---
key: mechanic/economy-exchange--t095
type: mechanic
id: economy-exchange--t095
lang: en
title: 'Scarcity, inflation and resource sinks'
summary: >-
  Supply limits and resource removal regulate value while currency growth
  changes access to in-game purchases.
updatedAt: '2026-10-22'
status: active
url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/economy-exchange--t095/'
jsonUrl: >-
  https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/economy-exchange--t095.json
markdownUrl: >-
  https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/economy-exchange--t095.md
aliases:
  - Scarcity and resource sinks
tags:
  - Economy and exchange
  - Mechanics and variants
sourceIds:
  - source-96be186d8ada50a0
  - source-7f09c8a736762f4f
sources:
  - id: source-96be186d8ada50a0
    title: 'Factorio: Content'
    url: 'https://www.factorio.com/game/content'
    verifiedAt: null
  - id: source-7f09c8a736762f4f
    title: Slay the Spire
    url: 'https://www.megacrit.com/press-kits/slay-the-spire/'
    verifiedAt: null
relations: []
placements:
  - catalogId: economy-exchange
    id: t095
    title: Economy and exchange
    url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/economy-exchange/#t095'
    categoryIds:
      - mechanics
supersededBy: []
attributes:
  preview:
    updatedAt: '2026-10-22'
    title: Scarcity and resource sinks
    description: >-
      Supply limits and resource removal regulate value while currency growth
      changes access to in-game purchases.
    image:
      src: images/mechanics/slay-the-spire-shop.webp
      width: 1440
      height: 810
      game: Slay the Spire
      sourceUrl: 'https://www.megacrit.com/press-kits/slay-the-spire/'
      originalUrl: 'https://www.megacrit.com/images/ss4.jpg'
      credit: Mega Crit
      rights: © Mega Crit. All rights reserved.
      caption: Purchases exchange gold for limited offers
      alt: Purchases exchange gold for limited offers
      markers:
        - x: 84
          'y': 80
          label: Removing a card spends gold
    tips:
      - Balance currency sources with sinks that preserve meaningful choices.
    examples:
      - title: Slay the Spire
        url: 'https://www.megacrit.com/press-kits/slay-the-spire/'
endsAt: null
provenance: >-
  Original bilingual editorial overviews authored for gamemechanics.pro on
  2026-10-20 and reviewed on 2026-10-21. Scenarios are hypothetical design
  examples; prototype checks describe work to perform, not completed playtests.
  Primary sources support the stated techniques and implementation context, not
  every proposed variant.
license: CC-BY-4.0
codeLicense: MIT
attribution: gamemechanics.pro contributors
catalogKey: catalog/economy-exchange
---
# Scarcity, inflation and resource sinks

id: economy-exchange--t095
type: mechanic
key: mechanic/economy-exchange--t095
lang: en
status: active
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/economy-exchange--t095/

Supply limits and resource removal regulate value while currency growth changes access to in-game purchases.

## At a glance

![Purchases exchange gold for limited offers](https://gamemechanics.pro/images/mechanics/slay-the-spire-shop.webp)

[Slay the Spire](https://www.megacrit.com/press-kits/slay-the-spire/) · © Mega Crit. All rights reserved.

1. Removing a card spends gold

- Balance currency sources with sinks that preserve meaningful choices.

- [Slay the Spire](https://www.megacrit.com/press-kits/slay-the-spire/)

## How it works

Supply limits and resource removal regulate value while currency growth changes access to in-game purchases.

## Variants

### Mechanic variants

<a id="t095-variants"></a>

- Repair removes some currency from circulation. <a id="t095-v1"></a>
- Spoilage limits indefinite inventory hoarding. <a id="t095-v2"></a>
- Transaction fees raise the cost of repeated exchange. <a id="t095-v3"></a>
- Source caps prevent unlimited extraction growth. <a id="t095-v4"></a>

## Design example

Cheap mass production raises income while machine maintenance grows with the installed fleet.

Prototype check: Test many long economic cycles, measuring the creation and removal of each resource separately.

## Context and limits

Economic rules connect production, allocation, commitments and exchange; prices should communicate scarcity and available alternatives. Each overview separates player actions, state changes and alternative rules. Examples are hypothetical design scenarios, not claims about a named game. A prototype check states an observable question for the next iteration. Existing detailed references remain separately linked from the direction map.

## Connected materials


## Sources and provenance

Original bilingual editorial overviews authored for gamemechanics.pro on 2026-10-20 and reviewed on 2026-10-21. Scenarios are hypothetical design examples; prototype checks describe work to perform, not completed playtests. Primary sources support the stated techniques and implementation context, not every proposed variant.

- [Factorio: Content](https://www.factorio.com/game/content) (id: source-96be186d8ada50a0)
- [Slay the Spire](https://www.megacrit.com/press-kits/slay-the-spire/) (id: source-7f09c8a736762f4f)

CC-BY-4.0 · gamemechanics.pro contributors