Large Social Crowds and Anxiety

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I like to socialize with NTs most of the time, but I have real problem. I get real tired trying to interact with them and have a conversation especially when I don't know a lot of people and I have to a mingle a large amount of strangers at a social event. I find that NTs just mingle around and usually wander from conversation to conversation from time to time. It makes it hard to have an extended conversation with their attention is drawn away from you and you trying to focus your energy into getting know them.

The only strategy that I know that works is just to smile and to say hello to everyone. After that, I would use simple script to start to a conversation or small talk with a person. I do not launching into my talking about my hobbies which is politics (which I find too contentious to talk people about) and so I find it easier to make small talk with people that I do not know.

I wish that I got less tired in these events. I wonder if any fellow Aspie's don't have social anxiety to talking strangers, but get tired easily by trying to process so many social cues at one time especially when you are trying to mingle with some many people NTs that you do not know at one time.

For me it's all by degrees.
I wouldn't say I'm socialphobic by any means, but overstimulation is a big problem.
For example, if I go to a concert or event and have to line up for a long time (more than about 10minutes), and it's noisy, lots of conversations going on, and lots of distractions, I will feel inclined to leave.
Thankfully my wife is both understanding and ironically disabled, which means thanks to her wheelchair we usually get ushered to the side to enter via a different gate, whilst others are still waiting.

I can't stand being crowded and feeling locked in, like in a bus train or whatever where strangers bodies get pressed against you.
When I was younger I couldn't see why anyone would want to go into the mosh pit to get squashed; why would you want sweaty smelly strangers pressing their bodies against you and feel like you're being swept along by a wave of human movement?

I can happily join into a conversation if it's people I know, but if other conversations start up within earshot I can't keep track as I get distracted, and don't know which to listen to.
I usually keep conversations light, but much prefer a one on one chat than to be part of a group discussion; it's part anxiety, part difficulty knowing when to talk, and part overstimulation in group discussions, so I avoid them when I can.

Smiling and saying hello to everyone at a party or whatever is a good strategy; it leaves it to others to do any follow up if they want to talk to you, rather than you having to strain to get past hello.
If they want to they can seek you out, and if they don't you don't have to feel guilty, as you've already said hi to them.

I often on the rare occasions that I go to a party, leave fairly early or just don't stay long if in a loose social gathering.
I'm not being rude, just all the noise, conversation and movement and people is too much stimulation and I need to get away and have quiet time to recover.

After a heavy social occasion, I can often go months with no desire to have much social interaction at all.
It feels like I get to my social quota and then need to disengage and recharge the batteries.
I don't think I'm odd in this regard - at least compared to other Aspies, as for NT's well they're like a whole other sub species of human, and I don't try to fool myself into thinking that I'm one of them, they just have to understand - if they're my friends - that socialisation is not my thing, and it doesn't mean I don't like them, just that I'm a bit of a loner, and I'm okay with that, and if they really know me and care about me they should understand that - if they don't they should care enough to ask, and I'll tell them.

This part always gets me... It takes me a while to ease into a conversation and get to know someone so I tend to feel like, just when I'm starting to make a connection (or maybe a friend) they float off and I'm back to square one.
I've learned a lot of "reflecting" skills to keep people talking with me (basically rephrasing what they've just said to me) to keep the conversation moving along.
More to your point, though... I do get very run down by doing this because the constant engaging-disengaging-engaging is very tiresome.