Most people are a lot higher, especially on Bartz since its the most established server. If you get too lonely take a moment to visit Giran or Aden, and you'll feel like there's so many people around. Although it's true you can still feel alone in this environment since many people may ignore a level 20. Keep trying though. Eventually you might get lucky and and find someone to help you, and they'll take you in to their clan Academy. Since you're a new player that's what you need to look for: a Clan Academy to join.
That's not much comfort really. Maybe I should just go back to WoW, although I don't want to. I really want to play L2 but I'm not going to grind solo all the way.
You might have better luck on some of the newer servers or on one with a constant stream of new players.
Franz has alot of low lvl population. I -think- Gustin has too, If you are looking for an US server. Someone else might know better.
Hope you get lucky on Bartz thought, since that's where you are :)
Bartz is a good server, it's just that you chose a solo character. Classes that are almost guaranteed a party are melee DD's and support classes. Nukers, summoners and archers are all solo classes.
That's not much comfort really. Maybe I should just go back to WoW, although I don't want to. I really want to play L2 but I'm not going to grind solo all the way.
Go to Dion and see if you can get some groups there. That is where most of the 20+ people are.
See if you can get into a clan or clan academy. I know it can be hard but this game is not like other games.
people put a lot of work into their characters as being more powerful is what it is all about. You will find people with alts and most likely a considerable about of more casual people 40- 50's but people don't reroll on a whim and the influx of players is not huge.
It is so time intensive to make new characters and equip them properly that there comes a point where you start saying "I could be putting this effort into my main".
Still, there are players out there. you are just going to have to be proactive (like this post) and go and find them.
Good Luck.
edit: oh, and you could think of it as a boon. When the lower lvl areas were populated, you would be pk'ed all the time. Now you can level a bit in peace.
Seriously, nukers and archers are the last characters that are wanted in most parties due to their ability to
1)Kill things before anyone else can run up to them
2)Mp downtimes
Most of the these being played are being done solo w/oop buffboxes as well, so even then a buffer/recharger isn't needed. (Would be extremely boring to play like that for most live players as well.) So conversely, the other characters you would be best to party with (other nukers and archers) are the ones who will be least likely to want or need another person to party/group with. (At least until late 60's/early 70's...)
And worst of all, Nukers and archers are THE <cookie cutter> 'pvp' classes right now, so a significant portion of each server has rolled one of these and is playing more 'melee' chars more as alts instead of mains.
I don't know about the server your on, but I really don't see many groups until post 40 (Catacombs of the Branded/Apostate) these days. And then usually only during 'prime times', due to the average level of older players being so much higher and the aforementioned nuker/archer bias.
Still, you can find people who will party if you don't give up. Use the 'Party Matching' ability to find groups, and if there are none, start a room and leave it up while you grind. If nothing else, you will eventually find someone to duo with.
What would be a good specific race/class I could play that would be decent at soloing and also be able to find a group easily too? Does that even exist?
What would be a good specific race/class I could play that would be decent at soloing and also be able to find a group easily too?
Closest would probably be a Warlock. The other summoner classes would work just as well, but they're arguably not as "party friendly". I would think a Warcryer would also be good, too. Buffs, stun, a drain spell; and they're much desired at high levels.
yeah, any DD class is much wanted in parties
nukers are fun but as said, kinda a solo toon
at higher levels 50+ you will be much wanted in Cata/Necro parties and at raid bosses
however, if you want to re-roll i would also have to suggest a WC
i just rolled on myself and it is sooooooo much fun to play
your life drain spell is kind of like a nuke, seeing as how i can 2 shot mobs from a distance with it ....and im only level 40
plus the buffs are fun and you can deal some serious damage with your stun skills and weapon masteries (not like a DD, but more so than any other buffer imo)
personally i would stick with the nuker, just because at 40 you can branch out again to another class and its never fun to abandon your first toon
as for easy to level, that argument can go on for days as to what class is easiest to solo
however, once you head to dion, you should be able to find parties, and an academy fairly easy
and from there you can just keep moving to the higher level towns, and bring along the friends you meet on the way :)
whatever you do, don't go back to WoW, for the love of god, do not do that
Anyways, welcome to L2 and i hope to see you around sometime.
