With the introduction of random dungeon tool, everyone and their grandmothers are doing heroics. We posted a guide, and talked about it already. This time it’s another guide – more like guidelines, with the similar theme, inspired by the frustration random heroic can bring to the tank, no matter how experienced they may be 
Guide: Don’t spank the Tank! is written by Sourabaya of Bloodscalp, (EU). Original post can be found on the forums.
Guide: Don’t spank the tank !
Many people have been asking questions regarding the shortage in tanks.
Therefore I have decided to make a short “guide” on what “prevents” people from tanking/scares tanks away,
and how we ALL can work on the solution (in other words increase the number of people who are willing to tank) , or at least decrease the number of tanks that we scare away.
Targeting and knowing the way in an instance:
A tank is expected to mark the targets. But occasionally it happens that the tank doesn’t know which mob is priority. In this case the tank either pretends to know and dashes in, hoping no one will notice so he won’t get flamed.
Or, the Tank admits he doesn’t know, with a huge chance of getting negative responses. The exact same goes for not knowing the way in an instance.
Those negative responses can easily scare away the tank. Those responses really are unnecessary.
Instead of flaming the tank, let him/her know that it’s good to admit to not know something, and help out. If you have been a Wow-player for a long time, you probably know the instance and the mobs in it by heart, so how much effort and trouble will it be to lead the way, and (help) mark the mobs ?
And you might feel it is not your job to “take over Tank tasks” , but it is your job to work together as a team, and clear the instance as a team.
Nobody benefits from flaming the tank and not helping out.
Not much experience and aggro:
Nobody has instant experience, we all need to learn how things work, and yes we fail at times but eventually will grow. That goes for tanks as well.
Unfortunately, tanks are expected to have instant experience. They are expected to be an expert in holding aggro, taunting of mobs the dps pulled etc.
When a tank admits not to have much experience, don’t flame him ( and most certainly do not vote kick him ). Give the tank the chance to earn the experience.
Here are a few tips (things players should know, but apparently don’t know).
-Don’t pull the mobs, just let the tank pull them. Yes, a tank has abilities to taunt it off, but you’ll make tanking a lot harder.
- Give the tank a couple of seconds to get solid aggro before you attack (wait even longer before using aoe attacks).
- Attack the same target as the tank (if the mobs are not marked, keep an eye on your threat meter, switch mobs if your threat level almost reaches the tank’s level ).
- Manage your aggro : Cut down on the dps (don’t look at your dps meter, not important. I mean would you choose high dps over massive repair bills ? ), or use threat losing abilities if you have them.
- If you do get aggro, don’t run away with the mob chasing you. There is (almost) no way the tank will be able to taunt it off you. Just stay or get closer to the tank, so he/she can taunt it off. And stop attacking that mob, to make sure you don’t surpass the taunt.
“Low” gear and hitpoints :
Nobody starts off in full epic gear, and most instances do not require it either. Still the tank gets made fun of when he/she has some blue gear.
Instead of flaming the tank, help out a little if you think the tank may have some trouble staying alive.
- If you are a full epic and experienced healer, you should have no trouble to keep up a lower geared tank.
- Dps with some healing abilities can throw in a heal as well if needed ( don’t look at your dps meters, not important).
- Use abilities to lower the damage caused by the mobs.
- Use crowd control.
“Gogogogogogogogogogogogogo”:
This actually enrages basically every tank, it’s pushing and annoying, and could easily be replaced by: “I’m ready ” or “Pull when you are ready”.
- If you want your tank to accidentally let you die, use gogogogo.
- If not, just use a more friendly way to let the tank know you want to move on.
- Give the tank some time to get ready, find out what is the best way to pull the mobs, regain mana/rage etc.
- Keep in mind that the Tank might be waiting for the healer to be on full mana.
- Don’t pull. And by that I really mean, don’t pull. If you’re out of luck, the tank and healer will just let you die.
Don’t blame the tank, if:
- the instance doesn’t load.
- Your dog ate your homework.
- The healer forgot to heal.
- The dps pulled and wiped the party.
- The dps attacked an entirely different mob and dies.
- The dps used aoe 0.1 second after you pulled and dies.
- The healer went afk.
etc.
Conclusion : Your tank is your friend, be kind and friendly and help out. If you are an imba WoW-player, or one of those players that thinks Wow has become to easy, go do instances with starting tanks, and help out.
You will find the instances more challenging that way, that is the right way to show how imba you are (instead of tearing down someone else), get more people willing to tank, and you won’t cause Tank tears on the other side of the screen.
You’ll be a Hero !
A few points from a tank warrior perspective.
Pay attention to your stats. Having a capped defensive rating and good amounts of avoidance and mitigation are going to take you much further than a larger pool of HP.
Pay attention to your glyphs. At least for warriors this is where you can make up for lack of AOE and hold a whole group unmarked.
Pay attention to your group. I run recount to see what dps is pulling down, and sometimes it’s not the best geared. But if your dps is good and your healer is uber, then have fun and pull the whole room. If not tell the whiny punk that’s in a hurry to chill out or get kicked.
You’ll only get better if you practice. Keep thinking about your rotation to maximize your own dps and you’ll maximize your threat as well.
Lastly it seems to have been ignored that the typical raid makeup for a 25man raid is 2-3 tanks, around 6 heals, and at least 16 dps. There isn’t much incentive to tank beyond random heroic pugs so most good tanks are going to be running with a guild. It’s the nature of the game to keep tanks to a minimum as you progress through content.
