MacroQuest64

That's very well put

Back when EQ auctions prevailed on ebay, the story went closer to this (I'm referring to the post about UO auctions and EQ auctions)... People kept complaining to Verant that the people they were dealing with on ebay ripped them off, didn't deliver, whatever. Obviously Verant isn't there to police ebay auctions, they have better things to do with their time (such as make content and police actual game issues). It was for this reason (not wanting to become involved) that these auctions were then prohibited. I'll tell you right now that Smedley doesn't give a damn if people sell items and platinum to each other, and really doesn't care about selling accounts either. The main thing with accounts they have problems with is that they normally aren't aware that the transaction took place, and that can cause all kinds of problems (credit card info and whatnot).

However.. if attention is called to a specific situation, they have no choice but to suspend or ban the parties involved.

AMEN...

Bravo, I applaud you for that stirring summation, eloquent, and filled with deep emotion...

As much as I admire your point here is the simpler truth...people would love to point their finger (sometimes rudely) at Sony/VI and blame the corporation for what has happened, and they are not entirely without blame...However it was not Sony/VI that failed us in the end, it was the players...

For several months now, people have known that you can make money with EQ and this program, and for those months Sony/VI was well aware of it...do not be so foolish to think that you can do anything in this game without VI knowing...

...The only thing that kept the flames of verant from burning the rats out of the attic was the fact that they truly could care less...as long as it didn't stop other people from playing their game...and that was the key...

The entire thing got out of hand, at any given hour of the day there were 3 or 4 characters camped in front of the merchants, and then increasingly more as the greed of human nature took over...Once I saw 6 people in front of the merchant, and as most of us know, that is the max amount of people that can have a merchant open...so the *average* user comes up to the merchant and wants to practice his tradeskills and lo and behold, he can't even open the merchant because all the campers...

So what do you think that user does...he complains to a gm, after all he has just as much right to use that merchant...

One might argue that VI shouldn't put a limit on how many people can open the merchant...so what...how bout a hundred people to a merchant...now there is literally millions of pp made an hour...and that pp goes to the people willing to pay for it...so now there is a huge influx of pp into the game, but only for the people who use the macro, and the rich people who can afford to buy it...

Now (trying to remember my college economics class), I may be mistaken but, when there is such a huge amount of pp going into the game, once again human nature is that the value of pp goes down and the prices of things in the game skyrockets...now instead of there being equal balance for everyone, there are those who make the pp, those who pay for the pp and those who can no longer afford to play the game the *legitimate* way since the prices of everything are way too high...

...who cares about them...? You may find yourself asking...well they do, and whether you or anyone else likes it they make up the majority...and VI knows that...

So as far as you saying that we can hammer away at VI and they will bend to our will is a bit far fetched when 8/10ths of the people that pay them to play their game have nothing to do with this whole thing, and could care less if you can make money off of EQ, they just want to play this game...

I am not saying that Macroquest should be banned as a whole, just not used as a money making scheme...

Good luck trying to take down Sony/VI, maybe if you keep macroing and creating new accounts they will feel pressured into doing what you want...

I truly apologize for these long posts, I will shut up and keep my posts shorter in the future .

You cannot blame the player for the economic ramifications of running macros, no more than you can blame a business for churning out excess merchandise to undercut the competition. In your econ 101 class you may have learned about inflation, but in later econ classes you would have learned that there is a powerful tool built right into inflation that is its most dire nemesis. Supply and Demand.

While 1000 players will macro to their hearts content to make $250 for 50k platinum, more and more supply into the system will generally weaken that platinum price. If you study auction sites like playerauctions.com and look back in history of sales you would note that platinum prices are steadily falling. So while a price of $250 for 50k pp will keep 1000 people macroing because it is profitable, as the price point drops lets say to $50 per 50k pp, a lot less people will attempt macroing for pp because it isn't as profitable.

So in that vein, the supply has risen, prices have fallen and the amount of people macroing is now less, so prices again begin to rise and more people begin to macro and so on. Eventually you will hit a balance between the number of people willing to macro against the amount of money that you will make for said macroing.

And to quote you: "I am not saying that Macroquest should be banned as a whole, just not used as a money making scheme... "

Let me just say, in the words of Christ, "Let he who is without sin, be the first to cast the stone."

The DarkSoulX username seems to be an active playerauctions.com seller of platinum pieces. Have you maybe been macroing to make that platinum? And then the reason you complain is because you can no longer charge your high prices for that same platinum?

Do not be angry with me my friend because I bring your prices down, for I am Capitalism, and I have been doing this since the beginning of time.

And I warn you now, look behind you constantly, for there, behind you will be my characters, mass producing items to undercut your elitist ideals that only certain individuals have a right to the ability to make money from EQ.

And if Verant shuts me down, I will wipe off the dust and start over. Because that is the thing about Capitalism, it will let you start from nothing, if all you have is drive and a good work ethic. And I know that I am not alone.

Ahh...touche!

Very good of you to look at playerauctions and know me, very good...however I do not gain that money from macroing, I have been playing everquest since the beginning, and as such have come to learn the little known things about the game, I will still be making money even when macroquest goes belly up, and even its kindred programs fall to the wayside...

You seem fond of quoting the scriptures...well I too have a quote for you...

Eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die...

You go right ahead and make your little macros, you go right on and charge head first into the Bull, while you are drawing attention from me and taking the damaging blows, I will continue as I have been, long before you, long before macroquest...I have seen many like you come and go in my lifetime...have your hour of power...