Getting flanked as a tank?

[Vmage]

I just know when a tank sandwiches themself between mobs I have to focus on healing them. If they position them all in front I can relax and switch in and out of cleric stance, or do my favorite thing, and designate myself as the peanut gallery of the raid. Does autoattack do that much damage? I know magical attacks can't be parried, but you say all other attacks can be parried from any direction?

special attacks are rare.. if you're talking dungeons it's mostly the red cone/circle stuff that tanks should be avoiding entirely anyways

the vast majority of the damage is going to come from autoattacks outside of bosses, for the most part anyways

but, those instant non-telegraphed special attacks are block/parry-able from any angle - i.e. you have your back turned to titan for a mountain buster, you can still parry it