Fellowship Walk Auction FAQs

Fellowship Walk Charity Auction FAQs

1. What is the purpose of the auctions?

In the past, The Fellowship Walk receives support solely from sponsors and from individuals who donate directly to Child’s Play via the CSTM website. For the first time this year we will have an on-line auction of in-game donations made by other players!

2. When will the auctions begin?

The auctions will start going live on-line on the first day of the event, September 22rd, 2013 (the date of Frodo’s Birthday) and end on October 20, 2013.

3. When is payment due?

Payment is not due until the auction has ended. Payment from the winner needs to be received by October 23rd.  If payment is not received by then we will defer to another bidder. The entire event closes on October 24th and we need all the donations submitted!

4. When will the winners be announced?

The winner of the auction will be notified by email at the end of the auction.

5. What kind of things will be auctioned?

Opportunities like a lesson with Keli on converting midi files to abc files, a skirmish of your choice with Pineleaf, or cameo appearance in one Lilikate Buggin’s vidcasts. You get the idea.

A complete list of items up for bid is available at Lotro Players – Auction Item List

6. What will I be using to place a bid?

Each auction will have its own page where you will see the description of the item and bid on the item. The auctions are hosted with a plug-in on Lotro Players’ site so there’s no need to sign up for any additional or outside services.

7. How do I place a bid?

On this website each auction item has its own page giving a full description of the donation (and pictures!) There will be a link on the home page, too.

On each individual item page there are four buttons.

The Description button brings up all the details including in-game limitations (like server restrictions) and the starting bid level Read carefully before you bid…is the donation available on your server? Do you have a character of the appropriate level, class etc?

If you decide to bid click the “Bid Here” button and enter the amount of your bid. The first bid must be at least the minimum (US) dollar value set by the donor (shown on the Description page).

Similar to eBay and other auction sites, any subsequent bids on the item must be more the maximum bid placed by the current winner.

If the auction has reserve price, the auction will not be awarded until the reserve price is met. This price is not shown but it will list a yes/no indicator on the bid page if the reserve is met.

The Bids button lists a history all bids placed on that item including by whom (the name given when the person bid), bid date, and amount.

The Watch button gives you the option to provide your email address and receive an email when a higher bid is placed on that item. This is optional; you don’t have to sign up for notifications. If you are the high bidder, you will receive an email if you are outbid.

8. Do I need to pay as soon as I bid?

No, payment is only expected from the winner of the auction.

9. Can I retract my bid?

This may be possible if the auction has not ended. Please email us as soon as possible at fellowshipwalk@gmail.com  and we will do our best to retract the bid.

10. What do I do if I win?

If you are the lucky winner, a couple of things will happen. You will be emailed out-of-game asking you to use the auction widget on our site to finalize the payment.

After payment is confirmed, Mysteri or Andang will then contact you put you in direct contact with the person offering your prize. Then you and the donor will arrange where/when you will receive your item or service in-game.

11. How long will I have to fulfil my payment?

You are expected to pay within 48 hours after the end of the auction. If PayPal is unable to complete the transaction for the winning bidder after 48 hours, the second highest bidder will be notified and become the winner of that item.

12. What forms of payment are accepted?

Payment DOES require PayPal. This is for your protection and as well as ours (and it makes the IRS happy, too). We understand that some people do not use PayPal for various reasons. Unfortunately this is the only automated form of donating to Child’s Play that we are aware of at this time. If your PayPal account is in a currency other than US dollars, PayPal will handle the currency exchange automatically. Paypal will accept all major credit cards as payment if you do not wish to set up a link to your personal banking.

13. How can I be sure that Child’s Play is actually receiving my money?

The widget allows for a direct deposit from your PayPal account into Child Play’s account; at no time does your money flow through LOTRO Players. PayPal will also email a confirmation of your donation as well as the receiving party.

14. What information will I be disclosing by bidding on an item?

All announcements and listings of donors, winners and so forth will use only in-game character names (and sometimes server names). Your real name and identifying information will never be used publically. However, we do ask that winners agree to allow LOTRO Players to use their in-game character name, server and likeness for use in the blog and podcasts relating to the results of this auction.

15. When will I receive my item/service?

LOTRO Players has asked that all donated items be turned over to the winner by the end of November (some things can happen very quickly; scheduling and coordinating other items may take a bit longer so we’ve set essentially a one month window).

16. What should we do if we have problems with our purchase?

If for any reason there are problems with receiving the item you won, contact Mysteri or Andang. We’ll try to help.

17. Who are the donors?

The donors are players just like you and I who have graciously volunteered their services for the sake of this fundraiser. They receive no remuneration of any kind. The only benefit they receive is recognition through LOTRO Players and the satisfaction of knowing their LOTRO skills helped to raise money for Child’s Play and, ultimately, will make a difference in the life of a hospitalized child.  We have also been fortunate enough to receive donations from Weta NZ and Greenman Gaming.

 

 

 

 

18. Can I offer something to auction?

Yes! All donations will be accepted before the event starts.  If you cannot donate this year, the good news is that the auctions are a big hit so we think they are here to stay! We hope you’ll consider offering up your items and talents for auction next year!

 

That’s all there is to it !

 

Thank you for your support for Child’s Play. If you have any additional questions or suggestions for this FAQ, please send them to Fellowshipwalk@gmail.com