Help: Need advice on mobs, budget, and gears for my level

ihazbackup

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Konrad Nightstalker
Hi,

I want to gather advices from fellow hunters. I am a very low-level hunter (Lv 9 laser sniper) and am currently looking for recommendations/advices on my hunting activity.
  • The highest gun I have is the Z12 Barb from Gold pack
  • I usually cycle 40-45PED ammo as hunting budget for 1 session with my Z12+Sink
  • With Z12+Sink, I usually hunt mobs at HPs between 60 - 90 (e.g. Proto Drone, Proto Droka, Combibo, Merp young, Exaro, etc)
  • Lower mobs like 20-50 HPs, I usually use my adj bukins + ZX
  • For Punies, unamped tt pistol or any looted rubios/EWE EP-2
  • Finisher is either a TT pistol or TT knife
  • Returns were, well... let's just say I'm in the red below 90% return from my last 6 hunting sessions, even with MU.

So, the questions are:
  1. What may possibly go wrong with my setup?
  2. Is my setup too high for th emobs I am hunting?
  3. Am I killing too few mobs to warrant 90%+ tt return?
  4. Any advice on how to improve?
 
Since loot 2.0 there doesn't seem to be such a need for a finisher any more, loot is directly related to the cost to kill, so a little extra cost on the last shot should be returned in your loot anyway, also use your most efficient setup, (based on the efficiency stat) more efficiency = more loot.

Your long term average should end up around the 90%, but with low turn-over and bad runs this has some pretty big short term variations (you need to compare over 1000s of mobs not 100s). Also do remember a portion of those losses are essentially transferred into skills, so not totally lost.

If you can manage it, I would add an A101 to your toolkit, it will work well on your adjusted-bukins, and at some point if you opt for an Ozpyn Chon S1X1 in preference to the TT pistol, it will match that very nicely too.

The real trick is to try and find MU items in your loot. In this respect watch the drops of the mobs you hunt and make sure they are not having a tight day, if they are switch. Maybe consider Arkadia, some mobs there have decent MU on the hides when compared to Caly.

Most of all, play because it's fun, a challenge, or just has good company, if you play to a budget of expected losses you stress less about the whole "trying to win" aspect, and when you have a great run it feels even better.
 
MindArk draws new players with the advertizing promise of "getting paid for playing a game".
Well, they dont exactly say it this way, but they clearly try to implant this idea.

But after all they run a business here and they roghly withdraw ~5% of the turnover in game.
So overall you have to live with loosing ~5% of everything per turnover.
In the long run 95% return rate is okay, and "in the long run" means to watch your numbers over tens of thousands of killed mobs (= loot events), including a global every 100-500 mobs, a rare HoF every 10.000-100.000 mobs and maybe a more or less unique ATH every 1.000.000-10.000.000 loot events.

Consider those 5% loss to be your subscription fee.
By limiting your turnover you can decide, if you play for 5$ per month or 500$ per month.
Whatever your wallet allows you to do, or your addiction forces you to...

Your gear can alter your overall return rate by maybe 2-3%.
Your current gear is already quite okay for your level of playing. The said A101 would be a good addition.

Go for Efficiency % in first place, secondary go for Damage Per PEC ("DPP").
 
Since loot 2.0 there doesn't seem to be such a need for a finisher any more, loot is directly related to the cost to kill, so a little extra cost on the last shot should be returned in your loot anyway, also use your most efficient setup, (based on the efficiency stat) more efficiency = more loot.

Your long term average should end up around the 90%, but with low turn-over and bad runs this has some pretty big short term variations (you need to compare over 1000s of mobs not 100s). Also do remember a portion of those losses are essentially transferred into skills, so not totally lost.

If you can manage it, I would add an A101 to your toolkit, it will work well on your adjusted-bukins, and at some point if you opt for an Ozpyn Chon S1X1 in preference to the TT pistol, it will match that very nicely too.

