XP grinding question. What difficulty level do you use?

[Treefq]

I have been doing quests at normal, and re running on hard and elite, then moving on to the next rinse and repeat. Is this "the way"? I am running into survivability issues on elite quests, mobs are all above my level. So what is the accepted way to run quests?

[EnjoyTheMoment]

Are you currently VIP, premium, or F2P? Also, how experienced at the game are you? Do you dislike re-running missions because it feels too "grindy", or do you like re-running missions so that you can get better and better at handling them?

Answers to these questions make quite a bit of difference to the advice that is likely to make the most sense for you.

[Enoach]

This really depends more on you and your skill or the Group you are working with...

When "Grinding" the most important factor is the ratio of XP to Minute. If you cannot run a quest at a certain difficulty fast enough to maintain the ratio you are after, it may just mean you are not as prepared for that difficulty for that quest and time to move on.

Groups of TR heavy people will generally Run Elite First (as they can open it) and take advantage of the 50% Bravery Bonus that an Elite Streak will give them. But they are also usually geared with twink gear from previous lives or the Auction House or Crafting. These are generally not available to First life characters.

The Difficulty you should use is always the one that you can do that gives you the best XP/Min ratio. And for some that does not include Elite. Also keep in mind that many will run a quest when they are 2 Levels over its Base Level (Or At Level for it's elite setting). This maximizes their character's abilities and gear for the quest level.

[marinerfan]

I have quest ADD and can't run them N/H/E all in a row, I like running down the list even though it perhaps takes a bit longer...the outline below is a (probably confusing) example of how I used to level.

Lets take a level 3 character as an example, when I started playing, I'd run all the level 2 quests on normal. If I had enough xp to level up to 4, great, but if I was short, I'd start runnning level 2 quests on hard until I could level up. Once I leveled up to 4, I'd start running level 3 quests on normal. If I completed all the quests I owned and couldn't level up to 5, I'd go back to level 2 quests on hard and finish that. Then I'd start on level 3 quests on hard until I could level up (or if I finished them, I'd hit level 2 quests on elite next). Once I hit level 5, I could run lvl 2 on elite, lvl 3 on hard/elite, and lvl 4 on normal.

If you followed this outline I'd guess you'd easily have enough xp to make it up to the mid-teens at least without it feeling to "grindy" (depending on what packs you own)

[Qhualor]

I have been doing quests at normal, and re running on hard and elite, then moving on to the next rinse and repeat. Is this "the way"? I am running into survivability issues on elite quests, mobs are all above my level. So what is the accepted way to run quests?

the expected way? if you are having trouble with mobs above your level than run quests on a lower difficulty that you are able to handle. eventually when you get more experienced you can try again on higher difficulties. if you ran all the quests you can or want in your level range, you can go back and repeat them on the same difficulty but with an xp penalty for the purpose of gaining xp to level.

[redspecter23]

With the new xp changes, I tend to elite streak heroic quests with some hard and normal repeats on the better xp quests. If you're able to elite streak, this is probably the fastest way to level up in heroics.

If you've got a good core group of players, you can continue this into epic levels, but it's obviously harder and if you don't have destinies leveled yet or are in an off destiny, it can be very challenging. I personally drop to hard streak in epic levels and the xp is still quite good. I find it faster to hard streak than pug out an elite streak that may or may not work out well. For epics, if I'm looking specifically for xp, I run 2 daily EVoN 3 and 2 daily WizKing with whatever else I have time for after that. If I'm looking for commendations, I play the level 24+ quests on hard or elite daily.

[Treefq]

Ok I see. Thanks for the answers. I am Premium and just started about 3 weeks ago. So no elite streaks for me and I don't have twink gear. my highest level so far is 6 and I have solo'd everything. I did take advantage of the end of year sale and bought quite a bit of packs and stuff. The main I am using right now is archer, and while I like it, I think I am missing oomf. But it should come as I get higher.

[Jeremiah179]

My first life --- game was already several years old, I did not want to get a bad rep as a bad player...did not know about guilds really.

Solo almost exclusively, all on normal at level or one over, repeat on hard - usually able to once I understood quest better from normal run.

I would go back 2-3 levels later and repeat these quests I already know on elite finally and still get what I thought was good xp.

I had fun, was learning the game and it was all fine for me...

There is no shame at all in playing the game this way, especially if it is fun for you.

***

As I moved on I have taken advantage of more and more options in the game mentioned earlier, grouping, joining a guild (buffs), crafting (twink gear), and not to be overlooked I have much more game/quest knowledge and experience at what I can do as a player...

Some of your most favorite experiences in the game will come from this first year filled with wonder and excitement... again I will say, do not be concerned and just make sure you are having fun!

[Qhualor]

Ok I see. Thanks for the answers. I am Premium and just started about 3 weeks ago. So no elite streaks for me and I don't have twink gear. my highest level so far is 6 and I have solo'd everything. I did take advantage of the end of year sale and bought quite a bit of packs and stuff. The main I am using right now is archer, and while I like it, I think I am missing oomf. But it should come as I get higher.

classes don't normally start coming into their own until later levels. it takes getting to know the class you are playing, building up the gear, quest/mob knowledge, selecting the right feats and enhancements and TRing for past lives and for more build points that benefit the class specifically that makes the character more powerful. TRing and more build points aren't necessarily required, its just another way to increase power.

if you are looking for company, don't mind spoilers, help with completing quests or whatever, I would suggest throwing up an lfm. even if you are just soloing, you might get someone to join. just be specific of what you want in your lfm notes and tell those in party what kind of party it will be when they join to prevent confusion. you might get another person in the same boat as you or maybe someone willing to show you the ropes.

[AbyssalMage]

I have been doing quests at normal, and re running on hard and elite, then moving on to the next rinse and repeat. Is this "the way"?
If you are first life and premium, yes.
If you are VIP, even on a first life, most people will run on Hard for the Streak Bonus if they can't find an "Elite" group.


I am running into survivability issues on elite quests, mobs are all above my level.
Some Elite quests are just plain insane. Others just require strategy. And some just require bashing in the NPC's head before they can do the same to you. Reguardless, Elite was designed for group play so having gear, knowledge, and DPS is usually required is different levels of degree.


So what is the accepted way to run quests?
The way that you have the most fun with :) I personally run all quests 1 or more level(s) lower than my character level. I rarely run adventures at level or above (i.e. I don't run a level 4 quest while I am level 4 except in a few instances where the adventures are linked like Sewers, Deneith F2P, and Tangleroot).