I think the way to solve all the complaints is to make an item that shortens cooldowns by however many days and it costs gems.
Flight Rising Discussion
Discuss everything and anything Flight Rising.
TOPIC | Breeding Cooldown too long -- opinion
I think the way to solve all the complaints is to make an item that shortens cooldowns by however many days and it costs gems.
Well, I do have to say the more dragons you obtain the faster the breeding goes. All my dragons breeding this week and July 1st.
Well, I do have to say the more dragons you obtain the faster the breeding goes. All my dragons breeding this week and July 1st.
I've said it a few times since this keeps getting brought up, but I would only support the idea of shorter cool downs if it was strictly for new users in order to get started.
You guys have to realize that this is a new game. I know that has been said a million times, but nobody seems to be really listening. More features will come out, giving users more things to do. The admins just worked their butts off to fend off hackers and fix some issues for your safety, give them a bit to breath before biting their heads off about how bored you are.
@Kireitha you said you were glad you didn't support the kickstarter, but that money is what is going to creating awesome features for the site. If they hadn't gotten that support things wouldn't be as nice as they are now and still getting better.
As for the argument many are using about "Well not everyone has time to play all day." I'm sure that a good many of these people are doing just fine even if you aren't. You all seem to be assuming that most users opposed to shorter cooldown times have nothing to do all day.
This game is going to take time. That's the nature of it. If you are afraid you can't devote that time to it then you don't have to. Real life is more important and nobody is telling you to abandon it just to play online, but if your schedule is going to conflict with your gaming then maybe rethink some things. If anything, go play a different game when you're waiting. You only need to check back once a day to do dailies, the rest of your free time can be spent playing something else offsite... or heck, read a book or something. Eventually you'll have enough dragons to breed continuously and enough money from selling dragons to continue to support yourself. They may even have more features by then as well.
http://flightrising.com/main.php?p=playhome
Anyone else see the Adventure thing? Explore worlds and complete quests. That pretty much assures that the staff are not just stopping the games main features here and already have plans to add more content and features to the site.
[quote]Say you had spent $30 on a meal at a restaurant and did not get what you ordered or expected. Would you then think it is rude to express that it was not worth your money? And I did start this thread prepared to be bashed for it, because I believe SOMEONE has got to bring it up.[/quote]
No, that's buying something. You are entitled to receive what you paid money for because that is the point of buying it. With a kickstarter you are donating and supporting. You paid money in hopes that you helped lend to the creation of a better game. However, you are entitled to nothing. A better example would be donating money to starving kids in Africa and complaining about not getting your free picture in return. You didn't pay for the picture, you paid to help someone else. You sent the money in of your own free will to support a site. It is a risk, yes, but at least they're using the money like they're supposed to and doing quite well with it. People sent money in to help the staff make FR and I believe they did amazingly well. What other site has done so well in their first opening weeks?
Furthermore, as stated previously, it has been brought up numerous times in the suggestions forums. If anything, this topic is beating a dead horse.
[quote]
I also did have a bit of bad luck getting a male progenitor dragon that I thought was incredibly ugly so I exalted him after breeding once and getting a clutch of one egg.[/quote]
That's really your own fault right there. You could have tried to sell it or save it later for breeding. If you knew you only got one egg then why would you exalt him? Even if the dragon was ugly, it could have made something pretty when combined with the right mate. That's part of the game.
I've said it a few times since this keeps getting brought up, but I would only support the idea of shorter cool downs if it was strictly for new users in order to get started.
You guys have to realize that this is a new game. I know that has been said a million times, but nobody seems to be really listening. More features will come out, giving users more things to do. The admins just worked their butts off to fend off hackers and fix some issues for your safety, give them a bit to breath before biting their heads off about how bored you are.
@Kireitha you said you were glad you didn't support the kickstarter, but that money is what is going to creating awesome features for the site. If they hadn't gotten that support things wouldn't be as nice as they are now and still getting better.
As for the argument many are using about "Well not everyone has time to play all day." I'm sure that a good many of these people are doing just fine even if you aren't. You all seem to be assuming that most users opposed to shorter cooldown times have nothing to do all day.
