Well now...this should be interesting...(looking at above post)

renvhoek wrote:In answer to the below person's question.

Yes, I did buy these items from my own store

However

(a) I didn't do it to engage in "shill" bidding.  You can't "shill bid" a buy it now, you can only do that to an auction, in order to inflate the price.  These were buy-it-nows

(b) I didn't do it to "raise my feedback".  We're getting 3000+ feedback a month.  So whether positive or negative, buying items from myself to leave feedback would be a complete waste of time.  Not to mention, ebay actually only counts 1 feedback per buyer, for the % (from what I recall).  They do that to stop exactly what someone mentioned as a possibility

I did it actually to test a piece of the software we are using.  The only way to tell if part of our software works is to do a live ebay purchase, and see what the various emails or whatever I am testing look like to a live customer.  And rather than inflict some poor sap on ebay with the test, better to test on myself.  Since it cost me actual ebay listing fee $ when I test, you'll notice I bought from myself items at low value.  e.g. $0.99

p.s. eBay never mentioned anything to me about the message bcarkie sent in, so I guess they ignored it.  They probably thought it hilarious someone was accused of shill bidding on a buy it now item.

You guys are an absolute joke. Maybe I'll allow you to take advantage of my ignorance and buy one of your $16,000.00 Magic Cards.    

Maybe I need to report you again, it wouldn't be the first time that I had report someone more than once before they acted on it....

Oh and for the record, It sellers just like you is exactly the reason why we have this thread.

Brian & Mike,

In a perfect world, this situation would never happen, but since it did, my potential negative feedback, as you both stated I should have done, would have been a miniscule drop in the bucket and buried on PAGE 8 of cougarrinard's feedback in a few weeks. I do not want to sound defeatist, but I was trapped and I knew it. I felt neutral was a fair assessment, as Dave clearly (as clearly as he can   ) posts his position regarding insurance, returns, and other various rantings. Granted I give everyone the benefit of the doubt, even you guys when I first made purchases, but now I know you better and feel that I can buy with complete confidence !!

Unfortunately, I would like to be able to re-sell some of the items I have purchased (for various reasons: condition, personal preference, duplicates, etc.) and having a 100% FB Score is a valuable tool, not to mention a pride issue.

I have had a few negative experiences with a rare few sellers, but we were able to work things out via partial refunds, returns, or credits towards other purchases (if it was just a subjective condition issue). All of which made the experience a positive one and I have purchased from them again, as I now know their traits. I even had a few minor issues with Paul (Guido-the-Gypsy), but we worked them out and he has been incredibly fair, helpful, and reasonable. So I was stupid to give Cougie a second chance  and I got burned , but eBay should be aware of this guy's tatics, as he has to have one of the highest percentages of neutral or negative feedbacks withdrawn. I will contact them to point this out, but there needs to be more than one voice at the same time

On a positive note, a seller just recently contacted me about Cougie, as I have been a good customer of his. He was contacted by Cougie about buying his items, but said that Cougie wrote his usual "blah, blah, blah" about other people's opinion of him. I gave him fair warning and told him to review this topic in this forum, which should be educational. On a related note, Cougie won an item I was bidding on a few weeks ago and the seller stipulated that she did not sell or ship international. She kept me in the loop, as I was the 2nd highest bidder and I had helped her with some additional information about the items she was selling. She contacted eBay, but Cougie then provided her with a U.S. address and she had to sell the item to him.  

Anyhow, I just chalk it up to another "Purple Worm" experience and know that I can use it to avoid those treacherous dark corners of eBay  

Lastly, for the benefit of Mike, here is the email you wanted to see:

-------------- Original message from  <[email protected]>: --------------

no problem at all.   I answer 500+ emails a day, & treble that on end of auction days.   I always try to answer everyone within 24 hours in any event.     Glad to help, good luck with the bidding.  plase dont leave it till last minute as something always happens & eachj & every week I get emials fropm snipers wehoi lmissed the end for whatever reasson (door bell, phone, boss, visitors, family, TV, once evena death in the family)

I styarted as you know when I first changed schools at age about 12.    The then 6th formers "taught" a D&D  group.  and i knew from the very first game & from  then on I was hooked.    I was just average student before that, but sudenly I was nver without a (D&D) book in my hand.    my grades rocketed and I even went on to do A levels, become a 6th former eventually myself (6th form is like a college 1, 2 or 3 years after actual school over here in UK) .     Sure it was D&D that helped, probablility, history, english, etc etc.

So then I left school, formed a rock band, but still played D&D with the people from school.    Like you say its hard,  People get married ,. move away,. jobs etc take preferance.      But I was lucky enough to be asked to save our local pub in 1990 thats was going to be closed.    My music was already as big as it could get, so the only other thing i was good at the D&D.  so I held an open event.  like a mini gen con I suppose.    I had 30 people turn up the first night.   Some knew how to play, others were just interested in learning etc.    Seems my time on stage and adverting did good.       The pub shut eventually anyway, but my then swelling in numbers group still wanted to pay D&D.  So I hired once a week a function room above another pub.      That was fine for about a year.    The landlady then said she was going to sell up so was not sure of the arrangement as she did not know who was going to buy he pub,   by that time i said it did not matter as i was in process of buying a house that would hold the D&D group.   by this time i had worked out whio the players were, who the hangers on were & who could play & who was just there for the booze.

