Not true. My top profession is level 105 or maybe 106, without any chipping, and I never got any advantage from those old school methods. I did play for about 6 months before they changed the skill system, but most of that for me was sweating, and I only had about 20k skills by the time it changed, and those early skills were actually harder to gain then they are now. The only advantage I had were the higher starting attributes which are almost completely useless.
I've just been here a long time and kept playing actively and steadily throughout.
I think it's now easier than ever - certainly than any time since 2006 - to get to high levels without chipping, and there are many people who have done it. These days it's more about putting the money in. If you're prepared to deposit enough to keep grinding for hours every day you can get to high levels way quicker than was possible before, thanks to skill boosts, pills and buffs of various kinds, tiered items enabling higher turnover, etc etc.
I can think of several players who have played for 2, 3 years, maybe less, who have got to similar levels to mine by maximising skilling opportunities in that way. They've all deposited craploads of money, way more than I ever have or could, and whether it's worth it I can't say, but it can be done if you have the funds and the motivation to do it that way.
Today new avatar can pass 2k rifle "naturally" in few days using right gear and enough money for what we needed year or two specially to pass so called skill walls.
But is also true that skill gain is changed and today you cant progress on high lvls using TT weapons with same amount of time, effort and with same cost.
I mentioned ring and ppl shooting there on fapper. They used TT weapons like M2201 or fists like aggressio.
Because it was fun, didn't cost much and gave a lot of skills.
Another reason for doing so is that all weapons needed lvl 100 to max them and no SIB.
So what is not true for you?
Don't tell me that you are going on Entropia Master by shooting punyes with opalo lol.
I did one profession in system as is now and that profession (Mind Force) was handicapped from start with not many chips to chose, with no SIB at that time and even with not enough ammo (ME) at disposition.
And yes is doable but for what effort, price and most important - time?
Do you know how many TT fists you need to decay for one single skill point when having an decent lvl in brawler.
And how much time and money is needed for that single point?
Its for sure no way to go, need more DPS, bigger mobs, a lot more decay on armor, fap and weapon.
Today once you pass 5k in one skill, skill curve become very hard and once passed 10k skill progress is pretty flattered and attribute gain (as avatar progress incentive) so slow that we can consider it stopped.
