People who played all 4 caster classes- most fun casting class?

[chris.hijiri]

I got my enchanter alt up to 30 based on a Charisma-charm solo build (210 CHA, 160s INT), while technically very challenging and -kinda- fun with the power of enchanter, it's just not overall something I look forward to playing even though the levels fly solo Charming. Thinking about making a change. I had a necro on live a million years ago that I really enjoyed, but played him past kunark to OOW so I'm not sure if it translates to P99

I can throw 5 to 10K at the class but I still do all the quests, And I'm talking overall fun from Level 1 to 60.

[Tecmos Deception]

For what it's worth, enchanter doesn't really come into it's own until like 40, I would say. Before then clarity regen isn't maxed yet, simple spells like roots and calms and stuns suck up a fair chunk of your total mana pool, blue con range is small so one blue con is a pushover but the next breaks charm every 2 ticks, etc. The general idea is the same from 12-60, but 40-60 (and ESPECIALLY 51+), it is much smoother and more fun, imo, than before that.

Necro is great. Similar overall fun imo to a chanter, just with different strengths and weaknesses. Feign, harmshield, lifetaps, dots? Awesome. No tash or slow and very limited hard CC? Tough to get used to after playing a chanter.

Magician is too much of a one-trick pony. They AREN'T truly one-trick ponys - pets can be used in a variety of ways and they have their nukes and rains and debuffs and fun summons and stuff. But not versatile enough to keep my attention, especially when grinding levels.

Wizards are like magicians imo. A few nice perks beyond their damage - roots, stuns, ports - but not enough to make grinding levels or medding through raids better than "almost tolerable."

[Nycon43]

If you want a change from Enchanter play a Necro then. Much more straight forward class, a breeze to level and I found it fun leveling all the way. Can't do all the endgame stuff an enchanter can however. If you got 10k to throw buy a Pre-nerf Circlet of Shadows and you're good.

I got a mage up to 35 before I had to give it up; the chain pet summoning way of levelling solo is just really cumbersome and it sucks playing a caster class without any form of CC outside of clickies.

Wizard I can't say much tbh, last time I played one was on live but on P99 they seem to be shunned for groups even more so then a necro. Ok for raiding I guess? If I wanted to quad kite a character to 60 I think I'd rather play a druid.

[Triiz]

I haven't played all 4 casters, but I've played several different classes and I used to think bard was the funnest class in EQ until I took an Enchanter to 60 solo. The early 30's were some of the most boring leveling I did on my Enchanter, think it was in the CT gator tunnels but I remember it felt like really slow going.

You just can't beat sending a pet into 5+ mobs, dragging them all out, and then killing them all. It's also fun to solo crawl through dungeons or parts of dungeons that full groups routinely wipe in.

Enchanter really starts to shine at 51 once they get Theft of Thought and mana regen becomes pretty much a non-issue.

[Vexenu]

Necro is probably the most fun overall. Being able to FD, insta-invis and heal also makes the class much more forgiving of mistakes, leading to less frustration and the ability to take more risks. Necro also has a variety of ways to level which keeps things fresh: fear kite, root rot, charm are all viable XP options. And while duoing/grouping Necros shift into more of a support role, using different tactics and spells. Always a fun and interesting playstyle with a lot of room for variety and experimentation.

Enchanters would be a solid second place in my estimation. They'd definitely be in first place if having the most powerful character is your idea of fun, since they are unarguably the most powerful when well-played. But they're not easy to play well and tend to die a lot, which is not fun for most people.

I'd put Magicians in third place for fun. Most people will be at least somewhat turned off by their limitations, and some find the lack of variety in the Mage playstyle abysmally boring. But others find it a relaxing change of pace compared to more demanding classes. Really depends on the player.

Wizards are the least fun by far. Do not play a Wizard unless you are a hardcore raider, in which case you wouldn't even need to ask the question. In other words, if you have to ask whether or not to play a Wizard, you should not play a Wizard.

[dafier]

Enchanter by far.

Solo charming is the most fun thing you can do in EQ.

[kaluann]

Depends on what you're looking to do...

Enchanter and Necro are very active classes but also very powerful. Enchanter is especially strong, but you need to be glued to your screen ready for charm breaks. There are endless posts that gush over these 2 classes so I don't need to say much more. I'd say if you're looking for a "fun" class, those are the 2 best of the 4 caster classes.

However, there is something to be said about the relaxing nature of playing a mage or wizzy. Mages are powerful and easy to play, and wizards are awesome at quad kiting and getting around Norrath in a flash. You won't stress out over charm breaks or min/maxing your hp/mana ratio with these classes. They are both very low stress.