 So i boight my first house, and with the cream of the crop carried on playing, this was 1991 now.     I still have the core players from those early days.  althouigh some have gone & been replaced with customers (my D&D business really took off so I bought another hosue, twice the size of the first one which I now rent / let out as second income) ~ but marrage, kids, jobs dont have to be the end of D&D just needs sorting of the & in my present group all but 3 are married or with someone and all but the same three have kids. (so it would have been easier to say 4 are with girlfriends/ wives & have kids LOL sorry)    I do have access to more people than most as if anyone ever drops out (like last two did) I can just email my customer base and ask if theers anyone who wants to join.   

 We do have quite a select group.  i been gdoing it for 30 years,  two others have 20+ years each.    one i introducede form the pub (never played it before then) so thats about 16 years,  one was a newbie customer so only a few / couple of years of play, one has been with me for a few years now but work always stopped him playing until a few years ago. & one has been playing for 16 years with other groups but came to mine as a customer a few years back.   (its harder to intergrate people who have preconseptions & other house rules into an established group)   but we all get alone.  and laugh as much as we play.    sometimes even go out as a group too.  and of course to each others weddings, birthdays, christening of baby';s etc.

I  vertually told my girlfriend that no matter what, happened i still would play D&D, and I know she knows how important it is to me.   indead i have only missed a few seesions in my whole/ entire life.   if VERY ill, at the birth of my baby girl,   when moving house & business, and when i walked half way up the UK on two ultra maravthons (thats 5 x 26 mils each way, one after the other)  ~ could not get back for D&D lol.  

 I loeft the rock band & went to work for myself as fancy dress designer & hirer.  But it was too seasonal, and so gave up afetr a few years.   then went to work for UK's largest video wholesler.  Wheer i learnt real business sense.    after 10 years (trading on the side in D&D as hobby mainly to fund/ fuel my collection) the company went PLC and they changed everything was no longer a place I wanted to work for so when offered voluntary reduendacy package I took it  & put the money into D&D and have never looked back.  If I had still ben there I'd be struggling to pay off one small house mortgage, not being self employed I easily earn 5 times that,  i have a 5 bedroom house, with a pool and still own the other hosue,  indead the bank have ok'ed me to buy another hosue to rent/ let out but i am busy with baby girl at present so have placed that one hold.    & nbsp;guess what I am saying is that every cloud has a silver lining, did not reasise it at the tiem ( was bad time for me) but now its great.

  To answer your question, I buy everything./ anything.  Collections, shops stock, bankrupt stock, warehosues, liquidations, car boot sales, everything.   I sort it grade it and resell it.     You may be surprised to know that I jsut finished selling off an entire collection. one of everything you see I actually had TWO of everything and it was taking up too much space.  I mioved cos it was too big then it kept growing.   so by selling off one lot I got room for more and made some money too LOL.   I sold the mint/ SW collections as i am a player and shrunk wrapped books are not much good for playing, but i still have an impressive collection.  one of everything.  including all d20 3e 3.5e oen license products ever made.

   we tried 3e a few yeasr ago when it first came out, went to freeport.  was ok, the combat system is such that we end up dancing round a board like chess men, and cos of the rogues sneak attack everyone ends up iin a rarther unrealsistic conga line ~ but story lines are good.  they should be they have had 30+ years to come up with them?    shame they could not improve the combat system?       During my 30 years i have played, DMed most primes & editions,  OD&D,D&D, AD&D, AQ, DS, DL, FR, GH, KT, MA, PS, RL, SJ, 2E, 2.5E, 3E.

 indead we only have BR, LM,  to go, then whatever new 3e primes come out.  they are making a few good ideas, several 1~20th level campaign dungeons/ adventures, so were not done yet & the boys always like to revuisit old adventures and of coutrse the new boys never played them?

thats is from me baby awake
more later if you want?
--Dave

Hey Mark,

No problem, and for what it's worth, he could be a lot nicer and much more reasonable or fair, but he is a tough seller. I just believe that he wants it his way and that he uses the tools of eBay to his advantage and to make sure that he gets his way. Unfortunately, I will never buy from a UK seller again, due to this situation and another one from a UK seller.

As a rebuttal to Brian & Mike's recommendations, I would have to honestly say that I doubt that I have any recourse, within the letter of the law.
1.) I purchased two "VGC" items from Cougar, which he sent.
2.) They arrived late and in another package, presumably opened and then re-packaged.
3.) I had NOT purchased insurance, so even though the items were damaged, I could not prove if they were sent that way or if this occured as a result of a damaged or opened package that was re-packaged.

The only "mystery" is the fact that the package (envelope) was a plastic Royal Mail Special Delivery bag that was turned inside out with 16 British 1st Class & 1 2nd Class stamps with a postmark of 11 DEC 2006 from Portsmouth - Isle of Wight. It seems strange to me that the postmark is about three (3) days after contacting him and that I received it within seven (7) days from the time of the postmark. I may never know what really happened  However, the package did contain Cougar's business card

If anyone out there would like to see this 'evidence', I would be happy to post images.

