Magician Help

[Leoden]

A while back myself and 2 other friends started on p99 clr/war/ench, we all made it to 30ish, but our play times never really line up and I was the war...

I thought I would try my hand at something that was a easier for soloing and a bit more group friendly at lower levels. After lots of reading I picked a magician.

Here is what I have gathered so far leveling to 12 and reading. Could anyone confirm just to make sure I am not missing something.

1.Duo if you can pet exp penalty is horrible if you don't do 51% dmg. (group bypasses 51% dmg requirement)
2. When solo, chain pets until mob is running, reclaim elements, and melee/nuke it to death. (avoids pet exp penalty)

Recasting pets doesn't seem very efficient, but if I can't out dps my pet, experience is only 25%.

Any help would be appreciated.