NationStates: Trading Cards: A Few Changes

[NationStates News]

The NationStates Trading Card Commission would like to announce some key changes aimed at streamlining the market.

1. "Market Value"

The Commission has developed a new method of calculating a card Market Values, as reported on card pages. The new method is similar to the old one, in that it aims to represent the approximate value of a card on the open market, but has the advantage of not being horribly gamed.

All cards are currently being reviewed under the new method, with updated values expected to filter through over the next day. This will also flow on to collectors' Deck Values.

2. Premium Sales Now Attract an Auction Fee

The Commission discovered that the auction house, which handles enormous numbers of transactions every week, brings in zero revenue, and is entirely staffed by volunteers and prisoners on work-release. In order to fund ongoing operations, the auction house now charges a modest fee on the sale of premium cards.

A "premium card" is that which sells for more than 10.00 bank, and henceforth will incur a fee of 10% of any excess. For example, a card that sells for 15.00 will net the seller 14.50, since there is an excess of 5.00, of which 10% is 0.50.

Auction fees are paid by the seller and deducted automatically. No fees are paid by buyers, nor by sellers of cards under 10.00 bank.

3. Deck Capacity

In theory, increasing your deck capacity is very expensive. In practice, collectors have amassed cards in numbers well above their nominal capacity, because the system doesn't really work.

To combat this, the Commission has made three important changes:

Firstly, it has approved an across-the-board raise in capacity for all card owners, geometrically scaled, such that nations with deck capacity of 50 are raised to 160 cards, while those who ponied up to reach a capacity of 500, for example, will find it is now 3,186. Starting deck capacity also rises from 50 to 250 cards. (Or, for Site Supporters, from 100 to 500.)

Secondly, the price of increased deck capacity has been slashed. A sliding scale still applies, but it's now gentler, so that high-rollers can afford to legitimately increase their deck capacity into the thousands or even tens of thousands of cards.

Thirdly, deck capacity will be actually enforced. At least, a little more strictly. Specifically, bids and asks will no longer be accepted from collectors in violation of their deck capacity.

The Trading Card Commission wishes to thank all traders for their patience, both previously and during these changes, and believes that a vibrant, robust market lies in our future.

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