Soloing vs. grouping, once and for all

Noselacri · #1 10-06-2010, 01:53 AM

I've been wondering about group vs. solo exp. At this point in time during Live, I exclusively played classes that had to group, so I don't have a distinctive memory of the difference. What I certainly don't remember was constantly hearing that soloing was vastly better exp than grouping, nor finding a magician in every conceivable solo spot in the entire game, but this is clearly the case here. I can level significantly faster solo than I can in groups, and that's as an enchanter or shaman, not even the true solo-exp kings.

The impact this has on gameplay on this server is extremely obvious, and if this was the case in nineteen ninety-nine, I'll resign myself to the apparent fact that this is how it always worked and that people were just more willing to group back then.

So, to those of you who soloed extensively eleven years ago, was solo exp twice as good back then as well?

Evandor · #2 10-06-2010, 02:53 AM

solo isnt faster than a good group, the downtime is much longer and after 10+ mobs it gets boring like hell...
i dont know why ppl want to solo all their way up?
I am back in this game because modern MMORPGs don't offer any group feelings, it only comes to groups to rush through instances...
I would prefer even "not so good"-groups over solo stuff in EQ, if i want to solo i would play other games but seriously not EQ.

thats just my 2 copper.

Noselacri · #3 10-06-2010, 03:05 AM

Well, your personal preferences for grouping are fairly irrelevant. I'm not interested in anecdotal nonsense, and I think it's safe to say that anyone who knows how to solo efficiently can verify that the exp is quite a bit faster than grouping if you can find a place that offers enough mobs to avoid having to wait for respawns. What I'm looking for is believable reports of whether or not this was the case in the era we are trying to emulate, to the extent that is currently evident.

Cheech · #4 10-06-2010, 03:13 AM

Group exp on this server is horrible now. If your able to solo with your current class in a decently timed manner, then do so. You won't regret it.

Tronjer · #5 10-06-2010, 03:48 AM

The levelspeed on P99 is too fast anyway. Took me 20 days /played (roughly 2 months) to hit 50 solely by group xp and I spent a considerable part of this time /lfg.

Wizerud · #6 10-06-2010, 04:26 AM

I think it's the same. The difference is that people were much more inclined to group back then and I remember people used to look down on soloers as some kind of freaks who shouldn't be playing such a socially-enabled game.

The other thing is I think people are much more aware of better soloing techniques for almost all classes now than back then. So people are just better at it now (generalizing).

JayDee · #7 10-06-2010, 04:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tronjer [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

The levelspeed on P99 is too fast anyway. Took me 20 days /played (roughly 2 months) to hit 50 solely by group xp and I spent a considerable part of this time /lfg.

Shoulda been here around server inception.

People were doing 20-40 in one day in sola.

Auvdar · #8 10-06-2010, 05:02 AM

It's amazing how differently people play there second run through of a game. Kinda like, you know what the fuck to do so you do it the better way <shrug>

RKromwell · #9 10-06-2010, 05:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wizerud [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

I think it's the same. The difference is that people were much more inclined to group back then and I remember people used to look down on soloers as some kind of freaks who shouldn't be playing such a socially-enabled game.

The live servers had between 1500 to 3000 people on them at a time. If you wanted to kill anything you had to be in a group. Sure, there were people running solo but to get the good spawns they knew at some point they would have to group, just to have a shot at something they wanted.

Tronjer · #10 10-06-2010, 05:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JayDee [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

Shoulda been here around server inception.

People were doing 20-40 in one day in sola.

Yeah, but where is the point?

Rush to level 50, kill plane trash for a brief time and all one can do afterwards is racing with other guilds for the few raid encounters, or farming plat in anticipation of Kunark. Doesn't matter if this procedure takes a few weeks more or less.

In contradiction to 1999, people have the knowledge about zones, spots, items, game mechanics, and build support networks from the get-go already. Where you once had three camps (HK, SolB Royals) there is just one here, death penalty and cr doesn't sting anymore and the infamous PoF break-ins are a joke nowadays.

That's not meant at as a rant, but to really bring back EQlive feeling, the mechanics should be balanced according to increased players experience. Slower leveling, less dps, mobs with higher hp, etc. Given the current rate we will burn through Kunark in two months again and permacamp Trak/VS afterwards.