I have a totally different take on this. I would like to see some EQ servers do this. I would move some, but not all of my characters to it.

Long ago I learned many legitimate ways of earning pp. At one point, long before I became elemental, or even started working in that direction, I had 300kpp in the bank, and good armor to boot! This was not long after PoP came out, and none of the pp I was making came from PoP zones.

The challenge of making pp has gone out of the game for me because there doesn't seem to be that much to spend it on. I actually took my trader off the bazaar for six months out of boredom with making pp.

If given the opportunity, would I sell pp for real dollars? You bet. Do I need the dollars? Not at all. Anything I made would be play money. I would get my thrill out of coaxing money out of folks who have money to burn, but lack the time to play to earn the pp they would be buying.

The game recently lost a good friend of mine because he couldn't keep up with the natural inflation of the game from expansion to expansion. His work schedule and other life committments did not allow it. His view was that he would have liked the game better if it had been frozen after Velious came out, a minority view, to say the least. Still I enjoyed playing with him. Perhaps an opportunity to turn pp into dollars would give him the incentive to return.

I introduced the game to another good RL gaming friend of mine. I had hoped to have someone to group with regularly. It turns out that his interest in the game is the ecconomic system. He keeps detailed records of the trades he makes in the bazaar. His family income is probably half again as much as mine, and if I don't need real dollars, he certainly does not. Yet I can easily see him moving to a dollar server, not to buy stuff, but to sell it, once again for the challenge. In fact, when I first mentioned this to him, his first comment was "what about the income taxes?" Lol.

I guess the one thing that concerns me is farming. I would hate to see professional farmers dominate farm spots to the degree that they close them down to others. I do very little farming. There is more pp to be made from sellers who don't understand the value of what they are selling (as in RL). Still, when I am leveling and can choose beteen the lootless camp and the camp where loot is available, I always choose the latter. It would be a shame if those camps were to become unavailable due to some professional farming teams taking them over.

Would I buy characters if they came up for sale. I might very well. Recently, I found myself in need of a tank. I went out and got another account and have spent the last week plus multibox PLing that character. That Warrior is unlikely to ever go on a guild raid, or even become elemental. In effect, I am going to waste about three weeks of hard leveling before I get him up to to point where I can use him. If offered a chance to bid on a Warrior with lots of aa's at a reasonable price, I most certainly would. I don't have 3 weeks to waste.

How much would such a warrior cost me? Well, they black market for $250 up. Once it became legal and easy to sell characters, my guess is that they would go for $50 or less. The supply would come from the hundreds of thousands of players who quit the game over the last years and also from active players who see an opportunity to transfer a seldom used character off their account.

Would my having a multiple aa Warrior unbalance the game? Hardly.

I am not a lawyer, but I found Sony's admission that their EULA was toothless to be an interesting admission. My bet is that it is totally unenforceable after that admission, not that they appeared to be trying to enforce it, except through account banning before.

I will not buy or sell characters or pp through the black market, but I sure would like to have the opportunity to do so legally.

Hopefully,
Anon

""Exchange enabled" servers for free on a one-time-only basis (but you can't ever move that character off these servers). We will, of course, let people who don't want to stay on an "Exchange enabled" server off with a free transfer."

After reading this section of the letter, which I quoted above, I feel much better about this service. I say that if a pig want's to wallow in it's own filth, by all means let it, as long as he doesn't come running through my living room afterwards.

What I mean to say is that SOE has been pretty careful about protecting EQ, I have come to trust them not to totally destroy the game. Now they are in no way perfect, but then again who is.

As long as EQ isolates this part of the game from me I am ok with those on some servers participating in it.

I do not care for this feature, but why not let others enjoy it if it is there cup of tea.

Hell, they've gone this far, I say gonna go? Go Big!

If people can buy virtual junk for RL $$, then why not make MacroQuest legal!?!?!

Utterly Ridiculous!!!

Im taking a guess that probably 90% of the people who buy accounts are people who know how to play the game. As for plat and items, guys, who really cares. They cant sell no drop items and the really good items in game are all NO DROP. So get over it let them move to another server and equip there new toons. I have known a lot of people who have bought there toon and they could still play the game fine. I have also seen the lvl 70 war who didnt know what taunt was. Basically everyone has the chance to move to it or away from it. You are making the choice to whether it will effect you.

This will mark the end of EQ/2 if they move forward. Not only is this a pathetic, sorry-*** attempt from Sony to help make some money, this will eventually--if unchecked--turn EQ into a joke and invalidate the economies, accomplishments,raids and game play. It's already sad enough that one has to group with idiots that have player auctioned their toons and this has super-inflated prices; how disgusting that Biff the lawyer can Visa gold his gear. What kind of sense of accomplishment will there be when you can buy an epic 2.0 for $500?? Go to hell Sony!

