Im gonna appologize in advance that I cannot verify this question, im at work.
Im currently level 27 (raider) and im primarily hunting in the partisan hidaway. im hunting guerillas and raiders mostly. I can see myself hunting here until around 30ish hunting seargents (mahums)
now, I keep seeing people suggest hunting in the catacombs? which catacombs? If my memory serves right, there are several catacombs. Is this a place where I'll have to compete for hunting spots OR forced to group?
Currently, in partisan hideway I dont have to compete with other players and Im very capable of soloing the area (which imo is great experience and sp). kills around 1k xp and 100sp. seargents are I think 1200xp and 120sp. not bad for my level? or would catacombs be better? most of these mobs do require a lot of hits and Im going through SSD and heal pots more then I would like to. The loot is very good however
From my own experience (lvl 54 Destroyer at min) I also used Partisan as a hunting ground and found it excellent until level 30, quick kills, good xp, fast leveling.
I have never soloed in catas as I prefer to go there in duo's, parties etc and find it is easier with a hearler/buffer on board. It is likely that the catas are being suggested because the xp is 3-4x normal and very fast if you group. Also you collect the seal stones which are good to exchange for items from the priest or needed to pay Mammon for services. And as a lot of people buy AA, if u don't need them, a profit can be made here also. If you go in the catas you will find that although a mob may be for example green to you it will be much harder to kill than the standard green mob. It is possible to solo but be careful when you go if you have never attempted catas before. The deeper you go the harder it is and most mobs will attack once you start to fight with one and are near enough to another to disturb it.
With regards to which one for the lower levels I only know of 2 which I have been in - Necropolis of Sacrifice near to Langk Lizardmen Dwelling (suits mid teens to early 20) and Pilgrims Necropolis which is at Partisan and suits early 20-30 level - anyone reading please correct if this is wrong.
If you decide to try Catas be sure of the levels in there before you go and make sure you have signed up with Dawn or Dusk beforehand otherwise you can't get in.
Having said all that if you prefer to solo there is nothing wrong with where you are, it should suit you just fine.
Heretic's Catacomb near the Execution Ground is the one right after Necropolis of Sacrifice. Pilgrim's Necropolis near Partisan Hideway is a bit higher but overlaps with Heretic's in levels.
I personally do not really care for the Catacombs and Necropolis but I've leveled lots in them. Once past the lower mobs you start getting stunners or ones resistant to physcial or magical damage, so be careful which mobs you hunt.
dont remember where i was at at 27, but necropolis of sacrifice second tier mobs should be good if you get a small party (2-3, with one of them being a buffer). from 28-40 i killed mostly karul bugbears, but i died a lot, and dont really reccomend them to young raiders until at least level 30. full brig helm drop saves a lot of money, brig helm parts can make you a lot of money, they are not social, and stun doesnt land on you too often compared to other races at this level.
Not all of them but the ones that do will pursue you continuely, run, run yep they're still behind you and usually they have been joined by the 10 others that have decided to follow as you ran past :)
Truthfully it's not really that bad but if you do decide to give it a go, try the beginning of the lower level cat first (see Jutes post) and see how you get on. Personally I would suggest trying to get a group or a healer to go with you however as I said earlier it is possible to go alone.
One major unwritten rule that that you should respect (although not everyone does) as you go through the catas you will come to rooms where the mobs are - numerous ones at each level. If there is already someone in there fighting (and sadly sometimes it's not an actual player) you will need to carry on to another room. It is considered bad play to attempt to fight in an already taken room.
I realize that at this point you may not like to group, as your soloing experience has been good thus far. But you may want to try it out. If you can get a good AOE group in Pilgrams, you can easily make 3% or more per pull (a typical pull is around 2-3 minutes). When I do AOE in pilgrams with alts from my clan, we have several people with polearms, a nuker, an in-party healer and out-of-party buffer.
no im very much looking forward to grouping, however I hate pickup groups. I plan on waiting until I get back from a business trip to persue a clan to group with.
if you have a +++++ weapon, and got buffs from someone all the time, catas are prolly the best place to level (solo) not only will you get great XP, you will also get great loot. collecting seal stones are a great way to earn money (on bartz they got for 4 adena each) at lvl56 (TH, solo) im making about 2m+ ancient adena each week, and Im not hunting very much.
but, hunting outside is much safer, esp if you dont have free buffs.