How to make tanks more fun to play (devs please read)

[therpgfanatic]

A PLD in Sword Oath can put out reasonable DPS for a long time (you do get TP starved, but it takes time). A WAR outside of Defiance can do approximately the same. PLD and WAR also get DPS boosting cooldowns (FoF, Berserk, Inner Release).

A WHM can either Holy spam and run out of MP fast doing sort of good DPS, or they can use Stone II/AeroII/FA and be a pretty mediocre DPS. A SCH can do quite well sustaining DPS, but without cooldowns and the pet, their DPS is also going to be quite sub-par compared to SMN.


You really have to remember much of a PLD's DPS is auto-attacks and some off-GCD abilities while a WHM is literally only hitting when they get a spell off.

Auto-attack? Really?

With the sheer amount of movement required in this game (even tanks have to dodge AoEs) what makes anyone honestly believe Sword Oath is a significant DPS increase?

Auto-attacks don't trigger unless you sit and face the enemy. Every time the tanks has to move, he has to stop auto-attacking. This is not the case of other activated attack abilities which can be used while moving. Just about everything in this game has a cone shaped attack that has to be stunned or dodged (and you can only stun so often), so having Sword Oath tied to auto-attacks was a bad idea.

Sword Oath theorycrafting requires a perfect scenario where the Paladin sits in one place the entire time. There are very few fights like that, whether it is a mob pull or a boss encounter.

As for White Mage needing to use MP. Paladins need to use TP. I run out of TP on long fights, too, so I don't see what your point is. Plus our "attacks off the GCD", Circle of Scorn and Spirits Within....Spirits Within does less damage if we aren't at full HP, which isn't gonna be often while tanking. Circle of Scorn does the same damage to an opponent as our auto-attack, sans Sword Oath.