Thanks and help!

[Taiyoji]

hihi. I'm a longtime reader of the tank thread and for the most part I wanna say thanks because you guys are pretty awesome when it comes to advice, because of all of you regular posters (you know who you are) my technique has improved a lot.

Just a question please ^^;

What can I do to perfect my technique as a tank? I get pretty nervous tanking higher end stuff just because it is new to me. I try and sometimes I'm dead on, but I still consider myself far from perfect ^^;

So for you guys that have downed Ravana ex and coils etc.. How did you build up your skills? I really really wanna get good like you guys so I can help more people on my server clear more stuff!

Also I don't know if you can read this but there's a tank named golden tree out there from Excalibur I think? She really gave me the confidence to smash shiva ex and I wanna be that kind of tank for others too!

Thanks very much and I hope if you're reading this.. You're having a good day!

[Kiteless]

The best way to learn how to tank anything is to just get out there and tank it. Seeing a video or two, or reading a guide for specific fights can help quite a lot, especially for higher end content (I don't really think videos/guides are too important for a lot of the dungeon-level stuff), but that doesn't translate as well as simple experience will.

If it's stuff you're new to, you'll probably make some mistakes, and you'll probably end up wiping a couple of times, but that's just par for the course. So long as you learn from your mistakes and show improvement, no sensible person has much justification to get mad at you, and if they do, screw'em anyway, your queues are instant.

[Taiyoji]

Thank you very much for that! I've been trying that so far with mixed results, but at the end as long as I'm better right? :P

[Gooner_iBluAirJGR]

My friend is sort of in the same boat and I think Kiteless gave good advice. If you're worried about struggling with primals and what not, give the Trial Roulette a whirl and make sure you're MT. That will give you a good warm up.

Another note: whenever my nub tank friend is tanking, I make sure to troll him with knock backs and other skills that make tanking harder so hes more prepared for the real world. . . find yourself a troll dps to run with!

[Taiyoji]

Haha - I make my gf do that in dungeons to me but not hard bosses :P

[GeekMatt]

I know some great tanks who just never totally became confident with that role. Some people just dont have thick skin for dealing with jerks, and so these tanks end up only wanting to tank with friends, rarely venturing out with randoms.

I personally have a grand ole' time with jerks in DF, but that's not for everyone. And it doesn't matter how good or bad you are as a player, someone will still try to make you feel like crap--it's hardest on tanks not because tanking is harder than the other roles, but because our mistakes stand out the most, making us targets. The best thing you can do for your confidence, IMO, is just make sure you understand your skills inside and out, and make an effort to understand the game itself (other roles, etc) so if someone calls you out on something, you don't have to be uncertain of yourself, you can simply state what happened and why. If it's your fault you can apologize (unless they're jerks, then try to subtly kill them on the next pull without wiping the party), and if it's not, you can stand your ground and call them out.

[Telanne]

Drink before you tank. Seriously. If you know you're prepared (as much as you can be) but are feeling nervous, I recommend whiskey.

Only thing I'd add besides researching before doing harder content is to try and talk/raid with the best tanks you know and pick their brains. I joined a hardcore FC as a relatively new tank and learned a ton getting feedback from our veteran tanks on what I can do to improve.

[saber_alter]

there are a few things that come to mind...

practice does not make perfect, practice makes permanent.

it is impossible to reach perfection in anything, doesn't matter how hard you try. what you can do is make things routine, habitual. in time, bracing yourself by popping CDs/stoneskinning for big hits becomes instinct.

another thing that comes to mind is to always ask questions. as a tank, we set the pace of a fight. that's one of our jobs. most of us aren't the trailblazers, so it can't hurt to ask a question...or thirty. the more you know about a fight, the smoother it probably will go.

be patient. runs don't always go perfectly. foul ups happen. the best way to deal with them is to laugh it off and try again. if you get too frustrated, walk away from it a bit and come back when your willing.

[Marxam]

Just ask yourself these questions;

1. Do I have aggro on enemies/boss?

2. Is the healer able to keep my hp from falling too fast?

3. Are you constantly tab selecting through enemies to maintain the said aggro?

If you had said yes to all of these questions then you are already doing a good job in tanking. Whether it be 2 mobs or 8+ mobs as long as you've got hate and holding it while managing your defensive cool downs you're doing things right. Also, switching between enemies to check aggro tables is what separates the OP/Flash/Unleash spammers from the real pro tanks. Combo splitting is something you will need to master to better manage your tp or mp.

[SpookyGhost]

Close your eyes and believe.