Thoughts on the Exchange

[puckalish]

If you need some quick money sell Z-Particles.  I sold 500 of them in packs of 10 and made almost 40 million yesterday.

On that note, seeing as how it's R&D weekend, prices for mats are already going down and will go down further... this is the time, I'd be stockpiling all that stuff. Wait for it to go up in just a little bit and get. that. paper.

[eaglescoutdjb]

On that note, seeing as how it's R&D weekend, prices for mats are already going down and will go down further... this is the time, I'd be stockpiling all that stuff. Wait for it to go up in just a little bit and get. that. paper.

I've just been posting them for the same price I made so much money on, 450,000 for 10.  It takes a little longer to sell but every once in a while there's a break in people undercutting it and it sells.

[lsloan31]

Couple of thought from someone who's regularly sitting with a billion or two in EC.

Don't underestimate daily variations in prices. I know there are certain times of day when prices are naturally higher (broad brush and non surprisingly, its when most of the US is online) and it cuts down on your work if you simply know when to post your items at a naturally higher price. 1k, 10k, 100k - it starts to add up.

Events - if you've got the time, grind, grind, grind. Hijaak did this in the (2013?) summer event and easily made 6-700 million over a 6 week or so window. Events are great t build up a base from which to trade in high ticket items which I personally feel is the endgame if you want to be a regular exchange trader.... Which leads me onto not being afraid to stockpile things away for a rainy day. I'm not talking about a couple of weeks down the road; sometimes a year and more. Those Plasmonic Leech's I got for 3 million a pop are now going for 42 mil + and people are still buying 'em.

[puckalish]

Thanks, Isloan! I will note this above when I get a chance.

I have tried to track daily fluctuations in order to better predict them, but I need to crunch the numbers some more before a pattern emerges, i guess... or get more frequent readings.

That said, Friday (yesterday, maybe?), just looking at what averages had been, I made nearly 12m just playing the Exchange (which is, far, and away, the most I've made in one day off speculating), so clearly, there is plenty of daily variance... I just haven't picked up on any really reliable patterns just yet...

The other tip, well, I'm guilty of selling stuff wayyyyyy too early. And some "blue chip" stuff like Master Keys will prove to be a great investment almost no matter what happens, making it great for holding on for a while as a safe increase. Stuff that may become a "must have" (like the Leech) may be a bit more of a gamble at first, but kind of turns stable over time (right now, I think the Leech is pretty similar to keys... some short-term variance, but, generally, a slow upslope). Anyways, noted. I hope to have the self-control to heed this *important* bit of advice.

[lsloan31]

Depending on what you trade in, you'll learn the daily patterns over time. That goes for days of the week, times of the year. The same is also true of buying - summer event is a classic example. (Not been on this years yet, assume its the same) Lohlunats start off super expensive on day 1. By the last day, they're super cheap and for such a large event they'll remain cheap for 1-2 months, perhaps more. 6 or 7 months down the line, someone with too much ec to count (like me) wants to get ahead of the next event and stocks up, at a massive premium.

I agree it can be a gamble to build up stock to save in the long run and sit on but I've never had this happen to me - generally a lockbox comes out and people go bat-crap-crazy (sorry!) for x,y,z items out of everything on offer. People talk on the forums and the items (within 2-3 weeks) have stabilized at naturally higher prices. Don't forget, the lockbox lottery means nearly enough everything is in plenty supply when a new box first hits the game so you have your natural indicators there to pick up on.

Self restraint is hard - a piece you picked up for 2 mil might now be 20 and you wanna sell it on but when you're hitting the ec cap across multiple characters and able top buy a Strike Ship or a Bulwark 'just because', its a good feeling!

[eaglescoutdjb]

Been playing the market lately, mostly buying up things that were undercut and relisting them.  The only hard part is being patient, when everything sells I'll have turned the 5 million I started with into 25 million but it's really hard to wait with that much tied up all at once.

[eaglescoutdjb]

Found a new trick for playing the exchange. Picked up a 100 pack of science upgrades for 12.9 million and already made half my money back selling 30 of them for 200k each.

[puckalish]

Science upgrades typically stay under 200, that recent run over the past two weeks is kinda rare. Just know that... but it seems like you're watching the exchange enough to see the trends. Also, sometimes people drop them for stacks at 100-110k/ea., which feels like Christmas.

All that said, I'm really writing to cosign the patience bit. From what Isloan said to eaglescout's comment... I certainly struggle with patience in the game and sometimes see stuff listed for five times or more than the amount for which I had just sold it. Getting better, though, lol

[eaglescoutdjb]

12.9 million is 129k each so they have to drop pretty far before I stop making money. Plus even when it does drop I will wait for it to go back k up a little bit before lowering my price. It's never a sure thing but I have to take chances if I'm ever going to get the big ticket items I want.

[charvey]

Well I took a chance. Bought 20 master keys yesterday for 3.1million each. Sold them this morning for 3.5 million each. Made 8 million overnight. Not bad...