I've recently been helping a friend level some classes from scratch, and noticed something surprising. The speed at which players level-up these days far outpaces the rate at which they can naturally access decent gear. While leveling a tank from level 20-30, we only saw one piece of tanking gear drop. I've been supplementing my friend with crafted gear, but a single dungeon provides 2 or 3 level-ups, so she's burning through it about as fast as I can craft.

Now I'm thinking back to all the terrible tanks and healers I've encountered in leveling roulettes, and I understand why they were always wearing level 15 gear in a level 28 dungeon (and eating dirt on every pull).

It's natural for MMOs to speed up the leveling process as the game expands, but the experience shouldn't feel broken or inadequate, I should hope.

A solution I thought of would be to expand the gear rewards for class and job quests before level 50. Perhaps they could reward a chest with a full set of recommended gear, rather than the option of only one piece.

Has anyone else been leveling a fresh class recently with some suggestions?