Talk:Item rarity

Naming System

How about this for naming system:

• White = Common
• Blue = Uncommon
• Purple = Semi-Rare
• Gold = Rare
• Green = Unique

Sound good?--Eloc 02:33, 11 May 2007 (EDT)

The biggest problem with these names comes from the mini-pets, where some gold pets are not rare at all, while some white ones are not common at all. And I have a personal dislike to call anything "unique" which exists in thousends. --Xeeron 06:04, 11 May 2007 (EDT)

Well for the Green one, I only chose Unique because that's what I have seen it called several times before. Which Mini Pets that are White, are had to get? Also, this could be just for weapons, like ones you get while killing stuff.--Eloc 16:12, 11 May 2007 (EDT)

According to this page: "Some extremely rare promotional miniatures are also white." No idea which ones that are. --Xeeron 16:51, 11 May 2007 (EDT)

Well if no one knows which ones they are, then how do they know that?--Eloc 23:57, 11 May 2007 (EDT)

I dont know lol. Which makes me ask whether that passage should be on the wiki page at all. But that apart, there are definitely miniature pig|non-rare gold miniatures that I know/own ;-) --Xeeron 12:55, 12 May 2007 (EDT)

Well, if you think about it, Mini Pigs can be considered rare. They are limited edition so there will never be any more of them again (most likely). They can only go up in value from here on in.--Eloc 13:54, 12 May 2007 (EDT)

1.0000000000000001^n will eventually be larger than 10000000*n if n gets large enough as well. I doubt we will live to see the day =) --Xeeron 19:12, 12 May 2007 (EDT)

I was just about to ask how something smaller than 1 times itself ever can get bigger than 1. Then you edited it to make sense. :P - anja (contribs) 19:17, 12 May 2007 (EDT)

Heh, it took me less than 30 seconds to correct that, how did you get to the page that quickly? ::feels watched now:: ;-) --Xeeron 21:16, 12 May 2007 (EDT)

RC watch and lots of ppl sleeping ftw ;) - anja (contribs) 05:08, 13 May 2007 (EDT)

Here is how it will get rarer; More people will start playing Guild Wars. They will then want mini pets and some of them will try to collect all the mini pets (my dad is collecting all of them and he is new to Guild Wars), and with more people wanting to collect them, the prices will go up.--Eloc 18:13, 13 May 2007 (EDT)

-reset indent- That and people stop playing, have them hoarded up in their vaults and thus there are less in actual circulation. --Lemming64 19:10, 13 May 2007 (EDT)

More people will start playing than people quiting.--Eloc 23:14, 13 May 2007 (EDT)

Btw Xeron, about the "unique" thing you moaned about before - how about if we just change the "unique" to something like "special" "very rare" "ultra-rare" or something like that? --MCPol 13:44, 24 October 2007 (UTC)

Regarding rare white miniatures, I made a mistake. GuildWiki used to use a white background for miniatures with unverified rarities. By the way, are there official terms for white, blue and purple items? -- Gordon Ecker 11:14, 26 February 2008 (UTC)

The original Guild Wars site naming system DID exist way back, I'm unsure if this was also named in the information in the "books" that came with the game. -After checking i found the naming system in the factions manual p.92 (NOTE that the original naming system, aka pre factions, might have differed on whites and purples);

White = Common

Blue = Magical

Purple = Uncommon

Gold = Rare

Green = Unique

• Red = Didn't exist at this point in time (though as a fun note there was 5 mesmer masks dyed each in the colour above in the original book (beneath the text about weapon types) that came with guild wars - red being the colour without any belonging (to an item type).

Can a gold item be upgraded with a blue upgrade?

I recently found a gold jeweled chalice, but it won't let me upgrade it with a blue Focus core of fortitude. Are there even any gold upgrades for gold items?--Worldly Tutor 20:44, 20 January 2008 (UTC)

Depending on where you had the item drop, you won't be able to put some mods on it. Only Nightfall and ETON drops have inscription slots, for example. Also, mods can be put on any weapon rarity regardless of what rarity they originally came from.--Fourth Horseman 21:45, 20 January 2008 (UTC)

Purple items with no upgrades?

When I did Special Ops: Dragon's Gullet, some Ascalon Chest dropped me a purple Holy Rod. It has 6-10 Fire Damage, but it isn't upgraded at all. Only 6-10 Fire Damage. Is this how it should be? --numma_cway 12:53, 4 May 2008 (UTC)

Items with low requirements often have no upgrades or inscription slot. I don't know if there is a certain 'rule' they follow, but since it was a low-end chest, that may be why. Kokuou 12:57, 4 May 2008 (UTC)

It happens that magical items drop without a modifier, it's rare (afaik) but it happens - I've had it happen myself (blue/magical item). When i think about it, it was also around ascalon (post searing).

