Seers' Journal: 3rd Edition - The Great Deceptor

[unorclan]

 

[3rd Edition] April 18th, 2009

 

 

 

}Introduction

 

}The Great Deceptor

 

}"Let's Build Something Together"

 

}Fandon

 

}Comic

 

}Credits

 

 

 

 

 

 

[hide=Seers' Journal]Introduction to Your Journal

 

by Unorclan/Book

 

 

 

Welcome to the 3rd edition of the Seers' Journal, formerly known as the Gielinor Tribune!

 

 

 

Each edition just keeps getting better and better, right? Or do you not agree with me? Whatever your thoughts are, why don't you tell us and talk with the Staff and me at the Seers' Journal Forums! Come and visit, we're always welcoming new readers to come and chat with us.

 

 

 

In other news - I am proud to announce that the Seers' Journal now has two new members in the Management! Earthpoet, our faithful and talented Columnist, has now been promoted to Columnist Editor and Niperwiper, our amazing and skilled graphic designer, has also been promoted and is our new Graphics Editor!

 

Congratulations to both of these guys!

 

 

 

If you're interested in writing for the Seers' Journal then you can learn more by visiting our forums and if you have any questions then please PM me (unorclan), Earthpoet, or Nipewiper.

 

 

 

I hope you enjoy the 3rd edition of the Seers' Journal!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Great Deceptor

 

by Earthpoet Paramount Column

 

 

 

For the merchant, even honesty is a financial speculation. ~ Charles Baudelaire

 

 

 

The portrayal of Shylock, the outcast villain in Shakespeares play, The Merchant of Venice, represents the treatment of Jewish merchants in Europe during the 16th century. Shylock demands justice for his rage, and he concocts a scheme which allows him to cut a pound of flesh off of a delinquent debtors body. Jews were shunned in society for their practice of usury, lending money with interest, but borrowing and lending money were vital to the progression of business, and so Jewish merchants were allowed to conduct their business. The merchant became a necessary evil.

 

 

 

For years, these were the same reasons Runescape heard from its merchant community when players complained of their ethically dubious actions. Merchants insisted that they provided the player community with an invaluable service. They acted as a mediator between the players who were looking to unload their treasure and the players who wanted to quickly (and often impulsively) purchase items. The price for the merchants time was usually a small markup on their prices in exchange for the players convenience. The Runescape merchants, in their own words, had become a necessary evil to the game.

 

 

 

Although there were plenty of honest merchants playing the game, I routinely ran across some very devious minds while trading. If I sold below market price, they would assume I was naïve and insisted on an even lower price. Sometimes they would try to bully players into making unfavorable transactions by yelling, Hurry, hurry, hurry, I have to go! If I couldnt get into World 2 to meet a merchant, they wanted to charge a relocation fee" for their troubles. I always declined to pay the fee, and they always came anyways.

 

 

 

Like poor Antonio in The Merchant of Venice, I often felt like a pound of flesh was being demanded. Merchants became one face of a multi-headed problem in the Runescape economy; autoers and Real-World Traders were forcing down the prices of raw materials while merchants ballooned the price of rares and other valuable equipment. All of that changed about 17 months ago.

 

 

 

With the inception of the Grand Exchange, leverage sharply shifted back into the hands of its player community. Players were able to place their goods for sale globally with universal, yet flexible prices. The valuable services of merchants was rendered obsolete. It seemed the evil necessity was no longer necessary in the game and this sent a shock through the merchant community.

 

 

 

This wasnt the first time I witnessed an enraged merchant community. The surprise release of the Construction skill had created a massive sell-off to compensate for the cost of training this skill. Prices plummeted as players were undercutting each others sales. Threads of angry merchants popped up demanding these players to cease selling their whips, dragon chains, Santa hats, and party hats at, what they considered, unreasonable prices. Why? For a brief moment, merchants had lost control of the market.

 

 

 

Occasionally, a regular player may pop up and undercut the merchants sale. This lone sale rarely affects the market and is often remedied by a merchant buying out that players stock. When a large group of players are selling, however, there is little they can do. Ironically, it was this lesson that would later give birth to merchant clans.

