Algorithm for randomizing loot?

[Toreava]

I spend a lot of time searching for items to flesh out my TT’s build list. In doing so I’ve noticed some peculiar things about just how long you have to wait for certain loot to drop. Now my observations are based on a fairly short period of time. I joined the Emulator stress test after ST3 started, and not too too long before the wipe made necessary by the database corruption in ST3.

Loot appears to be cyclical. When a certain set of loot appears from mobs I am hunting, I know enough to go away wait for a few hours or days to hope for what I want to drop. I know, at some locations, that this thing, that thing, etc. dropping at the time pretty much guarantees I will not see what I came for in the loot drops.

I’ve been sitting on Gupta for way too long waiting for the titan’s heart to drop. I picked up several cfe’s in succession and then crystal dynamos started dropping. Fiiiiiiinally after several hours and getting to the point I was nearly drooling on my keyboard from fatigue, the titan’s dropped.

I'd sit on Gupta again to confirm the cyclical nature of drops, but it just ain't fair to others for me to hog that location. Besides... this could be something you already know.

Does this bother me in particular? No. I just thought I would bring it to someone’s (anyone’s) attention in case it should not be so.

[Caelus]

I noticed the same thing trying to get pulsing spore reactor/barrier of slime/crystalline dynamo...I spent a couple hours and over 600 missiles getting nothing but comps and body parts and then in a matter of 15 minutes I got all three drops and within that time I sent out broadcasts for people to come get the multiple barriers of ooze that dropped.

[C Del[IS]]

I don't think the loot drop function should produce behavior like this, but I'll take a look at it and see if there's any way for that to happen.

[Caelus]

I don't think the loot drop function should produce behavior like this, but I'll take a look at it and see if there's any way for that to happen.

I would personally appreciate that mate. While some small part of me wishes that what I wanted would drop the first time or, as happened, I would get everything in a few minutes, it does take some of the fun and sense of accomplishment away if I could time the loot.