EVOLT'S Guide to Becoming a Merchant

[Evolt]

There has been many players asking me on how to merchant in CS. The straightforward answer would be to buy low and sell high, because items in CS are set-priced, no bidding or negotiating. It is quite straightforward. The only differences in the “strategies” that different merchants use are their set-prices for each item and their profit margin. I don’t believe I’m any different from Manifette, Aflame, Tankkaar, Hunzzz, or others, but here are my ideas on “merchanting”:

1. Buy more auction slots. It is hard to make any gold with a few auction slots because the turnover time for selling item could be long. As a merchant, you need to buy underpriced items and resell it in auction, will means you need gold to buy and gold to list your items. With just a few auction slots, the turnaround time is too long and it would make more sense if you just go and farm for gold instead. I started out with 17 slots, then increased it to 30, 50, 75, 90, 110, and now with 130 slots. The main reason why I increased my auction slots was not because I wanted to make more gold faster, it was because my purchasing rate was much higher than my selling rate. At one point, I had over 3000+ items on just EVOLT. You have to maintain a balance.

2. Determine what you want to sell. There are so many items in this game and I don’t believe ANYONE would know the market prices for every item in this game. For myself, I usually sell pinks that are below level 50, you can barely find any of my listings that aren’t for pinks. Other players may focus their auctions on certain class, set, level, price, rarity…etc. It is quite hard to figure out right away what you “should” or “shouldn’t” sell, because players would have to learn through their experiences. For starters, here is a simple guide:


- For example, if you want to focus on Pink helms, do a search in CS and sorting the results by level (low level first). Most players would find that the first available INT, STR, or DEX helms should be at level 25. You MAY find listings for level 21 or 23 helms, but those are considered rares, or what I call “odd-level” items. For the “odd-level” items, the prices are usually high and you will not find that many listings. If the first available common Pink helm is at level 25, it means that players who crave for a good helm at low levels would most likely purchase it, resulting for a high demand. Therefore it is a good item to sell.

- Another example is the level 19 STR armor – Chain Mail of Legend. The level 19 STR armor is the first available “common” STR armor, and the next one after it is the level 25 STR Crystal or Earth Armor. This means that for players from level 1 – 24, the level 19 STR armor is the best they can get at a reasonable price. Of course there are pink armors at level 5 and 10-18, but they are at a premium price for low level players.

- Another example is the level 35 armor. The level 35 armors would be considered as “common”. If you take a look at the next available “common” armor, I would say that it is at level 45. This ten level gap will cause all the “odd-level” armors between level 36 – 44 is sustain a higher market price, while the level 35 armors will maintain a high demand, for players who don’t want to pay a premium for the “odd-level” armors.

- You have to spend some time in CS and figure this for yourself.

3. Understand the supply and demand. In the above examples, there are indiciations on how to figure out demand. Another important factor to demand is desire. There are plenty of collectors out there that would pay premiums for items they desire, not for its stats or appearances, but simply for fulfil their desire. It is quite impossible to measure this demand, but keep this in the back of your head.

Supply is $$$ for merchants. For merchants, supply of items in CS can work for or against you. Before listing an item, see how many of this identical item is available in CS first and at what prices it is selling at. If there aren’t much supply and if you can match or beat the lowest selling price, then list your item. If there are many listings and the supply is high, then there might be a chance for you to stock-up on that item, and do not list your item. Do not try to beat the lowest price just because you want to sell an item. Sell an item to make gold and there should not be any rush in selling any particular item. Try using a systematic approach when listing and make adjustments to your approach if needed. An example for myself, you may find me selling the level 25 JT Dex helm for 12.5k and the Sniper Dex helm for 14.5k. I’ve been selling those at that listed prices forever and 90% of the time it will be sold, therefore I don’t need to make any adjustments to the pricing.

4. Decide on your maximum purchase price. It is easy to say to buy low and sell high. The key is to determine the profit margin you desire for all the items. Using my example above, my desire profit margin is at least 30%. If my selling price for the Sniper Dex helm is 14.5k, my purchasing price for it would never exceed 10k. The reason why you should set a fixed selling price and profit margin is because merchants will be anything anytime they find it underpriced. No merchant will remember the price they bought each item at. Therefore having these figures determined, merchants will know how much room they would have to work with. If the supply for an item suddenly increase, like the case with the level 35 armors, if you know your maximum purchasing price, you may undercut other players to a price that you still wouldn’t take a lost and for quick sale.

5. Setting a fixed selling price. Much is said above…in addition, if you have set selling prices for your items, it would save you lots of time when listing.

6. Don’t be afraid to buy. When you see something underpriced, BUY IT! Don’t worry about the quantity, BUY EM ALL! Sometimes when a supply for an item is high in CS, and the prices drop, some players have the tentancy to list it at an even lower price just because they want to get rig of it (similar to the stock market…). As a merchant, BUY THEM ALL! The most I’ve spent in resell items in CS is over 1 mil a day. I’ve purchased the level 35 Dreamer Witch Toad Tiara for as low as 30k before, and there were 10+ of them in total below 50k, so I bought them all. Within a couple weeks, I’ve sold all my Dreamer at an average price of 65k. $$$.

7. Give back to the community. If you are successful as a merchant and makes lots of gold, give some gold or items out to those in need.


Summary in short:
1. Figure out what is “common” and what is “odd”.
2. Figure out the demand as well as the market price for all the “common” items.
3. Determine what you want to sell.
4. Set you prices and buy anything undervalued, especially the “odd”.
5. Make millions to gold!

