How can we (RLC/CSC/BGA users) help balance the negative effects of auto-pricing and pricing fluctuations in general? I started playing sites like this around *2007-08, starting with the most obvious haha. I didn't start using RLC to get limited or custom items until around 2016, but I always wondered how to keep a balanced economy(?) while being fortunate enough to afford five or ten bucks a month for monthly stuff I wanted... Inflation is wild. It's hard to enjoy a game when most items needed for the site are out of reach or even impossible to obtain due to "wealth-hoarding". It ruined some of my favorite sites and I don't want to contribute to new players having a harder time due to increasing prices; I like the auto-price feature but I've read a lot of complaints about it... Anyway, here's what I'm wondering, and any feedback is greatly appreciated! So sorry for the ignorance ^^;

1. Should I buy the highest price item from a user and leave the Main Shop stocks alone; Why or why not?
2. Does it help to buy from different shops that have a range of prices and leave the least expensive items alone; Why or why not?
3. Am I allowed to make trade lots, send gifts, level up pet stats and then transfer to someone, etc. specifically for new users; Are there any restrictions on this?
4. Are there any "unspoken rules" for digital marketplaces like user shops? IRL poverty made me greedy for pretty icons and customization I'm so sorry OTL

I don't want to break any rules, but it would be nice to gift something here and there that could help a new user out and keep up the friendly, inclusive atmosphere that Subeta has. I really want to see the user count keep growing so we can revive the virtual pet/avatar site communities c': Please delete or lock if this topic is not allowed, or move if it's in the wrong forum - Thanks everyone!

EDIT: Idk what exact year I first joined apparently, so sorry lol-

subeta's economy is actually extremely stable compared to many similar sites. it's true there are some items that are out of reach, though these are usually items related to battling at the highest levels, or the occasional "last item i need for my plushie/beanbag/food/book/etc collection!" and staff have worked on various ways to mitigate this over the years (re-releasing items with no or few copies on the active user market, other avenues for acquiring one-off special items, etc). it's always an ongoing process.

but on the whole, the vast majority of desirable items are super accessible to new players. i remember playing neopets as a kid and wanting cool paintbrushes and morphing potions SO BADLY, but making money in any kind of efficient or effective way was basically impossible unless you were an in-the-know power user. it was so monumentally, agonizingly slow—i can honestly say it was hellacious. that's not even to mention how impenetrable OTHER pet sites were.

in comparison, when i started playing subeta, i was amazed that in only a day of quests, i could buy so many cool clothes for my avatar, cute items for my galleries and pet treasures... with only a little bit of time and effort, i could have almost any pet color & species i wanted!

the autopricer is generally good; the main issue with it arises when people attempt to take advantage by buying up huge amounts of a single item, pricing them very low creating a bottleneck that will keep the lowest price at that value long enough for people to start autopricing to the new falsely deflated price without realizing, then buying up all of THOSE items and repricing everything back to the original higher price. but outside of intentional manipulation, i don't think people have many complaints about the autopricer.

so, to answer your main questions:

1. there's not really any reason NOT to buy the lowest priced item on the shop search, whether it's from the main shop or another user. that main shop item will either be bought by someone else, or deleted when the shop's stock next resets.

2. not sure what you mean here? if you're looking for a specific item, you can just buy the cheapest one available. again, there's no reason not to.

3. it's very common for older users to find new users in the Welcomes & Introductions forum and send them gifts. the only time gifting is a problem is if it's being used for harrassment.

i'm pretty sure offering to train/boost a pet for someone else is also fine; the only rules about transferring pets is that you can't ask for or receive anything in exchange for the pet, as selling and trading pets is against the rules. if you were actually going to do something like that, though, i would recommend filing a ticket, as only site staff can give you an officially-sanctioned conclusion on whether or not something is against the rules. (aka, i would hate to tell someone "no, i don't think that's against the rules" only for them to do it and get in trouble because i didn't look hard enough or misread/misinterpreted something.)

4. the only thing i can think of that's considered an "unspoken rule" regarding user shops is that most people find it rude if you intentionally price all your items just slightly lower than the lowest item on the shop search. this tripped me up when i was new because on the other sites i used (where everyone had to price by hand) it was considered stupid NOT to price your item 1 point lower than everything else so you showed up at the top! but subeta's economy moves at a decent enough pace, and the shop search order for same-priced items is randomized, so you're not particularly at a disadvantage for pricing the same as everyone else.

obviously this mainly applies to cheaper, quicker-selling items; if you have a high-priced item sitting in your shop for months and months and nobody's buying it, chances are it's not in high enough demand for buyers to feel like it's worth that much, so there's not really anything wrong with dropping the price.