Thank You All,

bclarkie wrote:
Sorry Paul, but once again as I stated you had an option to leave your honest neutral/negative feedback and leave it there. I don't agree with any rationale stating that well it would have been buried on page 8. So what? Your honest comments are now going to be lost completely.  I really find it odd that this guy f**cked you in just about everyway possible, then he bullies you into removing the only possible recourse that you did have and yet you are on here after complaining about it, yet you are also defending him.  Cougar f**ked you and unfortunately you let him get away with it and now others will again fall into the same same trap that you did because yourself and 53 other people let him get away with the same exact thing.  This cycle of screwing people into acting the way that Cougar wants them to act is going to continue until the people that he F**cks over stops letting him get away with it.

Reminds of the the legendary GameGuy, the only guy I ever knew who actually spent a night in jail as a result of D&D ripoffs.  He literally stole money from people (taking orders for items he never had), but I heard later that people who went to his business for the purpose of beating him senseless, or went to a convention he was working to kick some ass, ended leaving with smiles on their face and commenting what a greatguy he was.  I think people want to do the "right" thing, talk tough, act tough, and want the bad guy to get his, yet when the time comes our innate senses that tell us confrontation is bad and we may get hurt take over, and we let off.  
  Paul this is by no means a slam at you, I'm not in your shoes, but you are not going to have 100% feedback forever, it's the nature of the beast. At some point a nutcase is going to demand the item three days after he paid for it, not get it and give you a neg (either my first or one of my first).  The Ebay FB system is broken, but realistically it could work if everyone did their part, which is not letting the A-holes get away with being bad sellers.  FB extortion, in the grand scheme of things, is laughable.  No one is not going to sell to you or buy from you due to the effects of a handful of negatives.  In the future, if you think you are right and the buyer/seller is wrong, and you can't work it out, don't be afraid to leave a neg, I will guarantee it doesn't hurt near as much as you think it will!  


BTW thanks for the Cougie Bio.  IMO, at least half of it is complete bullshit...there is not way a guy that illiterate and that much of an A-hole to customers/sellers could have accomplished any of the incredible achievements noted.  I guess being a joke of a human being is taken easier when one creates an alternative identity that one can live vicariously through...very similar to what Cougie has apparantly done. Honestly, that entire bio creeped me out to no end knowing it was mostly made up....

Mike B.

BTW thanks for the Cougie Bio. IMO, at least half of it is complete bullshit...there is not way a guy that illiterate and that much of an A-hole to customers/sellers could have accomplished any of the incredible achievements noted. I guess being a joke of a human being is taken easier when one creates an alternative identity that one can live vicariously through...very similar to what Cougie has apparantly done. Honestly, that entire bio creeped me out to no end knowing it was mostly made up....

Hopefully his daughter won't grow up to be a poor college student and take over part of the business.

Ekim Toor wrote:
Hopefully his daughter won't grow up to be a poor college student and take over part of the business.

That may be the most under-rated line of the year!!!!!   Look out Titan Games!!!!!

Mike B.

Badmike wrote:
He earns five times his salary working for himself than he did after ten years as a successful businessman...so I'm extrapolating he's saying he makes around 150-200k a year selling D&D stuff.

Mike B.

PM-Knight wrote:
Clip from Cougie's email to PM-Knight,

Wheer i learnt real business sense. after 10 years (trading on the side in D&D as hobby mainly to fund/ fuel my collection) the company went PLC and they changed everything was no longer a place I wanted to work for so when offered voluntary reduendacy package I took it & put the money into D&D and have never looked back. If I had still ben there I'd be struggling to pay off one small house mortgage, not being self employed I easily earn 5 times that, i have a 5 bedroom house, with a pool and still own the other hosue, indead the bank have ok'ed me to buy another hosue to rent/ let out but i am busy with baby girl at present so have placed that one hold. & nbsp;guess what I am saying is that every cloud has a silver lining, did not reasise it at the tiem ( was bad time for me) but now its great.

PM-Knight

I'm sure that the European equivalent of the IRS would just love to look over his tax returns for the past decade after that assessment.

Hey PM-Knight,
Did that Kender bmp work out for the AD&D MC 4 Dragonlance Monstrous Compendium that you won from me (zeuserpuppers)?

Kosh Vorlontay wrote:Hey PM-Knight,
Did that Kender bmp work out for the AD&D MC 4 Dragonlance Monstrous Compendium that you won from me (zeuserpuppers)?

Hey Kosh,

Funny that you mention that, as I was just bagging & boarding my MC purchases, including your MC4. Yes, the Kender bmp worked out just fine, but I have to cut the paper so that it matches the other pages. I know that these MC are not a favorite of collectors and I agree they do not last well, but I have kept mine in their original sleeves, so I know where to find what I want. I actually use them to have separate sheets for monsters when I create an adventure, as they are a handy tool, nothing more.

Take care,