I'm not as knowledgeable as the other folks on this thread, but I did play a Ranger to 60 on live and have a 36 wiz on p1999, so here's my 2 cp...
- The hybrid XP penalty seems extremely punishing to me. I agree with Duckforceone that it should be a real consideration before anyone rolls a hybrid. I had a lot more time on my hands when I played the Ranger, and so I might have rolled one back then even if I knew about the penalty. But today...well, EQ is enough of a grind as it is...
- Rangers are still very fun. I love the look (especially dual-wielding), and you get track, snare, root, SoW, buffs, healing, even a fear spell come Velious. If you have extra time to level your toon, you could consider being one of those rare Rangers out there.
- I absolutely love the wizard class. Leveling is slow until quad kiting becomes viable, then it's like the only way to fly.
[You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.] Some people say the class is boring, and I get that...but self ports is a game-changing power, and you can easily make up for any one-dimensional aspects of the class by leveling in different areas.
- Lorean put together a very handy matrix that might influence your decision further. I think the comments and rankings here seem very spot on, based on what I've read in the forums:
http://wiki.project1999.org/Loraen%2...election_Guide
Ultimately I agree with the folks that say you should play what you want to play, but I do think the XP penalty should be a real consideration as well. I think you need to factor in how much time you want to put into the game and how much you enjoy the grind. I think for the right player Rangers, Paladins, etc. are a fine choice.