Fastest leveling as a necro - grouping vs soloing

[tranceminus]

Hey guys, so my necro is in his 20s, grouping in unrest, and the exp has been pretty good. I started wondering though, would I possibly get better exp soloing somewhere?

Is grouping pretty much always the best exp, or is soloing better for some level ranges?

[commongood]

It's hard to answer fully as grouping isn't a set-in-stone concept. Some groups are better than others. Some camps ditto. A higher level person replaces a lower level one in your group will mean less exp to you per kill, but might mean faster kills over all so... hard to really measure. Soloing leaves you in control of more aspects. And then necro is mostly very effective at soloing while leveling up.

My take would be:

-For steady, good exp: solo

-For a more engrossing experience and sometimes better exp but also sometimes worse: group

[Foxplay]

In my experience it takes one super kick-ass group with several melee twinks to beat out solo exp. And for certain classes depending on kill efficiency it takes a serious overgeared and fast paced group to simply match what they are capable of solo...

Shaman with jbb (even better epic at 50) a group will almost never get them more exp

Enchanter played by a experienced player, will pretty much never get more exp in a 6man versus solo or duo partner

Druid charm or quad especially levels 46 to 51ish with lummi staff.. another tale of solo exp being vastly better

I haven't done Necro yet but just looking at their kit it seems to me to be a case where 6man group exp will seriously struggle to keep you due to their Mana Regen, efficiency and free pet dps if managed correctly, or in some situations charm killing

[Kendir]

For me group xp is faster even on my mage because I get bored and side tracked while soloing. So there's your own mentality to take into consideration as well.

[thebutthat]

Necro's start to come into their own around 34 and become more efficient at 51. Up until then, you can easily solo in certain zones but some of your tool kit is either weak or missing. Fear kiting is your strongest method up until you can reliably charm. At 49 you get your long duration root, but root rotting is a little inefficient mana wise until you get splurt at 51.

I've gotten my fastest XP in a solid duo or trio with another necro or enchanter/druid/shaman. They pair together quite nicely.

[DromalPhrenia]

I'm not specifically qualified to speak on Necromancer soloing, but generally speaking, Necros are a very strong solo class so you will be getting more EXP solo than you will in a group. That said, Unrest has a great ZEM (zone experience modifier) so exp in a group in Unrest is still very good. Ideally you solo in Unrest to get the best of both worlds, but that zone can get very busy so it's not always feasible. Necromancers get undead nukes and eventually charm undead, which makes soloing in undead areas even more attractive.

It's also worth mentioning that grouping gives you a chance to socialize and meet players, hopefully good ones that you become friends with, which will be helpful for a lot of content in later levels. And it will give you a chance to learn your full kit of tools; necromancers are capable of doing a lot more than fear kiting and root rotting. I've had necromancers spot heal, crowd control, and even pull.

I'm an Enchanter and we can solo very well ourselves, but I spend plenty of time grouping for those reasons. And I spend some time learning more difficult ways to solo, which will help in the long run with some difficult camps but in the short term, it's definitely slowing my exp gain while I practice.

[Vheran]

20's are kind of a weird time for Necros. in your early thirties you can start soloing some guards, like in EC and in the karanas. in your twenties grouping is the surefire way to get exp, like at MM pond. Solo wise though you can make the best exp especially because you start getting your rhythm in your twenties. As an ikky i didn't have to worry about faction really, and the weaker ogres in Timorous Deep and the Giant Skeletons in Rathetear Mtns are good ways to really dig into your mechanics.

If you do Giant skeletons, try planting your summoned/charmed pet at the Gypsy camp and pulling to there. fear kiting will probably get you adds if you do it starting on the mountain. its a good way to work on your charming/fear kiting mechanics. If you do ogres in TD, start with the one on the mountain by the beach and work down the shore line (DONT TRY THE ONES IN THE HUTS YET). It's not a camp you have to break, but youll see how they start to spawn one after the other and youll have little down time, which will help when you do have to start breaking camps.

Necromancers are, imo, the strongest solo characters, but can be a ton of fun in groups besides just being a mana battery.

[zaneosak]

Solo in unrest when it is not so crowded. You can root rot any undead mobs assuming you have Hungry Earth. I cant remember level ranges exactly but you can Numb the Dead pull any blue mobs to a safe-ish spot of your choosing and root rot it down. You should get 2-4% xp per mob.

[ScaringChildren]

I'm fairly sure my Necro stayed in Kurn's Tower until 22ish?

Then I went to Upper Guk.

That's when I fell in love with the zone. Yeah, it's a confusing mess. But give it a chance.

The exp is insane in there.

[Lurgort/Sseri]

Kurn's til 24, Ocean of Tears Gargoyles from 24-26, Warslik's Giants til 29, Treants or go do your Shadowbound / Robe of Enshroudment quests. If Iksar, Dalnir for 7th Skullcap and Visceral Dagger.

[Mewse]

If your priority on a necro is exp, then nothing will beat soloing (or sometimes duoing) outside of exceptional situations past level 8, at least in my experience. If you haven't already, check out this guide http://wiki.project1999.com/Sesserdrix%27s_All_in_One_Necromancer_Strategy_Gui de and keep it as your bible during the leveling process.

Grouping is great, and I often have more fun that way. But the exp rate in comparison is a night and day difference. It's not even really all that close most of the time.

[zaneosak]

If your priority on a necro is exp, then nothing will beat soloing (or sometimes duoing) outside of exceptional situations past level 8, at least in my experience. If you haven't already, check out this guide http://wiki.project1999.com/Sesserdrix%27s_All_in_One_Necromancer_Strategy_Gui de and keep it as your bible during the leveling process.

Grouping is great, and I often have more fun that way. But the exp rate in comparison is a night and day difference. It's not even really all that close most of the time.

Sess's guide is good for nice , safe, moderate XP. If you want to level the absolute fastest though -- go to the ZEM list on the wiki and find the highest ZEM in your level range and develop some strategies. I am lvl 40 in Kaesora, so far 35-40 in this zone charming has been really fast. The plat you make is pretty bad though.

[kattming77]

Solo XP is going to beat a normal groups xp and if your iksar, i would personally avoid groups until your 60, but thats just me.