Where to level?

[Arrys]

Levelling a finesse based halfling rogue and wondering what quests are the best path? that is which quests over good exp per time invested when using a hireling aggro magnet. Thanks to one of the coin lord quests I've got the two acid shortswords that assist backstabbing as well, already have two blunts for skellies and after kicking the tires for a few hours know how annoying will based spell casters are and why they die first.

It's a good game so I P2P and therefore any quest is an option. Obviously for groups it's wherever but I need to get a +search and + spot item to maximize my benefit to a group doing hard and up content didn't bother doing that for testing yet. Eventually I'll find a guild I can work with but I like to know I at least get along with a few people in a guild before accepting an invite.

did a veteran 32 pt charachter so straight to level 4 will do a +2 all stat at level 7 in the plan. My goal is of course the backside killer with strong support abilities and I prefer pure classes and will probably end up assassin with the new keystone.

str 12
dex 18
con 14
int 16
wis 8
cha 8

Unless I miss a caster(daze is evil) while soloing don't have trouble dying and enjoy the positioning aspects of the backstab.

Any factions I absolutely must befriend?
Any quest areas with items too good to pass up?

Lots of build question answers here but I'ld like to increase leveling speed. pretty much exp is my concern not favor.

[Ollathir]

Several places you can find insight on starting out. Forum *links* page in my signature is filled with quite a bit. Some others:

http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=233707 New players journal.

http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=122746 The path to power. A bit outdated, just use for reference.

http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=237895 Mr Cows Diaries of a True Reincarnate Melee.

There are several quest guides in *Links* page as well. Good luck.

[Samwiser77]

I level up by focusing on chain quests, there seems to be more xp and better loot involved. With a veteran build and VIP, you can start by soloing Water Works and Kobold's New Ringleader on all levels. Then move to the market and do Sharn and STK. You can solo those on normal or find groups pretty easily. Once you hit level 5, run through Deleras one time on normal with a group and choose the Voice of the Master as an end reward. It will add 5% xp and +1 to your skills. Unfortunately, you will almost always need a group for Deleras as you won't get your backstab against undead. But there always seems to be 2 or 3 groups on my server running at any given time. I then run Tangleroot, usually solo on normal, but sometimes with a group on hard. At level 6, I focus on Deleras, it is worth a lot of xp and I do it several times until I am sick of it. Join groups that advertise xp farming. Remember to take the Golden Cartouche necklace as an end reward on your second run, it adds +3 UMD and is a must have item for a rogue. After a few normal runs, I will do it on hard once around level 8 and head to House P.

A rogue will really start to shine at this point, Gwylan's Stand and Tear of D both have traps and backstab opportunities. I do both of those on normal and hard. Then go back to Deleras again one last time to finish it on Elite. Around level 9 and 10, you can do the Necro 2 Shadow quests. One of them has 20plus traps that adds a significant amount of xp. The final quest, Shadowcrypt is also worth a lot of xp and can be done quickly with a good group. You should be able to hit level 10 pretty easy at that point. Then start doing wilderness areas: Ataraxia, The Sands, and Gianthold. The walks-ups in those areas can be worth a lot of xp and some can be solo'ed as a rogue. You can also do Tempest Spine on normal and hard. (Remember to bring an item to get your int up to 18.) After that, start flagging for VON, DQ, and Tor. That should get you pretty far along. At some point, you will want to slow down and pick up Coin Lord and House k favor for the extra inventory/bank slots.

A lot of this content can be done on normal with a hireling as aggro bait. To be honest, it will be faster and less frustrating to find good groups to knock out these quests. If you are confident and competent in your trap skills, you will be welcome in most groups. This basically requires keeping the best trap gear for your level and maxing out ranks. I try to focus on quests with high xp and wait to do them when I am at level or one above. I won't waste my time doing something on elite if I think it has a chance of a party wipe...too much time can be wasted taking on quests more difficult than your level. You can always go back to farm for favor at a later date.

Free agent favor is good for the +4 tools, but I never seem to have problems finding +5s on the AH. Make a habit of checking the listings for tools quickly when you log on and wait for them to fall into your price range. Also, keep your con and false life item maxed. Rogues have a problem and bad reputation for being squishy, and dying is never any fun. If you are on Khyber, I would be happy to send you some of my old gear.

[Arrys]

Thank you both, very helpful and just what I needed. Appreciate the offer Samwise but I'm on Orien.

[Bodic]

info dirks jungs STK TR Delera's bounty hunter Tear Pit Von3 XC Wizking TBF