Field Bosses and Essences

[Mesmerize]

Can someone explain how they really work? Tip on loading screen said it was based on damage, but everytime I kill a boss, it yields different amounts of essences (I know the amount may vary on different bosses) so here are some examples:

• I soloed Pinchy and I get 3 essences.
• I soloed Pinchy from 100% hp to 10%ish and someone comes, does a couple of attacks on the boss and I got 2 essences.
• I 'claimed' Pinchy and tank it through the whole fight with more people, or even steal their aggro and I got 1 essence.
• I joined a Pinchy fight where it had less than 15% hp left (way late), hit it a couple of times and I got 2 essences.
• I killed Pinchy with another player (Lv30 and me being Lv40) while I did constant 3k and 4k crits, doing higher dps and keeping aggro, and I got 1 essence.

[MaHaN]

its based on the DAMAGE u deal. i think if u do more than 50% damage u get full essence, not sure tough

[Quantum]

You get essence from dealing a certain % damage of it's HP and for striking the last blow that kills the field boss.

[lnvisibleOne]

For pinchy if you solo it you get three, if you duo it or higher you get two if you get last hit or one if you don't. 

[Mesmerize]

OKay, thanks :]

[Xenosaga]

Remember if you come bit later and hit boss in last 5-10%, you can get 1 or 2 essences. It happens sometimes.

[GnatB]

You get one drop of 0 to n essences (apparently) depending on how much damage you do.  (Pinchy seems to be n = 2, stalker is n = 4)

You get a second drop of an essence if you deliver the killing blow.

 

So person A can be soloing Pinchy, then person B walks up and delivers the final few blows.  Person A will get a single drop of 2.  Person B will get two drops of 1.  If person B doesn't get in the last hit, person A will get a drop of 2, and a drop of 1, while person B only gets a drop of 1.

 

(Note:  If you don't do enough damage, you may not get any essences)

 

I'm also extremely suspicious that there is something in particular about Pinchies tunnelling/regen that screws up the "% of damage you've done" calculation.  He gives less essences than any of the other world bosses I have experience with.  I've only ever gotten a "2 essences in 1 drop" from him once, and that time he barely tunneled at all.  If I was a dev on the game, I'd be tempted to check to see if the health regen isn't "double dipping".  i.e. let's say it takes 100 damage to kill him.  You do 50 damage, and a partner does 49 damage.  He tunnels, grenades keep getting resisted so he manages to regen to full, then the two if you do 50 damage and 50 damage, finally killing him.  It took 199 damage to kill him, and since you did (roughly) 100 and 99, (roughly 50% of the total damage), you should get the reward for 50%ish.  Except what if the healing is also sort of negating the damage done.  So as his health goes back up to 100, the calculated damage you've done is being reduced.  So when he get back to 100hp, you've now both only done 0 damage to him.  So then when you do 50 and 50 more, killing him, each of you did 50 damage, but it took 199 damage to kill him, so you are both rewarded as if you only did 25% of the damage, instead of ~50%.