So I decided to come back to EQ2 after maybe 2-ish years of absence. I don't have a ton of time to play, so I'd like a character that can do solo work but will also be at least somewhat desirable for grouping (when I have the time).

I've got a 27 Defiler and a 29 Conjuror on my account, and I'm not sure which to invest my time in. I enjoyed playing them both. They each had their own strengths and weaknesses, and both classes were a challenge - which I love.

So for those still playing the game (especially long-time players) which would you recommend  I play when I have time to sit down for a gaming session? Obviously I know opinions will vary, so please explain why you feel the way you do. Thanks!

Depends if you like end game content?  If so, pick the defiler.  People say summoners (and brawlers) are not wanted in end game raids but on the other hand they want/need 4 enchanters cause of their awesome buffs.  Pretty poor class balance it seems atm.

The conjurer is a soloclass. It is the class that have hardest to find a group for anything and you can forget to be in any kind of raid with it, unless a PUG is really desperate.

Go for the defiler unless you are a soloplayer.

The conjurer is however easy to level in soloplay and don't need much gear or stuff when you level it up. Problem is that when you are 80 and have your 200 AA you will have nothing whatsoever to do.

And also is the group play the best stuff in the game, you will miss out a lot. Some guilds could allow a summoner in and let you group with them but none would invite you to a raid anyways.

Good luck and welcome to the game :)

This is all true right now.   Supposedly in the future they are making group buffs become raid wide so instead of 4 enchanters you only need 1 which opens up 3 raid spots for other classes like summoner maybe.  We will have to see what happens.

Also there is a debuff that brigands do that debuffs all resistances.  They are changing that to just melee resistances and giving summoners a spell resistance debuff to make them more desirable in raids.

As the previous poster says in the next update or two they are enhancing conjurers desirability by giving them magic resist debufs where rogues will have the melee debufs.  Conjurers are also a moderate dps class similar to has brigand/swashies relate to ranger/assassins. 

Defilers will be desired for groups and probably be the best class if you like grouping.

The conjurer will be the best class for soloing but harder to get in groups.

If you chose to go into raiding the defiler will probably still have an advantage over the conjurer.  However there are other changes coming.  Dirges and Coercers are very much in demand in raids and you pretty much gotta have one in each group.  They will be changing them to have raidwide bufs.  When this happens they will be in oversupply and slots in raids will open up.  Where brigands are prized for debufs, conjurers will also become necessary.  So you will see more slots in raids opening up.  That said more then 1 conjurer will be just extras and dps.

Where your defiler will be one amoung 6-9 healer slots.  Now the healers are generally desired to be balanced so you probably are looking at maybe 2+ slots for your type of healer. 

So all things being equal in the end game raiding or running instances the defiler will be more desired.

I have to say that from ALL games I have ever played the Defiler has always been my absolute fav. It's the most awesome gaming experience I've ever had. The wards are fantastic and so are the dots and heals. GO EQ2 for having such an awesome class!

A friend and I decided to reroll from scratch. We're gonna try a Coercer / Inquisitor duo. He's getting married next week though, so I've been playing both my conjy and my defiler a bit here and there (as well as starting my Coercer to level 12). So far, I enjoy the Conjy and the Defiler in different ways, but I feel like the Conjy is more fun to play. For one thing, it's much less forgiving since you've got no heals (other than a small pet-only heal). With the defiler, I can tackle 4 mobs at a time if I ward myself prior to pulling, and while it's fun, it's not nearly as risky... and I'm big on risk vs reward.