What kinds of salvage kits should I be using for different items?

So far my system has basically been: Use gray kits for gray items, blue kits for blue items, green items for green items, and yellow kits for yellow and orange items.

My logic in this was that the higher value items warranted the extra expense of the higher level kits so I would get more out of them.

However, I am questioning if that is worthwhile considering that all I ever tend to get for my trouble is a pile of useless sigils/runes that won't even sell on the trading post.

What is the value in the higher level kits and when should I be using them?Maybe they give out essence of luck more often?Do they give more materials, or a chance of more materials?Do they do anything else?

One of the reasons I didn't get the copper fed salvage item when it was on sale was because I assumed I didn't want to be using gray level salvage kits on all my loot, because I'd be missing out on stuff.

Short version, in the current market and assuming you have already decided to salvage:

• Greens and below: use Basic kits
• Rares of L68+: use Mystic (cheapest) or Master's (best if you can't make Mystic)
• Exotics: use BL Salvage Kits if the rune/sigil is worth a gold or more. Otherwise, treat as a rare.

The gem shop copper-fed is a convenient alternative to the Basic kit; the silver-fed is a convenient alternative for Mystic kits.

As implied before, you might not want to salvage everything. There are lots of valid rules-of-thumb, depending on how much effort you want to invest. Here's the simplest+least effort version (and it turns out to be nearly as profitable — in the current market).

• Masterwork and below: salvage.
• Rare, >=L68: sort in TP by price. Sell anything worth more than 1 ecto (currently ~18s) Salvage the rest per above.
• Rare, <L68: sell those worth more than 12s. Salvage the rest with Basic.
• Exotics: sell.

There are plenty of reasonable exceptions (as well as some superstitious ones). Some people will also mystic forge some stuff (and there are rules of thumb of that, too). I'll let other people get into all of that. I think it's best for most people to start with something simpler. Then as that becomes routine, they are ready to learn the nuances and tricks to squeeze yet more profit from the same rocks. (And there definitely is more to be squeezed than the rules above allow. Walk before you run.)

Final note: whenever possible, sell close to the lowest list prices (and almost never sell instantly). This alone generates anywhere from 10-100% more, regardless of what you decide to sell versus salvage. (And even this rule has its own nuances to save time and earn more.)

@Illconceived Was Na.9781 said:

• Rares of L68+: use Mystic (cheapest) or Master's (best if you can't make Mystic)

It is important to note that the Mystic Salvage Kit (the equivalent of 10 Master's Salvage Kits) is only the cheapest of the two if you already have the required Mystic Forge Stones. If you do not have them you need to buy them with gems, so in that case the Master's Salvage Kit is the cheapest option.

The lazy man's solution is to buy the Copper-Fed-Salvage-o-Matic to salvage everything up to rare.For exotics, I still use BL kits when IWN's rules apply.

Of course, the Copper-Fed costs 800 gems, but when I think about the thousands of items I already salvaged, it's a priceless convenience item to me.The only upgrade components worth recovering come from exotics, which is why I don't even bother going for the Silver-Fed as BL kits come for free with some luck. I most seldom gamble with BL chests (those few keys you get from map completion), yet I have 6 BL kits sitting in my bank.

Mystic Forge Stones don't really come from any other avenue than achievement thresholds, though, I assume? Also, I agree with everyone's current take. Always have some basic kits with you. The only time you will bother with fine and journeyman is you're working to make a mystic salvage kit. And IWN is right -- and I've belted this before -- a mystic salvage kit is per use much cheaper than equivalence in master's salvage kit. If you're looking at profit, however, IWN has you covered. My rule of thumb is no different. :)

@altermaven.7385 said:Mystic Forge Stones don't really come from any other avenue than achievement thresholds, though, I assume?They drop from BL chests and BL item boxes that drop from daily logon (and sometimes from Fractals tiered reward chests) randomly from the BL goods chests (daily logon, daily fractal recs) & guaranteed from achievement chests (edited for clarity). Still, @Plautze.6290 is basically correct: they aren't free to acquire on demand and Mystic is only cheaper when you have them to spare.

I've been converting Karma to linen scraps and noticed a slight difference in the salvage rates between basic/fine kits and master kits. Salvaging 15 light armors at a time, with master kits I would get between 31 and 35 linen scraps. Using basic or fine kits, I would get 27-29 linen and 3-8 cotton scraps. I've experienced similar differences when converting Karma to leather. For leather armor drops, it seems like I get just a tiny bit better salvages with a master kit, but not enough to warrant the extra expense, most of the time. When I salvage the hides from the Lake Doric leather farm, I get substantially better results using the master kits over the basic or fine kits.

As IWN said, these are EXCEPTIONS to the rule of thumb.

