Heyo. I've been lurking on the list since its inception so I thought I might
introduce myself. I'm Luvas of Kelethin.

I also thought I might relate my story from last night. I had probably the
best
night of playing EQ ever, getting a lot of experience and loot. I had been
hitting
the bandit camps in W Karana off and on as a soloist and in random groups over
the
last few weeks (I have an erratic schedule and it's rare I can schedule times
to be
on with a fixed group). Although many of my friends had complained that the
new
patch had "ruined" WK and made it a death trap, I found that all that was
really
required was a change in strategey (this is almost always true of EQ, I've
found).
In one of my emails to my friends I was bitching about how the players I've
been
grouped with "don't know how to play with a Bard".

A little after logging on, I get a tell from a friend asking if he wanted to
join
up. Sure, as soon as I outrun these three Bandits. We meet up and the first
thing
he says is

"So how do you play with a Bard?"

I proceeded to show them. Over the course of the evening, other friends and
aquaintances of mine came and went and the party size varied from two to six,
but in all the instances there was plenty to hunt and we had few problems. We
were not a well balanced group by any means---all hybrids or Warriors, but
nonetheless we had a very profitable and enjoyable time.

It was nice not to have the Warriors charge in just as you're equipping your
Lute to Lament a few of the six Bandits. It was nice not to have to wait for
the Ranger to meditate after dumping his mana on heals that I could have
easily
done with Hymn of Restoration in half the time. It was nice to have my buff
songs
up and running before they wake the casters up with an arrow...

By the end of the evening, everyone (myself included) knew just how powerful a
Bard can be in a group when used well. It was great to be more than just the
tank that sings Anthem.

- Luvas of Kelethin
Fennin Ro.