Thread: Commissioning Items from the AH

I am a happy crafter, I'll make weapons for anyone who wants them and sometimes, just make them in the hope of making some shiny gold and silver for them. Occassionally, I put items in the AH and they don't sell, which is just one of those things I guess; but it's frustrating to then see people asking for someone to make them a particular axe which I can't make now because I put the required shard in the dagger that I can't sell.

So my suggestion is for a Commissions Board in the AH. Effectively the AH in reverse, a player can see all the items that can be crafted upto his current level, pick the particular item that they want and post a Commission, stating how much they would pay for it. There would be a small fee (% of the cost) for posting and another player could take the Commission (one per player at a time, to stop people just taking all of them). For taking the Commission the player would also pay a fee, refundable when the item is completed, but forfeited if the item is not completed in a set time scale (say 24hrs). If the Commission is taken but not fulfilled within the time limit, the player posting the Commission loses nothing as the Commission is re-posted to the notice board. Although a player could only take one Commission at a time, there would be nothing to stop someone scrolling down the list, noting what is needed and making the whole lot before knocking off the Commissions one after another....except the risk that while you were gone someone else took that Commission.

I think this system would make it easier to find the items you want and easier to turn a profit through crafting.

Apologies if this has been posted before, I did search but couldn't see it

An excellent idea! Very efficient and real-world. It will never happen for a variety of reasons. Not least of which is that game play is not meant to be efficient.

This is a great idea. It could be done like tasks where there is a separate board and a daily limit. I think combining it w/ the AH would be a bit confusing for newbies - but a board in the area of the AH could be designed independantly from the AH. Also, there could be an auto-generated e-mail so that the poster would know that someone (and who) was completing the commission.

I Love the idea!!!

I posted this idea back November

here is the thread

http://forums.lotro.com/showthread.p...49#post5061049

It was a pain to find.

Not that it counts for much I would second and third this request. A reverse auction would really work better for this environment, since there is no visibility into the auction process (what are people bidding on, what is selling fast, what are the market prices, etc.). A demand driven auction would be much better for everyone. I wouldn't remove the normal auction feature, because sometimes you just want to throw something out in the market and see if it fetches any thing. But they should certainly add a reverse feature.

I believe my husband said that Guild Wars 2 is going to be doing something like this. It would be nice to have it here, too. We've been asking for it for years.

Originally Posted by Nindolvoth

I posted this idea back November

here is the thread

http://forums.lotro.com/showthread.p...49#post5061049

It was a pain to find.

Yes. I also previously posted a thread on this (Feb 2011). http://forums.lotro.com/showthread.p...41#post5218141

But I really like the idea of splitting it out from the Auctions completely. The Task Board idea where someone can commission a specific item and crafters can check the board for what they can make. Unfortunately, I don't expect Turbine to ever implement this. But it would be a huge improvement over guessing what crafted items will sell in the next 48 hours.

Decent idea, so long as those who requested the item HAD to pay for it once it was made, otherwise, no thanks, because it would be deemed "broken" within a week.

Originally Posted by Waxe

Decent idea, so long as those who requested the item HAD to pay for it once it was made, otherwise, no thanks, because it would be deemed "broken" within a week.

The idea would be that the person commissioning the item would have to put the money up front (in escrow). They get all the money back (minus a small posting fee) if the item is not delivered.

Even easier, the item could be sent COD (which already exists in the mail system).

Originally Posted by Thaladar_LOTRO

The idea would be that the person commissioning the item would have to put the money up front (in escrow). They get all the money back (minus a small posting fee) if the item is not delivered.

Even easier, the item could be sent COD (which already exists in the mail system).

The problem with COD is that the person can just decide they don't want it and wait for it to be sent back. Also, F2P players can't COD since they can't trade goods for money.

Originally Posted by Ayrolen

The problem with COD is that the person can just decide they don't want it and wait for it to be sent back. Also, F2P players can't COD since they can't trade goods for money.

