Arguably the most crushing feeling you get in this game is the one when you die, losing a character maxed in a couple of stats, along with the equipment he was wearing. But a close second is the one you get right after, when you realize you have to make the long trek up to level 20 once more. This guide is intended to decrease the time it takes you to get there by teaching you some fast and fun ways to get experience at different stages of the journey.
The Fast and Dangerous Way
One option that will get you to level 20 relatively quick is to follow a train. Trains are large groups of players attacking every enemy they run across. Many trains might have high levelers looking for safe fame or a quick way to earn fame bonuses from leveling other players off of what they kill. Every enemy killed gives everyone nearby as much as 10% of total Exp for next level. However, gods are known to be deadly, particularly to low level characters. Three especially malicious gods are the Medusa, the Leviathan, and the Ent God. The Medusa has a 5-bolt shotgun that deals 100 damage each, and shoots bombs that deal 150 damage over a rather large radius. The Leviathan will fire 2-bolt shotguns rapidly for 90 damage each shot. But the real threat in a Leviathan is its second phase - firing wide shotgun bursts rapidly in three different directions, each shot of which does 70 damage. The Ent God shoots bolts that pierce. If you are in a train, the bolts will hit you. The Djinn also has a barrage of piercing bullets, but they’re much weaker, so as long as you aren’t extremely weak, it shouldn’t be a huge threat. Just don’t let it stand on you.
Prepare for Death
Dying is slightly less awful if you get your affairs in order. While you’re enjoying playing a semi-maxed character running around killing gods and event bosses, decide what class you’re going to be next time (even if it’s the same one). While you’re adventuring watch for that class’s equipment and store some in your Vault.
This way when you do die, your next character’s leveling will be safer and easier. Don’t risk untiered equipment unless you have spares or if you’re absolutely confident, since losing those items really sucks. Depending on your class you may also want to use a lower tiered ability item if you can’t afford the high MP costs of certain high tier abilities right away.
Level Up Solo
If you feel confident in your skills, you can opt to level up your character alone. If your equipment is adequate (weapon at least tier 8, armor tier 9, ring is discretionary but HP or DEF ring is ideal for survivability), you should be able to hold your own against most of the smaller enemies.
If you don’t want to risk a quick death to godlands enemies, start your new character by attacking the enemies of the lowlands. You can work your way up to the midlands or even the highlands as you gain levels. The midlands enemies are fairly good experience, but farming the midlands is not recommended if your defense is very low, due to the presence of dangerous gray blobs. Highlands enemies are debatably the most efficient way to gain experience, due to the sheer amount of enemies that can be present and the relative ease of which most of these enemies can be killed. Just keep in mind that highlands enemies and lesser gods are still fairly powerful. Don’t put yourself in a situation where you’re overwhelmed by lots of powerful enemies at once. If all else fails, it’s better to Nexus to safety than to suffer a premature death. Depending on your confidence and abilities, around level 16 is a good point to begin venturing into the godlands for experience. By then, you will be earning the maximum amount of experience off of each god killed. There’s no shame in taking the safer way to level 20, though.
Find a Group
Adventuring by yourself can be very frustrating at low levels, particularly if you are poorly equipped. You might be looking to team up with other players. There are a couple of benefits to adventuring in a group. Characters gain no less experience from hunting enemies in a group as opposed to doing it alone. It’s also safer since you’ll defeat monsters quicker and have the use of each others’ abilities. Having help from powerful or maxed characters is a mutual benefit; lower level characters will benefit from quickly reaching the max level, while maxed characters are eligible for the Team Player and Leader of Men fame bonuses should their kills cause 101 and 1001 players, respectively, near them to level up.
One of your choices is to teleport straight to a train, following a group of people running along a road killing enemies, although this may seem boring to some players. A train is not particularly likely to break off the road and seek out a quest for better EXP, since not all the players have the same quest marker, and the speed of travel prevents effective communication. Depending on the size of the group and the number of people sharing your class, you may also have to compete for loot and end up shabbily equipped once you reach level 20.
One good choice is to travel in a small group with players of similar level, clanmates, or other high-level players willing to come to your aid. You should be able to find someone in a well-populated server, or organize some friends or random players in the nexus. Smaller groups allow for a greater degree of coordination than would be possible in large groups, especially among familiar players. There is also a much better chance at getting loot, since your allies may be more likely to share some of the lower-tiered soulbound drops they net.
Follow the Enemies
The worst part of leveling up (particularly before you reach deathmages or higher) is wandering around LOOKING for decent EXP monsters to fight. Thankfully there are certain ‘leader’ enemies, who are followed around by similar types of monsters.
For example, the dwarf king (100 EXP*, pretty much the holy grail for low level players) is followed by dwarf mages, dwarf veterans, and dwarf warriors. When you kill the king the veterans and warriors will keep attacking you, but the mage will stop and head for the nearest dwarf king, even if he’s pretty far away. You can use these types of enemies to guide you straight to the next leader.
The table below shows some of the leaders you’ll encounter at lower levels, and the followers that will stop attacking and head for the next-nearest leader. Always try to leave one of these followers alive. All of these leaders count as quest bosses except for the big green slime.
Leader |
Leader EXP |
Follower(s) |
|---|---|---|
 |
32 EXP |
  |
 |
43 EXP |
  |
 |
32 EXP |
  |
 |
39 EXP |
  |
 |
35 EXP |
 |
 |
50 EXP |
 |
Head for the Quests
Quests are a great way to level up; they give good exp and can provide a fun challenge. Quest monsters have their experience gains capped at 50% of a player’s current experience bar. For example, an ent ancient (EXP 500) will give a level seven (EXP bar 650) 325 exp.
The table below shows the maximum EXP gains and the levels they are available at.
Quest Boss |
Maximum EXP |
Level for Max EXP: |
|---|---|---|
 |
150 EXP |
Level 4 |
 |
300 EXP |
Level 7 |
 |
500 EXP |
Level 11 |
 |
350 EXP |
Level 8 |
 |
400 EXP |
Level 9 |
Use the Dungeons
Dungeons can be a terrific source of experience and are quite entertaining to run through if you’re at an appropriate level.
Pirate caves are good for characters just starting out, and can give you a couple of levels, health potions, and some ability items slightly better than starters.
Spider dens are filled with eggs, which contain spiders worth 6-21 exp, so there’s the potential to gain a couple of your middle levels in there as well. This is a particularly good dungeon for bow users, staff users, or assassins, since they will have the easiest time dealing with the hordes inside.
There is lots of experience to be had in snake pits as well, with their 50 exp greater pit snakes and 20 exp pythons. They can be dangerous if you don’t have good armour, so bring an ally or two, and make sure you’re at a decent level and know what you’re doing. Stheno the Snake Queen is actually quite manageable solo as long as you have enough speed to circle her. The pythons and the greater pit snakes/vipers are also a rich source of snake oil. However, the monsters who drop these portals are certain strong Highland enemies. As such, it is not advised to hunt down these portals until you’re a high enough level and have a decent weapon and armor.
Once you Reach Level 20
After you’ve made it to level 20, check the averages for your class here and decide whether you want to reroll. If you’re content with the results, you can start maxing your character.
