[Discussion] How do you feel about the recent inflation in specific NP items?

[Rhymes with Witch]

This honestly might end up shooting them in the foot. Anyone with enough NP to actually buy a 20mil paintbrush will likely have the sense not to, whereas casual users needing to work literal year(s) to paint a single pet will either make them give up or turn to FFQs / the lab and not bother with paintbrushes at all... or just fucking quit because a core mechanic of the game they're playing has become difficult to achieve without intense dedicated playing or spending real cash and getting lucky. (Yes, I know FFQs are easier to come by now, but it's still entirely luck-based and not everyone is beloved by RNGesus)

The users in that guild seem pretty scummy all around. Both from personal experience and second-hand accounts. If they're cheaters who sell, smart move I guess, because then people will buy the NP and items directly from them with cash, but that will probably shoot them in the foot in the long run too.

Regardless. I'm fucking annoyed.

[Charmander]

It looks like someone has eluded to this in the NT Editorial.

Hello! Please remove my username~ Recently, I've noticed some groups of more elite / prominent players gathering up items and working together to artificially inflate them to take advantage of less well connected players. I feel as though this has always been blatantly breaking rules, but could we get another clear reminder that this is not allowed here? Please remove my ~~Anonymous
This is completely against the rules. No group of individuals can come together to control the market. ~~Kikocat

No whether TNT was aware of this artificial and coordinated inflation before this...who knows. Also, who knows if they will have enough legit evidence freeze these users. It's a rather unfortunate and act for this small group of "wealthy" users to already make this site more frustrating than it already is.

When NC UCs were announced I had gone out and bought paintbrushes of the fi al UC pet I wanted. So I can totally see a natural inflation of paintbrushes and Nerks in relation to this. However the compiled inflation due to individual greed is completely unacceptable and unnecessary.


I have to deal with inflation enough in real life...I don't need to deal with it online where I go to escape.

[jxt]

This isn't the first time a group of players have colluded to artificially inflate items, however I've never seen one of those groups be so obvious about it. The community is small and has been small for a long time now, everyone who still actively plays is talking about the inflation and "that one guild". Everyone knows, even the players who don't actively follow the economy of the game know that currently a group of players are artificially inflating items.

Any good cheater knows if you're trying to cheat, like really cheat in order to gain mass NP, the last thing you do is go around being blatant about what you're doing to the entire game community. Artificial inflation is a tough one to not look obvious, but it's definitely happened multiple times over with little to no repercussion for those involved. This time I have no idea what will happen. On one hand it's obvious, on the other hand the stuff I've personally done on this site over the last 5 years is clear as day I'm cheating. Back in the day I used to try and get away with cheating, these days I don't care and instead see how far I can push cheating. To put it bluntly, you can get away with...a lot. Like way, way more than you would ever think and nothing happens.

[Boola]

This isn't the first time a group of players have colluded to artificially inflate items, however I've never seen one of those groups be so obvious about it. The community is small and has been small for a long time now, everyone who still actively plays is talking about the inflation and "that one guild". Everyone knows, even the players who don't actively follow the economy of the game know that currently a group of players are artificially inflating items.

Any good cheater knows if you're trying to cheat, like really cheat in order to gain mass NP, the last thing you do is go around being blatant about what you're doing to the entire game community. Artificial inflation is a tough one to not look obvious, but it's definitely happened multiple times over with little to no repercussion for those involved. This time I have no idea what will happen. On one hand it's obvious, on the other hand the stuff I've personally done on this site over the last 5 years is clear as day I'm cheating. Back in the day I used to try and get away with cheating, these days I don't care and instead see how far I can push cheating. To put it bluntly, you can get away with...a lot. Like way, way more than you would ever think and nothing happens.

I agree with this and while I have cheated on a massive scale, up there with the lower end of the best when this was profitable in the mid 2000's to the point where I play semi-legit as this point, some of those users will have everything caught up to them. This is the best coordinated effort I have seen, but also the most lax staff. A few obviously on the higher end are good with TNT and can make it out unharmed because they have a good relationship with staff. I know this firsthand and have had a relationship where if I get in good with a staff I can be unfreezed for anything. But the younger accounts partaking in this along with a few on the higher end will eventually go down in a blaze of glory due to their greed. I have seem huge dislike and calling out of this group on FB, Discord, and the boards itself so it's unlikely sustainable. As of last night, I priced the higher-end stamps and trade history of a certain young user (without calculation of reselling said items), which can cause a huge fluctuation in overall value if they actually resold, to be at around 9b neopoints in a few months. I support the cheaters, but we have always done in a way to not affect people adversely, rather active accounts or completely ruining the market. That user won't survive. Spent thousands of USD to get iced sooner or later. They are very blatant, as you said, and that makes me despise them.

On the other hand, even in big name accounts, it's so amazing how easily you can obtain an old war plot item, petpets stamp, coltzan stamp, commander garoo etc etc without nothing. Even a few years ago you would be mass reported for obtaining one if you could not document deep history of your transactions regarding and to hell if it came from an unknown source. However, TNT isn't doing much, but it doesn't last forever if you are out there spreading your shit like your invincible. The best and ones with longevity are the smart ones and these users aren't smart.

[Siebenschlaefer]

TNT maybe could add a rotating stock or something like that to the Faerie Tower, where you can buy a different set of PBs for a fixed amount of NP each month/each couple of months/once a year.
That way each PB had a set value, but depending on whether you want to wait a couple months or even a year until it restocks to buy for said price, or maybe buy it from another user for a slightly higher price, but "instant".

Flight Rising does a similiar thing with one of the Dragon species in their cash shop - they restock like once a year for a week (or a couple days) for 2000 Premium Currency.
So you can either wait until it restocks, or buy it from other users. Likely at a higher price, usually ranging between 2.5-3k from what I've seen during my active days.

[nataurs]

It definitely feels like TNT have become a lot less strict with NP items/economy even as recently compared to what it was like at the height of the pandemic a few years ago (whether that coincides with TonyP still being around back then im not sure). Its very common to see complete shells randomly appear on the TP or on the boards selling a 400-600M item with little to no repercussions. What I dont understand is how blatantly obvious this inflation group and many other high-end traders on the TC have been at funneling illegit NP/items over the years, yet have had a history of accusing others at cheating on the boards themselves.

[Chenbi]

Shenkuu Stamp was 90m now someone is asking for 250m... I wish I could take the stamps out of my album, ugh

[milkyway]

Asking here as it confuses me - when I last hiatused, Hasee petpets were in the millions, now they're 1k. Are they given out somewhere on site now?

So many R90+ petpets seem to be crazily cheap now.

Late but I think its mysterious negg cave daily

[Drumbeatechoes]

What I dont understand is how blatantly obvious this inflation group and many other high-end traders on the TC have been at funneling illegit NP/items over the years, yet have had a history of accusing others at cheating on the boards themselves.

Honestly (and I know this is tangential), even reading any of the Neoboards is really, really frustrating. At least we don't hide what we do around here, yanno? I feel as if a good portion of people viewed as "legitimate" traders on the site have had some level of involvement with offsite cheating. The on-site economy is a trainwreck, and the only decent way to play the site these days is by cheating. I wish it wasn't this way, but it absolutely is.

[Spoildlittleme]

I think Niantic will only do the UC stuff through NC not NPS so the inflation at this time is STUPID