Build 162 Loot Guide for Free Players

Build 162 has caused some concern due to loot drops being changed for free players. The purpose of this document is to explain the new loot rules and provide instruction for obtaining loot of all qualities.



Q: What are the new loot rules?

A:

• Gray, Green and Blue loot

  • always usable by both members and non-members

• Yellow

  • If it drops from a monster or chest, there's a 5% chance it'll be usable by a non-member

   

  • Items that generate in the merchant windows (Gypsy Sally or the Arms Merchants) have a 5% chance of being usable by a non-member

   

  • If you buy it from a King's Coin Vendor (the vendors in Townston or Sam in the dungeons), there's a 100% chance it'll be usable by a non-member

   

  • If an item drops from the Wishing Well, there's a 100% chance it'll be usable by a non-member

• Purple and Rainbow

  • If it drops from a monster or chest it can only be equipped by a paid member.

   

  • Items that generate in the merchant windows (Gypsy Sally or the Arms Merchants) can only be equipped by a paid member.

   

  • If you buy it from a King's Coin Vendor (the vendors in Townston or Sam in the dungeons), there's a 100% chance it'll be usable by a non-member

   

  • If an item drops from the Wishing Well, there's a 100% chance it'll be usable by a non-member

 

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Q: What happens to all the my previously existing free player gear? Is it going to change to member's only?

A: No. It'll stay exactly the same as it was prior to the patch. Only loot that drops after the patch will be affected.

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Q: So, how can a free player find yellow, purple and rainbow items to use after the patch?

A:

• Membership (guide to all the options) - Become a member! Here's a great guide on all the different ways you can buy membership, including buying GameTime cards at 7-11.

• Grouping - Group with other players in order to find usable yellow gear. It drops commonly enough, especially in big boss fights, that finding yellow gear will be relatively easy. When you group, each member in the group adds a bonus to the amount of loot that drops. On top of that, every level of difficulty adds an additional bonus to the amount of loot that drops. So, for max loot, fight in a full group on insane difficulty!

• King's Coins (great guide by Tristanne) - Collect King's Coins redeemable at either Purple or Rainbow Sam or the King's Coin Vendors in town - 100% chance to use any of these items, even rainbows, if you buy them from a King's Coin vendor! Who the heck is Sam? Sam is a random spawn on levels 4 and 7 of all dungeons (except Dew Valley, Algernon and HDoL). Purple Sam sells purples items with a chance of rainbows for King's Coins. Rainbow Sam is much more rare, but he sells Rainbow Items guaranteed! His prices are expensive, due to the guaranteed quality of his loot (the vendors in town sell yellows guaranteed, with a chance for purples and rainbows), but both free and paid members can get the gear they want buy using Sam!!!

• Trading! - You can always trade for items with other players!

 

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Q: Whyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!!!!!!!!! <insert much moaning and gnashing of teeth>

A: It's a business decision.



When the game was first released, free players were limited to blue items and lower and couldn't use any items redeemed from the King's Coin vendors. Sam didn't exist, so he wasn't an option, either. At that time, there weren't any ads and the free-to-paid conversion rate hovered between 10 and 15%.



Some time later, advertising was introduced and free players were given some member-like features like stackable potions, a bank page and a percent chance to use Yellows, Purples and Rainbows. This worked great for about two months, because free players were generating more revenue than paid players based upon the initial round of ads that were purchased. Unfortunately, the agency in charge of the ads (DoubleFusion) wasn't able to procure any more advertising after the initial implementation. This meant that free players had the advertising mechanics in the game, but weren't really subjected to viewing actual ads. They also got the benefit of having close-to-membership perks, so there really wasn't any major difference between free players and paid members and conversion rates plummeted.



Due to the low conversion rates and lack of advertising revenue, free player benefits were tweaked again. Free player experience and gold drops were slightly nerfed and King's Coin item cost was increased. Unfortunatley, conversion rates were still pretty poor - somewhere between 3 and 4%.



As a result, Dungeon Runners is reverting back to a model where the free-to-paid conversion rate is significantly higher. That being said, free players now have the ability to collect and redeem King's Coins,which wasn't an option available to them in the beginning. As such, while loot drops have been limited for free players, they still have options, as indicated above.

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Q: Doesn't this ruin the game for free players?

A: No! Dungeon Runners offers one of the best F2P game experiences in the industry! A free player can play from start to finish, every level, boss and dungeon in the entire game! On top of that, free players can still get and equip the highest quality gear. It just takes a little more time to acquire. Think of membership as a convenience fee. Members have a 100% chance to equip any item that drops. Chances are, however, that the majority of loot that drops won't be usable for their builds due to the random nature of the loot system. As such, members end up selling the vast majority of their loot for gold. This is the exact same as it is for free players!!! The only difference is that free players need to work a little harder to obtain the highest quality items. It really comes down to this: invest a nominal amount of money for a better chance of being able to get and equip the gear you want or invest a little more time and effort into it.

 

~Ripper