You realize the only justification for DW tanking is threat issues right?
I’m trying to think of a server that has DPS that are so well geared that you would ever decide to go DW tank over sword and board. And if you did, with this level of gear in the game it would flat out be a mistake without the hit chance to sustain it.
Additionally, tanks that do decide to DW tank usually pop a slew of consumes to make up for the armor drop, mainly agi and armor potions as well as scrolls.
If anything, a bear would be far more justified if there’s threat concerns as at this level bears do far more threat than even DW tanks due to the lack of hit
So with all this said, is it justified?
The answer is flat out no and the fact this conversation exists is proof we’ve descended into memery. Yall are watching too much Asmongold
In a pug 5 man the primary concern above all is having a smooth run not damage. Also, again, without the gear your marginal increase in damage isn’t worth the hit to your survivability.
For you, maybe. Some people like to get more xp per hour, which means doing more damage and killing more mobs in a lesser amount of time.
If you would like to do it slowly and inefficiently then you are free to do so, it doesn’t mean the people getting the most out of their class are doing it wrong.
Good thing I’m a bear so I don’t need to deal with cringe DW tanks in my strat live. Obviously I’m not referring to leveling, but even still that’s more questionable without any hit gear at all
While leveling you’re mostly talking about 2h tanking, not dual wield. And the difference in damage is not negligible at all. A 2H tank will easily outdamage all the actual DPS classes in the group.
I like to imagine most of the people upset about this “new” tanking style are the healers that are used to AFKing most of the dungeon as they’re carried safely through it. Now they’re having to actually press their buttons more and they don’t like it.
That, or they’re more traditional tanks who are upset that the ones using this strategy are so vastly superior.
This is really simple honestly. It’s a question of justifying it.
The reason DW tanks are thing later is because eventually warriors hit a certain gear point where it’s viable. In P1 this is highly unlikely, and even if they have the gear there’s pretty much not enough geared DPS yet to justify it.
It’s a thing for streamers who are bored and want to see if it’s possible at this level. Is it? Sure. Is it justified? No. Tanks can hold threat fine against DPS because again there isn’t the gear level to justify it.
If you’re that bad at holding threat at this point with a shield you should start with learning to play, not going DW tank and thinking that will solve your issues.
That’s the real big yikes here.
Later down the road, sure, a DW tank will be superior to a bear sometimes in mitigation and threat. but even then bears have pummlers.