One more thing to note though. In the past, when there wasn’t the level restrictions on joing games (the within two level restriction), CS was like a heaven for merchants. In the past, low level players often join high level dungeons like AO1, 2, or 3, the power-level. Not too many new players actually play the game properly. They just wanted to level-up fast. The fact that low level dungeons often get skipped, “odd” items were extremely rare. Some good examples are the level 33 Swampy Shivs and the level 33 Conq’ Hammo. It was so rare before (or what most players thought) that I used to sell the Shivs for as high as 600k and Conq’ Hammo for 1.5 mil. Now, because players have to play the game properly, these used-to-be “odd” became “common”, and the Shivs are now selling for 90k and Conq’ Hammos for 350k. Just keep in mind that what seem to be rare in the past might not be in the future, unless it is discontinued. Do not keep that many “odd” in your inventory because an update might cause the “odd” to become “common”. A good example is the level 50 Vyx helms or the level 25 Gem Lighting staff. Before the Sandcaves, the Gem Staffs were quite rare and the market price were around 30k, and 55k for Dreamer Gem Staff. After the release of Sandcaves, this “odd” became “common” and the price dropped to as low as 1k.

What works for me might not work for others, or what I believe you may not agree. I will try to spend more time on forum from now on and provide more inputs. I haven’t listed for a while but I hope this helps.


P.S. If you need assistance (in gold or items), especially for low-level players, feel free to PM me when you see me online. When you see me near CS and if I don’t reply to your messages, it is because I’m AFK. When I’m actually online, I do try to respond to every PM to me, but I often have like ten players talking to me at once, it is hard for me to keep up.

[friedkimchi]

Nice guide.

[apocketlegend]

Thanks evolt, I've tried this before but only made about 100k total :/ so I went back to sewer runs and gold farming. But great tips for those looking into this sectioN

[Unxtoxic]

Great guide evolt, I'm trying to get in to merchanting but since I have a bad spending problem I always have a low amount of money so once I fix my problem, I going to get in to merchanting. Well great guide and a very great job evolt :)

[KingFu]

Great guide Evolt:) Organized and informative. I'm sure this will help lots of people! Nice work.

[Roasty]

Hopefully...this will make me (not poor)

By the way, NICE JOB!

[Zaltiar]

Great work on this merchant guild evolt!
ahhh its economics all over again. haha

[Beanmachine]

Sweet guide, I want you to be my economics teacher!:rolleyes:

[Silentarrow]

Great guide Evolt!

[Mennddoza]

Good life lesson for people who invest. I've been merchanting for two weeks and earned 2m! Haha it's not much but it doubled my money

[Hankomachos]

I smell the next guardian of alterra! :)
Nice guide! :D

[simnar_]

No ****ing way!

[simnar_]

There has been many players asking me on how to merchant in CS. The straightforward answer would be to buy low and sell high, because items in CS are set-priced, no bidding or negotiating. It is quite straightforward. The only differences in the “strategies” that different merchants use are their set-prices for each item and their profit margin. I don’t believe I’m any different from Manifette, Aflame, Tankkaar, Hunzzz, or others, but here are my ideas on “merchanting”:

1. Buy more auction slots. It is hard to make any gold with a few auction slots because the turnover time for selling item could be long. As a merchant, you need to buy underpriced items and resell it in auction, will means you need gold to buy and gold to list your items. With just a few auction slots, the turnaround time is too long and it would make more sense if you just go and farm for gold instead. I started out with 17 slots, then increased it to 30, 50, 75, 90, 110, and now with 130 slots. The main reason why I increased my auction slots was not because I wanted to make more gold faster, it was because my purchasing rate was much higher than my selling rate. At one point, I had over 3000+ items on just EVOLT. You have to maintain a balance.

2. Determine what you want to sell. There are so many items in this game and I don’t believe ANYONE would know the market prices for every item in this game. For myself, I usually sell pinks that are below level 50, you can barely find any of my listings that aren’t for pinks. Other players may focus their auctions on certain class, set, level, price, rarity…etc. It is quite hard to figure out right away what you “should” or “shouldn’t” sell, because players would have to learn through their experiences. For starters, here is a simple guide:


- For example, if you want to focus on Pink helms, do a search in CS and sorting the results by level (low level first). Most players would find that the first available INT, STR, or DEX helms should be at level 25. You MAY find listings for level 21 or 23 helms, but those are considered rares, or what I call “odd-level” items. For the “odd-level” items, the prices are usually high and you will not find that many listings. If the first available common Pink helm is at level 25, it means that players who crave for a good helm at low levels would most likely purchase it, resulting for a high demand. Therefore it is a good item to sell.

- Another example is the level 19 STR armor – Chain Mail of Legend. The level 19 STR armor is the first available “common” STR armor, and the next one after it is the level 25 STR Crystal or Earth Armor. This means that for players from level 1 – 24, the level 19 STR armor is the best they can get at a reasonable price. Of course there are pink armors at level 5 and 10-18, but they are at a premium price for low level players.

- Another example is the level 35 armor. The level 35 armors would be considered as “common”. If you take a look at the next available “common” armor, I would say that it is at level 45. This ten level gap will cause all the “odd-level” armors between level 36 – 44 is sustain a higher market price, while the level 35 armors will maintain a high demand, for players who don’t want to pay a premium for the “odd-level” armors.

- You have to spend some time in CS and figure this for yourself.

3. Understand the supply and demand. In the above examples, there are indiciations on how to figure out demand. Another important factor to demand is desire. There are plenty of collectors out there that would pay premiums for items they desire, not for its stats or appearances, but simply for fulfil their desire. It is quite impossible to measure this demand, but keep this in the back of your head.

Supply is $$$ for merchants. For merchants, supply of items in CS can work for or against you. Before listing an item, see how many of this identical item is available in CS first and at what prices it is selling at. If there aren’t much supply and if you can match or beat the lowest selling price, then list your item. If there are many listings and the supply is high, then there might be a chance for you to stock-up on that item, and do not list your item. Do not try to beat the lowest price just because you want to sell an item. Sell an item to make gold and there should not be any rush in selling any particular item. Try using a systematic approach when listing and make adjustments to your approach if needed. An example for myself, you may find me selling the level 25 JT Dex helm for 12.5k and the Sniper Dex helm for 14.5k. I’ve been selling those at that listed prices forever and 90% of the time it will be sold, therefore I don’t need to make any adjustments to the pricing.

