Salvaging Major-Superior Runes, is it broken?

velvetbunny

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: May 2005

Ok, i'm getting really frustrated because every single Major or Superior rune i have found since the update i lost when i tried to salvage it. I'm at 3 Major and 1 Superior Runes lost so far. Is this normal? I have never had trouble salvaging these before the update. Is anyone else experiencing this? Am i just the most unlucky S.O.B. in the world?

WillOrWil

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: May 2005

You're not the only one. I had one Sup, two Maj and five Min. Tried to salvage them all last night and lost every single one. I guess the expert salvage kit is for experts 'cause obviously I wasn't doing it right. LOL

Corwin_Andros

Corwin_Andros

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Apr 2005

Florida

Wayward Wanderers

W/E

I still haven't gotten any majors or superiors since the update and only 2 majors in the last month of playing..

Luckily the two I did get I managed to salvage.

I'm not sweating it really.. I get by ok without well enough.. and for PvP unlocking is all that matters... so none of them are out much if something actually is wrong

dbgtboy

dbgtboy

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Apr 2005

irl

i quit playing

i guess your'e unlucky, i found 4 majors today and all salvaged into runes.

Spark

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: May 2005

I was able to salvage a Superior Rune last night so it's not the patch, just bad luck. =o

Xavz

Academy Page

Join Date: Feb 2005

Wisconsin

E/

I've found one superior (Soul Reaping) and one major (Curses) in my 100 hours of play and they both salvaged out.

ManadartheHealer

ManadartheHealer

Desert Nomad

Join Date: May 2005

Awaiting GW2

W/

I got a major rune today out of some random purple drop... and it salvaged successfully...

You really are just unlucky...

CtrlAltDel

Lion's Arch Merchant

Join Date: May 2005

Ohio

Brotherhood of Havoc

Mo/Me

all my supr. runes went into steel or whatever tonight

Citizen_Nokarot

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: May 2005

Washington D.C.

Five Nineteen [VXIX]

R/Mo

Can't say I've gotten any post-patch, but I know this happened to me a few times before the patch. I didn't really mind, because I'm all excited just for unlocking things.

And.. maybe I just didn't see it, but can someone quote where the patch update said that you'd always get a rune after salvaging? Here's what I read..

Assured that rare armor drops will always have either a major or superior rune, not a minor rune.
I assume that this means "Blue gives you minor. Purple gives you major. Yellow gives you superior". And by "gives you", I think it means "contains/unlocks", not "100% chance of salvage".

Maybe it's just me..

Red Locust

Red Locust

Site Contributor

Join Date: May 2005

No, I think it just means "yellow gives major or superior"
Blue still gives you minor, purple still gives you minor or major.

Madmartigan Cormac

Pre-Searing Cadet

Join Date: Jun 2005

My problem is worse. I've been only able to salvage 1 rune ever and I'm level 20. I have a friend who wouldn't believe me so we hooked up. I had 3 armor items (magumma I believe). 2 were major, the other superior. I salvaged 1 of them and got no runes. I gave the other 2 to him and he ended up with 2 runes. I can't imagine that I really am unlucky enough that after reaching level 20 I've only salvaged 1 rune. For the record, YES, I'm using an expert salvage kit.

Oracle

Oracle

Banned

Join Date: Feb 2005

The Zero Meridian

Servants of Fortuna

N/Me

Was a bit hit and miss last night. To begin with, I forgot that you're now meant to salvage first (if you want to be able to give the UNID item to someone else). Anyway, the first yellow item I lost, it turned into tanned hide squares, but the second one salvaged OK into an Elem rune (but it did not tell me if it was minor/major/sup), so I ID'd it and it was Superior Fire. I then salvaged 2 warrior runes and 1 mes rune which I gave to guildlies as UNID. Not bad for 30 or so minutes of farming ^^.

Burem

Academy Page

Join Date: May 2005

East Coast USA

E/Me

Atleast they got unlocked. The last 10+ pieces of purple armor i've gotten has not had a rune in it at all.

Galatea

Galatea

Core Guru

Join Date: Feb 2005

The Drifters [DRFT]

E/Me

I was able to salvage a major mesmer rune from a blue item last night.

Bu7ch

Bu7ch

Academy Page

Join Date: Apr 2005

Cincinnati

Governors of Destruction [GOD]

R/

I, too, have been unlucky. I've been able to salvage just one minor rune and have lost tons of major. I don't remember coming across a superior yet and I'm a level 20!

BlaineTog

BlaineTog

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: Apr 2005

California

Broken Blades

E/Mo

I think what's happening is thta you are more likely to ID a rune than before, but not more likely to get one.

For example, let's say you get 10 purple salvage items in one day of playing. Before, you might have IDed 3-4 runes and salvaged 2-3 of them successfully. Now, you ID 10 runes but only salvage 2-3 of them successfully. This looks like you're getting ripped off, but really it's to help reduce the "grind" for PvPers (because IDing a rune unlocks it) while maintaining the number of runes from for PvEers, which hasn't seemed to be much of a problem.

Now, all of those numbers are probably off significantly from community averages, but the ratios are probably roughly similar.

velvetbunny

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: May 2005

Quote:
Originally Posted by BlaineTog
I think what's happening is thta you are more likely to ID a rune than before, but not more likely to get one.

For example, let's say you get 10 purple salvage items in one day of playing. Before, you might have IDed 3-4 runes and salvaged 2-3 of them successfully. Now, you ID 10 runes but only salvage 2-3 of them successfully. This looks like you're getting ripped off, but really it's to help reduce the "grind" for PvPers (because IDing a rune unlocks it) while maintaining the number of runes from for PvEers, which hasn't seemed to be much of a problem.

Now, all of those numbers are probably off significantly from community averages, but the ratios are probably roughly similar.
Thinking about that, your probably right. Before i would get purple/gold armor and it would have no rune in it. Now, they always seem to have a rune if ID'd. So maybe they offset the fact that more runes would be found by making it harder to salvage.

It still sucks to lose superior runes though.

Arothian

Arothian

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Apr 2005

U.S.A.

Silver Wolves

Mo/W

Well, alteast you all have unlocked a Sup Rune. I haven't seen a single one in over 150 hours of gameplay. I've gotten many majors and a truck load of minors, but not Sup. Hopefully they are around a bit more since the latest update.

SisterMercy

SisterMercy

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Mar 2005

Sisters of Mercy

I've lost two superiors in the past week, this way. It's quite disheartening. OTOH, I've usually had good success salvaging anything from blues or golds. Purples almost always give me plant fiber.

In some ways, this may not be a terrible thing. As the number of superior and major runes perpetuates, their value goes down the toilet. Where is there to go, once everyone has superior runes of everything, in every piece of armor? Scarcity can be a good thing.

I can barely sell Minor Runes for 100 gold anymore (except Vigor, I can get 300-500), and I can't even give away the Mesmer runes. It's ugly.

I guess the idea is to not identify it first, so you don't see what you're losing.... :S