Paladin?

Heh, it's been a while since I've posted something here, but then again, it's been a while since I've done something interesting. To get you up to speed, all this time I've been building fame, doing quests, and getting into crappy parties net me a couple thousand xp, at most. These parties have contributed to a question I've been asking myself lately.

"Should I keep leveling paladin?"

I love the job. Wow, I never would have said that a year ago, but there it is. It's fun, challenging, and I get to help people I run across. However, a few things/people have me hung up on whether to continue leveling the job or not.

First, it's the criticism I get. Surprisingly enough, nobody ever says a damn thing about mithra being the worst race for the job. This is good, because I probably would have bitten their heads off if they did! However, they are correct, which only serves present me with an uphill battle. But no, it's never about race, it's about everything else. Treah, your gear sucks. Why are you wearing this? You're casting too much! You're casting too little! WTF?! Was that necesary? Maybe it's just my luck, but every group I've gotten into lately has at least one asshole in it, who tears into me with little provocation. Sometimes, I feel like saying, "can we please just agree that you hate me and party in silence so you can stop hurting me with your scathing remarks?"

Second, there's a lot of pressure on doing things correctly, and if I screw up even once, the fight goes south. It can be very, very stressful at times, five other people taking for granted that you're there, doing your PLD thing, when you're literally on the edge of your seat every fight, desperate to get through the battle without incedent. Then comes the part where the puller ignores the fact that you need MP too, but that's a whole different can of worms...

I used to love tanking. Now, I have to overcome a feeling of dread that comes the first few minutes before our first fight. I shouldn't be afraid of partying. I shouldn't have to resign myself to hours of stress if I want to gain XP. I wish I knew what I was doing wrong...

And there's the final reason. "What should I focus on as a mithra PLD?" "I don't know" "Which piece of gear would work better as tanking gear?" "no idea" ... it's really sad when high level PLDs give you these answers. I have no idea what I'm doing, and nobody seems able or willing to help me. I'm stacking on VIT like nobody's business, but when it comes to things such as choosing between eisen leggings and RSE pants, it would be nice to get a definate answer, or hell, even an educated guess.

Regardless, I'm going to continue trying to level PLD for the time being, but if this keeps up, I'm dropping it. I shouldn't have to suffer a month as a lvl 31 because XPing is such a strain on me. There are many other jobs, and I don't remember them being nearly as stressful. Until tomorrow, and I promise to update more ; ;