Quick Answer: Genshin Impact's loot scaling uses a Hierarchical Loot Table system where drops are determined by Adventure Rank, World Level, and weighted probabilities. AR45 unlocks guaranteed 5-star artifacts from domains, while World Level increases boss material quality.
Understanding Genshin Impact's Loot Scaling System
What is Loot Scaling?
Here's something that might surprise you—Genshin Impact doesn't just randomly throw loot at you. The game employs a Hierarchical Loot Table system that's actually quite sophisticated, using weighted probabilities and multiple subtables working behind the scenes.
The math gets a bit nerdy, but stick with me: Drop Chance = (Weight of Sub Drop / Coefficient). So if you've got a sub-drop with 1.065 weight and 100% chance, you're looking at a 93.5% chance for 1 item and 6.5% chance for 2 items. Pretty neat, right?
Adventure Rank (AR) acts as your main gatekeeper here. Hit AR45 and you'll unlock the highest-level Artifact Domains—this is where things get serious because you're guaranteed one 5-star artifact per 20 Resin spent. No more gambling with terrible drop rates.
World Level (WL) is your other major player, directly impacting boss loot tables by adding higher-tier materials. The key thresholds you need to remember: WL2 adds next tier ascension materials, WL4 introduces 4-star Ascension Chunks, WL5 adds 5-star artifacts, and WL6 includes 5-star Ascension Gemstones.
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RNG vs Guaranteed Rewards
Now here's where it gets interesting. Artifact generation follows a very specific rolling order that most players don't realize: 1) Rarity (4-star vs 5-star), 2) Initial substats (3 or 4 for 5-star pieces), 3) Artifact Set, 4) Artifact Type/Slot (each slot has an equal 20% probability).
Understanding this sequence can actually help you manage expectations when you're grinding domains.
Domain Drop Tables Breakdown
Artifact Domains
Once you hit AR45+, the highest level artifact domains become your best friend. Here's what you can expect per 20 Resin:
5-star Artifact: 1.07 average (guaranteed 1, with roughly 7% chance for a second)
4-star Artifact: 2.48 average
3-star Artifact: 3.55 average
Condensed Resin (which costs 40 Original Resin) doubles these rewards, giving you 2.14 five-star artifacts on average per condensed run. Here's a fun fact: 5-star artifacts that start with 4 substats have different rates depending on source—Domains give you a 20% chance, while Bosses and Strongboxes bump that up to 34%.
Weapon Material Domains
The highest level Domains of Forgery aren't as generous as artifact domains, but they're still essential. Per 20 Resin, you're looking at:
5-star Material: 0.07 average (yeah, they're stingy)
4-star Material: 0.64 average
3-star Material: 2.40 average
2-star Material: 2.20 average
Remember the weekly schedule: Monday/Thursday, Tuesday/Friday, Wednesday/Saturday, with all materials available on Sunday. Plan accordingly!
Talent Book Domains
Domains of Mastery at maximum level per 20 Resin:
4-star Books: 0.23 average
3-star Books: 1.97 average
2-star Books: 2.20 average
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Drop Rate Calculations
Let's talk about those artifact main stat probabilities that can make or break your builds:
Sands: HP%/ATK%/DEF% each sit at roughly 26.67%, while Energy Recharge and Elemental Mastery get 10% each.
Goblet: This is where things get tricky. HP%/ATK% are around 19.25% each, DEF% gets 19%, Elemental/Physical DMG bonuses are 5% each, and EM gets a measly 2.5%.
Circlet: HP%/ATK%/DEF% each get 22%, CRIT Rate/DMG/Healing get 10% each, and EM gets 4%.
These numbers explain why getting that perfect Elemental DMG goblet feels like winning the lottery.
Boss Drop Mechanics Explained
Weekly Boss Rewards
Maximum level Weekly Bosses are actually pretty generous per 30/60 Resin:
5-star Artifact: 1.24 average
4-star Artifact: 2.88 average
Ascension Gemstone: 0.031 (3.1% chance—rare stuff)
Northlander Billet: 0.12 (12% chance)
Dream Solvent: 0.325 (32.5% chance)
Exclusive Talent Material: 2.39 average
Pro tip: Your first three weekly claims cost 30 Resin, but subsequent claims jump to 60 Resin. Plan wisely.
World Boss Materials
Normal Bosses at WL8 (AR55+) per 40 Resin give you:
5-star Artifact: 1.0 (guaranteed—nice!)
4-star Artifact: 1.47 average
Ascension Sliver: 2.15 average
Ascension Fragment: 1.60 average
Ascension Chunk: 0.14 (14% chance)
Ascension Gemstone: 0.014 (1.4% chance—these are precious)
Elite Enemy Drops
Elite Boss material scaling shows clear World Level progression:
WL 0: 1.62 average materials
WL 2: 1.70 average
WL 4: 2.04 average
WL 6: 2.39 average
WL 8: 2.56 average
The scaling isn't dramatic, but every bit helps when you're farming for multiple characters.
