I see people talking about multiboxing like it's the only way to experience EQ. I played so many years ago, and never got in to that at all. With an assumed population decrease, am I to assume that I need to multibox to have a pleasurable experience? Also, what is the best server for those looking to roll a heroic? And the best few solo classes... as I noted I don't want to box... I want to have fun and immerse myself in to one character.
You don't need to box to have fun. You only need to box if you want to have an upper hand and solo most if not all content.
Best solo classes are probably mage and necro (still). However, you can solo reasonably well with any class if you have a merc.
For server, you should go with the more populated ones. It means your bazaar will will have more to buy, and you'll have more people to interact with at various levels. The top servers are something like Bristlebane, Cazic, and Xegony. If someone mentions Vox or Trakanon, they're literally the least populated servers. Avoid them unless you literally never want to interact with other players, ever.
High pop servers depend on your play time, but the ones that average over medium all the time are: Bristlebane Firiona Vie And most of the time: Bertoxxulous Cazic-Thule Tunare
---------------------------- Totally personal experience and opinion from a returnee who played from 2000 to from 2007ish, and first returned in March of this year: Unless you have numbers to confirm, Vox is certainly not the lowest population. It may not have as many high level raiding guilds, but the low to mid level population and returnees on Vox makes other servers look crazy lonely. I came back recently and I checked every single server at two and three different time periods weekdays and weekends, as well as checking many more times in the interim time since I've restarted. I did that because grouping at least by my 40's and 50's and then on up was important to my playstyle fun. Its a tedious idea to think I must talk to my robot merc all the way until after level 85. I have only pulled out the merc 5 times on my Rogue, and continue to play my Monk and Shammy, and my Druidess who is leveling up as close to old-school as I can with her, entirely without having to share the exp with one. I know that will probs change at higher levels, but I really don't like 'having' to use them. It is what it is though now in 2015. Many like the choice (most I guess), so there is that option. Genchat is not the same as grouping, nor is it as fun to join a guild these days, when so many actual players are way, way past 85. Have met lots of fun and very cool people, and they most often play on their alts of course, but its almost always a secondary idea and limited to their main Raider or goals in taking care of dailies etc for their high level character. Additionally Gloomingdeep has more players there on Vox in it if you are a returner, and trying to get used to things again. I find the silence on so many servers not only sad, but tbh a little bit creepy. No, a lot creepy, but thats another subject. I'm back because I want to play in Norrath. Oth if you'd like to have a server almost completely to yourself, I guess thats cool cause there are definitely a few like that. I literally found myself completely alone (unless players were hiding) on a couple servers in PoK...spent awhile tooling around the entire place mid morning EST and 7 pmish on both weekdays and weekends as I just couldn't believe there was not one other player, or literally only four or five. But I'm telling you, there are entire empty PoK's as well. Those query log-on trips I took over the first two weeks in March, (though isn't anything related to true data), was enough for me to get sad and figure it was too late to return. When I jumped on Vox, and (Bristlebane and at the highest levels is way busy also), and Firiona Vie I realized there were still some lively segments of population. Come join the new Progression Server, Ragefire, when it opens in early summer; that's sure to be a fun experience!
------------------------------ Up to level 90 you can do what people call MOLO with one of those Merc npc's at your side quite comfortably on many classes. I or returnees I know haven't done literally all of the classes yet, so I won't claim all. Suffice it to say, the entire game is changed for a person who has to solo at times other than when they would like to, sadly, if they utilize one of those mercs.
With merc and any class for exp to 105, yes. But, and I should have qualified this earlier, not for current expansion group gear, nor for all progression tasks.
I have the numbers. There are certainly servers with lower pops than Vox: Trakanon, Fippy and Vulak (and Test and Zek). But it comes very close. This is averaged across all levels, not just low levels.
As for the OP's question about boxing, I don't believe it is necessary on a highly populated server as others have mentioned. I think that people who determine that they must box 3+ toons in order to cruise through content are A.) missing out on learning all the nooks and crannies of the classes they play/their main, and B.) perhaps lacking abundant social skills. In my time since returning getting to 105 with nearly max aa's has not been too much of a grind because I have been doing it with players that I have become very close with since returning. In sum, I would much rather group with people who are social and make jokes in /groupsay than with the most uber l33t players who essentially do not socialize when in a group.
I went and looked at the icons for Vox and *you are certainly right -I stand corrected. I still doubt other servers have healthier lowbie to mid level pops though ; o).
V Vox certainly seems to have more low levels, but loses out on the total numbers in a big way, unfortunately.
--------------------- Well that just goes to show/remind me about anecdotal info being used as data, *slaps wrist as I know better. Otoh, for newbies and returnees trying to make the transition of anything more than five years, I am glad Vox is one server that is fun.
If you are on Vox its pretty good until about 80. Then it dies out. There are a few guilds that seem to be doing ok and I would join one of them if choose it ( Skull Crackers, PnG, and a few <XxX> of vox _. You will suffer in the bazaar area due to lack of choices and overpricing by a few people who I wont mention by name who buy popular items and then jack up the price/sell. Supply and demand.
Personally, I love playing on luclin. I have many friends that I made while lvling in the 80 plus range that I still hunt with these days, and an ever better home that I've found in the guild, Keepers of the Elements. Highly recommend checking luclin out, with the help available you wouldn't be stuck very long in the lowbie range.