The real trick is to try and find MU items in your loot. In this respect watch the drops of the mobs you hunt and make sure they are not having a tight day, if they are switch. Maybe consider Arkadia, some mobs there have decent MU on the hides when compared to Caly.

Most of all, play because it's fun, a challenge, or just has good company, if you play to a budget of expected losses you stress less about the whole "trying to win" aspect, and when you have a great run it feels even better.

Thanks for the advice. I set aside buying new UL weapons/amps before due to insane MUs they have, but I can consider A101 in the near future.

Seeing bad/good mobs might be hard since I cannot find a clear indicator when a mob is going bad or good (and I'm a sucker for completing missions :ahh:). Do you perhaps have any advice on how to at least recognize if the loots from certain are going bad or good? Also different mobs makes it harder for me to stack items.
 
Go for Efficiency % in first place, secondary go for Damage Per PEC ("DPP").

Does eff affects loot variation and DPP affects loot return or is it the other way around?
 
Does eff affects loot variation and DPP affects loot return or is it the other way around?


Efficiency does not affect loot variation. It affects the tt value of loot.

DPP does indirectly affect loot variation (or optimal loot if you will). If you one-shot mobs, DPP doesn't matter, because the cost to kill will be anything from 70-200 % of theoretical minimum. If you use 10-20 shots to kill a mob, DPP does factor in, because every kill will cost less, which means there will be less shrap in loot.

Optimal loot = low cost to kill = minimizes shrap, maximizes other stuff in loot.
 
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Thanks for the advice. I set aside buying new UL weapons/amps before due to insane MUs they have, but I can consider A101 in the near future.

I would just skill up until you can use a weapon that takes A102 or even A103. Way cheaper to buy than A101.

Seeing bad/good mobs might be hard since I cannot find a clear indicator when a mob is going bad or good (and I'm a sucker for completing missions :ahh:). Do you perhaps have any advice on how to at least recognize if the loots from certain are going bad or good? Also different mobs makes it harder for me to stack items.

You will have to find an indiactor that works for you. Bad loot for 1 hour? Stop hunting, wait a few hours perhaps. Some say they need a 2-3 hour session to hit those "loot waves", but not sure if that works. Regarding stacking: yeah, stick to one mob until you have a pile of oil, skins, whatever that's big enough to be put on AH (or try selling on trade channel to avoid AH fee, whatever you like best).
 
Efficiency does not affect loot variation. It affects the tt value of loot.

DPP does indirectly affect loot return. If you one-shot mobs, DPP doesn't matter, because the cost to kill will be anything from 70-200 % of theoretical minimum. If you use 10-20 shots to kill a mob, DPP does factor in, because every kill will cost less, which means there will be less shrap in loot.

Optimal loot = low cost to kill = minimizes shrap, maximizes other stuff in loot.

This is interesting. So, the more shots you deal to a mob, the more variation the loot has. Then, it's better to use the lowest possible dmg gun with high DPP to kill a mob? since more variation of loot means more chance to get uncommon/rares?
 
Ride the wave. Prototype droka drop a lot of b101 Amps , azuros and other noob weaponry. You may have noticed that when you loot An azuro, the next Mob also contains a noob weapon or amp. This is because those weaponry and Amps all drop at once in like 10 minutes.
So the more dps you do when they drop, the better.

Efficiency ,smeshishiency
Eco, shmeco

You Just need to know when to Hunt and make sure to have as much dps as you can when you do. ( Best is to oneshot the proto droka, so you can herd all the noob Gear.
 
The aim for most players is to close the gap of your return rate (maybe 95%) to 100% ( = "free to play"), to play longer for the $.

It is widely believed that the "base return rate" of weapons is 90%.

Efficiency adds 0%-7% extra TT loot value (0%-100% Efficiency, or 0,07% extra loot per 1% Eff) to the 90% Base = up to 97% TT value return rate.

