'? Special Item' Distributions (LONG)

[Nordramor]

Many players seem to not understand why they receive so many of one type of '? Special Item', so here's a breakdown of Why and Where some of the most common ones occur.

Why?
? Special Items aren't as special as you might think. Most of them are totally predictably the same item.

Each zone (Cave 2, Ruins 3, etc) has a treasure table that it draws from when an item drops. Many of the later zones in V-Hard and some Hard Zones have fixed '? Special Item' Drops. These '? Special Items' REPLACE the regular item that drops in that category. IE, if the monster decides to drop a 'Cane' type weapon in V-Hard Ruins 3, it will ALWAYS be a 'Club of Laconium'. You will never find a Cane, Stick, Mace, or Club in V-Hard Ruins 3, only 'Clubs of Laconium'.

This can be a good thing, because many 9 star '? Special Items' are better than their non special equivalents. However, there are some exceptions, such as a Gladius (the best non-special Saber) actually doing MORE damage than the very common DB's Saber '? Special Item'.

Where?
Here's a reference table for where you can predictably expect to find some '? Special Items'. Any special item listed here REPLACES all items of that type, shown in () next to the special item.

For Reference, the weapon types, starting from the base type, going to their best type:

Saber -> Brand -> Buster -> Pallasch -> Gladius

Sword -> Gigush -> Breaker -> Claymore -> Calibur

Dagger -> Knife -> Blade -> Edge -> Ripper

Partisan -> Halbert -> Glaive -> Berdys -> Gungnir

Slicer -> Spinner -> Cutter -> Sawcer -> Diska

Cane -> Stick -> Mace -> Club

Rod -> Pole -> Blow -> Striker

Wand -> Staff -> Baton -> Scepter

Handgun -> Autogun -> Lockgun -> Railgun -> Raygun

Rifle -> Sniper -> Blaster -> Beam -> Laser

Mechgun -> Assault -> Repeater -> Gatling -> Vulcan

Shot -> Spread -> Cannon -> Launcher -> Arms

Now the Tables:

Forest 1

Normal: None
Hard: None
V-Hard: None

Forest 2

Normal: None
Hard: None
V-Hard: None

Cave 1

Normal: None
Hard: None
V-Hard: None

Cave 2

Normal: None
Hard: None
V-Hard: None

Cave 3

Normal: None
Hard: None
V-Hard: M&A60 Vise (Mechgun)

Mine 1

Normal: None
Hard: None
V-Hard:
DB's Saber (Saber)
Blade Dane (Dagger)
Club of Laconium (Cane)
Varista (Handgun)
M&A60 Vise (Mechgun)

Mine 2

Normal: None
Hard: None
V-Hard:
DB's Saber (Saber)
Blade Dane (Dagger)
Club of Laconium (Cane)
Varista (Handgun)
Visk-235W (Rifle)
M&A60 Vise (Mechgun)
Crush Bullet (Shot)

Ruins 1

Normal: None
Hard: None
V-Hard:
DB's Saber (Saber)
Blade Dane (Dagger)
Club of Laconium (Cane)
Varista (Handgun)
Visk-235W (Rifle)
M&A60 Vise (Mechgun)
Crush Bullet (Shot)

Ruins 2

Normal: None
Hard:
DB's Saber(Saber)
Varista (Handgun)
V-Hard:
DB's Saber (Saber)
Flowen's Sword (Sword)
Blade Dane (Dagger)
Brionac (Partisan)
Slicer of Assassin (Slicer)
Club of Laconium (Cane)
Varista (Handgun)
Visk-235W (Rifle)
H&S25 Justice (Mechgun)
Crush Bullet (Shot)

Ruins 3

Normal: None
Hard:
DB's Saber(Saber)
Battle Verge (Rod)
Fire Scepter: Agni (Wand)
Varista (Handgun)
V-Hard:
DB's Saber (Saber)
Flowen's Sword (Sword)
Blade Dance (Dagger)
Brionac (Partisan)
Slicer of Assassin (Slicer)
Club of Laconium (Cane)
Varista (Handgun)
Visk-235W (Rifle)
H&S25 Justice (Mechgun)
Meteor Smash (Shot)

Notice there are some oddities, like the Battle Verge and Fire Scepter: Agni only appearing in Hard Ruins 3 and in no other zones. In V-Hard Ruins 2, the Justice replaces the Vise as the Mechgun drop. In V-Hard Ruins 3, the Justice again replaces the Vise and the Meteor Smash replaces the Crush Bullet as the Shot drop.

