New guy conflicted on class choice.
 

So I played EQ way back in the beginning and would love to get back into the game here on project99 but I am having trouble figuring out which class I want to begin with. My main in the past was a shaman, but of course dabbled with other classes as well.

I want to play something that is both able to solo and doesn't have a lot of trouble finding groups. I like the idea of being a hybrid or a melee class but they seem fairly gear dependent. By looking around I have narrowed it down to possibly playing a bard, shaman, enchanter.... or maybe even a wizard for the ability to teleport.

Any advice would be welcome.

Thanks,
hopped

The best dungeon soloers are enchanters and shaman and those two classes are also fantastic in groups. The problem is they tend to be boring buff-bots on raids.

Bards are amazing leveling soloers, and fantastic duo partners at virtually all levels. They can be boring, carpal-tunnel inducing classes on raids, or they can be absolutely vital to a raid's success. They are welcome in groups, especially after they receive their first mana regen song at 32.

Those classes really are the best for soloing and grouping, with other classes tilted more towards soloing (necro, wizard, druid) or grouping (monk, warrior, SK, paladin, rog, cleric). However, a sufficiently twinked monk can solo for most of his career (fungi goes a long way).

Good luck and welcome back to Norrath.

if you want a class to level up so you can do a bit of twinking on your "main" class a mage or necro would be a good choice as both of these classes are not gear dependent at all - as far as the four classes you list:

the shaman would be the most gear dependent (needs a good weapon to start with and regen really helps, no pet until 34), the bard needs little gear to get rolling I believe...the wizard and enchanter would be somewhat gear dependent as well

shaman would be a better choice overall as they can solo great and can get into groups easy, only problem is there are a lot of them on the server but I think you will be okay

keep the other option in mind though, as a mage/necro you can level them up to the 30s pretty fast and farm items for your main class

Enchanters a pretty good choice; they are very utilitarian and your cleric will recommend you potentially over dps for groups, but if you so choose or just have a little time to burn you can charm kill and things like that. I guess they could be a money maker too with their clarity.

I would recommend druid (thats usually my goto recommendation) but high end you'd be soloing a lot more than grouping, enchanters are always in demand its just more a matter of wanting to play one :cool:

this could help: http://wiki.project1999.com/Loraen%2...election_Guide

and this: http://wiki.project1999.com/Players:...ould_I_pick.3F

I guess a focus on something that is able to farm well with minimal gear would be a good option to start, then later make something that I could twink. Overall I think I would like have a hybrid melee but I don't think I want to punish myself trying to grind it out fresh as a paladin or a ranger. Maybe go mage to be a "good" character for easy travel... although I remember fear kiting being pretty awesome.

Honestly either of those three classes you listed will work. Although I'd say Enchanter and Shaman over Bard.

From your 4 choices:

Solo exp - bard > enchanter > wizard / shaman
Solo cash farm - enchanter > shaman > bard/wizard
Grouping opportunities on the exp highway - enchanter > shaman > bard > wizard

Wizards and shaman are both slow at exp untwinked in the early levels but really pick up in the 29-34 range.

Enchanters can solo the toughest cash camps followed by shamans though the shaman is a bit more slow paced and imo safer for an inexperienced player.

Wizards aren't regularly invited to exp groups outside of chardok aoe. Many groups turn down and avoid hybrids due to their exp penalty so bards have a tougher time than most getting traditional exp groups (with exceptions in some high end zones). Shaman are welcome in groups but they are very common meaning there is competition for the shaman slot. Enchanter are probably the best choice if grouping is your primary goal as they are almost always welcome in exp groups and have many options outside of the traditional tank/healer/dps group.

For your criteria I suggest enchanter.

I do not think you need to create a farming toon to twink a main that you may enjoy. My first toon returning to the game was a paladin and from the money I made in unrest it was more then enough platinum to purchase the gear that easily gets you to 55 or higher.

If you are a paladin you can get a mix of armor of ro/deep water boots and shield of stewart seas (erudite only) for 400-500 pp. Sword of mourning is only 100-200 pp at most as well. Forming groups is beyond easy if you are the tank.

I am going to give the enchanter a go and see what happens, seems like a fun/useful option with a bit of a challenge at times.

as far as grouping, I don't always have the time to group so being able to solo for an hour or so on a camp is going to be a solid option for me.