4. Decide on your maximum purchase price. It is easy to say to buy low and sell high. The key is to determine the profit margin you desire for all the items. Using my example above, my desire profit margin is at least 30%. If my selling price for the Sniper Dex helm is 14.5k, my purchasing price for it would never exceed 10k. The reason why you should set a fixed selling price and profit margin is because merchants will be anything anytime they find it underpriced. No merchant will remember the price they bought each item at. Therefore having these figures determined, merchants will know how much room they would have to work with. If the supply for an item suddenly increase, like the case with the level 35 armors, if you know your maximum purchasing price, you may undercut other players to a price that you still wouldn’t take a lost and for quick sale.

5. Setting a fixed selling price. Much is said above…in addition, if you have set selling prices for your items, it would save you lots of time when listing.

6. Don’t be afraid to buy. When you see something underpriced, BUY IT! Don’t worry about the quantity, BUY EM ALL! Sometimes when a supply for an item is high in CS, and the prices drop, some players have the tentancy to list it at an even lower price just because they want to get rig of it (similar to the stock market…). As a merchant, BUY THEM ALL! The most I’ve spent in resell items in CS is over 1 mil a day. I’ve purchased the level 35 Dreamer Witch Toad Tiara for as low as 30k before, and there were 10+ of them in total below 50k, so I bought them all. Within a couple weeks, I’ve sold all my Dreamer at an average price of 65k. $$$.

7. Give back to the community. If you are successful as a merchant and makes lots of gold, give some gold or items out to those in need.


Summary in short:
1. Figure out what is “common” and what is “odd”.
2. Figure out the demand as well as the market price for all the “common” items.
3. Determine what you want to sell.
4. Set you prices and buy anything undervalued, especially the “odd”.
5. Make millions to gold!

One more thing to note though. In the past, when there wasn’t the level restrictions on joing games (the within two level restriction), CS was like a heaven for merchants. In the past, low level players often join high level dungeons like AO1, 2, or 3, the power-level. Not too many new players actually play the game properly. They just wanted to level-up fast. The fact that low level dungeons often get skipped, “odd” items were extremely rare. Some good examples are the level 33 Swampy Shivs and the level 33 Conq’ Hammo. It was so rare before (or what most players thought) that I used to sell the Shivs for as high as 600k and Conq’ Hammo for 1.5 mil. Now, because players have to play the game properly, these used-to-be “odd” became “common”, and the Shivs are now selling for 90k and Conq’ Hammos for 350k. Just keep in mind that what seem to be rare in the past might not be in the future, unless it is discontinued. Do not keep that many “odd” in your inventory because an update might cause the “odd” to become “common”. A good example is the level 50 Vyx helms or the level 25 Gem Lighting staff. Before the Sandcaves, the Gem Staffs were quite rare and the market price were around 30k, and 55k for Dreamer Gem Staff. After the release of Sandcaves, this “odd” became “common” and the price dropped to as low as 1k.

What works for me might not work for others, or what I believe you may not agree. I will try to spend more time on forum from now on and provide more inputs. I haven’t listed for a while but I hope this helps.


P.S. If you need assistance (in gold or items), especially for low-level players, feel free to PM me when you see me online. When you see me near CS and if I don’t reply to your messages, it is because I’m AFK. When I’m actually online, I do try to respond to every PM to me, but I often have like ten players talking to me at once, it is hard for me to keep up. you have replied to me once thats how i got my crystaline staff ty for that btw hope you got good gold on the eq dex helm i gave you

[Ayush1997]

Really informative and structured guide. Real nice work :D

[xero]

Amazing Guide Evolt!

I've often wondered while I was perusing cs, how some players manage to know what items sell and what dont.

+1mil :) lolz

Fyi, I've subscribed to this thread via the sts mobile app and look forward to more gems of wisdom. Keep up the good job!

[AbsolutePally]

This post rivals those of psychological! Very nice
Hmm I tried merchanting. It was a fun lil hobby. Seems like the market is cornered though.
Maybe i'll try again. 8 auction slots and 6 mil is a good start to merchant right?

[Yvonnel]

Finally secrets from the Master of the CS.

JK, great guide Evolt.

[Fyrce]

The market is NEVER cornered. There are way too many items out there and changes and player preferences changes and fads, mistakes, etc. Basically anyone who notices any of those things can make a mini-killing.

The trick is to stay at it. It actually takes A LOT of time to study the CS and "play" it. You have to be there for those "cheap" listings. But there ARE a lot of listings. There will always be bargains.

It does help to have more slots, though most people won't be able to fund 130 of them.

And you WILL lose money on some buys. If you do your homework in CS though, you should generally be able to make more than you spend.

Wooo, Evolt noticed me and I don't even have that many slots. Worship the Evolt... LOL.

[Redbridge]

Sweet Guide..... Many Thanks

[Swimmingstar]

6. I should sell for more...

Great guide helps a lot but don't buy plat so I'll have to use forums and talk in game:D

[Register]

This thing is amazing! remember to pm sam to move this guides! Lol i have an AMAZING idea. I just have to find the right item...And a few others willing to help. hehehehehe...

[Ephemeris]

Very nice guide, Evolt!

[iTastyKei]

fantastic job. Well organized and easy to read ,this will be helpful for everyone thinking about merchandising. This method has good returns but if you have not done your homework could be risky as well.Remember guys patience is key you wont always get your item sold instantly, some may take a few days. Hope to see you guys making great margins with this.

once again great guide : D

[Velites]

Great guide! Nice work!

[noobmigo]

This will definitely make merching much harder.

-8, work the news in your favor. Sometimes you'll just have to hoard and post an "incident" on forums. Sure it's dirty, but if you're a serious merchant, it will definitely work.

I will definitely never try that, but it's a nice business opportunity.

