Spice sifting.

[Qzzrbl]

Okay. Please, for fuck's sake, someone fix it already.

It's ridiculous that the reward for risking blinding sandstorms, beetles, raiders, rogue 'gickers..... Every other hazard out there, is so small.

I suggest something similar to the House Jal salt buyers, where you buy a little salt-sack, and sell spice for at least comparable prices to salt.

Anyone else have any suggestions?

[Kiara]

Everything there sounds IC to me. Minus the sandstorms. It seems like the storms there are bonkers, without hardly ever a day of clear skies.

[FantasyWriter]

>contact kuraci.agent

[Qzzrbl]

Everything there sounds IC to me. Minus the sandstorms. It seems like the storms there are bonkers, without hardly ever a day of clear skies.

Everything I said is in the docs....

Beetles are well-known to live in the southlands, bands of raiders are mentioned in the Red Storm docs-- as are rogue magickers.

[Qzzrbl]

>contact kuraci.agent

If only it were that easy....

You'd think Kurac has operations in Storm where they buy spice from all the spice-hunters that supposedly live there.

[Majikal]

Would be pretty awesome seeing something similar to the salt merchant in storm. The ridiculous danger for so little ic gain is the reason I've played so long and yet never, exception of once with Salarr, sifted spice ig.


A+ idea to me.

[Nyr]

>contact kuraci.agent

If only it were that easy....

You'd think Kurac has operations in Storm where they buy spice from all the spice-hunters that supposedly live there.

It would appear that they do.

[Qzzrbl]

>contact kuraci.agent

If only it were that easy....

You'd think Kurac has operations in Storm where they buy spice from all the spice-hunters that supposedly live there.

It would appear that they do.

Think maybe Kurac could possibly.... Not stiff them so damn hard? :<

[roughneck]

sifting spice isn't lucrative but if you're a dirty outcast criminal or escaped slave you'll do whatever it takes just to eat

plus you can use it to trade and cut deals with other pcs with a bit of leg work

I do agree that there should be an NPC who will buy an unlimited amount of spice, even if only for a paltry sum

[Qzzrbl]

sifting spice isn't lucrative but if you're a dirty outcast criminal or escaped slave you'll do whatever it takes just to eat

plus you can use it to trade and cut deals with other pcs with a bit of leg work

I do agree that there should be an NPC who will buy an unlimited amount of spice, even if only for a paltry sum

I could understand it not being lucrative, but depending on what part of the Known you're in, spice can be sold cheaply for upwards of 1000% (if I did my maths right) of what they buy it for....

[FantasyWriter]

I could understand it not being lucrative, but depending on what part of the Known you're in, spice can be sold cheaply for upwards of 1000% (if I did my maths right) of what they buy it for....

IF you can find a buyer.

[Jdr]

In this world? There's ALWAYS a buyer.

[Nyr]

I could understand it not being lucrative, but depending on what part of the Known you're in, spice can be sold cheaply for upwards of 1000% (if I did my maths right) of what they buy it for....

It does pay more to be a smuggler or seller of spice than to be a sifter or user of spice--just like it pays more to be a seller of baked goods rather than the one that harvests wheat, or the seller of clothing rather than the one that picks the cotton.  I understand that you do not feel that the automated system in Red Storm pays enough, but the point you make with that post actually seems to reinforce the system the way it is presently.

[Qzzrbl]

I'd just like to see an avenue for a lower risk:reward ratio involved with sifting.

Because as it stands, PC spice hunters have two options:

A) Risk the harsh wilds and sandstorms and potential raiders or magickers/ starve.

B) Risk the harsh wilds and sandstorms and potential raiders or magickers, AND face the potential wrath of the templarate and guards, and the usual instagank that comes along with that/ live like a king for a few IG days.

[Nyr]

To be fair, those are not the only two options; there are other avenues for independents, particularly even spice grebbers that solely wish to make ends meet off of sifting spice.  Spice grebbers do not have to be rich mofos, nor should they be.  Spice grebbers, cotton pickers, clay diggers, and poopsmiths are not meant to be high-class institutions that net a lot of income.  If you occupy any of the higher levels of any of the supply chains mentioned above (smuggling/selling/organizing, whether it be spice, cotton/clothes, ceramics, and mounts), you will make more 'sid and also gain more risk as a result (particularly if you are an independent).

