~~~ mkay0013’s (Mostly) Complete Beginner’s Guide to jsp ~~~
Rule #1 and first thing to know when starting: do not ask for donations.
Most of the people on this site have earned their forum gold; you are expected to do the same.
This guide will cover 5 sections: jsp basics, how to sell, how to buy, how to complete trades, and what items to look for.
jsp can be a little overwhelming at first, and this guide is kinda long, but if you take the time to read this, you should be ok
jsp Basics
If you aren’t already there, get to the trade forum that you need. On the jsp homepage, click d2jsp forums.
In the second section down, under Trading Grounds, select your realm, core, and ladder/NL; this is your main trading forum.
The bolded threads at the top that never change are informational threads such as rules and price guides. The threads below are trade threads where people buy and sell items and services.
This is where you can find gear to buy or sell. Click refresh to update the page; threads are listed in order by most recent post.
The currency of jsp is forum gold (fg). Your current amount of fg is listed in the top right of your screen in bold; you start with 0 fg.
You can send private messages (pm’s) to people by clicking on the 
next to their name.
If the little circle next to that is blue 
, it means they are currently online.
If it is red they are not currently online and will receive the pm the next time they log on.
Selling Stuff
There are 2 ways to sell items... you can make a "for trade list" (often abbreviated ft list) and list all your gear that you have for sale, or you can browse the topics to see what people want to buy.
Making a ft list
To get started, click on "new topic" in the top right corner on the main forum page. Make a title for your list and an optional subtitle. Then list your stuff in the main window.
Your list needs to be easy to read and organized. If people can’t understand your list or it’s too big and unorganized, no one will buy your stuff.
I usually list all variable stats with the item too, since these usually determine the price. If you do not list prices, people will offer on the items or ask for a “bin” (buy it now price).
Here are short examples of good lists and bad lists (I listed prices, you don't necessarily have to)
Code
good list: bad list:
shako (118 def) - 2fg shako
treks (14/12) - 3fg treks
ebotdz (387/13) - 30fg ebotdz
anni (15/18/7) - 30fg anni
Selling in Someone's Thread
You will see tons of "iso" threads (i.e. iso: enigma), this stands for "in search of" and means that the person wants that item.
If you see that someone wants something you have, go into the thread and post that you have it.
If the buyer is interested, they will usually pm you.
Buying Stuff
This is pretty similar to selling, but the other way around.
You may make an "iso list" and list the items you need, or browse the forum and buy something from someone's thread.
If you make an iso list, list item stats if they are important to you.
On jsp there is a LOT of high end gear, and people will list it (and the crazy high price) if you don't specify.
For example, if you just want the cheapest enigma you can find, say in your thread that the cheapest wins.
If you want a perfect roll or base, make sure you say that (this will raise the price though).
You can just browse the forums and see what people are selling too.
You may also use the search bar to find something; just type in something you want and it will search all the recent posts for whatever you typed in.
This doesn't always work, since people misspell things or abbreviate them, though it's usually pretty good at finding things.
Completing Trades
Go to the specified game. When both people are in the game, state your jsp account name, the item that is being traded, and the price.
DO NOT PROCEED UNTIL THE OTHER PERSON SAYS THEIR JSP NAME AND CONFIRMS THE ITEM AND COST.
This ensures that you are dealing with the correct person and everything is as it should be. It also helps to catch the person in the rare occasion that you get scammed.
Most people screenshot their trades as well with a timestamp (type /time in game) as further proof of a trade should they get scammed.
Usually one person will "go first." This is usually determined by the "2/3 rule" (though I think it's stupid).
The 3 are join date, amount of fg, and post count; whoever "loses" in 2 or all 3 of the categories must give the item/fg first.
Once the person who “wins” receives the item/fg, then they will give. Since you are new to this site, you will almost always go first.
To send fg when buying from someone, click on "gold" under the person's name next to the amount and the 
.
Click on "give gold" on the screen that comes up and type in the amount to give them, including 2 decimal points (so type 5.00 if u want to send 5fg).
You may choose to set up a "gold password," which is a second password to send gold; this is just an extra security feature.
Click on "submit gold transfer" to complete the trade.
Go to the game and let the person know that you have sent the fg, they will then give you the item.
Using a Mediator
The safest way to trade is to use a mediator (but it's a lot slower).
There are several "trusted" people on the site that will act as a 3rd party for the trade; this ensures that no scam can take place.
It will say Mediator or Trusted instead of not rated for these trusted members.
Stuff to Look For
If you don’t have good gear and need to get started, collect low runes, pgems, and jewels.
It's an easy way to make a few bucks and doesn't require high level characters to find good gear to sell.
Here’s a small list of things to keep:
junk (random) jewels
perfect amethysts and rubies
tal, thul, ort, amn runes (spirit runes)
ral, sol, nef, ith runes (crafting runes)
dol, shael, hel, io, lum, ko, fal, lem, pul runes
If it's below tal, I wouldn't bother keeping them (unless you put them in the cube to upgrade them).
Tal + thul + ort + amn together is known as a “spirit pack” or “spirit set.” Sometimes a hel rune is included in the pack.
***Notice that it is usually cheaper to buy the runes individually than to buy the “pack.”***
You can use this as a quick source of fg, since you don’t even need to find the runes, you can just buy them, reorganize them, then resell them for a small profit.
You can keep and sell low uniques too... here is a short list of normal/exceptional gear that can get you a few fg and trades easily.
The trading easily part is key, since there's no sense in having something if no one wants to buy it (unless you need it of course).
This is not a full list of everything you should keep, and I am not listing elite gear, since it should be pretty obvious to keep the high end stuff.
Bloodfists
Magefists
Chance Guards
Frostburn
Hotspurs
Vgaze (keep etherreal too)
Vipermagi
Lidless
T-gods
Waterwalks
Treks
Travs
All rings except Manald Heal
Cat’s Eye and Highlord’s amulets
All class specific gear except amazon bows/spears
These low runes and low/mid gear should be able to get you a small base of fg.
Be sure to check the Price Guides (usually stickied) on each forum to get an idea of item prices. It may not always be 100% accurate but it’s usually decent.
Thank you for reading my guide. I know it’s kinda long, but I hope it helps you get a good start on jsp.