Paladin and Dark Knight

[Sarcatica]

to OP, do whatever you feel like doing, both tanking jobs are viable. It's really not a day and night situation until you reach A8S (and even then, if you and your team are very competent, you don't ever need int down to survive). You don't really need Delirium/Dragon Kick for int down in A7S if your team goes for full VIT right side for progression/clear. my 2cents.

TLDR: Do both PLD/DRK if you can, if not, doesn't really matter until you get into raiding more seriously.

[therpgfanatic]

You'll be best served with the DRK honestly, since they can actually do AoE DPS which contributes to clearing content faster. PLD's defensive cooldowns really only matter because PLD take damage longer than other tanks, since PLD contribute very little to DPS as compared to DRK and WAR's DPS output.

This is a game about killing enemies, and all tanks have equal damage mitigation but do not have equal DPS output. Thus the tank who kills enemies faster will always be the better tank. Your incoming damage decreases when mobs die faster.

[Violette]

While warriors aoe is easily the best, paladins are not that lamentable in aoe for >5 mobs, given that multidotting as a paladin is actually quite potent. Dark knight also will have the issue of mp drain associated with aoeing draining their resources rather quickly when BP is not up.

Not to say it's close to warrior, just that your underestimating plds aoe on >5 mobs. After that things start to get wonky. (When you cannot keep dots up semi-reliably on all mobs at the same time)

[Xenosan]

If you've got the time to drop Goring Blades on more than five mobs and those subsequent Gorings get to tick their full duration,

your group is taking an awfully long time to kill them. That's if I'm understanding what you meant correctly.

[Falar]

I have both at L60. I don't really have the desire to play PLD anymore, I just don't enjoy it as much.

Now the PLD gained so much in HW it is MUCH better than it was.....so much so that synced 50 content is unplayble to me as PLD now. Seriously, one combo?

[Anubis_Nephthys]

PALADIN : Great defense, no problem to manage TP (like the MRD) or MP (like the DRK), only one rotation
DRK : Technical, many CD, classy with his greatsword.

I prefer DRK but i play both...

Your PLD info is wrong...
PLDs are the only class with a significant resource issue. WARs have equilibrium, and DRKs run out of TP way later than PLD (Their MP argument is moot because DRKs keep their MP up). Why do you say only one rotation? PLDs have RH, RA, GB just like WAR has BB, SE, SP.

[Violette]

If you've got the time to drop Goring Blades on more than five mobs and those subsequent Gorings get to tick their full duration,

your group is taking an awfully long time to kill them. That's if I'm understanding what you meant correctly.

Partially correct.

The other part is that once you hit 5 mobs, 2.44x3x5 = 36.6, which means you cannot keep goring blade up at all times. For 4 or less, you can keep it up on all them, or 3> you can flash and keep it up at all times.

The other part is yes, if you've got time to dot up 5 foes and it tick the full duration, then your group is taking too long and you've misjudged the aoe capabilites.

i.e. you wouldn't pull 8? mobs with 2 ninjas and an astralogian as a paladin. That's just going to be there for a while.

[Anubis_Nephthys]

It really comes down to what you want out of the tank you play. I\\'ve played both rather extensively at 60, and I personally prefer Paladin.

Paladin:
> Simple, rigid rotation without much flexibility. [GB>RA>RA]
> Very few off-gcd attacks which weave in easily to the rotation.
> Powerful defensive toolkit makes you a rather substantial defensive tank.
> Easy stance dancing - your Mana is essentially worthless, so changing stance is completely free.

Psssttttt, WAR is the one with free stance dancing. It costs PLDs a GCD.

[JackFross]

Psssttttt, WAR is the one with free stance dancing. It costs PLDs a GCD.

It doesn't interrupt combos, and it costs essentially 0 resources. It's for all intents and purposes a free swap, when comparing it to Dark Knight, as this thread asked me to do. Turning Grit on costs you 75% of a Dark Arts - it drains a resource you care about, rather than two casts of it (shield and then sword) costing you literally nothing other than DPS.

[Violette]

It doesn't interrupt combos, and it costs essentially 0 resources. It's for all intents and purposes a free swap, when comparing it to Dark Knight, as this thread asked me to do. Turning Grit on costs you 75% of a Dark Arts - it drains a resource you care about, rather than two casts of it (shield and then sword) costing you literally nothing other than DPS.

And War Stance Dancing to TANK does not immediately increase total EHP and from TANK immediately decreases total eHP, so it has it's own negative effect, but turning on ShO will IMMEDIATELY give a eHP increase of any % of HP.