Does anyone else find the drop rates discouraging?

Exactly as the title states - does anyone else find the current drop rates discouraging for farming? At what point does one farm a spot before deciding the drops aren't worth the invested time the coin to set up for the farm?

Example: I've recently started farming FOW in NM for shards. I've farmed a good portion (but not all; I'm still learning) of the shadow army six or seven times now but have never had a shard or gold item drop while farming. In farming UW, I'm getting on average 1 or no ecto drops when clearing the chamber. The only consistent tome drops I've ever seen are assassin and mesmer tomes from raptors and vaettirs.

I understand that farming is about patience, repetition, and statistics. What I'm curious about is if new farmers are fighting a losing battle due (whether by an anti-farming script or overall reduced drops) and if old farmers are doing it out of habit or are giving up on it altogether.

Thoughts?

No, not discouraging, just makes me want to work harder at it. If drops turn to shit, go do something else for awhile.

I don't think I can really say drop rates are discouraging - if the drop rates for what you are farming were higher, the items would be worth less money, forcing you to spend the same amount of time farming anyway (for the same value).

I'm surprised that you've not got a single shard from the shadow army if you've farmed a decent number of them.

Yesterday I ran six FoW farms on my Sin, killing all the Spirit Shepherds, plus a dozen skeles on the Battlefield (takes about 10 mins per run.) I got 3 shards, 1 sapphire, 3 golds and a white dye (along with a ton of mats salvaged from the other drops).

Yes drop rates can be discouraging but as the poster above says, set yourself up half a dozen different farms and alternate between them. Make some of them solo and others full team hero farms for dungeon chests. It helps mix it up and keeps farming from getting stale.

Quote: Originally Posted by SkekSister

I'm surprised that you've not got a single shard from the shadow army if you've farmed a decent number of them.

Yesterday I ran six FoW farms on my Sin, killing all the Spirit Shepherds, plus a dozen skeles on the Battlefield (takes about 10 mins per run.) I got 3 shards, 1 sapphire, 3 golds and a white dye (along with a ton of mats salvaged from the other drops).

Yes drop rates can be discouraging but as the poster above says, set yourself up half a dozen different farms and alternate between them. Make some of them solo and others full team hero farms for dungeon chests. It helps mix it up and keeps farming from getting stale. wanna share the build for this?

Lol, is GW the only game you play?
Theres dozens, if not hundreds of other online games out there with drop rates that make you just wanna cry. Be thankful for what you've got.

You just have to pick the right enemys to farm in the area,If you want to farm shards farm Beach or spider cave not the army

Quote: Originally Posted by jensyea

Lol, is GW the only game you play? The only MMO, yes.

Thanks everyone for your feedback. I'm fishing for hints that farming isn't really worthwhile anymore, but if that's not the case (and it doesn't sound like that's the case) and my luck's just in a rut then that's fine too.

Farming has never been worthwhile, and it gets more and more worthless every day as more things are farmed.

Depends on what you're farming and why you're farming, Kunder. If you're farming to make GW money, yes, it's not very efficient. But if you're farming something that you need (mats for armor or a crafter weapon, Green Weapons for your Heroes - the stuff that you actually need, not just stuff to increase your virtual GW bankroll), farming can honestly be worth your time.

Farming is simply killing specific enemies or doing specific quests/missions over and over to get something that you want/need. I find farming worthwhile, but I don't over-farm. Farming is not my primary means of getting currency - you get enough of that playing through the game - I farm for items I need: crafting mats, Gold Items to ID for the Wisdom Title Track, Event Items for Drunkard/Sweet Tooth/Party Title Track, and so forth.

When farming becomes your means of earning "money" (lots of 1's and 0's for all your virtual shiny stuff) and that's all that you do, yeah, the drop rates are crap - but without drop rates all you'd need to do was go outside of Old Ascalon and kill a few Shatter Gargoyles to get all the shiny stuff you want... what's the point in that? You could be spending that time on a much more lucrative venture if "getting 1337 expensive stuff" is your goal or actually playing the game (if you haven't played yourself out over the last 6 years).

ye, its discouraging.
Guess i'll never get that q8+5e dusk blade

Drop rate for treasure is pretty sad so far. I think I am around R5 and the best thing I get is still elite tomes....

Quote: Originally Posted by Maya Cerestiez

Would you prefer it to have everything you want right away and then have nothing to do or aim for?

@ Coast - Farm Ventari's Sell Forum, Guru Auctions, or Kamadan

@ Cuilan - Agreed