If I see another person lowballing.....

[Nourish]

Lately, I've seen SO many people asking for a price that they can merch with. For example.... Selling green ice sword 800k, the buyer says il buy for 350k. ARE YOU KIDDING. It irritates me so bad to see that happen and makes me want to punch the person who said that in the face (lol)... We all know the seller will take your offer for 500k+ lower than he wants.

EDIT: The purpose of this thread is mainly pointing out that if you lowball to an extent soooooo ridiculous their is no point in it. Just a heads up :), we know u gotta merch but don't make it seem like you think 300k on a 1mil item will get you the item.. Thanks

[Ellyidol]

As valid as your discontent is, I think the duty of setting a minimum price lies on the seller though. If none is stated, it's only natural for those types of prices to surface.

A buyer will always want to buy as low as possible, while the seller wants to sell as high as possible. They'll meet in the middle.

I have seen some people 'lowball' despite the minimum price though, which I too find annoying.

[Doubletime]

Meowz, I might offer a suggestion as well because sometimes I get irritated with people contacting me in-game asking for discounts off the price I have listed something in CS. I have a seperate toon that I use to merchant with that I typically only use for selling. I list with that toon and then go back to leveling with my mains. Since that toon isn't on-line for extended periods of time, there isn't a chance for discount PMs in-game. If you have a spare slot, you may want to think about it. Or just list on the toon that you aren't using much.

DT

[Navygreen]

I'll tell you what. I've bought a couple cars from Craigslist, for example. The seller states what he's hoping to get for the car. But naturally, they know that in the end they'll probably lose a couple hundred bucks because they're desperate to sell the car. So the seller bumps the asking price up a few hundred bucks to compensate for the potential loss they may take.

So, me as the buyer, meets up with the seller. Checks the car out, I like what I see. However, I know that I will need to get a few things done to the car. The asking price is $1500. In MY POCKET, I know I have $1100 even. I talk and explain what still needs to be done and that I came with $800 (which is not true). I SHOW the money that I have. This makes the difference because when they know they need the money, and they can SEE the money that I have in my hand, it is very effective in making a deal. So they say, well give me $1200. Yeah, but the tires on this thing need replaced and I need to get it inspected, blah blah. Ok I have $1000 for you. Seller says, man... You're killing me. I say, ok $1100. And they say ok, np.


My point is, low balling on the buyers side is extremely effective when trying to negotiate. I have learned that low balling is exactly what you do FIRST. Especially if they haven't named the price yet. Don't overdo it but you can lowball and show that you have at least SOME money and it really works. Now if the seller hates themselves after the fact, it's on them. They hold the cards, they run the show. They can either say yes or no. And from my experience, I've gotten more yes than no.

Just wanted to use an example. Nothing wrong with this as long as it isnt outrageous when you're low balling.

[Snub]

Meowz just mute the irritating people!

Why do people spam out "selling this junk, blah, blah" --> put it in the auction hall for sale and go play.

What reall bothers me is people spamming out "selling nuri glyph hood for 3.5mil" i look in the AH and its selling for 1.7mil ?! lol wtf?!

[Nourish]

More on forums than in-game. It's not always ME who is selling the items. It's mostly when I see someone selling an item with starting bid at 500k let's say and someone says 350k. Seriously?

I read all the responses and thought they had good tips but im mostly trying to get word out that IF SOMEONE SAYS A PRICE, DON'T GO A DRASTIC AMOUNT BELOW THEIR OFFER. :)

[Kalielle]

makes me want to punch the person who said that in the face...

Lol... bit of an overreaction for a simple counteroffer, don't you think? :p

My rule for back in the Wild West pre-AH days was to ignore-list people whose offer was below 25-30% of the market price of the item. Other than that I don't mind if people make counteroffers. Even if I don't sell, it helps me to see what people are willing to pay. I once sold something to someone directly that I had listed on the AH for higher and people undercut me; the person messaged me with an offer that was lower but not unreasonable and I said sure. He was happy to get the item at a good price, and I was glad that I had made someone's day.

I've also made offers to people that were lower than what they asked for and got some very good deals that way. I'm always polite and open about it. I tell them that their price is fair, but that I'm only prepared to pay X. It's their choice whether to accept it, and some of them do and others just say "nty" and I say "ok" and that's that. I don't take offense and I don't expect them to get upset either. What's the point of trading outside of the AH if you get offended by people trying to negotiate the price?