It is also known that the Dragon, on Hard and V-Hard, is known to occasionally drop a '? Special Item' that always ID's as a Dragon Slayer (Sword). Speculatively, I think defeating him without using a MAG's invulnerabilty AND never taking any damage during the fight increases the odds a Dragon Slayer will drop.

What about 'rares'?

'Rare' weapons drop as '? Special Items'. In zones where no '? Special Item' normally drops, this makes them incredibly easy to spot. However, in zones where there are already tons of possible '? Special Items', it can make it nearly impossible to determine what might be a rare until it is actually ID'd by a tekker, or if you try equipping them.

Non-weapon rares are always ID'd when they drop, although some (like Delsaber's Right Arm) drop as 'Tools' and can be turned into other items.

Each section ID also can reportedly also buy a 'special' 9 Star weapon, like the Justy-23ST(Rifle) and the Bloody Art(Dagger). However, my YellowBoze FONewman has never seen his item (but he did find 5 Kaladgolg's in the same V-Hard Forest 1&2 game once for some bizzare reason).

What about '??? XXX' non-special weapons?

Reportedly, the best, 4-star ??? mods (Like Hell, Geist, Tempest) on non-special items start appearing in V-Hard Cave 3 and beyond. If this is correct, then it is impossible to find Geist Vulcans, because the Vise/Justice will replace all Mechgun drops in V-Hard Cave 3 and beyond. Since several new '? Special Weapons' become available in V-Hard Mine 1 and beyond, V-Hard Cave 3 is likely your ONLY place to find high quality Gladius', Rippers, Clubs, and Rayguns.

I take no credit for discovering the info above, I merely compiled it into one post.

Nordramor
Nordy!

<font size=1>[ This message was edited by: Nordramor on 2001-03-12 20:37 ]</font>

[Nordramor]

Ack, the formatting didn't come out as clean as I'd like. But here's the distribution tables for Techniques:

Forest 1

Normal:
Foie (Level 1)
Barta (Level 1)
Zonde (Level 1)
Resta (Level 1)

Hard
Foie (Level 5-9)
Barta (Level 5-9)
Zonde (Level 5-9)
GiFiore (Level 3-6)
GiBarta (Level 3-6)
GiZonde (Level 3-6)
Resta (Level 4-8-)
Anti (Level 4-8-)
Shifta (Level 3-6)
Deband (Level 3-6)
Jellen (Level 3-6)
Zalure (Level 3-6)
Reverser

V-Hard:
Foie (Level 8-12)
Barta (Level 8-12)
Zonde (Level 8-12)
Resta (Level 6-11)
Ryuker

Forest 2

Normal:
Foie (Level 1-3)
Barta (Level 1-3)
Zonde (Level 1-3)
Resta (Level 1-3)
Anti (Level 1-3)

Hard:
Foie (Level 5-10)
Barta (Level 5-10)
Zonde (Level 5-10)
GiFiore (Level 3-7)
GiBarta (Level 3-7)
GiZonde (Level 3-7)
Resta (Level 4-8-)
Anti (Level 4-8-)
Shifta (Level 3-6)
Deband (Level 3-6)
Jellen (Level 3-6)
Zalure (Level 3-6)
Reverser
Ryuker

V-Hard:
Foie (Level 8-13)
Barta (Level 8-13)
Zonde (Level 8-13)
Resta (Level 6-12)
Anti (Level 6-12)
Reverser