Adventure Rank and World Level Impact
AR45 is absolutely the crucial milestone for artifact farming efficiency
. Before hitting this point, you're honestly better off investing Resin in guaranteed upgrades: Character/Weapon Ascension, Talents, and EXP/Mora from Ley Lines. Trust me on this one.
AR55 unlocks WL8, giving you the highest possible drop rates from all content. Each WL increase adds new item types rather than just increasing quantities—it's about access to materials that are completely unavailable at lower levels.
Here's a scheduling tip: Complete your weekly bosses on Sunday before reset to ensure you're getting the highest possible WL rewards.
Resin Efficiency and Optimization
Condensed vs Original Resin
Condensed Resin gets crafted using 40 Original Resin, 1 Crystal Core, and 100 Mora
. It doubles rewards from Ley Lines and Challenge Domains, with a maximum of 5 held at once.
Original Resin caps at 200 and regenerates 1 per 8 minutes (that's 26 hours and 40 minutes for full replenishment—painful, I know).
Manual Replenishment costs escalate daily: 50, 100, 100, 150, 200, 200 Primogems. That first refresh at 50 Primogems offers reasonable value for most players.
Weekly Priority System
Vendor Artifact Purchases: Spend 30,000 Mora for 12,600 artifact EXP weekly from NPC vendors. This is equivalent to 10 Resin cost yielding 1,260 EXP per Resin versus roughly 737 from AR45 domains—that's 71% more efficient!
Weekly Boss Discount: Those first three claims at 30 Resin each are significantly more valuable than subsequent 60 Resin claims.
Advanced Farming Strategies
Artifact Quality Assessment
Roll Value (RV) gives you an objective way to evaluate artifact quality. Each substat roll ranges from Lowest (70% of max value) to Highest (100%). For example, 5-star CRIT Rate ranges from 2.72% (Lowest) to 3.89% (Highest). Sum up the RV percentages of your desirable substats for easy comparison.
CRIT Ratio Optimization
The optimal 1:2 CRIT Rate to CRIT DMG ratio maximizes average damage output. A 75% CRIT Rate / 150% CRIT DMG build actually outperforms 50% CRIT Rate / 200% CRIT DMG builds—counterintuitive, but the math checks out.
Resin-less Farming Routes
Investigation Spots can provide roughly 60,000 artifact EXP daily without any Resin cost—that's equivalent to 80 Resin worth of domain farming. Daily cap is 100 spots, but here's a trick: you can bypass this by loading up many spots before hitting your 100th collection.
Crafting Optimization
Characters with 10% chance to double product passives (like Layla and Albedo) actually outperform 25% chance to refund materials characters (Xingqiu, Mona) over large quantities, yielding roughly 10% more materials overall.
Resource Investment Analysis
Character Development Costs
Full Character Ascension (1-90) requires: 1 Sliver, 9 Fragments, 9 Chunks, 6 Gemstones; 46 boss drops; 168 local specialties; 18/30/36 common drops; 2,093,400 Mora; and roughly 418 Hero's Wit books.
Triple Crown costs: 9 Teachings, 63 Guides, 114 Philosophies; 18/66/93 common drops; 18 weekly boss drops; 3 Crowns; and 4,957,500 Mora.
These numbers can be overwhelming, but breaking them down helps with planning.
Artifact Enhancement Strategy
Incremental Enhancement: Level promising artifacts to +16 before committing to +20. The EXP requirement from +16 to +20 (117,175) nearly matches +0 to +16 (153,300). Plus, 80% of invested EXP transfers when you use leveled artifacts as fodder—so you're not losing much if you change your mind.
FAQ
Should I farm artifacts before AR45? Absolutely not. The low 5-star drop rates make pre-AR45 artifact farming highly inefficient. Focus on guaranteed upgrades until AR45 unlocks those guaranteed 5-star domains.
How does World Level affect boss drops? WL adds new item tiers rather than increasing existing rates. Higher WL unlocks materials that are completely unavailable at lower levels, making progression essential for long-term character development.
Is Condensed Resin always better? Condensed doubles rewards for 20-Resin activities and saves time—but it can't be used for 40-Resin bosses or 30/60-Resin weekly bosses. So it's situational.
What's the 5-star artifact drop rate from domains? AR45+ domains guarantee 1 five-star per run, with 1.07 average (roughly 7% chance for a second). Condensed Resin yields 2.14 average per 40 Resin spent.
How rare are Northlander Billets? Fixed 12% drop rate per weekly boss. Three weekly runs give you roughly a 32% chance for at least one Billet—still pretty rare.
Should I lower World Level if combat is difficult? Only temporarily if your progression significantly lags behind. WL reduction (available at WL5+, once per 24 hours) also reduces drop quality. Better to focus on character development instead.