So...Why was Shield Oath level 40?

[elemental10]

The question is, why aren't these PLD using Flash?

Flash 2 times at initial pull = Confirm agro for at least 2 Halone's combos.
Flash after every other combo (after every 2 Halone's combos) = Confirm agro for the rest of the fight.

Ran out of MP? Replace Halone combo with Riot Blade and you're fine.

Again and again. I have to say those things in Haukke and Brayflox. What makes tanking as a PLD before you have Sword Oath any different than tanking as a PLD after you have it or Shield Oath?

Pro-tip: Nothing.

[VargasVermillion]

The question is, why aren't these PLD using Flash?

Flash 2 times at initial pull = Confirm agro for at least 2 Halone's combos.
Flash after every other combo (after every 2 Halone's combos) = Confirm agro for the rest of the fight.

Ran out of MP? Replace Halone combo with Riot Blade and you're fine.

Again and again. I have to say those things in Haukke and Brayflox. What makes tanking as a PLD before you have Sword Oath any different than tanking as a PLD after you have it or Shield Oath?

Pro-tip: Nothing.

Because flash is 'crap' because it doesn't do damage and doesn't have as much enmity as overpower. (Even though it's infinitely available and can be spammed more.) PLD is fine, people just don't know how to make use of it's abilities by that point.

[Souljacker]

Just because there are ways around it doesn't mean it was good initial design. I'd also like to see those two swapped out, and Provoke swapped with Convalescence. Any tank class really should get the staple tank abilities before anything else, and at level 10 there really isn't any great need for convalescence. Swapping those two would make life easier for warriors that are cross-equipping it since they have to level gladiator to 15 anyway, and it would give lower paladins a solid way to pull back stray mobs before they go into dungeons.

Some of the design decisions could stand to be revisited.

[Lynarii]

Honestly, the only time I ever felt the pinch of having only sword oath and no shield is if I was trying to tank 4+ targets against an AOE BLM and a 'pop everything on pull' BRD at the same time. And frankly, that sucks to deal with as a warrior too. Otherwise, even in sword, 2-3 flashes followed by cycling halone combos is generally enough to handle threat. Tank survival really doesn't start getting questionable until 40+ anyhow, with the sole exception of your first time stepping into Halatali at 20.

[Menae]

a 'pop everything on pull' BRD

This is me. I do this on my lowbie BRD. I don't do it because I want you to suffer. I do it to end encounters quickly and teach you to be on your toes as a tank, as well as test my limits.

That said, I do enjoy the suffering...

[spelley]

This is me. I do this on my lowbie BRD. I don't do it because I want you to suffer. I do it to end encounters quickly and teach you to be on your toes as a tank, as well as test my limits.

That said, I do enjoy the suffering...

DPS do this because at these levels you start getting more and more pieces of your final combos/rotations. In an AoE situation, Flash/Riot Blade is probably superior to rotating combos. Could also do Flash x2, regular combo on main target, Flash once every ~1-2 combos to keep it up. I know on WAR I can hold aggro with Overpower x2 and rotating the Skull Sunder and Butcher's Block to "non-main" targets sans Defiance... (accidentally) done in Brayflox for a few pulls :P

[Seku]

This is me. I do this on my lowbie BRD. I don't do it because I want you to suffer. I do it to end encounters quickly and teach you to be on your toes as a tank, as well as test my limits.

That said, I do enjoy the suffering...

Doesn't really keep them on their toes. Their either flashing a few times to get stable hate at the start before starting their combo or their not or you're a bard and their still on Gladiator. If you want to really keep them on their toes, throw DoT's on every mob when there are 3 or more. That actually forces them to use flash or target switch and keep hate on each target with their enmity generating combos.

[elemental10]

This is me. I do this on my lowbie BRD. I don't do it because I want you to suffer. I do it to end encounters quickly and teach you to be on your toes as a tank, as well as test my limits.

That said, I do enjoy the suffering...

Doesn't really make them to be on their toes. For BRDs like you, all I have to do is focus attack on your target and problem solved. You want to make a Tank to be on their toes? Pop everything as a BLM and start AOEing everything. For every Fire 2 and Flare, there's 2 or more mobs than the tank is hitting and that'll definitely a way to get yourself killed.

[Seku]

They probably should change it around more so for the sake of new paladins and new whm's that don't know that Regen nets hate like a DoT. But any PLD that knows what their doing shouldn't have much trouble at all, if any.

[Shuon]

I leveled pld solely in dungeons and had no problem at all between 30 and 40.