Hit level 65, and merc is definitely less ubber than before. Can't really tank well. Which is fine: I'm a necro and can just bust out my Melee DPS to follow an aggro'd mob. But, tougher to take on 4-5 mobs at once without getting really low on mana really fast. Plus, more difficult to watch football and trust my merc to hold aggro while I root-rot something.... What level can I do the J2-J5 merc quests? Do I bother with J2-J4 mercs, or just wait and get my J5?
I would jump to level 75 and go straight to J5 myself. As for the mana issue. No root rot lol root breaks with damage so it's a waste of mana to keep recasting it. Instead, snare + DoT + wiz merc (if you decide to keep a merc). The increases damage from the wiz merc will kill mobs fast enough and save you some mana. Also getting the AAs for reduced mana on spells, crit damage on DoTs and DDs will also help. Buff your pet and make sure its the rogue and give it some nice toys. All of this helps with saving mana and killing more. If you want the tank merc for simplicities sake so you can watch yout foozball, then jump to 75 and go straight for J5
DD's break root, not all damage. There's a reason the term root rot exists. DoT's don't break root. I don't really have anything else to add since I'm not sure what levels are needed to request quests for J2-4. 75 is required for J5. As far as what you should do, that's a matter of opinion.
Thanks! Where exactly is the "Jump to 75" button? LOL. That'd be cool. =) Did you mean rogue merc, or rogue pet? I have been using the Melee DPS Merc more since the tank one seems to die to three blues unless I gain aggro and kite.... How do I cast a rogue necro pet? Is it certain level of the pet spell that determines it's type?
I believe you can start progression at 65 in OGH then it bumps to 70 in either Kith or Fos. As stated previously, J5 requires 75 to get the tasks in KW. Personally I would just use the progression to level and start at 65. Most people don't want to wait that long though. Certain levels of pets are rogue. I'd check the forums on Necrotalk http://www.necrotalk.com/
Your level 63 pet spell is a rogue, while your 65 is a warrior. Just give the rogue pet a dagger and he can backstab as long as he's behind the mob.
Jump to 75 button = Ranger/Sk/Rogue/Zerker Faster link to ffind out which of your pets are what: http://www.necrotalk.com/showthread.php?t=2840
One thing to note is you won't be doing the J5 tasks without help. Not an issue if you have friends or a helpful guild, but if you're mostly solo you may be better off just looking for places to solo without a merc at all. Grieg's End should be good, and after that Katta Castrum. I wouldn't bother with the J2-J4 tasks specifically, but the augs from OGH and Kith are nice, and those quests fill out at least most of the merc requirements. But again, you're not going to do them at your level without help.
Actually, there is almost no overlap between the OGH aug quests and the progression quests for J1, except that some are prereqs for the progression quests. If you're, say, 68 or so, then the Katta greenhouse quests can take you to 80 without much trouble, and very fast; it's also worth spending time on the hot zone quests just to keep your mind fresh.
Good thing is that at 65, you and your merc and pet if you got the Pet Affinity AA can have level 100 buffs, the big AC/HP buff plus 1 hour regen and DS make for short but powerful runs against most mobs that you would expect to hunt- just a matter of getting the buffs.
What I noticed on my server is there is almost always some SK or ranger mass killing the mobs you need for some of the harder parts of the quest. Sometimes the challenge is asking them to give you a chance to do the quest, if they are doing a lesson burn, no chance there, you have to sit and wait. But otherwise, you can sometimes get an invite for kill credit and no effort
My 62nd level characters currently are a ranger and a cleric. With a shammy at 61st. The other 100 plus characters are below 59th.
I have not tried this, but I think if you ask the Sk nice you can be added to their group and get the kill updates while you are at the other end of the zone so you don't drain any experience if that is an issue for them. I have not completed the J3 or J4 series yet, but, a recent add for the J2 quest series is some jewelry that has, at least for the ranger, a nice clickie on an earring ... I have been planning to redo the J2 series for a couple of my other toons just to see if they get as nice of a clickie ...
I wouldn't bother with anything but the J5 unless you just want to do the legwork involved. Otherwise, just get some levels and skip straight to the Earth theme (aka Korascian Warrens tasks) and knock out Murdunk's Last Stand. Boom, J5 merc.
The other question to ask yourself is what kind of help will you have. At level 75 you won't be doing the J5 tasks solo. I recently did these tasks for my 75 Necro with my 90 Bard and J5 healer merc and it was exceedingly difficult.