After you post this, there will probably be many more merches and less buying in CS. I hope.

[Smully]

Very nice Tutorial Evolt, good work!

[drewcapu]

One thing that works for me, but won't necessarily work for others, is that I have many character slots, each with 1 CS slot, and I use almost all of them. Each of my characters have particular items that they will sell, so to me, it's "organized" even though it's a bit slower having to switch from character to character. On the plus side, I've saved on plat and have characters that I can use to farm at various levels. The other plus side is that I have a few secret characters that nobody knows about who I can undercut people with and not have to worry about someone getting mad at me ;)

[WishUWereHere]

when you put an item up for auction, do you always choose the 3 days 1000 gold option? if not, what makes you choose otherwise, and what contributes to the decision?

whats your opinion on purple items? as in how much do they have to be worth to waste time/gold/slot selling them in cs compared to liquidating them?

awesome guide btw thank you.

[Fastcast]

Nice guide this is how I got SOOO ummm poor ya shhh say nothin here i come 20mill xD

[JaytB]

Nice detailed guide :)

[drewcapu]

when you put an item up for auction, do you always choose the 3 days 1000 gold option? if not, what makes you choose otherwise, and what contributes to the decision?

whats your opinion on purple items? as in how much do they have to be worth to waste time/gold/slot selling them in cs compared to liquidating them?

awesome guide btw thank you.


If you (re)sell a particular item a lot, you'll learn what price will often sell within a day. With that in mind, I use the 23-hour about 90% of the time.

I pretty much only use the 3-day if I'm selling an "odd" item.

There are greens/purps that can sell. An extreme example are Winter Fest items. Most of the green/purp items that sell are scaled items. Examples are BS L51-53 items, and Swamp items less than L35, especially L30s. There are others, but it's fun to discover them :)

[Elyseon]

I've been trying to do this, thx for the guide, I was doing it backwards

[Lowlyspy]

Fantastic guide evolt, ive been using it for one day now and ive already made a decent amount lol

[drewcapu]

I've been trying to do this, thx for the guide, I was doing it backwards

Buying high, selling low? :D

[WishUWereHere]

ahh thanks drew. i almost always use the 3 day option, mainly because its more bang for your buck. thing is though i don't resell the same items often, usually sell a random pink i get from farming a random map so i don't always know the value and base it off cs.. and also i am one of those who list items as the lowest of that item type.

[Chant]

One thing that works for me, but won't necessarily work for others, is that I have many character slots, each with 1 CS slot, and I use almost all of them. Each of my characters have particular items that they will sell, so to me, it's "organized" even though it's a bit slower having to switch from character to character. On the plus side, I've saved on plat and have characters that I can use to farm at various levels. The other plus side is that I have a few secret characters that nobody knows about who I can undercut people with and not have to worry about someone getting mad at me ;)

ROFL... I'm sooooo totally like you!!! ha, ha, ha :)

[Riccits]

i need some chars more too lol ;)

this method is sureley the best to make cash, but u need very very much time to spend checking CS. i have only 20 slots to check at all and i still need a while so manage them.. with 100 slots or more its a fulltimejob.
but i like to farm in PL, this is for me playing PL, not just checking CS the whole time.

[Sulfurus]

OMG WOW!!! Really great guide EVOLT i would try it but with 10k it's hard to start merchandising...:(

[Zerious]

OMG WOW!!! Really great guide EVOLT i would try it but with 10k it's hard to start merchandising...:(

plasma pyramid til you have around 50-100k then jump in :)

[Salutee]

Ya awesome guide. It has motivated me to try merchanting!!

[nmyxspaceship]

Very helpful:D

[Lucilulu]

EVOLT, as a fellow merchant/trader, I would like to say job well done. A few things I would like to reinforce.

1. Do not be afraid to buy: I think this is one that gets most people. Yes u do have to know prices in order to know when the time and price are right, but if they are, BUY! and as EVOLT said, buy them all.

1a. (I would like to add) Be aware of how long it will take to sell: I believe this is something that many inexperienced traders overlook. Just because an item may be ultra rare and just because it may be worth a pretty penny does not mean it will sell right away. I have a rule, if I do not feel I can make 25% and sell within a week, then I will not purchase (the sell within a week is just as important as making 25%). The longer an item sits in inventory the less ur actual real rate of return is. I would much rather buy 10 voodoo dolls at 500k (50k apiece) and turn them over ten times making 15k a sale in a week doing this 4 x a month (600k total profit minus listing fees) then buy one green ice item for 500k and have to sit on it a month selling at 750k. Yes I make more on the green ice but once u factor in the time in inventory, the profit is not so great.

2. Keep track of your true item cost: If u use CS as a way to sell, you will need to keep in mind it will cost u quite a bit to list each item. I currently have approximately 250 CS slots. It can cost me as much as 300k just to list all 250 of my items. Each time an item listed does not sell I have now increased my cost of that item by the listing fee price. Do this a few times and your profit is gone.

3. Follow EVOLT's advise and give back: one of the best things about being as successful merchant is your ability to help others. Yes, all the begging does get frustrating at times and you do feel singled out once you've been dubbed a successful trader (hard not to be, people see the items u have), but it is very rewarding to be able to help the deserving players that really are appreciative. At this point, I only keep an adequate supply of gold to allow for continued merchanting and give away anything above that on a weekly basis.

Finally, as a former successful hedge fund manager (think stock, bond and commodity trading on a large scale for those who don't know what that is) I can tell any of you who may have an interest in getting into some sort of business some day that becoming a PL/SL merchant/trader (successful) and learning the ends and outs of the game the way EVOLT has can only help prepare you for what's to come in your true life business affairs. There is definitely true life application that I believe any good business man or women could appreciate.

Again thanks EVOLT for a very good guide!

