@ Rick: your posts has some solid economic basis but the result that you derive is wrong (apologize)
1. top gamer NEVER pretended to achieve TT profit (at least in the conversations i had with them)
2. MA in official data excluded tt profit (remember DPP exploit in loot 1.0 that resulted in TTin > RNG = TTout in 2.0)
3. the INTRINSIC value and the market value are not correlaed (Mate a pencil draw of Leonardo Da Vinci is 1 USD paper sheet and 1 cent ink as intrinsic, sell for 60m)
4, just because YOU do not appreciate the value does not mean it is not perceived by someone else
5. The element that you point to is called "greater fool theory" and is about 100 year old econjomic basis for "growth stocks" or startups
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/greaterfooltheory.asp
6. Just like the ability to paint of Leonardo (no its not a ninja turtle, it is an itlian artist) made its 1.01 usd paper sheet worth 3m usd, a tool in the correct hands can make the difference
i save just one point of your post:
JUST BECAUSE someone value an item 300k does not imply that following buyers must pauy it 300.001 + (there is a thread of most expensive EU items in the PCF, it will show that an Egg can cost more.
we have rather understood that you prefer to spend your money with family and children (that is a wonderful use of resources) but....
a. there is people that gain much more than me in RL, if Elon Musk comes to Entropia and wants "messiblade" i am pretty sure that he can buy it for the correct price.. (i am pretty sure that he buys MA and get a fresh one if he does not sell)
b. see point 4 above
i made a post with intrinsic value of an item... a LP120 cost 1 rare and 120k token, cost to pull is (if self-grinded and compared to trashed pills) is today 55k PED.... less than one modmerc.... and is a 3.68 DPP item... grind it your self, just needs dedication and one longshot for rare... same for SB90, cost to pull is 40k if self grinded. this is the same INTRINSIC value of teh Leonardo paint.... would yuou sell a LP120 that uyou pulled for 55k ? (if yes i will payu it 60 so you are superhappy) ... someone will pay 150k for it instantly.... this is MARKET... made of expectations.
and YES, higher rank player profit selling loot, so they will sell mayhem pulled vendors, will sell boxes and will sell oils and paint cans... or do you think that Eve (nothing personal) does not drop muscle oil if he shots kerbneros? or messi (again noitngpersonal) does not drop eye oil from argonauts ? we all sell loot, some one risk on bigger monster and sell bigger quantities or craft them... the ABILITY of extracting MU makes the weapon valuable
Eve post (personal) said "in the correct hands these are ped printers" it does not mean passively shoot a kerberos and get 101% return.. means kill a chimera and drop a sinew, killa boar and getan incision palte.... EXTRACT MU)
sorry Rick, nothing personal, but reiterating statement that "IT cost too much" needs better arguments... if it cost too much avoid it (like i do) and get a semi-perfect item that is just a bit less "perfect" adn cost 80% less.
Start to ask yourself WHY a 2.85 DPP 55 eff item sells for 50k? that is the corerct question.. 300k tools are for another league, not mine atm, i dont care price of them
i am not the lawyer of any gamers but if yuou red the forum there is a Top , well THE top gamer that stated those numbers.. he deposited 20k eur, and posted a screen of his storage with 100k eur TT inside. due to the fact that is not my business what people deposit or withdraw and i have no point to think that people lie to them selves and others, i suppose that at least 1 with correct tool can profit in game.
i can just speak for myself in returns and can post the log. at Mark to market of all i deposited and my storage i am ped card down 3k and got 19800 ped TT skills.. that is 20k usd with skill MU... if i had a BP20 and save 20% of bullet cost compared to ewe41 military ady most probably i would havge paid the 20k of the weapon once or twice. so a better equip make a better result.
would i put in game 500k USD ? if i had the sum ready and the perception that company is run a more professional way and not like a "basement indie" i would without thinking twice, maybe not for a single tool.
at the moment MA is not reliable enough : customer care is poor, developer itemization is like they never asked to players (they made a new claw that is not fitting an amp for 1 point, seems done to create a mess, the short blade in mayhem vendor has a bad stats (but fits trauma 8) , the adjusted BP110 rare token amount (changed price tag) when there were still items in vendor, sabotage of cyrene armor 2020, removal of quest items for ithaca from drop tables , communication managers are in permanent vacation.
(i had an incredible good experience with support, asked a question and was answered in 5 minutes, and with all commetns that i read i was impressed, maybe ppl overreact)
(just realized it is a wall of text, apologize, i started to write and.....)