Hard pity systems: what they actually change
Hard pity guarantees success by a chosen pull count if normal RNG has not already succeeded.
It caps the worst case
With pure RNG there is always some chance of a very long dry streak. Hard pity converts that unbounded tail into a known maximum.
It also lowers the average
Even if most players would have succeeded before pity, the guarantee removes the rare extreme waits. That lowers the overall mean waiting time compared with the same base chance and no pity.
Choosing a pity point
A useful starting point is to compare the natural probability of success by that pull with the player experience you want. If almost everyone would already have succeeded, pity mainly protects outliers. If many players reach pity, the system behaves more like a scheduled reward than pure RNG.
Hard vs soft pity
Hard pity jumps directly to certainty at the cap. Soft pity gradually raises the chance beforehand. Soft pity usually needs simulation because the per-pull probability changes across the streak.
Hard Pity Calculator is free and runs directly in your browser.
Simulate soft & hard pity in LootSimTinyForge Game Tools builds focused balancing utilities for indie game developers. No claim here replaces playtesting with real players.