The Bazaar FAQ

[TheTXLibra]

So, a few of you have probably heard about "The Bazaar," and would like to know more about it. So here's the info thread on it, I'll keep it updated as often as I can.

[size=large]Where is it?[/size]

That's currently a secret. If you know, please keep it to yourself. I don't want people showing up before it's done unless they are invited.

[size=large]What's it for?[/size]

The Bazaar will be a trade center for the entire world. There will be a Herogate in the middle of it, and shops will be rented to those who can pay.


[size=large]What will be for rent and at what cost?[/size]

Prices are still VERY tentative, because the ETA for the bazaar is about 1-2 months out, and inflation could be anything by then. However, all rentals will be by the month or longer.

There will be 48 small tent-shops available at a tentative rental fee of about 100c/mo. These are a 5x5 (-4) space that will have a unique color combination for your tent, and space for perhaps 2-4 chest-shops.

There will be 8 craftsman shops available, which are 3 stories within a 10x10 footprint. The basement has a cauldron, workbench, and chests. The ground-floor is the shop proper, and the 2nd floor by default is a "living area" but can be converted into additional shop-space if you wish. The proposed rental price for these is 500c/mo.

There will probably be 4 embassies available. These will be within the domed area, whereas the tent-shops and merchant shops will be outside in the courtyard. These areas are as of yet undefined in size and scope, but will most likely consist of a combination bank/shop area with a vault for cities to rent. The rental price for these will probably be on order of 1000c/mo.

There will be 4 minarets (aka really tall towers) that will be rented to guilds as status symbols of that guild's power and influence, will have storage, a workshop area, meeting space, and an exclusive entrance to the black market. There will only ever be 4, and they will be the most visible feature from the furthest away from market, commanding an unprecedented view of the world. Within the confines of each Minaret, the guild renting it is the law. These will most likely be 1000-2000c/mo.


[size=large]What else will the Bazaar have?[/size]

There will likely be a black market, which will only be able to be entered through one of the four towers. While you don't have to be a member of that guild's tower to enter the black market, you do have to have their permission, which might include your becoming a member. Or alternately, you could sneak in, if their security is light enough. Within the black market, there will be a fighting pit, where contestents can enter the ring and fight one another to the death, to the amusement of the crowds. These elements will likely begin construction AFTER the Bazaar has already finished it's above-ground construction and normal trade has commenced.

Depending on demand, There might instead of embassies, be the following rentable pre-set businesses:

* some manner of hotel accomodations, where transient players can rent a room for the month and have a safe place to deposit their stuff and call /home.

* a restaurant with a stage for noteblock bands to play on and auctions to take place.

* a bank.

* a very large, fancy store.

Basically, instead of embassies rentable by cities as generic catchalls, these would each be an exclusive indoor service that one would invest in to get exclusive control over for one month, and the investor would supply his or her own employees. If I decide to go with the embassies instead, I'll still try to figure out a way to make the hotel and restaurant happen.



[size=large]What will it look like?[/size]

Picture the Hagia Sophia, combined with the Alhambra Gardens, and a courtyard of pavilion shops under tents.

(Hagia Sophia)

(Alhambra Gardens)

(Pavilion Tent)


That's all for now. Please feel free to post comments/questions/feedback.

 

[Angusward]

Thet's pretty cool. Who's working on it now?

 

[Figgis]

Glad to see this is coming together bud!

-Noobeata.

 

[applelove]

I've seen the city, and it's pretty awesome. The idea however, is kind of out there. This sort of project will really only be 100% successful if it replaces sanctum entirely, since 90% of people will pop-in and get what they need, then head home. The other amenities seem more like novelties if they don't get enough use

 

[7thKnight]

Will the Herogate to the Bazaar be free? If it's free I believe traffic will flow easier into it and people are more likely to visit. Also really excited about the Guild towers, It'll be fun to see how I can dish out that each month

 

[Angusward]

Right, so Herogates to that place should be free (Or at least the 1 coin usage fee and not the 15 coin transfer fee.), and the chest shops should be removed from sanctum. That's the only way this can really be viable.

 

[TheTXLibra]

I can't say for sure if Sanctum shops will be removed or not, but I can say Chief wanted a global trade hub that wasn't Sanctum. So maybe that will be the case. As for viability, I don't think that'll be an issue. The Bazaar will offer far more shops for far less and deliver more in terms of how they can be used. I do hope the HG to it will be free, but cannot make that promise as it is up to Chief. Also, there will prolly be a rail station.

 

[Kainzo]

*triple stamp*

 

[Amgroma]

*sneaks around kain through all the threads he posts and removes the ugly stamps he puts everywhere*

 

[TheTXLibra]

Just an update on the Bazaar while the server is down. I will attempt to have the Bazaar ready by May 31st, in keeping with the Heroes release date. I can't promise anything since I've got just incredible amounts of schoolwork (that I'm mostly neglecting in order to work on the Bazaar), and then there's Mother's Day and Easter and all that crap to deal with.

In any event... the courtyard shops are now finished. All 48 pavilion tents, and 8 medium shops are done. I'm currently in the process of dismantling my old workshop and moving my workshop into one of the towers where I will reside till...whenever I start my next project I guess.

Central Dome and 4 Big Shops will commence once I've leveled out the ground. I'll probably begin construction on it by this weekend.

What I need to know is a baseline (and serious) idea of rental fees per shop per month. Small shops are meant to be easily accessible to newer merchants, so I'm wondering if 100c is too much. At the same time, setting them up is kind of a pain in the ass, so I want to keep the demand reasonable.

As a review:

Small PaviShops = maybe 2-4 single-chest signshops. That's it.

