Sorry if this is posted in the wrong spot.

I am lvl 60, and plan on staying 60 for a bit. Because of that I am looking for places to hunt that yeild the fastest AA exp. I mainly solo/charm in PoD right now, and can average 1AA every 2.5 hours of non stop pulling. I thought this was pretty good, but have been hearing that I could do better. What I have not been able to hear is where I can do better at?

I am lvl 60, with about 3500 manapool. I am also flagged for PoS/PoV, but grouping in these zones seems to give slower exp than soloing.

Any advice is appreciated! Also, if there was a place that can give exp and loot, that would be a huge plus.

I wrote this guide for my guildmates a couple of months ago. I didn't post it in the DG for fear of it being overrun. Instead, I'll post in in this thread, just for you and the others who bother to read it. Your title is innocent enough and I think the masses will misss it ;)

-----FAIRWEATHER'S GUIDE TO NIGHTSTALKERS-----

The following is a detailed guide on how a druid can solo the Nightstalker camp in Plane of Nightmare.

CAMP DESCRIPTION:

The camp consists of 11 stalkers total. 4 of those can be easily single pulled, with no use of harmony. The remaining 7 are packed close together and will require harmony to pull singles.


SPELL SLOTS:

1. Ensnare (10 minute snare)
2. Engorging Roots (190 dmg)
3. Glamour of Tunare (Animal only MR debuff)
4. Call of Karana (Animal Charm)
5. Savage Spirit (Animal Pet Buff 70% Haste, STR 45, AC17)
6. Harmony (Aggro Reducer)
7. Camo (Invis-breaks charm)
8. Nuke/Heal/Buff


Many people may choose to keep the 8th slot as an evac, however, you will get comfortable in no time and realize you should never have to evac, only heal and nuke as mana permits. Also, there are ways to save spell slots as well. If you have an item/skill that can invis such as innate camo, that easily frees a slot. I do not suggest hide, simply because it is not very reliable.


GOAL:

You will pull one MoB with ensnare, Glamour the stalker, Charm him, then Savage Spirit him. Pull the pet back to the old tree and have pet “Guard Here”. Guard Here is an essential command and you will use it often. It assures your charmed critter never runs off and does anything stupid. You ensnare your next target, and pull it to your pet. While it is slowly walking towards you, cast a DoT or 2 on him to speed things up a bit.

Once your pet is buffed, he should be able to tear through 2 MoBs easily, with little to no help from you. When you pull the 3rd MoB, your pet should be down to about 1 bubble of health. Go ahead and send him in to get ground down to half a buddle. Cast Camo. By the time your spell finishes and breaks your charm, your pet should be at or below 5% health. You can now root him, and go grab another pet to charm.

It is important to finish your old pet first, because sometimes they regenerate to 40% health for no reason what-so-ever if left alone for a couple of minutes.

Wash, rinse, and repeat the above to clear the camp. A full pop can be cleared in as little as 7-8 minutes if done skillfully. While waiting on repops, keep a stalker pet and pull yard trash. Yard trash yield more exp than stalkers and it really helps fill in the exp bar. If done correctly, you should only have to wait 20-30 seconds for a stalker repop. Now, timetables can be thrown off greatly due to many circumstances, but that is a good rule of thumb. A good example is killing several stalkers at once. That will cause several to pop at the same time, throwing off my example a bit. When people are just waiting on stalkers, they are not making max experience.

SELF BUFFS:

I only keep up Protection of the Cabbage, Spirit of the Eagle, and Bladecoat. Once in awhile, I swap out my 8th slot for a heal/regen, but usually I nuke. KEI is nice, but I’m at Full Mana anyway, so it’s definitely not required. Although, you may want it to start off with until you are comfortable with the camp.

EQUIPMENT:

--I suggest any focus items with Extended Affliction or Affliction Haste. Extended Affliction allows your charms/snares/roots/DoTs to last longer. Affliction Haste allows you to cast those spells faster. Both would help greatly.--EDIT--THIS HAS BEEN NERFED.