Purple focus with two mods

Purple Earth Scroll

I found a purple Earth Scroll in a chest in Factions (Mount Qinkai):

• 12 Energy --> max energy,
• Armor +5 (while health is above 50%) --> equal to a max "Hail to the King" mod
• HCT 9% --> equal to a near-max Focus Core of Swiftness.

Such items are normally gold - even foci with only one HCT 9% mod can be afaik. Does anybody know why this was considered purple? —ZerphaThe Improver 15:48, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

Seems fairly standard to me. Thinks it's just random. (I also think you have it backwards; rarity is set first, then mods) Backsword 15:54, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

I remembered an article on the old wiki which documented upgrades' values (+28hp staff heads may be found on purple and gold items, +29 and +30hp on gold items only, +5 armor staff heads on both purple and gold items, ect...) Therefore i thought pruple items could only get mods with 6-8%, and HCT 9% would be something that could only be found on gold items. If rarity is set first and purple items can also have two mods, that maybe just means that this mod can simply be found on purple items as well.

Briefly speaking: You're likely right, excuse the false alarm. —ZerphaThe Improver 16:47, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

I think what is happening is that values can overlap. Since ranges are short, rounding amkes the 'edge' values available on two rarity levels. This is why +5 def (max) can be found on uncommons: the range is so short that rounding makes the best uncommons rounded to the max value. Backsword 16:56, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

Weapon Types that are considered Rare?

Hope this works. First time I've left a post on Wiki. Anyway, shouldn't there be a section somewhere that shows what Weapon Types are considered Rare? Meaning that there should be a list saying that a Voltaic Spear is a Rare weapon type, along with all the other types as well. I guess this would be what people call 'rare skin'. This would really help out noobs like me, (though I am just a PvE noob, not PvP) Fire Marshal 22:10, 28 October 2008 (UTC)

We track drop rates. The term rarity is used to describe the color of the item, not how often it drops because that is subject to change with various updates. -- Wyn 13:00, 28 October 2008 (UTC)

Ok, so I guess I should be looking at Drop Rates for various types of weapons. Is there a list somewhere that shows the drop rates? ie. What is less common (avoiding the term rare here), than the other types? Thanks! Fire Marshal 22:10, 28 October 2008 (UTC)

Identifying White Items...

It seems to raise the Merch price by 1/3 Gold Pieces. As if anybody cares.--iRathur 06:57, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

They should care, it's actually quite significant (I always id items from HM or high-end areas before selling them). Anyway, it's mentioned on the Identification page. Nate 15:51, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Indeed; but it didn't show the Gold amount. It just said to if the Merchant price is 25 Gold. So I figured I might as well Post the average amount of Gold I get. And from asking in Lions Arch; very few people agree with Identifying White Loot.--iRathur 00:09, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Hrrrm, you're right (I read it as "higher then 25 gold"...weird tip as it's worded, wonder what the reasoning is), might as well add a note if you're certain about the 1/3 increase. Nate 03:46, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

I've had plenty of white items increase by 50 gold, which for most white items is +100% of their value. --JonTheMon 04:10, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Right, so why does the note recommend id'ing only items worth 25 gold? I'm going to change it to "25 gold or more" since added value from most of these items easily covers the price of identification kits. Nate 17:21, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

25 gold is kinda arbitrary. However, it seems to be about the threshold where it starts becoming worth it. If a 15 gold item only increased, on average, 10 gold, it's not a huge benefit. However, if a 30 gold item increases on average 20 gold or more, then it's worth it. --JonTheMon 17:47, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Z-Coins and Rock Candy

I don't think either Z Coins or Rock Candy should actually be listed, as their name colour actually suggests item colour rather than rarity. Also, if you notice, the blue for the Blue Rock Candy is actually darker than the blue used for items Lynx Raven Raide 03:09, 17 May 2009 (UTC)

Maybe add a list at the bottom saying "These items use the color of their names for flavor rather than to indicate rarity:" Could be a notes section or a "Non-Rarity Item Colors" section. --Star Weaver 21:24, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

No, that info goes on the Item page. This is not that page. Backsword 21:39, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

Color change when salvaging

"Salvaging all upgrade components from a blue, purple, or gold salvage item will sometimes turn the salvage item white." From what I observed, I got the impression that an item rarity never changes by salvaging. If it's uncommon (purple) or rare (gold), it will stay so even without mod. Blue items may become white because blue is the same as "white with a modifier" (both are common). Still, the item rarity does not change. Conversely, if you mod a white weapon, it will become blue. Mabye more research is needed. -- Treomens