This game is going to take time. That's the nature of it. If you are afraid you can't devote that time to it then you don't have to. Real life is more important and nobody is telling you to abandon it just to play online, but if your schedule is going to conflict with your gaming then maybe rethink some things. If anything, go play a different game when you're waiting. You only need to check back once a day to do dailies, the rest of your free time can be spent playing something else offsite... or heck, read a book or something. Eventually you'll have enough dragons to breed continuously and enough money from selling dragons to continue to support yourself. They may even have more features by then as well.
http://flightrising.com/main.php?p=playhome
Anyone else see the Adventure thing? Explore worlds and complete quests. That pretty much assures that the staff are not just stopping the games main features here and already have plans to add more content and features to the site.
No, that's buying something. You are entitled to receive what you paid money for because that is the point of buying it. With a kickstarter you are donating and supporting. You paid money in hopes that you helped lend to the creation of a better game. However, you are entitled to nothing. A better example would be donating money to starving kids in Africa and complaining about not getting your free picture in return. You didn't pay for the picture, you paid to help someone else. You sent the money in of your own free will to support a site. It is a risk, yes, but at least they're using the money like they're supposed to and doing quite well with it. People sent money in to help the staff make FR and I believe they did amazingly well. What other site has done so well in their first opening weeks?
Furthermore, as stated previously, it has been brought up numerous times in the suggestions forums. If anything, this topic is beating a dead horse.
That's really your own fault right there. You could have tried to sell it or save it later for breeding. If you knew you only got one egg then why would you exalt him? Even if the dragon was ugly, it could have made something pretty when combined with the right mate. That's part of the game.
You guys have to realize that this is a new game. I know that has been said a million times, but nobody seems to be really listening. More features will come out, giving users more things to do. The admins just worked their butts off to fend off hackers and fix some issues for your safety, give them a bit to breath before biting their heads off about how bored you are.
@Kireitha you said you were glad you didn't support the kickstarter, but that money is what is going to creating awesome features for the site. If they hadn't gotten that support things wouldn't be as nice as they are now and still getting better.
As for the argument many are using about "Well not everyone has time to play all day." I'm sure that a good many of these people are doing just fine even if you aren't. You all seem to be assuming that most users opposed to shorter cooldown times have nothing to do all day.
This game is going to take time. That's the nature of it. If you are afraid you can't devote that time to it then you don't have to. Real life is more important and nobody is telling you to abandon it just to play online, but if your schedule is going to conflict with your gaming then maybe rethink some things. If anything, go play a different game when you're waiting. You only need to check back once a day to do dailies, the rest of your free time can be spent playing something else offsite... or heck, read a book or something. Eventually you'll have enough dragons to breed continuously and enough money from selling dragons to continue to support yourself. They may even have more features by then as well.
http://flightrising.com/main.php?p=playhome
Anyone else see the Adventure thing? Explore worlds and complete quests. That pretty much assures that the staff are not just stopping the games main features here and already have plans to add more content and features to the site.
Quote:
Say you had spent $30 on a meal at a restaurant and did not get what you ordered or expected. Would you then think it is rude to express that it was not worth your money? And I did start this thread prepared to be bashed for it, because I believe SOMEONE has got to bring it up.
No, that's buying something. You are entitled to receive what you paid money for because that is the point of buying it. With a kickstarter you are donating and supporting. You paid money in hopes that you helped lend to the creation of a better game. However, you are entitled to nothing. A better example would be donating money to starving kids in Africa and complaining about not getting your free picture in return. You didn't pay for the picture, you paid to help someone else. You sent the money in of your own free will to support a site. It is a risk, yes, but at least they're using the money like they're supposed to and doing quite well with it. People sent money in to help the staff make FR and I believe they did amazingly well. What other site has done so well in their first opening weeks?
Furthermore, as stated previously, it has been brought up numerous times in the suggestions forums. If anything, this topic is beating a dead horse.
Quote:
I also did have a bit of bad luck getting a male progenitor dragon that I thought was incredibly ugly so I exalted him after breeding once and getting a clutch of one egg.
That's really your own fault right there. You could have tried to sell it or save it later for breeding. If you knew you only got one egg then why would you exalt him? Even if the dragon was ugly, it could have made something pretty when combined with the right mate. That's part of the game.
[quote name="Anime" date="2013-06-23 22:43:21" url="main.php?p=mb&board=frd&page=5&id=134582#142568"]I think the way to solve all the complaints is to make an item that shortens cooldowns by however many days and it costs gems. [/quote]
[color=green]The admins have mentioned before that they will never have an item that affects cooldown rates.[/color]
I think the way to solve all the complaints is to make an item that shortens cooldowns by however many days and it costs gems.
