PSA: Your loot filter is filtering more than you want it to!

Since I just noticed this by pure chance, figured I'd point it out here before folks miss out on too much.

As you likely know, the loot filter offers a fair few categories to show/hide items by. Two of those are:
- Normal / Base
- Ethereal / Socketed

Now, based on how the filter is designed and works for other categories (e.g. unique), one would assume that hiding based on normal/base hides White stuff and hiding based on ethereal/socketed hides gray stuff.
And that is true.
In part...

The problem is:
Normal/Base doesn't just include normal/base items but it also includes socketed!

So random example:
You're not interested in a

Short Sword at all.
You're also not interested in a White

Crossbow.
But you are interested in a socketed

Crossbow.

One would assume that if you create 2 filters:
- hide + normal/base +

Short Sword and

Crossbow
- hide + ethereal/socketed +

Short Sword
..this would hide the White versions of both but should still show a socketed

Crossbow because it isn't hidden as part of ethereal/socketed.
Well, sadly, it doesn't. Socketed also counts as normal so if you have the

Crossbow included in the normal/base hide, it will be hidden, even if it is socketed and not normal/base.

So basically, either just use one big 'hide' but exclude everything you want to see even if it is only interesting if already socketed.
Or start using 'show' filters explicitly which is likely the better option but I haven't played around with that inverse approach yet since in my youthful (yeah right) ignorance, I assumed that for once, Blizz would've gotten something to work correctly.

yup, the normal filter is quiet counterintuitive. Gladly, i realized it soon enough to not have missed that much. I completely deactivated normal filter for now

Schnorki wrote: 2 hours ago

The problem is:
Normal/Base doesn't just include normal/base items but it also includes socketed!

Isn't this the other way around? Socketed items are (usually, but not always) ALSO normal/base. You even stated so yourself. So by excluding normal

Crossbow you also exclude socketed normal

Crossbow (but not excluding socketed magic/rare). I think it's logical.

Also, you're right about explicitly setting filters to "show" certain items as exceptions from more general "hide" rules.

I just hid potions, throwing potions, small piles of

Gold, scrolls, ammo. Good enough.

Only next step for me is hiding all magical non-charms/jewels. Didn't fiddle much with loot filters yet. Not bothering with 3/20 gloves or 3os diadems.

As a software developer - it's difficult to say what approach is "correct" in that matter, as you have to choose between "working to the letter" approach, as made by Blizzard currently, or filtering by normal/base*, with asterisk being that socketed/ethereal items are excluded from that condition. The second approach, even if making more sense, usually is worse in the long run - any hidden condition of that kind is a bad design choice.

This current way, at least you know for sure that filters work EXACTLY as written - even if that makes you do some mental logical operations and setting additional filter for showing normal-but-ethereal/socketed items.