Woo, right on brother.. or sister.
I'm behind you. My feeling is the same. I started DAoC a few months after it came out of beta and I still have not got my main to 50 yet? Why, because I'm a roleplayer and explorer. I love to play my berserker, yes I said the class everyone will not group with in RvR. Powerlevling is wrong IMHO, as said above, you can not learn what your class can and can not do in so quick a time. Tactics can not be worked out, love for the character can not be created hense the "I hate this" <Delete>.
My main has a love for items he got himself not given or powerleveled to get. He got them himself with his own hands and so they mean more. The character means more. I know how to use him in battle and in RvR. I have seen some people /level and they end up killing the others in the BG's as they have no idea what they are doing.
As to the exp drop, sod it. That's why I'm only 43rd now. I play may character to the personnality I gave him and role-play rules I have set for him and he does them, whether it leads to his death or not. Just thank Mythic this is not EQ or you'll end up losing levels.
Characters in this system and any other online RPGs (Yes this game started out as an RPG) have you create a character that by the end you don't like to see die so you create ways to help stop that. Its not full proof, but it enhances the gaming experience.
But... I do disagree with SouthOfTheBorder on the not giving items, this system was set up to pass items down hense the low copper payback on some items. If you want to person you are giving the item to, to earn it ask them to get 20 <items from a creature they can kill> and give them to you in payment. This will pay for the item and make the receiving character more apprechitive of the item.