# Salvage drones are kinda trash \[let em retreat small items **URL:** \ **Category:** Player Features & Ideas\ **Created:** [September 19, 2023, 9:11pm UTC](https://forums.eveonline.com/t/salvage-drones-are-kinda-trash-let-em-retreat-small-items/421107 "2023-09-19T21:11:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ZombieFX](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/eveonline/user_avatar/forums.eveonline.com/zombiefx/32/378632_2.png) [@ZombieFX](https://forums.eveonline.com/u/ZombieFX)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2023, 9:11pm UTC](https://forums.eveonline.com/t/salvage-drones-are-kinda-trash-let-em-retreat-small-items/421107/1 "2023-09-19T21:11:43Z")
o/ …as it stands salvage drones are; - slow - vulnerable - often fail to salvage - do not recover items - take up valuable drone space in your bay - they can get lost Meanwhile, the **real value lies within the items found** - be it direct sell or refining those for ore. Though… if you want to pick those up, you are usually within salvager range or got a tractor of some kind going, making those drones rather useless. To sum it up: They have **only 1 job** , they **don’t do it well** , and the **alternatives are way more efficient**. No self-respecting PvE player uses them by their own. They are a gimmick. That’s all there is to it. However… IF they would at least **retrieve 1x random item** and bring it back, NOW THAT~ would make up for all their shortcomings. Salvaging drone I = brings back 1 random item up to **5m³** Salvaging drone II = bring back 1 random item up to **10m³** **Anything bigger you still have to get yourself.** They are still not the ‘can do everything’ solution. They are still far slower and (objectively) worse than any ship with a Salvager/Tractor combi (or MTU) ~but~ they can at least pay for themselves. I think this is overdue given how much loot has been nerved over the years. The market impact shouldn’t be too great. Serious players do have dedicated loot systems in place already. This is more for the lazy players with all the time in the world. (aka miners) ❤ fs ps. Dedicated ‘ **retriever drones** ’ may work too. Still niche. But you could pair em up. ---
**Author:** ![Nicen\_Jehr](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/eveonline/user_avatar/forums.eveonline.com/nicen_jehr/32/388048_2.png) [@Nicen\_Jehr](https://forums.eveonline.com/u/Nicen_Jehr)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2023, 9:54pm UTC](https://forums.eveonline.com/t/salvage-drones-are-kinda-trash-let-em-retreat-small-items/421107/2 "2023-09-19T21:54:54Z")
this exists and is called Mobile Tractor Unit ---
**Author:** ![Wanda\_Fayne](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/eveonline/user_avatar/forums.eveonline.com/wanda_fayne/32/377654_2.png) [@Wanda\_Fayne](https://forums.eveonline.com/u/Wanda_Fayne)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2023, 10:50pm UTC](https://forums.eveonline.com/t/salvage-drones-are-kinda-trash-let-em-retreat-small-items/421107/3 "2023-09-19T22:50:29Z")
> [@ZombieFX](#): > > the **real value lies within the items found** Contaminated Lorentz Fluid. For reasons… 🤔 ---
**Author:** ![Wondering\_Monk](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/eveonline/user_avatar/forums.eveonline.com/wondering_monk/32/373294_2.png) [@Wondering\_Monk](https://forums.eveonline.com/u/Wondering_Monk)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2023, 11:37pm UTC](https://forums.eveonline.com/t/salvage-drones-are-kinda-trash-let-em-retreat-small-items/421107/4 "2023-09-19T23:37:37Z")
Salvage drones exist for ships such as mining barges that cannot fit a salvager or do not wish to waste a high slot on a module they may rarely use ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/eveonline/original/3X/4/1/41ec4921cbaca7a6f9ea556e7cc20018461eae5e.png) [@system](https://forums.eveonline.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2023, 11:38pm UTC](https://forums.eveonline.com/t/salvage-drones-are-kinda-trash-let-em-retreat-small-items/421107/5 "2023-12-18T23:38:24Z")
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