Yeah pets (any pets, including charmed) will take half the XP if they do 50%+ of the damage. That's annoying at low levels for mages/necros but it can be avoided higher up. By 24 or so you can just pull a necro pet off at 20% or so and let the mob rot the rest for example if you're unsure on who's done more damage
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Definitely play what you think you'll enjoy... for reference the server has a ton of shammies and necros for good reason (they solo well). Enchanters/clerics get groups easily, and there's a lack of tanks at the top end due in part to the hybrid XP penalty on paladins/SKs (as well as rangers/bards).
I picked out classes here that I never played on live to the end game, that's kept it fresh for me
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