@"Kaltyn of Torbins Deep.2946" said:I've been converting Karma to linen scraps and noticed a slight difference in the salvage rates between basic/fine kits and master kits. Salvaging 15 light armors at a time, with master kits I would get between 31 and 35 linen scraps. Using basic or fine kits, I would get 27-29 linen and 3-8 cotton scraps. I've experienced similar differences when converting Karma to leather. For leather armor drops, it seems like I get just a tiny bit better salvages with a master kit, but not enough to warrant the extra expense, most of the time. When I salvage the hides from the Lake Doric leather farm, I get substantially better results using the master kits over the basic or fine kits.

As IWN said, these are EXCEPTIONS to the rule of thumb.

Yes, basic vs fine vs master kits do have different results. It just turns out that it's historically never been worth worrying about, because the per-use costs have (again, historically) dwarfed the average benefits.

Fine kits, for example, cost 11.5 copper per use, compared to 3.5 for basic. So to be worth the extra costs, you have to be getting 8 extra silver (on average) per item salvaged. There's an additional premium of 50 copper per use for Master's (slightly less for silver-fed).

Based on @"Kaltyn of Torbins Deep.2946"'s numbers above, using the average results of 33 linen (from master's) versus 28 linen + 5.5 cotton (basic)...

• Master: income (before fees) ~99s = 108s (linen) less 9 silver in salvage costs
• Basic: income (before fees) ~102s = 102.5s (linen + cotton) less 0.5s from salvage

i.e. the Master's Kits are just really expensive to use while offering a more modest difference in output.

Over 1000s and 1000s of salvage results, it's been very, very unusual for the price difference to make it worth it. Moreover, during brief periods in which it has been viable, it hasn't been worth the extra time it takes to decide what gets basic kits versus what gets master/mystic/silver-fed.

Speaking of exceptions, here's two that only apply to specific individuals (not your typical player)

• If you have stacks & stacks of mystic stones and you don't salvage many rares, it is worth (a) making mystic kits and (b) using them for your L45-L53 'bag opener', essentially because you get more T4, which is more valuable). (If you don't have "too many stones" or you do salvage a lot of rares, stick to using them to get ecto.)
• If you have dozens of BL Salvage Kits, you can use them on rares as well as any exotics, not just those with expensive upgrades. BL kits generate notably more ecto, which is more valuable than the space they take up in your bank. You want to save enough BL kits that you can always recover upgrades when you need to; the excess can help you produce more ecto.

@Illconceived Was Na.9781 said:

@altermaven.7385 said:Mystic Forge Stones don't really come from any other avenue than achievement thresholds, though, I assume?They drop from BL chests and BL item boxes that drop from daily logon (and sometimes from Fractals tiered reward chests). Still, @Plautze.6290 is mostly correct: they aren't free to acquire on demand and Mystic is only cheaper when you have them to spare.

Thanks for clarifying, though I have yet to get forge stones from a black lion chest. I have gotten them from the supply boxes, and as far as Fractals go I haven't tested. But you're right in one regard -- they're only cheaper when you have them.

@altermaven.7385 said:

@Illconceived Was Na.9781 said:

@altermaven.7385 said:Mystic Forge Stones don't really come from any other avenue than achievement thresholds, though, I assume?They drop from BL chests and BL item boxes that drop from daily logon (and sometimes from Fractals tiered reward chests). Still, @Plautze.6290 is mostly correct: they aren't free to acquire on demand and Mystic is only cheaper when you have them to spare.

Oops, my phrasing is misleading. In the past, they could be obtained as drops from the BL chests that use BL keys to open; that's not true any longer. The remaining sources are:

• Achievement chests of all weights (guaranteed, in bundles of 5, 10, or 15, depending on weight)
• Chest of Black Lion Goods (a single one, randomly) (these are the containers that drop some of the account bound items that drop from BL chests). Those drop from
  • Fractal daily (recommended) chests
  • Daily logons (days 4, 11, 18, 25, i.e. once a week if you start the game every day)

@Illconceived Was Na.9781 said:

@altermaven.7385 said:

@Illconceived Was Na.9781 said:

@altermaven.7385 said:Mystic Forge Stones don't really come from any other avenue than achievement thresholds, though, I assume?They drop from BL chests and BL item boxes that drop from daily logon (and sometimes from Fractals tiered reward chests). Still, @Plautze.6290 is mostly correct: they aren't free to acquire on demand and Mystic is only cheaper when you have them to spare.

• Achievement chests of all weights (guaranteed, in bundles of 5, 10, or 15, depending on weight)
• Chest of Black Lion Goods (a single one, randomly) (these are the containers that drop some of the account bound items that drop from BL chests). Those drop from
  • Fractal daily (recommended) chests
  • Daily logons (days 4, 11, 18, 25, i.e. once a week if you start the game every day)

That's what I expected. Don't worry if you messed up. Skritt happens. :)