 

 

 

With the Grand Exchange, there is no longer a need for merchants in the game - so why are there still so many players calling themselves merchants today? Granted, there are many honest players who merchant in the game today. They spend weeks studying graphs and trends, paying attention to future updates and work to follow patterns in the market. These players sit quietly behind the scenes and make investments while not bothering anybody. They learn how to follow price fluctuations.

 

 

 

Then, there are the crooks; deviant players who look to exert control over the market. Instead of following price trends, they look to manipulate prices for their benefit at the expense of others. These are the merchants who have always made the most noise. Could it be that their motives were never altruistic to begin with? There is no more façade of valuable service to hide behind. Their intentions are exposed, and now they dont care who knows it; they are in it for themselves. Like a few bad apples on Wall Street, these are the individuals that demonize the whole business.

 

 

 

 

 

Theres a sucker born every minute. ~ P.T. Barnum

 

 

 

With a lack of customers to dictate, more merchants are finding new crops to harvest suckers. Open merchant clans are popping up frequently these days with the guise that they will make you rich.

 

 

 

These merchant clans band together to buy out and artificially drive prices down on the G.E, and then command their army of suckers to start buying, forcing the prices back up so the merchant clan leaders can sell off for a profit, and this leaves the remaining members to suffer massive losses.

 

 

 

Instead of seeking out easy suckers to prey on in the player community, theyve turned inward to sell a scheme to aspiring merchants wishing to learn the trade. The allure of this scheme reminds me of those late-night infomercials with seedy tycoons promising you luxuries and wealth beyond your dreams, and unscrupulous actors testifying to the success of their programs.

 

 

 

Dont wind up another sucker. These con-men are using your own greed and naivety to steal your gold and satisfy their own greedy needs. It is necessary to accumulate wealth in Runescape, but it is not intended to be the central fulcrum point of this game. Dont let your greed get the better of you. The measure of a mans success is not determined by how high his gold will stack.

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Lets Build Something Together"

 

by Sir Hartlar Informational Column

 

 

 

Construction. This long awaited skill was released by Jagex on the 31st May, 2006, and has provided the community with a wealth of enjoyment ever since. It is believed, by many, that the skill was introduced as a money-sink, and this may be proven correct when you consider the sheer amount of cash it takes to get this skill to 99. For many players, it isnt a justifiable way to spend your golden pixels. However, I believe this skill opens up a huge variety of pathways (and portals), and is a great way to spend your extra cash.

 

 

 

The start of your Construction journey brings excitement and a cluttered array of wooden furniture. So just how useful is this skill at lower levels? To be honest, not very useful at all. Your first notable milestone comes at level 15, where you are able to build your first workshop. Granted, it will not be full with amazingly useful objects just yet, but it serves as a reminder of things to come. Youll soon be able to paint steel or rune full helms with your family crest, and cheaper Barrows repairs is on the horizon.

 

 

 

From here on out, the skill opens up and youll find more and more uses for Construction in your everyday gameplay. At level 25 the skill hall becomes a possibility, and then at level 32 the combat room is also unlocked. These rooms provide entertainment for personal use and are also well received at parties. In the skill hall you can find a place to mount your slayer trophies, alongside any abnormal fishing catches you may have acquired, and a set of unique dialogues await. The combat room gives you the opportunity to fight your friends (or foes!) in a safe environment. It is worth noting that you will need 51 Construction to access the combat ring, which allows you to fight players with weapons of your choice.

 

 

 

After you reach level 40, the skill begins to open up even further; I feel the real opportunities Construction can offer you, start here. At level 42 the Costume Room is finally available to you and you can store a huge variety of costumes and clothing in there. It is worth purchasing flatpacked Mahogany storage, as it is both cheap and extensively large, enabling you to store a large number of items in your house.

 

 

 

At level 45, the Chapel is unlocked. Although it will be awhile until you can start powering through bones with a gilded altar, this room does offer you the option of recharging your prayer in a safe environment, as soon as the room is available. At level 47, another notable milestone is reached as you are now able to teleport infinitely, using a mounted amulet of glory. This unlocks a wealth of opportunity, and can be used daily to save you the inconvenience of running to the Heros Guild every so often.

 

 

 

Level 50 brings the Portal Chamber, which allows you to build three portals with unlimited teleportation power to a variety of locations. These teleports are infinitely useful and can be used no matter what spell book you are on! This is especially useful for those that enjoy the Barrows minigame; you can kill the brothers with normal magic and use the Kharyll portal in your house to get back in Canifis and visit the bank.

