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Loot System

How loot works in VMaNGOS: which table feeds which loot store, how rows are grouped and rolled, and where conditions and progression filtering apply. The loading/rolling code lives in src/game/LootMgr.cpp.

Loot Stores and Their ID Sources

Every *_loot_template is a store. Rows with the same entry form one loot table; the entry is referenced from another table (the loot id):

Store Referenced by Notes
creature_loot_template creature_template.loot_id Loot id 0 is never rolled; Alterac Valley player-kill loot uses battleground_template.player_loot_id into reference_loot_template.
pickpocketing_loot_template creature_template.pickpocket_loot_id Empty loot id = nothing to pick.
skinning_loot_template creature_template.skinning_loot_id Also used for herb/mining nodes that are skinnable.
disenchant_loot_template item_template.DisenchantID
gameobject_loot_template gameobject_template loot id (data1 for chest-type objects)
item_loot_template item_template.entry Loot contained in items (e.g. clams).
fishing_loot_template Area id (skill_fishing_base_level zones) Entry 0 = junk loot on failed catch.
mail_loot_template Mail reward systems
reference_loot_template other stores via mincountOrRef < 0 Shared sub-tables, see below.

The loader validates references at startup: unused or missing loot ids produce DB errors in the server log (ReportUnusedIds / ReportNotExistedId).

How a Row Rolls

Shared columns of all loot templates:

  • ChanceOrQuestChance
  • Positive value = plain percentage chance to drop.
  • Negative value = quest item; the absolute value is the chance, and the item only drops for characters on the matching quest.
  • 100 = always.
  • groupid - rows sharing a non-zero group id form an equally distributed group: the server picks one (or more) members per kill so the total chance of the group stays constant. Set-chance groups use per-row chances instead when configured.
  • mincountOrRef
  • Positive: minimum stack size for this drop.
  • Negative: -reference_entry - pull items from reference_loot_template instead of dropping an item directly.
  • maxcount - maximum stack size (or number of pulls from a reference).
  • condition_id - optional conditions check; the row is skipped when the condition fails.
  • patch_min / patch_max - progression filtering.

Drop rates can be tuned globally with the Rate.Drop.Item.* settings in mangosd.conf.

Reference Templates

reference_loot_template lets many tables share one pool (e.g. "world drop epics"). A row in any store with negative mincountOrRef expands into that reference table at roll time; each row of the reference rolls independently using its own ChanceOrQuestChance. Nested references are supported but keep them shallow for performance.

Creature Money

Gold drops do not come from loot templates: creature_template.gold_min / gold_max define the money range, scaled by Rate.Drop.Money.