Like or Dislike:
0 
2
This is a very good article and presents many of the situations I have faced in the game. Thor is my first toon and I have had much help getting to 80 and the gear that he now has – thanx to my team. That being said, yes tanking is difficult and not for everyone and a lot of things need to be considered when anyone hits the random button for an instance. We are all playing the game and paying our money to be here no matter how experianced you are you are still in the instance with others. I have had many successful runs in a random group and thankfully have had few poor groups to run with. The points in the article are very valid. An early question I like to ask is “Has everyone been here before and know the fights?” If I get a hit that someone is new I take the instance slower and try to explain it (if I am familiar with it). If I am unfamilar with the instance or Raid I am not afraid to say so. If we all arrive with a willingness to assist any party member in any instance it will make the run easier and more enjoyable for all.
Like or Dislike:
2 
0
I run as a Discipline Priest with a Prot Pally for a pocket tank and we find it absolutely hilarious when ICC10+ geared dps comes to heroics for their daily frost badges and they die because they pull aggro. We do allow for the one time accidental burst aggro, but constant over aggroing isn’t tolerated. What’s even better is that they blame us for not tanking/healing properly and subsequently drop the group. Any good dps knows better than to upset a healer and tank combo because you WILL die if you’re being stupid.
I think this blog makes a very valid point in the world of instancing, but sadly, not enough dps will read it (or understand it) for it to make enough of a difference; So I vote we change the repair bill cost for dps specs to match that of the tanks and maybe that will solve some stuff
~Doomkiss, Lightbringer, Discipline Priest.
Like or Dislike:
2 
0
LOL this is so true, I have NO problem as a tank to let you die if you purposely pull something because Im going too slow. As a pally tank I need mana just like the DPS and I would like to loot also. It is sad but because of these issues I only do my 1 random a day or help guildies through them. I refuse to be subjected to a half an hour of frustration because someone thinks they are better than anyone else and can do what ever they want. That in a nutshell is why there are no tanks on doing randoms. Have respect for the ppl that you are playing with and play your OWN spec. If you want to tank roll a tank. Your pet is not a tank and misdirect will only get you killed. Thanks
Like or Dislike:
2 
1
speeking from a tank an healers point of view the problem isnt the healer, or dps fault most of the time i get the ppl who r specd to dps an Q up as a tank cause they want faster Qs an think sence the have good dps gear that every healer should beable to heal them with out a problem even though they have zero def an didnt point into any armor dodge or parry.but they think its ok cause the got 30k hp even though they cant hold threat but on 1 target an the healer is healing like he ist in icc 25 an cant keep the dps tank alive.just wanted to know if any 1 else is getting this crap.
Like or Dislike:
0 
1
My 2 cents, i started wow on the beta. Ive seen alot since then. Played a healer for many years. Priest and paladin. My curse was getting a good tank to run stuff with. There was that one guy that was really playing well, making run painless, making me gets way less damage. After hours spend trying to get decent tanks, i decided to make my own. I now own a very sexy warrior tank. Improved it by looking around best specs, strats, glyphs. Tanks have to do their homework. If your new to the game, probably tanking is not your best option to make friends. There s mechanic to know, your player skills can make up, gear helps alot as well, yet healer and tank is a ratio. The stronger the healer is, the weaker the tank can be. This article describe more to me the correct playing attitude we should have. Theres tools and forums, as well as lots of player willing to help. If you have no idea what your doing, learn through dpsing or healing. Each tanking classes as its way to tank aoe and single target. Dps can go all out but then dont blame your failure if you dies. Yet tanking is my favorite position in wow, i feel like a good tanks make up for anything!
Like or Dislike:
2 
1
Thank you for saying what has been on my mind since I started tanking a short two weeks ago. I have been keeping myself out of the random que because of the very reasons that you have stated. I know I have alot to learn about tanking yet, but I am starting to get a good hold on the process. I am def capped and rolling with just under 30k hp unbuffed. I haven’t had a problem keeping aggro, but the only problem I have had is the FLAMING!! I haven’t que’d up in days but am going to as soon as the weekly maintenance is done thanks to you. I did notice that when I do say that I am new people generally respond well to it. Thanks for the help!!
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
4 
0
I started of Feral Druid. I preferred bear for survivability. However, then I reached instances and was asked to heal. So I start healing. And I’m asked to heal more. I pay gold, respec, and heal. I heal instances that I cannot be summoned to because I’m not high enough level.
Then Dual Spec arrives. I choose Balance. I figure it’ll be easier to gear a second caster spec than a caster and melee. I have fun. I’m told to glyph Typhoon to not do knock back. I ignore this advice, as I wouldn’t use Typhoon in rotation, only to send strays back to tank.
Then one day I am healing ToC(5 man) and I watch the a variety of phrases using bad language telling me to dispel poison and heal. I tell them I cannot dispel poison on the floor. I spend all my honor points for the next month gearing up a feral ‘tank’ spec for PvP. I use this gear for heroics. Threat isn’t great, but part of that is lack of skill as well as gear not designed for it.
I OT a couple of Raids in PvP gear. Recently blew my Triumphs on real tank gear. So far, I’ve tanked EVERY Heroic except HoR. I’ve Healed every Heroic short of the ICC 5 mans.
DPS really is the simplest, hardest to screw up job. Hit bad guy. Watch threat. Do not stand in avoidable damage.
Use Recount on the target dummy to finesse your rotation. Turn it off going into instances. (And if you have a misdirect, USE it.)
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
One thing I forgot to mention is a comment to add to Thelemorf’s post…..yeah that 10K dps score on recount looks really good when you’re toon is lying face down on the floor in the middle of an encounter.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
4 
0
I love this blog, but think it should be titled “don’t spank the tank or healer”.
