Ten minutes before the auction Thaddeus checked his saving account. The five mana crystals sold for 1,000 gold and the two skill books for 600 gold. That was additional 6,200 gold added to his saving account and 1,500 gold in his investment account. This also did not count the money he hoped to earn from selling ore and mana crystals to the Mythical Guild.
With such a large sum, Thaddeus hoped few people would have such a large amount. The auction marked Heaven's Gates's five-month anniversary. Likely only large guilds would rival his funds. And unfortunately, most settlements were owned by guilds. Without such large funds, Thaddeus doubted he would be able to win any items.
System Message: The auction will start in 5 minutes. Players must have more than 250 gold to qualify. Private booths are only awarded to players with more than 1,000 gold. Players who meet the requirement will automatically be transported to the auction house. Checking player's credentials…Credentials met…Starting teleportation!
A white light shone down on him, and he felt his body lighten. And a second later he felt he appeared in a large auction house the size of two football stadiums. There were hundreds of people sitting in stadium seating and less than a hundred small VIP suites. The suites had wide untinted windows which looked out to the seats down below. Thaddeus looked at his suite, there was one table and two seats facing the stage.
When he sat down, there came a knock at the door. Soon a woman walked wearing a white blouse, navy skirt, jacket, and hat, with a gold necktie. She walked in with a warm smile and said, "Welcome to the auction. My name is Aura_653, please call me Aura. I'll be your hostess during the auction. Should you purchase an item, I'll accept payment and bring you your item. You may also request beverage service. Would you like a Sex on the Beach or a slice of cake?"
"Hi, Aura! I'll have mint julep for now," Thaddeus said. Teleportation gave me a bad case of motion sickness and he could use a drink to help settle his stomach.
He was thinking about a light and sweet spirit when Aura knocked on the door. He figured teleportation must have the same effect on most people as people below were rushing to the bar on either side to purchase drinks. In the suites, he saw the Aura hostess taking orders.
The people below looked up jealously at the VIP suites that had personal service, while they stood in long lines just to order. Still, many sat in their seats unmoving waiting for the election to start.
Thaddeus ignored the jealous gazes and focused on the table next to him. Laying the table were two signs, one red and the other white. Both signs had the number 653 written on the front and back. But there were no instructions on how to use the sign. Next time he saw Aura he asked.
As the timer clicked down to zero the entire auction house became silent, and a few people talked quietly with one another. Soon the lights in the auction house dimmed and the curtains on stage opened. Soon a lovely High Elf wearing a ruby dress walked out on stage with a handsome man wearing a three-piece black suit.
The man walked up to the microphone on stage and said, "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Heaven's Gates' inaugural North American auction. I am Francis your auctioneer. Today we have a range of exquisite items for you to bid on, but before we begin, please let me explain the rules. There will be 10 items, and each and every one are items of high rarity. Every item will have a starting bid and the next bid can not be less than 10 gold. And to increase excitement, the first seven items will have a buyout price. Please raise the white sign to raise the price and the red sign to buyout an item," Francis announced.
Thaddeus listed attentively; he couldn't believe the Buena Vista was able to hide something amazing for so long. The venue, rules, and items were such a big secret. He could understand now, he was in awe of this event. Even the rules made bidding on the first seven items a strategic decision.
When the rules were announced people started discussing them. With the rules, players would need to make strategic decisions on what to bid on and what buyout. For most players, buying out an item would empty them of funds. And each item afterward would only increase in value. Moreover, it was possible to trade or purchase more gold in the auction house.
As Thaddeus was thinking Aura came in with his drink on a tray and set it down on top of a napkin. After she finished, she asked, "Do you require any other service?"
"No, I'm fine thank you," Thaddeus replied.
"I'll return it if you purchase an item. If you need a refill or wish to each a snack please press the button on the table," she said pointing to a red button Thaddeus didn't remember seeing until just now.
She walked out of the suite as the auctioneer began speaking, "Now for the first item, 10 rare alchemical herbs. You can use these herbs to make rare mana potions. Well start the bidding at 50 gold for the first mandrake root and the buyout price is 1,000 gold."
After the announcement, the High Elf woman held up the items for everyone to observe.
50
60
…
220
250
...
810
850
"Buyout!" shouted someone from a VIP booth.
