Red items are the Legendary rarity in Risk of Rain 2 - the rarest tier from standard loot sources. There are 36 legendary items total. They drop at roughly 1% from small chests but are more reliably farmed through large chests, Bazaar Cauldrons (5 greens = 1 red), and the Artifact of Command. Every red item is impactful - there are no bad legendary items, only situational ones.
Large Chest
Always Uncommon+
Void Corrupts
Benthic Bloom
How to Farm Red Items
Large chests always drop Uncommon or Legendary (80%/20%). Bazaar Cauldrons exchange 5 green items for 1 red - the most reliable method on any run. Artifact of Command lets you pick any legendary freely. Mili-Tech Printers let you exchange Red Scrap (from Scrapping unwanted legendaries) for a specific red item displayed on the printer.
All 36 Legendary Items
Tier ratings based on universal value across most builds and survivors. S = pick every run. D = highly situational or weak.
57 Leaf CloverS
+1 luck per stack. All random effects roll an extra time for a favorable outcome. Boosts every proc-based item you hold.
The single highest-impact red item in proc builds. Counterpart to Purity.
Dio's Best FriendS
On death: consumed, revive with 3s invulnerability. Stacks give multiple revival charges.
Universal value regardless of build. Stack for consecutive safety nets.
Ceremonial DaggerS
On kill: launch 3 homing daggers that deal 150% base damage each. No cap on dagger count.
Scales infinitely with kills. Devastating in dense enemy groups.
BrainstalksS
On killing an Elite: all skill cooldowns reduced to 0.5s for 4 seconds (+4s/stack).
Game-changing with Honor artifact or late-game elite density.
Brilliant BehemothS
All attacks explode in a 4m (+1.5m/stack) radius dealing 60% base damage.
Massive AoE on every hit. Pairs with high-speed attack survivors.
Alien HeadA
Reduces all skill cooldowns by 25% (+25%/stack). Hyperbolic - stacks diminish.
Best cooldown item for high-CD skills. Applies before Purity flat reduction.
AegisA
Healing past max HP grants a temporary barrier for 50% (+50%/stack) of the excess healing.
Enables effective over-healing. Transforms healing builds into tank builds.
Rejuvenation RackA
+100% healing effectiveness (+100%/stack). Doubles all healing received.
Multiplies all healing sources. Excellent with Bustling Fungus and Aegis.
Ben's RaincoatA
Blocks one debuff every 5 seconds (+5s per stack reduction). Immunity to burn, bleed, collapse, freeze, etc.
SotV DLC. Essential on Simulacrum and high-difficulty runs. One debuff block per CD.
Hardlight AfterburnerA
Adds 2 (+2/stack) charges to your Utility skill. Reduces Utility cooldown by 33%.
Transforms any survivor with a strong Utility into a different character.
Soulbound CatalystA
Kills reduce equipment cooldown by 4s (+2s/stack).
Enables continuous equipment use in combat. Excellent with Disposable Missile Launcher.
Pocket I.C.B.M.A
All missile-firing items fire an additional 2 missiles (+1/stack).
SotV DLC. Triples missile output from AtG Mk.1. Scales explosively with missile builds.
Laser ScopeA
Critical strikes deal an additional 100% damage (+100%/stack).
SotV DLC. Multiplies crit damage. S-tier on crit-capped Railgunner, strong on everyone.
H3AD-5T v2A
Increases jump height. Slam on landing for 1000%-10000% damage scaling with fall distance. 10s cooldown (-50%/stack). Negates fall damage.
Counters Artifact of Frailty. Extreme burst on certain survivors. Unique mobility tool.
Unstable Tesla CoilB
Every 10s fires a lightning bolt hitting up to 3 (+2/stack) enemies for 200% damage. Turns off for 5s after firing.
Passive AoE damage with no player input required. Solid early, less impactful late.
Happiest MaskB
7% chance on kill to spawn a ghost of the killed enemy with 1500% damage. 30s duration (+30s/stack).
Spawned ghosts can one-shot enemies. Scales with difficult enemies killed.
Sentient Meat HookB
20% (+20%/stack) chance on hit to fire homing hooks at up to 10 (+5/stack) enemies for 100% damage.
Strong grouping and damage at high stacks. Proc affected by 57 Leaf Clover.
Spare Drone PartsB
All drones gain +50% attack speed and fire a missile every second for 200% damage.
SotV DLC. Transforms Engineer drone builds. Mediocre on survivors without drones.
Defensive MicrobotsB
Shoot down nearby enemy projectiles every 0.5s. +10 max HP.
SotV DLC. Passive projectile deletion. Exceptional against ranged-heavy stages.
Frost RelicB
On kill: spawn ice shards that orbit you, dealing 3x33% damage to nearby enemies.
Strong for melee survivors. Shards fall off when not near enemies.
Resonance DiscB
Every 8 primary hits charges the disc. Fires for 300% damage, bouncing between enemies.
Strong on fast-attacking survivors. Charges quickly with rapid primary fire.
