Can somebody explain in detail how to trade properly?

[Sinxar]

Don't even think about linking a trade helper as a response!

I know all about the most popular trade helpers and sure they can make a tiny profit of 2000 - 4000 Cr per ton. I need somebody to help me understand how to trade properly, taking system states into account for maximum profits.

I found a spreadsheet (can't find it now) that supposedly shows how to match up system states to increase profits. I tried what was described and ended up losing money on the transaction instead of the promised ~7k Cr per ton, so I obviously have no clue how they work.

It seems to be a huge secret as I can very little info about this so I imagine people are just keeping their mouths shut to keep the best routes to themselves.

So please, help me with this. By explaining how to do it you help not only me, but a LOT of other people that either don't know about this at all and assume the terrible 3.5k Cr hauls are as good as it gets or don't understand how to work out what is best.

[Dudley]

Don't even think about linking a trade helper as a response!

I know all about the most popular trade helpers and sure they can make a tiny profit of 2000 - 4000 Cr per ton. I need somebody to help me understand how to trade properly, taking system states into account for maximum profits.

I found a spreadsheet (can't find it now) that supposedly shows how to match up system states to increase profits. I tried what was described and ended up losing money on the transaction instead of the promised ~7k Cr per ton, so I obviously have no clue how they work.

It seems to be a huge secret as I can very little info about this so I imagine people are just keeping their mouths shut to keep the best routes to themselves.

So please, help me with this. By explaining how to do it you help not only me, but a LOT of other people that either don't know about this at all and assume the terrible 3.5k Cr hauls are as good as it gets or don't understand how to work out what is best.

Hi Sinxar,

**"Pure" trading only pays about 4k max per tonne - the value comes from how much you carry. (Unless anyone knows different now)

Sorry, but trading helpers are your friend and usually point to "imperial slaves" as the most profitable commodity.. which I believe is still correct.

Short hops - carrying huge amounts is the Trading Way..(Used to get up to 25 mill an hour, sometimes more, using a cutter outfitted for maximum trading capacity, 700+ tonnes. (3 hop round trips). If you can get a wing together with like minded people, then wing benefits are substantial.

If it's a mission based thing - get allied with the factions and get up to 6 to 10 million (Maybe more) for what ever is on offer, if you have the carrying and landing ability (Outposts).

Rares help if you don't have much capacity, but must travel 160 ly to get the best value. (About 16k Cr per tonne profit)

The last 4% to Elite in trading - I earned with the help of three great friends in two Cutters and an Asp and I had gnawed off my own foot by the end..

Good luck mate - and stick with it.

Regards

o7 Dawg

[Sinxar]

Thanks for your time.

This is the type of information needed:
https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthrea ... elp-Needed

That is more of the information I am looking for. Like I said, it seems nobody knows how the game even works. I would rather not reinvent the wheel if there is information about the bgs available somewhere that gives the commodity import/export list based on the state.

Here is a thread about the bgs: https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6305

[Xebeth]

I think you may be expecting too much. 2k-4k per ton for trading is quite normal for a good route, playing from launch I've never seen the sorts of profits your spreadsheet promised.

If you are lucky and don't mind travelling you could be looking at 5K, but your credits per hour drops as the travel distance increases.

[Sinxar]

So there is no point in learning how the game works? In 2.1 the faction states were supposedly buffed to have a greater impact on the commodity market. Is this not the case?

If the only option is to trade slaves, what is the point of trading at all in a game based around trading?

[Loriath]

The problem is that in most cases, all we really know about how the BGS works is handwavium when it comes to these sorts of effects. There is no way in game to get accurate accounting of trade data, hence the large amount of effort to use external tools to catalogue the information.

Simple rules like metals and minerals should sell well in refining locations are not always correct. I have seen raw metals selling much higher in an agricultural system for reasons that are unknown.

Remember too that hauling and fetching missions count towards Trade, as does smuggling (at least the old smuggling, have not done any new lately but assume it does) so that throws all sorts of wrenches into the works. Slaves are not the be all end all for trading, it depends where you are in the bubble. Obviously you are not going to become a billionaire cornering the Food Cartridges market, but there are some places where gold gets you more profit than imperial slaves. All depends where and when, hence the outside tools.

When I say outside tools, I also include stuff like the Trade Computer Extension that can share data but also works from the data that only you have collected.

Unless they suddenly come up with ways IN game to track these things, the BGS effects are mostly suggestions.

[Xebeth]

Faction states does have an effect, for example currently the Azrael system is in Outbreak and are paying a little under 3K for basic medicines vs the normal galactic average of 200 to 300, there are two systems within 15ly selling them for about 200, so whilst the Outbreak continues there are good profits to be made.

Systems that are in war pay more than the average for military items, those in famine pay more for food.

However, some of the states affect missions and not trade, Boom for example increases the effect (and payout) of trade type missions, Civil Unrest increases the effect (and payout) of combat missions.

All of these states are transient however, but you could use the galaxy map and for example look for states in Outbreak and sell medicines until the outbreak ends and then move on to the next one, this type of thing is what some people do.

None of the states actually target the high ticket items however, there is no state that's going to suddenly dramatically increase the value of slaves or gold, supply and demand have more of an effect in these cases and there is nothing in-game to show supply and demand (the in-game trade routes on the map just show average volumes of trade)

In reality the vast majority of people use an external tool to find a good A-B-A route and trade it to death (that's why these tools exist), remembering of course that the markets are dynamic so constantly buying and selling the same commodities from the same stations will raise and lower the prices respectively, that's why you need to ignore data that is more than a few days (in some cases hours) old.

This is how the game works, there is no great secret known only to a select few (and those that claim there is are talking tosh), trading is only one aspect of the game, and frankly not the biggest aspect anymore.