I have played all of the roles, Tank, Healer and DPS.
My dps toon can pull quite a bit of aggro so I always, always, always give the tank at least a 5 second start throwing my first hit out there and if they ask for more time, I wait. It does none of us any good if the tank dies. But, waiting for a dps queue for random heroics is dreadful, so, I decided to go try another role.
I next tried my hand at random heroics as a tank after making sure I had the right gear to start out with, a lot of research on what to do and what not to do, watching many videos of how to properly play my class, and subjecting my guildmates to countless hours of running dungeons for practice before I was deemed “random heroic” ready.
I found that can tank pretty well, but with the more challenging dungeons, I need a little time to build aggro. Even with fair warning to all party members that I need time to gain aggro due to being a rage tank, it didn’t seem to help and dps kept charging in grabbing aggro before I could even take my first hit.
After enough times of being flamed by party members that were in too big of a hurry to get the instance over (yes 17 minutes is way too long to spend in a dungeon apparently) for not keeping aggro well enough, I decided that maybe tanking wasn’t what I was cut out for.
I next tried healing. Again after obtaining the proper gear, researching and practicing with my guildmates, I went out into the world of “random heroics”. I am not a super star, but generally no one dies on my watch unless the tank is a HERO and pulls the entire instance at once, or dps pulls aggro before the tank one too many times without my recovery time and rez time for those unfortunate enough to have died.
However, the other night I was in a fairly benign dungeon and managed to keep everyone alive even though some dps’ers were lolly-gagging in the path of a patrol that got us from behind which caused me to have to rapid heal everyone using my most powerful spells. After the encounter, in which no one died, I stated that I needed mana and suddenly found myself at the load screen with the message that I have been removed from the group. Apparently waiting that extra 5 seconds for me to replenish my mana was too much for the group at hand. At that moment I was so fed up with this race for gear, and I got NO appreciation from the people whose sorry toons I was trying to keep alive, that I almost deleted my account. But from this aticle I see that I am not the only one in this situation.
So I ask all of you who are in such a hurry to get the ultimate gear from those frost badges you so dearly covet, what are you going to do when all of your healers and tanks have had enough of your gogogo attitude and just quit playing?
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
5 
0
I’ve been playing WoW for 2 1/2 years. My main is a hunter. The 1st toon I ever rolled. I always get compliments on how I wait for the tank to get aggro, then I hit the target/targets with my MD. I also pay very close attention to my omen, or the threat percentage meter that WoW has built in on my target. Sure seeing high DPS is great… HOWEVER… I will feign death like crazy if I have to just to make sure the tank holds aggro. Not to mention MD throughout the fight if it’s needed.
My other toon is a DK. DPS/Tank. Yep, tanking is a whole new world, and reading this article just made me nod my head at how the DPS can be more for themselves, rather than the group or raid they are with.
I really think people should try both DPSing and tanking to get a feel for what it’s like. Unfortunately, we all know in reality, that won’t happen. Too many egomaniacs. lol
Like or Dislike:
2 
0
I completely agree with what you wrote, I’m playing all 3 roles at the moment and I think everyone should do the same in order to understand what it’s like to be one of the other members of the party.
It is however worth mentioning that most tanks nowadays overestimate themselves or pay too little attention to the rest of the group, it’s incredibly annoying as an healer to have a tank who runs like crazy and doesn’t wait for the others.
Tanks healers and damage dealers should support each other all the time, and a the “GOGOGO” dps deserves to die as much as the tanks who charge in the mobs when the healer is still far away.
Like or Dislike:
1 
1
Well written!
Its like the /assist function in the game is broken nowdays. Not that i have a problem keeping aggro since i outgear most of the random-hc ppl i play with but still.
Always some twat that go full aoe-dps 0.00001s after I pull, and a decent geared guy that crit for 10-15k on his first attack on a mob that Im not hitting, or better yet is still running towards me, will have to learn to tank it, or hope that the healer care about saving him, because i wont..
Its fun tho that so many find it hard to get groups and whine about tank shortage and still they are tank-able classes themselves.
If you dont want to tank, why should anyone else want to?
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
4 
0
Just had another incident with a tank when I was healing. Listen up, tanking is not just aggro and how fast you can pull, it is being a team leader and keeping a reasonable pace. This one got way out of my range doin the epic pulls and then complained i wasn’t healing well enough, even though I saved him. Then he pulled the boss immediately after smarting off to me, so i left, I did not even get a chance to get all my loot.
Like or Dislike:
3 
0
When I hear, “gogogogogo!”
I reply, “nononononono!”
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
6 
0
I too am a tank (warrior) as main spec, fury offspec and have 3 other level 80′s including a druid healer. Tanking is the hardest of all, and healers do get blamed far too often. Always mark (and state the kill order too
, unless ALL dps say its ok, there are many shy dps people out there who won’t say a word if they are not sure what to do. Tank sets the pace…best thing to do if you are not sure is to say so…most people in the game are decent and will help.
Like or Dislike:
2 
0
I have basically dpsed since I dinged 80 on my first char, druid, and healed for almost as long. I have also dpsed on mage for significant amounts of time. Only picked up tanking at the beginning of the year, shortly before my warrior dinged 80. I don’t consider myself the best at any particular role, but at least I think I know what each role encompasses. And yes, tanking is the most demanding role, greatest difficulty and greatest pressure.