Thank you for the explanation! I was very confused when reading a blog of complaints and didn't really know what to think, so I figured I'd ask for clarification. Subeta has been the most balanced overall compared to any avatar or pet site I've had an account with, and it is refreshing to know the staff have been working so hard and so long on making this site as enjoyable as possible for everyone! I transferred a pet to a friend who joined the other day and I got worried I broke a rule, but there haven't been any issues and there was no transaction made, just a moment of, "OHMYGOSH A NIGHTMARE PET IS UP FOR ADOPTION, SHE'D LOVE THAT I GOTTA GET IT FOR HERRRRR ( ◉⏥ ◉)!!!!" lol.

Also, so sorry for the incoherent sentences! I am not very good with words haha. I wanted to make sure I wasn't harming other users' experiences when buying/selling items for training and collections. I will definitely be sure to be aware of the 4th question you answered, I did that exact thing with potions because I didn't know what to do with them and wanted them gone but at least it was only -1sP from the LP on the marketplace? @ <_ @; Ugh, thank you so much for dousing the anxiety fire in my brain and I hope you have a great day/night!

It shouldn't be an issue for what you are talking about, but very high level pets will lose stats when transferred. I can't remember the exact point, but thinking stats over 2000? This was implemented so that battlers couldn't lend high level pets to other people to take advantage of events or gaining weapons that unbalance the battle system. Not what you're talking about, I know, but thought I would mention it.

If you get a new pet, level it up then transfer, that's fine, but if someone sends you their pet to work on, you need to keep it for 30 days before you can safely transfer it back.

I read that as well! Thankfully, nothing should be lost during a transfer since I don't have the time or sP/CSC to constantly train all my pets lol. And oof, the battle system thing definitely explains why transferred pets cannot battle for 30 days after the transfer is complete. I think the 2000 stat rule also said something about 10% or more of the total stats being subtracted to balance the pet transfer, so that makes even more sense now.

Hiya, I just had a question about this even though I'm a longtime user! Doesn't the autopricer price things at 1 sP below the current rate, or am I mistaken? I worry I've been doing this unintentionally! Also, when I go through my 5mil+ items, I always price them slightly lower than the person above me. Is this a rude thing? Should I be making it match? I just want mine to be appealing to buyers!

don't worry - autopricer doesn't price lower at all - it only exactly matches what the current lowest price is. and personally i don't find it rude to price 1 sP lower. but like Frenchi said it's not necessary here. however... it's inevitable people will do it because it gives you an advantage, period. it's annoying for other people who handprice (me) to have to keep lowering my prices 1 stupid sP to match, but...

(in relation to point 4 of the OP) what's really aggravating is when people slash prices (especially with hundreds of items in stock...) thinking that will make the item sell faster. it almost always doesn't. it just deflates the value of an item instantly instead. because, you know. autopricing. or yeah they are attempting to "scam" autopricers and buy up the deflated items. either way it sucks and i hate it!

Oh yeah, the price drops are terrible when it comes to those shops with 300+ of a single item. Like, why? Just sell it for a fair price and it will get sold much quicker than purposely tweaking prices that don't even make profit haha. I get having a single item in stock that's been sitting forever and dropping the price in small increments over a long period of time, but not the "bait-and-switch" tactic you explained!

I don't mind hand pricing until there are over 5 pages of items, but it gets tedious after a while. I do like auto-pricing, and I was lucky enough to received a buddy gold account so I may as well use it lol.

Thanks so much! That totally makes sense, especially to help folks who hand-price. I will make sure to keep an eye on this so I don't become part of a problem :)

I will agree that the marketplace is actually extremely stable. Yes occasionally you see people underpricing things but personally when I see that I make a habit of buying every under priced item and marking it higher (but still within reason) since usually I can still make a profit and that increases the value for everyone. Nothing like clicking buy 100 times lol...

But personally I actually make many millions without spending money and it's fairly easy to learn. Admittedly it does take some time and practice and I don't have the time to commit to that as much as I used to so I purchased a subscription. But I have days where my shop will make 10mil sP+. And it's very easy to buy a cheap buddy gold account in the forums so you can get access to the autopricer feature!

I am so sorry for the late response - I agree with you 100% on purchasing underpriced items and adjusting the price so everyone has the same opportunities! I do see a few items here and there that are even lower than the NPC shop prices, but not so much that it's becoming an issue, thankfully. It is a bit tricky trying to price items that don't have enough purchases from user shops as a guideline, such as "retired" or CSC items that are available only for a limited time, though. I'm not sure how to articulate that but hopefully it made sense, haha.

Is there a particular conversion chart we can use to adjust for, say, CSC to sP? Still learning the forums so I may be completely missing a section dedicated to pricing more expensive/rare items- OTL

My main shop makes enough money to do my daily stuff, but sometimes it is nice to have larger profits so I can buy stuff off my wish list or send gifts to others. The subscription prices are awesome; three dollars a month is perfect as a base tier for gold account access, and it helps Subeta stay running so yay :D