Cave 1

Normal:
Foie (Level 1-4)
Barta (Level 1-4)
Zonde (Level 1-4)
GiFiore (Level 1-2)
GiBarta (Level 1-2)
GiZonde (Level 1-2)
Resta (Level 2-5)
Anti (Level 2-4)
Shifta (Level 1-3)
Deband (Level 1-3)
Jellen (Level 1)
Zalure (Level 1)

Hard:
Foie (Level 5-10)
Barta (Level 5-10)
Zonde (Level 5-10)
GiFiore (Level 4-7)
GiBarta (Level 4-7)
GiZonde (Level 4-7)
RaFiore (Level 1-3)
RaBarta (Level 1-3)
RaZonde (Level 1-3)
Resta (Level 4-9)
Anti (Level 4-9)
Shifta (Level 4-7)
Deband (Level 4-7)
Jellen (Level 4-7)
Zalure (Level 4-7)
Reverser

V-Hard:
Foie (Level 8-13)
Barta (Level 8-13)
Zonde (Level 8-13)
GiFiore (Level 7-11)
GiBarta (Level 7-11)
GiZonde (Level 7-11)
Resta (Level 6-12)
Anti (Level 6-12)
Shifta (Level 7-11)
Deband (Level 7-11)
Reverser

Cave 2

Normal:
Foie (Level 2-5)
Barta (Level 2-5)
Zonde (Level 2-5)
GiFiore (Level 1-3)
GiBarta (Level 1-3)
GiZonde (Level 1-3)
Resta (Level 3-6)
Anti (Level 3-6)
Shifta (Level 1-3)
Deband (Level 1-3)
Jellen (Level 1-2)
Zalure (Level 1-2)
Reverser

Hard:
Foie (Level 6-11)
Barta (Level 6-11)
Zonde (Level 6-11)
GiFiore (Level 4-8-)
GiBarta (Level 4-8-)
GiZonde (Level 4-8-)
RaFiore (Level 1-4)
RaBarta (Level 1-4)
RaZonde (Level 1-4)
Grants (Level 1-2)
Resta (Level 5-9)
Anti (Level 5-9)
Shifta (Level 4-7)
Deband (Level 4-7)
Jellen (Level 4-7)
Zalure (Level 4-7)
Ryuker

V-Hard:
Foie (Level 9-14)
Barta (Level 9-14)
Zonde (Level 9-14)
GiFiore (Level 8-12)
GiBarta (Level 8-12)
GiZonde (Level 8-12)
Resta (Level 7-13)
Anti (Level 7-13)
Shifta (Level 7-12)
Deband (Level 7-12)
Reverser

Cave 3

Normal:
Foie (Level 2-6)
Barta (Level 2-6)
Zonde (Level 2-6)
GiFiore (Level 2-4)
GiBarta (Level 2-4)
GiZonde (Level 2-4)
Resta (Level 3-6)
Anti (Level 3-6)
Shifta (Level 1-3)
Deband (Level 1-3)
Jellen (Level 1-3)
Zalure (Level 1-3)
Reverser
Ryuker

Hard:
Foie (Level 6-11)
Barta (Level 6-11)
Zonde (Level 6-11)
GiFiore (Level 4-8-)
GiBarta (Level 4-8-)
GiZonde (Level 4-8-)
RaFiore (Level 1-4)
RaBarta (Level 1-4)
RaZonde (Level 1-4)
Megid (Level 1-2)
Resta (Level 5-10)
Anti (Level 5-10)
Shifta (Level 4-8-)
Deband (Level 4-8-)
Jellen (Level 4-8-)
Zalure (Level 4-8-)
Reverser

V-Hard:
Foie (Level 9-14)
Barta (Level 9-14)
Zonde (Level 9-14)
GiFiore (Level 8-12)
GiBarta (Level 8-12)
GiZonde (Level 8-12)
Resta (Level 7-13)
Anti (Level 7-13)
Shifta (Level 7-12)
Deband (Level 7-12)
Reverser