I have experienced every last thing mentioned in this article. At the beginning it was a true pain when people ninja pulled and complained about my tanking, now it is just annoying, even though I don’t get abused much when I pug tank random heroics nowadays. Anyway, I don’t put up with anything more than mild complaints. I know they need me more than I need them, and that they have to wait for new tank longer than I have to wait for new group, so any “wtf tank”, “u suck” or “aggro ffs” after ninja pulling or just not watching their omen enough, and they can enjoy a while watching me mine before debuff wears off. If I have to wait before my dungeon debuff wears off because of abusive group, you can be sure I make them wait the same time before queueing for new tank.
Anyway, I had this dk once running ahead and pulled group after group. I intervened at first, but after a couple of times I knew he did it on purpose, so I decided he was the new tank. He could not hold aggro and group wiped, while I did nothing. I told him that his constant pulls made him a self-proclaimed tank, thereby relieving me of the duty to hold aggro. He chilled after that. Yes, maybe unfair to the rest of the group, but they decided to dps the mobs he pulled, and I would have chased after him for the rest of the run if I had not shown that I would not do just that, cleaning up the mess he made. Yes, there is emergency cooldowns like Challenging Shout, but they only work once every few minutes and can thus not be used every pull (and should not be relied on to). They are there for accidents that happen or particularly tricky situations, and I like them to be ready on those times.
Anyway, I consider the right to pull and the responsibility to hold aggro inseparable. That is because it is so much harder to hold aggro if you do not get the benefit of initial aggro, positioning mobs the way you want them, etc.
That is not to say there are no bad tanks. Some charge ahead too fast, not watching healer’s mana (although I can see that perhaps the “gogogo squad” has driven them to such behavior).
As a healer, I also strongly dislike tanks that are not durable enough for the instance (and then blame me when they die). I got vote-kicked out of group yesterday for failing to keep such a pathetic excuse for a pala tank alive. My damage meter said he had taken 160k damage in a trash fight in HoS hc, and he failed to keep damage off the dps on top of that. People died, and finally “tank” and me. I did not get time to inspect him to see what was wrong with his gear and/or spec before I was kicked. I was not even upset. It was so pathetic it was funny that they thought it my fault. Got into another group, with a real tank (you know the kind that actually takes beatings better than a dps), knowing the retarded group probably enjoyed more wipefest back in HoS. Only one I could feel a little sorry for was new healer.
Hello there, 160k is astronomical amounts of damage in a simple trash fight. It is not a boss fight in Trial of the Crusader hc, and I am not supposed to have to heal you through enormous amounts of damage. I later did HoS hc on my tank just to check what she took in that very same fight, and result was 43k. If another “tank” takes nearly 4 times more than I do on mine, you are clearly not good enough to tank it, and just expect me to be overgeared and heal you through it in overdrive mode. Healers get blame sometimes when they don’t deserve it, too. Let us not forget that.
Sorry for long post. I had a lot to say.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
5 
0
I tank the randoms with both my 80 Frost DK and my 71 Prot Warrior, and I have to say that the points made in the article definately apply to both.
My main job is to keep threat on my target and keep mobs off the healer. I can do this easier with the DK than the Warrior, especially on 4-/5-mob trash pulls.
To help the dps not over-threat me I have macro’d the skull to my tab target key, so when I change targets, so does the mark. It helps most of the time, but there’s only so much you can do when the DPS open with their AoE damage makers.
DND, glyphed HB, BB is good enough for the DK, but the warrior tends to still need Demo shout even after TC, SW and glyphed Cleave.
At least because of my experience when tanking heroics I’m careful to watch my threat and the tanks target when I’m dps’ing as an 80 Hunter. Certainly no reason for me to not play a DPS the way I would want them to be as a Tank.
I just wish my Freeze Traps or Wyvern Stings would get more use. Someone always breaks them nowadays. Whatever happened to crowd-control?
Like or Dislike:
3 
0
I tank, heal & DPS. Tanking is by far the most challenging job in the game. When I tank, I don’t put up with much. I can’t be bothered. I am trying to complete a challenging task and I have good people counting on me. If its not clear whether some one made a mistake or is being a jerk – I will give the benefit of the doubt – may offer a suggestion, or maybe wait & see. But I can usually tell by the 2nd or 3rd pull if I have a problem in the group. That is where that problem ends. I don’t care if the person is obsessing over recount, or his mommy is calling, or what his issue is. It doesn’t matter to me.
If someone is clearly being a jerk, and I don’t mean making a mistake; I mean being consistently selfish, not listening, condescending – you know – A JERK – then ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS vote to kick. Its a beautiful way to deploy natural selection. I’ve never voted to kick when there wasn’t agreement and usually get a comment like “thank god”. Its obvious, it just need to be done. Over time, those jerks will be forced to reconsider their attitudes, if they want to succeed, and you will thereby be doing a service to all the rest of us non-jerks. TIA!
Like or Dislike:
3 
0
The other night I tanked H PoS with three guildies and a pugged hunter. The hunter managed to wipe us by running ahead into the gauntlet event (would’ve happily let him die, but the healer tried to save him). And then blamed me for not being ahead of him.
I should’ve kicked him at that point. Instead we let him stay in, and he ninja-ed a tanky sword off Tyrannis…
Like or Dislike:
2 
0
Also worth mentioning that part of your job as DPS is to watch your own aggro, there are so many addons and features built into the default ui that let you do this, a subpar tank can handle an instance with fully geared dps if they can be bothered to pay attention to something besides damage output.
and too true about the gogogogo…
when I see that I /sit right where I’m at until the party either calms down or wipes itself without my help.
That being said… I don’t tank randoms apart from my dailies anymore unless someone responds to my ad in trade, 50g/run.. I call it my idiot tax since every pug seems to have one.