I seriously love my wizard, and I'm so glad I leveled one up. It's sad that they don't get any love here. Quadding is awesome exp (and 50+ its also amazing plat), plus you can go do other stuff while you med. I can't commit a lot of time to EQ and have to AFK frequently, so it was the perfect class for me.

Try them all out! Caster classes are great. And always remember, Gnome > all other races

[Crawdad]

I've played all int casters except Wizard to mid 50s/60.

Necro is probably the most enjoyable ride to 60. Plenty of milestone levels (20, 34, 49, 51, 60) where you really feel more powerful as you gain levels and spells. Tons of utility and different ways to solo if you get bored with one style. Low cost, high reward class. Being an evil race/class opens up tons of camps and opportunities too, that other classes might shy away from. Necro lets you embrace it!

Enchanter is #2. Super strong, but dies more often than other int casters and misses some of the quality of life perks of necro (FD, CoS, heals, types of gameplay). Incredibly strong though and makes a meh group into a killing machine. The amount of attention an Enchanter takes can burn you out, though.

Magician's next. I have a soft spot in my heart for Mage as it was the very first class I rolled on live. Pets are great leveling up and pull solid damage in groups or solo. The novelty of summoned items can be pretty fun. It can get a little old though.

Wizard I wont speak on as I've only made it to the mid-20s before getting bored. Wizards seem like they fell into the same spot as Rangers in that it took until Luclin/PoP to really give the class a good definition.

[dafier]

Forgot to share:

My first character on Povar was a High Elf Wizard. I stopped playing him at level 7 because root lasted literlly 1 second or never stuck and level 3 orc pawns would kill me even though my piercing skill was maxed. This is RIGHT at release. Maybe 2 or 3 days in.

Wizards were broken and didn't work at all solo. A lot of people in GFay constantly complained that wizards were impossible to play solo.

I switched to an Enchanter and loved it from level 1 to 60, then switched to a Mage when Velious dropped and never went back to my chanter until PoP.

I became furious with Verant when they nerfed the Enchanter charm spell. Spoke to ...Balish...damn I can't remember his chars name. The person who ran the Allakhazam board played a Dark Elf Enchanter on Povar. He used to go in to the arena in FP and charm one of the warrior master trainers and have him destroy everything in there.

He was not happy about the nerf too. Anyway, the Enchanter was the best. Mage was kick back and relax and when I got my epic, it became easy mode and almost everyone wanted me in their group. Epic pet was crazy OP in Velious and Luclin.

[Tecmos Deception]

Necro is probably the most enjoyable ride to 60. Plenty of milestone levels (20, 34, 49, 51, 60) where you really feel more powerful as you gain levels and spells.

Yeah. This is a huge deal for how fun playing 1-60 is, and it's something enchanter misses out on. Most upgrades in enchanter spell lines don't even get used right when you get them, because they cost too much or cast too slowly or don't really get good until your level scales them up to max % effect. Some never get used instead of the lower-level versions. Higher-level charms don't get used until well after you get them either for XPing or just for charming the toughest thing you can find. Our "end-game" spells are gimmicky or situational or both. Etc. Even going from breeze to c1 or from c1 to c2 is just a background, quality-of-life change and not a "wow, I just got awesome" change. Theft of thought is about the single biggest power-up moment in a chanter's life, and even that is a situational spell that doesn't have a direct effect on gameplay AT ALL... it just enables you to do all the other stuff you could already do for longer without ooming and having to die/end the fight/gate.

Necro spells definitely give you big steps up every time you get a new one, and that really makes the reward for hitting a new spell level incredibly satisfying.

[Triiz]

I think people overstate how often Enchanter's die, at least soloing Enchanter's. From 57-60 on my Enchanter I spent probably 90% of my time in HS West, never died once, capped out once and gated out while a pack of mobs was AOE mez'd once which I guess could be considered a sorta-death.

I don't remember how many times total I died while xping my enchanter, but it wasn't very often and far less than I did leveling a bard or shaman, and I don't consider myself a "great enchanter" maybe above average at best. Runes/Bedlam line/AOE stuns/AOE mez make dying pretty preventable.