Mine 1

Normal:
Foie (Level 2-7)
Barta (Level 2-7)
Zonde (Level 2-7)
GiFiore (Level 2-4)
GiBarta (Level 2-4)
GiZonde (Level 2-4)
RaFiore (Level 1)
RaBarta (Level 1)
RaZonde (Level 1)
Resta (Level 3-7)
Anti (Level 3-7)
Shifta (Level 2-4)
Deband (Level 2-4)
Jellen (Level 1-4)
Zalure (Level 1-4)
Reverser

Hard:
Foie (Level 6-11)
Barta (Level 6-11)
Zonde (Level 6-11)
GiFiore (Level 5-9)
GiBarta (Level 5-9)
GiZonde (Level 5-9)
RaFiore (Level 2-6)
RaBarta (Level 2-6)
RaZonde (Level 2-6)
Grants (Level 1-3)
Resta (Level 6-10)
Anti (Level 6-10)
Shifta (Level 5-8-)
Deband (Level 5-8-)
Jellen (Level 5-8-)
Zalure (Level 5-8-)
Ryuker

V-Hard:
Foie (Level 9-14)
Barta (Level 9-14)
Zonde (Level 9-14)
GiFiore (Level 8-13)
GiBarta (Level 8-13)
GiZonde (Level 8-13)
RaFiore (Level 5-12)
RaBarta (Level 5-12)
RaZonde (Level 5-12)
Resta (Level 7-13)
Anti (Level 7-13)
Shifta (Level 8-13)
Deband (Level 8-13)
Jellen (Level 8-13)
Zalure (Level 8-13)
Reverser
Ryuker

Mine 2

Normal:
Foie (Level 3-8-)
Barta (Level 3-8-)
Zonde (Level 3-8-)
GiFiore (Level 2-5)
GiBarta (Level 2-5)
GiZonde (Level 2-5)
RaFiore (Level 1-2)
RaBarta (Level 1-2)
RaZonde (Level 1-2)
Resta (Level 3-7)
Anti (Level 3-7)
Shifta (Level 2-4)
Deband (Level 2-4)
Jellen (Level 1-4)
Zalure (Level 1-4)
Reverser
Ryuker

Hard:
Foie (Level 7-12)
Barta (Level 7-12)
Zonde (Level 7-12)
GiFiore (Level 6-10)
GiBarta (Level 6-10)
GiZonde (Level 6-10)
RaFiore (Level 3-7)
RaBarta (Level 3-7)
RaZonde (Level 3-7)
Megid (Level 1-3)
Resta (Level 6-11)
Anti (Level 6-11)
Shifta (Level 5-9)
Deband (Level 5-9)
Jellen (Level 5-9)
Zalure (Level 5-9)
Reverser

V-Hard:
Foie (Level 9-15)
Barta (Level 9-15)
Zonde (Level 9-15)
GiFiore (Level 8-13)
GiBarta (Level 8-13)
GiZonde (Level 8-13)
RaFiore (Level 5-12)
RaBarta (Level 5-12)
RaZonde (Level 5-12)
Resta (Level 8-14)
Anti (Level 8-14)
Shifta (Level 8-13)
Deband (Level 8-13)
Jellen (Level 8-13)
Zalure (Level 8-13)
Reverser
Ryuker

Ruins 1

Normal:
Foie (Level 3-9)
Barta (Level 3-9)
Zonde (Level 3-9)
GiFiore (Level 2-5)
GiBarta (Level 2-5)
GiZonde (Level 2-5)
RaFiore (Level 1-2)
RaBarta (Level 1-2)
RaZonde (Level 1-2)
Grants (Level 1)
Megid (Level 1)
Resta (Level 4-8-)
Anti (Level 4-8-)
Shifta (Level 2-5)
Deband (Level 2-5)
Jellen (Level 2-5)
Zalure (Level 2-5)
Reverser