Like or Dislike:
3 
0
As an ICC geared tank in heroics yes I can get cocky at times and pull too many, but normally I start out with small pulls and get gradually bigger until I find a point that the healer or dps show signs of struggling, then back off a notch to a comfortable pace for all of us. This was definitely not the case when I was leveling/pre-naxx25 geared. I pulled as few as humanly possible, asked for CC and interrupts whenever practical, and generally annoyed the heck out of my groups.
As for the “gogogogogogogo” people, take a lesson from a rogue that decided to tricks/sprint/FoK the whole first hallway in H UP, I will exit the instance if you force a pace that I’m not comfortable with or the healer can’t handle.
When dpsing or healing heroics I try to be aware of the tank’s capabilities, MD to him at the start of pulls, pay extra attention to his health pool, etc… because I’ve been there too and many people make it hell on them.
Under 28k hp and barely def-capped? I’ll stick around to heal you no matter how many dps cycle through the group. Healer in blues? I’ll pull as conservatively as I can and cycle my cooldowns to make your life easier. Over-geared dps acting retarded? You’re on your own.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
6 
0
I´m a tank since I started playing WoW and only have one character. I just can say that I miss TBC instances…. I know that some of them where really really hard but people knew that if they didnt work as a team they wouldnt pass not a single boss, so they use all sort of CC to mitigate dmg, waited for instructions and learn with every run. Nowadays, everyone think that everything is a tank and spank and the tank should have the aggro even if he is not in the instance, doing 100k dps is great I know, but whats the point of that if your going to be killed in the next 5 secs. As Napoleon said, “Slowly because I am in a hurry”. Rushing things can lead you to a disaster and far from going faster you will have to start over.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
5 
0
as a under-geared tank one thing to remember is that agro dumps have cool downs. so some time its best to slow down to give them time to be up for the next pull. dont let dps push you to pull faster just because they all have 5k gs.
and tanks please look at your party’s gs if they are near you in gs pull as u normaly would. if they are way above you or below you slow down it will make the run faster.
Like or Dislike:
2 
0
And FFS learn wtf /assist is. It’s not that f’n hard. It’s not there as an easter egg.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
4 
0
As a tank and healer I love this article. The down side though with some tanks is they dont know their limit. I know what me as a player can handle. I cant handled HHor and I wont tank it sorry if I have ever bailed on any of you but I know I cant do it. A tank with 50k life and no mitigation is like healing a tank that is not d-capped. So dont get mad if your healer cant keep you or the raid up and goes oom even though they have a sweet gs do your homework.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
4 
0
I agree with the guidelines.
I have 4 lvl 80 alts and all are dps spec, my first alt was a tank and recieved nothing but abuse if someone died and was always rushed if using a pug outside the guild, this is one of the main reasons stopped tanking.
I also have a priest and for the same reasons stopped healing.
neither a healer or a tank can be carried in an instance but a poor dps can hide any inexperiance or flaws in gameplay.
I will always defend and help a tank or healer where i can even to any detriment to my own reputation.
The one issue i do have is that the current breed of tank believe they are elite and a typical example occured today when on an alt asked for a mana break before a boss fight and was riddiculed.
any succesfull heroic or raid relys upon everyone working as a group/team for everyones benefit.
Like or Dislike:
3 
1
Just been running a newly dinged Pally through Hc’s in healer and tank specs..really quick to find groups. Downside…find that “I’m indestructible” tank while healing and he suddenly isn’t so indestructible….becuase he hasn’t got a fully epic geared healer behind him. On the tanking side I experienced almost every one of the situations above…best part of being a pally tho is “/p Next ninja pull I will bubble and HS!!!” That reins in the DPS something fierce and problem solved!
Like or Dislike:
2 
0
These are ALL the reasons I HATE tanking. I’m not a complete noob, but I don’t play often, and I don’t play as well as most people. Some days I do great, other times I get nervous when people do (all of the above).
Like or Dislike:
3 
1
Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
Poorly-rated. Like or Dislike:
3 
6
I really like this article. I agree totally with it also one thing I would like to add. Learn how different tanks generate threat. Nothing will get me to drop group quicker than people who dont allow me to do my job.
Like or Dislike:
2 
1
Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
Poorly-rated. Like or Dislike:
2 
8
Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
Poorly-rated. Like or Dislike:
3 
8
with the above comment i dont know if you know this but in some cases yes it is the tanks fault if they die….
IE… healer cant handle the trash pulls the tank does(then yes tanks fault) a tank should be conscious of how good a healer can heal.
with that being said if a tank is doing his normal job and he dies… it would be your fault as a healer because you weren’t healing him. worry about the tank not the dps. thats your main priority.
i play a warrior tank and rarely find it difficult for a healer to keep up with me on trash pulls so if you happen to let a tank die. i do hope its on a very large trash pull that you cant handle to heal.
i dont know how you can sit and say its a tanks fault for dying when your healing. haha earth to healer… if you let the tank die everyone will die. Learn healing priorities.
so take your own advice and you cant fix stupid. and well if you let the tank die on a heroic fight with a small trash pull then you sir/ma’am are stupid. and you will die as well.
if a dps charges in and says ” sorry wasn’t paying attention” i in return say sorry i forgot to taunt. because i shouldn’t have to deal with stupidity. especially if youve been playing awhile and know the instances your in. i may be an ass. but waiting for the tank will save you a repair bill.
all in all people should be aware of what there doing and the roles they play. tanks have one focus hold aggro. healers have one focus… heal tank (then dps) dps have one priority… beat shit up.
why is that so hard for people to do
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
7 
1
Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
Poorly-rated. Like or Dislike:
3 
14
In my first, long comment to this, I forgot something. Whether I am tanking, healing or DPSing, I do understand mistakes will happen. I’ve seen all kinds of funny things over the years and some of it is hilarious. we should all try to be patient and understanding of mistakes or accidents. Remember that isn’t real gold you are spending even if you wipe.
