TOPIC: Legendary Build v Buy Comparisons

I wanted to start a thread expanding on a separate forum question about if someone should build a CoA or buy one. There are quite a few legendaries where buying is a better option to building (unless you just happen to have excess of the components to make them on hand). I thought it would be helpful for some players to see where the inflection points are in that market.

For the most part, the trade good costs to build every legendary are similar except for 2019 legendaries (extra Golden Fleece) and CoA. They all require $25K gold plus a wish ring or another $10K gold. Laz/Chad has the best prices normally for gold at $15/1K. That works out to $525 in gold costs. Add 1 GF, 1+ Argonite, 4 (in combination) of Oil/Bismuth and you have $150 in Trade 2+ materials. Assume you get everything else really inexpensively at $2/bit for the remaining trade goods - let say an average of 70 bits per transmute at $2 each = ~$140. So far, you are in $800+ (some Trade 1 you can get for under $2 but average that against items requiring more than a total combined of 6 of Trade 2+ and $800 is pretty conservative).

The next step is the cost of the ultra-rares and 4 point relics to get to the final transmute. Assume no 4 point costing more than $300 (likely too low but a good starting point), your minimum cost before the last components is already $1,050. Then you add UR's - many of which are out of print. Quickly buying a legendary is a better option than building (except that building can be done in steps as opposed to all at once spreading the costs out over time - ultimately if you just set the cash aside you'd be better off in the same situation).

CoA is a little different in the math.
Secondary market cost for a Ring of the Riches ($500) (3 points) and 2 CoGF ($325 each) (2 points each) works out to $1150. That seems to be the lowest cost to get the URs that I can find. That is before the other component costs - add 10K in gold at $15/1K (Laz/Chad has the best rates generally) = $150 plus 1 argonite, 1 golden fleece, 4 elven bismuth, 2 oil of enchantment, and 4 alchemist parchments (the other tokens at various times you can get for $1 or $2 each) - if you get good deals, you can get this group for around $175-$200. Add another $20 for the other trade good tokens (if you get them cheap) and you can build a CoA for around $1,500.

It isn't close - you are better off buying a CoA than making one. If the legendary cost is below $1,200 - this is true of some other legendaries with out of print URs involved (remember, the baseline cost for trade goods and gold for any will be $800+ before URs/4 point relic.)

Legendaries that are in demand that are cheaper to buy than make:
Aron's Robe - cost is around $1,200 to make, secondary market around $1,100
Asher's - cost is around $1,500 to make, secondary market around $1,200
CoA - Cost is around $1,500 to make, secondary market is around $1,100
Drake's - Cost is around $1,300 to make, secondary market is around $1,100
Drue's Baton - cost is around $1,500 to make, secondary market around $1,100
Giln's - cost is around $1,300 to make, secondary market is around $1,200
Io's Bow - cost is around $1,400 (mainly due to the sling cost), secondary market is around $1,300
Pern's - cost around $1,400, secondary market is around $1,200
Roland's - cost is around $1,200 to make, secondary market is around $1,300

Legendaries roughly equal to build or buy
Averon's Deathcleaver - normally sells for $1,500 - you can build one for around the same
Giln's - normally sells for $1,200 - costs around
Relsa's - $1,200 roughly either way

Cheaper to build yourself:
Pharacus's Cloak - normally sells for $1,200-$1,300 - costs around $1,100 to make

There are also legendaries that are a bit of date or just not as appealing that can be bought well below their cost to make:
Khing's Ring of Supreme Evasion (I hope this is used in a transmute one day to give the people who made one a sense that it was worth it) - typically available for $700-$800
TaMor's +4 Bracers - available for $500, would cost
Byr's/Sil's Plate/Mail - typically available for $1,000, would cost $1,200+ to make
Welfor's - typically available for $1,000 or less (this makes sense because it is class limited and, arguably, not as good as Thor's hammer)

Anything new will, generally be at parity (same cost to build/buy) because you can get components via PYPs for around $110 each and the 4 point for around $250. As these go out of print, they will likely get to be more expensive to build than buy because of increasing costs in OOP URs and higher trade good component costs.

Overall - the best deals in buying versus building are CoA ($400 savings), Drue's ($400 savings), and the armors (about $200+ savings). Of course some are amazingly less expensive but not as useful (bracers, etc.).

Fred

Rela's is not equal with the Greater Ring nearing $500. I think it's now squarely in the buy vs build. Doubly so as it's the only relic that's best in slot paired with the legendary so you want both

When it comes to the CoA:

I entirely concur if you're plan is to just buy everything to make one in one shot vs buy a CoA outright, the outright purchase is the better option.

If you're going to build one over time, remember that you can use the RoR and CoGF at conventions while you're building up to the final product, and you can hit great deals on trade goods or even the URs every now and then. Ex, I was able to snag gold at $12 per 1000 by catching the right deal a number of months back, and my RoR and a CoGF were used at a convention before I created the CoA.