Hard:
Foie (Level 7-12)
Barta (Level 7-12)
Zonde (Level 7-12)
GiFiore (Level 6-10)
GiBarta (Level 6-10)
GiZonde (Level 6-10)
RaFiore (Level 3-7)
RaBarta (Level 3-7)
RaZonde (Level 3-7)
Grants (Level 1-4)
Resta (Level 7-11)
Anti (Level 7-11)
Shifta (Level 5-9)
Deband (Level 5-9)
Jellen (Level 5-9)
Zalure (Level 5-9)
Ryuker

Very Hard:
Foie (Level 9-15)
Barta (Level 9-15)
Zonde (Level 9-15)
GiFiore (Level 8-14)
GiBarta (Level 8-14)
GiZonde (Level 8-14)
RaFiore (Level 6-13)
RaBarta (Level 6-13)
RaZonde (Level 6-13)
Grants (Level 6-11)
Megid (Level 6-11)
Anti (Level 8-14)
Shifta (Level 8-14)
Deband (Level 8-14)
Jellen (Level 8-14)
Zalure (Level 8-14)
Ryuker

Ruins 2

Normal:
Foie (Level 3-9)
Barta (Level 3-9)
Zonde (Level 3-9)
GiFiore (Level 2-6)
GiBarta (Level 2-6)
GiZonde (Level 2-6)
RaFiore (Level 1-3)
RaBarta (Level 1-3)
RaZonde (Level 1-3)
Grants (Level 1)
Megid (Level 1)
Resta (Level 4-8-)
Anti (Level 4-8-)
Shifta (Level 3-5)
Deband (Level 3-5)
Jellen (Level 2-5)
Zalure (Level 2-5)
Reverser
Ryuker

Hard:
Foie (Level 8-12)
Barta (Level 8-12)
Zonde (Level 8-12)
GiFiore (Level 6-10)
GiBarta (Level 6-10)
GiZonde (Level 6-10)
RaFiore (Level 3-7)
RaBarta (Level 3-7)
RaZonde (Level 3-7)
Megid (Level 2-5)
Resta (Level 7-11)
Anti (Level 7-11)
Shifta (Level 6-10)
Deband (Level 6-10)
Jellen (Level 6-10)
Zalure (Level 6-10)
Reverser

V-Hard:
Foie (Level 9-15)
Barta (Level 9-15)
Zonde (Level 9-15)
GiFiore (Level 8-15)
GiBarta (Level 8-15)
GiZonde (Level 8-15)
RaFiore (Level 6-13)
RaBarta (Level 6-13)
RaZonde (Level 6-13)
Grants (Level 6-12)
Megid (Level 6-12)
Resta (Level 8-14)
Anti (Level 8-14)
Shifta (Level 9-15)
Deband (Level 9-15)
Jellen (Level 9-15)
Zalure (Level 9-15)

Ruins 3

Normal:
Foie (Level 4-10)
Barta (Level 4-10)
Zonde (Level 4-10)
GiFiore (Level 2-6)
GiBarta (Level 2-6)
GiZonde (Level 2-6)
RaFiore (Level 1-3)
RaBarta (Level 1-3)
RaZonde (Level 1-3)
Grants (Level 1-2)
Megid (Level 1-2)
Resta (Level 4-9)
Anti (Level 4-9)
Shifta (Level 3-6)
Deband (Level 3-6)
Jellen (Level 2-6)
Zalure (Level 2-6)
Reverser
Ryuker

Hard:
Foie (Level 8-13)
Barta (Level 8-13)
Zonde (Level 8-13)
GiFiore (Level 6-11)
GiBarta (Level 6-11)
GiZonde (Level 6-11)
RaFiore (Level 4-8-)
RaBarta (Level 4-8-)
RaZonde (Level 4-8-)
Grants (Level 2-6)
Megid (Level 2-6)
Resta (Level 8-12)
Anti (Level 8-12)
Shifta (Level 6-11)
Deband (Level 6-11)
Jellen (Level 6-11)
Zalure (Level 6-11)
Reverser
Ryuker

