Getting PM's/comments telling me I'm wrong about pouches dropping with just cells and no proc so figured I'd put the info I used here instead of repeating myself, with some screenshots to give a decent ballpark on drop rates.
Translated Dev post for VW lights effect on drops:
Quote:
Voidwatch (2017/4/20)
Quote:
How do the Blue and Red Alignments affect the drop rates for Empyrean materials?
We tend not to disclose all the mechanics behind how items drop, but we will share with you some information regarding “Red Alignment” and “Heavy Metal”.
Red Alignment affects the drop rate of “Heavy Metal”. By using the item “Rubicund Cell” to increase Red Alignment by 150%, the item “Heavy Metal” will be added to the list of potential drops! Increasing the alignment further will have no effects on the drop rate of “Heavy Metal”.
https://www.bluegartr.com/threads/112776-Dev-Tracker-Findings-Posts-(NO-DISCUSSION)?p=6895181&viewfull=1#post6895181
Since that says "Heavy Metal" and not pouches, it's possible pouches require more than 250% (100 base + 150 from cell) or perhaps they assumed everyone has 50% from periapts already, but if they do require more, then it's between 250 and at most, 300. With both periapts, it's for sure, 1 cell = good to go.
Cell + 50% from periapts and TH2. TH doesn't matter, but the SS I got with chest + light in it happened to have TH2 on it. I stopped putting TH on them around 800 stones in when I stopped hitting provoke (TH gear in my voke/steps set) to avoid any proc so I wasn't getting Swiftwings clogging up my pouch slot (still got earrings at 300 though)
Drop rates over large sample.
2800 stones on Aello:
5%
1000 stones on Qilin (-141 pouches from Aello so 62 total)
6.2%
Qilin is higher from that, but the sample is just over 1/3 the size. I could have lost pouches to Swiftwings/Ephemeron over the 800 Aello I was using provoke on too when I did get an (un)lucky proc, but I suspect they are both on a ~5% drop rate as I was around 6% rate on Aello a few times but an unlucky streak would drop me back to 5%.
Hopefully that's of some use to people. I know BG has Aello drop rate as 8% but the source for that seemed to only be a few hundred pops. Can confirm 8% rate is possible over a good streak of 300-400 pops, but a couple bad streaks will even it out to ~5% in the long run.