How would they fix PLD 4.0?

[ChloeGrace]

-Make SwO level 30 reward and ShO level 40

Ehhh, that's how it is now. Did you mean Shield Oath at 30 and Sword Oath at 40?

[ToasterMan]

I think the only way they'll ever truly fix it is if they do something about this DPS meta that's run amok

[Claire_Pendragon]

In content where the paladin isnt expected to do anything other than main tank there's not so much of an issue. It's the 4 man content where it feels so generic and cookie cutter and downright broken compared to WAR and Dark.
Paladin would feel so much smoother if they would simply do the following:
-Make SwO level 30 reward and ShO level 40
-Make Shield Swipe an oGCD high potency aoe
-access to Circle of Scorn at lower level. 50 is too late
-Make Clemency a oGCD close proximity group heal or some sort of party wide attack buff.

I like the Shield Swipe idea! Shield Swipe should be a front Conal AoE though.
(Also, every PLD says tank stance should have been 30, and 35 at the lowest, DPS stance at 50, not liek u needed DPS stance earlier)
Someone suggested Circle of Scorn spreads your DoT duration from goring blade as well.

Both of these I think would help keep PLD feeling pretty similar to itself already, while giving it SOME sort of AoE mechanics, other than spam 1 button. (Id argue this would actually make it nearly more complex than the other tanks, despite being so basic.)

[Falar]

A nice line AoE like DRG has, or conal like WAR is almost certainly going to be one of the new skills added in 4.0. I think that would solve most of the problems.

I ran lots of dungeons as PLD this weekend for the first time in a while since I switched to DRK main and the lack of AoE is the only thing that bugs me. Single target I have no complaints.

[ADVSS]

That would break my "You were raised by a PLD, feel ashamed" macro...

BWAHAHAHAHA

[Zumi]

The only thing PLD really lacks is aoe damage. If they add a spamable aoe move like drk and war the job would be much better.

[PandaShake]

Just did the level 60 job quest and Solkzagyl used an ability PLD sorely needs.

https://youtu.be/DoWCSi4uKvI?t=994

Make it oGCD without knockback with high enmity. Or maybe give it a wide stun since PLDs have the theme of no cd on stun with Shield Bash.

Give'em this as well. Just like a WoW Paladin's consecration.

[Xenosan]

If your definition of a 'stance' is like mine: meaning provides a mechanic that gates or unlocks affects like so with DRK/WAR, then Sword Oath isn't a stance, it's a free-cost buff that can't be used in tank stance. Only thing that makes it a stance is the 'Oath' suffix it shares with ShO.

paper-stat comparisons of Berserk to FoF, or SW to C&S may suggest PLD is a good shape. But these abilities (including SwO) have to carry more water for PLD than their counterparts on the other tanks. That said the addition of a single ability could be the difference in where PLD fits in performance. I think SE is going to handle it fine, shocking confession.

So I'm more curious about how low level PLD/GLA is going to be affected by the combat change. If PLD sees new abilities at low level - replacing what is now lvl22's Provoke, lvl32's Awareness, and/or lvl10's Convalescence - that change combined with lvl 70 skills would add up to significant retooling.

I can't imagine Conva and Awareness not making it into the Role pool. Warrior is already getting shafted losing Internal Release, it'd be just extra salt to take away these two other skills that synergy so well for them.

Or I'm completely misinterpreting what they are doing with the role skills / cross class adjustment.

[Claire_Pendragon]

If your definition of a 'stance' is like mine: meaning provides a mechanic that gates or unlocks affects like so with DRK/WAR, then Sword Oath isn't a stance, it's a free-cost buff that can't be used in tank stance. Only thing that makes it a stance is the 'Oath' suffix it shares with ShO.

For the sake of discussion, I actually feel this definition wouldnt be best, due to abilities like Sneak Attack and Trick attack.
(Also, not only do tanks have stances in MMOs, so saying it cant work with tank stance isnt a very good example either.)

While Stances CAN effect which abilities u can or cant use through gating, they can also not do this.
They are more so a category of "Buff".
But the most common being a buff that lasts until you switch it off, rather than having a timed duration.
The second most important feature of it being called a stance, and not just a perma buff, is that it has to change your stats enough to change your playstyle.
Going from Tank to DPS for example. (More akin to changing roles, but sometimes you hold your role, while still changing stances)
It still remains possible to retains the exact same rotation, while trying to switch into a "DPS" rotation as a tank, solely from poor class design.
Which doesnt change if a type of buff is a stance or not. (2.x PLD being a great example of this, where they had no DPS rotation, so nothing changed for them.)

The 3rd most common definition of a Stance, also required that you couldnt have 2 stances on at the same time.
But with DRKs Darkside being a good example, it was only a matter of time, before that changed as well. (Technically it does have an MP cost, with an ever changing duration, but what if an MMO made the same mechanic, but with no MP cost? Which makes us have to redefine what a Stance is again.)

So now, a "Stance" is better explained as being the above 2, with occasional variations such as "Gating abilities" or "Stacking with another stance".

[ADVSS]

It would be really simple if they want to just have flash do blind naturally and its trait should add damage, Well this would work and be beneficial for even the other tanks to at least think about cross classing it for some instances(featherfoot on warrior, dark dance on DRK) but considering the removal of cross class, flash will probably just go to the wayside, and maybe itll be retooled for damage on pld, I mean it seems like a common sense solution to the aoe problem and early level tanking.