--Epic is great to add a DoT here and there as time permits, along with Drones of Doom from bracer/sleeves.

--Horse. This allows you to regen mana standing, the same as if you were sitting, even while casting spells. If you turn off all new models, you can cast SoE on yourself and duck out of spells. All those abilities are essential to this camp. They eat a lot, so bring extra food/drink.--EDIT--THIS HAS BEEN NERFED--I wouldn't bother with a horse anymore due to the recent nerf. You should be at or near full mana all the time reguardelss.

--Gloves of Earthcrafting are also a nice item to have. The Dmg Shield only lasts through 1 or 2 fights, which is perfect since once you break charm you do not want your old pet kicking your new pet’s @#%$ due to having a dmg shield.

HINTS AND TIPS:

--Always watch your pet’s health, as well as what he’s killing. Many times, when a MoB gets below 20% health, they go onto “flee mode” which is usually a good thing. However, it may be in your best interest to keep the target rooted and pounding away at your charmed pet in order to also get him well below 20%.

--Never, ever, ever stop pulling. You should be moving 98% of the time looking for new MoBs. You should also have a MoB at your camp in the process of dieing 95% of the time. If you don’t, you’re doing something wrong.

--If you have an ex-pet rooted and need a new one, pull multiples. Snare one and a second should come bolting at you. Place those Harmonies in such a way that you can control how many you pull each time. Once you have mastered pulling 2, start pulling 3. I am very comfortable with 3 and have started to learn pulling 4. Remember, when you pull multiples, one will be a pet, the others will be rooted/snared/DoTed and in a nice line awaiting the attention of your pet.

--Always cause DAMAGE! I cannot stress this enough. If you cause no damage, your pet will take 100% of your experience. It may seem silly, but once you start pulling and stacking your MoBs up, you can forget which ones you’ve DoTed. I always cast a root if I am not sure. You only have to do 1pt to get 100% exp.

--Watch your pet health for that perfect Camo/charm break. The only times I have lost my pet, is when I am blabbering in /guild, talking in /tells, or too intent on my next pull to notice. Losing a pet is a crying shame and should be avoided at all costs! You can actually break charm perfectly and have your pet at 0% health if you’re feeling randy.

--If you have 2 MoBs going after your one pet, glamour the other, and it will follow you to be rooted a safe distance away.

LOOT:

Blue Diamonds, Raw Diamonds, Diamonds, Moonstones, Peridots, Ivory teeth, Fur, and various lore/no drop equipment. I always just announce the lore/no drop items to the zone and have someone loot it, but only if I have time to type (which you shouldn’t!). Note you will get no parchments, but there is a way to pull fishies from the ledge if you are willing to take the risks. I die maybe 20% of the time doing that, heh. I’ll expand on that if you wish in a later thread. An 8-hour day should yield between 6-7k when everything is sold to a vendor. More if you choose to bazaar.


OTHER REWARDS:

At level 60, I get an AA an hour at this camp on average when I solo. (Sometimes more, sometimes less, but that is a decent rate none-the-less.) At level 61, it takes about an hour and 15 minutes. That one level makes all the difference in the world IMO. The higher level you go, the worse it gets. This guide is aimed mainly at the 60 and under crowd. Also, most people are in such a rush for levels, that they pass Stalkers over rather fast, leaving the camp in search of greener pastures.

ADDING MORE PEOPLE:

As an example, in a full group, I get 1 AA point every 3ish hours at this camp, and little to no loot at all. (Master Looters are a scam, I swear) With 2 people, you’re looking at an AA every hour and 45 minutes, give or take. The reason is that you can pull and kill everything solo, that 6 people can. You simply cannot pull any faster or kill more MoBs to make up for the numerical disadvantage that adding more people creates. As a matter of fact, adding more people/classes just totally throws off my mojo. I got enchanters complaing cause I break mez with roots and people wanting to hold pulls while they med... It's really night and day!

