Question - Best Class for Soloing 1–120 with Just a Merc?

[afortner87]

I’ve been thinking about starting a fresh character and going all the way from 1 to 120 with just a mercenary—no boxing, no outside buffs, no PL. I want to make this a chill experience but also as efficient as possible.

Here are a few things I’m curious about:

Which class would you pick for this challenge?

How does your choice handle the early levels vs. the grind in ToV/CoV/ToL zones?

Are there any specific gear or AA milestones that make a huge difference for that class?

Any merc pairing recommendations (healer vs. tank) that work best for this plan?

I was considering SK with a healer merc or maybe a Mage with a tank merc for pets doing the heavy lifting. But I’m open to all ideas—especially if you’ve actually done this or have tips for hotzones, missions, and avoiding the dreaded slow grinds.

Would love to hear your experiences, setups, and maybe even some zone progression suggestions for this kind of solo run!

 

[Sic]

I would probably do something like

nec > sk > mnk > bst > mag > enc (lots of work, but rewarding) > rng > dru > pretty much everything else

FD gives a lot of ability to really dial in your risk tolerance --- sure you can use fd potion, but not the same

I used to solo a lot as a nec - you can keep a merc in your pocket and pop it out for a refresh, or some downtime, then pocket it to go and kill.

now > personally < i think that soloing in eq robs of a lot of the really cool things about eq - but if you're looking to really push boundaries and fail a lot to achieve difficult things - necro, imo, is gonna really give you an experience beyond anything else this game has

 

[TinyBubbles]

I 2nd What @Sic said, a necromancer is the way to go. You will be able to hunt your level. Sic mentioned a monk, but I wouldn't recommend that. While I love my monk, when I got to 112, the xp got so slow it was painful. So I deleveled back to 110 and went and ground out the 25-30k+ AA I was missing. Auto-grant has moved that bar. But a monk doesn't start to come into its abilities in the higher levels until your around 325-28k AA's. But I still couldn't figure out how to solo current content.

Go, Go, Go Team Necromancer

 

[strongbus]

I agree with sic but would put bst/mage/ench before monk and add in sham in there as well.

Any of the 3 big pet classes + merc will do lots for you. bst/necro will give you more ways of killing but mage's pets can tank easier.

shm or ench with mercs will be slower going but will work as well.

 

[Redfrog]

Team Necromancer

 

[Joakhan]

Also on team Necro, then SK. I mained a Necro for many years and love the utility and versatility.

 

[licena]

If you can find the way to get twink bow and heroic dex then try a Ranger, RL solo, headshot, no mercs, no mq.

 

[blackmarble]

Another vote for team Necro!

Beastlord wouldn't be a bad choice either.

 

[Tstone]

We talking solo self found, or you plan to use existing resources to gear the toon? casters (necro) can be more forgiving with less gear, and can take out named for solo upgrades... I played monk and in classic they actually go barehanded before mercs are in the game, if your not worried about spending on gear that really opens it up. pet classes really get a lot from EM equipment boosting their pets so if you focus on getting those first you can do a lot more content. basically its your challenge so it comes down to what restrictions you want to impose on yourself.

 

[Caddylax]

Nec, bst, mage .

 

[soupyGorilla]

soloed merc and part through tob with my necro, as well as level 85-125 with maybe 3 groups.... so team necro here lol