@rhea
well then all the people who want to quit because of the cooldown are going to be heartbroken. Really doesn't bother me either way.
well then all the people who want to quit because of the cooldown are going to be heartbroken. Really doesn't bother me either way.
@rhea
well then all the people who want to quit because of the cooldown are going to be heartbroken. Really doesn't bother me either way.
well then all the people who want to quit because of the cooldown are going to be heartbroken. Really doesn't bother me either way.
They're going to leave? A pity, the game really picks up after the first few breedings.
To elaborate further, they planned to disallow such an item because they did not want people to chain-breed (i.e. breed dragons, hatch, grow, breed etc. in rapid succession). It would heavily unbalance the game, especially so if the item were gem-only.
To elaborate further, they planned to disallow such an item because they did not want people to chain-breed (i.e. breed dragons, hatch, grow, breed etc. in rapid succession). It would heavily unbalance the game, especially so if the item were gem-only.
They're going to leave? A pity, the game really picks up after the first few breedings.
To elaborate further, they planned to disallow such an item because they did not want people to chain-breed (i.e. breed dragons, hatch, grow, breed etc. in rapid succession). It would heavily unbalance the game, especially so if the item were gem-only.
To elaborate further, they planned to disallow such an item because they did not want people to chain-breed (i.e. breed dragons, hatch, grow, breed etc. in rapid succession). It would heavily unbalance the game, especially so if the item were gem-only.
@rhea I can def understand that
I play on a site where you can breed once a month for females and 20times for males(horse site)
I play on a site where you can breed once a month for females and 20times for males(horse site)
@rhea I can def understand that
I play on a site where you can breed once a month for females and 20times for males(horse site)
I play on a site where you can breed once a month for females and 20times for males(horse site)
Admittedly, I find the cool-downs of dragon breedings frustrating, especially in this time where the site is starting to get it's legs again and things that could have been considered ways to pass time before are down and unavailable. But if I take a moment to step back, I see not only the economical effects of having the cool-down, but also some personal breathing room that it allows me. In the time between breedings, I can set goals for myself to meet. Such as garnering the treasure for certain genes and scrolls. It becomes a personal challenge, and it's actually pretty fun to challenge myself against a time clock.
Agreeing with many others, I think that this will all balance out when the Flight Rising team's managed to smooth out the kinks and get this place running like a well-oiled machine. Even more so when we've got more than one or two dragon pairs to work with.
Yes it's hard to stare at a 30 day timer on your Imperials, or the near months on your Pearlcatchers or Wildclaws, but it all assists the market, and makes them that much more special when you've finally obtained them. They're rare. They're beautiful, and when you get a hold of one, they're finally yours.
Though I admit to hoping for a cool-down item, I can see Rhea's point as well as the admins. A pay-to-win/pay-to-earn treasure scheme like that could only lead to tragedy, and it makes it more fair for everyone else in the long run.
Agreeing with many others, I think that this will all balance out when the Flight Rising team's managed to smooth out the kinks and get this place running like a well-oiled machine. Even more so when we've got more than one or two dragon pairs to work with.
Yes it's hard to stare at a 30 day timer on your Imperials, or the near months on your Pearlcatchers or Wildclaws, but it all assists the market, and makes them that much more special when you've finally obtained them. They're rare. They're beautiful, and when you get a hold of one, they're finally yours.
Though I admit to hoping for a cool-down item, I can see Rhea's point as well as the admins. A pay-to-win/pay-to-earn treasure scheme like that could only lead to tragedy, and it makes it more fair for everyone else in the long run.
Admittedly, I find the cool-downs of dragon breedings frustrating, especially in this time where the site is starting to get it's legs again and things that could have been considered ways to pass time before are down and unavailable. But if I take a moment to step back, I see not only the economical effects of having the cool-down, but also some personal breathing room that it allows me. In the time between breedings, I can set goals for myself to meet. Such as garnering the treasure for certain genes and scrolls. It becomes a personal challenge, and it's actually pretty fun to challenge myself against a time clock.
Agreeing with many others, I think that this will all balance out when the Flight Rising team's managed to smooth out the kinks and get this place running like a well-oiled machine. Even more so when we've got more than one or two dragon pairs to work with.
Yes it's hard to stare at a 30 day timer on your Imperials, or the near months on your Pearlcatchers or Wildclaws, but it all assists the market, and makes them that much more special when you've finally obtained them. They're rare. They're beautiful, and when you get a hold of one, they're finally yours.
