I'm level 36 mage, noob to EQ. what can i be doing while sitting for hours LFG? I'm part of a guild. Is there any factions I should be getting up? Quest I should do? Etc. Be as specific as possible if you can please. Thanks for your help!
there is absolutely no reason for you to be LFG for hours. Mage DPS is always wanted. Just be more pro-active in finding a group.
Farm tradeskill mats. Silks...pelts....go fishing, or work on tradeskills yourself...they'll be handy for the shawl quest.
type /who all 34 38 This will show who isn't anonymous in your level range. If it says "too many to show" just do /who all 36 (or whatever). Then note where the players are. -ignore the ones in Commonlands (later it will be bazaar). -those in starter cities may be away-from-keyboard (later it will be Nexus, then Plane of Knowledge) Where are the rest? Go to that zone. My guess is Lower Guk. Then /ooc that you are looking for group, and also say it in the general channel "level 36 lfg in Lower Guk. I am in zone" This shows you are serious, and ready to go. Groups should always want to add a mage unless they lack something they feel is a key role.
If you're hours looking for group I would simply suggest you: -stop playing -move to a Live server where you can use mercs and don't need to be LFG EQ TLP work well for people with a tight group of friends / family / active guild. But it works very poorly if you don't have those, early expansions don't have easy grouping, the sole exception being LDON. Don't blame yourself. The large majority of players stop playing EQ due to not finding a group. The requirement to have friends or family to play with, and the lack of solo support and solo content, is why MMO like EQ are no longer made.
I play an unguilded rogue as my main and I had no set group when I rolled. If I can find groups then certainly a mage can. Not only that, but mage can at least do some soloing while waiting on a group. But yeah, best way is to go to the zone where you want a group at and advertise in OOC there as well as the serverwide general and continent channels. I will also sometimes jump picks in order to OOC in another pick. You can also just start killing mobs at entrance to a zone solo and may have a group come in looking for one more that will ask you. Or you can even start your own groups. Also make sure to use the /LFG tool. I even advertise in there that I'm willing to travel, etc
Wow. Someone sounds bitter. Maybe you didn't get groups because... you? Anyway... I had no problem getting to 50 w/o any guild/friends starting out on this TLP using the strats people have already outlined. And again... I utilized my downtime doing tradeskills or going back and camping money items from trivial mobs. There are a TON of these so if you're really bored you can always check back in old dungeons if a camp is open and solo it for the drops. Also are you in all the appropriate channels? General 1, 2, 3, etc.? Continent? Class? Lots of help there. And if you're really bored you can get your MS degree in EQ Economics by joining the auction channel and trolling on tlpauctions!
If you're able to invis down to the camps in the zone you are LFG, one of the best ways to find a group is to show up and offer to replace someone. If no one is ready to leave just ask them to keep your name in mind and check out the next camp
For a mage at that level you need to bind outside the dungeon you expect to find a group(guk). Put up lfg with a note about being bound at guk Either proactively find a group in zone or go farm najera in lava storm to get epic drops
1. Zone into Guk, check every camp and ask if anyone needs replaced. 2. When you find an empty camp, invite those other people just shouting for lfg. 3. Grind to 50
I don't agree with these suggestions but there's truth to the part about needing a social network. When I started on Agnarr there were times I felt discouraged and I ended up boxing a lot to get things done. However, I stuck with it and eventually got to know a group of people who are the best gaming friends I've made in well over a decade and playing EQ with them (and other games) is a lot of fun. We get things done. Put yourself out there and offer to help people. Engage with your guild. It may take time (months in my case) to build up a friend network but once you do it's very rewarding. There's also some truth to the part about solo content but I would argue the genre as a whole shifted way too far the other direction in accommodating solo play to the point most of the games are boring. Other players are basically bots that only occasionally speak to complain or deride your performance. The reliance on other people is one of the things that keeps EQ compelling 20 years later. Sorry this has gotten a bit off topic. Make sure to join your class channel (/join Magician) as people will often ask for replacements for their groups in those channels. As other have already suggested you could identify in-demand tradeskill materials to farm and sell. Find some lower level players while you wait and toss your damage shield on the tank and let your pet help kill things after they've done 51%+ damage to it (so they get credit). You'll be sure to make some friends this way. I believe there are some pet focus items you could start working on as well but I'm not sure what level these are or have much other info about them.
