Solo Mapping (More of a poll)

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lemonades wrote:

Im starting to think, the reason has more to do with myself overstocking on each "level" of map.

That is probably the case because it is something pretty much everyone who starts doing maps does for a while (i know i did).

Back in Ambush i started doing higher level maps and refined my map getting technique in Rampage/Beyond to get a healthy pool of 75+ maps with a bunch of 76's, a handful of 77's and a few 78's without ever having to buy even a single map. My approach is as follows:

Starter Maps 66-68:
Don't even bother with trying to build up a good pool of 66's before you go up and simply run the highest map you have and can run safely. Simply use Transmutaions and maybe 1-2 Alterations to get some quantity or just run them white if you have Zana. Your chance of getting additional 67 and 68's is much higher in a 68 than in a 66. When you have 3+ 69's you can start including them in the rotation to progress to the next stage.

Low Maps 69-71:
Run maps of different levels and don't be afraid to include your 70-71's in the rotation. Be prepared to use a few Alterations to get either 30%+ quantity or more packsize/magic monsters and if you want to speed up things, use an Alchemy on the highest map you have. Once you have 3+ 70's and 5+ 69's, you can safely start vendoring your 66 and 67 maps with the 3/1 recipe tu further fuel your pool of 69+'s.
When you reach a healthy pool of 70+'s, you can skip doing the 68's too and vendor some of them too. I still always pick up low level maps and vendor them whenever i have more than three of any kind for a higher level map. When you have a handful of 72 and 73's, proceed to the next stage.

Mid Maps 72-74:
These maps are your bread and butter since they are still relatively easy to sustain and will safely get you to around level 80-85. At this point you can 'vendor upgrade' all 66-68 maps and will mostly run 70+'s with maybe the occasional 69 thrown in.
Sustaining a healthy pool in these levels requires some more currency to roll so i will often run a handful of my own maps and then join a public map group to stack up on Alterations (sell any rare) and a few Chaos (full rare set -> chaos recipe) for rolling my own maps.
When first progressing into this stage i will use a few Chisels and Alchemy/Chaos to get a few good rare rolls to get started which isn't really necessary but helps since i am not the most patient person ;). At this point you will have to invest more to sustain your map pool and even more to progress but if you alternate doing your own maps with public groups you will still earn more currency than you spend on rolling. Alternatively you can form a group with people you enjoy playing with and alternate in map hosting (A hosts 2-3 maps then B hosts 2-3 then C and so on).
Again, don't be afraid to include your 74's into the rotation. It will be costly initially and RNG is RNG, which means that sometimes you won't even get a 72 and other times you will get a 76, two 75's and a 74.
If you are fine staying at this level and run mixed 72-74 maps with the occasional 75 thrown in, you can simply use Alterations until you get desireable mods like packsize, magic monsters, Rare + Nemesis mod or good qunatity. If you want to progress further, however, be prepared to spend Chisels and a few Chaos to 'push' for te next stage (no need to bring all maps to 20% quality, simply trow on 1-3 Chisels on maps with a good base type like Underground River). If you have 3+ 74's you can peek into the next stage and with 6+ you can usually start advancing.

High Maps 75-76:
Congratulations, you now made it to the highest tier of maps that can be sustained with relative safety without spending tons of currency! You are probably now around level 85, your build is finished but you could still use that 5 or even 6L and are missing a few pieces of true endgame gear. At this point your goal is most likely to simply sustain your map pool and hope for a Cartographers Strongbox to show up to progress even further.
At this point you will also want to Chisel all your maps to 20% quality and Alch/Chaos (or Scour + Alch) them to get a decent amount of quantity and/or packsize/magic mobs. This can get rather costly but you now have safe access to ilvl 75+ rare items for the Regal vendor recipe (same as chaos one but requires ilvl 75+). You wil also get ilvl 77 items from rare mobs and bosses which can roll most of the T1 mods for endgame crafting. Again, don't be afraid to include any 76 and the occasional 77 map into the rotation but also include some 74 or even 73's or you may eventually run dry of 75+'s.

Highest Maps 77-78:
77+ maps are hard and costly to sustain selffound unless you are very lucky with Cartographers so be prepared to spend a bunch of Currency and maybe even Vaal some maps. Chisels/Chaos will often be required to get a good amount of quantity but don't expect your 77+ pool to be as stable as the ones before. I will often just run 75-78's instead of focusing on the highest maps but again, it usually pays off to include your highest maps into the rotation.
Besides the fact that anything lower makes it time consuming to level past 90 (and even more so past 92+), you now also have access to ilvl 79 base items that can roll each and every T1 mod and make for the best crafting bases. The maps are expensive to roll but the reward can also be great. You have now reached the end of the endgame and all that is left is to maybe get that additional 2-3 levels, upgrade your gear, go for Atziri - or make another alt ;).

RNG is RNG, run few high quantity 72-74 maps you get Dunes and Tropical Island. Map system is designed that you only get high maps occasionally.

What keeps me afloat is 3 maps recipe, Zana, and praying to RNGesus for a cartographers box. I was watching Anu's stream yesterday and in between getting raped by Merveil, he talked some about maps and his experience sounded awfully familiar to me.. No secret way to sustain high maps to be had, be prepared to grind through bad streaks.