Damage Per PEC (DPP) alters the composition of the recived TT loot value.
Higher DPP yields less "Shrapnel" and more "Quality Loot". The combined TT value is not altered.

Shrapnel converts 100:101 into Universal Ammo (UA)
So shrapnel can be valued with 101% Markup.

Quality Loot is defined to be everything what is not Shrapnel.
Like looted hides, components, weapons, paints, etc.
Quality Loot often sells for more than 101% Markup (MU%) on the market, if you collected enough of them to create a worthwhile stack.

So a high DPP can yield you more stuff that sells for more than 101%, thus giving you some profit on its sales, which further narrows the gap to 100%

Depending on mob type the huge majority of Quality Loot may be some sort of hide wich is more or less TT fodder, hence 100% MU.
Dont forget to consider auction fees (at least 52 PEC). So a stack of 100 PED TT value should sell for more than 101,52% (101,52 PED) on first attemp to be more profitable than Shrapnel.
It MIGHT be less loss-making, to prefer more 101% shrapnel in this case. Do your own calculations.
 
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This is interesting. So, the more shots you deal to a mob, the more variation the loot has. Then, it's better to use the lowest possible dmg gun with high DPP to kill a mob? since more variation of loot means more chance to get uncommon/rares?

More variaton in loot does not mean higher chance to get unc/rare. It just means you get less shrap and more other stuff (hopefully with more MU than 1 % - otherwise there's no point hunting for optimal loot). Also, if you overkill way over normal cost (200 %), you will only get shrapnel, nothing else.

Yes, low damage high DPS is better, because every kill will be a bit cheaper. Less peds cycled to get a multiplier/rare item. Shortblades/handguns are good. BUT, it depends if the mob does a LOT of damage. If it does, and it's a slow mob, a rifle could make the killing cheaper (saves healing/armor decay cost).
 
Thanks for the advice. I set aside buying new UL weapons/amps before due to insane MUs they have, but I can consider A101 in the near future.

Seeing bad/good mobs might be hard since I cannot find a clear indicator when a mob is going bad or good (and I'm a sucker for completing missions :ahh:). Do you perhaps have any advice on how to at least recognize if the loots from certain are going bad or good? Also different mobs makes it harder for me to stack items.

My suggestion is, at your level, if you cannot kill a mob in 10 shot wearing no armor, then you shouldn't be hunting that mob. Find a mob that you can kill in 5 - 10 shot with your current weapon.

The a101 is highly recommended.
 
#1. Hunt what everybody else is hunting.

I have spent a lot of time and money hunting mobs that very few people hunt and almost always was in the red. For example, back in 2008, I used to hunt Atrax for hours and hours daily, nobody else was hunting them, I was pretty much the only one there. And more recently, I have been hunting Island Gorillas on Secret Island, which no one really hunts either, only occasionally have I seen someone else at the spawns.

But whenever I have gone and hunted the hot new mob or gone and hunted Longtooth Adolescents at the start of Migration, I have been lucky and come out of most runs with a profit.

Moral of the story is, if you never see anyone hunting those mobs, there's most likely a reason, and that means you probably shouldn't either.

#2. Take more risk when the game is very busy and lots of players are on.

Even though MA has worked to eliminate the loot waves, they still exist, but they are shorter and smaller. But when there's a lot of activity, they are occuring more often and are a little bigger. Take advantage of that.

Loot 2.0 was supposed to fix all that but from my experience, the above is still applicable today.

#3. Register to events on Land areas, that quite often may mean the difference between being in the black at the end of the run or being in the red.
 
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#1. Hunt what everybody else is hunting.

I have spent a lot of time and money hunting mobs that very few people hunt and almost always was in the red. For example, back in 2008, I used to hunt Atrax for hours and hours daily, nobody else was hunting them, I was pretty much the only one there. And more recently, I have been hunting Island Gorillas on Secret Island, which no one really hunts either, only occasionally have I seen someone else at the spawns.

