With the talent tree reworks and updates to push class specs into different directions makes it feel like the traditional roles of Tank, Healer and Damage are becoming obsolete. There’s a drought of healers and tanks in LFG coupled with the Meta Gamers declining join group requests like candy, it’s making our talent trees more versatile just more commonplace. We have to start asking ourselves when we log on if we are in a single target heal/damage mood or a AOE heal/damage mood then layer that with if we want to play in PVE/PVP environment.
A new player will not understand this but end game is so structured behind these important styles of game play that I feel the traditional roles classes serve are getting more diluted season to season. Do you see class roles being sunset in the future?
Will Mages wear plate gear and hold the door for in the back? Could DKs become Lich Knights and ride a magic spellbook?
Who knows. But Wow obviously is changing and we need to buckle up and start asking ourselves what we want our class and specs to be and not feel limited by limited game design choices based on Meta lovers who refuse to expand their minds when it comes to class/spec designs.
May as well get rid of straight tanks and healers…all classes are DPS and figure out how to make it so someone can tank and someone can heal inside group content regardless of class/spec…that or just balance the entire game around DPS specs and be done with it.
They kind of already do. Way way back in the day clothies were true glass cannons, but they kept getting killed in pvp and pve and complained so much that all armor was changed in game.
I still think tanks should do comparable damage to a “lower” end of dps. I wish they would tie 90% of their mitigation into correctly doing a dps rotation. And give them more hard CC options that LOOK AND FEEL cool.
I think those 2 things would bring a lot of new people into tanking knowing that it’s just a pseudo dps with a more streamlined mitigation process. Active mitigation is boring and the damage is too low.
Probably too much change for the game given how mature it is. But I do think that the old tank / healer / damage roles will become obsolete in future RPG / MMOs. You can do utility roles without having the holy trinity and it makes things easier for matchmaking. Diablo already has boss battles and party co-op without the holy trinity.
Personally, I prefer dodge / parry / block / shield mechanics to damage sponge HP ones. The Shadow of Mordor series did an amazing job of making fight mechanics utilizing that very fluid with a high degree of skill growth allowed.
Sure, I bet a lot of people feel the same way. I respectfully disagree to a point, but I do think that blizz would have to put role restrictions in content if that was the case.
Im using that as an example because a good DPS player SHOULD beat a tank in DPS. But the performance is such that tanks can out dps some DPS players in content that prioritizes front loaded AOE damage.
Tanks damage output is not an issue right now, they are over performing by a lot.