Though I admit to hoping for a cool-down item, I can see Rhea's point as well as the admins. A pay-to-win/pay-to-earn treasure scheme like that could only lead to tragedy, and it makes it more fair for everyone else in the long run.
Agreeing with many others, I think that this will all balance out when the Flight Rising team's managed to smooth out the kinks and get this place running like a well-oiled machine. Even more so when we've got more than one or two dragon pairs to work with.
Yes it's hard to stare at a 30 day timer on your Imperials, or the near months on your Pearlcatchers or Wildclaws, but it all assists the market, and makes them that much more special when you've finally obtained them. They're rare. They're beautiful, and when you get a hold of one, they're finally yours.
Though I admit to hoping for a cool-down item, I can see Rhea's point as well as the admins. A pay-to-win/pay-to-earn treasure scheme like that could only lead to tragedy, and it makes it more fair for everyone else in the long run.
@Kireitha -- This response is going to be a bit long, so sorry about that but I do hope you might read it. I understand your frustration with the breeding cooldowns and such. I've been dying for my progs to come out of their cooldown to breed and for my other dragons to grow up to breed. However, as many other people have pointed out, once more dragons are acquired, the cooldowns will be almost nothing with all the careful cycling there will be to plan.
Anyway, you heard all that already, so I'm just going to mention a few other things. The site is run by only 4 people, which I sometimes feel people don't know or forget about. Only 2 of them are codesmiths. What's on the site already is an insane amount of work for 4 people let alone 2 who run all the bug fixes, coding, etc.
There is more content that they'll be putting up once everything is smoothed out (more games, etc.) The site was occasionally having lag issues and whatnot so instead of bombarding it with more, they chose to start small and get everything running smoothly first. I think this is a fair enough decision. I think myself and many other people would prefer something smaller that works most of the time than something bigger that barely works at all.
Now, you said in a previous comment that you just joined 1 day before the downtime. This is no one's fault (except whoever attacked the site in the first place), but all the same rather unfortunate for you. I'm not much for grinding in the coliseum for long periods of time, though I do find it fun for short periods. The Fairgrounds being out really does limit what one can do for treasure. I think anyone who joined just a day or two before the downtime is probably not having the best of times right now. But I do have to hand it to the admins that they got the site back up to functioning in the time that they did with the problems they had to deal with.
Now going on to address more of the treasure problem. Yeah, it's pretty hard to come by right now (even with the Fairgrounds). Part of the reason it's so frustrating is because <i>everything</i> is super inflated right now. The game as a whole is only about 2 weeks old and the in-game economy is not stabilized at all. People are still selling starter hatchlings for 40,000+ treasure. I see fedoras in the Auction House for almost as much as I could sell some of my exclusive items. People are just trying to feel out the economy and/or just sell whatever they have for the most that they can. When the economy stabilizes it will be much better. My guess is that starter hatchlings will be around 10,000 treasure. I heard that in the Beta they dropped to 2,000-5,000 treasure at one point.
Now for the last thing; as other people have said, the comment about the site not being worth its 40k Kickstarter is a bit scathing. There's a lot of costs associated with running games/sites like this that that 40k is going into/will be used for in the future. You used the example of a restaurant and paying $30 for a meal that wasn't up to your expectations. Ok, but it's a new family-owned restaurant who only has a limited selection until they can afford expand a bit more. But they can get business going, expand more, maybe make a few adjustments, and the next time you come back it's great. Also you didn't actually have to pay the $30 for your meal. Other people paid for it and you get to come back whenever you want, however many times you want, for free. There's a few extra side-dishes that would cost you money, sure, but you also find other customers who would be willing to trade you for those extra sides sometimes.
Basically, the super new and not-yet-fortified economy has everything priced super high. This may last a while longer. There's not much treasure in circulation now and if you happened to join a day or two before you're more than likely having an even harder time than those of use who joined 1 or 2 weeks prior. Just keep in mind that the economy will eventually cool and there will be more to do on the site in the future, you'll get plenty of dragons, and the cooldowns won't seem as harsh. Also it's free and run entirely by just 4 people who made the game just so people like us could enjoy it :)
Anyway, you heard all that already, so I'm just going to mention a few other things. The site is run by only 4 people, which I sometimes feel people don't know or forget about. Only 2 of them are codesmiths. What's on the site already is an insane amount of work for 4 people let alone 2 who run all the bug fixes, coding, etc.
