How Luck Actually Works

Use the short Luck rule

1. Treat Luck as a Team statistic. Every active Survivor uses the same current value.
2. Choose Luck for a specific job. It adds combat chance, shortens four successful pickup schedules, improves the XP drop pool, and raises passive-card quality.
3. Do not use one cap for every job. Critical and Projectile Dodge stop gaining at 200 Luck, regular Dodge at 300, and the slowest pickup schedule at 334.
4. Use 200 as the broad first target when you value several effects. At that point Critical, Projectile Dodge, and two pickup schedules have capped, while regular Dodge, Magnet timing, XP weights, and passive quality can still improve.
5. Stop expecting Luck to improve Item Chests, Item Pool weights, XP value, failed pickup retries, or timed power-up type selection. Those systems do not read it.

A dodge build, a Magnet-heavy pickup route, and a passive-quality route stop gaining at different points. Choose the target that matches the result you need.

Choose a useful Luck target

The most useful breakpoints come from the first whole Luck value that reaches a cap. They are not community soft caps, and crossing one does not disable the other Luck effects.

• 143 Luck: Healthpak successful schedules reach their minimum 0.5× interval.
• 200 Luck: the Luck contributions to Critical and Projectile Dodge each reach +20 percentage points. Military Training Point and timed power-up schedules also reach 0.5×.
• 217 Luck: the separate regular-to-Blue roll reaches its 4% cap. The direct Blue pool weight still rises after this point.
• 300 Luck: the Luck contribution to regular Dodge reaches +15 percentage points.
• 334 Luck: Magnet successful schedules reach 0.5×, the last of the four ambient schedule caps.
• 500 Luck: Common passive weight reaches 0. Rare and Legendary weights, plus XP pool weights, still rise.

Aim for 200 when Critical, Projectile Dodge, and the two faster ambient schedule caps matter. Continue to 300 for the full regular Dodge contribution. Go to 334 only when the remaining Magnet timing gain matters. Values beyond that still improve XP rarity weights and passive quality. Not every effect caps at 334.

Add the combat contributions

Each Luck point adds 0.1 percentage points of Critical Chance and the same amount of Projectile Dodge Chance. Both Luck contributions stop at +20 points. Regular Dodge uses a smaller 0.05 percentage points per Luck and stops at +15 points.

At 100 Luck, this is +10 Critical points, +10 Projectile Dodge points, and +5 regular Dodge points. At 200, Critical and Projectile Dodge have reached their Luck caps. Regular Dodge is +10 points and needs another 100 Luck.

These are additions to other chance values, not final chances. Projectile Dodge uses the same Luck term as Critical, but it remains a separate statistic from regular Dodge. Do not merge the two Dodge rows into one avoidance percentage.

Shorten successful pickup schedules

Luck changes the interval before the next successful ambient-spawn attempt for MagnetMagnetPicking this power-up will attract every single experience gem and cash currently on the level, so you will automatically pick them all. Other types of pick-ups will not be attracted and will remain where they were before the magnet was collected.Map cap 5 · Stays until collected, HealthpakHealthpakPicking this power-up will restore at least 200 of your Health Points. The amount scales with your Healing Bonus stat. If your HP is full, you can't use this power-up (unless certain gameplay modifiers apply).Map cap 3 · Stays until collected, Military Training PointMilitary Training PointPicking this power-up adds one point to your Military Training progression bar, displayed under the main experience bar. Once you've accumulated four points, you'll be able to select a Military Training option to boost your team's stats.Map cap 6 · Stays until collected, and the shared timed power-up spawner. The player-reachable formula is:

interval factor = max(spawner minimum, 1 - Luck × that spawner’s reduction per point)

The factor multiplies that spawner’s normal successful schedule. At 100 Luck, Magnet uses 0.85×, Healthpak uses 0.65×, and the other two use 0.75×. A 0.5× factor means twice the baseline attempt rate, not twice as many guaranteed pickups.

Luck does not bypass eligibility, a full map cap, or a failed placement. It also does not change the shorter retry after a failed attempt. That retry follows its own 0.35× path. Timed power-up type selection remains uniform among the eligible types after the schedule succeeds.

Calculate XP drop results

Enemy XP drops use a repeated-entry pool. At 0 Luck, the four weights are Experience Gem 200, Blue Experience Gem 25, Red Experience Gem 3, Cash 7. Luck changes the Blue and Red weights after rounding each component upward, while the regular-gem and Cash weights stay fixed.

Blue weight = ceil(5 + Luck × 0.05) + 20 Red weight = ceil(1 + Luck × 0.01) + 2

That ceiling matters immediately. At 1 Luck, the Blue weight becomes 26 and the Red weight becomes 4. The next Blue step arrives at 21 Luck, while the next Red step arrives at 101.

There is also a second Blue roll after the pool selects a regular gem, provided Blue map capacity is free:

second Blue chance = min(Luck × 0.000185, 0.04)

Combined Blue probability equals the direct Blue pool share plus the regular share multiplied by this second chance. At 100 Luck, the result is 13.98%. Red has no matching second Luck roll. Luck changes which tier appears, not how much XP a gem awards.

Shift passive quality

Luck changes the quality pool used by Military Training and endless passive-stat choices. It does not apply to weapon or ability upgrade tiers.

At 100 Luck, the Common, Rare, and Legendary weights are Common 80, Rare 25, Legendary 7. The chance of Rare or Legendary is therefore 28.57%, not a flat percentage added to every card.

Bells & WhistlesBells & WhistlesWhen one of the Military Training upgrades is on lockdown, triples the chance of higher quality upgrades.Unlock: True Otaku · Item Pool weight 10 only changes this calculation when a Military Training choice is locked. It triples the existing Rare and Legendary weights. At 100 Luck in that state, Rare or Legendary becomes 54.55%. It does not guarantee a quality.

