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This is not a question about fluctuating exchange rates or anything, it's much simpler: Is there a bulk discount built into the Exchange mechanic?

So far I have always assumed that, even if the RATE changes, every single gem is still worth the same at any given time. Meaning that if (for example) 1 Silver can buy you 1 Gem, then 20 Silver would (at that very moment) buy you 20 gems.

However, I noticed that this is not true, and even did the math just now. Right now, to buy 1 Gem I would have to trade 1.39 Silver. That would mean that to buy 5 Gems, I would have to trade 6.95 Silver. But I don't. 6.95 Silver buys me 7 Gems instead. This means that there is some kind of bulk discount, completely unrelated to the fluctuating rate.

So the question is: Is there any research on this? Maybe a table that lists how this discount works?

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Are you sure it's a bulk discount? The rate you are listed is only good for that moment; change the amount you're willing to spend, and the rate updates as well, and it may have changed. – Raven Dreamer♦ Nov 11 '12 at 14:40
I did it several times, and even though the exact numbers changed (obviously), it always held true that a larger amount of gold returned a (proportionally) larger amount of gems. It would be a monumental coincidence that several large fluctuations took place within seconds, and always in a way that gems would get more expansive the moment I check how much 1 is worth, and then get cheaper the second I try it with more gold. – Viktor Crowford Nov 11 '12 at 14:50
3  
I think it sounds like a rounding problem... – Gwen Nov 12 '12 at 14:42

3 Answers

up vote 1 down vote

The details of the GW2 economy aren't made public, so there is no answer for this. The only way you can probably find out would be that you test it, write the exchange rate down every time and look at the results so long till you get a result which you would consider as clear. You could also make a chart of your data for better visualization. However, there is no definite way to find out except asking ArenaNet, but they never said anything about a bulk discount.

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up vote 1 down vote

There are a number of sources you can check and read up on to figure out how the economy works. I understand your question is more of a 'yes/no' on bulk buys, but it does really come down to the economics of it.

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It's not really yes/no anymore - I tested it several times, and it always held true. So I am pretty certain on the "yes", what matters now is the "how?". Especially finding out at which amount of gold the discount stops (i.e. the cost of every single gem remains stable), if that point exists, since trading in a smaller amount of gold essentially means wasting money. The links are about the exchange rate - may be relevant, but is not at the core of the question. I started a calculation table for the exact discount, but it will take some time until I have enough gold to generate useful data. – Viktor Crowford Nov 12 '12 at 11:37
@ViktorCrowford You could always buy gold from the gemstore... no wait.. ;) – DavidYell Nov 12 '12 at 14:15
up vote 0 down vote

This is most likely just caused by the rounding used. Your example:

1.39 silver -> 1 gem
6.95 silver -> 7 gems

Let's say that the true price for 1 gem is 0.99 silver at your time of testing:

1.39 silver -> 1.40... gems -> rounded to 1 gem
6.95 silver -> 7.02... gems -> rounded to 7 gems

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I actually think he meant that the 1 gem actually cost 1.39 silver (as in, you would be unable to buy any gems if you put in less than that, say 1.38 or even 0.99 as you said.) – Gwen Dec 5 '12 at 20:53
You are probably right. In that case, my answer won't explain what is happening. – Zero3 Dec 6 '12 at 12:24

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