I think Raev explained it pretty well. Wizard itemization is just atrocious in this era. Melee toons can just upgrade weapons or worn haste and increase their dps commensurately. Wizards can just increase total mana. This is great for quadding and for burning down raid mobs, but it doesn't do a dang thing for casual group encounters. A good clicky robe will absolutely turn this around and make you a perfectly viable group member, but good luck obtaining one before level 60 (and good luck getting invites even with a robe - people don't totally understand the difference it makes).
Basically, wizard is the probably single worst class to roll if you want to group for exp. I don't recommend the class to anyone who isn't interested in raiding, which is where wizards shine. I can think of a dozen minor tweaks that would make wizards viable in the grouping game, but alas, P99 isn't the place for "improvements" over classic EQ.
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