Koragg wrote:
The market might not be 'profit driven' for veterans who have billions in the bank, but for new and new(ish) players who only have a couple of million, it is. |
A bigger issue is that gold gained from the market is generally only used again on the market. In effect, it doesn't really circulate. The prime utility of gold is to pay for troops (soldiers/diplos), and if anyone has a long-term strategy of running a deficit and using the market to generate payroll I'd be surprised. To wit: the vets are buying, not selling, so they in general must be running a gold surplus.
I would be curious to know how much gold is in circulation in total from day to day. It would be nice to know how much inflation/deflation the economy experiences. I assume the devs keep a tight eye on this, as wild inflation or deflation can severely impact game mechanics.
Unless offsetting a gold deficit with trade is a widely used tactic, the total amount of gold in the game, as well as per capita, should be increasing. Since deflationary pressures are not likely to be as strong in the game as in a real economy -- we are not likely to see a drop in supply, wages are non-negotiable, and conflict is the only real factor affecting demand -- I expect we'll see steady inflation. This isn't a problem unless the inflation rate is volatile.
So currently, the market isn't driven at all. If it's a given that players tend to run gold surpluses over the course of the game, nobody needs long-term the gold the market provides, and the goods have a much higher utility value. Gold is technically only good for converting one resource into another, which can be done more efficiently (though less easily) through direct barter. I'd guess that right now, the market is driven by curiosity, speculation, and a hoarding desire.
I can think of one simple change that could encourage a gold-deficit playstyle, and that would be scheduling of trade orders. If I could queue a sell order for x number of books or swords or leather every y hours (as long as I have them), I could reliably maintain an overall positive cash flow. I wonder if this is something the devs are considering for trade 2.0.
I'm not an economist, it would be interesting if any forum members were and could provide some insight.