[Evolt]

Hunzzz bought my green ice recently in cs for 300k I believe...when players lowball just ignore. Many players do private trading because they need to liquidate and not have to wait for listing it in cs, they might have an urgency to liquidate to buy an item in cs. Lowballing is quite common in private trades. Just ignore.

[小孩子]

Hunzzz bought my green ice recently in cs for 300k I believe...when players lowball just ignore. Many players do private trading because they need to liquidate and not have to wait for listing it in cs, they might have an urgency to liquidate to buy an item in cs. Lowballing is quite common in private trades. Just ignore.

:p

Also keep in mind that cs requires about 10% deposit fees @.@ so ppl do private sales so they don't waste deposits, what pisses me off is adding an item in cs for 800k then getting UNDERCUT by 1 gold -.-

[Corpser]

Lately, I've seen SO many people asking for a price that they can merch with. For example.... Selling green ice sword 800k, the buyer says il buy for 350k. ARE YOU KIDDING. It irritates me so bad to see that happen and makes me want to punch the person who said that in the face... We all know the seller will take your offer for 500k+ lower than he wants.

and what was the point of making this thread. im am sick of these pointless threads not everyone in game reads the forum!

[Snub]

:p

Also keep in mind that cs requires about 10% deposit fees @.@ so ppl do private sales so they don't waste deposits, what pisses me off is adding an item in cs for 800k then getting UNDERCUT by 1 gold -.-

I have never cared about the listing fees.
I do agree I hate when someone undercuts me a $1, to bad there is not some thing built in which forces you to go at at least 2% lower or something then the least expensive. Alternatly you also would have to sell for 2% more then the most expensive.
(2%,3,4,5.. whatever, i just picked 2% for example)

[dudetus]

The answer is.....

TATADAM

... Counterundercut with one gold.

[StompArtist]

I offer you 1 gold for this thread.

[Navygreen]

Low balling is a part of negotiating. I'm sorry but, if you're trying to negotiate as a buyer and you don't low ball from the very beginning, you're losing ground in the negotiation. You never know how desperate the seller is. And the way that I think, I go into a negotiation with the assumption that the seller needs the money. Why else would they be selling something of theirs? Sorry guys not to sound like I'm going totally against the grain, but I have to tell you that this is the way i've gained a majority of my cool items.

I think if you have a problem with people low balling you, ignore them and say no. Dont reply back. If you need the money and the person is not blatantly trying to rob you, then by all means, negotiate. But don't hate on me because I talked you out of your item. That's crazy. In the end, we both benefit. You get at least close to the money you wanted and I get my item.:)

[Singleteddy]

I have never cared about the listing fees. If you trade in cheaper items, the listing fees are very, very significant.
I do agree I hate when someone undercuts me a $1, to bad there is not some thing built in which forces you to go at at least 2% lower or something then the least expensive. It would be interesting if CS had a "premium listing" option that had a higher listing fee but allowed changing the listing price one or more times. I think it would eliminate some of the undercutting.

[Snub]

If you trade in cheaper items, the listing fees are very, very significant. It would be interesting if CS had a "premium listing" option that had a higher listing fee but allowed changing the listing price one or more times. I think it would eliminate some of the undercutting.

Frankly, I would think I was a top 10 seller in PL (not anymore). I don’t mean most money earned I mean most items sold.

I made about 3million gold selling (green) items i bought in the noob town for lvl 10's. Buy for 250/350 in the store and sell for 1999 in the AH.... The listing fee is relevant but just tally it into your profit, i went for quantity. I cornered that market for about 6 months. If I saw someone selling for 400, I would sell for 399… It wasn't the profit i needed, i just wanted them to quit selling my stuff. When they would give up I would raise prices to 1999 even 4999 sometimes. I learned to sell things for 3hrs and only sell two of each at a time max. Every day i sold 10+ helms/armor (sometimes 30+) making small profit from each… it took a lot of time and effort for 3million… but it was better than grinding lol.

Fridays are the big days, I would load up the AH.

[dudetus]

This thread should be renamed into "pro merching discussion"

[StompArtist]

Nothing wrong with low balling and undercutting. Capitalism in action.

[Singleteddy]

Frankly, I would think I was a top 10 seller in PL (not anymore). I don’t mean most money earned I mean most items sold.

