Shortage of tanks a myth - thoughts?

[Eidolon]

Tanks aren't rare. There's too many of us for the amount of endgame offered. <_< All of you should go switch to heals/DPS so I can be the last of our kind o/

In all seriousness, I believe in the leveling game, there is a clear lack of tanks. 1-50 there's really not enough tank/heals to go around, though this might be due moreso to the ratio of tanks:healers that are leveling...

However, in end game, it tends to be much easier to find good tanks. So I think the "Myth" as you said ends at 50.

[AlternativeOne]

Someone complains about something every time. Even though my war is i115 I Haven't tanked much of anything. So im not as good as some of the tanks Ive healed. Im certain I dont suck though. Instead of offering advice or telling what they feel is wrong they just bitch and whine like punks. So unless Im farming poetics or chasing a piece of gear for my tank im not tanking anything. I feel tanking is the toughest roll in the game and having people complain is annoying since they really don't have any responsibility in a fight except to dodge which most people cant even do. Thats my perspective as a i130 blm, and i126 whm so i see it from every angle. Im definitely discouraged from tanking stuff.

[AskaRay]

The only time I was ever directly yelled at by anyone while tanking was first time doing Tam Tara as tank...and it was pretty clear that the DPS in question was there to troll only.

I once got yelled at by a SMN while healing because I let the tank die, since I blew my rez on the DPS that had been raised by the SMN two seconds faster than me... but we talked (I literally forgot SMN could raise at all.....) and it was all right in the end.

Personally I never try to be mean to anyone in DF, even tanks, unless they're going at it first (I'm only human, even though you want to be the bigger person in those situations we all have off days). I don't like to tank in DF though... tanking makes me nervous and I don't really like having the attention of all the monsters. I also don't like being yelled at. If I suck, tell me why, I can try to improve. Name calling/etc is unnecessary. I've seen tanks take shit that was undeserved (and some that was, but, ahem) and I don't particularly want to experience it.

[elemental10]

The myth is very real, mate. But at a much smaller scale than you think it is.

The amount of people who harass tanks/healers are not much. Say, in at least 10 runs I do in low-level duty roulette, I'd get all smooth runs on a good day and at max 2 runs that went bad because DPS.

The proportions is blown out of control because the tanks/healers/people that get harassed tells their side of the story and automatically blame the general community for being toxic.

The myth is real, yes. But ask the average tank/healer how many times have they actually get harassed and how many times have runs gone smooth? I bet most of them will say a lot of their runs are actually smooth and only a few them turned sour.

[Canadane]

I don't consider someone who's simply leveled, or even half-heartedly geared a tank class to be "a tank" in any way what so ever.
To be a tank, you need to actually use it, abuse it, love it, hate it, ride with it. You have the prestige, the responsibility, the leadership, the ability to be the target of everyones hate (and you thought you only needed a mobs enmity!) and walk it off like it's nothing.

In this sense, the shortage of tanks continues to be an issue and is overall real. Unfortunately, it takes a certain kind of person to be a tank (this also applies to healers), and there isn't much you can do to get people to change over to one. Even Dark Knight tanks will go through the same trials of their peers all other tanks end up going through.

[KarmaCha]

It depends on how good you are at your job. No one ever complains when I heal, and a lot of the times I'm doing DPS on par with the others.

But when I tank it's another story. Sometimes I can't keep up with the over healing, the stray mobs, or DPS grabbing things ahead of me. I get overwhelmed and then I die and someone, sometimes, patronizes me and makes me feel inadequate. The problem lies in how transparent the tank and healer roles faults are. When a tank or a healer make a mistake, you know it. But no one calls out the BLM doing 250 DPS in i130, who is slowing the run down more than anyone. Half the player base can't parse, most of the other half won't admit to it in party chat. So nothing gets said.

There is immense pressure on tanks to play how the party wants but there is almost no pressure on DPS to play efficiently, let alone their best. If the tables were turned and DF DPS had to wear their mistakes on their faces, people would be a lot more respectful to one another.

[nuyu11]

Better we ask SE to drop Tank role then if it's so depressing.

[seekified]

This is all about people thinking that tanking is equal to "taking one for the team", as if it's something that's not enjoyable. I can understand that some people actively dislike tank roles in MMOs, but if you have a tank geared and ready and then proceed to whine because you wanted to do your roulette as a DPS for the five hundredth time, you're doing it wrong.

I think DRKs will help somewhat in populating the DF with tanks, yes. My only hope is that said DRKs will either be people who have tanked before and find new enjoyment in a new job, or people who are new to tanking but bother to learn how to do it. There's a very real danger of less-involved players having seen the cool job trailers and then rolling DRK because they look cool, thinking it's a DPS job like everything else.

[nuyu11]

The things is pretty simple here, if you love Tank class all other shit are doesn't matter because you will get better and respectable later. Or you can keep whine like a loser in this forums.

[Snitchie]

iTank and iSpank. And iLove it !