d's point: Give teenagers money of any kind, real, plastic, or pixellated, and they'll blow it. Give people a recreational game with a recreational currency, and you can't expect "the market" to behave in rational ways at all--especially as the size of "the market" dwindles over time. In an "economy" the size of this game's (I use the term a bit loosely), individuals can alter the market more than we wish were possible.

So smile and pony up your ectoes.

Back on topic... I think ecto will eventually stabilize between 8-10k.

Not all true...ppl selling items for full ectos because no sense ask 100k when items cost over 50/60e...I NEVER see someone selling a silverwing recurve bow (that worth over 50/60e for r13 and maybe 200/250e for r9) and asking 100+xxx....instead a lot of ppl sell : EL tonics,High-End Items Below 50e,Stack of things (that worth over 100k) etc..
You speaking about Diablo gold, maybe you dont know nothing about diablo,GOLD in diablo was crap when it come out and now is still crap if you play, runes was trading system (Pul/Zod/Ohm etc)...
Ectos is not GW gold sry, because $=e,e=$..you buy ALL with $ even ectos, ppl just acept only ectos because: full chest+chars with money, need ectos to buy High-End,or just want ectos for obby armor/chaos glove or change for keys or i dunno.
You just defending ppl that ripoff and stop, this is the truth even you admit or not.

in my mind power trading is a form of ripping people off, you inflate the market based on your own greed and scam people making them sell to you for less then they should and selling to people for more then the current market is really asking.

so to answer your question if anet does decide to mess with power traders as you like to call them (scam artists in my mind) they would prolly put some mods in the major towns just to monitor current prices and trades then possibly ban a few people for artificially inflating the market with their own greed.

I don't agree with that. People do care how much they pay for items, but they have little choice in the matter when it comes to buying. It's far easier to make people pay more for an item, than to make people lower the cost of an item.

This is where the intrigue of GW rarity gets out of hand. I remember seeing Anet's PAX interview when they expressed how excited they were at seeing ppl playing so hard for the rare items. Now with the majority of players who have those rare items being ridiculously greedy by selling them at even higher prices and drop rates of favorable items not improving, it makes getting them almost impossible for an average gamer of GW. We have Eternal Blades selling at around 200 or more ectos, and the required 12 ones aren't that cheaper (about 90e). Given the way sellers are treating currency and increasing the price mark over the roof, we in GW have a problem (among other things ofc). Once Anet is done with the upcoming major update it would be nice if they flatten things out a little for rare item bartering. Anet is not going to like how the sellers are shamefully selling at unreasonable prices with these rare weapons and will be disappointed at how these players treat rare item bartering. Players just made rare item finding not fun, and that is what will irk the dev team the most.

rare...it makes my day to see a req 8 insc. offhand light blue drop

ectos...may hit 15k after 600 nerf...10-12k after SF nerf

no bigy ..after all this time im starting on my 4th mule to fill ectos up on.

a lot of good talk on this topic.

@Invalid Shadow in my bubble i'm honestly not concerned about the price. i have used them to buy stuff more then 100k. i'm content with the items i have to play. I never saw a need to have a certain sword/weapon or mini pet to help me finish a mission or quest area. I don't PvP at all. Don't even care about the HOM. I admit farming then for the sake of the challenge.

what it boils down to in my little world is..... If i want to buy your "insert item here" what is your price in "insert gold/material/ecots/arm brace/lockpicks/etc here"

just my 2 cents Shadow. for an update that makes the prices go up or down i'll still do what needs to be done to buy your item if need so.

Personally I do not encourage the purchase of ecto at the moment. 13-15e=100K Hmmm... Kinda high no? My point is, when SF gets nerfed will the prices not drop? I highly doubt people will slowly save up on 10K ecto just to get obby armor. It's not a problem for those 10,000e+ owners but, the "Average Joe" isnt going to want to save up that much over time. It took me 1 year before I had 1 mil. How many ecto is that total? 100 ectoplasm (if bought at 10K/ea) Do u see where I'm getting at?

Mmmm you can agree or not with this, but i just tell the truth..its not in my fantasy, you can sell all this by yourself in kamadan...
Player like you check before buy,conver ectos in money to know how much it worth an item ok, but rest of player dont do it and they lose their money/ectos...
Honestly i have no problem, i have my items, i have my moneys, my armor and all, but i cant stay there and saw all those ppl that overprice items without write a comment...
Ectos are $, so no one can say that Ecto is the new gold system...Kagome say why ppl prefer ectos instead money (i prefer ask 1e too insteas 6.5 or 7k, because i have no space in my chest).
If you take a look around you realize that is the pure truth.

You are very fuking subborn.

The original concept of ectos were for Obsidian armor only. As time goes on, years pass, more gold begins to accumulate into everyones storage.

If there is alot gold in the game, things should be worth "more". ANet as tied our hands with the 100k trade cap, 1mil storage cap. That means people ultimately will find another source of obtaining the highend minis/weps..whatever it may be. Ectos being the most expensive, easily farmable, and stable item the game offers. Yes, black dyes are more expensive, but ectos are easier to farm.

Just becuase someone agrees to accept 60e, doesn't mean that he wouldn't accept the price equal to the price of ectos at the time. He HAS to if he wants to make the amount the item is worth becuase of the trade cap.

Also, the same thing goes for armbraces. They weren't ment to be currency. Same with the highend mini pets.

It's all about place holders.

Back to the price of ectos. Americans know all about price fluctuation. You go out one day, pass a gas station and it's, lets say $2.60. On the way home you pass the same gas station and the price is now $2.58.

Price are going to change no matter what. What SOME, most understand this, and that is that Guild Wars does have an economy. Nothing is going to stay the same forever.

What all this mean??I know about price fluctuation, i worked in a Fuel station (for cars i mean) and i know how the fuel price raise and lower..
Can you explain me how this influence price of items?ppl like you want focus people on other things and not on problems...
Its simple, a "xxxx" items worth 500k?All comunity agree?Yes?ok then calculate 100+xx in base of ectos price, there nothing hard on this..or its hard do 500-100= 400/Price opf ectos = 100+xxe or simply 500/ectos price=xxe (if you want full ectos)...ppl that dont want speculate do this, ppl that want speculate just dont do this and for this reason you see ppl that still selling Vs/tonics/Ebalde/Obsy/Emerald for same price when ectos were 4.5k..
Thats all..just stop speaking of ectos price,hard to find or other..just do uw with 600/smit and you find 2/3e for run..10 runs=20/30e ,100runs=200/300e..or use a perma..or use a ele, or use what you want...or go farm feather and trade them for ectos...or farm other..ectos are still easy to make,btw ppl want hide this fact and rise price without reason...
And a last thing: Ectos price dont allow items to double price of items.

The economy is not exactly an 'open economy' based on supply and demand. There are minimum prices for selling. E.g. a monstrous eye shows a value of 100 gold (last sold), but in reality the merchant won't ever sell it for less than 200 gold.
It's kinda weird that minimum prices are set, but no maximum prices. IMO the solution to this all is to be consequent and also introduce maximum prices.