I hope I'm worrying for nothing here. Also, I didn't find any other topic on the matter, so tell me if it's already been posted.

So, in this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ic6dKnv3WdU (move forward to 4:56) we see the blacksmith Alvor. We have the option to check what he's got for sale.

In Morrowind and Oblivion (at least I think it was in Oblivion... yeah, it was) vendors sold things that were actually in their store. We could steal actual materialistic things from their storage/store. In Skyrim, on the other hand, we've only seen Alvor the blacksmith who owns a forge and, apparently, has some stuff for sale.
Now, I do notice the weapons on his table, but there's no way that's all he's selling.

Do you think vendors no longer sell things that are actually in the world? Like all the other games, and that's just sad because that's one of the things (not a very big thing, but nonetheless) that made ES special for me, that it was an actual world, and everything vendors had to sell was actually in the world and in storage, in containers or just lying on a table outside.

Thing is, in the video (and in the full video in QuakeCon) we don't see any containers that may hold the weapons/items Alvor is selling. This is the reason I'm worrying right now.

They probably do. That was probably just a small shop that doesn't carry much.

Maybe we're not seeing all that he has, is that a possibility? :tongue:

That wasn't always the case. Vendors had chests located under the floor that they used to store the items that they were selling, you could only access them with the noclip cheat on PC. Only a portion of their inventory was actually displayed, how else would they get new items to sell?

In Oblivion vendors often had more items than you could see on their shelves. In fact if you open the editor and look at a typical shop you'll likely find a chest below or behind the geometry of the interior that stores all the extra items he sells, which is generally randomly generated from a leveled list.

Perhaps there is an indoor storage section of his shop. It's perfectly logical to not keep your entire stock outside on a table.

I don't see how this shows that Skyrim breaks away from it nor how it's unique to TES. That sort of realism and having multiple sources of acquiring something has been around for quite a bit.

No actually I don't see what your getting at. Assuredly he has other things in other areas along with his personal possessions. Or whatever the case might be.

I remember it mainly from Morrowind, that's why...

Anyway, it's horrible if they removed this beautiful, beautiful feature.

In Oblivion, what the vendor had for sale was in a chest that was inaccessable without console commands, the stuff on display was only basic gear. They changed that in Fallout 3 though, so here's hoping.

In Morrowind every item on sale was either displayed or inside chests, you could steal them easily in both options. In Oblivion on the other hand, with some items properly displayed, some were in locked chests or diplays that you (most of the time) couldn't reach.

Most certainly the Blacksmith there is selling only repair hammers or the likes though.

I'd prefer it if smiths didn't sell their own wares. They can take orders for specific pieces, do repairs and such, but for normal daggers and nails they'd be making all the time I'd prefer it if they just had an agreement with the local general store.

Or maybe that's all he has. He said he made a "decent living sharpening axes", not making swords so he probably has a small amount of items for sale. You're overeacting bud, everything will be fine! :thumbsup:

It's not like you ever got to see a vendor's entire inventory...

It was already removed prior to Skyrim.

There aren't many games that use this feature. If you could give examples of such games I'd like that, but you won't find many games that have actual items in the world that the vendors use for sail near them.

Thing is, in order to sell something you usually have it near you, not in a warehouse far away from your store so that when you go to get the item you wanted to sell all the people around you could steal things from you.

That's why I liked it in Morrowind, because everything was near the vendor and in chests, boxes and such. So it's approachable enough and yet safe. Plus, there usualy was a guard next to the vendor in most stores. Which was a cool add to the game.

Perhaps he has a storeroom of some sort

And why should a blacksmith not have the economic autonomy necessary to sell their own wares? They always have, so why change now?

In reference to the OT, the trend was only really a trend in Morrowind. In Oblivion, shopowners used mechanics similar to the PC, in that their inventory was physical, but not visible. Also, as you leveled up, the shop owners would "get better gear", creating a constantly changing economic environment, in which it just wouldn't be possible for their wares to be constantly on display. Also, I think the developers thought it would take away from the economic aspect of the game. Fear not, however, there actually was a shop (located in the Imperial City) in which items were desplayed in game. That was a jewelry shop, however, so I guess it makes sense...

Someone here mentioned they changed it in FO3. What system did they have there?