TOPIC: Relative Value of Trade Goods for 2023

I'm seeing 10x treasure draw chips go for $30-$40 in auctions. Essentially, $3-$4 per treasure draw. That rate has been pretty stable for a couple years now.

At the same time, we're seeing many trade goods go for $1.25-$1.50 each at auction with MB's from 2022 go for $3.50-$5 each via Trent/Kirk, etc. in this year's auctions.

One-Boot Billy's map requires 20 trade1 goods plus 3 MB's (or 3 1K bars - though that direction is definitely the more expensive route.)
At $1.50 each for trade goods and another $15 ($5 each) for MB's, it would only cost $45 to make a map that gives you 20 treasure draws. That works out to $2.25 per draw - about 40% less than the rates for the 10x chips. You can transmute 5 at a time - add another $2 for shipping ($10 total) if you don't do it in person and you are still under $2.30/draw.

The maps can only be redeemed in person and, if it matches 2022, will run out before GHC. That means a fair discount should be considered on them but 40% seems steep.

It seems like with the auctions, trade goods going for $2-$3 would be more common (still resulting in less than $3/draw.)

Curious what everyone's thoughts are on why they are still staying so low? Is it just people not thinking about the map transmute (or don't want to be bothered with the map transmute)?

Fred

there is a glut of trade items, but only a limited number of folks have excessive amounts. i would imagine people getting them cheap in auction are using them for upgrades or saving slowly to upgrade "stuff" later.

I was wondering the same thing. Perhaps trade goods will see a jump in price in auctions once the new recipes go active on January 9th. Some of them are definitely bargain priced right now.

Mike Steele wrote: I was wondering the same thing. Perhaps trade goods will see a jump in price in auctions once the new recipes go active on January 9th. Some of them are definitely bargain priced right now.

Agreed. The treasure maps last year were selling for $35-$40 for 10 draws. My guess is the 20 draw ones will be $75-$80. Considering how many 2022 MB's are out there, you can probably get them for $2-$3 each if you don't already have a ton. It's not unrealistic to make these 20 draw maps for sub $30 right now. Decent resale value if sold for $75. Though, it is limited resale with 5 per month so definite limits there.

I doubt I'll sell any but I plan to max out making them. Having hundreds of the 2022 MB's certainly helps (even after transmuting quite a few to fleece.)

Fred

I have a box of 2023 transmutes all ready for January 9th including 5 maps. I picked up extra trade goods for the express purpose of making a lot of maps.

I agree with your analysis (with one small update) and have also been wondering why people aren't taking advantage of this. It does seem like a bargain at the moment. Now, this doesn't apply to everyone, but unless you plan to mail in a transmute every month, I would add $20 for shipping ($4 per map) to account for mailing them to TD and to pay for shipping back. If you do plan to mail in a transmute anyway and have the extra room, then your number would be correct.

Shhhhhhhh… don’t tell people!! Lol just kidding, It probably has to do with limits and people just not wanting to go through the effort. I’m glad that I was able to get some for fairly cheap cause there gonna get me and my friends who don’t really have much a decent amount of pulls at gen con

I think there are a percentage of players like me that view the maps as simply a way to get rid of excess tokens we’ve collected organically as opposed to a financial investment. I’m not spending money on trade goods just to get treasure pulls to turn into the same trade goods.

I made 5 maps last year - then by the time I could make any more the supply was already done (I’d planned on making some at SkullCon - but they were done by that point).

I’m assuming the same thing will happen again this year with the token “whales” depleting the supply before some smaller players are ready to make any (this happened to most of my regular group that looked to making them at SkullCon or GenCon).

So I’m buying just what I need in trade goods to make any relics I might want but that’s it.

Whales can buy unlimited Treasure Chips but can't transmute unlimited OBBM's.

Also you get pulls from playing so maybe people would rather buy an extra ticket instead. Then they'd also collect extra completion tokens which will certainly be more valuable next year due to the transmute.

That said, thanks for the reminder I should probably buy some trade goods.

I like the idea of maps as well lotto tickets and I always like a bit more loot but i'm in the category if i'm buying tokens they're for builds or upgrades to be (trade goods to save later) not just buying goods to make maps.

I'd like to make a couple of maps but only if i can spare the goods and for thematic reasons but i got burned last year because they ran out early and i'm already hesitant to even try this year because i don't tend to do transmutes til late in the year. Already seems like a why bother thing to me as a invested but relatively token poor player.

I will be making 5 maps but mostly to balance out the trade goods I have excessive amounts. I still have legendaries to make but it's to expensive to just buy all the MH and DS I need for them.

The higher transmute costs for relics and legendaries will wipe out most of my excess trade good supplies. It used to be an 8k order would be enough to do 2 exalted, 2 relics, and 2 legendaries of that year. It isn’t now so I get the feeling that the hard core collectors won’t have quite as much excess trade goods as they used to have.

Fred