Hit a roadblock at level 50

Haven't seen a single soul since Crescent Reach so grouping is non existent. But I'm self sufficient anyways. At least I was decent at quad kiting and charm kiting back in the day. So I've been soloing. Mostly without a merc since I get more xp that way. And I'm a F2P silver account so I'm very limited on mercs. They suck.

So far I've been able to root/dot for the most part and even root/tank/dot. But root never holds for more than a couple seconds. And mobs seem way more resistant than I remember them being back then.

I've just been grinding xp in hot zones. Skyfire is a 50 hot zone and I went there prior to 50 and was easily killing things. But everything there is crazy high in fire resists and also once I hit 50 most things are now light blue and dark blue so the xp is already going down a bit.

I went back to PoK once I hit 51 to see the 55 hotzone. And it's Riwwi Colosseum. Went there at 51 and my merc tank gets lit up so fast I can't keep up with the heals and these mobs are only yellow. And my root doesn't hold long enough to root/dot.

Edit: I've also been to Velks and I'm too slow at killing so I can't make it too far in. Just been killing the mobs at the entrance and they are also now light blue at 51.


1) I know my gear sucks right now as I still have a ton of stuff level 20 and lower. It's not my fault. I have killed named mobs in hotzones and they only drop quest items. Have not had any gear drop other than defiant gear for different classes other than my own. Is there any guides on where to find gear in EQ? I played 13 years ago and never remember having a gear problem this bad when going from zone to zone as I leveled up. Gear used to drop.


2) Even with better gear it will not help my tank merc survive. So where should I be leveling up at 50+? I prefer outdoor zones where I can quadkite or at least have room to run around on a mount while my mana regenerates. Sadly I don't remember the zones I leveled at back then. It's been so long. But I had a semi Anguish geared Druid main level 85. I just wanted to start fresh on a more populated server. I'm still a druid btw.

3) Is there no day night cycle in game? I have been to 20 different zones and every single one of them is night time and always dark. Even PoK. Never remember it being this dark.

4) Thank you soooooo much for all of the help!

Going paid will get you a better merc at level 85. The top 'o the line J5.

Going paid right now will not get that much better merc at levels 50/60/70 etc.

So the merc you have now is about the best you can get and your Silver so its better than the F2P one.

Dunno if you want to read thru this even though some of the stuff is old it doesn't matter cause there hasn't been anything new for any player under 85 since HOT.
http://thedruidsgrove.org/forums/index.php

Specially this post
http://thedruidsgrove.org/archive/eq/t-3947.html

If the best merc he gets now is an A2 (i.e. F2P account, not a Silver acct), then the J1 available to a paying account will be quite a bit better.

If you're just trying to level quickly, and screw everything else til then, your best bet is to ditch the merc, and just quad kite or reverse charm. Those are the fastest ways to level. As a druid, to use a merc, the only one which makes sense is a tank merc, and until you get to higher levels, and a decent number of AAs, moloing with a tank merc is just a waste of time.

Ah, I see he's Silver. So, access to A5 mercs. Yeah, J1 won't be that much better. At 85, however, J5s are quite a bit better.

Root rotting is OK, but quadding and reverse charming are way better. If you really like to DoT, you CAN just skip the root. That's how I've done it in the past. When EQ was new, DoTs only did full damage if the mob was not moving. That changed in late 2000/early 2001. So, use your snare, DoT it up, and just keep kiting and get another one, and start DoTing that one.

But, seriously, quadding is better. You mentioned you were good at quadding and charming in your previous EQ incarnation. Why the resistance to it now?

For gear, it sucks if all your Defiant drops have been everything but leather. Try the Bazaar maybe?
Also, there is some pretty decent player-made jewelry, if you know anyone who can make those for you. That covers 8 slots.

Also, I assume, since you've mentioned HoT zones, you're doing the Franklin Teek quests. You can fill three more slots with Defiant gear from those quests.

Just some random thoughts. Hope some of it helps!

