Tuesday, July 17, 2012

skill implants sales item limit discussion

The sales item limit is a problem when there are 100+/- skills that can be implanted or chipped out. Multiple sizings and number of different skills encourage specialization in professions; hunting profession skills, mining profession skills, and crafting profession skills. With approximately 33 skills per profession, the item sales limit of 30 at a time is reached. And selling multiple skill implants of the same skills limits the scope of activity further.  And the actual practice of each profession is also limited when doing skill trading.  Too many profession items and skill items for sale and not all the items can be sold at once.
On another note, skill trading is a key part of the effort expended, benefit created, and compensation for lost PED balance, in playing.
A colonist/settler trying to raise PED has many options that spill over from real life to entropia life.  I will try and stay with the in-game ways to make or earn PED.  Stuff for the budget minded includes sweating.  For time constraints, depositing is the most perferable.  For people with time, sweating is preferable.  Mining in the game, when beginning, is not recommended because mining has a 25% hit rate.  If an avatar catches the wrong swing of luck, mining will be a bust and it's back to sweating.  Hunting however is a bit more reliable though low margin for loot returned.  It becomes a game of break-even to:  I lost a little less this time than last time. 
Skills are being built however, but cannot really be cashed in until reaching high enough skill levels to overcome what I call market frictions.
 The 10PED limit on empty skill implants is one friction.  The implant will pack in as much as you specify of skill and if there is any left-over, it returns the amount below 10PED as PED and not another ESI.  A loss of the, usually, x7 to x8 markup.  The uncertainty and calculations that go into making filled skill implants are somewhat complex but can be done cautiously.  So to do a good count with skills trading, there is a website that does wonderful for figuring the numbers needed. jdegre.net/pe/unlocker.php
Auction fees and ESI decays when filling them are another friction shaving another 10% of the potential amount gained. 
But that's for when the avatar's skills are high enough to chip out and you properly see, hear, read or know how much goes into each.  Sweating builds enough skills to chip out. (but not sweat gathering skill).  Skills such as athletics, courage, dexterity, alertness, and evade can be chipped out.  A sufficient amount takes a lot of sweating.  Becoming a skills trader is difficult as the 20%+ of market frictions means an avatar needs to have greater than, markup, higher than 20% times whatever implant is being sold. 
Say the implant is a Courage implant at 5 PED.  Marked up x25.  Puts it at 125 PED market value.  Then once it's out or in, turn around and how much can it be sold for to first; breakeven?, then make money?, then lose less money?  Market frictions reduce the implant to 100 PED value.  So with current markup would have a TT value 4 PED implant.  Started at 5 PED.  The way to make the money back is sell at a higher multiple of the PED TT value which would be x31 markup. 
That's how to break-even and recover 125 PED spent on it.  Right at x31 is breakeven.
Above x31 markup and profits are possible. 
Anything below would be a loss.  The way to lose less next time around is play skill markets like a real market.  Buying low and selling high.  It takes time but can be done.  Inefficiencies also exist but because of the financial world equivalent which I call: market frictions, the spreads, of 20% or more, limit the number of profitable transactions that can be done.  Overcoming market frictions, then the sales item limit is a concern with skill implants. 
Be careful, be smart, and your time and money may multiply when a player in entropia universe. 

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