Dopeydaddy - lvl 56 arch
Lucilulu - lvl 56 Mage

Main Traders: dopesback, dopesscndtake

[Zeus]

EVOLT, great guide. I have a a few tips to add to it myself, unsure if they are mentioned already; I read through the entire thing but my memory is a bit forgetful every now and then.

Anyways, what I have often tried doing and has worked well for me is buy out the entire demand. Anything that lists, buy. Then, when people start noticing the shortage on it, human instinct makes them want to have it. I do this normally with holiday pinks, it takes about a month to implement, but once it is done, I make anywhere for 100-300k profit PER pink. This merchanting is a beat cheap and of course, is not for the merchant that is not willing to take risks (Every merchant needs to be a risk taker).

Twink items; These are great. Examples: Keep an eye out for those cheap artisan leathers going for 40k and experts leathers going for 60k. Level 5 of course, repeatedly stack up on those and sell them back for a 15-20k profit a few days later.

[Mothwing]

Evolt, you just made my day. *SIGH* TYVM!!!!! imma try n be a merchant now :)

[AdinoEznite]

EVOLT, great guide. I have a a few tips to add to it myself, unsure if they are mentioned already; I read through the entire thing but my memory is a bit forgetful every now and then.

Anyways, what I have often tried doing and has worked well for me is buy out the entire demand. Anything that lists, buy. Then, when people start noticing the shortage on it, human instinct makes them want to have it. I do this normally with holiday pinks, it takes about a month to implement, but once it is done, I make anywhere for 100-300k profit PER pink. This merchanting is a beat cheap and of course, is not for the merchant that is not willing to take risks (Every merchant needs to be a risk taker).

wow that never occurred to me haha of course u have to have the capital to do that (;
ive been doing pretty well mech-ing i think, ive been playing PL for maybe 6 weeks now and ive probably made ~3 million in total

wish i could have met you guys (Evolt/Apollo) ig towards the beginning, maybe the first 2-3 weeks i spend trying to figure out stuff would have gone faster

my current problem is not progressing through the game enough to know what other items are good to sell since my highest lvl is only 31 haha


in any case great guide Evolt

[Udiemorenoob]

Awesome guide evolt allthough i think ima keep selling items under cs prices i make plenty this way. Of course thats because most the items i sell i get for 5k- ima lucky guy what can i say.
P.s. Thanks for the copperhead plate 8D

[Udiemorenoob]

Awesome guide evolt allthough i think ima keep selling items under cs prices i make plenty this way. Of course thats because most the items i sell i get for 5k- ima lucky guy what can i say.
P.s. Thanks for the copperhead plate 8D

[Prest87]

Thx 4 the guide!

[Evolt]

EVOLT, great guide. I have a a few tips to add to it myself, unsure if they are mentioned already; I read through the entire thing but my memory is a bit forgetful every now and then.

Anyways, what I have often tried doing and has worked well for me is buy out the entire demand. Anything that lists, buy. Then, when people start noticing the shortage on it, human instinct makes them want to have it. I do this normally with holiday pinks, it takes about a month to implement, but once it is done, I make anywhere for 100-300k profit PER pink. This merchanting is a beat cheap and of course, is not for the merchant that is not willing to take risks (Every merchant needs to be a risk taker).

Twink items; These are great. Examples: Keep an eye out for those cheap artisan leathers going for 40k and experts leathers going for 60k. Level 5 of course, repeatedly stack up on those and sell them back for a 15-20k profit a few days later.

I agree. I do it sometimes as well, just buy out every item available that are listed below my selling price. I'm not as successful as you are pulling this move. I couldn't say that I've made much from using this strategy.

Another thing I've tried is to list a hugh lot (15+) of a single item below market price or my purchasing price, just to push the price down, so I can buy it for even cheaper. IT WORKS!

[Evolt]

EVOLT, as a fellow merchant/trader, I would like to say job well done. A few things I would like to reinforce.

1. Do not be afraid to buy: I think this is one that gets most people. Yes u do have to know prices in order to know when the time and price are right, but if they are, BUY! and as EVOLT said, buy them all.

1a. (I would like to add) Be aware of how long it will take to sell: I believe this is something that many inexperienced traders overlook. Just because an item may be ultra rare and just because it may be worth a pretty penny does not mean it will sell right away. I have a rule, if I do not feel I can make 25% and sell within a week, then I will not purchase (the sell within a week is just as important as making 25%). The longer an item sits in inventory the less ur actual real rate of return is. I would much rather buy 10 voodoo dolls at 500k (50k apiece) and turn them over ten times making 15k a sale in a week doing this 4 x a month (600k total profit minus listing fees) then buy one green ice item for 500k and have to sit on it a month selling at 750k. Yes I make more on the green ice but once u factor in the time in inventory, the profit is not so great.

2. Keep track of your true item cost: If u use CS as a way to sell, you will need to keep in mind it will cost u quite a bit to list each item. I currently have approximately 250 CS slots. It can cost me as much as 300k just to list all 250 of my items. Each time an item listed does not sell I have now increased my cost of that item by the listing fee price. Do this a few times and your profit is gone.

3. Follow EVOLT's advise and give back: one of the best things about being as successful merchant is your ability to help others. Yes, all the begging does get frustrating at times and you do feel singled out once you've been dubbed a successful trader (hard not to be, people see the items u have), but it is very rewarding to be able to help the deserving players that really are appreciative. At this point, I only keep an adequate supply of gold to allow for continued merchanting and give away anything above that on a weekly basis.

Finally, as a former successful hedge fund manager (think stock, bond and commodity trading on a large scale for those who don't know what that is) I can tell any of you who may have an interest in getting into some sort of business some day that becoming a PL/SL merchant/trader (successful) and learning the ends and outs of the game the way EVOLT has can only help prepare you for what's to come in your true life business affairs. There is definitely true life application that I believe any good business man or women could appreciate.

Again thanks EVOLT for a very good guide!