If you're in a group and you're 65% hasting your pet and giving them another 36% haste with Tola Robe + some proc weapons and standing 2 feet away from them then yeah you're probably going to die a lot, but there's no reason to do that when solo xping

[chris.hijiri]

For what it's worth, enchanter doesn't really come into it's own until like 40, I would say. Before then clarity regen isn't maxed yet, simple spells like roots and calms and stuns suck up a fair chunk of your total mana pool, blue con range is small so one blue con is a pushover but the next breaks charm every 2 ticks, etc. The general idea is the same from 12-60, but 40-60 (and ESPECIALLY 51+), it is much smoother and more fun, imo, than before that.

Necro is great. Similar overall fun imo to a chanter, just with different strengths and weaknesses. Feign, harmshield, lifetaps, dots? Awesome. No tash or slow and very limited hard CC? Tough to get used to after playing a chanter.

Magician is too much of a one-trick pony. They AREN'T truly one-trick ponys - pets can be used in a variety of ways and they have their nukes and rains and debuffs and fun summons and stuff. But not versatile enough to keep my attention, especially when grinding levels.

Wizards are like magicians imo. A few nice perks beyond their damage - roots, stuns, ports - but not enough to make grinding levels or medding through raids better than "almost tolerable."

I've played all int casters except Wizard to mid 50s/60.

Necro is probably the most enjoyable ride to 60. Plenty of milestone levels (20, 34, 49, 51, 60) where you really feel more powerful as you gain levels and spells. Tons of utility and different ways to solo if you get bored with one style. Low cost, high reward class. Being an evil race/class opens up tons of camps and opportunities too, that other classes might shy away from. Necro lets you embrace it!

Enchanter is #2. Super strong, but dies more often than other int casters and misses some of the quality of life perks of necro (FD, CoS, heals, types of gameplay). Incredibly strong though and makes a meh group into a killing machine. The amount of attention an Enchanter takes can burn you out, though.

Magician's next. I have a soft spot in my heart for Mage as it was the very first class I rolled on live. Pets are great leveling up and pull solid damage in groups or solo. The novelty of summoned items can be pretty fun. It can get a little old though.

Wizard I wont speak on as I've only made it to the mid-20s before getting bored. Wizards seem like they fell into the same spot as Rangers in that it took until Luclin/PoP to really give the class a good definition.

Yeah. This is a huge deal for how fun playing 1-60 is, and it's something enchanter misses out on. Most upgrades in enchanter spell lines don't even get used right when you get them, because they cost too much or cast too slowly or don't really get good until your level scales them up to max % effect. Some never get used instead of the lower-level versions. Higher-level charms don't get used until well after you get them either for XPing or just for charming the toughest thing you can find. Our "end-game" spells are gimmicky or situational or both. Etc. Even going from breeze to c1 or from c1 to c2 is just a background, quality-of-life change and not a "wow, I just got awesome" change. Theft of thought is about the single biggest power-up moment in a chanter's life, and even that is a situational spell that doesn't have a direct effect on gameplay AT ALL... it just enables you to do all the other stuff you could already do for longer without ooming and having to die/end the fight/gate.

Necro spells definitely give you big steps up every time you get a new one, and that really makes the reward for hitting a new spell level incredibly satisfying.

Great insight guys that's exactly what it is, no real milestones where you feel like that last ding of level "X" gave you the next plateau with Enchanter or a new tool. And the widow for success on enchanter is very small compared to other classes and subject to RGN where you can do everything perfect and still die which I haven't really seen in other classes.

[Tecmos Deception]

And the widow for success on enchanter is very small compared to other classes and subject to RGN where you can do everything perfect and still die which I haven't really seen in other classes.

While there's truth to this, I've always felt that how you prepare for the eventual RNG F U is the biggest part of being a chanter, especially if you're soloing a lot.

It's all too easy to be lazy and not fully buff, or cheap and use a rune 3 instead of a 4 or 5. That stuff will eventually get you killed.

It's easy to know "calm is awesome!" and to solo a ton of nasty stuff with it because 90% of the time it works with no hitches. But it's effort to plan for how to maximize your chances of surviving (and maybe even still winning the fight) when you aggro 4 harmtouching mobs with the first-cast calm crit fail... let alone to kinda rehearse it in your head while you're medding before a fight or something to be sure that when you need to intercept those mobs that are charging at you with your pet, target the right one for an AE mez, have the right spells loaded so after you do probably eat a couple HTs you can get your runes back up before a charm breaks and you get summoned by the two mobs still not CCed... etc.

Yes. I have no life.

[Nagoya]

Even though the question is clearly about the "most fun caster" and wizard can probably not fit into that description, I still think you guys are unfair to the wizard class hehe.