Like or Dislike:
2 
0
If healer dies: Tanks fault
If tank dies: Healers fault
If DPS dies: DPS´ fault
As a tank I totally agree, esp. with the “gogogo” part. Even tanks want to loot or give healers time to mana up. Tho to some classes the “mana thing” will always be a mystery.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
6 
1
Not very constructive, ‘warrior tank’ … but very well
Have posted comment on this topic before, but I thought I’d just share my experience of a random. Other’s have had this happen too, so they’ll know what I mean.
Somehow, me and a guildie (4.3k GS, I’m 5.1k) who I was pugging with for the random daily ended up with a very low-end group. The tank was 4.5k, the healer was 4.1k, and the other DPS was 3.8k (wow low) – at times I struggled to ensure that i didn’t pull aggro with even my toned down rotation of 3xAB->MB/AB. I had to tone down even further on occasion.
However, this was okay, because the group never had any worries come boss time – because when my threat was low enough I revved up the DPS until I was in danger of pulling, i’d tone down again.
End result? Oculus finished in about 15 mins max, everyone happy, no deaths, bosses downed quicker than anything, therefore less stress on tank and healer, who’s gear was not really up to the task of supporting a significantly higher geared DPS.
Just because you’re imba 1337 awesome, you should never discount those that are coming up in the ranks, because we were all there once. Learn to understand the group dynamic, and don’t be a part of the problem
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
10 
2
The article is very telling about why there are so few tanks. It’s true that tanks make or break instances; however, everyone has to work as a whole. Communication is key when battling baddies. The healer and the tank both have to be ready for the pull when the time comes. Marking is important in lower-level groups, dps have to know what to kill so as to keep the group going; now that everyone can mark it is a lot easier to stay alive and keep going. Healers need their mana, and some times I feel that the tanks are pushing too hard now; they just keep pulling till the healer snaps and everyone dies and the group splits because the group as a whole wouldn’t slow down. I feel this can be avoided if the party communicates that things need to happen.
Also, don’t forget to compliment a good tank/healer and to point out the things they do right, not just what they do wrong. Dps too need to be let know that they do good jobs, not just, “hey where’s the dps?” but, “good job guys” and “nice dps” to let them know that they’re doing things right and aren’t holding the group back. In order for a group to be cogent the entirety of it must communicate and give feed back to improve the total flow of the experience.
Like or Dislike:
3 
0
I’m an ICC geared lock and do heroics puely for the Frosting and have been raiding since SWP. There’s been a seachange in heroics, CC and optionality is irrelevant these days and everything is a tank and spank, rendering the entire heroic experience mindless. (try H-MGT at level 70!)
Even at low gear levels, heroics haven’t been much of a challenge in LK. So many don’t understand their class or don’t care anymore, which is sad really.
I’ve levelled a pally to 80 and switching to prot. Given I’ve not tanked before, I made sure to get 102.4% and building up BV to ensure a reasonable group experience. I know dungeons but not all tanking tactics, but only way to learn that is to do it.
Key thing missing is consideration and sense of humour on every side. Play the game and know what you’re doing. I’ve seen way too much Tank v Heals, Tank v DPS, Heals v DPS slanging.
ICC raiders need to learn that a heroic is a 200-232 gear level experience and stop expecting raid level awareness/behaviour. Believe it or not a heroic CAN take more than 15 minutes and wipes are not the end of the world.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
8 
0
I’ve played as raid (and intance) tank, both bear and moonkin (whilst it was viable), since beta so I’ve seen pretty much everything that can happen in an instance at each stage of the game. Current bear gear is a bit good to say the least but running lower geared ppl through makes the instances a lot more fun.
Suffice to say that I don’t mind ppl wanting a fast run either and saying gogogo so long as I have the rage to actually do something once I’ve pulled (to be fair I mostly tune out party chat whilst tanking), I’ll pull anything up to 3 packs at once IF and only if the healer/dps have shown they are up to the job on previous bosses/mobs that they can cope with the healing required and won’t do so much AoE threat before I can round them up that they end up dead. Means some people have to wait but even with 70% of attacks not hitting me and 43k basic health I’m not going to rush an instance when other people aren’t up to it.
One thing I would add is that dps should really not start yelling at a tank (or healer) whilst a pull (especially a large one) is in progress using party chat/vent/raid warings without really good cause. Most of the time we’re too damn busy keeping an eye on what mobs are where, and what effects are going off so the DPS aren’t standing in a zone of death or about to be catapulted into another pack, to see what you said or even moreso to respond to you.
Only other thing is even at the high gear end I still get moaned at for gem choices (defence/stam in yellow slots). Hopefully someone will read it here and not have to ask the next overcapped tank they meet. Defence gives a miss (and dodge) chance increase in addition to it’s other effects.
For a druid tank approaching 60k raid buffed health and 40+% dodge in ICC getting more reduction in damage isn’t easy (so miss% is a nice way to beat diminishing returns) and more health won’t help much. Please don’t pester me about why I’ve gemmed/enchanted the way I have when I’m plenty geared for everything I’m going to run with you.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
4 
0
I know this DPS person who pulls threat from the tank in both 5 mans, 10 mans and 25 mans. He is very good DPS for his class and tops the DPS meters always (if he manages to stay alive) but when asked why he doesn’t use his class specific threat reducer his reply is
The tanks should be able to hold agro.