V-Hard:
Foie (Level 10-15)
Barta (Level 10-15)
Zonde (Level 10-15)
GiFiore (Level 9-15)
GiBarta (Level 9-15)
GiZonde (Level 9-15)
RaFiore (Level 7-14)
RaBarta (Level 7-14)
RaZonde (Level 7-14)
Grants (Level 7-14)
Megid (Level 7-14)
Resta (Level 8-15)
Anti (Level 8-15)
Shifta (Level 9-15)
Deband (Level 9-15)
Jellen (Level 9-15)
Zalure (Level 9-15)

By the way, a lot of this info can be found in the official strategy guide. The book doesn't have a lot of info on 'rares', but it has a lot of good stuff on other things (and maps!). I recommend it.

Nordramor
Nordy!


<font size=1>[ This message was edited by: Nordramor on 2001-03-12 20:34 ]</font>

[f0rge]

thanks, very interesting stuff

[MechDan]

Thanks for compiling this info! The way it's presented in the official guide is pretty scattered, and of course it doesn't explain the deal with the rares.

I just started a HUnewearl named Shiang-Fua (Xianghua) specifically to eventually find a Soul Calibur. It'll be a long trek...

[Nordramor]

Haha! I thought the exact same thing when I first saw the 'Calibur' class weapon.

I've found 2 Soul Calibur's so far. http://www.pso-world.com/images/phpbb/icons/icon_smile.gif

Nordramor
Nordy!

[ReikenFeralsbane]

hhmm, in the forest 1, what does AGITO replace? i found my oroti agito from a booma....my friend was jp and has 600+ hours....so ....

[Nordramor]

Oh, here's a summary for probably the most asked technique questions, assuming these tables are correct:

Where can I find Grants and Megid?

Cave 2, Hard, Grants Level 1-2

Cave 3, Hard, Megid Level 1-2

Mine 1, Hard, Grants Level 1-3

Mine 2, Hard, Megid Level 1-3

Ruins 1, Normal, Grants Level 1, Megid Level 1

Ruins 1, Hard, Grants Level 1-4

Ruins 1, V-Hard, Grants Level 6-11, Megid Level 6-11

Ruins 2, Normal, Grants Level 1, Megid Level 1

Ruins 2, Hard, Megid Level 2-5

Ruins 2, V-Hard, Grants Level 6-12, Megid Level 6-12

Ruins 3, Normal, Grants Level 1-2, Megid Level 1-2

Ruins 3, Hard, Grants Level 2-6, Megid Level 2-6,

Ruins 3, V-Hard, Grants Level 7-14, Megid Level 7-14

Rough summation by difficulties:

Normal, Ruins 1-3

Hard, Cave 2-3, Mines 1-2, Ruins 1-3

V-Hard, Ruins 1-3


If you play V-Hard a lot, you'll not be finding Grants / Megid unless you're in the Ruins. Hard actually has more zones to find them in, but the V-Hard Ruins have the highest levels techniques for everything.

Reportedly, it takes a Pinkal Section ID to find level 15 RA level spells and level 15 Grants/Megid spells. (I'm YellowBoze, ouch)

Nordramor
Nordy!

[Spike]

There's some wrong info on that list... I've found Grants lv. 10 in V-hard Mines (from beating Vol Opt). I also think I found Megid lv. 4 there (which I gave to Zephyr).

[Zero101]

Very cool info, thanks for the post!

[Socrates]

"There's some wrong info on that list... I've found Grants lv. 10 in V-hard Mines (from beating Vol Opt). I also think I found Megid lv. 4 there (which I gave to Zephyr)."

Was this online? I suspect that there may well be different "rarity schemes" for items, in much the same way as the level layouts are occasionally different.

[Nordramor]

Bosses CAN drop unusual items, (like Dragon Slayers, Celestial Armors, etc) so I wouldn't be surprised if they can drop techniques that are our of their zone's normal list.

