Question concerning AAs and Leveling

[Qinwena]

<p>Hopefully someone can give me some insight on this. <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" /></p><p>Long story short, I found some old friends from EQ and they're all level 80.  Now I'm still furiously working on my little coercer and enjoying her very much (level 51 with 51 AAs).  I normally play with my combat experience off, and enjoying the pace of the game except I'd like it to be a teeny weeny bit faster I guess <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/69934afc394145350659cd7add244ca9.gif" border="0" /></p><p>What I have been trying to do is keep my AAs at the same level as my actual level, but I am wanting to use some of my verteran award potions to start speeding up my leveling process to catch up to my friends (who are not putting any pressure on me at all, will mentor with me constantly, etc.) and you know, do the big kid stuff with them.</p><p>However, from what I've read it seems really bad though if I get to 80 without most of if not all of my 200 AAs already intact.  I do not mind the questing for AAs or having the "Sorry, you don't have enough AAs for XYZ instance, can you get some more? Then you'll be good" comments.</p><p>So I guess my main question to all of you is: Is it really *THAT* bad if you get to level 80 without almost all of your AAs intact?</p><p>Thank you all in advanced <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/283a16da79f3aa23fe1025c96295f04f.gif" border="0" /></p>

[Yimway]

<p><cite>Qinwena wrote:</cite></p><blockquote><p>Long story short, I found some old friends from EQ and they're all level 80.  Now I'm still furiously working on my little coercer and enjoying her very much (level 51 with 51 AAs).  I normally play with my combat experience off, and enjoying the pace of the game except I'd like it to be a teeny weeny bit faster I guess <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/69934afc394145350659cd7add244ca9.gif" border="0" /></p><p>What I have been trying to do is keep my AAs at the same level as my actual level, but I am wanting to use some of my verteran award potions to start speeding up my leveling process to catch up to my friends (who are not putting any pressure on me at all, will mentor with me constantly, etc.) and you know, do the big kid stuff with them.</p></blockquote><p>For your case, you should turn your combat xp on and complete the soloquest timelines and basically don't hinder your leveling progress.  I would deem it more important to get to 80 to play with your friends than to get to 80 with 150aa.</p><p>In my experience, sticking to soloquest, your going to continue from 51/51 to 80/128ish.  This will be group effective with your friends.  You can then finish up questing and get to ~160-165 aa as solo time allows and cap the remainder off with missions with your buds.</p><p>Don't do anything to slow your progress to playing with your friends, as there will be ample opportunity to back-flag aa.</p>

[Jrral]

<p>I agree with Atan. Also remember that a lot of the TSO content involves mission quests that give AA every time you run them, and a lot of the level 80 quest content (eg. the Kurn's Tower access quests, the Order of Rime series) gives better AA than the regular quests that can be done at lower levels. I'd level by questing rather than grinding mobs, to get the maximum AA for the XP/levels, but I'd aim for 80.</p><p>Along the way, maybe see if your friends will mentor down to you to run scaled versions of the TSO instances. You can still get the mission quests and the AA for those (plus AA for the nameds and discovery), and you may be able to accumulate enough void shards before you hit 80 to have a complete set of T1 shard armor waiting for you.</p>

[Qinwena]

<p>Thank you both for the replies <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/283a16da79f3aa23fe1025c96295f04f.gif" border="0" /> </p><p>That is what I will do then! <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" /></p>

[Jrral]

<p>Another thing to remember: grey quests give AA, it's no longer tied to what color the quest cons to you or what level the quest is. So you can level to 80 and still go back and do all those early quests you skipped over and get AA for them, and at 80 with everything grey most of them are fairly trivial. And for the few that require the mobs to have color, with GU53 they're supposed to be implementing self-mentoring so you can drop down to get color without having to find someone of the appropriate level to mentor to.</p>

[Trellium]

<p><cite>Jrral@Unrest wrote:</cite></p><blockquote><p>...  with GU53 they're supposed to be implementing self-mentoring so you can drop down to get color without having to find someone of the appropriate level to mentor to.</p></blockquote><p>That will also help in getting AA experience from named mobs you meet along the way.</p><p>Some quests need you to kill a named mob, and if the mob cons grey you don't get AA for killing it nor does the quest complete until you beat it in a non-trivial manner.</p><p>GU53 will go a long ways to making it worth mentoring down and doing older content.</p>

[Kitsune]

<p>All the above is absolutely great advice. For the question - "Is it really *THAT* bad if you get to level 80 without almost all of your AAs intact?"</p><p>I got to L 80 with 112 AA and t was hard staying alive doing the quests even leading up to the Solo Shard daily quest. <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/9d71f0541cff0a302a0309c5079e8dee.gif" border="0" /> Yes, you are disadvantaged, but you can make it up with patience and hard work doing all the HQ and other gray quests you missed out on. And the up side is they take less time that they would had you done them at the right level as you don't have to fight your way to the quest area!</p><p>I am now at 153 AA, and the difference is enromous. <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" /> Life is quite a bit easier now. 140 I was told is the number to aim for by L 80. And remember you alsop get AA from Writs, though not as much as with regulr quests, I am told.</p><p>Whatever else, have FUN playing with your mates or solo, that is far more important, imho. <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" /></p>

[Odys]

<p>My coercer (old illusionist) leveled till 50 long ago (nervous breakdown due to people complaining that mezz was lowerig the dps).</p><p>i restarted him since my guild needed one and speced him too dps, he played only with rested xp and never locked anything, moreover he got the benefit  of 20% bonus for my two level 80 healing ladies.</p><p>He is now 74 or 75 with about 109 aas. He will probably hit 80 with enough aas to be usefull in about any group. Moreover since GU52 aas are flying. Doing grey quest or killing the sweet monks in desert of rho (while mentoring) is not usefull anymore. I m quite glad that i never did it.</p><p>I never asked a coercer how many aas he had, i expect him to have coercive healing and the healing aura (get a mirror) and the agi and inte column filled .... And if he happen to only bring 10% heal crit i don't care <img src="/smilies/8a80c6485cd926be453217d59a84a888.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /></p>