Would this be viable? I like to experiment!

[erkhardt]

Hello all, below is a build breakdown of using the PGL as a tank! How viable would this be (not for Coil, CT and/or HM & Extreme Trials) in your honest opinion? Any tips for making it more effective?

Pugilist Tank Lvl. 50 Build (overworld use mainly, NOT ALL instances; lower level runs)
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Gear: Fists of Crags -----Titan (HM) *(can't use Monk specific gear)
Fuma Gantai -----LoA
Fuma Koromo -----LoA
Fuma Tekko --------LoA
Fuma Obi------------LoA
Fuma Hakama------LoA
Fuma Kyahan-------LoA

Accessories: the "Fending" ilevel 90 variety

PGL Skills required:

Bootshine/Arm of the Destroyer (opo-opo/silence abilities)
Twin Snakes/True Strike (raptor/increased damage)
Snap Punch/ Demolish (coeurl/DoT)

Fists of Earth (enhanced defense buff)
Fists of Wind (enhanced speed buff)
Steel Peak (stun)
Mantra (great for helping your healer heal you)
Second Wind (insta-heal, no MP)
Featherfoot (enhanced evasion)
Internal Release (optional)
Perfect Balance (optional)

Cross-Class Skills required:
Cure/Physick [(one of the two) heal for MP]
Feint (slow)
Foresight (20sec enhanced defense)
Savage Blade (single target enmity increase with damage)
Keen Flurry (enhanced parry rate)
Protect [(use with Fists of Wind!) reduces damage taken]
Flash (AoE enmity increase)
Provoke (single target enmity increase with no damage)
Invigorate (restore 400 TP)
Raise (optional)
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Plan of Attack:

Begin Battle with Fists of Earth and Protect activated; immediately use Flash to gain mob enmity (Flash
is your lover as a PGL Tank). You will be using Flash repeatedly throughout all battles, the healer will be healing
your PGL more-so than with a dedicated tank, so you will need to manage the enmity towards your healer for
healing you. Whichever target you are focused on you will open with Feint for the reduced attack speed which
also reduces the damage you take. Refresh as needed. Provoke and/or Savage Blade can be used as needed to
increase enmity on a focused target. When an enemy is preparing a skill/spell, use Steel Peak and/or Arm of the
Destroyer to cancel the skill/spell execution if possible. Featherfoot should be used at all times when the skill
procs to aid damage mitigation. Keen Flurry and Foresight are best saved for Boss encounters and/or particularly
nasty mobs. Use Mantra during Boss fights as well to aid your healer should you find yourself taking more than
normal damage. Cure/Physick, Raise, and Protect are best used on yourself if you are alone or doing FATEs with
this build. In a dungeon you have your healer. Second Wind is your Oh S*** button. Finally, Fists of Wind between
mobs as you do not have access to Shoulder Tackle as a PGL.

This build is not dependant on rotations like the Monk is; this build is more situational and requires attention
to detail and an understanding of the enmity meter beneath the names of your party members. Your focus is not
dealing damage, and you won't be. If you can keep your Greased Lightning effect up however, your skills will be
executed more quickly (that is why there are still PGL form skills here). Perfect Balance can mitigate alot of lost
time building three stacks of GL, if you choose to use it when it is needed most (Bosses).

[Donjo]

Actually, as a DPS class with no good enmity building skills, a Pugilist would fail to be a Tank merely because of enmity. While it is arguably true that Pugilists are the most defensive DPS class(due to Fists of Earth, Second Wind, and Mantra being native), your ability to deal damage and therefore build threat is at its lowest when you're attacking an enemy from the front. Your highest enmity generating ability might actually be Flash, and you'll only have enough MP to Flash 3 or 4 times and have no way to get MP back reliably. Additionally, you won't be able to use Savage Blade/Skull Sunder nearly enough because you need to spend 3 out of every 5 GCDs rotating your forms to keep Greased Lightning.

The long story short is that this would barely be viable even in low tier level 50 situations. It would only be acceptable if you were in a party configuration that ensured that enemies died so quickly that it wouldn't matter that you lost threat. An example of this would be taking 3 DPS and a Healer into WP. A Monk or Dragoon "tanks" while AOE classes go completely nuts.

[Nutz]

Unfortunately this wouldn't be at all viable. PGL/MNK deals terrible damage when facing a mob, and as such produces negligible threat. Aside from flash there really aren't any decent cross class enmity generating moves. Provoke is good to take threat on a single mob whenever it's up, but it only gives you 1 more threat than whoever it was facing before. It doesn't actually build enmity for you unless you're way behind on the threat table. You also left off bloodbath, which can heal for a very significant amount (over time) if you're dealing decent damage. Also, I'm fairly certain PGL can never use raise unless they wear piety gear.

PGL was fairly tanky in 1.0, but they changed pretty much everything that made that work (taunt, featherfoot guaranteeing that you dodge the next move, haymaker stunning the target, etc.)

[erkhardt]

"Your highest enmity generating ability might actually be Flash, and you'll only have enough MP to Flash 3 or 4 times and have no way to get MP back reliably. "

This would definitely be a detrimental thing here. I did not know that MP scaled with level, as I have mainly just played with DoW classes. Glad you guys told me what would and wouldn't work! Never used this build before, just curious if it would work!

[wicked-one]

We will only know if someone tries, so...

[Quor]

Can you bring a class that sleeps adds? If so the enmity becomes a lot easier to maintain, as you can open with Savage then build GL, then Savage twice, refresh GL repeat. On a single target you might be able to hold aggro once you get going. Incoming damage and longevity might be your downfall.

Needless to say, the best that can be said is it would be very conditional in use.

[SeraviEdalborez]

You're not limited to an i80 weapon. The only weapons that are class locked are relics. Soldiery weapon, EX weapon, even Allagan weapons are usable by classes.

Even if you spammed Skull Sunder, you'd find it pretty impossible to keep hate.

[Tyurru]

You'd need to work around more i100/110 gear with higher class weapons, as Seravi said even with Skull Sunder spam, you would atleast need the dps to back up your hate, if not a WHM medica II would rip hate off you like it does most bad tanks.

Sol and HA gear are both class-ok!

[Dano]

sounds fun, definitely try and let us know how it goes.

[silvach]

He said "low dungeons". Medica II ain't available on low level dungeons.

It will be hard mate. I suppose even impossible for dungeons above ~level 26. It's sometimes hard for GLA on lower levels to hold aggro (with RoH available, pre Shield Oath) and they have 5x enmity multiply skills. However, you can try it with group of friends. If they back off every time aggro table skyrocks for them, then it can be fun.

Not viable for any random people content and even medium-level dungeons (30-40).