DPS question, tanks and healers feel free to chime in here as well but I want DPS specifically to answer this question.
What is a tank in group to you? What is their role? What are they supposed to do for the group? For example: Is it your role to run in and pull everything and theirs to try and get threat off of you? Is it your role to let them pull and dps? Etc and so on.
I want legit DPSERS serious about their class/specs to tell me what they think a tank is supposed to be doing in this game and why they wait forever for one.
I am leveling a tank and have recently come into some confusion about what exactly it is I am supposed to be doing for my group?
Edited to add: This question is more for end game. Leveling was very easy and most dps were more than wiling to allow me to do my thing but end game is a whole different ball game, I am thinking of just being done with tanking all together because of it. I’m genuinely curious if this gets any better or my role isn’t to pull and hold threat, it seems that’s not how it’s working. Pulling according to me and my healers capabilities isn’t priority and I need to be pulling whole dungeons because if I don’t DPS are doing it for me. Is this normal? Does it get better? Am I doing it wrong?
Grab aggro, position mobs, and prevent people from getting smacked in the face while smacking things as hard as you can as well. Overall your role allows a run to be smooth as butter, or a bumpy ride through a field of broken glass.
In essence, your duty is to steer and control the run… by any means necessary.
Pulling groups, maintaining aggro, positioning, proper use of defensive cooldowns… they’re just the tools of the trade. The end objective is to steer and guide the group through the content, which does include directing them to act properly from time to time.
Remember, the end objective is a SMOOTH run.
Don’t force a fast run, they’ll come with time and experience.
As a healer, the role of the tank is to charge in to a reasonable amount of badies when the group and tank is ready to do so, get aggro, get beat on and maintain aggro, until the dps pew pews the adds and they die. Rinse and repeat.
As a tank, my job is to bravely charge into battle taking on no more enemy combatants than i myself and my fellow fighters can safely handle, ensuring to utilize my abilities properly to ensure proper threat generation, self preservation and using abilities and buffs to allow my group to execute those that we are fighting. Thus allowing us to accomplish our goals in an efficient, steady manor.
As DPS. Tank smash thingy, thingy smash tank, tank move slow so me help by making more things smash tank thingy. Me use barrage and send whole dungeon to healer. Healer died. LOL get gud nubz! Tank and healer sux.
This is exactly how it feels right now. I love tanking and what I’m doing right now, it’s soooo fun. It’s a welcome change from what I have been doing but it’s been extremely frustrating and overwhelming since I hit end game!
You need to pull what you’re comfortable in pulling and maintaining aggro on, and what your healer can heal you through… If you’ve got a really well geared healer… wsp them… ask them… How large of pulls you want me to pull? You also need to ensure that you’re using your defensive CD’s and if needed heals so you’re not making their life a living hell as well… You always have to assume you’re going to have at least one of the DPS standing in the bad… cause you know moving decreases their recount performance.
But then you’ve also need to be a realist here… There are tanks that go wayyyy do darn slow. They’ll wait for everyone one of their cd’s to reset before pulling trash mobs. Sorry that doesn’t cut it… If you’re one of those tanks you can bet your bippie that I’ll be ToT’ing or MD’ing to you to speed your rear up.
Old school is dps is to transfer threat to the toon assigned to the role as tank.
The tanks job is to hold the attention of damage dealing mobs. Healer is assigned to keep the tank alive as the dps removes the threat.
After leveling all tanks to at least 110. I was only let down a few times. Leveling dps with threat transfer and common sence.
Yes i pull with mage hunter spreist shaman and rogue easy and run past.
99% of the time i am 20 ft behind you pulling. With a 100+ yard range could pull the next boss.
Go with the flow and play to relax and have fun. Let them die a few times and they will get the hint. Oh and lastly they are bots most of the time. Called piolets?
I guess the simple answer is you keep mobs from killing me and the healers are there to keep me alive if I accidentally mess up or get cced to oblivion and back.
When i am tanking my general rule is if you pull it, you tank it. I intervene with mistakes, but if youre being a fool you will foolishly die.
When i am healing my primary job is to keep the tank alive so that they can keep threat off the dps and me. If dps make a simple mistake or pull threat by dpsing, they get big heals until the tanks health becomes priority or until its obvious theyre making no effort to transfer threat to the tank. If theyre too focused on their dps charts to try and drop threat or are pulling things intentionally, i let the fool die and fade. They will either get the point or go away, either way its a win win.
As far as I’m concerned, a tank’s job is to set the pace of the dungeon, pick the path the group takes (if there’s an option), pull the mobs in numbers they can handle (and not run off until the group they pulled is dead), pull the bosses (and set any relevant markers, etc.), and not run off if the healer is OOM.
My job is to target the tank’s target, target adds when relevant, do CC if required, stay out of the bad, and protect the healer when necessary.
I have tanked a lot, but not really in end-game content. I mostly DPS.
1.keep aggro
2.use and keep up active mitigation as much as possible
3.set the pace of the dungeon/raid
4.position mobs/bosses safely for you and your group