TOPIC: Poll: Auction Feedback - mechanics

To all, <br /><br />I would like to get some feedback on the auction itself, please vote and also provide any comments below.<br /><br />Thanks,<br />Dave<br />

I couldn't believe the Elven Armband went for 40gp...  I still can't believe it...  <br /><br />So, I think it would be nice to know the high bid, even in the sealed portion.  <br /><br />I would also like ebay-like bids.  If you really want something, you can bid 20,000gp, but your final bid will be adjusted by the next highest bidder.  So, if you bid 20,000, and the second-highest bid was 40gp, you'd get it for, say 50gp.  If the second-highest bid was 15,000, you'd get it for 16,000gp (or something like that).  I just like the way ebay handles bids like that. <br /><br />And I said in the other thread, one night of live auction would be cool.<br /><br />Other than that, when it comes to mechanics, I gotta go with Kaylee from Firefly.  <br />

i thought it was the elven brooch that went for 40 GP

Brooch went high, armband went low (40GP).

Dave, since you asked :<br /><br />While I think it is cool for the person that won the Armband for 40gp, it reveals the unconventional nature (and unanticipated results) of the Auction rules.  <br /><br />eBay has an Open Auction system that works well and would be simple to implement - Silent open bidding.  It would prevent the anomalies created by the "one person one bid" rule.<br /><br />Or some other system where people can still only win one item but can bid as often as they would like in a Closed Auction where the winning bid pays the second highest bid + some increment as Arcbat suggested.  Just introduce the rule that once you win an auction, all bids from that player for all remaining items are invalidated.<br /><br />Another option is actually have a Live Open Auction for Gold which is very simple and straight-forward.  I think Josh (jberling) *might* be persuaded to help with this. <br /><br />I think any of these three options could be viable.  Perhaps try one of each of these methods on each day and see which one works best in So Cal.

I don't see anything wrong with only one person bidding on an item and getting it.  Seems to equalize all the huge bids that were done.  Just my thought on that.

I enjoyed it greatly, and with the flux that we saw, even a newbie who just got their starter bag could have won an item. That's cool.<br /><br />I marked the "keep it the way it is" box, because I think what we had worked. That said, I would love to see one or two of them go to live auction instead of the normal process. It would add a real spark to the tavern when that happened I think. Just need a stage, an auctioneer, and a two interested parties to make that go crazy.

Here is the problem - the Armband was a total fluke...<br /><br />What we saw with the majority of bidders on the Artisans was a "friendly" hunting and gathering party.<br /><br />Once people started talking about what was desired and how badly it was desired - competition cooled a great deal on said items.<br /><br />The only reason the armband went for 40gp was that a great number of people were staying away and waiting for a group bid on it for Heidi.  The same thing happened on the item Sis got, as well as several items that were highly desired by others.<br /><br />This is not to say that a rogue bidder could not win an item - going into an auction as a "totally unknown" person could net you the item easily - BUT I think those watching the auction will agree - once a person was known to be bidding on an item - it was pretty much hands off amongst friends.<br /><br />I think that says volumes for TD and the players/community we have.  HUZZAH.<br /><br />I am very glad that Bob got his wolf ring - that Sis got her fairy ring - George got his item for a great deal.  etc. etc.<br /><br />The thing about live auctions - well - maybe people would compete a bit more and keep it interesting - or maybe players/community members not as tight will be able to enter in and compete even more.  Not saying this is a bad thing - it would just be different than what we saw at INDY.  I for one am interested to see if the same community exists at SoCal...my GP is no - it will not exist at the same level.<br /><br />G

<br />I think those watching the auction will agree - once a person was known to be bidding on an item - it was pretty much hands off amongst friends.<br /><br />I think that says volumes for TD and the players/community we have.  HUZZAH.<br />

<br /><br />I'll add a little to the volume of what is being said about our excellent community:<br /><br />As most people were aware, I was looking to pick up the Cloak with Unicorn Clasp. My bid was the first one up, and it stayed at the top all day. When bidding closed, I doubled my bid, and was pretty sure I would win. But they announced the winner as some "William" guy. I was crushed. (Okay - that's being overdramatic. I was sad, and a little pissed that someone would scoop me, but ah well - that's what happens in auctions.)<br /><br />Then I discovered that the "William" who'd won was our own Ultraczar! <br /><br />I found him, to congratulate him on the win, and ask if there was any chance that he would consider selling the token to me. He told me he'd just bought the item for his Fiance. He'd had no idea I'd was bidding on it, because he hadn't read the forums at all.. just dropped a bid in the closed part of the auction. He hadn't deliberately scooped me.<br /><br />Then, after talking with his Fiance (who, by the by, is a cool member of the TD community in her own right) he offered me the Cloak - at LESS than he'd won it for - by way of an apology.<br /><br />So, I have a pretty Cloak with Unicorn Clasp after all. And I got to meet Will and Kim and discover what cool people they are. And I got to make a fine trade with Hatrel (another one of our TD volunteers & forumites) to pick up a pretty Purp for Will, as thanks for being so awesome about all this. (The token is still in transit, but it'll make it to Will eventually).<br /><br />I, for one, feel very lucky to be part of such an excellent group of players and friends. <br /><br />Thanks, everyone. <br /><br />And especially thanks to Will and Kim!<br /><br /><br /><br />

Frankly, it does sort of disturb me if bidders just form a cabal of sorts. There's a good reason that many people find that inherently unfair in the real world when it comes to buisness dealings. I guess there's no real way to stop it, but if that relaly is what it becomes then perhaps it's time to axe the entire idea. The combo tokens were there for everyone, and I know lotsa people who had fun crafting them who aren't huge token collectors or anything (at least the 1 cauldron ones). If the auction becomes one of those things that is dominated by so few people that they can pretty much divvy up the whole thing between them just by chatting about it beforehand, then maybe it's just not serving any real good purpose.

Call it what you will - I think it was respectful and a sign of friendship.<br /><br />I mean people were not bidding 1-2 GP here - they were shooting with best stack of gold.  There was just an understanding that friends would not go after same items, as much as possible.  This did not stop the very determined or the unknown from walking away with an item...the Elven Broach was a good example.

<br />If the auction becomes one of those things that is dominated by so few people that they can pretty much divvy up the whole thing between them just by chatting about it beforehand, then maybe it's just not serving any real good purpose.<br />

<br /><br />I guess the question is, what good purpose does the auction serve to begin with?<br /><br />It was created to (1) give something to DO with all that the gold in the game, (2) provide interesting unique tokens for collectors, and (3) add a fun activity to the tavern<br /><br />I think it did all those admirably. And the one thing it did especially well was to provide a value for GOLD. <br />Last year, newbies were trying to trade with players in the tavern, offering gold for armor/weapons. But gold was useless, so experienced players didn't really want it - they wanted to trade items for items, only.<br /><br />This year I saw a newbie buy a +1 weapons for a handful of common gp tokens, gathered from their party. The red sold for half of what the guide priced it at, because the buyer wanted gold for the auction! That wouldn't have happened last year.<br /><br />The auction is working just fine. Admittedly, it might work fine in other ways too, but I don't think it needs any serious rethinking.