Medium Tradesman Shop = ~7-20 single-chest signshops, depending on how much you sacrifice aesthetic for mercantile real-estate. Also includes a basement with LOTS of a storage (think "you're own personal vault") plus a pre-made pre-lava'd cauldron, workbenches, etc.

Large Shops = Still haven't decided what I'm going to do with these yet, but they're going to be kinda epic as far as shops go.

Towers = Roughly the same amount of real-estate within it as a medium shop, but with the status symbol of being one of only 3 available (or 4, once I move out of one), and having a feckin' awesome view, and visible from hundreds of meters off.


I need some idea as to what some reasonable prices are given the current economy. I can adjust for inflation or deflation as needs dictate.

 

[Malphugus]

Sounds wicked.

The rental fees you mentioned sounded fine to me, maybe even a bit higher. The monthly rental makes it easier to manage too from my point of view (as a potential shop renter).

Hmm, only 8 medium shops. Think these could be in high demand. Any rules regarding one person renting more than shop at the same time? (thinking: 2 or 3 tent shops instead of a medium shop - particularly if none are available)
Also consider: disallowing people renting a shop just to rent it to someone else at an inflated cost.

Is it safe to assume that the bazaar will have same rules as sanctum regarding pvp and theft? Well, excluding the 'black market' area, of course

 

[Figgis]

I'm pretty excited man.

And really, if you need anything more Libra, just ask. I will continue to contribute to this for as long as you need.

 

[TheTXLibra]

Just a brief update before bed. The Bazaar continues to be worked on, and is going well. Now that school is done for the semester, the pace is picking up considerably with the building. Updates are as follows:

* The "Thank You" sculpture for all those who contributed mats and coin has been decided on, and I think you're going to love it. My only wish was that signs came in colors other than "plank" so that I could make the signage more aesthetically pleasing. But when all is said and done, there's going to be a lot of people wishing their name was on it. I can't wait for y'all to see it. I'll begin construction on it last, to keep it a surprise.

* The shops have all been completed except for the 4 "epic" shops. The exterior of the large central building (with the exception of the dome), is nearing completion, but I'm simultaneously working on the interior to keep the two harmonious. I expect there will be 2-3 levels, all told, perhaps more if needs dictate.

* In answer to an earlier question, subletting shops (aka renting one to rent out at a higher price) will not be allowed. I'm not sure how the renting of multiple shops will be handled, but I suspect there will be a waiting period between each additional shop. Off the top of my head, I'm thinking 1 shop the first month, then if more shops are available at the end of the first month, then you can rent 2 shops, in another month if shops are available, you can rent 3 shops, etc... This will hopefully strike a decent balance between keeping open shops for newcomers to rent, allowing existing merchants to expand their business, and minimize the amount of work I have to do to keep the shop rents done.

* This raises another question as to Bazaar Management. I'm not 100% certain yet how this will be done. I may hire a T4+ for a SIC to help me run it, I may just flat out give it to DH and let them find someone to run it, or I may run it all myself. I don't know... I know I hate spending my McPlaytime doing paperwork, which is why I'm not a King or something. I just like building pretty things, so I'm trying to figure out the best way to handle it. I do know if an assistant gets chosen they'll have to be:

*** T-whatever high enough to do regions: This ensures two things, you won't need me to do it for you, and that you're already monetarily invested in the server.

*** Of impeccable credentials: I won't take any chances. An assistant would, by necessity, have the ability access and rip off merchants and grief shops. I can't let that happen. Anyone chosen for it must be able to be vouched for at the highest levels.

*** Willing to make it their "job" on the server. With upwards of 60 shops, plus groundskeeping, there's going to be a LOT of work to do. Trying to balance this and, say, be a mayor, or SIC of another city, probably isn't going to work out well for anyone.

*** Fond of monkeys. Because anyone who hates monkeys can't possible be good at running a Bazaar.


-Libra

 

[gabizou]

*** Fond of monkeys. Because anyone who hates monkeys can't possible be good at running a Bazaar.

Of course not... Aladdin had a monkey, why shoulnd't we???

 

[Alente1]

Hrm this sounds interesting, pencil me down.

I'll likely rent one of everything as restrictions permit. Assuming this will still be tied to the Nexus if Kain's suggested herogate changes go through.

 

[TheTXLibra]

While there has been some discussion as to whether or not the Bazaar will be the next Nexus, I cannot say if that will in fact be the case. I am building as if to plan for it, though it is ultimately Chief's decision. I can no more speak for him than he can for Notch.

 

[Kainzo]

beautiful building so far

 

[Alente1]

I'd post screenshots but Kainzo might blow up my house ^-^

 

[Nadastorm]

Right, so Herogates to that place should be free (Or at least the 1 coin usage fee and not the 15 coin transfer fee.), and the chest shops should be removed from sanctum. That's the only way this can really be viable.

That's kinda what I was thinking too. I really hope that more people start trading at the Bazaar just because it seems like half of Sanctum is sign shops (most of which are out of stock).

Does this place have sandstone arches surrounding it? If so, it's fairly close to my town. If you guys need any help let me know, i'd be glad to help out. Maybe make a road there when it's up and going? Who know, wish you the best of luck!

I like how it's all organized and it just looks fantastic! Love the guild and black market ideas too, very creative. Soon the Bazaar will be bustling with activity!

 

[Nadastorm]

Just went back to check the Bazaar out and wow, it's grown so much since the last time I was there! Well, not physically grown but the giant building in the middle looks fantastic! Also, the smaller tent shops are very colorful and really charming. People will love this place once it opens to the public. My only question is will there be too many shops for anyone to actually make a profit and cover the rent?