As directional indicators, may be right, but the only way the math works on transmutes is to greatly reduce the component cost compared to what you see as buy/sell rates on the forums or eBay.

As has been said, legendaries were to suck up excess tokens lying around. Going out and buying components is very different from the sunk cost of already owning components or the time and effort of selling components to profit.

I have a system for relic pricing that I think makes sense based on summing up components and making an adjustment. With legendaries, so many are not new that it skews things immensely. Some of the older ones aren't hard to make as the requirements were far far less. I could make at least two older legendaries with what I have on hand, just haven't gotten around to it and would need to do some intermediate transmutes first.

Anyway, not sure it really matters, but for the purposes of estimating transmute value I place Trade-1 at no more than $1 and Trade-2 at likely lower amounts than you do to make the relative costs come remotely close to worthwhile. In reality, pretty much have to put Trade-1 at $0 to make building worthwhile for anyone looking to sell, which is consistent with the idea that someone building is using up a sunk cost and has better things to do than try to make a dollar or whatever off of some trade item.

Endgame wrote: When it comes to the CoA:

I entirely concur if you're plan is to just buy everything to make one in one shot vs buy a CoA outright, the outright purchase is the better option.

If you're going to build one over time, remember that you can use the RoR and CoGF at conventions while you're building up to the final product, and you can hit great deals on trade goods or even the URs every now and then. Ex, I was able to snag gold at $12 per 1000 by catching the right deal a number of months back, and my RoR and a CoGF were used at a convention before I created the CoA.

100% this.

Build vs Buy is always going to favor the buy option. It's always cheaper if you have to purchase the gold or trade bits. But if you can buy pieces over time and build at the end it's definitely doable and can turn out better in the long run.

Endgame wrote: When it comes to the CoA:

I entirely concur if you're plan is to just buy everything to make one in one shot vs buy a CoA outright, the outright purchase is the better option.

If you're going to build one over time, remember that you can use the RoR and CoGF at conventions while you're building up to the final product, and you can hit great deals on trade goods or even the URs every now and then. Ex, I was able to snag gold at $12 per 1000 by catching the right deal a number of months back, and my RoR and a CoGF were used at a convention before I created the CoA.

That’s a good point I hadn’t thought about. I do the same having partial CoAs being built - using the pieces before transmuting definitely brings value. The question is spending an extra $400 over that period worth the partial CoA benefit (most likely it does but should be considered.)

The same argument can be made of relsa’s since you get the +3 benefit until you can transmute. The downside there is, as a commenter mentioned, the +3 ring has retained value because it is still useful even after getting the legendary item. The gauntlets of linked fury fits into the same boat.

Fred

Fred K wrote:

Endgame wrote: When it comes to the CoA:

I entirely concur if you're plan is to just buy everything to make one in one shot vs buy a CoA outright, the outright purchase is the better option.

If you're going to build one over time, remember that you can use the RoR and CoGF at conventions while you're building up to the final product, and you can hit great deals on trade goods or even the URs every now and then. Ex, I was able to snag gold at $12 per 1000 by catching the right deal a number of months back, and my RoR and a CoGF were used at a convention before I created the CoA.

That’s a good point I hadn’t thought about. I do the same having partial CoAs being built - using the pieces before transmuting definitely brings value. The question is spending an extra $400 over that period worth the partial CoA benefit (most likely it does but should be considered.)

The same argument can be made of relsa’s since you get the +3 benefit until you can transmute. The downside there is, as a commenter mentioned, the +3 ring has retained value because it is still useful even after getting the legendary item. The gauntlets of linked fury fits into the same boat.

Fred

Buy the components for the CoA (the actual boosters)

Sell/trade them towards teh cost of your CoA.

Treasure boosters basically never devalue so you can buy them one at a time, use them and resell when you want the big one.

Arcanist Kolixela wrote:

Fred K wrote:

Endgame wrote: When it comes to the CoA:

I entirely concur if you're plan is to just buy everything to make one in one shot vs buy a CoA outright, the outright purchase is the better option.

If you're going to build one over time, remember that you can use the RoR and CoGF at conventions while you're building up to the final product, and you can hit great deals on trade goods or even the URs every now and then. Ex, I was able to snag gold at $12 per 1000 by catching the right deal a number of months back, and my RoR and a CoGF were used at a convention before I created the CoA.

That’s a good point I hadn’t thought about. I do the same having partial CoAs being built - using the pieces before transmuting definitely brings value. The question is spending an extra $400 over that period worth the partial CoA benefit (most likely it does but should be considered.)

The same argument can be made of relsa’s since you get the +3 benefit until you can transmute. The downside there is, as a commenter mentioned, the +3 ring has retained value because it is still useful even after getting the legendary item. The gauntlets of linked fury fits into the same boat.

Fred

Buy the components for the CoA (the actual boosters)

Sell/trade them towards teh cost of your CoA.

Treasure boosters basically never devalue so you can buy them one at a time, use them and resell when you want the big one.

True