Need advice: Stun tanking

[RapBreon]

Ifrit has a very specific pattern, all you have to do it learn it. Reaction time ceases to be a real issue after that.

[Kal-El]

Just remember Ifrits pattern like before.

Just a note that all Eruptions can be survived without stunning. And by stunning 1 or 2 plumes by accident isn't the end of the world.

Just auto attack and always watch the cast bar. After you've stunned him use fight or flight and circle of scorn. Then back to auto attack and wait for stun

[Cookie_Monster]

It can just get disheartening when people get personal when you failed to catch an eruption. I had someone quoting a character back story I had written on my loadstone page to make fun of me. If you don't like the fight, leave. Don't be a bully.

I'm not into RPing in MMO's, but I was curious as to what you had wrote as your back story and decided to check it out. I must say I really like it, take care and good luck on getting your sword .

[Bhaelor]

The real issue in my opinion is that anyone's primary responsibility in any boss encounter is to auto-attack and stun. Not the best way to enjoy an encounters mechanics, I'd say. Don't sweat the idiots that take things too seriously, and remember your blacklist is for more than just gold spammers =).

[Hachiko]

The biggest improvement you can make is to put the monster's target bar somewhere REALLY obvious. If you haven't moved it, move it now. I have mine about 1/3 of the way down the screen. Other people place it right above their skill/crossbar.

Do this. It will make it easier to watch the bar by a huge degree, and the first few runs just keep your eyes on that cast bar, make sure it says the right skill, and then stun.

I swear positioning of the target bar/castbar can make interrupting 90% easier.

Once you get pro at it you'll be able to work in some damage dealing while you're on stun duty. Just sit in Sword oath the whole time, and run through your Riot blade combo 2 times, then expect an eruption, stop, wait for it, hit it, then go back to dpsing for another 2 or 3 combos.

It's actually fun to try and dps and interrupt, and shows a pretty good mastery of the mechanics. If you get good enough you can tank AND interrupt at the same time, which can really impress people if you get the chance to do it.

[GrimmWulf]

I can understand if its a latency issue and what not and I truly am not trying to be rude or mean, but if you have been tanking for 10 years, how are you not fluent in interrupting.
Seen as this a often a job that tanks are required to do in the majority of MMO's, how is it not something you have tried to work on or naturally got better at through sheer volume of game time.

I just find it hard to believe that interrupting is not built into your play style considering your 10 years of tanking.

Truly not trying to troll or be rude, just curious how this comes about ?

[Thagyr]

I'm a long time tank myself, and while interrupting isn't a new concept for me, the 'type' of latency present in FFXIV has made me question my own abilities in this regard as well. Take WoW as a base example, when I hit a interrupt on a cast I know I've interrupted it. Here I hit a stun/silence on a cast bar and then have to hold my breath waiting to see if I hit it at the right time due to the ever-shifting delay in the game. I've stunned Ifrit with his cast-bar up only to see him cast eruption despite the stun debuff present on him. Trying to judge where that invisible delay starts and ends makes interrupting annoying, even with a pattern to follow.

[PessimiStick]

Copied from another thread (probably from Reddit):

PHASE 2:

Eruption - Stun
4 GCDs
Eruption - Stun
4 GCDs
Teleport

This repeats until he shouts "Succumb to the inferno!". Then you are in phase 3.

PHASE 3:

4 GCDs
Knockback
Eruption - Stun
Outside Plume + 4 GCDs
Eruption - Stun
Inside Plume + 4 GCDs
Teleport

This repeats until he shouts "Surrender thyself to the fires of
judgement!" and calls down the nails. Then you are in phase 4.

PHASE 4 (NAILS):

Knockback
Eruption - Stun
7 GCDs
Eruption - Stun

Nails die, he exploads, you're in phase 5.

PHASE 5:

Outside Plume + 4 GCDs
Inside Plume
Eruption - Stun
Hug the boss Plume + 4 GCDs
Knockback
Eruption - Stun
4 GCDs
Teleport


Note that it doesn't actually enter the next phase until he teleports/charges. i.e.: Phase 5 DOES NOT START when he hellfires, but when he teleports AFTER hellfire.

[Jaminos]

Well I'm pleased to say with the earlier post about the rotation I have had a much higher success rate. Though I am more affirmed in believing that there is a tiny latency between when I hit stun and when it actually lands. I am fairly hot on the trigger now, especially since I made a hot bar just for stun tanking.

However I am still learning with it. I sometimes get confused after the nail phase as to my stun rotation. I still interrupt the plumes on phase 4 on occasion and I catch myself half a second to late because I sometimes forget he dues plume outer then inner then eruption. Or I will get knocked back and sometimes forget the rotation I was at so I have to waist precious time, reading the cast text.

As to answer how I have been tanking for 10 years and not be good at stunning. I have tanked many MMO's over the years and Asian MMO's usually require faster reaction times. For example, every dungeon in this game is timed. You have to be quick and efficient.