 

 

 

Construction is a versatile skill, and you will find it can aid you in almost every aspect of your adventuring. The location of your house can play a vital role in how you utilise it; a keen slayer of the Dagannoth Kings may choose to place their house in Relekka, to shorten the lengthy walking times to the Waterbirth Dungeon. If you are an enthusiastic Farmer, you might choose instead to place your house in Brimhaven to allow you quick access to the fruit tree patches located nearby. If you often take your Slayer tasks from Sumona, then it would pay to have your house located in Pollniveach instead.

 

 

 

If hardcore training isnt your thing, dont dismiss Construction as a skill for the no-lifers alone. It provides uses for other aspects of the game that are designed to give you variety alongside experience. If you enjoy spying on penguins once a week, you can simply carry a few house teletabs instead of a myriad of runes to save inventory space but still allowing yourself access to a maximum number of locations. For those that enjoy seeking out Shooting Stars, you can put a telescope in your Study to help you establish its next position. The more advanced your telescope, the more accurate your estimate will be.

 

 

 

If you wanted to get to level 99 in a very quick manner, it would cost you around 100M using oak planks. This isnt an achievable feat for most players, and it puts some off from training the skill at all. However, there are alternatives to spending your hard earned GP all at once. For instance, it is known to be cheaper to buy your own oak logs and convert them to planks using the Varrock sawmill. If you use the hot air balloon system, you can get a good amount of logs converted in a short time. If you want an alternative method to that, you could combine Magic and Runecrafting and use the Plank Make spell with your own crafted runes, for some cheaper experience. Even killing Armoured Zombies will rack up some respectable levels of planks for you to use at your own pleasure, whilst gaining some of the fastest melee experience in the game.

 

 

 

Youll find that as you advance in experience, the skill becomes more expensive and even further orientated towards a richer audience. The usefulness of the skill from here on out thins, and those that wish to have a permanent marker of their wealth will relish in Construction, whereas those of us with a smaller cash pile may decide to leave the skill alone. It is you alone who can decide whether it is worth spending 10,000,000GP on a Steel Dragon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fandon

 

by Tylerelyt Fictional Series

 

 

 

Fandon cheered louder than anyone else when Ur-tag unveiled the statue of Dorgesh-Kaan's saviors. He knew that one day he would be an adventurer just like Zanik.

 

 

 

Fandon was one of the young natives to Dorgeh-Kaan. He had seen his 12th year pass just a week before the attack by Bandos, two months prior, which allowed him to be away from the nursery once a week unsupervised. Sadly, during the attack, he had already used that privilege, but in retrospect he doubted he would have been allowed to go. It's too dangerous Fandon! Don't go Fandon! Fandon's voice mocked them, though no one was around to hear his mocking. He kicked a stone and it skittered away from the edges of his light and splashed into an unseen pool. This was his once a week outing from the nursery, though he wasn't technically supposed to be out of the city until he was an adult. Who cares if I'm not an adult! I can protect myself just as well as everyone else! Fandon kicked another rock into the pool angrily and stalked off in the opposite direction.

 

 

 

***

 

 

 

A few silent minutes passed in that section of caves, until another goblin's footsteps echoed. This second goblin looked much different than the first. His skin was a brighter green, his clothing much more primitive. What gave away the difference, however, was the normal sized eyes. Evolution hadn't caused this goblin's eyes to grow in order to get more light, and that made him a surface goblin. This was what Sam had been waiting for. He jumped out and whacked the idiot goblin across the head with the bone he had taken from the other foolish goblin guard. Ok goblin. I don't like having to deal with your idiot kind, but if you tell me your name, I might just let you live.

 

 

 

Blackfoot! My name Blackfoot! Don't hurt- Sam clubbed the thing. Blackfoot would be just fine of a disguise. He dragged it back to his hiding place with the guard, and pulled out a potion from his pocket. It fizzed a little, a mixture of toadflax and pharmakos berries. He drained a dose of the foul stuff, fixing in his mind the image of the stupid goblin Blackfoot. He felt himself shrinking and his limbs reforming themselves.

