first character tank - should I even bother?

[wodiranger]

pico, i think they they actually fixed the shared exp penalty, while lvling from 20-30 back in october i didnt get alot of groups because of the shared exp penalty, so i stopped playing for a month and a half because i could never get groups, and soloing sucked

but i am now lvl 41 and get groups all the time, and i think its been changed

[Shamalam]

I thought hybrid exp penalties were getting changed when kunark comes out?

[wodiranger]

nope, but from what i read, for the first 7 months those who had exp penalties shared that with a group when that class was grouped, has been changed now, but hybrids still have penalties till, i think luclin is when it was changed

[Ennoia]

Dark Elf SK>All other choices.

[Extunarian]

XP Penalties are removed sometime in Velious, prior to Luclin. They are still in game.

XP Penalties are only 'shared' insofar as group XP is awarded based on how much XP (not levels) each members has accrued. If a level 10 troll SK and a level 10 halfling cleric are grouped, the troll SK will get a larger portion of the XP per kill.

[Randy]

Play what you want.

You'll be able to get stun whips for your warrior early on for aggro, if you go that route. Plus with Kunark coming out in a couple weeks lots of gear will drop in price.

[NASA]

PM me and i can hook you up with a few pieces of gear to help you start out your tank.

Do not shy away from playing the class you would enjoy because you don't think his gear will be that great. We ALL had to start somewhere. You will have that much more enjoyment when you upgrade your gear as you level [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

[Droop]

I too started as a melee as my first character and it's still the only one I play. My gear isn't great but by the time you get to the planes (50+) almost all other gear is moot. The couple of pieces you need will be obtained through the help of friends/guildmates. You won't get rich though, at all. If you wanna be rich level a mage/necro/druid/enchanter on the side. Warriors/rogues are probably the 2 worst solo classes in the game. Hell, even rangers out-solo us haha. All the good gear is earned though, not bought.

Hybrid tanks do hold aggro very well. They are MUCH easier to play for that fact. I do, however dislike leveling with hybrids. The XP penalty sucks when you have a SK, a bard, and a ranger in your group...promise lol. Warriors who are played well are awesome and only get better with Kunark. In Kunark they become THE tanks. If you really study your class, ask questions, etc. you will be just as effective as any SK/Pal AND you won't leech so much XP. Be prepared to have to work hard to play your class well tho!

In the end, play what you enjoy. You'll eventually get max level and eventually get all planar gear. Unless you choose the class YOU want to play the most you won't ever be as happy as you could be and you'll always wanna make that other race/class combo.

[Gorgetrapper]

I would say go for a polished granite tomahawk and maybe bladed thulian claws. The proc from the tomahawk will help you get snap agro, and the speed from the claws will keep agro pretty well unless you have a group of cast-happy mages/wizards (LOL because they're so rare) and over dotting necros (if they even decide to group).

[Dantes]

Man up and play a tank! It's not supposed to be easy. This is a great community full of helpful and awesome people, play what you want and things will work out just fine.