Quote Originally Posted by Tanathya View Post
Then again, he was just a protagonist who had to go alone for most of his dark knight time. He had to survive. A tank that doesn't protect, is not a tank;
Okay, RPG history time:

The term 'Tank' originates from the role-playing game's derivation from the wargaming hobby; a 'tank' is, as it was in history, a slow, heavily-armored unit capable of controlling a lot of space around it due to its battlefield presence. Warriors, Paladins, and your general "fighting-man" character were designed as analagous to this 'tank', whereas spellcasters were analagous to artillery units, thieves to lighter infantry and more mobile vehicles, and so forth.

Tanks do not and have not "protected allies by distracting enemies". They control the battlefield with their presence; threat is an abstraction of this presence.