Which of the Tank classes feels the most complete earliest?

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChameleonMS

PLD is the tankiest tank in the early game if you are MSQ locked.
DRK is the most complete tank early if you have already reached Heavensward on a different class. You start at lv30.

AoE damage, very important when pulling larger packs:
PLD - Total Ecplise lv46, and Circle of Scorn at lv50
DRK - Unleash lv6, Dark Passenger lv40, and Salted Earth lv52

Single DPS target rotation:
PLD - Fast Blade, Riot Blade, Goring Blade lv54 / Riot Blade lv60
DRK - Hard Slash, Siphon Strike and Soul Eater lv38

In all situations, DRK gets more of its toolkit soon than the PLD.

You do not need Total Eclipse whatsoever for a PLD. Shield Oath (Lv30) and Flash is more than enough to grab and hold aggro. Before Lv30, use two Flashes at the beginning of each pull and if it's taking awhile to kill everything, throw a third a little bit later. You should never, ever, ever lose hate.

PLDs get Rage of Halone by the time they get to Haukke Manor, so you have a 3-button combo by Lv30. It isn't Goring Blade, but it works fine up until HW levels.

PLD rotation changes when you get Royal Authority at Level 60 (you should use it instead of RoH) but it's still a 1-2-3. Sheltron and Clemency gives you extra tools to optionally use, and later on, Holy Spirit enters the picture (which makes Sheltron and Riot Blade even more important).

In the late 40s and 50 you get Spirits Within and Circle of Scorn, but they are oGCD abilities and can easily be weaved in. You get Total Eclipse, but I find that I only use that when we're facing exceptionally large packs of enemies. I use it for DPS, rather than enmity because seriously, Shield Oath+Flash and/or Circle of Scorn is way more than you should ever need.