I made about 3million gold selling (green) items i bought in the noob town for lvl 10's. Buy for 250/350 in the store and sell for 1999 in the AH.... The listing fee is relevant but just tally it into your profit, i went for quantity. I cornered that market for about 6 months. If I saw someone selling for 400, I would sell for 399… It wasn't the profit i needed, i just wanted them to quit selling my stuff. When they would give up I would raise prices to 1999 even 4999 sometimes. I learned to sell things for 3hrs and only sell two of each at a time max. Every day i sold 10+ helms/armor (sometimes 30+) making small profit from each… it took a lot of time and effort for 3million… but it was better than grinding lol.

Fridays are the big days, I would load up the AH. Very, very interesting. I think I remember seeing your name on listings since I started merchanting with low cost green items since I didn't have much money but had a ton of greens.

Yes, that market requires a strong constitution and very different tactics.

[Rare]

My point is, low balling on the buyers side is extremely effective when trying to negotiate. I have learned that low balling is exactly what you do FIRST. Especially if they haven't named the price yet. Don't overdo it but you can lowball and show that you have at least SOME money and it really works. Now if the seller hates themselves after the fact, it's on them. They hold the cards, they run the show. They can either say yes or no. And from my experience, I've gotten more yes than no.

Just wanted to use an example. Nothing wrong with this as long as it isnt outrageous when you're low balling.


Well said. Similarly, when I am selling something outside of CS... I will ask for much more than I am actually willing to sell for. Of course this only works when prices are inflated.

Negotiation is the key. Nobody seems to want to do that but want to make some extra cash by not posting their gear on CS.

ATL

[Aikiebo]

Frankly, I would think I was a top 10 seller in PL (not anymore). I don’t mean most money earned I mean most items sold.

I made about 3million gold selling (green) items i bought in the noob town for lvl 10's. Buy for 250/350 in the store and sell for 1999 in the AH.... The listing fee is relevant but just tally it into your profit, i went for quantity. I cornered that market for about 6 months. If I saw someone selling for 400, I would sell for 399… It wasn't the profit i needed, i just wanted them to quit selling my stuff. When they would give up I would raise prices to 1999 even 4999 sometimes. I learned to sell things for 3hrs and only sell two of each at a time max. Every day i sold 10+ helms/armor (sometimes 30+) making small profit from each… it took a lot of time and effort for 3million… but it was better than grinding lol.
Fridays are the big days, I would load up the AH.

Wow! Nice job, Snub!

[Nourish]

Low balling is a part of negotiating. I'm sorry but, if you're trying to negotiate as a buyer and you don't low ball from the very beginning, you're losing ground in the negotiation. You never know how desperate the seller is. And the way that I think, I go into a negotiation with the assumption that the seller needs the money. Why else would they be selling something of theirs? Sorry guys not to sound like I'm going totally against the grain, but I have to tell you that this is the way i've gained a majority of my cool items.

I think if you have a problem with people low balling you, ignore them and say no. Dont reply back. If you need the money and the person is not blatantly trying to rob you, then by all means, negotiate. But don't hate on me because I talked you out of your item. That's crazy. In the end, we both benefit. You get at least close to the money you wanted and I get my item.:)

I total agree with offering lower than the selected price but a DRASTIC amount makes me aggravated heh :

@Apollo

Yes, I overreacted :)

[Navygreen]

Its all good, man! We're just talking. ;D

[Whirlzap]

As valid as your discontent is, I think the duty of setting a minimum price lies on the seller though. If none is stated, it's only natural for those types of prices to surface.

A buyer will always want to buy as low as possible, while the seller wants to sell as high as possible. They'll meet in the middle.

I have seen some people 'lowball' despite the minimum price though, which I too find annoying.

Remember, a good knowledgable player who knows prices will never let a lowballer get his deal. They eventually meet near the lower end, if the seller is desperate, since the merchant doesn't need the item and thus doesn't pay as high as the seller insists.

[Whirlzap]

I total agree with offering lower than the selected price but a DRASTIC amount makes me aggravated heh :

@Apollo

Yes, I overreacted :)

Sometimes when i merchant, I remember something:
When you offer a low price and the seller offers a high, you will all compensate by going up/down by 10k or something.
So what I sometimes do is offer a bit lower. Then, I would get a lower final deal as opposed to offering my original price and getting a higher final deal.

