Gacha Pity Systems: Rates, Guarantees, Carryover

This guide explains how gacha pity systems work across most popular games, covering drop rates, hard and soft pity, guarantee mechanics, and whether your progress carries over to the next banner. You’ll learn how to read banner details, calculate your worst-case spend, and avoid common mistakes.

What You’ll Need

• The game you’re playing (e.g., Genshin Impact, Honkai: Star Rail, Wuthering Waves, Arknights, etc.)
• The current banner’s official drop rate and pity details (usually in the “Details” or “Info” tab)
• A note of your current pity count (how many pulls since your last 5-star or rate-up item)
• Knowledge of whether the game uses a 50/50 or 75/25 system for the featured item

Step-by-Step

1. Find the official rates. Open the banner’s details page. Look for the probability of the highest-rarity item (e.g., 0.6% for a 5-star in Genshin Impact, 2% for a 6-star in Arknights). This is the base rate.
2. Identify the pity threshold. Most games guarantee the highest rarity within a certain number of pulls (e.g., 90 for Genshin, 80 for Honkai: Star Rail, 80 for Wuthering Waves, 300 for Arknights’ spark system). This is the hard pity.
3. Check for soft pity. Some games increase the rate a few pulls before hard pity. For example, in Genshin Impact, the rate rises significantly starting at pull 75. This is soft pity. If the game has it, note the starting pull.
4. Understand the featured guarantee. When you get a highest-rarity item, it may not be the featured one. In a 50/50 system (like Genshin), you have a 50% chance to get the featured character. If you lose, your next highest-rarity item is guaranteed to be the featured one. In a 75/25 system (like Honkai: Star Rail’s light cone banner), the featured chance is 75%.
5. Track your pity count. Keep a manual note or use an app. Your pity count is the number of pulls since your last highest-rarity item. It resets to 0 when you get one.
6. Check if pity carries over. In most modern games (Genshin, Honkai, Wuthering Waves), pity and the 50/50 guarantee carry over to the next banner of the same type (character event banner, weapon banner, etc.). In some games (like many older ones), pity resets each banner. Check the banner details or official FAQ.
7. Calculate your worst-case pulls. If you are at 0 pity and have no guarantee, worst case is: lose the 50/50 at hard pity (90 pulls), then hit hard pity again for the guarantee (90 more). Total 180 pulls. If you have a guarantee, worst case is just 90 pulls.
8. Convert pulls to currency. Multiply the number of pulls by the cost per pull (e.g., 160 primogems per pull in Genshin). This tells you the maximum currency you need to save.

Common Mistakes

• Assuming all banners share pity. Character event banners, weapon banners, and standard banners have separate pity counters. Pulling on one does not affect another.
• Forgetting that pity resets on a 5-star. Even if you get a 5-star at pull 50, your pity resets to 0. You don’t get to keep the 40 pulls you had before.
• Misunderstanding the 50/50 guarantee. The guarantee only applies to the next 5-star after losing. If you win the 50/50, your next 5-star is not guaranteed to be the featured one.
• Not checking if carryover exists. Some games (like certain collab banners) do not carry over. Always read the fine print.
• Ignoring soft pity. You might get a 5-star before hard pity, but that doesn’t reset your guarantee status. If you lost the 50/50 earlier, the next 5-star is still guaranteed featured.

Tips

• Save for guarantee. Only pull if you can afford the worst-case number of pulls (180 for a 50/50 game) unless you’re okay with not getting the featured item.
• Use the 50/50 strategically. If you want two characters from consecutive banners, losing the 50/50 on the first gives you a guarantee for the second.
• Track pity with a spreadsheet. Record the date, number of pulls, and result. This helps you know exactly where you stand.
• Check for anniversary or event bonuses. Many games give extra currency or free pulls during events, which can reduce your cost.
• Understand the weapon banner’s separate system. Weapon banners often have a different pity count and a “fate point” system (e.g., in Genshin, you choose the weapon you want, and if you get a different one, you get a fate point; two fate points guarantee your chosen weapon).

Troubleshooting

• My pity didn’t carry over. Check if the banner type is the same. For example, in Genshin, the character event banner and the weapon event banner have separate pity. Also, some limited-time collaboration banners explicitly state they do not carry over. If it’s a regular banner and it didn’t carry over, contact support.
• I got a 5-star but it wasn’t the featured one, and I thought I had a guarantee. The guarantee only activates after you lose the 50/50. If you won the previous 50/50, you don’t have a guarantee. Check your history to confirm.
• My pity counter reset unexpectedly. Did you pull on a different banner by accident? Did you get a 5-star that you forgot about? Check your pull history in the game.
• The game shows a different rate than what I calculated. Some games have a “consolidated rate” that includes the effect of pity. The base rate is what you see in the details, but the actual chance per pull increases as you approach pity. Trust the official details.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is the difference between soft pity and hard pity?
A: Soft pity is when the drop rate starts increasing before the hard cap. Hard pity is the maximum number of pulls before a guaranteed highest-rarity item. Not all games have soft pity.

Q: Does pity carry over to the next banner?
A: In most modern games (Genshin, Honkai: Star Rail, Wuthering Waves), yes, the pity count and the 50/50 guarantee carry over for the same banner type. Check each game’s official info, as some collab banners may not.

Q: If I lose the 50/50, does my next 5-star guarantee the featured item?
A: Yes, in a standard 50/50 system, losing the 50/50 means your next highest-rarity item is guaranteed to be the featured one. This guarantee also carries over to the next banner.

Q: How many pulls do I need to guarantee a character?
A: In a 50/50 game with 90-pull hard pity, the worst case is 180 pulls (lose 50/50 at 90, then hit pity again at 90). If you already have a guarantee, it’s 90 pulls.

Q: Does the weapon banner work the same way?
A: No. Weapon banners often have a different pity count and a “fate point” system. For example, in Genshin, you choose a target weapon, and if you get a different 5-star weapon, you get a fate point. Two fate points guarantee your chosen weapon. Pity on the weapon banner carries over, but fate points do not.

Q: What is a “spark” system?
A: Some games (like Arknights) have a spark system where you can redeem the featured item after a certain number of pulls (e.g., 300). This is separate from pity and is a hard guarantee, but it requires saving a large amount of currency.

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