Ah, good points. So, the person commissioning the item would have to deposit the money at the time of commissioning. When the crafter delivers the item, they immediately receive payment. If the item is not delivered, they get their money back (similar to bidding on an AH item now).

Originally Posted by Thaladar_LOTRO

Ah, good points. So, the person commissioning the item would have to deposit the money at the time of commissioning. When the crafter delivers the item, they immediately receive payment. If the item is not delivered, they get their money back (similar to bidding on an AH item now).

I would totally make use of a system like that, at least on my alt server. On my main server I have most crafts covered by myself or kinmates, but I have a few alts on another server that I've gone looking for stuff on the AH and never find what I need. Also, I'd totally take requests from others doing the commissioning because I enjoy crafting.

Originally Posted by Thaladar_LOTRO

The idea would be that the person commissioning the item would have to put the money up front (in escrow). They get all the money back (minus a small posting fee) if the item is not delivered.

Even easier, the item could be sent COD (which already exists in the mail system).

Well, in that case, I see it coming down to no one willing to deposit money into the system because they are lazy and its not a guarentee.

Still, nice idea though.

Originally Posted by Waxe

Well, in that case, I see it coming down to no one willing to deposit money into the system because they are lazy and its not a guarentee.

Still, nice idea though.

I dunno. I think it would work if the buyers and sellers are both reasonable. Buyer puts down how much they're willing to pay for specific item and seller has nothing better to do and wants a quick buck, so they make it. This obviously won't work for the people who think their level 35 crit armour is worth 2g, but I'd never buy from that person anyway. My hope is that a system like this would bring more crafters out and encourage more reasonable pricing on the AH in general. But that's probably just a pipe dream.

I really like the idea. It's frustrating to want particular items and have to babysit the auction house checking day after day whether anybody has posted them. It's similarly frustrating to try to guess what people will buy and then babysit the auction house posting them day after day until you just happen to have them up on the day somebody is looking for them.

The interface for making it work might be a bit tricky, though. With the auction house, the person posting already has the item in question and can simply drag it onto the AH window. The system can recognize any item that way and accept any non-bound item. For this commissions board, the person posting will in most cases not have a copy of the item already, and needs to be able to select it. That probably limits the system to just a relatively small subset of tradeable items. But even if it worked only for crafted items, it would be a big help. You start with a window where you specify the type of item you're looking for (medium chest armour for example), then it tells you which levels have craftable medium chest armour recipes, you select level 27 and it brings up a list of level 27 crafted medium chest armour, where you can check tool-tips to see stats and ctrl-click to preview the items' appearance. Then you specify that you want the Elven Outrider's Armour and how much you'll pay for it. At this point, the game software knows exactly what you want and can confirm that what the person accepting the commission provides is the same item that you requested. It could be a workable system, but is more involved than the drag-drop interface for the AH. And as soon as they have it for crafted items, people will be asking for the crafting mats to be there as well, and then someone will want a red-dyed boar mask from the fall festival, etc.

Originally Posted by Thaladar_LOTRO

The idea would be that the person commissioning the item would have to put the money up front (in escrow). They get all the money back (minus a small posting fee) if the item is not delivered.

Even easier, the item could be sent COD (which already exists in the mail system).

Putting up the money when posting the commission and getting it (mostly) refunded if the item isn't made is the better option. COD would make it possible for someone to post a commission, wait until another player has accepted it and made the requested item for them, and then change their mind and decide not to buy it after all. Posting the commission should be a firm agreement that you will pay the specified amount for the requested item.

I also think the person accepting a commission needs to make a firm promise to actually provide the item requested. Perhaps it could be set where they could either pay twice the commission's price in order to reserve that commission to themselves for one hour (refunded along with their payment when they deliver the item within that hour), or else take the commission when they have the item ready to trade (so that someone without the cash to reserve a commission can still fulfill one).