Dopeydaddy - lvl 56 arch
Lucilulu - lvl 56 Mage

Main Traders: dopesback, dopesscndtake

Great input! Wow, 250 slots?! How long does it take you to list your items? With 130 slots, it takes me about 10- 15 minutes each time.

Regarding the listing time, for most of my items, I would list it for 3 days, depending on the turnaround time for each item. Yes, players have to pay attention to how long it takes to sell an item because your profit margin will drop as time goes by. Relisting an item is expensive and if you notice some of your items cannot sell at your set price, then reduce your prices or stop selling that item for a while. I rarely list items for 11 hours because I don't like to undercut prices in CS and I sell items at a set price. Unless you undercut prices, it would be hard to sell an item in less than 11 hours. Players around the world with different timezones will log on at a different time of the day. Listing an item for 23 hours will guarantee you that the item will be exposed to different "markets".

When I farm, I never farm with high level players or experienced players. The only reason is because experienced players know which drop is good and which is not. "Newer" players often don't know the market prices for the items they get from drops. Buying rare drops from them is easy $$$. Simliar to CS, for starters, you should start merchanting at lower levels. Many players at low levels just want to list an item to liquidate for buying potions, they do not list an item in CS to make "profit", therefore "goodies" can be more likely found at lower levels.

[Twinkman]

Nice info. Btw u should pvp my voodoo mage sometime

[Lucilulu]

Great input! Wow, 250 slots?! How long does it take you to list your items? With 130 slots, it takes me about 10- 15 minutes each time.

Regarding the listing time, for most of my items, I would list it for 3 days, depending on the turnaround time for each item. Yes, players have to pay attention to how long it takes to sell an item because your profit margin will drop as time goes by. Relisting an item is expensive and if you notice some of your items cannot sell at your set price, then reduce your prices or stop selling that item for a while. I rarely list items for 11 hours because I don't like to undercut prices in CS and I sell items at a set price. Unless you undercut prices, it would be hard to sell an item in less than 11 hours. Players around the world with different timezones will log on at a different time of the day. Listing an item for 23 hours will guarantee you that the item will be exposed to different "markets".

When I farm, I never farm with high level players or experienced players. The only reason is because experienced players know which drop is good and which is not. "Newer" players often don't know the market prices for the items they get from drops. Buying rare drops from them is easy $$$. Simliar to CS, for starters, you should start merchanting at lower levels. Many players at low levels just want to list an item to liquidate for buying potions, they do not list an item in CS to make "profit", therefore "goodies" can be more likely found at lower levels.

I have a feeling making the easy money of the past may have just got harder. Next time leave out a few of our secrets :)

[Singleteddy]

when you put an item up for auction, do you always choose the 3 days 1000 gold option? if not, what makes you choose otherwise, and what contributes to the decision?

whats your opinion on purple items? as in how much do they have to be worth to waste time/gold/slot selling them in cs compared to liquidating them?

awesome guide btw thank you. You can do a little math and come up with the following stats for various listing prices:


2k- g: 23hr listing is better than 3day if chance to sell listing is 41% or better (41% or better chance to sell within those 23hrs)
5k g: 23hr listing is better than 3day if chance to sell listing is 44+%
10k g: 23hr listing is better than 3day if chance to sell listing is 47%
20k g: 23hr listing is better than 3day if chance to sell listing is 53+%
30k g: 23hr listing is better than 3day if chance to sell listing is 57+%
50k g: 23hr listing is better than 3day if chance to sell listing is 64+%
100k g: 23hr listing is better than 3day if chance to sell listing is 74+%
200k g: 23hr listing is better than 3day if chance to sell listing is 83+%
500k g: 23hr listing is better than 3day if chance to sell listing is 92+%
1M g: 23hr listing is better than 3day if chance to sell listing is 95+%

The chart shows that shorter listing times are better for easy-to-sell items and for cheap items. Longer listing times are better for more expensive items and for harder-to-sell items.

The specific stats above assume that chances of selling items each hour is constant, which of course is NOT true. There are hot/cold selling times during the day and week. They also do not take into account that time is money: if you list for shorter periods, you will be spending more time in the CS instead of out farming or playing and making money that way.


Awesome guide evolt allthough i think ima keep selling items under cs prices i make plenty this way. I'm happy to buy your items anytime. :D

[Fyrce]

Actually most players will never read the forums and even fewer will think to do merchanting and therefore read this thread. Most who read this thread will lose money. There really will not be that many that will be serious competition.

[KNOW_BRAINER]

sweet guide. i actually started folowing this guide before it was created. i figured selling lower level pinks cuz i saw evolt selling a bunch. especially the weird levels like 37 or 28 and captialized. i hope a lot of people dont see this guide. heehee

[Rubikin]

Great post Evolt! Thanks for such a helpful guide. I started merchanting at a low lvl just focusing on a few items, and trying to make good trades. I'm not super loaded, but it has let me afford most of the items I've wanted as I've lvl'd up, with a nice cushion to spare. I think something to notice is who else is merchanting the same items and what their tendencies are. Sometimes a new person will get into the same item, and I find that I might have to slightly adjust my pricing or timing strategy.

[stevieoopsie]

Great guide on trading, has a lot of real life applications too.

One of the things that I can point out though, just like Evolt said, you can have different strategies when it comes to trading and there is no right answer to what will yield the highest returns.

I think you can either be walmart and offer discounts through massive bargaining power over suppliers, or bestbuy and try to get a fat markup and offer above the market, depending on the scale of your operations. A practical strategy for those with 200, 300 slots is to deploy the Wal-mart strategy- buy things in packs from people that do not have slots and want their items gone at a bargain. The more you buy the less you average cost you pay. It is often extremely easy to buy pinks at discounts in the 50s from the "black market" in massive numbers. This way I would recommend that you try to increase your inventory turnover as much as possible by offering reasonable bargains in cs (15%-30% discount still means 17%- 34% net margin - after commissions).

The advantages of this strategy are obvious - first you have less money tied up in working capital - inventory that you cannot hedge especially !

