First tanking in Brayflox...

[cgbspender]

It was my very first run there as a tank (WAR) and I was expecting quite a downhill, after reading a lot of threads about "how difficult Brayflox can be".

I went in with a friend (Whm) to make sure it would make things easier a bit.
In fact, despite this being my first tank run, I had already runn this dungeon hundreds of times, with all jobs (tanks being the only ones I don't have at 50 yet), so I know the place like the back of my hand.

It went extremely and unexpectedly smooth. I lost aggro a couple of times, which I immediatly grabbed back with provoke and then kept generating aggro, to be certain I wouldn't lose it again.

I always made sure to use marker (#1 was enough), and when the trash was at 5 or 10%, I would switch the #1 to another trash.

Got a bit of anxiety, in the marshes, when one of the dps caught a few patrols by mistake (2 extra mobs + the 3 I had just pulled), but it went OK, the caster ran immediatly to me and I could flash and generate enmity to hold them.

Last boss was a walk in the park. I avoided every frontal attack and moved the dragon out of the poison fairly easily. Being a main Whm helped a lot in there, I knew what's hard to heal, and could recognize the dragon's regen icon as soon as it popped. (I found out it was the very same as a healer's - had no clue it was)

Sooo, just a huge thanks for the golden tips I could read throughout this subforum, they proved very helpful. You guys rock.

[JimboTCB]

Warriors have it relatively easy, as they get their tanking stance at 30. Wait until you go back there as a paladin and it's ten levels until you get Shield Oath, and things will be a lot more "interesting"...

It's not an especially difficult dungeon, but it's probably the first one where it's really easy to accidentally over-pull, and there are parts with a lot of adds and a lot of AOE attacks that you have to dance around while being careful not to aggro extra mobs. Sounds like you had a decent group as well - the concept of running to the tank when you get aggro is completely alien to most players - which is always nice.

[cgbspender]

Yup, the group was really nice. The healer was a friend, and I had already run many dungeons with him, so I knew he'd be able to not overheal. The other 2 dps were quite experienced as well, both had 3-4 classes at 50 already.

Also, I made sure to triple-meld most of my gear before I entered Brayflox, and used STR / Skill speed jewels (sunstone items) melded with VIT and a bit of parry. That + defiance, and I was having it easy ^^. Not sure these melding had a great impact, but it seemed to help a bit.

[SpookyGhost]

In my time DPSing Brayflox NM, I've noticed that the typical problem with tanks there is the room between the first boss and the second. The ideal way to handle that room is just to hug the left wall and kill the trash that's blocking your way. Going through the middle is massively more risky as you could aggro from the left or right side. Right side is fine but it also takes a lot longer. The group before the boss also gives tanks trouble as they don't pop CDs for it when those mobs actually do pretty decent damage to you and the lizard... thing does an instant cast AOE randomly.

The other problem is the last boss, where they can't dodge the AOE or move him out of the green puddle and that causes the boss to prolong for a long time or for the healer's MP to plummet.

If you can hug the left side and handle the last boss' mechanics correctly as a tank, the dungeon becomes a lot easier on everybody involved.

[VanilleFang]

I've been leveling my GLA and haven't gotten to Brayflox yet. It's the one dungeon I'm dreading. I've been doing good so far, and have had no complaint, but I'm just worried that I'll screw up or something. I guess I'll just have to wait and see.

[Azzie]

Having a WHM in your party instead of a SCH helps too, for the last boss anyway. WHM has esuna at that point and can wipe any nasty poison off you. Unfortunately SCH gets leeches at a much higher level. So much higher, in fact, that one that's leveled for it can't use it due to level sync.

It's great that you avoided every frontal attack, that one can be pretty unforgiving. Any SCH that groups with you for it will have a weight lifted from their shoulders.

Glad you had a good experience. It's always awesome when content you're dreading goes smoothly!

[karateorangutang]

I've been leveling my GLA and haven't gotten to Brayflox yet. It's the one dungeon I'm dreading. I've been doing good so far, and have had no complaint, but I'm just worried that I'll screw up or something. I guess I'll just have to wait and see.

Honestly it's not that bad. Just do all that you can. The dps need to not top out dps off the get go and healers need to be careful to not overheal if there is a paladin tank in this dungeon. It's not just an exercise in learning to tank, but also an exercise in how the party needs to act as a TEAM.

Do all that you can to hold hate, i.e. flash 2x then lead into combos, and you've done your part. The rest is up to the rest of your team.

[Ultimatecalibur]

Brayflox (NM) earned its "hard" reputation because of how things were during the first few months during release.

Almost everyone was in NQ ~i30 gear when first attempting the dungeon. (Now a group is likely to be mostly level synced or wearing HQ or the dungeon's Greens)

Aiatar is the first boss with a fast "must dodge" AoE. (If you are practiced in dodging HM and EX Landslides you are practiced in dodging his breath.)

[HKagemusha]

I wouldn't worry much about Brayflox, this is far from the hardest dungeon in the level range. I've run it as a first time War and first time Pld in the last month and neither run saw any deaths or overly-complicated mechanics/sections.

On occasion your health may dip low and test your healer and your defensive cd management, but the mechanics aren't tough and the pulls aren't overly scary. Learn what mobs do what and prioritize those with abilities.

[Dualblade]

I remember my first time through Brayflox...I don't remember if it was before or after 2.1 but I was a newbie PLD, learning from atleast one vet for the dungeon. The part between the first and second boss was by far the hardest part as Ghost said, and fortunatly the healer was a white mage so we had Esuna. I had some trouble with the final boss too but it was a good learning exp at the time. That said it isn't quite so bad these days, though their is always the possibility of getting everyone (or close to it) as newbies. Glad your first tanking run went smoothly!