I know some people don't agree with it, but how fun would it be to get a 2nd account and level up a shillen oracle/elder to 2 box with my dark wizard/spellhowler?
Well almost everyone and their mother seems to have a boxed buffer with them these days.
....i am guilty as well
Nukers seem to love SE's for nukers, because of empower.
Personally i do not agree with this decision, i like EE's just for clarity.
Both SE/EE get Wild Magic 2, so its not a question there.
Any buffer you box, people will say you made the wrong decision, so really its just what you feel is best for you and what you enjoy playing.
PP/SE/EE/WC
Just pick something that sounds fun to play, and have fun.
As for the fun factor, i personally love having to run 2 accounts at once.
It keeps me more aware of whats going on in the game, and i find that running 2 characters at once (not botting a buffer) makes it more fun.
Whatever you decide, if you do roll a 2nd account, i strongly suggest leveling that character to you main's level and never having her out of party.
Let them level together.
Hope my opinion helps. :)
Well almost everyone and their mother seems to have a boxed buffer with them these days.
....i am guilty as well
Nukers seem to love SE's for nukers, because of empower.
Personally i do not agree with this decision, i like EE's just for clarity.
Both SE/EE get Wild Magic 2, so its not a question there.
Any buffer you box, people will say you made the wrong decision, so really its just what you feel is best for you and what you enjoy playing.
PP/SE/EE/WC
Just pick something that sounds fun to play, and have fun.
As for the fun factor, i personally love having to run 2 accounts at once.
It keeps me more aware of whats going on in the game, and i find that running 2 characters at once (not botting a buffer) makes it more fun.
Whatever you decide, if you do roll a 2nd account, i strongly suggest leveling that character to you main's level and never having her out of party.
Let them level together.
Hope my opinion helps. :)
There's an SPS that I've be friended that boxes an EE for clarity, and he runs over to me for Empower every half hour or so (I'm right around the corner, so 30 seconds to come). The only reason I'd box an EE was for the better rez they get, which can save alot of XP especially if you're doing risky leveling (CDL, Corpse Burst, AOE with Sleep Cloud/etc.). SE only gets 20% rez :)
Empower > Clarity, though. Clarity isn't that important - Recharge works better. Have a nice computer setup and you can recharge without having to look away form the screen, or even at the other screen...
EE is a much better second box for melee, though, and probably a better choice if you think you'll roll a melee toon anytime soon. SE heals are almost insignificant - can't even outheal a Flash of Splendor's nukes with top B jewels on me unless I spam battle heal.
EDIT: For a summoner I dunno which would be better. SE has VR and Empower but EE has better heals and defensive buffs. Both have Recharge. I think one of the PS' summons has a built in VR, but I'm not sure if that is their PvP summon or a grind summon.
well like i said we can argue this all day long SE vs EE and why
i personally like to be able to never stop hunting
w/ clarity 3 on me and my EE, by the time i am out of mana, he recharges (clarity 3 = less MP cost per charge) and then im out and about again
when he gets low, invocation and boom, no down time
i am not saying that SE's are a poor choice, its just not how i enjoy playing
Empower > Clarity, though. Clarity isn't that important - Recharge works better.
you cannot say that empower > clarity, they are completely different skills lol thats like saying a "hurricane > sting"
just completely different skills
i know people who have PP's as buff pets cause they enjoy the casting speed off of acumen + zerk
also, on the recharge works better point, EE's get recharge too....