 

 

 

Hideous. Sam's voice squeaked a little differently than Blackfoot's, but the disguise would fool the other goblins. I hope I'm out of this soon.

 

 

 

Blackfoot? Where Blackfoot? a third goblin yelled out. If this one knew Blackfoot, then he was also part of the surface goblin expedition.

 

 

 

Blackfoot here! Coming back now! Sam yelled back.

 

 

 

The other goblin rounded the corner. Why you talk funny Blackfoot?

 

 

 

Sam just smiled. Soon, very soon, he would rid the world of these things.

 

 

 

***

 

 

 

Fandon knew nothing of the surface goblin expedition. The surface goblins had not announced themselves, and not even the council knew of anything. So, when he heard this noise, he passed it off as a scuffle between the giant toads that lived in this part of the dungeon and kept walking. He peered into his bullseye lantern, at the candle. He had marked where the wax would melt to in three hours' time, the time it would take before he was missed. He had maybe half an hour before he had to return to the city. He could get there and back if he hurried and didn't get lost. He checked his pockets for the stone one last time, then set off. He wound his way through the caverns, following the map etched into his mind from his studies. Left here, right here, don't turn here in case of wall beasts. Eventually he came on what he was searching for. A small pond, green and bubbling, with a single stone in the middle he could jump over to get to the other side. The giant toads here looked content and wouldn't bother Fandon as long as Fandon didn't bother them. He jumped the creek, and looked ahead. A tunnel led into a deeper part of the caves. He was where he wanted to be.

 

 

 

A quick glance at his candle told him he had enough time to explore and so he went into the tunnel. When he came out, the cave was brighter. Only slightly, but to Fandon's eyes the difference was immense. He peered into the distance, and saw a light moving. The light creatures. Zanik really wasn't lying. Fandon muttered, smiling.

 

 

 

No, she wasn't. Something hissed in the distance. Fandon jumped. Don't be afraid. I won't hurt you. Not unless you attempt to pass me.

 

 

 

No, I have no need to go past you. Fandon replied. He scrambled down a rock pile over to the snake. Would you by any chance be Juna?

 

 

 

That is my name. Guthix has put me here to guard his tears. Why have you come?

 

 

 

Fandon peered around. There seemed to be no way that he could be found here unless Mernik or a city guard came through the tunnel he had come through, and he still had some time before they would search the caves. I want to know about the gods. The only one who might know something left the city, and why would he speak to me? So, you seem a good choice to ask.

 

 

 

Ask your questions. If at least one of your race has rejected its foolishness, my time will not have been spent in vain.

 

 

 

Who is Guthix?

 

 

 

And for several hours young Fandon and Juna spoke, several very enlightening hours.

 

 

 

To be continued...

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comic

 

by Omnitec

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Credits

 

 

 

Our Staff

 

Founder Junka666

 

Editor-in-Chief Unorclan/Book

 

Columnist Editor Earthpoet

 

Graphics Editor Niperwiper

 

Manager Randox

 

Columnist Me_hate_Libs

 

Comic Artist/Columnist Omnitec

 

Advice Columnist Sir Hartlar

 

Creative Writer Tylerelyt[/hide]

[unorclan]

I hope you enjoy the 3rd Edition of the Seers' Journal!

 

 

 

I highly recommend you read our Paramount Column The Great Deceptor by Earthpoet!

[strilmus]

That is a horrible egg pun.

 

 

 

Do you think Jagex might do something ridiculously drastic to try to shake off the price manipulators?

[unorclan]

That is a horrible egg pun.

 

 

 

Hey now, be nice. :D

 

 

 

I'm pretty sure our Comic Artist was making fun of Jagex and their constant use of the word "egg" in every word imaginable in this last easter event.

[strilmus]

Speaking of price manipulators, whose sick idea was it to drive up the price of watermelon seeds?

[mervinator_9]

The comic actually made me laugh, but I guess my horrible sense of humor isnt a gauge for a good joke.

 

 

 

Nice article on merchants too, I cant say I agree with there methods but at present they're not really breaking any rules. Until Jagex decides to take action against them, which I have no idea how they'll do it sucessfully, there an Evil we have to live with.

[Earthpoet]

Do you think Jagex might do something ridiculously drastic to try to shake off the price manipulators?