I'll just throw out, you can /testcopy. On the launcher, swap to test build,and you can continue your toon.

Test is a weird dystopian server, were people all solo, together. As a whole, people are more friendly when it comes to advice and help, but ymmv. Also, you get the benefits of a paid Merc for a little more oomph.

I never went solo with a druid so take this with a grain of salt. At 50-55 I generally go to Maiden's Eye on Luclin (just off Dawnshroud Peak). It is outdoors and while room to kite is tight, it is doable. I generally use a tank mercenary (A5) although now days I have two accounts so can plow through content with less downtime.

I actually just finished getting to 63 on my Druid (and have hit a new road block as a soloer atm lol). For 50-60 I did Grieg's End, then went to Steppes (a Serpent's Spine zone off of the Mesa, we can port pretty close to there).

At this point I pretty much feel like I need a box, or some friends, if I intend to level further. My guild is cool but nearly everyone is 115 with little interest in leveling alts right now lol.

A lot of soloability unlocks for you with the J1 Mercs from p2p if you are capable of buffing, healing. Also, a fun tip you learn as a former Wizard main (on tlps) - Orange aoes are, damage-to-cost, far more effective even when used on a single target. I feel like I was killing decently fast in GE with my Merc buffed to the teeth with our high 40s/low 50s buffs. But it takes some time to get going.

Subbing for at least a month will also get you AA that help improve damage, healing, and overall stats. So that's another thing to consider.

Keep in mind that going paid will not get you more AA right now. The only thing going with a paid subscription does for AA is to allow you to auto grant. Just like the top merc you have to grow into it as you level. This is a rough estimate of how many AA one earns per level:

Level - 55 - AA 60
Level - 60 - AA 150
Level - 65 - AA 300
Level - 70 - AA 700
Level - 75 - AA 1000

F2P with a 250 cap is ok till level 63 ish.

Silver with a 1000 cap is ok till Level 75

So using this scale one would not want to go with a paid subscription for the auto grant AA until at least level 75 or higher.


You also earn a 10% bonus on AA under 4000 for not using auto grant.

The above is an older calculation and may be a little off due to AA consolidation over the years and what not but it gives you the idea of why players wait to Auto Grant until higher levels. You just don't have that many AA at lower levels to make a difference weather its auto or earned.

What server are you on? also I'd agree with most things stated above. No need to burn a krono or 15 bucks just yet. Does it help is the J1 merc broken until mid 70s? yeah it is. But this can all be done without the merc.

Thanks for jogging my old memory...

I quadded a LOT in ME back in the day. Don't remember directions, but if you face the zone line to Umbral, it's the corner to the left of you. There are a TON of little alien guys, and there's a small lake there. That's where I was first able to do some big time mass quadding. You round up a bunch, and start quadding away. You should have enough mana/regen to quad about 10. Start with less, and see how it goes

I'm on Bristlebane.

I don't have a problem fighting solo without a merc. I just have a problem finding what zone to go to for decent xp. Everywhere I go mobs are light blue.

But like I said earlier though, Riwwi is tough and I can't do it yet with my crappy merc tank. They hit hard/fast and spamming heals won't keep him up. But I get another heal at 55 so it might be better then.

I'm doing ok in Griegs End but it's also tough because my tank merc can't hold aggro and most things are duo pulls. But I'm on the DSP side of GE... I'm trying to figure out how to get to The Scarlet Desert and go in GE on that side.. I heard it was mostly single pulls over there.

And my gear still sucks I'm still in a couple of Glooming Deep pieces from the tutorial lol nothing drops it's annoying.

Ok here is where to gear up for the next few levels. Its following the Hero's Journey

46-50: Pranks and Research
51-55: Moving Up the Ranks
56-60: Ascending the Roost
61-70: Conquering the Steppes

Thanks so much! I see that now.