There is more content that they'll be putting up once everything is smoothed out (more games, etc.) The site was occasionally having lag issues and whatnot so instead of bombarding it with more, they chose to start small and get everything running smoothly first. I think this is a fair enough decision. I think myself and many other people would prefer something smaller that works most of the time than something bigger that barely works at all.
Now, you said in a previous comment that you just joined 1 day before the downtime. This is no one's fault (except whoever attacked the site in the first place), but all the same rather unfortunate for you. I'm not much for grinding in the coliseum for long periods of time, though I do find it fun for short periods. The Fairgrounds being out really does limit what one can do for treasure. I think anyone who joined just a day or two before the downtime is probably not having the best of times right now. But I do have to hand it to the admins that they got the site back up to functioning in the time that they did with the problems they had to deal with.
Now going on to address more of the treasure problem. Yeah, it's pretty hard to come by right now (even with the Fairgrounds). Part of the reason it's so frustrating is because <i>everything</i> is super inflated right now. The game as a whole is only about 2 weeks old and the in-game economy is not stabilized at all. People are still selling starter hatchlings for 40,000+ treasure. I see fedoras in the Auction House for almost as much as I could sell some of my exclusive items. People are just trying to feel out the economy and/or just sell whatever they have for the most that they can. When the economy stabilizes it will be much better. My guess is that starter hatchlings will be around 10,000 treasure. I heard that in the Beta they dropped to 2,000-5,000 treasure at one point.
Now for the last thing; as other people have said, the comment about the site not being worth its 40k Kickstarter is a bit scathing. There's a lot of costs associated with running games/sites like this that that 40k is going into/will be used for in the future. You used the example of a restaurant and paying $30 for a meal that wasn't up to your expectations. Ok, but it's a new family-owned restaurant who only has a limited selection until they can afford expand a bit more. But they can get business going, expand more, maybe make a few adjustments, and the next time you come back it's great. Also you didn't actually have to pay the $30 for your meal. Other people paid for it and you get to come back whenever you want, however many times you want, for free. There's a few extra side-dishes that would cost you money, sure, but you also find other customers who would be willing to trade you for those extra sides sometimes.
Basically, the super new and not-yet-fortified economy has everything priced super high. This may last a while longer. There's not much treasure in circulation now and if you happened to join a day or two before you're more than likely having an even harder time than those of use who joined 1 or 2 weeks prior. Just keep in mind that the economy will eventually cool and there will be more to do on the site in the future, you'll get plenty of dragons, and the cooldowns won't seem as harsh. Also it's free and run entirely by just 4 people who made the game just so people like us could enjoy it :)
@Kireitha -- This response is going to be a bit long, so sorry about that but I do hope you might read it. I understand your frustration with the breeding cooldowns and such. I've been dying for my progs to come out of their cooldown to breed and for my other dragons to grow up to breed. However, as many other people have pointed out, once more dragons are acquired, the cooldowns will be almost nothing with all the careful cycling there will be to plan.
Anyway, you heard all that already, so I'm just going to mention a few other things. The site is run by only 4 people, which I sometimes feel people don't know or forget about. Only 2 of them are codesmiths. What's on the site already is an insane amount of work for 4 people let alone 2 who run all the bug fixes, coding, etc.
There is more content that they'll be putting up once everything is smoothed out (more games, etc.) The site was occasionally having lag issues and whatnot so instead of bombarding it with more, they chose to start small and get everything running smoothly first. I think this is a fair enough decision. I think myself and many other people would prefer something smaller that works most of the time than something bigger that barely works at all.
Now, you said in a previous comment that you just joined 1 day before the downtime. This is no one's fault (except whoever attacked the site in the first place), but all the same rather unfortunate for you. I'm not much for grinding in the coliseum for long periods of time, though I do find it fun for short periods. The Fairgrounds being out really does limit what one can do for treasure. I think anyone who joined just a day or two before the downtime is probably not having the best of times right now. But I do have to hand it to the admins that they got the site back up to functioning in the time that they did with the problems they had to deal with.
