OK, so now that you are making one, what can you do with a newly minted level 100? Sure, it may not be the best idea to immediately take it into a max-level raid; you might want to get a good feel for what the skills and abilities are first before some hard-core play. But there are a number of activities that are perfect for your fresh-from-character-creation fighter/healer/scout/mage. Here are seven must-dos to experience while you have the chance!
1. Decimate a dungeon
Remember when those first dungeons kept throwing mob after mob at you as you worked your way through, clinging to life? Well, now is payback time. There is a special satisfaction of going back through a lower-level dungeon and eradicating everything in it with reckless abandon. Grin with glee — even throw some maniacal laughter in if so inclined (it does feel nice!) — and commit mass murder of a dungeon that may have once claimed your young newbie character’s life. Revel in the speed with which you conquer everything in sight! It is therapeutic to exact a thorough and complete revenge. Also, it just plain feels good to feel uber powerful, even if only for that moment.
You also can make your massacre more meaningful by mentoring down and taking a new player/character through and power leveling them up insane amounts in the blink of an eye. Enjoy their praise and thanks.
2. Become a bouncy ball
If you have never experienced a leaping mount from EQII, you really, really need to! Yes, this free level 100 gives you a flying mount, which is cool and all, but the leaping mount is the most fun. Seriously, this mount is the most fun I have had on any mount in any game, ever. And I love flying!
Head to Butcherblock Mountains and speak to Saldas Rubbleground near the griffon tower at the top of the ramp (or 327, 194, 554 for you /waypoint savvy folks). This starts the quest for the bouncy bouncy raptor mount. Once you have your mount (and the quest will be super easy thanks to our level), take it for a spin… or a bound, as it were. Head to any zone and just boing-boing-boing your way across the landscape. You can bounce with abandon through lower-level zones or make it a challenge to avoid any aggro with leaps and bounds in the higher zones. Oh, and be sure to look at that Saliraptor’s face when you do jump – have you ever seen such pure joy?
3. Prove yourself
Take your level 100 and try out the Proving Grounds. As it’s a feature that cannot be partaken of unless you are level 100, this may be your first opportunity to try it out.
This must-do may actually cause a bit of frustration, but it is still something that should be experienced! If you do encounter frustration, revisit #2 above as often as needed to relieve it.
4. Sightsee in the other faction city
Do you remember needing to sneak into the other faction’s city in order to get or advance a quest? Both Freeport and Qeynos have Heritage Quests that players may be keen on doing, which means crawling through sewers and such to get in without getting caught. Well, as a level 100, you should go back and revisit those guards who kept tossing you out! This time, you can stroll right in the gates and walk right up to (most) of the guards. Feel free to throw some nyeener nyeeners at them and even blow a few raspberries. Taunt away; they won’t retaliate. If you are feeling like more justice needs to be served, go ahead and slap them around a bit. They did it to you once, right? Just be careful of the epic guard patrolling… he isn’t going to be a pushover and probably won’t take any of your guff.
5. Before and after Isle of Refuge
As you’ve just made a level 100, you likely aren’t running through the newbie Isle of Refuge. But really, do it! Not because you need any rewards, or even because you have never experienced it (although, if you haven’t actually experienced it before, make a new li’l one and do that!). No, this opportunity is a unique change to experience before and after back-to-back. You run the isle as it was in the beginning and then turn around and immediately experience what happens to it more recently. Most folks need to wait until they reach level 95 to be able to see where the story went, but you, with your sparkly level 100, can skip all the in-between leveling and jump right into it. You will find that the Tranquil Sea is not exactly tranquil.
6. Fly away!
Fly away… not on the wings of love, but on your trusted new Nether Harbinger flying mount. As part of the level 100 package, you are given a spiffy free mount. This opens up a whole new world: the skies! You may not feel like playing through the game, questing and grinding mobs to a pulp, but you can actually enjoy the visuals of just about anywhere. Take the opportunity to explore and see the sights of Norrath. Every zone is now open to you (see below for news on the newest!), so you can just go see all those sights you never have before. Whether you’ve been away for many years or you just never had high-level characters, there’s quite a bit more to explore. Don’t miss out on admiring the newer graphics in the most recent years’ expansions in person. One of my personal recommendation is to head to Obol Plains and Vesspyr Isles (accessible via Druid rings). If you haven’t been to the afterlife of the dragons, you haven’t lived! Take a spin around Eidolon Jungle as well, the atmosphere is eye-opening. *cheesy grin*
7. Partake in Planes of Prophecy
Perhaps I shouldn’t have saved this until last, since it is the only time-sensitive must-do. And you might have spent all the time on all the list above! But just in case you didn’t, take advantage of the temporary opening of this expansion. Through June 7th, you can not just poke your nose into Planes of Prophecy for a peek but you can actually adventure through it as far as you can. Quest away, explore, get the rewards, and level all the way up to 105. This is a perfect opportunity to see if the expansion is worth buying for you. How often has EQII had a free trial period for an expansion? I can’t recall one. If you love PoP, you can purchase it and continue your adventures. If the week’s taste was good enough, then you save some cash you can use on this year’s expansion.
Once the doors of Planes of Prophecy close down, you can run through the list above and continue to enjoy the life of a level 100+.
The EverQuest franchise is a vast realm, and sometimes MJ Guthrie gets lost in it all! Join her as she explores all the nooks and crannies from Antonica to Zek. Running biweekly on Thursdays, EverQuesting is your resource for all things EverQuest, EverQuest II, and Daybreak. And keep an eye out for MJ’s OPTV adventures!
