Item rarity

Item rarity suggests an item's value, potential power, and drop-rate frequency; the rarer an item is, the more valuable and powerful is can be. In ascending order, the four levels of rarity are:


 * White: common items without any upgrades or modifiers.
 * Blue: common items with low-range modifications.
 * Purple: uncommon items with mid-range upgrades.
 * Gold: rare items with maximum or near-max improvements.

There are also two other colors that do not technically belong on the rarity spectrum:
 * Green: unique items which have perfect stats and modifiers (with very few exceptions). They drop only from dungeon chests, bosses, or as a special reward.
 * Red: PvP rewards are items that can be unlocked through PvP gaming. Once crafted, they are automatically customized and their modifications are fixed.

White



 * Weapons
 * No upgrades or modifiers
 * Adding upgrades to white weapons changes their color to blue.


 * Armor
 * Basic armor without any modifiers (aside from those that are standard for the profession)
 * Certain basic armor has inherent modifications and is blue, rather than white.
 * Adding runes of any quality will turn white armor into blue.


 * Salvage items
 * Salvage remains are always white
 * Salvage armor without runes or insignias is white.

Any item that does not fall into the other categories is always white.
 * Other items
 * Dyes are always white.
 * Crafting materials are always white.
 * Ordinary tomes are white.

Blue



 * Weapons
 * Contain at least one modifier or upgrade.
 * Most collector, crafter, PvP, promotion, and quest reward weapons with any modifiers/upgrades are blue.
 * End-game rewards are always green.
 * Domain of Anguish and Destroyer Weapons are green.
 * Collector and crafter weapons with maximum stats will also have maximum-value modifiers.
 * Modifier/upgrade quality ranges from 0 to 50% of the maximum possible value,
 * For example, of Fortitude mods on blue weapons range from 0–25.
 * Exceptions to this rule are extremely rare, including blue Nightfall and Eye of the North weapons that have near-max inscriptions.


 * Runes and weapon upgrades
 * Minor runes.
 * Runes with older artwork will be blue, regardless of quality.
 * Any salvaged upgrade will be blue, regardless of the color of the weapon it was salvaged from.


 * Armor
 * Has at least one modifier aside from basic armor and +energy.
 * Any armor piece with a rune of any quality.


 * Salvage armor
 * Contains minor runes and/or insignias.


 * Other items
 * Less powerful scrolls which can be bought from merchants are blue.

Purple


Purple items have twice the merchant value compared to similar white items. Adding or removing upgrades to purple items will not change their color.


 * Weapons
 * Contain at least one modifier or upgrade.
 * Modifier/upgrade quality ranges from 50 to 75% of the maximum possible value,
 * For example, of Fortitude mods on blue weapons range from 25–28.
 * Mods with small ranges can be maximum, due to rounding, e.g. of Defense mods on purple weapons range from +4 or +5.
 * In Nightfall and Eye of the North, purple weapons are more likely than blue to be inscribable.


 * Runes and salvage armor
 * Major runes are purple
 * Salvage armor is purple if it has a major rune.


 * Other items
 * Uncommon miniatures.

Gold


Gold items (except for scrolls) have four times the merchant value compared to similar white items. Adding or removing upgrades to gold items will not change their color. In Prophecies, the first area that drops gold items from chests is in Kryta.


 * Weapons
 * Contain at least one modifier or upgrade.
 * Modifier/upgrade quality ranges from 75 to 100% of the maximum possible value,
 * For example, of Fortitude mods on blue weapons range from 28–30.
 * Only gold items have maximum values for Vampiric, "I Have the Power", and Insightful mods.
 * The Priest of Balthazar displays perfect weapon upgrades as gold, even though they are blue when found in the wild.


 * Runes and salvage armor.
 * Superior runes are gold.
 * Salvage armor is gold if it has a superior rune.


 * Other gold items
 * More powerful insight scrolls which can be bought from a Rare Scroll Trader.
 * Anguish Gemstones
 * Charr Salvage Kits
 * Rarer miniatures
 * Passage Scrolls
 * Elite Tomes
 * Zaishen Keys
 * Perfect Salvage Kits

Green


Green weapons drop from bosses and dungeon chests, with few exceptions. (Notably: Peacekeepers and White Mantle from the War in Kryta have a chance to drop green weapons.)
 * Weapons
 * Always have the maximum stats and maximum possible number of modifications for the area.
 * Greens found in Shing Jea Island and Istan will not be maximum.
 * Cannot be upgraded, dyed, or salvaged.
 * Exception: Straw Effigies can be dyed.
 * Green primary hand weapons can be customized, like any other.


 * Other items
 * End game tokens are green: Deldrimor Talisman, Amulet of the Mists, Book of Secrets, and Droknar's Key.
 * The rarest miniatures from Birthday presents and all those available through other means are green.
 * hero armor upgrade items
 * Charr Bags
 * Everlasting Crate of Fireworks

Red


PvP reward weapons from Tolkano are the only red items in the game.