But whenever I have gone and hunted the hot new mob or gone and hunted Longtooth Adolescents at the start of Migration, I have been lucky and come out of most runs with a profit.

Moral of the story is, if you never see anyone hunting those mobs, there's most likely a reason, and that means you probably shouldn't either.

#2. Take more risk when the game is very busy and lots of players are on.

Even though MA has worked to eliminate the loot waves, they still exist, but they are shorter and smaller. But when there's a lot of activity, they are occuring more often and are a little bigger. Take advantage of that.

Loot 2.0 was supposed to fix all that but from my experience, the above is still applicable today.

#3. Register to events on Land areas, that quite often may mean the difference between being in the black at the end of the run or being in the red.

There are also opinions against what you said at #1. The loots you receive correlates also to how many people in the area and how often the mobs are killed within a time. (For better or for worse? No idea)

Unfortunately, a lv 9 laser sniper might not profit a lot from land area events, mostly because those events also include mobs that are a lot higher than my level (and what my budget allows). Couple it with hunting tax, then my return would be even redder
 
There are also opinions against what you said at #1. The loots you receive correlates also to how many people in the area and how often the mobs are killed within a time. (For better or for worse? No idea)

Unfortunately, a lv 9 laser sniper might not profit a lot from land area events, mostly because those events also include mobs that are a lot higher than my level (and what my budget allows). Couple it with hunting tax, then my return would be even redder

I can only encourage you to find what works for you, like I found what works for me.

As far as events go, there are some that a player of your level can participate in if you look for them. There's a free event coming up on Monria next week-end with lots of prizes and lots of fun for everyone. Check out the official thread here:

https://www.monria.com/forum/thread...eclaims-cult-of-shutthend-sat-june-15th.5265/

You could win a prize just for guessing the number of globals during the event. There's no need to register, you just show up.

Cheers

Legends
 
[...]
Efficiency ,smeshishiency
Eco, shmeco

You Just need to know when to Hunt [...]


By far one of the worst advice ever in this game.
People made hundreds of thousands of PED going for ECO, pre loot 2.0 going the eco way.
Loot 2.0 is different but the same principles apply. Plus, getting more skills now influences the loot return long term. It's not easy to prepare for the long term, but, if you like the game, you should form some principles. At this stage finding a niche is probably the best bet. Find some MU to farm. Find an activity you can do for extensive periods of time with minimal losses.
Another decent advice, use http://www.entropialife.com when you evaluate someone's hunting advice. It doesn't tell everything but it can be an important factor to evaluate one's 'expertise' because you might end up following a hunting advice from a professional sweater.
 
If you are in to missions and just want low level hp mob to hit for a while there are missions for Arkadian Hornet (10 Hp), Carabok (10 HP), Oratan Propector (10 HP), Rakta (10 HP), Yarrijak (10 HP), Monura Male (12 HP), Monura Female (13 HP), Gallard (15 HP), Ostelok (20 HP), A small series of small missions for several low hp mobs on Calypso if you haven't done those yet, Maffoid, Sabakuma, Snablesnot, Robots, Puny, Merp, Rippersnapper... On Monria there's several repeatable missions, on Cyrene there's very small critters in the maze that you can do daily - do enough mazes and you get a special pet that you can buy with certificates the maze gives you, Next Island and Secret Island have a bunch of missions too, and Rocktropia has several missions with mobs as small as 2-5 HP, so you can actually get more mobs killed than you can on puny for same amount of peds... and then there's stuff like the zombies which have their own missions and some zombie hp levels are very low if you know where to look. Toulan also has several missions that are repeatable... Lots of choices out there at your level.

If you decide to do the maze:


Also, uh, remember to GO TO THE DOCKS DAILY BEFORE YOU HIT THE NPCS NEXT TO THE MAZE... because there's at least one extra mission you get if you hit the dock npc first, so you get an extra daily certificate so the wolpertinger pet takes a few less days to obtain.

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