Please stop tipping me
by Elizabeth Wachowski 
Aug 20th 2007 at 10:47AM
I recently took some time off from leveling my pally to get some rare jewelcrafting recipes. As a result of skillful AH playing, I can now make some of the best blue gems for melee DPS, magic DPS, and healers. (Sorry, tanks, there aren't enough of you out there to make those recipes worthwhile.)
As such, my little pally alt has become one of the primary gemcrafters for my guild. And I really, really enjoy cutting the gems that go into my guildmates' armor. It makes me feel happy to know that my rogue's elixirs and my pally's gems can help out the raid, even when I'm not playing at the time. But recently, some of my guildmates have begun tipping me for my cuts, which is kind of awkward. Especially since I charge strangers 4g for cuts, and my guildmates have been giving me 5. The following conversation usually ensues:
Me: I cut gems for guildmates for free.
Guildmate: No, I know how expensive those recipes are.
Me: Really, I know you're saving for your epic mount.
Guildmate: So are you.
Me: No, dude, it's okay.
Guildmate: Just take the damn money!
I feel especially guilty because I've always considered guilds to be a shared resource of skills. Therefore, I get my Mongoose enchanted for free if I provide mats, and in return, I cut any gem someone needs. We have some amazingly generous enchanters who always end up contributing half the mats because "I have enough money", and meanwhile, people are paying for my lousy one-click jewelcrafting.
Do you tip guildmates for crafting services?
Filed under: Guilds, Jewelcrafting, Making money
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Trunade Aug 20th 2007 10:53AM
lol, no. There's an unspoken agreement that everything in guild is free. Quid pro quo type stuff.
CVJ Aug 20th 2007 10:55AM
I try to tip otherwise I try to help them out in other ways like if they need instance runs for alts or their mains, mainly I just try to remember what they did for me if the time comes they need assistance with something.
Razhlok Aug 20th 2007 7:18PM
I usually tip for their time. I have my epic (Netherdrake) flyer and usually make between 72-120g doing daily quests. Most of my guildies aren't as rich because they leveled tailoring or engineering or leatherworking or blacksmithing to get the epic recipes to help them in raids. Throwing an extra 10-20g at them isn't that big of a deal for a 375 alchemist and 304 Engineer. LOL ;)
Ryanix-Arthas Aug 20th 2007 11:07AM
My main is an enchanter and I am constantly providing enchanting mats free of charge. The way I look at it is if their gear is better we will progress faster, in turn giving me a better chance at better gear. Make sense?
However I do try helping out people with expensive professions, either by giving them rare recipes that drop free of charge or supplying them with mats to help level the skill.
Levi Aug 20th 2007 11:05AM
This is easy to take care of in a larger guild. When you get a good/rare recipe, ask if anyone needs it in guild chat. First person to say they need it gets it. Then nobody tips for anything--and your guildies won't feel the need to tip you, because they contributed to the cuts you can do.
Aladek Aug 20th 2007 11:06AM
I always offer to tip guildies, and am always rejected (to the point where they close the trade window) unless they really need the G.
and
I always reject the tips, unless I know they are rich, and I really need the G, which while I'm poor, is rare.
Instance running alts is always a welcome tip though. Or hitting up some annoying group quest.
Benor Aug 20th 2007 11:06AM
While I've never had a problem with guildmates tipping me, I have had a problem getting them to take my gems.
I have a lot of gems in my main's bank. I mean, a LOT. But I've seen guildmates running around with crappy vendor gems in their sockets, and when I tried to push some free blood garnet cuts on them-which wasn't much of an improvement, but it was still an improvement-they said things about how they only wanted to put good gems in better equipment.
Flaye Aug 20th 2007 11:10AM
Something I've found works well (as both a tipper and tipee): is to give the crafter a few extra components more than the item requires (ie if it takes 8 arcane dust, give him 10). That way the crafter has more resource to donate free services to broke guildies, but you've avoided the awkwardness of paying/tipping a fellow guildmate. Not quite as applicable to jewelcrafting (unless you're having a bunch of gems cut), but it works well for most other professions.
Rich Aug 20th 2007 11:10AM
As an alchemist, this usually happens only for transmutes. The way I've learned to deal with it is by saying nothing about a tip unless the ask first. If they do I tell them it's free for guildies. If they don't ask then I just accept whatever they put in the trade window, zero or not. I've gotten tired of the take it! no! exchanges too :)
Rich
Balasan Aug 20th 2007 11:17AM
My guildies never tip. And I refuse to accept any. My guild has a general rule of not charging guildies for services (i.e. if you provide all the mats, you won't be charged anything for me to create your items). If I have something or produce anything that I want to make money from, I put it in the AH or trade channel, never in guild chat. usually ends up with me seeing my guildies' name in the 'bought by' part in the AH letter. Makes me feel guilty sometimes.