Good luck. It's a fun camp.

Thanks for the reply!

Nightstalkers are a great camp for exp and loot, the only problem is that on my server they are camped non stop, usually with a list of people waiting for them. That is what forced me into hunting in PoD :)

I had heard that root/roting things in PoS was good exp, so I went there and gave it a shot. Unfortunatly I was summoned and pasted to the ground, so again I went back to PoD. Which leaves me where I am now, wondering where to go.

Great guide though!

Though I am only 57th, I wonder if I can do that? I have been doing the charm thing in Chardok for some time now, how I got from 53-57 and my first 5 AA. After one pass from ZI to ZO I get around 16% AA, and if I really move, I get it done in about 25 minutes. So I average almost 50% AA in a 2 hour session, which since I play before work early in the am, is about all i can do unless i wake up at 3am...nope. I've gotten pretty good at charming in a small space and think I can handle following this guide. How exactly do you get to this spot? Thanks

Oh yeah, I was under the impression that you gain AA based on level 51 exp tables and that it never changes. Is this not the case?

You do. However, there is a bonus for mobs close to your level. When you level up, you likely exit this range and make less xp on a particular kill.


later,
Chroam

As for root-rotting in PoS - try the frogs at zone in, or in the forest section, as they're pretty much the only things that don't summon

using Winged Death, Fury of Ro, epic and bracer, it generally takes a little more than two full epic durations to kill a frog

with KEI, and depending on root resists, you'll probably use only about 20% mana per frog, and by the time the third one dies, the first should be repopping

"Oh yeah, I was under the impression that you gain AA based on level 51 exp tables and that it never changes. Is this not the case?"

This is not the case.

The correct way to state it is this: AA points are a constant amount of XP, regardless of your level. That amount of XP is 15M XP. Level 51 used to be about 24M XP, before they removed the post-50 hell levels, and is now about 30M XP.

The other useful piece of info is this: You suffer a 20% penalty on XP applied to AA, so effectively, AA points are 18.75M XP. (18.75 * .8 = 15)

So an AA is definitely less than level 51 XP.

Regarding the bonus XP for mobs close to your level, yes, you do get bonus XP as long as the mob is within 5 levels of you, and you and the mob are 51 or higher.

Tat

Very nice guide Fairweather!

I just wondered about a few things:


1) How hard do the nightstalkers hit? Maybe I'm squeamish, but hasting a mob that hits the same as most other stuff in PoN, seems to be quite risky. Any tips on how to...not get killed? (apart from, of course, snaring your pet)

2) Which brings me to my second question, is there enough room to kite round there? I suppose the risk wouldn't be so bad with plenty of room.

3) On average, how much regular exp could you make per kill at lvl 58?

Anyway, thanks for the guide :D

Ok, I've had a chance to hit it a little for the passed couple of days and this is what I have to say about it.

Died twice learning the ropes (which to me isn't that bad, since they were back to back and someone was hunting yard trash nearby)

I can't kill them all before they start to repop, which is ok for me. Even though the exp to time ratio is slightly less, I always have something to pull.

Regular XP at 57 is just a tad under 1% per kill. AAxp is about 2% per kill, slightly less. Playing for an hour and a half, like I did this morning, got me 10% exp, 36%AA 1 blue diamond, 5 diamonds, 5 peridots, ivory canine, 2 tufts of coarse fur, 2 raw diamonds and about 9 research pages/words/thingies. Since I play early in the morning, the only thing stopping me from playing longer is having to go to work. =(. It is somewhat heavily camped, at least to me since I play only casually and have no time to wait.