[Battlelock]

Ya I can mention several merchants that WHINE big time when you wont go low enough for them to make SUBSTANTIAL gains.
I finally got tired of a couple and have them on ignore.
1 whined so much about a glyph item being 1.5m but then he had it listed for 2.5. Cry babies.
I agree thou. Don't whine for selling too cheap.
Don't whine about low ball offers.
And don't whine when ppl wont let you walk over them.

[WhoIsThis]

Ya I can mention several merchants that WHINE big time when you wont go low enough for them to make SUBSTANTIAL gains.
I finally got tired of a couple and have them on ignore.
1 whined so much about a glyph item being 1.5m but then he had it listed for 2.5. Cry babies.
I agree thou. Don't whine for selling too cheap.
Don't whine about low ball offers.
And don't whine when ppl wont let you walk over them.

+ 1

I gotta admit, I have no sympathy for merchants who whine. Merchants add no value, if anything they are bad for all non merchants in that they drive prices artificially high.

[Battlelock]

Lately, I've seen SO many people asking for a price that they can merch with. For example.... Selling green ice sword 800k, the buyer says il buy for 350k. ARE YOU KIDDING. It irritates me so bad to see that happen and makes me want to punch the person who said that in the face... We all know the seller will take your offer for 500k+ lower than he wants.

and what was the point of making this thread. im am sick of these pointless threads not everyone in game reads the forum!

So don't read them :-)

[stevieoopsie]

It's about who's trying to gain an advantage in negotiations. Sellers that refuse to name a price that ask people to offer are trying to gain an advantage over the buyer and lowballing on the part of the buyer is a good strategy to counter that. ~Basic consumer theory in microeconomics.

But yes it all depends on what your values are. Personally I think buyers (consumers) should be given an advantage over sellers (in real life because sellers are usually large corporations with more bargaining power).

[stevieoopsie]

Ya I can mention several merchants that WHINE big time when you wont go low enough for them to make SUBSTANTIAL gains.
I finally got tired of a couple and have them on ignore.
1 whined so much about a glyph item being 1.5m but then he had it listed for 2.5. Cry babies.
I agree thou. Don't whine for selling too cheap.
Don't whine about low ball offers.
And don't whine when ppl wont let you walk over them.

+ 1

I gotta admit, I have no sympathy for merchants who whine. Merchants add no value, if anything they are bad for all non merchants in that they drive prices artificially high.

Completely untrue. Merchants are platforms/intermediaries that match buyers and sellers. They make the markets more efficient and life more convenient for market participants. Any economist who has studied the development of markets will tell you that merchants and traders have contributed more to the growth of economies than the producers and consumers of the commodities themselves.

Merchants, who provide sellers with larger distribution networks, encourages sellers to produce more and thus drive down the prices of commodities produced.

Some real life examples of "merchants" are: all retailers and wholesale stores like Wal-mart, Costco, Bestbuy, Amazon, investment banks (matching buyers and sellers of financial securities, underwriting or buying the ask and selling the bid at a higher price also called principal trading), the New York Stock Exchange, railroads and shipping companies until the early 20th century (outsourced trading to trading companies), Coca Cola Enterprises, your local grocery store and a 40% chance, if you work in any of these industries, yourself.

[Battlelock]

Ya I can mention several merchants that WHINE big time when you wont go low enough for them to make SUBSTANTIAL gains.
I finally got tired of a couple and have them on ignore.
1 whined so much about a glyph item being 1.5m but then he had it listed for 2.5. Cry babies.
I agree thou. Don't whine for selling too cheap.
Don't whine about low ball offers.
And don't whine when ppl wont let you walk over them.

+ 1

I gotta admit, I have no sympathy for merchants who whine. Merchants add no value, if anything they are bad for all non merchants in that they drive prices artificially high.

Completely untrue. Merchants are platforms/intermediaries that match buyers and sellers. They make the markets more efficient and life more convenient for market participants. Any economist who has studied the development of markets will tell you that merchants and traders have contributed more to the growth of economies than the producers and consumers of the commodities themselves.

Some real life examples of "merchants" are: all retailers and wholesale stores like Wal-mart, Costco, Bestbuy, Amazon, investment banks (matching buyers, buying the ask and selling the bid at a higher price is called principal trading), the New York Stock Exchange, railroads and shipping companies until the early 20th century (outsourced trading to trading companies), Coca Cola Enterprises, your local grocery store and a 40% chance, if you work in any of these industries, yourself.

Whoa!
Wait ..... what?

