Never had this happen. Was belt ratting, picking up drops then using a Salvager I. After cycling through and the Salvage not accomplished or failing as Unsuccessful, I checked the wreck’s Information: it said it had a “-10”, as opposed to normal Gurista rats I see as having a “30”.
Do these require a Salvager II? Currently Alpha, will go Omega to be able to use my Salvage Drones later. Can’t find any good info/links regarding the Salvage modifier on Wrecks.
No, you do not need a Salvager II to salvage that wreck. It would help though.
A Salvager I has 5% salvage chance at level 1 salvaging. The normal Gurista rat wrecks you see have a default 30% chance to be salvaged. This adds to your salvage bonuses and gives you a 5 + 30 = 35% chance per cycle to succeed. About one in three.
The other wreck you saw had -10% chance. With a Salvager I and level 1 salvaging you have a 5 - 10 = -5% chance per cycle to succeed. This is below 0, you will never succeed.
Luckily there are two things you can do to fix this.
One, train your salvaging skill. Each level gives multiplies your Salvager’s bonus. At level 3 you would have 15% salvage chance, which gives you a 5% or one in 20 chance to salvage that -10 wreck.
Another option is to add Salvage Tackle rigs to your ship. Each T1 rig adds 10% salvage chance, while the more expensive T2 rigs add 15% salvage chance.
With level 3 salvaging and 3 T2 rigs your salvage chance on that -10% wreck is as high as 50%.
If you plan to do more salvaging, it can help to have a specialised salvaging ship ready with 3 T1 salvage rigs. A destroyer does nicely, or an exploration frigate like the Imicus also works well for this role.