Ideal pets
What pet to use is tricky to define, since it will vary from zone to zone. As stated above, to have a fair chance of charming it into fighting for you and staying charmed for a decent length of time, the monster should not con higher than Even Match. First I would select your target and then see what monsters nearby can be charmed and could put up a decent enough fight. Remember you can always run and get another pet as needed. Some monster families cause intimidations on others, this is important to remember. There are two ‘sets’ of intimidation rules and these are as follows;
Amorphs >> Avians >> Aquans >>
Amorphs
Beasts >> Lizards >> Insects >> Plants >>
Beasts
Ideal Enemies
Your ideal enemy is something conning Tough or lower which does not have any extremely damaging AOE or single target abilities. The exception to this is Goblin and Bomb types, these can be fought with just a pet while you stay well out of range until a
suicide bomb or Self Destruct is triggered. You should also avoid anything which could petrify or sleep your pet as this would put you in danger.
You can solo Merit Points after you reach Lv75, but I suggest teaming up with a Summoner and killing Heraldic Imps as a duo. This might also work with a Blue Mage team mate, but I have not tested that combination.
Comprehensive detailed information about specific BST tips can be found here;
http://ffxi.allakhazam.com/db/jobs.html?fjob=8;mid=115573086281496833;num=21;page=1