Extraordinary and legendary items

[BethelAbba]

OK, OK, OK.... I am trying hard to wrap my mind around the math here.

Samuel said.... Legendary Items are impossible to obtain, because they have a drop ratio of 0.01%. On average you have to kill specific monsters 10000 times to obtain the desired item.

But in actuality, 1/10,000 = .0001

But here's where I am getting fuzzy.

So if I drop points into Magic Finder, how greatly does this actually affect the drop rate?

.0002 = 1/5000
.0003 = 3/10000
.0004 = 1/2500
.0005 = 1/2000
.0006 = 3/5000
.0007 = 7/10000
.0008 = 1/1250
.0009 = 9/10000
and .001 = 1/1000

Now that would imply that by only adding 2 points to MF (so that I have .0002) I have effectively cut my search time in half?????

But if I add another 2 (so that I have .0003), I have only cut my search time by a factor of 60%......meaning I haven't really shaved much extra time (a mere 10%) off my search, correct?

2 more (so that I have .0004) cuts time down by 75%? (I've gained a factor of 15% by these two points.)

Am I getting this math correct here? Does the MF really affect the time you have to look for one of these things by that great a factor? (a whopping 50% for merely 2 points added.....) Or is my math completely wrong somewhere?

Help me out please, cause this one has been driving me nuts for 2 weeks now.

[rijackson741]

Samuel's math is not correct. It is not quite so simple. The drop chance is 0.01%=0.0001=1/10,000. With that drop chance you have a 50% chance of getting the item after 6932 kills. With MF 2 you would double your chances (you are correct about that), so you would have a 50% chance of getting the item after 3466 kills.

[Jimztah]

I don't see it as one of the three options for "maximizing your chances", but...can't you just save the game, kill the monsters and if not the desired loot gets collected you simply load that game and repeat?
That's what I'm doing with the Kazaul Imps atm. Since it's the drop chance that matters and not the amount of monsters killed it should have an even better effect since it's much faster.

Or is the "maximizing" part taking your character's leveling when grinding in mind?

[rijackson741]

Yes, the reload method is the fastest. Especially if you set the scene, so that several monsters are next to you when you save.

[Jimztah]

I thought so. Just had to ask since it's not one of the methods in the entry post. Thanks!

[Lady Drager]

Yeah, but personally, I feel there's no point nor glory in denying yourself of the XP (and levels) from doing it the hard way. I think gamers who do this are sexy. The way you play a game says a lot about your character.

[Voom]

I agree. The harder it is to achieve, the more "sexy." Absolutely. That's why I don't use flee tactics. If I can't beat Hira'zinn in one go, then I'm not strong enough to fight it...

[Kashim]

As an engineer, I have to disagree. Simplicity and efficiency are sexy. Whatever is the simplest, most efficient way is the most sexy. If someone found a way to get to Lodar's hut in 2 screens, that'd be sexy. When I realized that I could do the save/reload method (figured it out before I read about it) I thought it was dang sexy. When the original method of hunting an RoLS was seeming like it was going to take an age, a method that got it in a few hours was a thing of absolute beauty.
A town that is laid out with its streets in a perfect grid, with E-W streets being numbered (1st st.) and N-S streets being lettered (A st.) is beautiful. Houses that are wired to have a separate 30 amp line for every outlet are beautiful (my house is not beautiful).

I do agree about the Hira'zinn though. Bashing it in the face as hard as possible is the epitome of simplicity.

[Urbain]

Kashim, I agree with some of what your engineering mind finds sexy; a separate line for each outlet in a house or the singular bashing of the Hira'zinn being the examples of that. However, a city in a perfect grid, to my mind, is dull and lacks character. Similarly, choosing to save and reload seems institutional and merely utilitarian. It lacks the development (in one's own mind) of the character.

On merely a personal note, I play this game because I no longer have time for D&D style dungeon crawling in my spare time. One of the great enjoyments for me was the character development, the creation of that character's story. In a silly way I see the grind as a part of that. My character heard this story about a unique item that could only be found in a certain area. After defeating many enemies and honing his skills he was finally able to uncover the secret hiding place of the item. He came out of the experience a better adventurer and more able to complete his final quest. To me, that's sexy. That's why I play the game

[Jimztah]

How the hell did you bring sexiness into this haha?

I'll go for simplicity any day of the week. I'm already averaging probably 5-6h a day on this game since two-three weeks ago, so I feel like I grind enough.

I was super lucky getting the RoLS aftee only approx. 600 kills (did NOT use the reload method for that, am I at least a bit sexy now?). But i'm having no luck at all with the RoL. I must have killed nearly 4000 Kazaul Imps by now and no rapier, and I even have one level of the Magic Finder skill.