[Aikiebo]

About a week ago, I had a level 35 item I wanted to sell. So, before listing it I watched the market all day long. One player had seven of the same item listed. He was asking 130k for each. All the other ones were at least 20-30k more expensive.

For a long time, none sold. Then mid-day they started selling slowly until all his were sold and only ones left were the more expensive ones.

[Zerious]

i get lowballed, I reply with "take a hike"

[WhoIsThis]

Completely untrue. Merchants are platforms/intermediaries that match buyers and sellers. They make the markets more efficient and life more convenient for market participants. Any economist who has studied the development of markets will tell you that merchants and traders have contributed more to the growth of economies than the producers and consumers of the commodities themselves.

Merchants, who provide sellers with larger distribution networks, encourages sellers to produce more and thus drive down the prices of commodities produced.

Some real life examples of "merchants" are: all retailers and wholesale stores like Wal-mart, Costco, Bestbuy, Amazon, investment banks (matching buyers and sellers of financial securities, underwriting or buying the ask and selling the bid at a higher price also called principal trading), the New York Stock Exchange, railroads and shipping companies until the early 20th century (outsourced trading to trading companies), Coca Cola Enterprises, your local grocery store and a 40% chance, if you work in any of these industries, yourself.


In real life, they role of merchants is open to debate. What value merchants have in real life is outside of the scope of this thread.

In PL, they don't. The forums and the CS already provide a mechanism for players to trade.



i get lowballed, I reply with "take a hike"

Apparently, the OP feels that posting on the forums will discourage lowballing. I think that as a seller, you can always reject any deal. If people lowball repeatedly, well, there's the ignore list. That's enough to be honest.

[Singleteddy]

Merchants add no value, if anything they are bad for all non merchants in that they drive prices artificially high.
In real life, they role of merchants is open to debate. What value merchants have in real life is outside of the scope of this thread.

In PL, they don't. The forums and the CS already provide a mechanism for players to trade. I disagree strongly with this statement. To illustrate stevieoopsie's statement with a PL example, I used to be a Frozen Nightmares merchant, listing a wide variety of Frozen Nightmares items for purchase and buying up the cheap ones I found listed. Now, there is no one actively merchanting all the Frozen Nightmares items. Is this good or bad for PL players?


Prices of most Frozen Nightmares items are indeed much, much lower than when I was active in this market.
Sellers/farmers now have a very hard time selling certain Frozen Nightmares items—the items take an order of magnitude longer to sell and sell for much less than when there were active merchants buying the items in CS. I know because I kept a small supply when I left that market, and I'll put up an item for sale now and then to see what the market is like.
Buyers now have a better chance of finding some ridiculously cheap Frozen Nightmares items in CS than when I was buying them up. But some of the Frozen Nightmares items are simply not available in CS with no merchants to provide a steady supply and variety of listings. (Admittedly, this is a bit of an overstatement since stevieoopsie as well as some other players do have multiple Frozen Nightmares items listed for sale. But they don't buy the items I put up for sale, and they're not trying to provide coverage of all the FN item types. So I think they're selling drops rather than buying and selling FN items in CS for a profit.)

[stevieoopsie]

Hey Teddy, thanks for the support. And no I did buy the items at ridiculously low prices and tried to resell them at reasonably low prices.

[The Flash]

Hunzzz bought my green ice recently in cs for 300k I believe...when players lowball just ignore. Many players do private trading because they need to liquidate and not have to wait for listing it in cs, they might have an urgency to liquidate to buy an item in cs. Lowballing is quite common in private trades. Just ignore.

:p

Also keep in mind that cs requires about 10% deposit fees @.@ so ppl do private sales so they don't waste deposits, what pisses me off is adding an item in cs for 800k then getting UNDERCUT by 1 gold -.-

+zillion. Hate this

[小孩子]

+zillion. Hate this
:(..

[Navygreen]

i get lowballed, I reply with "take a hike"

Lol, you as the seller can make that decision. Not everybody stands so firm. :)

Cool thread, guys. Thanks for the opinions.

[Nourish]

Wow this thread got way more popular

[Zerious]

lol yep. Although I'm guilty of lowballing, but not to a ridiculous extent...

Put it this way, I low ball to bring my haggle down.

[Snub]

Remember, a good knowledgable player who knows prices will never let a lowballer get his deal. They eventually meet near the lower end, if the seller is desperate, since the merchant doesn't need the item and thus doesn't pay as high as the seller insists.
You are absolutely correct.

