For example, my dirge is approaching 60 now and I've never once had to use stealth, for any reason. A couple of times I tried to stealth my way across an instance just to see what happens, and I was inevitably seen by a mob and attacked. I've asked my questions about tracking and it still doesn't seem useful, at all; however, it seems to be entirely more useful than stealth. I can imagine that assassins need stealth for some of their attacks, but, my dirge can do enough damage without the 1 stealth-required spell. All the rest of the special attacks just need me to be flanking or behind a mob.
My BL's and Furies use stealth to get around Forlorn Gist rather than using the illusion when doing the adventure line. But in reality the stealth on the BL isn't useful in combat and somewhere around level 100 it becomes mute as you get an aa spell that allows you to not have to use it for the must be flanking or behind attacks. Tracking I find very useful, both the track harvestables and the track mobs. It makes it much easier for me to find them than wandering about or using coords from the wiki like my poor human Berserker has to, especially when looking for bosses. I've even been known to track players when trying to help them get somewhere, always very useful to be able to find them and start from where they are at.
It's situational. A few raid mechanics have required it. I personally find track VERY useful, but again, just depends on what you are trying to do. There is an end game heroic mob that requires track also.
Thank you, both, for answering. I'll continue to play and will see if they're useful. I've tried tracking, but nothing has been "lost". It's always right where the wiki says it will be. As far as stealth, I can't imagine that it's useful, at all. In OG EQ, my rogue can stealth past 99% of the mobs to drag corpses. In EQ2, we don't have to drag corpses. In fact, I can't imagine where stealth would be useful, instead of a novelty.
I tend to agree stealth isn't a major ability, but is used periodically. Like I said there are a few mechanics in some fights that require it. There's a fight in Akashic Incursion that requires scouts hit with a curse to target themself and stealth in order to be cured. Failure to do so results in a raid wipe. Also, I think a few of the new HOs may utilize it. Tracking is particularly useful when you are hunting for specific mobs that can be spread out over a large area and you are looking to kill them for rare or uncommon drops. find this VERY handy when the mobs are in the water. You know about where to be, but not a specific location. Certainly not an everyday thing, but when you really need it, very useful. If I'm on a non-tracking toon, I actually pull up the Ranger merc so he can track for me in these cases, I don't doubt that when doing content from 20 years ago that this is not an issue. There is a fight in Sacred Gift that scouts use track in as well, to know which refuse piles to avoid and which to clear. Is it a major or game defining ability (It seems to me this is how you are using useful?) No. Is it useful? My answer is Yes.
