Suggestion Add an Auction House / Player Market in City Hubs (Player-to-Player Trading)

Hello everyone! I’m writing as a player who genuinely cares about what’s happening with Drakensang Online. The game has a great atmosphere and combat, but for a long time it has felt like it’s standing still. What we need isn’t just small tweaks, but real new features that bring the economy and day-to-day activity back to life.
The idea is simple: add an Auction House / Market in the major cities, where players can trade with each other using in-game currency — gold and (at the developers’ discretion) Andermant.
Right now, player-to-player trading is officially not available (the team has repeatedly stated on the forum that “trading is not possible”). Because of this, a huge part of the MMO’s social and economic life is missing.

I’m ready to support this idea with detailed suggestions and my own vision for how this great feature could be implemented.

 

✅ What I’m proposing

1) Add an NPC “Auctioneer / Trader” in city hubs

For example, Kingshill and other main hubs. The system would open in a separate UI window.
2) Two modes, similar to Lost Ark

In Lost Ark, trading is удобно разделено на два формата:

• Market — for “standardized” items (resources/materials) with fixed prices
• Auction House — for items with stats/variations, often with bidding + Buy Now

DSO could use the same approach:
Market (fixed price):

• consumables (essences, potions — if allowed),
• materials/resources,
• other stackable items.

Auction House (bids / Buy Now):

• items with stats/rarity (only those that developers decide should be tradable),
• specific categories of unbound items.

Important: the list of what can be sold should be fully controlled by the developers. The system could start with “safe” categories (materials/resources) and expand later.
Currency: Gold + (optional) Andermant

Andermant is a core currency in the game (earned and also purchased), and it’s widely used for progression.
To avoid breaking balance or encouraging abuse, a good compromise could be:

• trading mainly for gold,
• Andermant used as a fee/tax or for additional listing slots (or even a separate “premium listings” showcase — only if the developers consider it acceptable).

What this would bring to the game and players

1) Makes farming feel meaningful again

Right now, many drops/resources you don’t need just “die” at NPC vendors. With a market:

• you can sell extra items,
• buy what you need,
• and farming gets a clear purpose: “I’ll farm X because it actually sells.”

2) Revives the community

Trading is a social MMO mechanic. Players communicate, follow prices, and roles naturally appear (farmer / crafter / trader).
3) Helps new and returning players

New players and returning players can catch up more smoothly by buying needed materials/consumables instead of being blocked by pure RNG or long grinds.
4) A great currency sink (helps fight inflation)

Listing fees + sales tax remove gold from the economy. This is a classic and useful tool for keeping the economy healthier.
️ 5) Reduces the need for “grey” unofficial trading

When there is no official market, players look for risky workarounds. A proper in-game system is safer and more transparent.
️ Anti-bot / Anti-RMT measures (built into the design)

I understand the main argument against trading: bots and reselling / RMT. Some players also note that the lack of trading reduces the “profitability” of botting.
That’s why I suggest adding safeguards from day one:

• market access only after a certain level / chapter progress / account age (e.g., 7–14 days),
• limits on active listings and daily trades (increasing with level),
• listing fee + sales tax,
• automatic filters for suspicious prices (too low / too high),
• optional: a 72-hour hold on part of the currency for suspicious transactions or currency linked to purchases (similar to how Lost Ark applies a 3-day hold for certain gold-related actions).

Safe rollout plan (step-by-step)

Phase 1: market only for safe categories (materials/consumables/stackables) — no “top gear”.
Phase 2: expand tradable items + tune fees/limits.
Phase 3: if desired, add full auction for rare/variable items.
This way, developers can control balance and economy without a “revolution in one patch”.
Question for the developers

I’m ready to support the discussion with more specifics:

• which item categories should be opened first,
• what fees/limits would be comfortable,
• what access requirements work best against bots.

I truly believe an Auction House / Player Market is one of the features that could genuinely revive daily engagement and make Drakensang Online feel alive again.

This is, of course, my personal vision, but I’m open to discussion and suggestions from anyone interested, so we can refine the idea and turn it into a solid, well-balanced proposal.

 

This has been asked for over a decade and answer has always been no.

 

If the answer has always been “no,” that’s fair — but the game, tools, and anti-bot approaches have also changed over time.
Could we get an official, current response on what exactly blocks an Auction House/Player Market today?
If the concern is botting/RMT, I’m specifically proposing a phased system with strict safeguards, starting from safe categories only.

 

There're no plans for something like this, and mostly there'll be none since it'd require such large amount of work.