A bid is an offer the seller can accept. That one sentence explains most of the rules below.
The mechanics
You bid. The price goes up by one increment. Everyone in the room sees it, in the order it happened, with the same number on every screen — which sounds obvious and is the hardest part of building this.
You cannot bid against yourself. If you are already the highest bidder, the button waits.
Increments
You cannot raise by one rupee. The step rises with the price, because an auction that moves in rupees at ten thousand would take all evening. The current step is shown on the bid control.
You can bid above the minimum step if you want to make a point. People do.
The clock, and why it extends
Each item has a countdown. A bid in the last seconds pushes it back out.
This is anti-sniping, and it is about fairness rather than drama. On a fixed clock, the winning move is to say nothing until the final second — which turns an auction into a reflex test and leaves the seller short. With an extension, the item ends when people stop bidding. The ten seconds after a bid is about this moment specifically.
What we do not allow
A seller cannot bid on their own items, through their own account or any other. The entire value of a room full of bidders is that the price is somebody's real opinion. If we find it, the account goes.
You cannot take a bid back. A retractable offer is not an offer, and the seller has stopped to sell you the thing. If you genuinely mis-tapped, say so in the chat immediately — it is between you and the seller, and honesty early is treated very differently from silence.
If you lose
The under-bidder matters more than they think. If the winner does not pay, the item is offered to you, at your own bid. You were not expecting the message, so you get twelve hours to decide.
Questions people ask
Can I set a maximum bid and walk away?
Yes. Set the most you are willing to pay and Metzee bids for you from that moment — the smallest step that keeps you on top, never more, and never past your number. Nobody is told what it is, not other bidders and not the seller. It cannot be lowered afterwards, because it has already done its bidding.
Why did someone else become the highest bidder after I bid?
They bid higher, or your bid did not register. Check the bid list; if your bid is not in it, it did not land.
Why did my bid not go through?
Usually connection, the item closing, or an unpaid win from earlier blocking you. Occasionally a bid below the current increment.
What happens if two people bid at the same instant?
The server decides the order and every screen is told the same thing. There is one authoritative sequence, not one per device.
Can I see who I am bidding against?
You see display names and that a bid happened. Not identities.
Is a bid legally binding?
It is an offer which, once accepted, is a sale. The terms are the governing document.
Next: what happens when you win.