Charr bags and salvage kits

Are of green and gold rarity but i haven't seen them on the lists.I'm too lazy to add them myself. :D Super Range Ranger 13:07, 14 August 2010 (UTC)

Purple Salvage items without Sig or Rune

Someone up above (from 2008) noted finding a purple weapon without any upgrades, but I've not seen any mention of non-white salvage items popping up this way. A few minutes ago I finished a normal mode Zen Daijun run with a new char, and collected a purple plagueborn armor from a L10 or L14 afflicted. In town, I ID'd it and it had neither sig nor rune. This is the first case I've seen out of thousands of ID'd purps. Anyone else come up with such items? Kruhljak 07:00, 21 May 2011 (UTC)

Yeah I just got a Naga Vambrace from Haiju Lagoon that came up purple but had nothing on it when ID'd. Seems to be an old bug as I've seen comments on item pages dating back years. 76.253.0.17 01:04, 11 July 2011 (UTC)

With runes I've had it plenty (meaning a handful to two overall) when it comes to items I've only had it once (that i remember). This is very reminiscent of the rollerbeetle race where people used a hack to receive oponents advantages from the crates - making winning against them incredibly hard as they stacked echo and super rollerbeetle (and yeah ik you can stack yourself, by not using but this is not about that - this is about getting nothing from crates regurarly and someone else getting that bonus without running over more than 1-2 crates in a lap).

Item Rarity and max mods?

Does Item Rarity affect whether an Weapon can recieve max mods?

Im asking because several times now I have gone to trade a weapon with someone (after telling them all of its stats) and when they see it in the trade window, they pull out, saying "Oh, I thought it was a gold item, Sorry". When I ask them "Why?", they say that it's because only Gold weapons can recieve max mods. But, I have several Blue (and Purple) weapons with max damage/energy stats etc, and I have put all max mods and inscriptions on them. Is that not a "Blue" weapon "Recieving Max Mods"? Titan Crow 11:47, 28 July 2011 (UTC)

My understanding is that the rarity affects the chances of it being created with max mods, not if it can receive them or not. I have never heard of an item mod having a "level requirement". --JonTheMon 12:46, 28 July 2011 (UTC)

Thats exactly what I thought! It has happened to me quite a few times now though, there must be a lot of misinformed people out there. The guy that I tried to trade with today got fair pissed about me questioning him on it too, I guess he thought I was just after the sale. Titan Crow 13:14, 28 July 2011 (UTC)

People are vain about the color of the lettering on their weapons, even though it makes no difference and no one would never know unless you dropped in on the ground. Some people don't understand why I would ever use a max-mod Zehtuka's Shortbow. Manifold 14:32, 28 July 2011 (UTC)

I reckon your right there, its probabily all about vanity. Their loss I suppose. Titan Crow 14:53, 28 July 2011 (UTC)

I always merch grapes: the non-gold color is a visual indicator that the item (probably) does not have max stats. However, in terms of practicality, I have had no trouble putting max upgrades on blue or purple non-max weapons (and, o/c, max ones, too).

"[T]here must be a lot of misinformed people out there." <sigh> Indeed </sigh>. At least, this particular misunderstanding doesn't lead to griping about drop rates or specious bug reports. — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 16:44, 28 July 2011 (UTC)

-Reset indent; the only disadvantage of not being gold is the chance of the item not having an inscription slot. I'm not sure about rare's (purple) but for blue's (common) it is not always guaranteed and you cannot inscribe an item without an inscription slot. (E.g. Common whites) Sable ^{The Master of Bei Shun} 02:43, 17 November 2011 (UTC)

I've seen grapes and even (one time) a gold without an inscription slot (don't remember if it was NF or EotN). – Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 02:44, 22 November 2011 (UTC)

Nerf of rare salvaging

Within the last two years there has been a nerf of the amount of materials and rarity you receive from salvaging items that have been modified with Highly salvageable mod ("Measure for Measure"). I canno't pinpoint when this was introduced and please correct me if I'm wrong if anyone still makes diagrams over salvagerates, droprates etc. But it has gone from 30-170 to 3-25 and ALOT less rare materials salvaged. --The preceding unsigned comment was added by 78.73.31.212 (talk) at 19:36, 9 October 2020 (UTC).

"Bugged" Uncommon (and possible others wo insc or similar)

I've gotten a few in my days, but not many (that i can remember atleast ;D), so did a charr battle plans with the decoder today and lo and behold if TWO didn't drop at once. I rarely do those mini missions but the last time i got one was also with the charr battle plan decoder. I do know that i've gotten magical without anything on them outside the battle plans but this is noteworthy for interest i'd imagine. --The preceding unsigned comment was added by 78.73.31.212 (talk) at 01:24, 5 January 2021 (UTC).