Second since you sell faster at a discount, you pay less commission costs by using shorter auction time.

Third a high turnover means you can redeploy your slots for more inventory - if you can do this skillfully sometimes you get a much higher net return than reselling your items at "reasonable" prices and waiting longer for them to sell. Faster sales also mean that rapid shifts in market sentiment won't affect your sales figures as much.

Fourth, you have a much higher margin for safety - selling at bargain is much less risky than selling at market prevalent prices.

Like I said, this strategy might only work for me but it's just my 2 cents on trading. The Wal-mart model has been tested for many decades and even today is unmatchable. (inventory turnover at Walmart is 12 - versus below 9 for Bestbuy) and I think it's a model that a lot of people can adapt having developed the proper scale

[Falking]

I should have hired you guys for my economics class

[Lucilulu]

I should have hired you guys for my economics class

I've been a guest speaker at a number of economics classes :)

[13lacklegionz]

Hahahaha! I was reading Hunzzz's thread about the game while forums were down. While I was reading his post to counter the people who accused him of scamming, I noticed his merchanting guide. In his guide, I noticed this guide. I read his guide first, and then this one, and that's how I came here...

Anyways, awesome guide!

[Imacoolbirdd]

Somone said u have 200 bilion dollars ( me ) is that true? :)

[13lacklegionz]

200 billion dollars. DUH. Of course he has that. -.-

I think his net worth is in the Richest people in PL range (I might know an approximate, but not for me to say.)

[stevieoopsie]

If he had 200 billion would he still bother selling things that are worth less than 10k?

The entire game produces only a few million a day in gold coins through players farming; for the game itself to produce 200 billion it'd take years. Do the math man.

[Imacoolbirdd]

It was a joke bro no need to get mad...

[stevieoopsie]

My bad

[itzyou]

Nice guide:) 6 mil and counting

[Osavearisie]

Hey Evolt, I'm gonna make this short... And absolute quality post. I like that you take your time with explaining regardless if other people know your secrets and I know you care for others. That's why I sent you a friend request all that time ago and I'm glad that we became friends... even though we don't talk very often. Where both busy people lol. Once again the execution of this posting was superb!!! I'm sure I'll see you soon :-)

[csb]

I do this stuff and more, and I'm surprised you wrote this guide. Usually we (market players) like to keep our methods secret.


3. Follow EVOLT's advise and give back: one of the best things about being as successful merchant is your ability to help others. Yes, all the begging does get frustrating at times and you do feel singled out once you've been dubbed a successful trader (hard not to be, people see the items u have), but it is very rewarding to be able to help the deserving players that really are appreciative. At this point, I only keep an adequate supply of gold to allow for continued merchanting and give away anything above that on a weekly basis.


The problem with giving to beggers is that they are encouraged to continue begging. I always wonder who feeds the beggers because they would all stop if it was not profitable. In this game it is easy to make money, and the items needed to play the game are cheap. The rare expensive things are not needed at all, except as a fashion statement. Everyone can learn to play the game and be self sufficient, except those that get free items and leveling help. They will have trouble learning how to play the game.

So. you inspired me to make another thread, "How to be altruistic without feeding beggers (http://www.spacetimestudios.com/showthread.php?38075-How-to-be-altruistic-without-feeding-beggers&p=428935#post428935)".

[enchantereess]

thanks for the help on making money

[AbsolutePally]

My question is!! Why isn't this guide in players section! Devs should have moved this awesome guide a long time ago to give recognition and credit where it is due.

[Mageprodigy]

Thanks man

[Probesbehr]

Nice Guild :(

[IGN Storm]

Before everyone starts spamming Necro, keep in mind he's new and just posted a positive comment.

[Schnitzel]

Before everyone starts spamming Necro, keep in mind he's new and just posted a positive comment.
*applause*

I think this was a good necro..I was looking for a thread on being a merch. Thanks!

[Heroelite]

My question is!! Why isn't this guide in players section! Devs should have moved this awesome guide a long time ago to give recognition and credit where it is due.
^:(

[Ssneakykills]

Such a good guide I'm going to give merching a go. Wish me luck

[Extreme]

Worth the necro.

[Ks_Leon]

ah evolt.....miss so much..;(

[MightyMicah]

ah evolt.....miss so much..;(

He was a true legend.

[DocDoBig]

Were the sewer pinks not so high in demand back then or why did he only buy low level pinks?

[Chrisaetoshawker]

Works in other games as well!! Thx!! Nice guide!!

[Faq]

Don't necro threads. (Post on out of date threads)

[Mister Smith]

There has been many players asking me on how to merchant in CS. The straightforward answer would be to buy low and sell high, because items in CS are set-priced, no bidding or negotiating. It is quite straightforward. The only differences in the “strategies” that different merchants use are their set-prices for each item and their profit margin. I don’t believe I’m any different from Manifette, Aflame, Tankkaar, Hunzzz, or others, but here are my ideas on “merchanting”:

1. Buy more auction slots. It is hard to make any gold with a few auction slots because the turnover time for selling item could be long. As a merchant, you need to buy underpriced items and resell it in auction, will means you need gold to buy and gold to list your items. With just a few auction slots, the turnaround time is too long and it would make more sense if you just go and farm for gold instead. I started out with 17 slots, then increased it to 30, 50, 75, 90, 110, and now with 130 slots. The main reason why I increased my auction slots was not because I wanted to make more gold faster, it was because my purchasing rate was much higher than my selling rate. At one point, I had over 3000+ items on just EVOLT. You have to maintain a balance.

