Adam Smith Hates Your Guts - really two tropes: Main/Adam Smith Hates Your Guts

Courtesy link.

The problem is that the trope is named after a cliche which doesn't match the trope description.

The cliche says that shopkeepers will charge you, even though you're saving their lives and their businesses.

The trope says that prices will steadily rise as you get further on in the game, regardless of how much sense this makes.

The examples seem to use both elements of the trope equally.

I propose to add a new trope, Heroes Dont Get Discounts, that captures the cliche and weed all the incorrect examples out of the current trope. I even started a YKTTW (below) but decided to start this thread before putting it out there.

I don't think we have this one, strangely enough.

So you're the plucky group of young heroes out to defeat the Big Bad and bring peace back to the world. You'd think that means that stores might give you discounts or even free items - after all, you're protecting them and ensuring they'll still have not only their shops but also their businesses in the future.

But nope. You still pay full price, same as everybody else.

See also Adam Smith Hates Your Guts, which is where shop prices steadily rise regardless of how much sense this makes, and Karl Marx Hates Your Guts, where prices stay the same, again, regardless of logic.

For convenience: Previous discussion regarding both this trope and its supposed sibling.

From that topic, I think that the name for the other half of your proposed split would be Soak The Leveled or something like that... (EDIT: once again, credit to Mad for that one.)

EDIT: And I still endorse Fantasy Price Control for the other trope.

edited 20th Apr '10 11:13:13 AM by DonaldthePotholer

Other comments? Otherwise I'll take action.

One more thing. Adam Smith's Revenge should redirect to your Heroes Dont Get Discounts per its item on The Grand List Of Console Role Playing Game Cliches. Adam Smith Hates Your Guts should be delisted once the changes are complete. (But no earlier than Friday; 3-day rule.)

edited 21st Apr '10 6:01:28 PM by DonaldthePotholer

Well, I still want to run the new one through YKTTW before taking action. I'll get that ball rolling today.

Heroes Dont Get Discounts is reasonable, but slightly mouthful. No Hero Discount?

Chalk up one more vote for No Hero Discount.

OK, YKTTW started.

No Hero Discount has been launched and about half the examples moved to it.

The question still remains whether to rename Adam Smith Hates Your Guts, since it's now somewhat misleading, especially for those familiar with the cliche.

Constantly Rising Prices is a bit bland, but serviceable. Other ideas?

edited 7th May '10 8:11:05 AM by Cidolfas

Again:

• Mad's Soak The Leveled for Adam Smith Hates Your Guts
• Fantasy Price Control for Karl Marx Hates Your Guts

This seems a lot like Dude, Where's My Respect?

How about Dude Wheres My Discount?

Soak The Leveled sounds incredibly confusing... don't think I like that.

Dude Wheres My Discount would be for No Hero Discount... sounds snappier, certainly, so maybe a redirect is in order, but it's not the page I'm worried about.

You mean to tell me that they don't constantly bash the rich Oop North?

Maybe Progressive Recovery Costs (EDIT: Since inns and clinics/churches are the places where Adam Smith usually apply.)

edited 10th May '10 6:03:12 PM by DonaldthePotholer

Is this going anywhere or can I take down the notification sign?

I think it still needs a rename. Should we start a rename crowner?

In favor of the current title: Adam Smith's most famous concept was that if each producer or merchant was working for their own good it would help society as a whole. By not dropping prices for heroic types they are forcing you to kill more monsters making things safer for everyone, as well as taking money out of hordes and putting it back into circulation. Bad for you, good for society. Or is this just an ass-pull?

...In such a situation, wouldn't they raise prices?

The Blank Hates Your Guts snowclone format is another one I wouldn't mind seeing die and go away forever.

It's another format that kind of reads like a double-negative to me.

Considering I started the page ages ago, I'm more amazed that it's grown as much as it has, honestly. While I think the concept is more of someone being more than just a little annoyed at how the economy of a game works (and this was created pretty specifically for games, so anything not in a 'game' setting doesn't really belong here) which I cooked up after having stared at too many zeros on the prices of things in Anarchy Online one night.

The reason I put in the "Hates Your Guts" which seems to be prevalent of late is because of good old player spite against a system that appears to be rigged against them. The original from the Grand List was simply "Adam Smith's Corollary", however given this particular trope seems to be going around a bit, I'll bet I'm far from alone in the 'spited player' department.

More importantly, it is fun, or at the very least I think it is. I think if there's to be any massive restructuring of this particular page, which I'm not dead set against, strange for someone who cooked up the trope in the first place, the 'spited player' aspect should remain in some way, shape or form.

edited 17th Oct '10 11:23:36 PM by Dancingrage

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