Tanking well requires an understanding of the basics and applying that to more complex scenarios.
If you really want to learn how to tank, I’d suggest starting from the beginning.
Think of every player in the party as having an “aura” of threat. Just “existing” - players have a zone around them that generates aggro. Think of this zone as about a 25 yard radius around the player that grows and shrinks relative to the player’s level disparity vs hostile mobs.
Every mob has a threat table. It starts blank. Generally, you want to be first on that table. Not just the first name that pops up, but the top of the threat list.
Every “buff” you or your party makes causes threat, but that threat can only be applied to mobs if they are “aggroed” to you or your party.
Why is this important?
From the moment of initial aggro, every decision you and your party makes will make your job easier or more difficult depending on the order of operations.
Being the puller puts you on the list! However, any action your party makes will decide how long you stay at the top.
If your healer casts a spell like a buff/heal, then that action will supersede your flimsy initial aggro.
Ideally, you would be able to charge or have rage left from a previous pull to take an action. Let’s assume that’s not the case, and you’re starting from 0 rage and you just pulled the mobs; and your healer just cast a big heal right on you. (This sets you at a disadvantage, but you can still overcome it.)
Make sure you’re in defensive stance. Then, pop bloodrage. This buff will immediately cause an aura effect that generates threat. How does it generate threat? For every point of rage you generate 5 threat. 10 rage initially = 50 threat. 10 threat over the duration = 50 threat. So 100 threat + defensive stance modifier (threat * 1.3) = 130 threat.
Use battle shout! It generates threat too. Significantly more than demoralizing shout if everyone in the party receives the buff. That being said, you want to demo shout once to get the debuff applied.
Have your target ready. Let your party know ahead of time which mob to focus on.
/script SetRaidTarget(“target”,8);
That will set Skull on the kill target. I won’t go too deep into prioritizing kill targets, but you want to think of which mob represents the most danger to the success of the pull. Typically, a healer mob or one that applies CC (polymorph or fear affects.) In some cases, it is better to simply use your own party’s CC to take the mob out of the picture until it is optimal time to deal with it.
“Which buttons should I press”?
First of all, understand that rage is precious in the first moments of the pull. You want the most bang for the buck. If prot: shield slam is probably the best use of rage for initial burst threat. However, a quick shield block into Revenge is also excellent threat. (And if talented, a stun)!
You want to macro /startattack into your offensive abilities.
#showtooltip Revenge
/startattack
/cast Revenge
“What about Sunder Armor”?
You want to use it. You want to use it a lot. Not only does it provide good threat, but it also increases the physical damage the mob takes. Win/Win! This ability (combined with Revenge procs) greatly helps in keeping aggro on all of the mobs you’re facing.
“What about cleave”?
Cleave is fine, but it’s expensive. Only use it if you’re swimming in rage and you’ve already slapped some sunders on the mobs. This isn’t a priority ability. It’s a rage dump.
“What about heroic strike”?
Heroic Strike does provide a good amount of bonus threat, but it too is rage expensive. There are some scenarios where it makes sense to use (swimming in rage or absolutely must land an interrupt.) Why that second part? Heroic Strike is off the GCD. This means that you can hit another ability while it’s queued up. If you’re tanking a heavy-hitting mob, but don’t want to GCD lock yourself, you could opt to Heroic Strike tank for a bit if you know a spell cast is coming. In most 5 man content, you’ll use HS sparingly. There are just so many priorities to deal with that it is not all that important in the big picture. Consider it a raid tanking thing.
“This all sounds great, but I still lose threat.”
Sometimes, your party is fighting against you. Remember that fury warrior? Yeah. If he’s playing aggressively (like he thinks he should) then he’s going to get all the aggro. Why? He’s charging (generating more rage than you), hitting mobs with big openers like whirlwind and getting hit in return. (Causing more rage generation.) Then, he’s probably buffed with improved battle shout overriding your puny buff, and in general just stealing your spotlight.
How to overcome this? Consider the content. Sometimes, it’s okay to let a beefy second warrior have some of the aggro. If he wants it, let him have it. (You spank it, you tank it.) You’ve got a job to do. Stay focused on your role. Use taunt to pull the hard hitters off your newfound offtank. Mocking blow another.
#showtooltip Mocking Blow
/startattack
/cast Battle Stance
/cast Mocking Blow
#showtooltip Taunt
/startattack
/cast Defensive Stance
/cast Taunt
There’s a lot more to cover. (When to use Thunder Clap, when to pull with a ranged weapon, when to charge, etc.)
The main idea is to use your judgement. The terrain is your friend. Learn how to utilize line of sight to your advantage. Always be thinking about patrols, social aggro, and how to conserve rage for the next pull. Be aware of your surroundings. Remember. The party is trying to kill itself. It’s your job to save them.