First, let's debunk a myth that is 100% forumquest and 0% real p99: wizards can group absolutely no problem, nobody "shuns" on you for being a wizard. Only assholes do that, and the server has a few, and you will lose a spot in a group every now and then I guess. But to say you can't group is simply not true. And wizards in groups are not so bad if you actually try to be relevent, using all the spells you have to make a difference :)

Secondly, with Jboots, Teleportation is just super fun. Come on. Wizards having Enduring Breath, Levitate, Invis, Teleports and Jboots, and maybe also Hide if you play a Dark Elf (and really why not play a Dark Elf!?) you are kings of travelling :) and travelling is fun! also, with Stun, Snare, Root and even god forbid Yonder, you can also survive an encounter more than what you get credit for. And with the best DD in the game, with a small GCD reseter, you can usually also burn down a mob using all your mana bar, which is also convenient when travelling (not so much when XPing).

All in all my point is, the question is only about "fun", and not about power, and I think if moving around, travelling and adventuring is your idea of fun, Wizards are definitely a fair option and shouldn't be frown down that much hehe.

[ghost182]

Just to play devils advocate, I don't think that necro is the fun switch from enchanter youre looking for; they dont really come into their own until later similarly.

Youll be fear kiting if not charming... yuck. Root rotting isnt an option until much later after paralyzing earth. Grouping is fine, youre basically a mage with FD and some minor utility at low lvls in groups. but the core power of the necro lvling is charming. very similar to soloing on an enchanter. some different utilities but also a limited number of zones at your disposal. Befallen/Unrest/Kaesora/ToFS/CoM/HS is basically it. So root rot guards in cities, fear kite in bad xp outdoor zones, or charm kill in a few undead only zones.

I would consider Druid if you want to do a bit of everything. Can still charm, can root rot and kite much earlier on, porting, more group roles. overall fun class, but not an INT caster.

[mickmoranis]

The magician with an epic pet is real fun, but once you start going into dungeons where the pet cant kill everything you agro they become very un fun, but when youre in ones you can agro everything and the pet kills it, its really fun.

[mickmoranis]

While there's truth to this, I've always felt that how you prepare for the eventual RNG F U is the biggest part of being a chanter, especially if you're soloing a lot.

It's all too easy to be lazy and not fully buff, or cheap and use a rune 3 instead of a 4 or 5. That stuff will eventually get you killed.

It's easy to know "calm is awesome!" and to solo a ton of nasty stuff with it because 90% of the time it works with no hitches. But it's effort to plan for how to maximize your chances of surviving (and maybe even still winning the fight) when you aggro 4 harmtouching mobs with the first-cast calm crit fail... let alone to kinda rehearse it in your head while you're medding before a fight or something to be sure that when you need to intercept those mobs that are charging at you with your pet, target the right one for an AE mez, have the right spells loaded so after you do probably eat a couple HTs you can get your runes back up before a charm breaks and you get summoned by the two mobs still not CCed... etc.

Yes. I have no life.

gotta know your surroundings too, like when I was calming around HS and turned a corner and was like, wait, isnt there supposed to be a mob right here... oh shit that must mea... *Begins casting gate*

http://i.imgur.com/bnUZFYn.png

[Izmael]

"Your gate is too unstable, and collapses."

[djvyhle]

I think people overstate how often Enchanter's die, at least soloing Enchanter's. From 57-60 on my Enchanter I spent probably 90% of my time in HS West, never died once, capped out once and gated out while a pack of mobs was AOE mez'd once which I guess could be considered a sorta-death.

I don't remember how many times total I died while xping my enchanter, but it wasn't very often and far less than I did leveling a bard or shaman, and I don't consider myself a "great enchanter" maybe above average at best. Runes/Bedlam line/AOE stuns/AOE mez make dying pretty preventable.

If you're in a group and you're 65% hasting your pet and giving them another 36% haste with Tola Robe + some proc weapons and standing 2 feet away from them then yeah you're probably going to die a lot, but there's no reason to do that when solo xping

I agree, deaths are overrated.. I think.
I'm new, have no idea what I'm doing, level 32 Enchanter.
Only died twice so far since I started.

[Auchae]

I agree, deaths are overrated.. I think.
I'm new, have no idea what I'm doing, level 32 Enchanter.
Only died twice so far since I started.

I bet me and you could get kinda deep into permafrost with my 30ish chanter if youre ever interested. He's bound outside at the merchant. I don't play a ton anymore but when I do I go solo charm ice gobbies until I cant hold the spawn anymore. Gate out and do it again.