 

 

 

If you would've asked me that question prior to RWT updates I'd have said "no", but now you never know what they might do.

 

 

 

Jagex pretty much is taking a laissez-faire approach to it, in other words letting things be. To be honest, I don't think I would want them to get involved, because whatever they did would probably be worse than what we got.

 

 

 

At some point, the developer's responsibilities have to end and the player's responsibilities have to begin. Sure, Jagex could offer a warning to make player's aware, but we as a community should be prepared to police our own and look after ourselves.

 

 

 

It would be really hard to punish these individuals as well. Though price manipulation is against the rules, the system they use is rather complex to catch it, and technically it's done within the boundaries of the rules.

 

 

 

Players need to be aware of any risks before jumping in, and that there are still others out there willing to take advantage of you. If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is.

[EU Slayer]

That was a Eggcelent Pun =D>

 

 

 

I'm liking these seers journials ALOT!

[Gandorf61]

Great articles and awesome journal, even if it was only in a text format.

 

 

 

I liked the egg pun, it was so bad it made me laugh. :

 

 

 

The construction article and fan fiction were both good reads, and the merchanting article hit everything bang on.

 

 

 

Looking forward to reading some new articles again next weekend. :

[primadog]

Short but sweet.

 

 

 

This format is probably allot easier to manage for you guys, and not too much is lost in the process. Keep up the good work.

 

 

 

 

 

and Please. No. More. Egg. Jokes!

[Drakolord7]

The Paramount Article was spot on :thumbup: . On the topic of dealing with it, they should just ban the people who practice it, simple as that.

 

 

 

I agreed with the Construction article; I've always loved that skill, such good memories : .

[unorclan]

 

I'm liking these seers journals ALOT!

 

 

 

Thanks, I'm glad you like them - support from our readers is really what keeps us going!

 

 

 

Great articles and awesome journal, even if it was only in a text format.

 

 

 

I liked the egg pun, it was so bad it made me laugh.

 

 

 

The construction article and fan fiction were both good reads, and the merchanting article hit everything bang on.

 

 

 

Looking forward to reading some new articles again next weekend.

 

 

 

Awesome, it's good to see that everyone still loves the Journal even though it's doesn't have all the fancy graphics (at the moment - those are coming soon).

 

As much as we'd love being able to publish a new edition every weekend, I think we'd all have a heartattack about every other friday because of it. Since creating an edition takes a lot more time than most people think, we created a publishing schedule of every other weekend; you'll be seeing the 4th Edition of the Journal around May 2nd.

 

 

 

Short but sweet.

 

 

 

That's what I was going for. :

 

 

 

 

 

and Please. No. More. Egg. Jokes!

 

 

 

I'll be sure to tell the staff :lol:

 

 

 

The Paramount Article was spot on :thumbup: . On the topic of dealing with it, they should just ban the people who practice it, simple as that.

 

 

 

I agreed with the Construction article; I've always loved that skill, such good memories : .

 

 

 

Glad to see you liked the articles, both Earthpoet and Sir Hartlar doing an amazing job.

[mcneilp]

Another good edition. Well done. =D>

 

Keep up the egg puns. ;)

[Gandorf61]

 

Awesome, it's good to see that everyone still loves the Journal even though it's doesn't have all the fancy graphics (at the moment - those are coming soon).

 

As much as we'd love being able to publish a new edition every weekend, I think we'd all have a heartattack about every other friday because of it. Since creating an edition takes a lot more time than most people think, we created a publishing schedule of every other weekend; you'll be seeing the 4th Edition of the Journal around May 2nd.

 

 

 

Haha I never realized they were published every 2nd week to begin with. Having two weeks between editions seems like a better idea anyways due to the fact that they will be more well polished and will overall look better. I'll look forward to the beginning of May then instead. :

 

 

 

Glad to hear a new graphics edition will come sometime in the future as well, you guys always do a great job on them.

[unorclan]

Thanks mcneilp, and gandorf - all credit for the graphics goes to our newest Graphics Editor: Niperwiper. He's amazing at what he does. :

[unorclan]

Next Edition will be published on May 2nd

[magzar]

just so you know, deceptor isn't a word.

 

 

 

at least not in english, it's latin for crook.

 

 

 

The world you're looking for in english is deciever.

