Yes. It’s doable...it’s more than likely that it’s been done in less than 3 days before! I just haven't seen a guide on how to get it done. So here's my journey. Replicating it should help you level up within no time.
Disclaimer:
This isn't your average Joe’s guide. This is the fast track, the express lane, as such, it will cost you some. However, even if you are not interested in using the priority lane, I bet you will find this guide useful in helping you to get to level 15 faster than you are doing now.
This isn't the definitive guide that ends all guides. I expect you to read all the other fantastic guides that I myself have used while trying to figure out a lot of the workings of what I am about to share with you here.
This is based on my personal experience. I'm in no way an expert on any of the topics I am about to discuss below. Consider this a hitchhiker's guide. The suggested amounts and values of the items below are based on my logs and serve only as a guide. If you find that your values are veering wildly into the stratosphere ¯_(ツ)_/¯
First things first, you're gonna need some scratch.
The "Energy Pill" Fund (Xanax):
This is your rocket fuel. To truly power through, you'll need at least 7 Xanax. With additional miscellaneous like first aid kits and sweets, I would say a starter fund of appx. 5.8 M.
I suggest you invest in a donator pack if you came to torn solo or request a stimulus package from a friend, faction leader or the one that is responsible for the pain that is about to be visited upon you on these streets! ( make sure to pay them back as soon as you get your first plushie sales )
Subscriber / Donator Status (Highly Recommended, Not Optional if You're Serious):
Seriously, get this. You get faster energy regeneration, 50% more energy, an advanced search tool (more on that later), and 90 points ( for energy refills ) not to mention supporting the torn team.
If you are one of those people that chooses harder paths because you have the time or ‘it’s authentic’ or ‘organic’ or 'builds xracter' or whatever you keep yelling at any uninterested by-standers, you can make some quick bank by selling losses ( make certain that for each loss, you are not being paid less than 300k although the consensus is that 350k is the recommended compensation for a single slut job ).
IMHO, I see nothing wrong with selling losses to make some much needed starter scratch, however this is frowned upon...my 3 brain cells cannot figure out why this is so, but it is. After your first 350k you may think you just discovered how to get rich but be warned, slutting excessively shames you with a ‘loser’ title which could stick for months and be challenging to lose depending on your play style.
Second, staying in a shack is not a good look.
Move into a better property to get access to more ‘Happy’. Happy is crucial for maximising your gym gains. Lease a short-term residence (7 days is good) that offers better Happy than the shack. I was kicking it in a semi-detached, rocking about 275 Happy...yes 275! Every bit helps! I do suggest however that you get yourself in the best residence you can afford without jeorpadizing your xanax fund.
Do the George missions and Gym.
By doing George’s missions, you are given a tour of the Torn streets, alleys and sewers. You quickly learn the basic mechanics, where everything is, what to avoid and how it all ties together. Without George’s missions, you won’t get further than the first traffic light.
Successful completion of some of these missions earns you huge rewards in energy and nerve! Use all that energy strictly on completion of George’s mission then immediately dump the rest in the gym.
Always eat as many sweets as you can before each gym session. Lollipops were my choice. Cheap and good enough. Buy them from the Sweet Shop for cheap or the Item Market at a sizeable markup. Candies give you a Happy boost and in torn, the happier you are, the more gym gains you achieve ¯_(ツ)_/¯
Don't skip the candy. (Note: the happy gained from consumption of candy resets to it’s base natural value at every quarter hour mark I.e 15,30,45 and 00 ) You've eaten your sweets. You are happy. Give us a big smile and dump your energy in the gym before the quarter mark resets. Remember, if you don't smile, the gym won't work :(
At the gym, focus on the Core Three: Strength, Speed, and Defence. Ignore Dexterity for now; it's a distraction.
Train these three stats in the gyms equally until you hit a combined total of approximately 500 battle stats. I personally stopped at 481, so don't fret if you're a hair under. The goal here is to be strong enough to win fights efficiently.