I need the Glyph Helm of Obedience…. I had bought one for 1.9mil and at the end of the day (last Saturday) noticed they jumped back up to 2.6 mil.
SOOO, I RE-sold the Helm even though I need (want) it. I know in the end this Helm will be under 1mil to purchase. For now I will buy low and use and resell when the price goes up. Eventually I will be satisfied with the cost “under 1 mil” and keep forever.
For the time being I am happy to make a lot off the guy who “needs” it more than my “wants”.

[Snub]

I don’t believe merchants have any positive impact on the PL market.

Rarely do I see a merchants selling lower than the AH, I would prefer to purchase from the AH that’s says “item A = $199,998”.

Before this thread I believed the only reason a person would sell via spamming instead of the AH is:
A)They don’t have the cash to put the item for sale.
B)They are trying to rip you off by over pricing the item.

Or how about this Legal Scam!

Find an item in the AH which has only two for sale… (We will say it cost 3k each for this example)
Purchase them both (6k). Re-sell one in the AH at say 10times the value(30k). Now log onto an alternate Character and spam out selling the item for six time value(18k). It appears to joe noobie you are selling 12k under the market value (18k) but really you are selling @ 6 times over. and going to make 15k per merchant sale.

-Just saying :(
If you don't know the value of an item -->ONLY buy from the AH, and only buy when there is more than two for sale from different people.

***edit***
I just wanted to add i have never done the aforementioned “legal scam”, i just wanted to post why i don't trust merchants. I feel the above "legal scam" is unethical, it is like monopolizing. Frankly if you do this you are lacking moral values…. It is theft.

[Navygreen]

perhaps some secrets should stay that way. However, the topic caught my eye. So as a benefit to the forumers here who read this thread, welcome to the inside of our minds!

[razerfingers]

Lol calm your jets bro it happens in the real world my grandpa sells stuff for $5 more than he wants prices something at $15 lets say someone looks at gets all ehhhvthen he goes ill go $10 and bingo sold or im looking at this thread wrong lol

[WhoIsThis]

I disagree strongly with this statement. To illustrate stevieoopsie's statement with a PL example, I used to be a Frozen Nightmares merchant, listing a wide variety of Frozen Nightmares items for purchase and buying up the cheap ones I found listed. Now, there is no one actively merchanting all the Frozen Nightmares items. Is this good or bad for PL players?


Prices of most Frozen Nightmares items are indeed much, much lower than when I was active in this market.
Sellers/farmers now have a very hard time selling certain Frozen Nightmares items—the items take an order of magnitude longer to sell and sell for much less than when there were active merchants buying the items in CS. I know because I kept a small supply when I left that market, and I'll put up an item for sale now and then to see what the market is like.
Buyers now have a better chance of finding some ridiculously cheap Frozen Nightmares items in CS than when I was buying them up. But some of the Frozen Nightmares items are simply not available in CS with no merchants to provide a steady supply and variety of listings. (Admittedly, this is a bit of an overstatement since stevieoopsie as well as some other players do have multiple Frozen Nightmares items listed for sale. But they don't buy the items I put up for sale, and they're not trying to provide coverage of all the FN item types. So I think they're selling drops rather than buying and selling FN items in CS for a profit.)

Strictly from the standpoint of buyers, this is highly desirable. Price is the only thing that truly matters if you are a buyer. I hate to say it, but it is a zero sum game. One gold cheaper for a buyer is one gold less for the seller.

Should the Frozen items supply become less than that of demand, the shortage will drive up prices and encourage more farming of the dungeon. Merchants cannot improve supply. They can only buy items and hold them for resale later. This does not improve supply; in fact they must temporarily create artificial scarcity in order to profit, which is a net negative for all non-merchants, who are now forced to pay not only what the farmer, the person who actually did something of value to the community, but also the merchant's margins. Supply can only be improved via farming.

The less merchants make, the more better deal buyers get. It's why merchanting is considered a high risk, but potentially high reward business.

[Singleteddy]

Merchants cannot improve supply. They can only buy items and hold them for resale later. This does not improve supply I'll disagree because when there are no merchants actively buying items in a particular market segment, players can accumulate drops much faster than they can sell the drops, causing players to have to liquidate. With a merchant buying and stocking items for resale, players can manage to sell goods that would otherwise have to be liquidated, which reduces supply.