Between 35-40 I would say it is really hard to figure out where to level. Especially if you’re in a solo / duo in game. I had problems leveling my blood mage up past these levels, and now I’m finding I have the same problem with my shaman.
Hampooj and I decided to explore the first parts of Greystone, which is a dungeon suitable for level 40-45 characters. You can find it in Beranid Hills. The mobs along the bridge before the actual dungeon are level 40 and mostly 2 dots with a few 3 dots thrown in there. There is a tower on either side, with a named at the top (a 4 dot). Inside are quests, and some classes even have level 42 spells that they learn here.
The Telon Project and Silkyvenom both have partial write ups about the dungeon but one really annoying thing to note is that the quest components don’t drop from every encounter, and you need a LOT of them. They also won’t drop for every person in the group, so if you’re in a group completing the quests here you’re looking at spending a LOT of time in the area, killing thousands of mobs. I find that this is an issue with a lot of the dungeons in Vanguard, and it makes the content almost unplayable.We started to adventure here because we were just looking for something to do in between reaching 40 and moving on to newer zones. There’s a weapon quest located within the dungeon, and that would have been neat to complete.
These are the levels where dying starts becoming an issue. An issue because if you summon your corpse at an altar you lose a large chunk of xp (Hampooj died and lost roughly 25,000 experience) and if you are to wander back in to get your body you’ve quite a ways to go. Things respawn quickly depending on how long it takes your group (or duo) to kill, and it can get frustrating.
Despite all of that, it’s still why I love Vanguard. It’s complex, there are penalties, and it can be a cruel and unforgiving world. In a day where I feel that a lot of MMOs simply hand me rewards on a silver platter, it can be a pleasant change. Whether or not the game will keep this ‘charm’ when it goes free to play is something that players old and new debate on channels daily – myself, I stay out of the discussion. I’ll adapt with the changes because I see the game going free to play as a very good thing and in fact one of a few options. The other option of course being closing it down completely which is something I NEVER want to see for any video game. It’s astounding the number of times I hear “I’d rather see it closed down then see it get changed,” in local chat.
As always, happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself!