VIP Key and Tarmalune trade bar

tassedethe13

Hello community,

The bomb has been dropped, i have the feeling than VIP key gives you less tarmalune trade bar than zen key.
It looks like it gives between 0-10 trade bars.

So does anyone get more than 10 trade bars with a VIP key?

umsche

They stack, they are the same keys.

korexko

I got 19 bars two days ago with a VIP key.

santralafax

I got 17 trade bars once. I've seen 9 once or twice. Below that for the rest. I've opened a little over 40 with VIP so far.

tassedethe13

@santralafax

It looks like VIP key has less chance to hit 10+ trade bars... The record is 19 by @korexko

Maybe it depends of the lockbox, what box do you open?

dwarf75

Got 14 bar today and for me it is just opposite. opened 10 boxes with zen key and got less bars than vip keys

flyingleon

If they would like to nerf, they would do it on all the keys. As someone said they stack, this could already convince me they are the same keys.

santralafax

tassedethe13 said:

@santralafax

It looks like VIP key has less chance to hit 10+ trade bars... The record is 19 by @korexko

Maybe it depends of the lockbox, what box do you open?

I was opening some older lockboxes trying for the Stag mount. But I switched to Crushing Wave and got the 17 and the 9. The older box I never saw more than 5 or 6. If I get a snail, I'll have to think hard about selling it. They are ugly as sin, but the AP bonus is hard to pass up.

rapo973

tassedethe13 said:

The bomb has been dropped, i have the feeling than VIP key gives you less tarmalune trade bar than zen key.
It looks like it gives between 0-10 trade bars.

Confirmed: 0 many times...sadly

dairiuschi3

Never gotten 0... but often get 3-7, highest I've ever seen is 10 but I also only open Tyrannical or Nine Hells, one cause I really like the mount, other cause it has a higher chance of dropping an Artifact... least I'd think so since there are more to potentially drop.

EDIT: They Censored a word used in one of their own items... guess I can't be surprised, this is a forums where little children might show up- not like they can get into the game at all >.>

Might try the Crushing Wave for the next few days to test this theory.

tassedethe13

Sadly, when I read all of you guys, it looks like the type of lockbox doesn't change any thing.... So we are doomed with low trade bar gain, even with ZEN key...

@rapo973, 0 Trade bars....

theycallmetomu

The RNG for NWO is pretty awful. I tend to think it clusters in weird ways that don't accurate resemble a standard random distribution. But it does appear that tradebar drop rates are the same regardless of the source of the key.

That being said, they may have reduced tradebar drop rate, but I still get between 5 and 10 with every key, so every month of VIP pass still gives about 1 coal ward, so between that and the actual drops from the boxes it's looking alright.

regenerde

Oathbound Palaind will get something, when the next new class comes around.

About Trade Bars, as allready mentioned in other threads, it looks like they changed the drop chance, when they released the Wave lockboxes, and/or when they came up with VIP.
Before, 10-20 lockboxes -> 1 Coalescent Ward.
Now, 30+ lockboxes -> may be 1 Coalescent Ward.

I see rarely some 10+ Trade Bars drop, most of the time it's 1-5 Trade Bars, and you need at least 7 per key to get one Coalescent Ward per month.
Just wondering, how many people would have still bought VIP with this information in mind...

dairiuschi3

I don't know about all that... I bought 20 Enchanted Keys in total before going VIP, and didn't get enough bars for a Coalescent Ward, this was also before the Crushing Wave Lockbox came out. Partway into VIP I got my first Coal Ward for bars, and nearing the end of Month 1 I have obtained my second, but I also bought 5 additional keys using 40% off coupons during this time so... a total of 54 Boxes for 2.33~ Coal Wards, since right now I'm at around 65 bars.

That comes out to about 20-25 boxes per ward, so there are occasional high amounts I just didn't notice... since the highest I remember is 10, but that was not often, I defintiely recall more of the 3-5's and even a 1 once, but we tend to focus on the negative parts, turns any further bad luck into a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Still, if the average used to be 15+, feel a little stinted but... well I got my VIP with AD I was able to farm from dungeon runs and the occasional lucky AH sale (like a Mithral Anvil on an alt going through Neverdeth >.>). I've also gotten 2 Coal wards from Celestial coffers in the 3 motnhs that I've played, but I have a total of 10 active toons and have for about a month of that time, so no real telling how often those are meant to drop.

tripsofthrymr

Save up 30 keys. Transfer your character to Preview. Open 30 boxes. Transfer your character again. Open 30 boxes. Do that until you have opened several hundred boxes. Only then will you know the probability distribution.

archanarchist

i dont do keys or vip not a fan of gambling but from what i have heard my friends that do have it feel that since a week or 2 ago the drop rate is much lower for vip keys vs zen keys which makes sence as the keys have a set code attached to each one as dose each box. people used to use a parser to see which boxes would mesh with which keys for best rewards back in STO.
they probably changed the parameters of what numbers key could have so that it didnt spark off 2 many positive rewards on box numbers

oldbaldyone

archanarchist said:

i dont do keys or vip not a fan of gambling but from what i have heard my friends that do have it feel that since a week or 2 ago the drop rate is much lower for vip keys vs zen keys which makes sence as the keys have a set code attached to each one as dose each box. people used to use a parser to see which boxes would mesh with which keys for best rewards back in STO.
they probably changed the parameters of what numbers key could have so that it didnt spark off 2 many positive rewards on box numbers

I obviously can't prove it, but assigning a tracking code to each key, especially when said keys stack, would probably be more work than is really necessary. More likely, once the VIP keys were put in play, they nerfed the rewards across the board as we all thought they would, and called it a day. Going to all the effort just to reduce the effectiveness of 1 key per day, and going to all the effort to hide this fact from their customer (making unique items stack would take a lot of coding that they wouldn't have done before just for shiggles)....it just isn't worth it.

I will say that something is different and the entire process of VIP keys has minimized lockbox value. This was a huge selling point prior to VIP being released, and now its like "meh".

tomiotar

They just nerf it all of them so average people get 1 ward at month. That have some logic as 1 month VIP = 1 ward on zen costs, the details is that people that buy keys (I will never understand this people, they truelly like to be scammed) get even less than what they were getting before. So basically now you get even less than you use to get if you make the mistake of spend real money on this game

graalx3

Just for the record the drop rate of Tarmalune Trade Bars hasn't been touched since 02/04/2014.

jhpnw

in last 30 days got 14 special professions boxes 11 companion advance boxes and 5 genies gifts 147 trade bards out of vip on reg keys had 5 1 ensorceld box got pact blade sold for 30kad got 2 professtion special boxes total for both sold on AH for 9k ad 1 genies gift sold for 12k ad and on 5 boxes got 44 trade bars so not much difference and not much rerewards from 35 keys

nimandiir

I'm always under 10

plasticbat

I think that depends on the lockbox. I believe my last 3, 4 tries has at least 10 each. I tried different lockbox though.

regenerde

If the drop rate is still the same, did a lot of players just run out of luck with the latest modules?

dsn1118

I only open 1 with VIP key.It was fixed 10 for me since VIP release but got 2 drops of 12 bars 3 days ago and day after that

lwedar

graalx3 said:

Just for the record the drop rate of Tarmalune Trade Bars hasn't been touched since 02/04/2014.

what was the change on 2/4/2014?

looomis

I opened 30 boxes with daily vip keys.
361 tradebars total.
once i got 100 tradebars from one box.

hedgebet

The vip keys stack with others so I seriously doubt their is anything different about them.

santralafax

As for other items, I finally feel lucky. I've never gotten a Lathander's Eye from DR or Coal Ward from praying.