I get almost half a yellow of AA from the PoS frogs at zone in. They take me about 9 minutes to kill at level 61 (even con). We'll see how long and how much exp they yield at 62. :)

[Sat Nov 23 21:50:40 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 248 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:40 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 248 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:42 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 184 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:42 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 248 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:42 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 248 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:42 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 153 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:43 2002] A ravenous nightstalker kicks a ravenous nightstalker for 49 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:43 2002] A ravenous nightstalker bashes a ravenous nightstalker for 46 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:44 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 163 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:44 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 248 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:46 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 121 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:48 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 248 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:48 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 248 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:48 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 248 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:48 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 248 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:50 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 248 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:50 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 47 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:52 2002] A ravenous nightstalker bashes a ravenous nightstalker for 44 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:52 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 206 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:54 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 248 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:54 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 195 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:50:58 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 248 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:51:00 2002] a ravenous nightstalker's corpse emits one last primal howl.
[Sat Nov 23 21:51:00 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 174 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:51:01 2002] Transperant says out of character, '61 monk LFG'
[Sat Nov 23 21:51:02 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 248 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:51:02 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 174 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:51:02 2002] Your Cog Encrusted Epaulets shimmers briefly.
[Sat Nov 23 21:51:02 2002] You begin casting Improved Superior Camouflage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:51:02 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 100 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:51:04 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 206 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:51:04 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 110 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:51:06 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 153 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:51:06 2002] A ravenous nightstalker hits a ravenous nightstalker for 47 points of damage.
[Sat Nov 23 21:51:06 2002] Your charm spell has worn off.
[Sat Nov 23 21:51:06 2002] You vanish.


FYI I wasnt hasting my pet at the time I logged this I was actually clearing 5 at a time for roughly 20% mana Nice tactic if you can find a big group of rootable mobs.

Logged this fight (was just 2) just too see damage, I broke charm because my pet was loosing (I think was a while ago)

I think I will go back and buff one up good and try a tree all LB nowa days but be interesting to see difference between unbuffed and fully buffed, Ill see if I can get a shaman to help buff the pet =)

AA is rated at level 47.

The wolves are ok but besides being overcamped the exp is Abysmal compared to other mobs in the zone.

I have been using CoK to do raven charming just south of the waterfall and the exp is insane. AA is just about 1 blue bulb per kill at 100% and its very very easy keep this constant. Rooting and killing off the pets is way of doing it but if there are other druid charming and you are low on birds, simply cast snare on the mob 10 times and run around in a tight circle, your hasted bird will kill the mob in under 2 minutes., you can do 3 mobs before you need ot break charm and reapply the buffs and snare etc.

You can make about 4 times the exp using this method when compared to the wolves.

Can you Harmony the ravens? Almost every time I run by the ravens on my way to the stalkers i notice that all 3 ravens are usually just sitting there. Since they are so close together, I wonder if you could harmony the lot, then charm one. if you are going to aggro kite the mobs you are killing, it probably would make it harder to snare the raven first, but riskier if you don't. Suggestions?

Yes, you can Harmony nightstalkers using the "Harmony of Nature Spell"

There is one nightstalker that pops a few outside the other ones so its no needed to harmonyze anyone to single pull him.

The other ones are enough close together to need an harmony, otherwise you pull two or three at the same time.

If you pull in the correct order, you just need to cast one harmony per pull to single pull all the camp.

<< "Can you Harmony the ravens?" >> sorry for the confusion. Also, what would be a good method for pulling fishies from the water to get a chance at some parchments?

PoV-
Pull a golem with snare.
Root.
Epic dot
Drones dot
Winged Death
Fury of Ro
Reroot
Wait...
Re-drones, winged, fury.
Reroot
Wait...
Re-drones, winged, fury, epic
Reroot


Do that over and over, 7%aaxp/kill at level 65.
I use clicky root legs from BoT so it takes me less mana, but at the end of a fight I'm never below 80% mana if I have KEI/PotC/Mask of the Stalker
PotN makes it even better :)
I can also usually go a whole fight w/o root breaking by rerooting alot.
Can get parchments, Metallic Liquid, and many cash lewtz.
TONS of EXP. At 65 I get 1aa every 1.5 hours.
I'm sure this is doable at 60, and the mobs will be yellow (61-62 I think), so you should get so much exp that your exp bar pops like an overheated thermometer.

Good luck!