food does have a price cap. it is also 50.

Not sure.  This has been discussed in Ideas forum quite a bit before.

I'm in favour of removing it, I like the idea of a market just free flowing.  I don't know why a cap was ever brought in (I never played IC when there was no cap).

After scrolling down 25 pages I gave up. I can't find that thread in the ideas forum.

@Torqez Do you have the ability to search the idea forum? If so, can you point out where I can find the thread. Thanks in advance!

The price cap is to benefit the smaller families more than the larger ones. When top fams lock out the market to prevent their war target from using it to supplement their lost infra, or aiding in prewar jumps, the small fams benefit most. Does it suck to have to buy at ridiculously high prices? Sure, but 50.00 gc is a lot more affordable than 100 or 500 gc. It's also a great time for small fams to sell and supplement their income, and then buy up like crazy once bids drop again.

What?

You first say the cap is to benefit the small fams.  But then say they benefit by the higher prices?

Tbh, if i'm in a small fam, and prices sky rocket to 100 or 500 - I'd definitely take advantage of it and sell my res.  Big fams need it for a reason, and make losses on doing so (up until they need it, that is).  Meanwhile, the samll fams capitalise at those times.

I'm in favour of removing the cap, really.  Let the market regulate itself. 

Another point is, why allow someoen to "lock out" the market?  Yes, it's a war tactic, but it's time strategies change.  If my big fam is cash heavy, sometimes I'd find it worth it to buy end greather than 50.  I'd benefit.  And anyone selling it to me will also benefit (higher price for them). 

Win-win.

Wasn't the price cap brought in as a workaround for some bug? And the game used to put an unlimited amount of each resource in the market to buy at the capped price.

As a small fam I would be happy to sell food at 1000000 a piece. Let's see how long a top family is able to keep the market closed at those prices.

What Mace said is true. In the old days there was an unlimited amount of resources at the price cap. I also remember we (Mace and I) found out about the bug. It was in SD in round 5/6 or something. Not sure. I was a banker in the Ass-family (great name) with Mace, Maniac, Dooms, Sup and many others. We were preparing for a war and I placed a large market order for octarine. The order was that large that it was bigger than the unlimited amount. Somehow this resulted in me being able to buy octarine at 1 again. Like the market was some kind of loop. If you buy out at 50 you can buy at 1 again. I am sure we had the biggest pax ever in the game that round

But I think it should be able to create an unlimited market without bugs. I can't be that hard? Or am I wrong..

I believe the caps were implemented to prevent larger fams from driving prices out of the reach of small fams.

yes but that assumes that a small fam would be short on cash and high on resources,
which may not necessarily be the case.

except for war jumps, the market regulates itself fairly well, so having a cap is debatable.

Well I've never really played in a large fam who SELLs in market except to buy it back cheaper, play market. But the result is the same diff of ressies but profit in cash.

Having to ability to sell iron at 75 per piece would be awesome for a small family. Imagen getting 75 gc per building. Thats pop banking area. It would be a rich as small family who could with the money gained jump MORE mines with the cash they gained and the endu they already have.

Tho I don't think market will change much. As Undeath says. The only thing that will happen is that the run to place first bid at market disappears, out buying a less rich family in wartimes disappear and EOR jumps might not be as huge.

So really, take it away and see who benefits the most at EOR. Might actually become an idea to build 250 Refs at SOR

Yep!

If anything, it may even change strategies a bit (even if just a bit).

And imo, IC definitely needs that.