I’m at a decision point and would love input. I finished the first, pre-Malmouth chunk of storyline on veteran and have the option to do elite. I’m level 57 with marginally okay gear. From those who have done it, would you recommend that I:
a) Continue through the Malmouth storyline on veteran
b) Start from square 1 on elite and run through it all again
Thanks!
If you want to get to Ultimate asap, go elite, else play full story every time.
You’ll end at level 65 - 70 (depends on your luck on hero monsters and your re-clearing some locations) on normal if you do everything.
If you’re thinking to yourself: “OK, I got my feet wet, I think I got it”. then option b is good.
But to be honest, just carry on. Die a lot and enjoy it. Zoom in, it’s hilarious. Repeat…
I personally would do it in Veteran at the least. It lets you pick up the AoM factions, so they’ll continue to rise as you play through Elite. Elite is good to be skipped, but if you are playing for maximum experience, you are making a beeline through the whole game only doing the primary quests, and going through Elite will put you in Ultimate at a good level.
Do elite since you will gain better loot in the end. Just my two cents.
If you don’t mind my asking, what did you do to get to such high level? My first character hit 47 by killing Log, and that was doing a full clear, exploring every map, doing every side quest (including Hidden Path), spending more time on bounties than I should have… 
I was kind of hoping to get to 50 and equip some faction gear before starting Elite, but that wasn’t practical.
Turned out to not really matter, at least so far. Act 1 Elite has been a seamless transition in terms of difficulty from Act 4 Veteran. I don’t have AoM yet so the continue-to-Malmouth option isn’t yet available to me; bystander’s point about faction rep looks compelling, though.
I’m stunned…totally…only 47…on a full clear. I have to ask how on earth did you only get so low ???
My last char to kill Log skipped most of the content, didn’t do a single bounty, no side quests unless it was where I was going anyway, didn’t touch the hidden path, missing as much map as possible, no means of boosting exp and playing totally self found and I was around 45 when I killed Log.
Indeed when i do a full clear i’m always around lvl 55 by the time I hit Logh. If i also do Malmouth its around 64. full clearing elite will put me around lvl 88 before entering ultimate.
It sounds like the OP hasn’t ever gone to Elite before. I suggest do Malmouth first. It is a big step up already. Will give you nice loot and then the first part of elite will be super easy for you.
Jaknet, Gibly, that is confusing. When you guys say “full clear” do you include the skeleton key dungeons? That, Hargate’s Isle, and the Rover shrine quest are the only things that I know exist and that I didn’t do. Hargate seems to be for a Devil’s Crossing quest I don’t have the rep for*; Rover shrine - don’t have the rep; skeleton key dungeons - the new player guide says not to do them in Veteran or Elite and to have maxed resists when you do (even in Veteran I can only max about half of the front-page resists at any time).
Oh, and there’s that Herald of Destruction area in Deadman’s Gulch, which is another “don’t have the rep for the quest that goes there” case.
Doesn’t seem like that list is eight levels worth of xp, though. 
But looking at the list I guess when I say “full clear” apparently I meant “full within my rep and gear constraints”. 
OP, my apologies for the derailment! If this warrants more discussion we can take it elsewhere.
Died a lot I guess 
I get to 55-57 or so with a full clear
I do, that too could account for the difference, you gain maybe 2 levels on average per dungeon
the new player guide says not to do them in Veteran or Elite and to have maxed resists when you do (even in Veteran I can only max about half of the front-page resists at any time).
seems excessive, although it definitely would help. Having resistances in the 30-50 range should be fine with the one or two major resistances at 60-70 or so (which ones those are will depend on the dungeon) should still be easy enough when you are a bit careful
To me doing a full clear of the base game is doing pretty much everything easily attainable and within “reach” on Normal/Veteran, with minimal farming. Everything from Gutworm, DS, HH, SR, Hidden Path, to the rogue-likes, clearing Mog’s shrine, and doing some light farming to get DC rep up enough to access Hargate’s and otherwise lifting the FoW on every accessible area.
If you do all of this you should easily be 55+ on Veteran.
And I agree with mamba… max resists is excessive for pretty much anything on Norm/Vet. Instead, if you are going to do something that would go alot easier for you with high resists then just focus on covering the resist/s that matter to that specific ordeal. Slot in some different rings/components/augments… whatever. Drink an ointment or 3 if need be.
Have to say that’s the first time I’ve ever hear that about resists, and to be honest in Veteran I never even give a thought to my resists… they are something for me to start to think about when/if I start Elite, but on Veteran, I just never even bother to look at what they are.
It’s a case of any resists I get are purely because bits of gear I wear for other stats just happen to have resists on them and for no other reason than that…and I play pure self found on 99.9% of my chars.
Okay I suspect most people wouldn’t advise being this disregarding of resists…but there’s no way you should ever need to max any for veteran.
Brilliant thinking