Now I’ve been a tank at a few raids he has been on and it’s like we play ping pong with threat. He pulls agro then I taunt, then he agro again and I taunt again. He is told over ventrilo and yelled to at in raid to drop threat. He still doesn’t.
It’s a shame too. He is really good DPS.
Like or Dislike:
3 
0
This is a great article and I hope a lot of folks will read this and pay attaention. However the mind set in WoW nowdays does not maek this seem probable.
Here have been my experiences as a tank. Most geared DPs act like arrogant jerks and just rush the tank and the group as a whole. Several even “pull for the tank” without being asked. I call them on it and get them to stop or I leave the group. I’m not all about speed runs, i like to do the instances the way they are intended to be done. Part of the problems i see with other players is they do not take the instances serously anymore once they are geared, they just assume everyone is geared, which is far from true. Because all they want are their “frosties” they assume that is all anyone wants, again, not true. A lot of fresh 80s need their rep and their triumph emblems. As geared tanks we should be keeping a reasonable pace, watching the healer’s mana and not getting our DPS folks trashed by trying to pull too much and causing aggro problems. Every tank should follow certain rules in any instance, not following these rules leads to certain bad habits. Always pull as few bad guys as possible, 1 if possible, it makes it easier on everyone. watch your healer’s mana, and don’t be afraid to ask what to do if you are somewhere new. We have all had to learn the fights at some time.
Worst experience as a tank, some DPS clowns in HoS said I was going too slow and we should have been done with the instance after 7 minutes. I told them to bring their own tank and dropped group when they started “pulling faster for me”. What they stupidly failed to see was that the healer was my friend in my guild, and she left with me. LOL.
As a healer, I hate the self-called “epic” “speed run” tanks. I mean, yeah you can loot while you fight, I cannot. I need to stay back, heal everyone, and after the fight i need time to loot and get mana. You think doing triple or quadruple pulls make you a great tank ,no it doesn’t, it just proves that you have a great healer that keeps you and the party up through your arrogant insanity. Stop patting yourself on the back, raising your own esteem above everyone else, just tank and do your job for the group like you are suppose to. The so called “speed run” is the worst because inevtiably they ignore when i say “mana” and they run way out of my heal range and pull, then we all wipe. How is that faster than just doing the pulls the right way? It isn’t. And DPS, you need to watch your aggro. I don’t care if you do 5K DPs or more, if you want heals, you will NOT pull off the tank every pull. I will allow the occasional mistake, it happens, but not every tank is as geared as you are, and I will let you die if you do not find your aggro threshold within a few pulls. And I don’t want to see or hear about Recount, we are suppose to be a team, be a team player. Finally, you plate wearing DPS geared folks, you are NOT tanks. NO! I have managed to heal a couple of you thru instances, well, no more. Either be DEF capped or i drop group. I actually had someone in all DPs gear blame me for not healing them enough. If you are not geared to be the tank, then do not select “tank”, it takes more than plate armor.
Worst experiences as a healer, 1 tank could not get over how much he “hates new 80s”. I reminded him we all start somewhere and this was my 4th 80 anyway, but after the third such remark I told him to bring his own healer and dropped group. Another time, a “epic in his own mind” tank got through 4 combined pulls in under a minute, and no his aggro was not perfect so everyone had to be healed, and he complained that my mana had dropped to 40%. I told him the same about bringing his own and left.
ALL tanks should appreciate that, while they are the primary target for the healer, they are not the only person receiving heals and party heals cost more mana. We wish we were all just single target healing, but too many creatures do AOEs and such. So, yeah, even if you are “epic” your aggro does NOT always prevent others from being hurt.
As a DPS, life is usually pretty grand, easy street. Just don’t run over the tanks, aggro and you should be ok. The easiest way to do that is to follow the tank’s target. There are a number of ways to do that and it is very simple, there is little excuse for not doing it. Do not always expect the tank to mark, sometimes it just isn’t possible, like CoS. And to all the geared DPs folk, just remember, when you were a new 80, you weren’t doing 3K dps right off the bat either. Give the new folks a chance. and do NOT pull unless the tank specifically asks you to, it is just not right. Do your job, have a little patience with the tank and heals, because they keep you safe, and you will have a good time always.
Worst comment, maybe dumbest, I ever heard from another DPS was that he “doesn’t go by gear, I go by spec” in what he expects out of someone else’s DPS. Namely he was complaining that my alt’s DPs was too low. Well, let’s see he was fully decked out in all the latest badge epics, my new 80 alt was wearing mostly blues and nothing with an item level over 200. You figure it out.
Folks,remember a few things and we’ll all get along better and have more fun. It is just a game, it is not life or death, not really. In the game we rez and the bad guys respawn. No matter how good or great you are or think you are now, try to remember how you started, maybe your friends heped you, maybe you did it all yourself, but either way at some point you were a noob too. And at some point you weren’t all level 80 and decked out in ICC epics, so try to be polite to each other.
Blizzard, curse you for nerfing so many of the dungeons, old world especially, and making so much of the game way too easy. This has led to even lowbies acting in instances like foolish children. Doing things that in the past would have meant a party wipe and lessoned learned, now they easilyet away with it. This is whay so many new 80s and new people do not realize how hard instances can be and they should repsect their party roles.
“Gets down off the soapbox.”
