Ammo conservation
For the differences of this information on Old-gen console and 3DS, see Legacy:Ammo conservation.
Ammo conservation is a mechanic which prevents ammunition items from being consumed, i.e. removed from the player's inventory, when fired. By default, every item of ammo fired will be consumed, but certain items add a chance to conserve ammo.
Items with ammo conservation
Weapons and tools
The following weapons and tools have an inherent chance not to consume the ammunition fired from them.
| Item | Chance |
|---|---|
 Vortex Beater |
2/3 (66.67%) |
 Celebration Mk2 |
1/2 (50%) |
 Phantasm |
2/3 (66.67%) |
 Candy Corn Rifle |
1/3 (33.33%) |
 Minishark |
1/3 (33.33%) |
 Gatligator |
1/2 (50%) |
 Megashark |
1/2 (50%) |
 Chain Gun |
1/2 (50%) |
 S.D.M.G. |
2/3 (66.67%) |
 Terraformer |
1/3 (33.33%) |
Other items
The following items grant a chance not to consume ammunition fired from any weapon.
| Item | Chance |
|---|---|
 Magic Quiver(for arrows and Stakes only) |
1/5 (20%) |
 Ammo Box |
1/5 (20%) |
 Ammo Reservation Potion |
1/5 (20%) |
 Chlorophyte Helmet |
1/5 (20%) |
|
1/5 (20%) |
|
1/4 (25%) |
| 1/10 (10%) |
Stacking
All ammo conservation effects above stack with each other (unless they are in the same table row above). They are treated as independent events, which means that two ammo conservation chances are not simply added, but calculated with the following formula:[1]
[math]\displaystyle{ p_{total} = p_1 + p_2 - p_1 \times p_2 }[/math]
In other words, the ammo consumption chance can be calculated with the following formula:
[math]\displaystyle{ p^{\prime}_{total} = (1-p_1)\times(1-p_2)\times\ldots\times(1-p_n) }[/math]
For example, using a Minishark ([math]\displaystyle{ p_1 = \frac{1}{3} }[/math]) with an Ammo Box ([math]\displaystyle{ p_2 = \frac{1}{5} }[/math]) results in a total conservation chance of [math]\displaystyle{ p_{total} = \frac{7}{15} }[/math] (46.67%), or a total consumption chance of [math]\displaystyle{ p^{\prime}_{total} = \frac{8}{15} }[/math] (53.33%):
[math]\displaystyle{ p_{total} = \frac{1}{3} + \frac{1}{5} - \frac{1}{3} \times \frac{1}{5} = \frac{7}{15} }[/math]
[math]\displaystyle{ p^{\prime}_{total} = (1-\frac{1}{3})\times(1-\frac{1}{5}) = \frac{8}{15} }[/math]
Notes
- Although bait shares some characteristics with ammunition, it is unaffected by ammo conservation. The only mechanic that has an effect on bait consumption is bait power.[2]
- Consumable ranged weapons benefit from ammo conservation. However, this is limited to ammo conservation bonuses provided by armor items – the Magic Quiver, Ammo Box, and Ammo Reservation Potion have no effect on consumable ranged weapons.[3]
Tips
- Ammo conservation is highly useful when using weapons with expensive ammo, such as the Clentaminator or Super Star Shooter, or ammo-hungry weapons, such as the Hellwing Bow. The following combinations of items grant high ammo conservation values:
Fossil armor(set bonus)- Ammo Reservation Potion
- Minishark
- Ammo Box
- Ammo Reservation Potion
Adamantite armor(set bonus)with Mask- Gatligator
This is the highest ammo conservation possible. On average, only 102 out of 1000 arrows will be consumed.
References
- ↑ Information taken from the Desktop 1.4.4.9 source code, method
PickAmmo()inTerraria.Player.cs. - ↑ Information taken from the Desktop 1.4.4.9 source code, method
ItemCheck_CheckFishingBobber_PickAndConsumeBait()inTerraria.Player.cs. - ↑ Information taken from the Desktop 1.4.4.9 source code, method
ItemCheck()inTerraria.Player.cs.