and when we recharge we do it for waaaay less than an SE due to the clarity
we can go on day after day with this debate however its like i said, its just what you enjoy playing and how you like to play my playstyle is little to no down time
even if that means more hits to kill something
...that and kick *** heals for BTM and a 80% rez and then some
i never use BREZ's cause that i go "hmmm free rez > 1.2m rez"
anyway, i will try to PM you in game and see if i cant talk to you some
once again, i hope my opinion helps
you're the right level now to be looking for raid parties in dion. keep your shout chat turned on, but be prepared to respond quickly if you see one advertised because the nuker roles are usually the first ones to fill up. these can be very fun and will give you the opportunity to party with some people in your level range. in that way you'll get an idea of what clans are decent, who's fun to hunt with, a feeling for the area and discover new hunting areas, and maybe get some xp along the way. also, make sure you sign up for dawn when the competition resets this evening. most of the group hunting at the lower levels takes place in the catacombs/necropoli, and dawn side wins almost always here on bartz. :)
lol... Archers and mages are not wanted in parties...:D there are a lot of archer /mage xp party . The only class that not wanted is tank and maybe Warlord if it is not aoe
xaishan, my in game name is Crav3n, gimme a pm sometime and you might catch me. i play on bartz server also and am too new to the game. im a lvl 33 assassin and lvling quick. as the previous posts said i do alot of solo lvling but thats because of the last game i played which alot of was solo grinding. just old habits. as an archer i must say that i have gained quite a few lvls in raid parties which are usually quick to grab me up thx to the amount of dmg i do. ive helped a few other players get some lvl's already so you know im not hell bent on staying solo. i havent tried too hard to find a party, i usually shout once and if i dont get an answer i shrug and continue solo'ing but i can say that once you hit 30 and go into the catacombs of the heretic, you shouldnt have any problems finding a party. new players or alts. like i said, toss me a pm and ill help you out.
well like i said we can argue this all day long SE vs EE and why
i personally like to be able to never stop hunting
w/ clarity 3 on me and my EE, by the time i am out of mana, he recharges (clarity 3 = less MP cost per charge) and then im out and about again
when he gets low, invocation and boom, no down time
i am not saying that SE's are a poor choice, its just not how i enjoy playing
Empower > Clarity, though. Clarity isn't that important - Recharge works better.
you cannot say that empower > clarity, they are completely different skills lol thats like saying a "hurricane > sting"
just completely different skills
i know people who have PP's as buff pets cause they enjoy the casting speed off of acumen + zerk
also, on the recharge works better point, EE's get recharge too....
and when we recharge we do it for waaaay less than an SE due to the clarity
we can go on day after day with this debate however its like i said, its just what you enjoy playing and how you like to play my playstyle is little to no down time
even if that means more hits to kill something
...that and kick *** heals for BTM and a 80% rez and then some
i never use BREZ's cause that i go "hmmm free rez > 1.2m rez"
anyway, i will try to PM you in game and see if i cant talk to you some
once again, i hope my opinion helps
I see where you're coming from, but Lol I don't see how a better recharge (more efficient recharge is more accurate) is > Greater Empower 3 for a caster - Unless you have a infinite supply of Greater Empower 3 L2Day scrolls or know an SE that can buff you every 20 minutes.
I don't like to stop hunting either, and I don't ever stop hunting, but hunting without Empower means I will have to take 3 shots instead of 2 shots on 80% of the mobs that I kill @ 59 in Valley of Saints. That also means I will have to recharge more, which completely negates the whole point of Clarity (to make you last longer by upping efficiency). You're paying money to "try" to compensate from inefficiency in setup - using a box that cannot buff M.Atk as well as SE, thus lowering your DPM/DPS and forcing the nuker to waste more MP than would be necessary with an SE box...
Empower 3 is the single biggest boost to mage efficiency in the game - indirectly by substantially upping your damage per point of mana. Clarity is not > Empower IRT upping your efficiency, Empower is > Clarity.
As far as the EE running OOM. You're using Invocation because ur probably nuking more than you have to, and thus have to recharge more than you would have to if you had the Greater Empower 3 buff. My SE is never < 50% MP (unless I just buffed and recharged me) and she never ever comes close to being OOM. I probably won't use Invocation unless I'm in a group, when I get it (almost there :P).
But hey, I don't know what for sure. Maybe you just XP on green mobs, exclusively.
Grinding without Greater Empower 3 is almost like Grinding without Blessed Spiritshots. It sucks, hardcore...
well, to be honest i completely agree with what you are saying
HOWEVER i have tried empower 3 on the mobs that i hunt with the weapons that i hunt with, and all it means it that my first hit, intstead of taking 1/2 the mobs HP, takes about 2/3.