Hero's Journey only seems to take you up to around 55. What are you supposed to do for progression after that? Also, Clayton Teek doesn't have anything to do until you hit 75 so not sure what to do between 55 to 75 and then not even sure what Clayton Teek has to offer. Aren't there expansions you can go through that have items you hand in and then you receive an item for your class?

It's been so long I'm used to camping certain mobs for specific armor pieces and finding good camping spots to farm for xp. This new stuff seems to guide you to 55 (judging by the Hero's Journey quest) and then stops...

Blackfeather Roost (Sorry! I said Steppes earlier lol) is part of the progression path post-55. It is not a really bad quest, just make sure to bring some bear meat and snake meat with you. And a friend to forage (or forage yourself) because that can help with bad drop rates.

Basically you have to talk to the satyr or w/e he's supposed to be near the griffon, and it begins a quest chain to gather food for the griffon. Each griffon takes you further up to the roost. You really only NEED to progress up to the maybe 3rd or 4th quest in the chain to have a good farm spot. The pulls are a bit easier at the...second? Harpy village.

Steppes is the last zone in the Hero's Journey, it seems

Not sure where you see it stop at level 55? Here is a somewhat full listing and as you can see it goes to level 85 at least
https://everquest.allakhazam.com/db/quest.html?quest=5553

Clayton Teek's stuff changes every day and he will send you to the zone. His start at 75 but they can put you in a level 100 zone if that is what pops up that day.

Franklin's stop at level 95. So you can do both if you wish.

There is so much to do in the game that you have not even touched the tip of the mountain yet lol.
https://www.paullynch.org/eqguide/guides/quests/
http://www.paullynch.org/eqguide/guides/armor/
https://everquest.allakhazam.com/db/quest.html?quest=4016

The best way to find stuff is go to Allah. Search for the zone you want. Then click one of the two tabs that says "quests" or "quests starting in" and look thru them and see what you want to do.

Google works well also so long as you put "in eq" after it ...like "good armor for level 70 in eq"

good luck!

Thanks! I thought it stopped at 55 cause when I was looking at the achievements under the Hero's Journey there isn't anymore after level 55 so I figured that was the end of it

Below 60 always hire a tank merc A5 is great, merc tanks are over powered, until past 60. I always suggest kunark zones, it was the first expansion, and the mobs there have fewer HP and hit less hard than each later expansion. At around 50 i like Sebilis, but it is a long way out, and buffs begin to fade, still if go slow, can usually get 1 or 2 mobs at a time, drops are gems, plat to pay your merc and other trade skill items, that all stack deep so you don't have to get back to civilization for a while. (also improves live guk faction) At 61, i like Temple of Droga, mobs max out at 60-61, drop plat, gems and TS items, and improves Chardok faction, and if you have a friendly guild, can get buffs for level 90 or so, restoring your merc tanks powers. Grinding to level 71 can be a pain with just you and merc, as there were few level jumps, and no easy zones, (by the time TSS came out mobs were mean), so I had my now mains stay in Droga, was slow, but profitable.

