A starred monster (elite) is a stronger copy of a normal creature. It shows a star emblem — one, two or three stars — and is the best hunt source of enchanted equipment (see Items Rarity). Normal monsters can also roll rarity, but at much lower rates.
Where rares come from
- Starred monsters — high chance to enchant loot (including legendary).
- Normal monsters — low chance to enchant (most drops stay common).
- Quest chests — chests can also roll rarity (including legendary).
- Boosted-of-the-hour without a star does not change rarity rates by itself. Summons do not spawn stars.
How they appear
Kill a normal monster. There is a 5% chance that the same creature type is summoned on that tile after a short teleport sequence. A starred monster never spawns another star.
Among elites that do appear:
| Star | Share of elites | Per normal kill |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 60% | ~3% |
| ★★ | 30% | ~1.5% |
| ★★★ | 10% | ~0.5% |
About one ★★★ per 200 normal kills of that type. Summons never spawn stars. These creatures never become starred: Ferumbras, Orshabaal, Morgaroth, Ghazbaran, Demodras, Annihilon, Golgordan, Hellgorak, Latrivan, Madareth, Zugurosh, Ushuriel.
Combat bonuses
Values are extra on top of the base monster. Damage scales melee skill and the maximum of spells (the minimum does not).
| HP | Speed | Damage | EXP | Loot chance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ★ | +50% | +50% | +50% | +50% | +50% (×1.5) |
| ★★ | +100% | +100% | +100% | +100% | +100% (×2) |
| ★★★ | +200% | +200% | +200% | +200% | +200% (×3) |
Star EXP adds to the boosted monster bonus. Example: +30% boosted and ★ +50% = +80% EXP on that kill.
The loot bonus makes items appear more often from the corpse. Rarity is rolled separately (see below).
Enchanted loot
After an enchantable item drops, it may roll rarity. Normal monsters enchant rarely; starred monsters enchant much more often (including legendary). ★ / ★★ / ★★★ use the same starred rarity rules — more stars mainly mean a harder fight and more frequent loot, not a different rarity ladder.
Most enchanted pieces from hunts still come from starred corpses. Quest chests and rarity scrolls are separate sources. Elites can also drop extra gold and rarity-upgrade items on top of their normal loot table.
Quick summary
| Spawn | 5% on a normal kill, then 60 / 30 / 10 |
| Look | Star emblem over the creature |
| Rares from hunts | Normals (low) + starred (high) |
| Rares from quests | Chests can roll rarity (including legendary) |
| Boosted hour | Extra EXP / berries — not extra rarity by itself |