Those numbers arent exact, but im sure that you understand what i am saying. Empower for me (and my weapon, tat's armor) is more or less in-effective UNLESS i am not solo.
i.e. rifts, raids, etc....
I do see your point and agree with it, but like i said, different play style's yield different results.
As for my EE running OOM, that isnt cause im nuking to much, its cause i just run through entire areas and 2 shot everything in sight that yields good XP. I dont hunt in common area's where i have to worry about keeping a small hunting radius.
I just go out to a huge open, out of the way area, and have at it.
I'd get an SE for empower and keep lvling in places were you just about 2shot the mobs. Running around is kinda dumb, if you walk and have SE sitting down between recharges you should have more MP than constantly running around with an EE
xaishan, my in game name is Crav3n, gimme a pm sometime and you might catch me. i play on bartz server also and am too new to the game. im a lvl 33 assassin and lvling quick. as the previous posts said i do alot of solo lvling but thats because of the last game i played which alot of was solo grinding. just old habits. as an archer i must say that i have gained quite a few lvls in raid parties which are usually quick to grab me up thx to the amount of dmg i do. ive helped a few other players get some lvl's already so you know im not hell bent on staying solo. i havent tried too hard to find a party, i usually shout once and if i dont get an answer i shrug and continue solo'ing but i can say that once you hit 30 and go into the catacombs of the heretic, you shouldnt have any problems finding a party. new players or alts. like i said, toss me a pm and ill help you out.
Cool - my Dark Wizard is 27, almost 28 now.
Although I've stopped leveling it to get my newly created SE caught up so they can group together.
You don't need to stop leveling so early. It will hurt to have to do class change quests on two toons at the same time :(
I would level the SH to 40 and do class change, then level the SO. Once the SO gets to 21, you can gruop her with the SH in Ivory Tower Crator or somewhere and level her quicker than you will level her at these low levels grouped with the Dark Wizard.
It took me less than two weeks to get my SE to B grade doing the same thing.
1-21 Solo
21-35 Group with Roomate's Necro in IT Crator
40-55 Group with my Necro in Valley of Saints
My necro is now only 4 levels higher than the SE.
Once you get to B grade you want to keep them grouped, though, unless you have alot of friends with whom you can play the SE actively when you aren't leveling you SH.
well, to be honest i completely agree with what you are saying
HOWEVER i have tried empower 3 on the mobs that i hunt with the weapons that i hunt with, and all it means it that my first hit, intstead of taking 1/2 the mobs HP, takes about 2/3.
Those numbers arent exact, but im sure that you understand what i am saying. Empower for me (and my weapon, tat's armor) is more or less in-effective UNLESS i am not solo.
i.e. rifts, raids, etc....
I do see your point and agree with it, but like i said, different play style's yield different results.
As for my EE running OOM, that isnt cause im nuking to much, its cause i just run through entire areas and 2 shot everything in sight that yields good XP. I dont hunt in common area's where i have to worry about keeping a small hunting radius.
I just go out to a huge open, out of the way area, and have at it.
Your signatiure says BD/EE/WC so I am having trouble coming to terms with it, Lol. If you are talking about leveling you WC by nuking with drains, then I guess you will need the faster/extra/more efficient recharges. That's about the most inefficient way to level and It's roughly congruent to a Necro leveling with Vampiric Claw. It's 97 MP a cast at my level, when Death Spike is 37. Death Spike and Hurricane for an SH will also cost much less mana than their Vampiric Claw. That is why they don't need Clarity. With their slower cast speed + Clear Mind + SE they will never have problems with MP but will benefit alot from Empower, especially with their higher base M.Atk.
Cool thanks for the advice Trensharo. That sounds like a good plan.
So get my SH to 40, then level my SE to 21 solo - then group with my 40 SH in IT Crator?
Yes, at those levels you really don't have much mana problems, and since the SO will be so low it will level up extremely fast compared to you (since you're basically giving it a cut of you XP gain). You will level slower, but you won't have to "stop" and the SE will eventually catch up to you, or be in a respectable range (i.e. she will be able to recharge you nicely, and have respectable buffs for your level of experienec).
Once you get to 52 there will be a sudden urge to stop leveling her. Resist the temptation and keep going :)