"Thank you to the bidder of auction item number one. The next auction item is the Roman Savage Chestplate forging design. The Roman Savage Chestplate gives its wearer an additional 25 points in defense. If two or more people wear the armor in a group, the additional points in defense increase to 2.5% per person. A large enough army wearing this armor would be invincible. We'll start the bidding at 250 gold and the buyout at 3,000 gold.
260
350
….
1,500
2,000
...
2,000
2,500
"Buyout!" shouted a tall, confident man, well-dressed human man, with black hair and piercing blue eyes. Unlike most VIP suites his was large and filled with eight people. One of whom he knew. That person was staring at him and pointing. Huey was respectfully addressing the well-dressed man while pointing at Thaddeus.
Thaddeus at once realized, Huey was likely speaking with Odin, the Guild Leader of the Mythical Guild, and highest-ranked player in the game. Huey smiled at him and raised his hand hello. By reflex, Thaddeus did the same without thinking. And he watched Odin nod approvingly in his direction.
"Argh! Odin your reign will end today! That's the last time, you steal another bid from me! Purgatory will replace you after today!" Shouted a tall, muscular, red-skinned man, with black hair and red eyes. His character looked like a demon, but demons were not yet playable characters.
Thaddeus knew Purgatory was the third highest-ranking guild Akkadian Empire. After examining the Mythical Guild suites, he could easily tell which VIP suites belonged to guilds. Most guild suites had anywhere from five to twelve players. The lively background noise made the VIP rooms stick out. Compared to the players below in the stands or individuals in VIP suites, guilds had a smug conceited attitude that seemed to look down on everyone.
"Thank you, Bidder 1. Let's move on to item number three, which is a nature soul bead that can increase a territory's agriculture production by 15%. Let's start the bidding at 300 gold and the buyout is 5,000 gold," the auctioneer announced.
Unlike the previous items, this item rose more slowly in bidding. The reason building most guilds were interested in building citadels or fortresses they weren't concerned about agriculture. If anything, they prefer to skip the hassle and import food.
310
320
…
570
580
While Thaddeus didn't need the nature soul bead due to Demeter's blessing, the thought of leaving the auction with nothing bother him. So, he raised his white paddle and shouted "750!"
Several people laughed at him increasing the price by so much. Many looked at him with disgust or sympathy, but 750 gold was enough to scare away any competitors.
"750 going once"
"750 going twice,"
"Sold to Bidder 653. Thank you, Bidder 653," the auctioneer said banging his gavel.
"Congratulations Thaddeus, Aura said entering after the gavel banged. Would you like me to transfer the funds out of your savings account?" she asked politely.
Thaddeus nodded affirmatively.
"The transaction is complete. I shall receive your item. While I'm gone would you like a refill?" she asked.
"Thank you," Thaddeus said turning around to face the auctioneer.
Our fourth item up for auction is five rare building scrolls. I'll auction them off one at a time starting with the apiary, bathhouse, shipwright, adventurer's guild, and town hall. Remember settlement lord to advance to a townhall is a necessity. Let's start the bidding at 500 gold and a buyout of 10,000.
After hearing the next item, Thaddeus regretted buying the nature soul bead. Now he only had a little over 5,000 gold left. Which meant he needed to budget his priorities. Of the five buildings, the most important were the town hall, apiary, and bathhouse. While Woodhaerst was only at Level 2, he'd need the townhall blueprints eventually.
Presently, the apiary was the most important for his village. An apiary would provide honey, candles, and mead. All things his people desired now. Finally, the bathhouse decreased a settlement's likelihood of spreading disease and improved overall morale. Strategically, he decided to bid for the apiary and use the rest of the funds to purchase the bathhouse and townhall in that order.
Thankfully, few people bid on the apiary. Most likely people were waiting for adventurer's guild and townhall scrolls.
510
520
…
550
570
Thaddeus raised his white paddle a second time and bid 700 gold. However, unlike last time another bid counter with 710. Thaddeus and the bidder on the floor went back and forth until Thaddeus won the apiary with a bid of 950 gold.
Thaddeus was thrilled to purchase two items, at least he could say he wasn't walking away empty-handed. That left him 4,500 gold plus the money Igor deliver to Travis at Trading Post.