Lambro, to get to SD side of Griegs is simple, cast invis, and use the find too for zone- Scarlet desert. Helpful tool in all zones so use it. Second, where to lvl? I think I read above you have A5 merc or should based on silver. If your looking for lvls stay in Griegs til 70. From lvl 50-60 cycle in a circular rom clearing fashion (clockwise/counter whatever) with SD zone line area as the reference point. This will be a 5 room/area clear. only 1 room has a double pull set spawn, The big room at the 12 o'clock from SD area has roamer and one invis mob in middle. Your tank make sure to assign role as main tank. when possible (post lvl 55) pull more than one mob at a time. Dot, new target dot etc. You will need to guage how many your tank can handle before running away or he takes more dmg than is efficient. On my J1 merc I think I was pulling 6/7 before he would run, just have to figure it out for your merc.
Once you get to 60 or above move to the center of Griegs (giant iron bar gate) and that will be your new starting base. Once again go in a logical circular fashion, clear room, clear left, clear right, go thru door and then clear that area and room and more as you level in spawn rate. Same technique, dot, new target dot etc pull as many as you can handle without going crazy on dmg on one mob.
From 50-60 lvls should be 20-40 min per lvl, 61-67 no lvl should take more than 1.5 hrs with the lower ones around an hr ea. The slowest lvls will be between 68-70 taking about 2hrs ea, All this will depend on how aggressive you push in find what you can handle. Xping at these lvls is not about the mob con but rather speed/volume of kills overtime so as the con go to ligth blue you need to pull more in same amount of time. (note: if playing on FV the lvling times are slightly faster). Note: when not kiting having a mount is huge. Not sure what monetary limits are as Silver so think about buying a bridle if not spending real money.
Tip for future: from 70-72 Griegs End is still decent but you will be fighting differently. No Merc. Get high buffs (DS below Igneous (can get Igneous at 72) and regen below Enduring and run thru in efficient fashion the entire zone, should have 8-12 mobs per stop to kill. ** Remember you have to dmg ea mob with a melee or spell at least once to get xp.
For 73-85 use healer merc (reactive) and get max buffs and go to loping plains. Start pulling worgs (don't worry about quest meh). Start with 1 at a time and base performance pull 2/3 at a time.The yellow and red worgs will make your lvls fly. You can do this to 85. As the con changes remember you need to kill more and more per same time frame. I will say that from lvl 82+ I was nearly clearing the entire area worg quest guy all the way to undead area in spawn time. Once you get to 80+ no merc..
For 85+ I can't really say since I use a J5 merc and its a huge difference from the J1/A5. But if you did decide to sub (krono/pay) its still fast xp til 90.

Note: I have no idea what the limitation on non-sub accts are and this is only if your looking for lvls. I am a returning player also, and have been playing casually to kill some time (no guild) on FV ( I know FV as a xp bonus, but I used the same technique on other servers). As a sub I have made about 400k+ from Griegs doing this (selling armor/TS items, merchant fodder). So I haven't needed to use any of my krono stash from EQ2. I don't box. Hope this helps good luck.

Apologies for all the typos and such Hope you can muddle thru it.

Thanks so much for taking the time to write all of that!

I actually ended up finding my way to GE from Scarlet Desert. And that side is much easier for sure. But silly me accidently casted my self evac so it put me over on the DSP side again and I just said screw that and found another zone to level in lol.

Went to Plane of Nightmare and just been kiting the spiders and trees and ravens near the entrance. Xp has been slow. Even with mana regen can only manage only 2 or 3 kills before I have to sit and mana back up. They all have decent HP so quad kiting is a pita. My AoE spells don't do that much damage.

I hit 55 before bed last night and got a new heal and a new DoT and a bear pet so it's speeding up the killing a little bit. Will probably just grind some AAs for a bit though (any tips on which ones to go for as a Druid? First thing I did was buy an extra spell gem slot!)

I might check out GE again now that I have good DoTs and a pet for a lil more DPS. And I actually do have a mount. I was a vet from back in the day and played just briefly Seeds of Destruction and then IDK what happened to me. The years flew by and never logged back in. I had a ton of /claims and a lava mount with like 300+ HP/Mana and other stats was one of them

As far as my merc though.. he is terrible at holding aggro or I would definitely be pulling more than one at a time. I tried two at a time in GE with him at 54 and I had to keep evacing us cause he would just not hold the aggro. I don't box or anything either. But I'll go back and give it another whirl. Thanks.

A couple of points that I don't think were mentioned here. First off, set your merc tank group role as Main Tank, I think that tells the merc to taunt and try to hold agro. Second, set your group role as Main Assist, your merc will change targets to grab aggro on your target. Third, I know that damage shields were multiplied on mercs at least up to level 50 where I spent most of molo time in Lower Guk. Mage (or druid) DS on tank merc, set tank merc as MT, set myself as MA and if a mob came after me I changed my target to it and the merc tank would dutifully switch target and take agro. Oh, and set your tank merc to Aggressive!