you (or your group) must do at least 1 damage, or the pet sucks 75%. I think.

True.

The only way it can be construed that pets take exp is that mages, necros and enchanters are subjected to a 20% class penalty. This exists regardless of whether they have a pet summoned/charmed or not.

It is a 10% exp penalty and it is applied to all INT-casters, ie wizards as well.

It is 10%. Wasn't watching what I was typing.

I excluded wizards because they weren't pertinent to the discussion about pets leeching exp.

So there is no 75% penalty for watching your pet whack a mob to death while you sun tan in the Oasis?

No, as has been mentioned, you must do at least 1 point of damage or you receive a very tiny amount of exp.

lol the thread got unnecessarily confusing. just this:

Not sure I follow, could someone give me a different spin on this please

touch your naughty place and everything will work itself out

Classic
Fire pet was great when in groups with a tank, as a PC will hold taunt over a pet. Fire pet had highest damage output but lowest health total. In classic their fire shield wasn't always active, and generally would drop at inopportune times.

Air pet good for when fighting casters as their stun can break a spell being cast. # 3 in life and # 2 in damage

Water pet (my favorite all around) #3 in damage, #2 health. immune to poison. Casts cold based damage spell as well. (Water pet can backstab if you have a pc to hold aggro, however it's not guaranteed) With a fire shield on, damage was workable for solo work.

Earth Pet Highest health, lowest damage, but can root. Very useful in a dungeon situation where running Mobs can cause trains. Keep your damage shield on him and damage is better. (I lived in Sol A with this guy farming fine steel for many levels)

In classic it was important to keep a fire shield up on all your pets if you were solong, even the fire pet as his native shield would drop and the fire pet would neglect to recast.

Here on P99 the fire pet is king, they do good damage, their fire shield never drops, and it seems that their health is higher here than on live.