It’s obviously very coupled with what server you’re on, but think guilds will actually be recruiting tanks this time around?
When I started on classic as a bear, couldn’t get any guilds to even look at me, in my preraid bis, when most people hadn’t even finished hitting 60.
I’d expect demand to increase from the 40 to 25 raid size shift, but the prot paladin hype is pretty silly right now too. Suspect there’s going to be huge numbers of them.
There are a lot of stupid people playing.
Tanks have always been in demand. I suspect you should be able to find a home, and a spot in groups fairly easy.
I think bear tanks be more in demand this time around overall, since 5man content (which bears are really strong in) and better raid viability will mean guilds will be more willing to grab them.
They started “they took our jerbs” meme in TBC for a reason, anyway.
In TBC, Tanks will be more in demand as players will NEED to farm dungeons for rep. So TBC is going to be filled with “LFG, need tank for X rep farm runs!”
People are under the mistaken impression that because classic has a million warriors and that everyone and their mother is rolling a prot paladin tank alt that there will be no demand for tanks.
lol
There will be a massive demand for tanks, especially paladin tanks
Tanks are ALWAYS in demand. They always will be. Anyone who doesn’t want a feral tank is bad. Unless you are a bad tank.
If anything, warrior tanks will probably be a lot less desired for TBC 5mans compared to classic, since there’s a greater need for AoE threat in TBC dungeons - especially the later ones (which warriors can struggle with).
It’ll probably be a lot harder to tank them as a DPS warr compared to classic, too.
From what I recall and heard, it is basically useless to try and tank as a DPS spec Warrior. You just don’t have the right talents and mitigations.
But that is just what I heard.
This x1000
I don’t know why, Tanking is such a joy, but some people really can’t hack it for some reason. Being a Tank is a surefire way to at least get yourself invited, then the rest is actually doing a good job.
Not everyone wants to lead the group, and many people don’t have any desire to deal with being a tank. The most responsibility by far, and absolutely the worst for having to deal with morons.
I never could get the hang of healing, to be honest.
Tanking isn’t that different from DPS at the dungeon level. You’re responsible for positioning, but that really isn’t that difficult, and with sensible pulling you don’t need to react to sudden adds.
On the other hand, healers have to constantly flick their eyes between everyone’s health bars, they have to instantly react when someone gets knocked down to 10% health (and then hope your 2 sec cast can get off in time), all the while also being responsible for most dispelling.
I never understood how people can say tanking is harder than healing. I’ve been able to “zone out” as a tank, nearly as much as a DPS, but nothing got my blood pressure higher than when I tried healing. I had to have my eyes glued to the screen 100% of the time, whereas I find plenty of opportunities to raise my glass of rum when I’m DPSing and tanking alike.
There will always be a demand for tanks at the 5 man level. Even if people have a tank/healer for a main they will usually have dps alts. People will be farming the crap out of dungeons for drops, badges, and rep. Any tank that isn’t brain dead will be able to run 5 mans to their heart’s content.
Raiding? Now that’s a different story. That’s where the ratio starts to get wonky. That’s where people bring their main (which is more likely to be a tank or healer).
You’re right that there will be a huge influx of prot pallies, but how long will they last? How many will get mothballed when the person decides they don’t like to tank? How many will get abandoned when people realize they are a solid tank, but not the immortal wrecking ball the streamers are touting them to be?
Also don’t write off druids. I have been toying around on a few servers to find a home for TBC and I have been pretty surprised at how many druids I’ve seen. Running around the Barrens earlier I saw more druids than every other class combined. Obviously they won’t all be tanks, but at least some of them will.
I wish I could help you with your question because I have the same question. Tanking raids is what every tank wants to do, but it sucks to do all the build up work and not get to do the part you did everything else for. Best of luck my fellow fuzzybutt.
Daily heroics means there will be 5 man’s running every single day for badges, and they all need tanks.
You’ll be in demand for sure.
while true this statement is tricky
to gear and to run a roster looking for 25 man raids
you need 5, 5 man teams for heroics
which means 5 tanks
but on raid that number is usually just 2… leaving 3 tanks behind or as suboptimal dps
and some just flat-out only have 2 specced tanks on raids
“Harder” is probably referring to the mental stress that is entailed, rather than the mechanical complexity. A mistake as a dps, and almost no one even notices, if not too many dps make the mistake, especially in 40 man’s. A healer usually has some slop to work with, as other healer’s can pick up slack. A tank that makes a mistake, usually wipes the raid/party. There’s usually more expectations placed on the tank as well, as far as showing up EVERY time, on time. The pay off for a DPS, getting more gear, is being able to wreck people in PvP, or top the meters, the healer has the healing meter to compete over. Tank performance is fairly binary, in that you either survive, or you dont, you hold aggro, or you don’t.
That’s basically my concern. I’ve got no doubts that groups will be begging for 5 man tanks, but much of the gear I want, is actually from raids. I already had the not super fun experience of rushing pre raid bis in early classic, only to not be able to find any guilds that wanted a bear tank.
I’ve noticed similar, as I level up a horde druid. But I think a substantial number are probably just people getting an herbing alt. It’s an open. Secret how broken druids are for herbing in tbc, and herbs will make bank early on.
That’s the joy! As a Tank you have so much control that even morons can be managed pretty well if you’re up to the task. There’s obviously a limit but once you hit the level to handle even dumb, trigger-happy DPS and absent-minded Healers, you recognize truly lost players pretty quickly and can negotiate around them without too much issue.
Tanking is such a fun performance!
Said it before and I will say it again.
I love tanking, I hate the people I am tanking for.
Unless it is a guild group I generally wont tank a run until I see them message for it a few times. Make sure they have waited a bit and are less likely to be obnoxious.
HUGE demand. Way bigger than classic saw. At least for heroics.
Raids not as much.
I did a lot of bear tanking in wrath and brew master in Legion. I honestly just didn’t like the pressure of leading and having so much depend on me. I got a lot of praise while playing and didn’t experience too much toxicity, but the role just feels stressful to me. I admire the tanks who can shoulder it.
Was there a point in wow where Tanks were not in demand? I never experienced that from release-WoD