2. Determine what you want to sell. There are so many items in this game and I don’t believe ANYONE would know the market prices for every item in this game. For myself, I usually sell pinks that are below level 50, you can barely find any of my listings that aren’t for pinks. Other players may focus their auctions on certain class, set, level, price, rarity…etc. It is quite hard to figure out right away what you “should” or “shouldn’t” sell, because players would have to learn through their experiences. For starters, here is a simple guide:


- For example, if you want to focus on Pink helms, do a search in CS and sorting the results by level (low level first). Most players would find that the first available INT, STR, or DEX helms should be at level 25. You MAY find listings for level 21 or 23 helms, but those are considered rares, or what I call “odd-level” items. For the “odd-level” items, the prices are usually high and you will not find that many listings. If the first available common Pink helm is at level 25, it means that players who crave for a good helm at low levels would most likely purchase it, resulting for a high demand. Therefore it is a good item to sell.

- Another example is the level 19 STR armor – Chain Mail of Legend. The level 19 STR armor is the first available “common” STR armor, and the next one after it is the level 25 STR Crystal or Earth Armor. This means that for players from level 1 – 24, the level 19 STR armor is the best they can get at a reasonable price. Of course there are pink armors at level 5 and 10-18, but they are at a premium price for low level players.

- Another example is the level 35 armor. The level 35 armors would be considered as “common”. If you take a look at the next available “common” armor, I would say that it is at level 45. This ten level gap will cause all the “odd-level” armors between level 36 – 44 is sustain a higher market price, while the level 35 armors will maintain a high demand, for players who don’t want to pay a premium for the “odd-level” armors.

- You have to spend some time in CS and figure this for yourself.

3. Understand the supply and demand. In the above examples, there are indiciations on how to figure out demand. Another important factor to demand is desire. There are plenty of collectors out there that would pay premiums for items they desire, not for its stats or appearances, but simply for fulfil their desire. It is quite impossible to measure this demand, but keep this in the back of your head.

Supply is $$$ for merchants. For merchants, supply of items in CS can work for or against you. Before listing an item, see how many of this identical item is available in CS first and at what prices it is selling at. If there aren’t much supply and if you can match or beat the lowest selling price, then list your item. If there are many listings and the supply is high, then there might be a chance for you to stock-up on that item, and do not list your item. Do not try to beat the lowest price just because you want to sell an item. Sell an item to make gold and there should not be any rush in selling any particular item. Try using a systematic approach when listing and make adjustments to your approach if needed. An example for myself, you may find me selling the level 25 JT Dex helm for 12.5k and the Sniper Dex helm for 14.5k. I’ve been selling those at that listed prices forever and 90% of the time it will be sold, therefore I don’t need to make any adjustments to the pricing.

4. Decide on your maximum purchase price. It is easy to say to buy low and sell high. The key is to determine the profit margin you desire for all the items. Using my example above, my desire profit margin is at least 30%. If my selling price for the Sniper Dex helm is 14.5k, my purchasing price for it would never exceed 10k. The reason why you should set a fixed selling price and profit margin is because merchants will be anything anytime they find it underpriced. No merchant will remember the price they bought each item at. Therefore having these figures determined, merchants will know how much room they would have to work with. If the supply for an item suddenly increase, like the case with the level 35 armors, if you know your maximum purchasing price, you may undercut other players to a price that you still wouldn’t take a lost and for quick sale.

5. Setting a fixed selling price. Much is said above…in addition, if you have set selling prices for your items, it would save you lots of time when listing.

6. Don’t be afraid to buy. When you see something underpriced, BUY IT! Don’t worry about the quantity, BUY EM ALL! Sometimes when a supply for an item is high in CS, and the prices drop, some players have the tentancy to list it at an even lower price just because they want to get rig of it (similar to the stock market…). As a merchant, BUY THEM ALL! The most I’ve spent in resell items in CS is over 1 mil a day. I’ve purchased the level 35 Dreamer Witch Toad Tiara for as low as 30k before, and there were 10+ of them in total below 50k, so I bought them all. Within a couple weeks, I’ve sold all my Dreamer at an average price of 65k. $$$.

7. Give back to the community. If you are successful as a merchant and makes lots of gold, give some gold or items out to those in need.


Summary in short:
1. Figure out what is “common” and what is “odd”.
2. Figure out the demand as well as the market price for all the “common” items.
3. Determine what you want to sell.
4. Set you prices and buy anything undervalued, especially the “odd”.
5. Make millions to gold!

One more thing to note though. In the past, when there wasn’t the level restrictions on joing games (the within two level restriction), CS was like a heaven for merchants. In the past, low level players often join high level dungeons like AO1, 2, or 3, the power-level. Not too many new players actually play the game properly. They just wanted to level-up fast. The fact that low level dungeons often get skipped, “odd” items were extremely rare. Some good examples are the level 33 Swampy Shivs and the level 33 Conq’ Hammo. It was so rare before (or what most players thought) that I used to sell the Shivs for as high as 600k and Conq’ Hammo for 1.5 mil. Now, because players have to play the game properly, these used-to-be “odd” became “common”, and the Shivs are now selling for 90k and Conq’ Hammos for 350k. Just keep in mind that what seem to be rare in the past might not be in the future, unless it is discontinued. Do not keep that many “odd” in your inventory because an update might cause the “odd” to become “common”. A good example is the level 50 Vyx helms or the level 25 Gem Lighting staff. Before the Sandcaves, the Gem Staffs were quite rare and the market price were around 30k, and 55k for Dreamer Gem Staff. After the release of Sandcaves, this “odd” became “common” and the price dropped to as low as 1k.

What works for me might not work for others, or what I believe you may not agree. I will try to spend more time on forum from now on and provide more inputs. I haven’t listed for a while but I hope this helps.


P.S. If you need assistance (in gold or items), especially for low-level players, feel free to PM me when you see me online. When you see me near CS and if I don’t reply to your messages, it is because I’m AFK. When I’m actually online, I do try to respond to every PM to me, but I often have like ten players talking to me at once, it is hard for me to keep up. Very nice!

[Fastcast]

Evolt still active????

[Oculus]

Great guide, thanks, helps a lot ;)

[Somemager]

Don't necro threads. (Post on out of date threads)

Kthxbai - syn