Third, go kick the right butts!
Once your stats are around the 500 range, it's time to put them to use. We're hunting for experience points (XP) to level up!
Go to Big Al’s Gun shop and buy the cheapest tools we’ll need. Armour ( leather everything...helmet, pants, boots, vest), Primary weapon ( Steyr Aug ), Secondary Weapon ( any pistol ), Temporary Weapon ( pepper spray ), Melee weapon ( Macana from the item market ) and tons of Small First Aid Kits (30+).
Make sure to equip all your load-out items. Do not forget to buy enough ammo for both guns about 500 – 700 rounds each.
Equip your armour, weapons and temporary items. Go to Settings → Attack Settings; make sure Temporary Items is set to; Re-equip after fight. This ensures that your pepper spray is always in your load-out when you start an attack.
The Donator's Edge (Advanced Search): If you've got donator status, use the advanced search tool coupled with ffscouter to find extra targets. Search for targets at levels 27 to 100 that are not in a faction and have been inactive for over 6 months. The returned range of targets will have good XP value returns. Using ffscouter refine your selection using battle-stats and fair-fight values. See recommended battle-stat strength thresholds below. Note: you will need to install the tampermonkey extension in your browser in order to use helper scripts like ffscouter.
Revives On; Before picking your first fight, go to Settings -> General Settings -> Who can revive you : Everyone. By allowing everyone to revive you, we ensure that your chances of getting out of hospital in case of a lost fight or drug overdose are high even when you have maxed your medical cool-down.
At this stage, you are ready to go looking for trouble. Use all your energy at all times only for hits. No dumpster diving. No praying. No shenanigans. Pop xanax at every chance and use all your natural energy during drug cool-downs only for hits.
When you're NOT under the influence of Xanax, attack targets with no more than 251 total battle stats. Seriously, be strict about this. We want easy wins, not hospital visits or stalemates that waste energy. ( these numbers are for players with appx. 500 total battle-stats. you must register on the ffscouter service in order to see targets' estimated battle-stats )
Xanax De-buff? If you've just taken a Xanax and are on cool-down, attack targets with no more than 163 total battle stats. Again, strictness is key. ( these numbers are for players with appx. 500 total battle-stats. you must register on the ffscouter service in order to see targets' estimated battle-stats )
Injured from the previous fight? Always use Small Medical Kits to restore your health to max before every fight. Some of these targets can take a punch and when they hit back, you will get some damage. Maxing your health before every fight increases your chances of walking away in more or less one piece.
Avoid the Tanks: If you see a player with the 'Tank' title? Avoid. You'll just stalemate, and we need every hit to count towards levelling XP.
For maximising levelling XP and effective use of your energy, aim for a Fair-Fight value between 1.85 to 2.52. Be strict about this range! You want a minimum of unlucky losses or stalemates.
The Unofficial Helper: Head over to ffscouter and click 'Target Finder'. You’ll be presented with instructions on how to register and link your torn account to ffscouter with a custom API key. It's safe. ( don’t take my word for it )
After linking, on ffscouter, click target finder. Locate and select [Levelling List] under the target type section. This will fetch a curated list of targets (20 or less) optimised for max XP gain per hit for a player with your battle stats.
A heads up: Many new players will be using this service, so inevitably your target lists will overlap and you will find that a lot of the targets will be in the hospital more often than not. Torn is a community so just keep checking. Also, stop hospitalising levelling targets! Just hit and leave.
Priority levellers can use the donators’ advanced search to generate alternative / additional targets in case the ffscouter targets are always hosped and you are wasting E regeneration while you wait for them to recover.
My Journey
It cost me 1 xanax overdose(23 hrs cool-down), 7 xanax, 115 wins, 2 stalemates, and 5 losses to hit Level 15 in 3 days. Armed with this road-map, I fully expect you to do better. Good luck!
Acknowledgements
I thank the tornians below whose contributions and feedback have been invaluable