Hello everyone. I'm new to Everquest

Clerics' (plate armor class) main responsibility in a group is healing and keeping HP/AC buffs on your group (at the very least the ones frequently getting hit) - as well as restoring the fallen to life (which much reduces the time otherwise wasted when people die). Occasionally clerics might help out with splitting mobs with Soothe/Pacify, stunning spell casting mobs, rooting adds or even the odd nuke or two (vs Undead mobs). Clerics can solo fairly well vs Undead mobs, but it is not super effecient for them to do so (at least not for the purpose of getting XP).

Enchanters (cloth armor class) in groups tend to be a very busy class expected to do buffing (haste, mana regen, wis/int boost, magic resistance, DmgShield), debuffing (tash/magic resistance, slow, cripple), CrowdControl (soothe/pacify, mez, stun, root) and keeping a mob charmed as pet for DPS/tanking (handling pet breaks, debuffs and buffs). Enchanters have little in the way of effecient dmg spells, but charmed pets can deal massiv dmg ... which of course can be a bit of a dual edged sword (especially when soloing - making it risky to solo, but that is definitely a possibility - also to take on some harder opponents solo).

Clerics and enchanters rarely have to wait long to get invites to PUGs (PickUpGroups).

Druids (leather armor class) sometimes have to wait a little longer before getting invited to join a PUG (since they are not the best at any particular role that is most often desired by groups), but because they are able to function fairly effeciently as both healer, DPS (DDs, DoTs and charmed animal pets) and support (SpiritOfWolf - movement speed, HP, STR, Regen and DmgShield buffs, Tracking, Snare/root, evac/ports etc.) then they are often a popular choice for any filler spots in groups. Their wide range of tools also makes druids very capable at soloing for XP/loot when the option to group is not available/desirable.


It is my experience that people playing EQ are generally forgiving with newbies - as long as they are made aware that they are newbies and the newbie is showing willingness to take advice and learn from any mistakes.
Having said that then reputation is (still) a big factor in EQ and many players do tend to avoid (re)inviting people to groups that are known/remembered for being rude, unfriendly, overly selfish and/or willfully incompetent.
But I recon you'll do just fine.

Welcome to EverQuest!

Hail and welcome.

Cleric is the obvious answer... but what about bard. They are a solid support class and the jack of all-trades, with the best group run speed in the game.

Wear plate so quite forgiving
Highly desired in groups.
Soloability on TLR has unfortunately been nerfed over the years.

Required skill level is arguably the most broad ranging from zero with /melody (many people use them as an afk character) all the way to highly advanced (more so than Enchanter) when you unleash their full potential.

I would completely agree with you that bard is a great class for a new player, with the sole exception that lots of people pick a bard for a group because they want a puller. I wouldn't want to put a new player in that position.

Thanks for the advice everyone
I was leaning toward druid, because I love the utility, but you guys say nobody wants druids so I guess cleric it is.

Thanks again

Druid's are fine but they are just not picked over clerics or wiz/mage.
The DoT's they cast are highly mana intensive so you have to know when to cast them or just cast the crappy nukes they do which are lower dmg than wiz/mage.

You will find if you go this route, many times you will be the main healer as a druid or a spot healer or just nuking/buffing.

If you have the latest expansion, Laurion's Song and access to personas, a strong move would be roll that cleric to start and then make a druid persona to dabble with. The personas will share inventory and there are a fair amount of early items are "priest" flagged for cleric/druid/shaman usable. Clerics are plate and druids are leather so there is some discrepancy.

By PoP expansion druid's start to get much stronger and by then you probably will have joined a guild and made some friends. Once you are established with a guild and friends the druid is a great class, don't let the haters scare you off. It's most important to just have fun.

The cleric 100% will let you make friends/get groups really fast at the start. If you want you can always either make an alt druid or use the persona system to just swap into a druid with your existing character and name (you just have to level it up separately)

Haven't played in a while, but I'm aware that they did some expansion of animal mobs somewhat recently. Surprised to see the druid hate. Have group preferences not shifted toward druid with the expanded charm ability in the early game? Or is that just not that meaningful in practice?

No, Druids are not a very good class overall. Frankly, at HoT on Mischief I STILL havent seen druids be great at anything yet. Good to have 1 or 2 in your raid for the caster group (much later on), but overall, a very meh class. They are even worse in early eras. They get MUCH better OOW+ when they get some halfway decent heals and raptor, or snake or whatever the reactive heal is. I wouldn't know because I have never grouped with one and we haven't had a consistent druid main in a year+. And sadly for Druids as is there entire existence... The shaman reactive line is better than druid...solidifying that at almost no point I can recall you would ever bring a druid over a shaman.

The druid hate is unwarranted - mainly based on ignorance about what a druid actually brings to the table, but as with all classes then how well they perform largely depends on the skill of the players in control of them.

I might make a druid even tho they can't find groups, because I might just solo. I made a cleric on firona via or whatever it's called, and my mercenary is just wrecking these mobs. I'm already level 12. I don't even have the good mercenaries that come when you pay.

So yea who needs to group when I can solo with these mercs lol.

No mercs on TLPs, at least not the first few years.

Cleric is a good choice people underestimate their nuke capabilities as well they out class druids in every way but travel and travel for the most part if you know what you're doing is not a big deal.

No mercs on TLP
and getting to level 12 for a brand new player - let's just say if you survive the queues level 12 by eod friday night. Be prepared for a drastically different experience.

Pop onto the Agnarr server when you sub for a more realistic experience of what TLP will be like. Then add like 900 players to your preferred newby zone (no tutorial on TLP) and everyone fighting over mobs that die within seconds of spawning.

It truly is fun even if it sounds terrible.

Yup, there is a reason people keep coming back for launch.

An enchanter is a great pick. I was an enchanter from launch to the end of Luclin. People stating they are tough they really are not. You do not need to be charming to be successful. Keeping up buffs and being able to mez and you are better than a majority of chanters out there.

Tips if you go enchanter...

1. Learn to make hotkeys quickly. You can do cast style where it will cast a specific spell slot on your spell bar with a %T (target) message. Recommend to do it simple at first. Create a simple hotkey button to let the group know something is mezzed. Ex. The %T is mezzed, do not touch!!!
2. Other than Haste, I cast everything on myself to have a better idea and when I should conserve mana.
3. Purchase your stuns, mezzes, tash, buffs, and charms over damage spells like dots, DD. Unless you got the funds.
4. Do your Tash (Lower Magic Resistance) spell quest when bored.
5. Level up Jewel Crafting, loot will come. You will constantly get groups, eventually you will win rolls. Spend your earnings on spells and JC.
6. Go agnostic for your religion.
7. Make friends, tell em your learning, people are rarely out right rude in EQ.

Also, you might be interested in a bard.

I feel like you haven't been active on TLPs. A chanter that won't charm is considered a waste of group space by many. When folks invite a chanter to a group they expect it to charm something.

furthermore there is no reason not to charm in a good group with a good healer extra dps and a tank or back up tank.

They are new... charming is something that needs to be learned. It is OK to give advice in a group but chanters do not like being told how to play in every group. When EQ began and my chanter journey as well. I learned charming by doing charm kiting on my own.

they have lvl 11 on to learn how to charm by the time it becomes dangerous they will understand how it works.

An enchanter that doesn't charm will not find himself burdened with the demands of a group for long.