Grenades is the best way to level, but that’s only when you can put 30 points in Explosives and get the trait that adds an additional grenade to grenade kit skills. For weapons, I think this thread has proven that pistols are better while leveling because they do offer more utility, aoe, and the up-side of condition-based damage. I find the best way to level up until you can put 30 points in grenades is to go dual-pistols/flamethrower, elixir S, rifle turret, and rocket turret. Plot down turrets in a nice spot to farm quest kills and open with the flamethrowers #2 skill. As they turn to you, turrets are pegging them down, and start stacking bleeds and poison with pistols until they get close enough where you pop your #4 off-hand pistol skill. Usually their dead at this point, but having a knock back and a blind on the flamethrower, and another blind and aoe root on the pistols makes handling multiple enemies a breeze.