With Thaddeus winning two bids in arrow, he was seen as a threat by many in attendance. Spending almost 2,000 gold this early in the game typically meant the player was either a wealthy player or a mid-tier guild leader.
When the bathhouse was auctioned, Thaddeus was surprised by the burst of activity on the floor. People scrambled to bid like he was the last item in the auction. With the auction almost way over, many people realized the items would soon be out of most people's reach.
500
800
….
1,080
1,200
…
1,550
2,090
As the price continued to rise, Thaddeus was left with a tough choice. Purchase the bathhouse and end his night or wait and see if he was able to purchase the townhall. He reasoned that if a bathhouse scroll was almost 2,500 then bids on the townhall scroll would be closer to 10,000 gold.
When the price of the bathhouse reached 2,770, the bids started to slow down. With only two people bidding Thaddeus thought now was the time to enter the fray with a bid of 3,000.
When people heard Thaddeus bid there was an audible gasp. Many people thought he had exhausted his funds, yet he was able to bid 3,000. Many wondered how much he brought with him.
Yet neither of the previous bidders wanted to lose. Back and forth the bidding continued until it reached 4, 250 gold. With that bid, Thaddeus was near his limit. With one final attempt, Thaddeus placed his chips all in and bid of 4,500. Hearing Thaddeus' last bid, the auction house was quiet in astonishment.
"…"
Thaddeus was an unknown variable, but his presence made people admire him. Many tried to look up his image but found none. Thaddeus was a mystery, an enigma. Which along with his three bids in a row skyrocket his popularity. At the same time, many others did not like the feeling of being suppressed by such a secretive man.
"4,600," shouted Thaddeus' last competitor. The desperate man stared angrily at Thaddeus from his VIP suite. He was frustrated because he thought he would be able to purchase several items but had yet to win. His mid-tier guild owned a settlement that suffered greatly during the beast wave. Despite being able to survive, their settlement remained on the verge of collapse. Most of their settlers were killed or fled. The ones that remained in their constitutions were crippled.
To encourage new settlers, they were forced to hire an expensive priest. But the priest's weekly fee exceeded the village's GPD. The guild took out a loan from the nearest bank and hoped to purchase a church-building scroll at the auction. Unfortunately, the bathhouse was the closest they could get to church. If they were able to purchase the bathhouse, they could release the priest, and start rebuilding their settlement.
However, they never expected an unknown big shot to challenge them. Using their entire savings and loan they bid every copper to save their village and not lose their chance at being lord.
"4,600 going once"
"4,600 going twice,"
Just then Thaddeus received a notification and saw his saving account increase by 12,258 gold. Thankfully, Igor and his people had come through in the clutch. He quickly raised his white paddle and shouted, " 4,650!"
Not hearing Thaddeus counter-raised the competitor's hope. The guild's confidence and hope returned, only to crumble later when Thaddeus countered. It was emotional damage. Even their best effort was undermined by that mysterious man.
Soon the auctioneer announced a third time, "Sold to Bidder 653. Thank you, Bidder 653," the auctioneer said banging his gavel.
With the apiary and bathhouse scrolls, Thaddeus felt excited his plan unfolded just as he envisioned. Well, mostly, he wasn't sure when Igor and his people would deliver the ore. Luckily, he happened at right time. Better still Thaddeus had enough coin to purchase the townhall scroll.
The Golden Knight purchased the shipwright scroll and Mythical Guild purchased the adventurer's guild scroll. Only the town hall scroll was left to purchase. As everyone gathered at the end of their seats to purchase the most valuable scroll. But before the auctioneer could begin, Odin bought the guildhall outright. The anticlimactic ending left everyone stunned, even Thaddeus who hoped to buyout the townhall scroll.
With the last scroll sold, the auctioneer announced the next item. "The last item up for auction is the Roman Savage Gladius Short Sword Forging Design. These swords can fit one magic crystal and like the Roman Savage Shield can stack damage when used in an army. Let's start the building at—"
However, before the auctioneer could finish, he was cut off by Odin who shouted, "Buyout!"
"Congratulations to Buyer 1. Thank you, Buyer 1. This concludes the first half of the auction. Let's have an intermission, and we'll reconvene in an hour," the auctioneer said with a smile as he and the High Elf woman walked off stage.