Now going on to address more of the treasure problem. Yeah, it's pretty hard to come by right now (even with the Fairgrounds). Part of the reason it's so frustrating is because <i>everything</i> is super inflated right now. The game as a whole is only about 2 weeks old and the in-game economy is not stabilized at all. People are still selling starter hatchlings for 40,000+ treasure. I see fedoras in the Auction House for almost as much as I could sell some of my exclusive items. People are just trying to feel out the economy and/or just sell whatever they have for the most that they can. When the economy stabilizes it will be much better. My guess is that starter hatchlings will be around 10,000 treasure. I heard that in the Beta they dropped to 2,000-5,000 treasure at one point.
Now for the last thing; as other people have said, the comment about the site not being worth its 40k Kickstarter is a bit scathing. There's a lot of costs associated with running games/sites like this that that 40k is going into/will be used for in the future. You used the example of a restaurant and paying $30 for a meal that wasn't up to your expectations. Ok, but it's a new family-owned restaurant who only has a limited selection until they can afford expand a bit more. But they can get business going, expand more, maybe make a few adjustments, and the next time you come back it's great. Also you didn't actually have to pay the $30 for your meal. Other people paid for it and you get to come back whenever you want, however many times you want, for free. There's a few extra side-dishes that would cost you money, sure, but you also find other customers who would be willing to trade you for those extra sides sometimes.
Basically, the super new and not-yet-fortified economy has everything priced super high. This may last a while longer. There's not much treasure in circulation now and if you happened to join a day or two before you're more than likely having an even harder time than those of use who joined 1 or 2 weeks prior. Just keep in mind that the economy will eventually cool and there will be more to do on the site in the future, you'll get plenty of dragons, and the cooldowns won't seem as harsh. Also it's free and run entirely by just 4 people who made the game just so people like us could enjoy it :)
Anyway, you heard all that already, so I'm just going to mention a few other things. The site is run by only 4 people, which I sometimes feel people don't know or forget about. Only 2 of them are codesmiths. What's on the site already is an insane amount of work for 4 people let alone 2 who run all the bug fixes, coding, etc.
There is more content that they'll be putting up once everything is smoothed out (more games, etc.) The site was occasionally having lag issues and whatnot so instead of bombarding it with more, they chose to start small and get everything running smoothly first. I think this is a fair enough decision. I think myself and many other people would prefer something smaller that works most of the time than something bigger that barely works at all.
Now, you said in a previous comment that you just joined 1 day before the downtime. This is no one's fault (except whoever attacked the site in the first place), but all the same rather unfortunate for you. I'm not much for grinding in the coliseum for long periods of time, though I do find it fun for short periods. The Fairgrounds being out really does limit what one can do for treasure. I think anyone who joined just a day or two before the downtime is probably not having the best of times right now. But I do have to hand it to the admins that they got the site back up to functioning in the time that they did with the problems they had to deal with.
Now going on to address more of the treasure problem. Yeah, it's pretty hard to come by right now (even with the Fairgrounds). Part of the reason it's so frustrating is because <i>everything</i> is super inflated right now. The game as a whole is only about 2 weeks old and the in-game economy is not stabilized at all. People are still selling starter hatchlings for 40,000+ treasure. I see fedoras in the Auction House for almost as much as I could sell some of my exclusive items. People are just trying to feel out the economy and/or just sell whatever they have for the most that they can. When the economy stabilizes it will be much better. My guess is that starter hatchlings will be around 10,000 treasure. I heard that in the Beta they dropped to 2,000-5,000 treasure at one point.
Now for the last thing; as other people have said, the comment about the site not being worth its 40k Kickstarter is a bit scathing. There's a lot of costs associated with running games/sites like this that that 40k is going into/will be used for in the future. You used the example of a restaurant and paying $30 for a meal that wasn't up to your expectations. Ok, but it's a new family-owned restaurant who only has a limited selection until they can afford expand a bit more. But they can get business going, expand more, maybe make a few adjustments, and the next time you come back it's great. Also you didn't actually have to pay the $30 for your meal. Other people paid for it and you get to come back whenever you want, however many times you want, for free. There's a few extra side-dishes that would cost you money, sure, but you also find other customers who would be willing to trade you for those extra sides sometimes.
Basically, the super new and not-yet-fortified economy has everything priced super high. This may last a while longer. There's not much treasure in circulation now and if you happened to join a day or two before you're more than likely having an even harder time than those of use who joined 1 or 2 weeks prior. Just keep in mind that the economy will eventually cool and there will be more to do on the site in the future, you'll get plenty of dragons, and the cooldowns won't seem as harsh. Also it's free and run entirely by just 4 people who made the game just so people like us could enjoy it :)