(N)EverQuest Scrolls

This is a good spot for both enchanters and druids, although killing strategies are very different for each. At this level range, you need to be killing the cave basilisks found near the Blackburrow zone point, close the the Brell gnolls. Other mobs outside of the caves will be both aggressive and much higher level. Druids can charm the basilisks, or kill them in other ways. Enchanters should charm the gnolls, and use them to kill basilisks. These will start to turn light blue during 41, but are still useable for experience through 42, at a much slower rate. Basilisks drop research items, mostly words, chunks of meat, poison glands, and eggs. The eggs are prized by bakers, as they make the most dough per egg. This is not a profitable camp.

When you arrive in the caves, take some time out to explore the area. There are bankers and merchants to one side, and you should observe the pathing of gnolls both inside and outside of the enclosed area, so as to minimise unseen aggro when you pick a pet. Most of the gnolls inside the walls path into the wall very close to where your potential pets outside the walls path – you don’t want to have five gnolls all aggro on your and work their way out and into the caves to find you. Also check the basilisk caves; only genitors, the ones that drop eggs, will aggro on you if you get close. Beware, because basilisk run almost as fast as jboots, and will stun. As you enter the basilisk area, there are two small caves to the right, followed by one larger cave, and one large cave to the left. When you know your way around, memorise the route out to the Blackburrow zone for emergency exits.

Spell lineup: I use Beguile, tashani, mez (level 4), root (level 4) and a blue ceramic band. You can use your lowest level dot if you wish instead of the ceramic band. You will want to have either jboots or Spirit of Wolf potions. I self buff with my latest sheilding, obscure/shade, clarity, radiant visage and rune III, and buff my pet with obscure/shade, and alacrity/celerity when I have confidence in it. KEI is a waste of time for you. I don’t give my pet weapons, for two reasons: firstly, they don’t seem to dual wield with them; and secondly, I don’t want the faction hit of killing any gnolls. That’s right: we are going to let the pet die while fighting, and won’t try to get any experience from them; I want the gnolls to at least not hate me, so charming doesn’t get any harder.

Stand by the entrance to the basilisk area, and watch for a gnoll; you want one to your left, not to your right where you may aggro other gnolls. Cast mez on it, then tashani and finally beguile. Buff with obscure/shade depending on your level while waiting for mez to wear off. The gnoll will come to you, moving directly away from the wall and other gnolls. Turn and find your spot.

I like to start with the first of the small caves on the right. It is easy for an unhasted gnoll to kill all of the basilisks, and is still close to the exit. Send the gnoll at the first basilisk, and tell it to guard at that location while you root, tashani, slow, use the ceramic band to claim full experience and re-root the basilisk. Then select your pet. Basilisk dies, pet is at 60 – 80% health. Continue exactly the same process for the other three basilisks in the cave. The pet may die on the last basilisk; in which case, nuke it down. If it doesn’t, you can either make the pet sit and wait for the respawn, or carry on to the next small cave until the pet is dead, which will probably be on the first or second basilisk in that cave. You now have gained 5 – 10% experience in around 5 minutes, depending on your level, and mana is at 60 – 80% (Without KEI).

For your next try, haste the pet. Don’t attempt to slow the basilisks, you will barely have time, make sure that you use the ceramic band (or little dot) to get full experience. Stay at the entry of the cave, and make your pet guard at the back. You will work through both of the small caves with a battered, but still living pet at the end, and have time to wait for the first cave to respawn.

The same approach works with the larger caves, neither of which quite have double the number of basilisks of the small caves. You can rest your pet while waiting for respawns.

Most of the time, you will get a pet with low MR, and you will see tashani wear off before charm breaks. These are good pets to have hasted. When that happens, if the pet is low on health, press on and try to have him die killing a basilisk. Or just move back to the gnoll sanctuary walls, and wait for the break, with your pet targetted. Mez, re-tash, and re-charm. On a random charm break, or a charm break with an unrooted basilisk, do not hesitate, do not attempt to recharm. Run to the zone point and zone out and back in again. A basilisk will catch up with you without SoW/jboots and will stun you, and then your pet WILL kill you. You can stay ahead of the gnoll with jboots, but possibly not without. A gnoll will hit you for 95 or 100, which is very hard for the level; and this is why they make good pets. A hasted pet hitting a stunned you is a guaranteed death without a rune, and very likely even with.

I expect to get 34 here in a little over an hour, and 39/40 in around 3 hours, allowing for rest breaks between charms, and waiting for a potential pet to walk to exactly the right spot. One thing about charm killing is that it never will be boring, so long as the experience gain is appreciable.