I can't claim that the lists are 100% accurate, but I will say that if you want Grants/Megid, V-Hard/Hard Ruins 1-3 is the best place to look. (And even at that, they only drop maybe once out of every 4-6 full clears)

Agitos are considered 'rares' and they don't reaplace item drops. Only the items shown on the lists above actually replace drops.

Nordramor
Nordy!

[PSO_Krunk]

>'Rare' weapons drop as '? Special Items'. In zones where no '? Special Item' normally drops, this makes them incredibly easy to spot.<

Wait! I'm a bit confused. Does this mean that a ?SPECIAL WEAPON will never appear in an area like CAVE 1: HARD? or does it simply mean that if an item does drop, it must be a RARE?

And... in this definition, RARES would be a weapon that's not listed in the chart, like a Crush Bullet, but would be instead, something like a Bazooka?

just trying to get this straight...

[VulpesMundi]

I've found a Grants level 4 disk in Forest 2 on V-H mode. This was online and it was, if I remember correctly, either dropped by a Gigobooma or a Rag Rappy (it was nearly a month ago). It was online, though, and my character was Yellowboze, though I don't think I was the one who made the team.

*VulpesMundi wishes he had a better memory.

[Mitsurugi]

I found a Double Sabre today! After all the talk about themand actual seeing the animation of swinging that great weapon I was exstatic.
But yeah anyway, I found it on Ruins2 on Normal.
I also got a Delsabre Buster made by Dr. Montugue today, very nice.

[Azel-SummErs]

same here
double sabre online
ruins 2 normal
dropped as a special weapon...which had to be id by the pot smoking trekker

[Viper3]

On 2001-03-15 02:50, PSO_Krunk wrote:
>'Rare' weapons drop as '? Special Items'. In zones where no '? Special Item' normally drops, this makes them incredibly easy to spot.<

Wait! I'm a bit confused. Does this mean that a ?SPECIAL WEAPON will never appear in an area like CAVE 1: HARD? or does it simply mean that if an item does drop, it must be a RARE?

And... in this definition, RARES would be a weapon that's not listed in the chart, like a Crush Bullet, but would be instead, something like a Bazooka?

just trying to get this straight...[addsig]


I think he means if you see a ?Special Weapon drop in an area like Cave1-Hard, it's most definitely a rare weapon. That's how I found my Kaladgolg while using my Yellowboze character. I was uneventfully hacking my way through Cave1-Hard, when all of a sudden, poof, ?Special Weapon. Since I had never, ever seen a ?Special Weapon up to that point, I figured it was something cool. I was happy as a clam when I found out it was a Kaladgolg.

[Spike]

On 2001-03-13 18:00, Socrates wrote:
"There's some wrong info on that list... I've found Grants lv. 10 in V-hard Mines (from beating Vol Opt). I also think I found Megid lv. 4 there (which I gave to Zephyr)."

Was this online? I suspect that there may well be different "rarity schemes" for items, in much the same way as the level layouts are occasionally different.[addsig]


Yes, online. Actually I think I found my Megid lv. 11 in V-hard Mines too. That seems to be the best place for me to find spells.

[TwiNCannoN]

I know this is sort of a bump, but this post kicks arse.. my question though, is, using this table, what would be the best place to find lots of arms + laser weps? my head's not all that straight right now (damn headcold) so I can't figure out how to find the NON-rares in this thing. Just take the hardest difficulty that /doesn't/ drop special arms/lasers..??

[Defend]

Good work on the post. I hope I can find it when my PSO finally arrives.

[Mitsurugi]

Perth Australia?!

I live near Sydney!! Hey!

Umm how are you getting PSO??

[Nordramor]

Quick Update:

I am quite certain now, giving the listings above, that at least the Grants/Megid listings are incorrect when online. (I found a lvl 5 Megid in V-Hard Forest 2 online) However, besides Grants/Megid, the lists still seem to be true. V-Hard Ruins 1-3 is still THE place for Grants and Megid anyway.