Originally Posted by Ayrolen

Also, F2P players can't COD since they can't trade goods for money.

Just as F2P players can't trade goods for money now, any new commissions system will have to maintain that rule. We don't want it exploitable by gold-sellers, (who are the reason for the trading limitations on F2P accounts). F2P players could presumably be able to post commissions to buy items, but would not be able to accept commissions to sell items, at least not without spending enough TP for the privilege that it would deter gold-sellers.

If the tech allows.

Great Idea

Keep the limit as is now, charge the person seeking the item a percentage (finders fee). I'm sure there other limits you'd have to put on to avoid exploits.

Pretty much the only reason I craft now, is because I never find what I'm looking for. Then most of the time I go without because I don't want to spend the time collecting the items or leveling the craft.

I agree, it's a great idea. It has been suggested here and on the EU forums for ages in various different forms and I've supported them when ever raised. Other games offer this and it works so it would be great if it could be introduced here too. Same as I support any posts that suggest an increase from the 2 day limit.

Just as a side note to the thread author (and anyone else it affects), there is the trade specific part of server part of these forums (e.g. Home » Forum » Servers » [EN] Landroval » [EN] Landroval - Trade) where you could advertise your availability to craft. In no way a replacement for what you are asking for but at least it might add a bit to your sales and reputation as an available crafter.

Originally Posted by Ayrolen

The problem with COD is that the person can just decide they don't want it and wait for it to be sent back. Also, F2P players can't COD since they can't trade goods for money.

Yeah, which I think would be even more incentive to go VIP. Only paying players could use the commission system. I'm all for it.

Originally Posted by Niwashi

The interface for making it work might be a bit tricky, though. With the auction house, the person posting already has the item in question and can simply drag it onto the AH window. The system can recognize any item that way and accept any non-bound item. For this commissions board, the person posting will in most cases not have a copy of the item already, and needs to be able to select it. That probably limits the system to just a relatively small subset of tradeable items. But even if it worked only for crafted items, it would be a big help. You start with a window where you specify the type of item you're looking for (medium chest armour for example), then it tells you which levels have craftable medium chest armour recipes, you select level 27 and it brings up a list of level 27 crafted medium chest armour, where you can check tool-tips to see stats and ctrl-click to preview the items' appearance. Then you specify that you want the Elven Outrider's Armour and how much you'll pay for it. At this point, the game software knows exactly what you want and can confirm that what the person accepting the commission provides is the same item that you requested. It could be a workable system, but is more involved than the drag-drop interface for the AH. And as soon as they have it for crafted items, people will be asking for the crafting mats to be there as well, and then someone will want a red-dyed boar mask from the fall festival, etc.

I agree that it should be for crafted items, not simply any item. The interface could be a simplified Lorebook Search today. Select Category, Type, Level Range, Bonus, etc., see a list of crafted items and select/drag over to the commission posting. Fill in the amount and submit. I suppose you'd also have to provide a posting time - 48 hours as a max like on the AH is too short. Maybe allow up to a week before the posting is cancelled and you are refunded your money. It's definitely workable and a system that would greatly supplement the current methods. It would breathe some life back into crafting for others.

I just found this thread by searching before posting (thank goodness).
Anyways, just wanted to say that I would love to see some sort of commission system put in place.
Just look at how Etsy (dot com) does it for real life examples.
Hopefully the dev's are considering this as I think it would really add something for the crafting community if done right.

Originally Posted by boxmodeler

Hopefully the dev's are considering this as I think it would really add something for the crafting community if done right.

Sadly the only developer that talked about the Auction Hall stated that there are no plans to add any functionality to the Auction Hall. There are a lot of things I like to see added.

The basic problem is that Lotro is so thinly funded that the vast majority of the development effort is going into adding landscape, instances, advancing the Epic Story with the intent to more the game toward the end of the triology and Mordor. Or they put effort into stuff they can sell for dollars like store items or expansion packs. Or support for adventuring like Instance Finder.