It could be good for SOE with regards EQ1. The dwindling numbers from more and more players leaving could be offset by those players ,that dont see the endgame in sight, buying a lvl 70 well equiped character. Many of you lament their inability to play said characters off the shelf but EQ aint that hard to play. Just takes time grinding.

If SoE does this, it could be viewed as their acknowledgement that the in-game items which used to be "theirs" have an external value (real world dollars) which could be viewed as ours (the game player).
What happens if theirs some wierd bug that causes my fully equiped corpse to rot instantly?
What if SoE bans my account and I disagree with their reasoning?
What if the server crashes right after I loot a Blade of Carnage and it's gone when server comes back up?

SoE could find themselves in a potential string of law suites if something like this were to happen. And if you don't think something as silly as a game would get tangled up in the courts, Yantis sold his business to IGE for >1 million bucks. That's a lot of bling. And some lawyers out there probably wouldn't mind getting a chunk of that kind of cash.

rofl, imagine if this is just an ellaborate heist, to lure out all of the gill sellers and item buyers and fry them all at once.

This is it for me. I am watching it with both eyes WIDE open! If it makes it's way off the 2 "test" servers... then there is no reason it could not spread to EQ1 where I play. If it does spread I QUIT. I will go to WoW or DAOC or something else. They may not be the same but... I will not stay around for this.

If they are going to make special servers for selling, I don't understand why they can't make special servers where no trading is allowed at all, or some combination like that.

I liked buying stuff in game, and yes even in the bazaar I bought low and sold high in order to afford better gear for myself. If the exchange of large value items for nothing or large quantities of plat for nothing (or something not of equal value as determined by whomever) is prevented, I would personally prefer to play on that type of server. Same with Diablo. I liked the no cheats or hacks games much better than the latter, and I was able to make a choice which on to play on.

Don't you think Magic the Gathering and associated card games would like a chunk of the resold cards that help people build a bigger deck? EQ2 has figured out how. And they won't create something just to make money. No country will mint cash without the knowledge that they will ***** themselves in the very short future.

OK people relax! Did some of you actually read the SOE Prez's letter?

- EQII only - for now maybe forever.
- New servers for this feature.
- Poll to determine converting *some* existing
servers - if majority rules.
- Players can transfer to the Exchange servers
FREE but cannot transfer off of the exchange
server!
- Players who do not want to be on any converted
exchange server can transfer off free!
- Rules still apply for farming! Not allowed to
monopolilze the spawn.

This, to me, does not sound like the most horrible thing in the world. I think everything is going to be just fine to be honest. Sure SOE will bank off this deal, like Ebay banks off of everyone else's garage sale junk! But like Ebay, there is a market and a good reason for it. Problems will be solved, people will be happy at SOE and players too.

Will there be noobs buying level 70 toons, of course there will...but on specified servers only!

Will people be able to buy flags and gear that SOE makes themselves just to make an extra buck...doesn't appear to be the case so far! Oh yea and players can only do this on specified servers EQII ONLY.

In summary, it appears to me that the prez of SOE and all parties concerned are monitoring this pretty closely. They are aware of the fear this will cause and potential problems. SOE is not going to let thier money making machine be ruined by some new feature...do you really think they want to lose your recurring money? Heck no! Quit whinning people, like all else new in the game, you will get used to it, deal with it, and maybe even enjoy it! Oh yea, this is EQII ONLY for now!


Zornoc of Innoruk
55th Wizard

First, to most that are complaining........you did the same for all the other "Game Changing" expansions and patches. Hmmm, some people just need to complain I guess. Interestingly, you are all still playing and will be after this is done. What game are you going to play? Most games are doing this or will be soon, it's business, like it or not, companies like SOE are in it for the money...duh!

Second, peeps buy plat and gear online already...how's this any different? Oh, wait, you might actually know who is doing it.......LOL. Thing is, you don't, I know several players that have 1 or more level 70 characters that have created new toons and used that level 70 toon to "Gear up" their new one. Then they get "Power Leveled" by guilds or friends and VOILA, Presto, instant level 50 toon that still hasn't maxed ANY of his/her skills and yet knows more about the game than most of us.

Third and lastly, Why can't they just make a game that when it sais "Based on AD&D", they mean it. This game was awesome when it first came out, actually was based on AD&D. Then the changes came, and with the recent "Class Re-Invisioning" we are so far off AD&D that we just created a new Genre. I say this to you Sony.....Give me a game based on AD&D, where all classes have their unique advantages and dis-advantages, let me work for what I get, and let me make my own decisions what is better for my character. You want to help us, give us more individualism by creating more graphic controls for our toons (i.e. more hair, face and physique options), add more graphics to armor and weapons to improve on the seperation so they don't all look the same. In other words, Keep the AD&D theme and rules of the game, just improve our ability to become unique in appearance and I for one am happy. Go back to AD&D!

Even after all is said and done.......I am still playing Everquest and will continue to do so, until a game comes out that gives me more of an AD&D feel, with the ability to create that unique character :)