If you want high quality Arms and Lasers, I suggest V-Hard Cave 3 and V-Hard Mine 1. Those two zones *seem* to be the only zones capable of dropping 9-star Arms and Lasers. (Excluding bosses, which are still a puzzle)

There is some terminology discrepency that people fail to understand. A true 'rare' is any item that is NOT:

1) Buyable in a store
2) Capable of predictably being found in a zone

When I say that no '? Special Weapon' normally drop in an area, I mean that they are not on the 'standard' treasure table. This means that when a '? Special Weapon' drops in an area that does not have any '? Special Weapon's on its standard treasure table, you instantly know that it MUST be a true 'rare'.

Zones that do have '? Special Weapons' can still drop true 'rares'. However, the only way you're going to know if it is a true 'rare' or just a 'common' special item is if it has a unique graphic and you equip it, or if you take it to a Tekker and have it ID'd.

This means the following items are NOT 'true' rares because they can be PREDICTABLY found in the zones listed in the first post:

DB's Saber
Flowen's Sword
Blade Dance
Brionac
Slicer of Assassin
Club of Laconium
Battle Verge
Fire Scepter: Agni
Varista
Visk-235W
M&A60 Vise
H&S25 Justice
Crush Bullet
Meteor Smash

Note: Just because they aren't really 'rares' doesn't mean they can't kick all kinds of butt. Find a M&A60 Vise with a 50% Dark photon effeciency and you've got one damn awesome weapon. Please check those photon effeciences before you discard these 'non-rares'.

Each Section ID supposedly has at least one (possibly more) special items that appear in their store. The special items that may be sold are determined by who created the game.
That means there are at least 10 other items that have their name in all capital letters (just like every other special item) that are not 'true' rares because you can just go buy them in the store. I only know of a handful of these items, but these CAN be bought in a store and are thus not true 'rares'

Justy-23ST (Rifle)
Storm Wand: Indra (Wand)
Bloody Art (Dagger)
Gae Bolg (Partisan)
Last Survivor (Sword)

Even amongst the true 'rares', there are varying levels of rarity. Brave Knuckles, Double Sabers, and Kadagolgs are all easy to find 'true' rares. What most people refer to as 'super' rares are items like 'Sonic Knuckles', 'Lavis Cannon', and 'Heavens Punisher'. Each one of these 'super' rares is harder to find than 20 Brave Knuckles.

Please note that there are technically three items commonly referred to as 'double sabers'. The first, and weakest, of the three is actually named DOUBLE SABER (green blades). The second is named the STAG CUTLERY (pink blades) and the third is the TWIN BRAND (blue blades). Both the STAG CUTLERY and TWIN BRAND are quite rarer than the DOUBLE SABER.

Nordramor
Nordy!

[TwiNCannoN]

I tired mines 1 for the guns and it worked good. Me and a friend found burning arms and tempest arms in 2 trips.. lame specials, but cool for collection's sake...

[Nordramor]

Useful Note:

When a Tekker ID's something, there is always at least some random factor involved if a photon effeciency (+ or -) is chosen for the item. You can often change a photon effeciency by quite a lot (up to + or - 15% is quite possible) by constantly re-identifying the item. If a weapon has a photon effeciency, it has one very common set of photon effeciences that it will usually ID as (say when you ID a certain Varista, it often shows up with a 20% Dark photon effeciency). If you constantly re-identify the Varista, you may be able to get that Dark % up to a good 35%! This seems to ONLY work on an item that has at least one photon effeciency. If an items ID's as having 0 in every photon effeciency, its very unlikey it will ever have any different photon effeciences, no matter how many times you ID it. But, if the item has at least + or - 5% in any photon effeciency, you may want to re-ID it a few times to try and increase that photon effeciency if you aren't planning on selling it. It takes time, and a little money, but it can be worth to try, especially on good items.

Nordramor
Nordy!