With the ability to buy gems (something Anet sells for real cash) for in game currency, I figured it would be a screwed up system. But it is worse.
Beyond selling blue crafting materials (and even those are getting crushed by BOTs) there isnt really anything you can sell on the TP that you cant vendor for the same or better due to fees and ‘taxes’.
Completed crafted items prices are a complete joke. Have been since day one. Absolutely no reason to craft other than for EXP (and I think they nerfed that) or for something to do. Surely arent going to make or even save money doing it.
First problem is everyone can collect everything. There is no limitation to what people can collect other than level which with the ease of leveling isnt an issue at all. So right now the only thing keeping prices for the basic materials up is the influx of new players, which will eventually slow down, already has actually. So once that happens even basic crafting materials will be vendor fodder.
Also the gem exchange, talk about a turn around. Not sure if Anet devalued them on their own and cut the rates in half internally or not but the exchange rate is a joke now. A month ago 1G would get you anywhere from 365 to 410 gems. Now 1G wont get you 250. 232 as of this morning. Buying gems and trading them for cash on the other hand hasnt risen nearly as much as the other side has fallen. But you still have to sped the same amount of real cash for them.
I also have to think many people are still buying gems with real cash, yet the exchange isnt moving like it did, (as you would expect). It has done nothing but go down and stay down for the past 3 weeks.
So in the end the so called economy in this game is vendoring 99% of your stuff, maybe salvaging a couple items for ectos and trying to sell those, or maybe a couple runes that might sell for a silver or so above the vendor price of the item. It surely doesnt offer the ability to make money or ‘play’ the TP.
That might raise some ire from people as they think they can, but what these people dont understand is all that stuff they have horded and think will be worth something is being created and collected by BOTs faster than they can horde it so it will never go up in price. At least not in the demand they need to sell the quantities they have.
“Best” solution? Stack magic find, run instances vendor drops. At least until they start nerfing MF and/or have the diminishing returns kick in faster.