A valid point to make is that salt miners can get more for their trouble, due to the dangerous environment they go through--and that spice sifting is equally dangerous if not more dangerous.  Reviewing the process so that it is more in line with other automated systems (even if only adjusted very slightly) probably isn't a bad idea.

[Qzzrbl]

Reviewing the process so that it is more in line with other automated systems (even if only adjusted very slightly) probably isn't a bad idea.

That is all I ask, thank you.

[FantasyWriter]

A valid point to make is that salt miners can get more for their trouble, due to the dangerous environment they go through--and that spice sifting is equally dangerous if not more dangerous. 

A higher quantity of or less reclusive mekillots would even things out a bit.

[Fredd]

I've seen plenty of people make good money spice sifting... Can't say how, It's to IC.

[janeshephard]

I think the problem is Red Storm, a town known for spice grebbers, has richer folk doing a certain other profession where it's automated and very easy. The system in place in Red Storm favors one profession over spice grebbing which appears to be wrong to me.

[Majikal]

I think the problem is Red Storm, a town known for spice grebbers, has richer folk doing a certain other profession where it's automated and very easy. The system in place in Red Storm favors one profession over spice grebbing which appears to be wrong to me.

[Akoto]

A valid point to make is that salt miners can get more for their trouble, due to the dangerous environment they go through--and that spice sifting is equally dangerous if not more dangerous.  Reviewing the process so that it is more in line with other automated systems (even if only adjusted very slightly) probably isn't a bad idea.

I would wholeheartedly support such a review. As it stands, I would probably come back from a reasonable (non-twinky) session of spice sifting with less than 100 coins in proft. On a good day. By comparison, I can salt for a few IC days and afford an apartment/food/water in Nak with far less risk. That's not even with full bags.

I'm not saying that salting should be nerfed. Rather, I think it would be beneficial for sifting to be lifted up a bit, to generate better pay. It'd be good for existing miners, and it may even attract new characters to the village, as surviving - not thriving - there would be more feasible.

[jriley]

I would wholeheartedly support such a review. As it stands, I would probably come back from a reasonable (non-twinky) session of spice sifting with less than 100 coins in proft. On a good day. By comparison, I can salt for a few IC days and afford an apartment/food/water in Nak with far less risk. That's not even with full bags.

I'm not saying that salting should be nerfed. Rather, I think it would be beneficial for sifting to be lifted up a bit, to generate better pay. It'd be good for existing miners, and it may even attract new characters to the village, as surviving - not thriving - there would be more feasible.

+1

[Lizzie]

Rather than raise the value of the spice (which would in turn raise the cost of refined spice, which would piss off Kurac customers, which would piss off Kurac, and is therefore probably not a good idea)..

I'd like to see more randomized variety of deposit locations, with fewer quantity per deposit, and the NPC buying more than the standard 5 each.

So that way, you won't end up with a spice sifter spending a game hour going to "the usual" spot..finding that someone else has already gotten there..and the person who already got there, was only able to sell 5 each, and still has 30 more he needs to unload..and there's no one available to buy it..and in the meantime this first guy has to spend the next game hour going to "the usual other spot" - and finally fills his sifter, and returns, only to discover that the first guy already loaded up the NPC and now he's stuck with 50 grains of spice he can't sell, and his waterskin is empty.

Additionally, I'd like to see more interest by players in a Kurac PC presence in Red Storm. The more interest that Red Storm PCs have in their own personal PC Agent down there, the more likely an Agent is to stick around. And the more active an Agent is, the more interested the other PCs should be in their presence. It should be a symbiotic relationship. In the recent past (during the last RL year), it wasn't. I'd love to see this change.

This would also _probably_ require a bit more IMM support for Red Storm in general and Kurac's Imm presence in Red Storm in particular, at least to kick things off in a way that would really return the RP with active sifters, active agents, a real spice trade, patrols, the whole thing.

[Synthesis]

If you fellas who are bitching so much about it got enterprising and found a way to get it into places where you'd naturally expect the price to be high, you might be able to make a goddamn killing, if you talked to the right sort of folks.

But no, everyone wants NPC ez-mode for everything.

[X-D]

Synth beat me to it.