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
13 
0
Bassiclly either know a tank be a tank or deal with the long ques tanks are not required to que so you can get emblems and as a tank that raids i do not do my heroics everyday tanks gear quick cause the most in a grp at 1 time is 2 mabye 3 so we will be raiding in 2 weeks max and be neglecting heroics.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
so many things i agree on with this article…
Having been a tank since level 10 on my 1st char (a warrior back in vanilla WoW), I’ve been through the highs and lows of tanking, theres good groups and theres bad groups
right now i have my paladin (my new main, still prot though) and my warrior as my tanks. nothing annoys me more than the following on either of them:
People who tell me how to do my job: Your a dps, i dont care if you have a million tanking alts, right now your dpsing. stick to that job and dont tell the tanks and healers what to do unless they say they are inexperienced (dont be ashamed to admit you havnt been into an instance/raid before, most people are understanding)
People who think big numbers on recount = pro!: for the love of god… you may be pushing 10k dps (Its over 9000?) but what good is that to anyone when your chewing the floor for most of the fight. most if not all classes can get rid of aggro in 1 way or another, use your cooldowns if your getting to much aggro and swap to a different mob… or even better, focus on the 1 the tank is focusing on! (target the tank, click F)
i could go on for like…. another 10 paragraphs, but im not going to, those are my two main annoyance points!
Like or Dislike:
3 
0
I came into WoW pretty late in the game. A year after it came it. To some people that isn’t very late at all. I played a mage, a warlock, a resto druid, a enhance shaman and several other dps/healing classes. When I made my paladin I obviously had ZERO idea how to tank. So I dps’d my way to 80, dps’d my way to tank gear and decided to give it a shot. Luckily I had the best group ever with me. They taught me how to do it and we went dungeon by dungeon and the tagged along. We did this for a week and then heroics and then the time for raiding finally came.
I did my first raid because of that first good and helpful dungeon group. If it hadn’t have been for them I probably never would have tanked. Now I’m a 3226 gearscore tankadin tanking ICC on heroic modes even! I’m in a great guild and I’m glad I had that group.
Be nice to your tanks, they may turn out like I did.
Like or Dislike:
3 
0
As a prot pally who was kicked out of several groups after hitting 80 with hearing the words “if you’re under 5k GS then gtfo” of something like heroic UK, I found this article very helpful for those tanks just starting out and for the overgearred dps. One of the biggest problems I’ve seen in Wrath is that the teamwork mentality needed to do a lot of the endgame content is lost, as people only care about their dps and if they pull off the tank and die then they want to sit there and start the mass qq’ing. We all did start somewhere and yes a tank should be able to get reasonably geared from triumph badges within a couple weeks, but when i go into a random as dps and see that the tank is a little undergeared and I hit 90% threat, I back the hell off until tank gets aggro back. So many people have forgotten that concept.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
4 
0
*Agree*.. This is the reason I stop’d tanking!!
GOgo… “I’m not a dancer Fool!!! Im a Tank” Now play your part, STOP asking for DPS meter, and Attack Marked Targets..!! I think everyone knows the order..(Vanilla or NOOb) Skull,X are always the 1st and 2nd targets.
“Dont Blame Me!! blame the healer”, He did’nt heal you in time..lol What a JOKE! Besides the tank .I think the Healer has the biggest responsability in your group/raid. Thats why I became one!! Haha =p
Now I Drop totems,Earth shild my Tank splash’m with a bit of Shammy Juices and We tell Dps a GOGO ..lol
I think ALL DPS should read this..lol or even re-roll and play that Tank/healer you so wanna blame …
“Tha Shammy Behind the Tank, I wont let ya get Spank’d” =p
Like or Dislike:
1 
0
I’ve been playing a dk tank since wrath came out, and am now at the point where if I am careful I can solo most heroics. That being said, really bothers me when lesser geared DPS and Healers see a geared tank like myself and just assume they can do stupid things like running ahead and pulling full rooms of mobs. Just because I am capable of picking up a dozen mobs and surviving doesn’t mean I want to. If I want to pull a ton, I will. If you want to pull a ton, don’t bitch when I let you die for doing it.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
4 
0
It is the Healer’s role to keep the tank alive (foremost), to keep the group alive, to remove harmful effects (if possible), and to provide additional utility.
It is the DPS’s role to destroy the enemy while keeping under the tank’s threat, to CC, and to provide additional utility.
It is the tank’s role to stay above the healer’s threat, to CC, to provide additional utility, and to generally lead the group/party/raid (however this is not always the case).
DPS have tools to stay under the tank’s threat. Use them. If a DPS either goes in first and pools, or decides to willingly pull threat off me, this is not the DPS I would enjoy in my group.
I honestly thought this was an easy concept, but after playing for a while, I was horribly mistaken.
Me: I had to do a taunt rotation to keep that guy from killing you!
Friend: Yea, but did you see my DPS on that pull?!
No, I didn’t, and I really don’t care.
Don’t get me wrong, I hate death. I don’t want to see any of my party dead. I take my role seriously. But please, and I stress ‘please’, don’t test me. I’m playing the game for enjoyment, not to constantly have panic attacks whenever a DPS decides to pull several groups of mobs or a boss.
The author declares these suggestions as things to do to help a new tank. Honestly, these are all things to do to help every tank.
Oh, and if you’re doing a DPS doing a random, deciding to pull trash pulls, bosses, and pulling off the tank, don’t post the recount in party chat to show how awesome you are. That’s just disrespectful to everyone in the party, not just to the tank that was about to leave the dungeon because of your inability to do your job, or the healer who had to heal you through things that your gear can’t really handle, but to the other DPS who did their job by staying under the tank’s threat and allowing the healer and the tank to do what they need to.
Sorry, it’s late, and I ramble when it’s late.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
10 
1