Congratulation LetterCongratulation LetterOne or two of the Military Training upgrades are now of at least Rare quality.Unlock: L-l-l-l-legendary! · Item Pool weight 10 follows a separate choice-forcing rule. Schrödinger's CatSchrödinger's CatLocked down Military Training upgrades increase their rarity by one each time you gain Military Training .Unlock: Decide Their Fate · Item Pool weight 10 raises the locked card’s own rarity through another path. Neither belongs inside the base Luck weight formula.

Use the Military Training card reference to compare the Common, Rare, Legendary, and Infinite values after quality has been chosen. The Military Training guide explains why the resulting statistic can gain less than that printed amount.

Find every current Luck source

The current direct sources are the repeatable Military Training: LuckMilitary Training: LuckA repeatable Team Luck choice with a value set by its rolled quality.Common: +5 · Rare: +10 · Legendary: +20 · Endless: +2Repeatable source; the Team statistic cap still applies, Ranger’s Pack TacticsPack TacticsWhile Ranger is on the team, Luck is increased by +10/20/30.Level 1: +10 · Level 2: +20 · Level 3: +30Maximum listed contribution: +30, six Items, and the Good Vibes branch of Incense. This is the complete active source set used to reconstruct Team Luck, not a shortlist of popular options.

Two scaling sources need extra care. Last UnicornLast UnicornFor each animal-based item in your inventory, you receive: +10 Luck, +5% Max HP, +5% Damage. Enemies now spray glitter when they're defeated.Per animal Item: +10Maximum listed contribution: +80 grants +10 per animal Item, with 8 current animal Items for a listed maximum of +80. Pawn Shop ReceiptPawn Shop ReceiptEquipping this item or replacing any other equipped item grants a stacking bonus of: +10% Damage +10 Luck Bonus caps after 5 activations.Per activation: +10Maximum listed contribution: +50 grants +10 per activation and stops after 5, for +50.

Incense: Good VibesIncense: Good VibesEvery pulse restores at least 20 Health Points. Additionally, the stacking bonus also increases your Luck statPer active pulse stack: +10Maximum listed contribution: +50 grants +10 per active pulse stack. A pulse arrives every 1.95 seconds and lasts 3 seconds. One ordinary totem overlaps at most 2 stacks; reaching the stored stack limit of 5 needs overlapping effects rather than one normal pulse sequence.

Jade AmuletJade AmuletGain a damage percentage bonus equal to the amount of your Luck.Unlock: Oh Shoot, Here We Go Again · Item Pool weight 10 is not a Luck source. It converts the existing Luck value into Damage, so equipping it should not be added to the Team Luck total.

Know what Luck does not change

Luck has no active read in the following decisions:

• Item Chest candidate selection or Item Pool weight
• XP value awarded by a gem
• Cash’s fixed base weight in the XP drop pool
• ambient pickup eligibility, map cap, or placement success
• the failed ambient-spawn retry
• timed power-up type selection or effect duration
• a separate Red gem conversion roll

Cash can still occupy a smaller percentage of the XP pool as Blue and Red weights grow. That is an indirect change in share, not an increase or decrease to Cash’s own weight.

This boundary is why a high-Luck run can still miss a blocked pickup or see no change in an Item Chest. The affected system must read Luck, and random results can still vary after it does.

Calculate one Luck value

Read the Team Luck shown in your run. Apply that same value to the separate rules above for Critical, regular Dodge, Projectile Dodge, ambient schedule factors, XP pool weights, and passive quality.

Apply Bells & WhistlesBells & WhistlesWhen one of the Military Training upgrades is on lockdown, triples the chance of higher quality upgrades.Unlock: True Otaku · Item Pool weight 10 only while a Military Training choice is locked. Do not carry that effect into Item Chests, timed power-up type selection, or XP value.

Use the cap messages to decide whether the next Luck source still serves your goal. Copying the URL preserves the selected value and conditional Item state, but it does not claim to import the rest of a live run.

FAQ

Is Luck shared by the whole team?

Yes. The active value is a Team statistic, so the same current Luck feeds the combat, pickup, XP pool, and passive-quality consumers.

How much Critical Chance does one Luck add?

It adds 0.1 percentage points until the Luck contribution reaches +20 points at 200 Luck.

How much Dodge Chance does one Luck add?

Regular Dodge gains 0.05 percentage points per Luck until its contribution reaches +15 points at 300 Luck. Projectile Dodge gains 0.1 points per Luck and reaches +20 at 200 Luck. It uses the Critical slope and cap, not the regular Dodge rule.

Does Luck make Magnets and Healthpaks drop more often?

It shortens their successful ambient attempt schedules. Magnet reaches 0.5× at 334 Luck, and Healthpak reaches it at 143. Luck does not remove their conditions or guarantee a successful placement.

Does Luck affect Military Training rarity?

Yes. It reduces Common weight and raises Rare and Legendary weights for Military Training and endless passive choices. Bells & WhistlesBells & WhistlesWhen one of the Military Training upgrades is on lockdown, triples the chance of higher quality upgrades.Unlock: True Otaku · Item Pool weight 10 can conditionally triple the two higher-quality weights when a Military Training choice is locked.

Does Luck affect Item Chests?

No. Item Chest eligibility and Item Pool weight do not read Luck. The Item Pool guide explains those rules.

Is there one Luck soft cap?

No. Each consumer has its own cap or keeps scaling. The main fixed breakpoints are 143, 200, 217, 300, 334, and 500 Luck. XP pool and passive higher-quality weights continue beyond several earlier caps.