We could imagine that zones added though updates / expansions could require a world quest to be opened (building a huge bridge, digging a large tunnel, repairing a complicated gnomish gate, etc ...), involving items to be crafted and assembled, requiring expensive components. I remember Horizon got such gameplay mechanics like this, that was cool idea, even if relatively poorly implemented (and not really as money sinks, more like time sinks if I well remember).
Most money sinks in MMOs are solo contribution, that could make sense to add to Pantheon money sinks that are more a community contribution.
Love it all, except the socialism ideas of passing around the wealthiest's money to the lazy's pockets.
Crafting/Harvesting Supply and Demand
There was talk about rare stuff become less rare as more is found and less is used. This is so true! I think something that could benefit the importance of crafters as well as maintain a more balanced supply and demand of resources could be repair/reforging/augmentation of equipment. Crafting of rare consumables such as 30-min buff potions, foods, ranged weapons/ammo, etc. that there would always be a demand for would be another way to help reduce the supply of materials, keeping their value higher. This in turn would keep people incentivized to harvest more to sell. And of course we need consumables that would benefit crafters, harvesters, travellers, etc. to make sure the demand is always steady.
It was also mentioned in one of the streams that havestables will be there, but not in HUGE quantities and you will have to actually hunt for them as they intend for them to blend into and enrich the environment. No mini-map icon to show you exactly where they are. This combined with limited bag space and stack quantity should further assist in keeping supplies down.
The real trick here is making sure the non-rare items are just as valuable as the rare ones. There needs to be enough consumption of these non-rare through failures, subcomponents, recipe requirements, etc. to ensure the people rare-hunting will not flood the market with way too many common materials that they become trivial enough for people to just destroy or drop them.
Hunting Economy
I saw one idea that I fell in love with which I was always curious about why it isn't like that to began with.
When you die to monster, the one that dealt the killing blow loots all (or a portion maybe?) coins you have on you. If you are in the group/raid that kills the mob that stole your money within a few game days then you will recieve your money back, but if you wait too long that mob would likely bank it or spend it, so you lost your cash monies. This would encourage people to hit the bigger towns with banks more often for the safety of their cash. It would also bring them in to the markets, the people, and show off to all the fledglings the awesome loot they have aquired over their adventures! It would also deter afk gold-farming that is bound to happen because if you die it was all for not.
This would also open up a whole new tactic to gold farming for the eventual PVPers out there! Because people can be monsters too!
Market Economy
I believe this is one of the heaviest debated topics as everyone wants what they want without having to give up something they like. I have seen countless ideas on how to best tackle this from limited global currency supplies, to fluctuating vendor prices based on stock and even robinhood tactics.
In my opinion having a limited global currency supply is a terrible idea for one reason only, horders. Lets face it, people love to be rich! People will horde money and eventually when they control enough of the wealth, they essentially control the economy. I have seen people try to battle with this money decay, which again is a terrible idea because people don't like being taxed with absolutely no material or entrisic gain. Plus, what if I'm trying to save up for my 1 million plat dollars item, but I only get to play 2 days a week and need to save for 3 years to get it, with decay, I would never get there, literally.
I love the idea of a fluctuating vendor prices based on supply and demand (aka quantity in stock on vendor). I think this combined with the idea of limited currency supply of each vendor where it can be replenished with purchasing items from the vendor and depleted by selling stuff to the vendor would make for a great 'living economy'.
Also wanted to throw it out there because I haven't seen it yet and we dont even know if there will be an Auction House or similar: Vendors should monitor their local market price of items and only purchase items for less than the lowest selling price on the local market that item. Im sure there are many holes in this idea that need to be filled as I haven't extrapolated it out over time. But just thought it was a nifty idea.
Best of luck to VR in their economy design! I know it's going to be hard and they have a lot of work ahead of them on it to make it not stiffling but not bloat-prone.
In terms of money sinks, they need to be something people don't mind, but provide the benefit of money sinking somewhere. You are always going to have people that hate money sinks, even though for virtual worlds they are essential from keeping something like, hemp twine from costing someone half a million gold pieces. A player driven economy can have it's ups and downs, depending on the player base the game has at the time. Though what I really like the idea of as a money sink is having cosmetics cost in-game currency. This could extend to really much anything, gear, maybe possibly certain colored dyes for armor and such kind of what like guildwars did. You could have just different looking skins for armor but nothing too outlandish, or possibly outladish as possible; it all depends on the demand I guess. I have seen other games offer sub time in exchange for super high amounts of in-game currency...but I honestlly don't know how I feel about that.
On one hand it puts money back into the economy of the game and someone gets some free game time. Though with that, you are essentially putting a real-world price on a virtual currency and this could lead to starting pu a possibly gold selling issue, as they now have just how much one piece of gold or what-have-you actually is. I like the concept...but not the potential consequences that come along with it. If they do have mounts, then you could use in-game currencies to buy differnet types. If you really want it, you would have to pay a prety price for it. Don't just want a regular brown horse, want that nice sparkly unicorn that's super rare as a breed; then you are going to have to pay a REALLY pretty and shiny penny for it.
They could also do player housing stuff. Funriture, paints, roofing, masonery, not to mention the yard. If you want a garden to grow vegetables for recipes and stuff, you would have to buy seeds and that as well. Want fruit trees, have to buy them too, want cute shrubs outside, you have to buy those as well. THere is a lot they could do as a money sink that isn't too intrusive and is believable when it comes to spending money. That's just my two-cents on the matter though lol.
Something that would most definitely FIX out of control economy is ... make everything purchasable from vendors.. you need iron ore? sure the blacksmith has some he can sell you.. for 10p a piece... or you could just go to the mine and get some, and heck the blacksmith would even buy your extra iron ore for 1p each!... this would set a definite price range on iron ore of 1p lowest sell price and 10p highest buy price. If the supply extends before the demand enough to drop prices lower, people will just start selling it to the vendor.
Oh and you need that rare Blood Iron Ore, sure! 1000p a piece buddy... or go find your own! or someone that will sell it cheaper!
This would allow those with far more money than they know what to do with to avoid having to scavange markets looking for the materials they need or spend countless hours out harvesting. They will most definitely make a loss on whatever they are doing, but hey! they can afford it!
Also, you can do the same thing with droppable items! you need that Screaming Blade of the Glades?, sure buddy 10kp please! ... oh, you dont have 10kp? go find it on your own then buddy, its super rare drop off a rare spawn though! good luck!
HAHAHAH but then, i guess this isn't a player-driven economy anymore now is it :D