As you know, the /duel command has been implemented on the test server. I know this is a long post, but I like writing about stuff like this :)
Just providing a little input from my short time on test and from what I've seen and heard from a few friends who wanted to give dueling on test a shot. We shared a few results on the official forums too, there are a few people there with previews.
My test Warlock is 36, and although I can give you more details about the few fights I participated in, I can only give general views from the fights that I was able to watch and hear about. I'm also no PVP pro, I just thought it would be interesting to try out.
My predictions were that basically I would win against whatever opponent I faced. Although this may seem cocky, given the abilities I had ( - 37's Nil Distortion, which would have been big) I felt I had the advantage. This did not prove to be the case. All I have to say is that EQ2 PVP will be very deep, with different strategies needed for every single class. They all have that little something that can give them an edge.
Me vs 35 Illusionist: Win - Illusionist.
I had my **** handed to me. I wasn't able to land anything much. He finished with near full health. With the mages it seems to fall heavily on who is able to get the first shot off. I lost because of my mistake. If you're fighting another caster, don't waste your time on root. Root was my first cast, stun was his. Mine should have been flashfreeze. I was stunned/stifled for pretty much the entire fight. It was almost embarassing.
Me vs 37 Berserker: Win - Berserker.
I was able to get him into the yellow, but after the first root wore off he was on me and there was basically no escaping the interrupts.
Me vs 35 Ranger: Win - Me.
This was the best fight I participated in. It came down to the wire. I tried rooting at first but realized it was pointless since he would just bow me down anyway from a distance. All I could try doing was to burn him down as fast as possible. I was in the red when he finally went down. Keeping him stunned as much as possible was key. His strategy was bow kiting me, which I don't think was very good since all of my attacks are ranged. He was also missing a HECK of a lot, I thought I should have been dead long before the fight ended. Had he engaged in melee, I would have lost. Rangers seem to be a very potent force when played well.
A few other fights I watched....
40 Fury vs 42 Swashbuckler: Win - Fury by a mile
From what I saw and heard, Furies/Wardens are, as it stood, the most potent force in PVP, with Templars and Inquisitors a close second. Keeping up with their Heals, paired with their offensive capabilities, no chance for the swashy. He was dual wielding, so he was apparently eaten up by the Furies damage shield, the Fury just nuked him down healing when needed. A Warden/Fury, or any priest class for that matter, paired with a manastone becomes even deadlier because they can have a restorable source of power. Manastone -> Heal back up with more power than you started with. It was just a matter of time.
**Only reason I would give Druid an edge over Clerics is that Druids have an advantage when fighting mages, as their heals would trigger better when in these non melee situations. Just my point of view**
40something Templar vs 43 Monk: Win - Templar
Don't remember the templar's exact level, it wasn't too far either way. Anyone who has played a monk, especially one with a low power total knows that we eat up power pretty quickly. They pretty much just stood toe to toe, duking it out. The Templar casted almost no nukes, just melee. Keep in mind the Templar is in plate. The monk ran out of Combat Art power quickly and it was really useless after that. This is where the manastone comes in big time. The monk would do enough damage to merit a heal, templar would manastone -> reactive and let the monk beat him back to full health with more power than he started with.
So, just a brief prediction, here is my present outlook:
1) Priests - Keeping up with their heals is hard work, and I am yet to hear of a priest being beaten by anyone but a wizard/warlock (only heard about it, no confirmation). Pair them with a manastone for near infinite power regen and they become very very deadly.
2) Scouts - Their ability to kite non casters (and some casters) and do well in close range melee make them very formidable.
3) Fighters - Their HP advantage, heavy armor and good damage capability make them solid PVP contenders. I wish I could have seen a paladin fight. Heavy armor/high HP/decent damage/ability to heal would probably make them very very good.
4) Mages - They are sort of one trick ponies. Give them a few seconds, and you're dead meat. On the other hand, if you can get the jump on them, there's not much they can do. I also feel sorry for the poor summoners out there, as they don't seem to be able to put up much of a fight. I hope they make some changes to them for the PVP only spell changes (if they make them).
Keep in mind they are supposed to have seperate spell effects for PVP, so things will change. My initial thought was that scouts and heavy nukers would do the best, but the priests were the biggest surprise and some vulnerabilities were shown in the scout/mage classes.
Most importantly - as in any PVP - player skill is critical. Things are always changing and there are enough abilities/potentials for human error to give any class a shot with the right person behind it.