I've played a druid since the year 2000, on many different severs and times. lately I've been boxing a BST with my Druid. I can do group content but its pretty slow and I might as well just play 1 character and get groups somewhere as I can get way more exp in 1 hour of grouping in FM than if I play 5 hours with my box. My question is this, does anyone main a druid and molo content with a tank merc? I'm only thinking of doing content molo while I search for a wait on a guild group to open up. My druid is currently level 102, and she is 15 years old and it just makes since to go with my oldest character if I'm just going to play one only. I'm also curious as to what your working on when groups are slim? I've already done my 1.0 and 1.5 long ago. What else should I focus on to provide purpose for playing her other than just grinding? Lastly, it's been a while, I plan to subscribe on the account and get all the AA's that auotgrant. Is there some AA's spells that I should be using in most encounters? thanks again!
Better box a tank or the BST instead of using a tank merc as those are pretty weak. They tank about as good as a rogue or ranger PC. You can then add a healer merc and concentrate on nukes and DoTs to speed up but it can lower your experience rate. Another option would be to add a DPS merc and let the BST tank. The rogue merc should be the better option in a DRU+BST combo but you have to test this as it depends on many factors like FTP/AllAccess, Auras, buffs, merc AAs, merc gear, and the druid spell setup. Definetly the Blessing of Ro and Season's Wrath debuffs and Entrap for AAs. The insect swarm DoT line is also the bread and butter and should stack with lower spell versions. The druid can use many spells (like the debuffs and auras) that do work in synergy and then do grant great damage if used right. Take a look at the long duration "Chill of the... Visionary" DoT line. It does need 2 minutes to reach it's full potential. This should be the right spell for you if you cannot kill fast.
Moloing a druid with a tank merc is very difficult. You spend all of your time healing the tank, so your dps is very little. You can't slow the mobs. You can't haste your tank, so you would want to get them haste before your start from some other character and go back when it wears off. For a long time I wished you could hand them a haste potion and they would drink it. Now I just use an alt shaman to give them haste before I leave the guild hall. If you want to molo a druid, I think the best way is to use a wizard merc and root rot, assuming the mobs can be rooted. Although I haven't tried this. I would not pick a druid unless you are going to group with others. I would pick a necro, use your pet to tank, and have a cleric merc heal them.
You can tank merc current exp content reasonably well. Boxing is vital then, because your box merc cleric will be able to keep your merc tank alive. But you should have max merc AAs for tanking, and decent merc tank gear. Overseer is very useful for merc AAs, just remember you need to have your merc out whenever you claim the overseer rewards. In my experience a druid merc tank with another real player can handle most of the current level content mobs (from Veil of Alaris to current ToL). But getting your damage AAs maxed out for level is important and will help a lot.
These are just a couple clarifications to an otherwise good post. Overseer is less useful for mercenary AA below level 111 and especially in the 90s. Also to gain merc AA from quest-like experience rewards, you don't need to have your mercenary unsuspended or even have one hired anymore. That was changed in the October update.