[Triiz]

gotta know your surroundings too, like when I was calming around HS and turned a corner and was like, wait, isnt there supposed to be a mob right here... oh shit that must mea... *Begins casting gate*



Lmao, how did that happen? It looks like every mob between the first drop in and the second drop down into the big room aggro'd you. Were you calming from the entry room and got a crit resist and didnt drop in right away? I think mobs will take the long, long way around if you're still in the entry room.

I've had a pet set to guard start to take the long way around when I backed him off but he didnt make it very far before I noticed he was going the wrong direction and luckily only aggro'd 3 mobs. I think they head for the portal in the very back of the wing, which would aggro probably 20-30 mobs.

[mickmoranis]

I was standing in the painting calming, not really paying attention, chain calming on resists etc, then I drop down and notice the one mob in the corner wasn't there where he was supposed to be, "hmm odd" I thought, then looked down the hall and saw no mobs in the hallway at all...

So I think.. uh oh that must mean.. (sat down memed gate) stood up, start casting...

At this point the mobs had changed their chase direction from the warp portal in the back of the wing they were running towards back towards me (because I was up in the painting while calming and when I got the resist, technically on the entrance side of it) and as they turned the corner my cast was going strong and that screencap was actually taken from a snip tool during loading, so I managed to get away just pixels from being in range of the trainwreck!

I am not like tecmos, I just swing my huge dark elf dick around all over the place and eat exp deaths all the time lol.. I figure as an enchanter I'll get it all back, no biggie :)

[Triiz]

I was standing in the painting calming, not really paying attention, chain calming on resists etc, then I drop down and notice the one mob in the corner wasn't there where he was supposed to be, "hmm odd" I thought, then looked down the hall and saw no mobs in the hallway at all...



Lol that's pretty much what I imagined.

I know you didn't ask, but I never use calm to get into West, imo it's a lot safer to break in using a pet from the entry room, just make sure he's not set to guard in the entry room lol.

Wait for the two hallway roamers to path away, send pet in to aggro the 3 static mobs/Eat any HT's that may be there, immediately drop in and AOE mez/root, start fighting, sacrifice entry room pet, and eventually the 2 roamers should stumble into your fight 1 at a time and aggro your pet.

Once you have em all locked down, calm one, mez blur it, and leave it alone so for the next fight you can send it down the hallway to aggro the static in front of the first room+room roamer once he's stopped in hallway+assist aggro should bring 1 mob from inside the first room and leave the others.

Once those are dead, grab new pet from first room and send it to pull the 3 mobs by trap/broken wall, and the "safe" hallway roamer by trap should roam into your pack and aggro pet by himself.

If no one was doing zone in Pyre golems, I usually used the same method to break into West entry room using one of the door guarding Pyre golems. Calm is risky as shit even with 255 CHA when a crit resist can mean 3-4 HT's.

The chance of charm breaking in the few seconds before you land an AOE mez is a lot lower than a crit calm resist while calming multiple mobs.

[Jmcwrestling]

Chantering in HS is pretty much my favorite thing to do in all of p99

Been meaning to make an effort into soloing drusilla but keep putting it off.

[thebutthat]

I didn't start enjoying my enchanter until probably mid-late 30's. Once you start tearing through dungeons it gets a bit more enjoyable.

My necro, I had a good time up until 51. Then I had a great time to 60. The biggest difference is there's a pretty narrow path most necros follow and farming options are pretty limited at 60. Enchanters have a wider option since they aren't limited to undead lulls and charms and have a wider cc tool kit.

Wizards...quadding is cool...for a while. Medding 95% of your play time...is eh.

Mage is for wizards who want to group.

[Therudwiz]

Wizards are an amazing class. They have a learning curve for sure. Master the basics, understand what utility you can bring to a group setting. Wizards are not the end all be all type. They take work, but the work is worth it. Big nukes make my epeen smile :D

[Jmcwrestling]

Chantering in HS is pretty much my favorite thing to do in all of p99

Been meaning to make an effort into soloing drusilla but keep putting it off.


Wooooo

https://youtu.be/XAxM11Hrx_k

[angryjenkins]

A wizard's life for me! Awesomely fits my play-while-at-work playstyle. Love working from home. Wish I had more friends to group with occasionally though ...

[mickmoranis]

For what it's worth, enchanter doesn't really come into it's own until like 40

seriously

[Izmael]

seriously

I think he's actually right.

40s are when an enchanter, unless very heavily twinked, starts getting enough mana to cast lots of spells without going oom very fast. And chanting is usually about casting a lot of spells all the time.

[mickmoranis]

yea until then charming things is basically a waste of mana/deathwish