some juicy ebay-auctions

I don’t know who that is, whispering out of the shadows in the corner, but the information is worth having. Thanks.

Yes ! Sorry I forgot to tell you. orcs and hobbits are in glass cabinet now.
Merci !

This sort of problem is often to be seen, with people describing figures (not just Mithrils either) as “rare” (the most overused word on eBay) or “out of production” when they’re neither. Being generous towards such sellers, and supposing that they don’t set out to deliberately mislead, I think the reason is probably often that the figures have come into the sellers’ hands, now or at some point in the past, and they simply don’t remember or can’t be bothered to check on their history, availabilty or value – so they simply assume that because they’re old they aren’t available any more, and charge some invented price accordingly. Sometimes such situations end up in a bargain price that’s in the buyer’s favour, and sometimes otherwise.

At the end of the day it’s up to the buyer to check such details, and they always should. The old adage “caveat emptor” applies to every purchase one makes on eBay, and if people are daft enough to pay over the odds for a figure that isn’t worth what they pay, or as rare as they might have thought, that’s their own fault.

But I don’t think that (many) sellers set out to decieve or falsify, though a small number certainly do. Or am I being naive?

Indeed. Most casual Mithril collectors seem to think Mithril itself is out of business, anyway. They probably imagine the website, if they know of it at all, is some sort of fan site. I’ve long lost count of the number of hard core MERP fans, old mini collectors, and whatnot who have told me: didn’t they go out of business in, like, 1995?

(I imagine this was around the time they fell out of the mainstream US nerd store distribution – out of sight, out of mind)

Many possibilities, many combinations. I do not have this figure, and I plan to buy this year all 54 mm christmas figures… I will leave an offer here if I calculate in few minutes before ending that figure will be reach more favorable price (including shipping costs) than same figure on mithril web… And I hope that this is not fake or forged figure…. !!!!!

Master Ent said:

Well, I still wonder why some sellers try to avoid being honest.
E.g. I just checked that the 1998 Chr-Elrond still is available for 27,50€ at The Company store. So why tell “this hard-to-find miniature is long out of production” (quoted!). It is out of production, of course, but it’s not hard to find, or is it?
Then, as we witnessed, there often are sellers who offer MCs (Mithril Classics) on Ebay. Why?
That range is defined by being available, so why offer them on Ebay? – Is it trying to trap some people, being not very much informed, regarding these as some kind of rarities or bargains?
OK, I can understand people trying to pay less for a miniature on Ebay as it would cost buying the same miniature directly from Mithril.
Alright, those sellers have their right to do so, but in the ENT it leaves me with mixed feelings between being cheated or being taken for brainless, alas.

Maybe I am old-fashioned, but I believe that a seller has an OBLIGATION to be sure that any statement they make about what they are selling is a fact! Of course, many don’t and so it is up to buyers to be aware. Whether deceitful, or just lazy, sellers often just throw a description out on ebay that favors their item, knowing that few people ever complain or demand a refund (after paying to ship the item back) if they are unsatisfied. Many times I’ve emailed a Mithril seller to tell them that their piece wasn’t complete as stated. Some email back to thank me, or at least update the item. Many do nothing, selling the figure with a false description.

except when it comes to your scrumpy . . .

not even one of a kind?

it certainly will be emtpy once i have preemptively emptied it.

the [mith]m78[/mith] (with complete index finger) is waiting for me tonight.