SK solo tactics

[Brut]

Did ice giants in EF a bunch, they turned mostly light blue in 56 though.
Polished obs great axe + lots of dex is the way to go imo - rarely bother with gauntlet snare since it lasts a rather short duration and the movement speed deduction is miniscule. The fear boots, eh, I never got those since it's like 7seconds to cast plus also has a short duration.

I'd prefer to stay out of Kunark zones since the mobs-per-square-foot in those zones is infuriating. Unless you do obscenely lengthy pulls to get the mob to some area with room to fear kite it safely, you're bound to have it waltzing into a flock of adds. Classic however doesnt offer many mobs in the higher end to kite around; dwarf docks guards and some epic quest NPCs (sro bard guy, timorous chessboard island wizard) are an option if you're really hellbent on solo exp.

[Malrubius]

SK solo tactics

Basically, I Darkness stuff on the pull, and then beat the living crap out of it when it gets to me.
If it starts being annoying, Fear it (keeping Darkness up) and continue beating the living crap out of it.
If it starts being super annoying, HT it, and continue you-know-what.

Undead are awesome because of Spook the Dead.
If it isn't crowded, use your pet as an additional DoT, but I often skip the pet because he pulls aggro from trash with his greenness.
For tougher mobs, throw on yet another DoT (in addition to Darkness), like Heat Blood.
Siphon Strength every few pulls since it's practically free and gives you a little more melee dmg.

And hope for a patch soon so that Fear/Spook the Dead is fixed.

And mana shouldn't be an issue, and Blood Ember items take forever to cast...I would only get BE stuff for the AC or some handy utilities (like Gather Shadows on the BE Bracer).