On another note, 4g per cutting? I've been charging only 1g... No wonder I still don't have my epic flying mount yet.
Ghen Aug 20th 2007 11:18AM
I don't take tips from guildies. If they force me to take one (which hasn't happened yet) I'll send them some gems in the mail for future use.
Afroloop Aug 20th 2007 11:23AM
In my small guild we never tip for services and such that I know of. We let the DEers take all the stuff others can't use and then then break it down to use it later for enchants. I will pay back the favor by giving stacks and stacks of netherweave or now that I can cook the fish sticks for +44 healing I give him those. Those usually sell for about 25 gold but it's a way for me to show my appreciation without actually giving up any gold and making anyone feel weird.
Sylythn Aug 20th 2007 11:23AM
First thing I'd do is raise your cost to non-guildies to 5g. :)
Thankfully with enchanting, I have a really good "out" from this random acts of generosity. If my guildies want to pay me back, I just tell them to mail me some of their boe drops or crafteds they use to skill up.
TotalBiscuit Aug 20th 2007 11:29AM
Guildies are perhaps the only people whom it's acceptable to give things away to when it comes to enchanting. Giving away to anyone else is downright lunacy and damages the crafting market, depriving others of making legitimate income via their tradeskills. Such people need pushing down a big well, filled with angry mice ;)
Guildies though? No way. Helping the guild helps you, that's the way it works.
TB.
Physical Original Aug 20th 2007 11:29AM
Only if they are going out of their way. We're pretty generous in my guild regardless
Tony Aug 20th 2007 11:31AM
I ran into a similar situation with one guy in my guild. I would send a few people stacks of free cloth and most would say thanks but this one guy kept paying me just about AH buy now price, 2G. If I returned the money, he would just send it back. Of course, he is also an Enchanter, and while I would provide my own mats, he wouldn't give me the enchant if i put a tip in the trade window. I always felt bad like I was stealing almost but its not like I didn't try. Oh yeah, he always got stiffed every other chant he did for a non guildmate.
Doug DeJulio Aug 20th 2007 11:37AM
If the trade skill use is for them to actually *use*, I refuse payment, even if it has a huge cooldown (eg. primal cloth transmutes).
If it's for them to make a *profit* on, I'll insist on a share of that profit, even if it has no cooldown (eg. Savory Deviate Delight).
Tridus Aug 20th 2007 11:35AM
There may not be a lot of tanks, but they make up for it wanting a LOT of one gem. Solid Star of Elune is the single most in demand JC recipe on my server, and one of the most in-demand gems.
I'm not sure there is any other serious tanking gem.
As for tipping guildies, come up with something that people understand. I never ask for tips from guildies, but I don't refuse if they want to give one. I also tip any guildie who goes out of their way to do something for me.
Like if I bring all the mats to the Kara raid you're going on anyway for an enchant, you probably won't get a tip. If you come meet me at Stormwind after the raid when you want to go to bed? I'll definitely give one.
Shiro Aug 20th 2007 11:51AM
LoL. I *always* tip my guildmates. :)
It's just my way of saying "Hey, I'm going to make sure that I pay you back for the pain you took to get this thing that I don't have".
I often stealth tip them and they realize it and try to pay me back. We often have "mail tip" wars where people try to mail back the tip money only to get it bounced back to them.
It's kind of like going out to dinner with friends. There is a playful competition to see who is going to grab the check first. You know it doesn't really matter because eventually you'll get paid back, so it's really just more of a playful kind of thing.
I *never* ask for a tip from guildies, and I try my darndest to make sure that they don't give me one, but I get them snuck in there all the time.
As a bonus though, if you ever leave your guild, or people in your guild leave for another, you always still get 'free' stuff from them because they almost always remember you.
There have been a few times when I didn't have the money to foist off a tip on a guildie, so I have taken a few freebies here and there.
Hank Aug 20th 2007 11:55AM
I tell them they don't need to tip me; but if I bought a mat for what I am giving them, I do ask for reimbursement.
My main has an epic mount, and almost enough cash on hand for another (alas, my pally is just 61)
What bugs me is people who are selling their xmute cooldowns...for nothing.