[unorclan]

just so you know, deceptor isn't a word.

 

 

 

at least not in english, it's latin for crook.

 

 

 

The world you're looking for in english is deciever.

 

 

 

Haha, thanks Magzar, but we already knew this - but when did we say the rules of the English language applied to us?

 

Hmmm.... :D

 

 

 

Actually, it's just that deceptor sounds a whole lot more mischievous and we (mainly Earthpoet) liked the way it sounded in the title.

[magzar]

just so you know, deceptor isn't a word.

 

 

 

at least not in english, it's latin for crook.

 

 

 

The world you're looking for in english is deciever.

 

 

 

Haha, thanks Magzar, but we already knew this - but when did we say the rules of the English language applied to us?

 

Hmmm.... :D

 

 

 

Actually, it's just that deceptor sounds a whole lot more mischievous and we (mainly Earthpoet) liked the way it sounded in the title.

 

 

 

In that case, you should either change the title to make it all one language, or make it obvious that you're switching to another. Misuse of a word in that way without making it obvious that it was intentional makes it seem unprofessional and may damage your image in the eyes of some people. (Even simply putting deceptor in italics would make it more obvious that the word is not a part of standard english)

[unorclan]

 

 

 

In that case, you should either change the title to make it all one language, or make it obvious that you're switching to another. Misuse of a word in that way without making it obvious that it was intentional makes it seem unprofessional and may damage your image in the eyes of some people. (Even simply putting deceptor in italics would make it more obvious that the word is not a part of standard english)

 

 

 

Thanks for the suggestion, we'll make sure we do that next time. ;)

[Earthpoet]

I take responsibility for that, mag, and as an English major I understand where you are coming from. When I first wrote the article, I thought deceptor was a word, and didn't understand why my spellcheck insisted it was not. I looked it up and found I was disappointed. Like you said though, it is latin, and I found: "deceiver, betrayer of, one who plays false".

 

 

 

I didn't tell book about it, but he caught it during editing. I explained my thoughts and he decided to let it go though.

 

 

 

I found I liked the sound of deceptor better in the title, and decided to take artistic liberties in using it. If this was a class essay I might've changed it. As it is, I didn't feel the word would confuse people. In my opinion, I haven't 'misused' the word. It was used in the correct context.

 

 

 

Also, I am not going to translate the entire article to latin, nor change the title. Literature has a history of borrowing terms from other languages (e.g. laissez-faire). I feel it would've been different if I used the term more liberally within the article.

 

 

 

I stand by my article. If anyone chooses to judge my capability as a writer based on the title, well, that's a chance I am willing to take. They wouldn't be my target audience anyways. I apologize if the title offended you.

[magzar]

I take responsibility for that, mag, and as an English major I understand where you are coming from. When I first wrote the article, I thought deceptor was a word, and didn't understand why my spellcheck insisted it was not. I looked it up and found I was disappointed. Like you said though, it is latin, and I found: "deceiver, betrayer of, one who plays false".

 

 

 

I didn't tell book about it, but he caught it during editing. I explained my thoughts and he decided to let it go though.

 

 

 

I found I liked the sound of deceptor better in the title, and decided to take artistic liberties in using it. If this was a class essay I might've changed it. As it is, I didn't feel the word would confuse people. In my opinion, I haven't 'misused' the word. It was used in the correct context.

 

 

 

Also, I am not going to translate the entire article to latin, nor change the title. Literature has a history of borrowing terms from other languages (e.g. laissez-faire). I feel it would've been different if I used the term more liberally within the article.

 

 

 

I stand by my article. If anyone chooses to judge my capability as a writer based on the title, well, that's a chance I am willing to take. They wouldn't be my target audience anyways. I apologize if the title offended you.

 

 

 

It doesn't offend me, I would simply suggest at least putting the word in italics as is usually done when a word from another language, or a made up word is used in writing. The fact that it's not a word in common usage in the english language is the only problem i have with it as you don't show anything that would reveal that, which leads to people not knowing it's not a real word and attempting to use it. I feel it contributes to the "dumbing down" that many modernized countries are experiencing these days due to modern advances and sheer laziness. That being said, putting the word in italics, should be sufficient to show that the word is, if not invented, then at least out of place as far as language goes.