Hi!
I've been doing some further thinking about titanium ore and it's derivatives titanium bars and crossbows/damascene swords.
Right now (on Northisle at least) there is the odd situation that the sum of items needed to create an item (crossbow for example) cost far more than the regular market price of that item. In the case of crossbows there is somewhat limited demand because not everyone is L36 yet. Secondly, there is enough supply to satisfy this limited demand, in the form of loot from high-end adventures.
Since both crossbows and damascene swords (the only two items using titanium bars) are both going to be used in a way that they are not sacrificed, the demand will remain to be relatively low in the foreseeable future. With the upcoming burst of people who will be able to search for high-end adventures containing crossbows and damascene swords I predict that after a small surge in demand things will level again, not unlike Longbows or Steel Swords did in the past.
This effectively renders titanium ore / bars useless, since doing an adventure and getting 500-1000 xbow chance is much more economical (hey, it takes around 10-20 adventures just to get resources for a single titanium smelter and crossbowsmith - giving you tons of crossbows in the process).
The alternative currency : Titanium Bars
So, we are left with a material that has no function in production, yet is has properties that make it interesting as a secondary, stable currency. Let me list it's strongpoints :
- It's production parent - titanium ore - can only be gotten through adventuring (a costly and limited affair)
- Has to be produced by a costly building (titanium smelter), working at a slow pace (250/24hr when buffed)
- Has no function as a material (producing xbows and damascene swords is pointless!)
- Is 100% "open source" and driven by population efforts; not some artificial coin that can be exchanged through cash-bought-gems, causing deflation.
- Has the appeal and status - it's a silvery bar of goodness :-)
Just like in real life I see no problem in having multiple monetary standards working besides each other ; gold and silver have existed for centuries simultaneously in all mayor economies of the world. The settler population itself seems quick to adapt to new payment standards (witness the egg-craze, although obviously that was a store-driven event, not player).
The above is just a proposal obviously, some speculation included. It is based upon the issue that it is currently pointless to build crossbowsmiths since making them costs you (even when buffing entire chain) more than the ever dropping current market price.
Your thoughts are welcome