Shattering JusticeB
Hit enemies 5 times to reduce armor by 60 for 8s (+8s/stack).
Massive armor shred. Excellent for boss fights where sustained DPS is applied.
Symbiotic ScorpionB
On hit: permanently reduce enemy armor by 2 (-2/stack). Stacks indefinitely.
SotV DLC. Permanent armor reduction per hit. Excellent for prolonged boss fights.
N'kuhana's OpinionB
Store 100% of healing as Soul Energy. At 10% of max HP stored, fire a skull for 250% of stored energy.
Transforms healing into on-demand burst damage. Pairs with Rejuvenation Rack and Aegis.
Wake of VulturesB
On killing an Elite: gain that elite's buff for 3 seconds (+1.5s/stack).
RNG-dependent on which elite is killed. Celestine and Malachite are the strongest buffs.
Bottled ChaosB
Activating equipment triggers an additional random equipment effect.
SotV DLC. Doubles equipment value at the cost of unpredictability. Strong with Spinel Tonic.
Electric BoomerangB
Every 7 hits fire an electric boomerang for 240% damage with a stun effect.
SotS DLC. Reliable crowd control via stun on moderate-frequency trigger.
Growth NectarB
Gain a stack of Smoldering for each item stack in your inventory. Smoldering increases damage.
SotS DLC. Scales with total item count. Rewards deep runs with large inventories.
Runic LensC
Hitting enemies above 90% health deals 250% bonus damage.
Opener damage bonus. Requires burst to matter - weak in sustained DPS scenarios.
Interstellar Desk PlantC
On kill: summon a healing orb that heals nearby allies for 5% max HP.
Low heal amount. Requires high kill frequency. Often outclassed by other healing items.
Sonorous WhispersC
Chance on kill to fire a powerful blast that damages nearby enemies.
SotS DLC. Situational kill-trigger AoE. Value depends heavily on enemy density.
War BondsC
Gain gold equal to 20% of your current gold whenever you pick up an item (+20%/stack).
SotS DLC. Compounds gold accumulation. Value front-loaded - diminishes as gold maxes out.
Tier List Summary
S
57 Leaf Clover, Ceremonial Dagger, Brainstalks, Brilliant Behemoth, Dio's Best Friend
A
Alien Head, Aegis, Rejuvenation Rack, Ben's Raincoat, Hardlight Afterburner, Soulbound Catalyst, Pocket I.C.B.M., Laser Scope, H3AD-5T v2
B
Unstable Tesla Coil, Happiest Mask, Sentient Meat Hook, Spare Drone Parts, Defensive Microbots, Frost Relic, Resonance Disc, Shattering Justice, Symbiotic Scorpion, N'kuhana's Opinion, Wake of Vultures, Bottled Chaos, Electric Boomerang, Growth Nectar
C
Runic Lens, Interstellar Desk Plant, Sonorous Whispers, War Bonds
Frequently Asked Questions
What are red items in Risk of Rain 2?
Red items are the Legendary rarity tier in Risk of Rain 2 - identified by their red icon border. There are 36 legendary items total. They drop at roughly 1% chance from small chests but are more reliably obtained from large chests (which always drop Uncommon or higher), Cauldrons in the Bazaar, or via the Artifact of Command which lets you choose any item freely.
How do you get red items in Risk of Rain 2?
The most reliable methods: Large chests (always drop Uncommon or Legendary), Cauldrons in the Bazaar Between Time (exchange 5 green items for 1 red), the Artifact of Command (choose any item freely), or looping to later stages where Legendary chest costs become accessible. Small chests have roughly 1% legendary drop rate - not worth targeting for reds specifically.
What is the best red item in Risk of Rain 2?
57 Leaf Clover is widely considered the strongest - it improves every proc-based item you hold by rolling favorable outcomes. Ceremonial Dagger provides massive on-kill damage that scales infinitely. Dio's Best Friend is the best safety net. Brainstalks turns elite kills into temporary godmode. The "best" depends heavily on your build.
What does 57 Leaf Clover do?
57 Leaf Clover gives +1 luck per stack, causing all random effects to roll one extra time for a favorable outcome. This improves the effective proc rate of every chance-based item you hold - AtG Missiles, Ukulele, Sticky Bombs, and so on. It is explicitly the counterpart to Purity and each cancels the other out stack for stack.
What does Dio's Best Friend do in Risk of Rain 2?
Dio's Best Friend is a one-time use revival item. On death it is consumed and you return to life with 3 seconds of invulnerability. It stacks - multiple copies give multiple revival chances before needing to find another. It is one of the most universally valuable red items since it provides a safety net regardless of build.
Can you scrap red items in Risk of Rain 2?
Yes. Red Scrap can be obtained by feeding legendary items into a Scrapper. Red Scrap can then be exchanged at a Mili-Tech Printer (the legendary 3D Printer) for a specific legendary item displayed on the printer. This lets you convert unwanted legendaries into targeted ones you actually want.
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