swapping from whm to war. new to this

[Heal_Bot]

hello

I've healed since 2.0 and I have grown tired of it lately, so I wanted to give a go at warrior.. and I fell in love all over again!

My problem is "tanking anxiety". Everytime I do a dungeon I feel so much pressure because I need to make sure that everything stays on me, or am I positioning the mobs correctly, or am I not using my cooldowns at the right times etc. And this is kind of making me turn away from tanking, but I want to get passed that, I just don't know what to do or what not to do at this point.

pls halp

[Kydi]

I think every new tank has been through that at some stage. I still don't do levelling roulette as I hate tanking the old dungeons (I came to the game late so most I've only run once,and even then as my first job, DRG).

However, HW just made me say stuff it and jump in feet first. You will make mistakes, but the vast majority of people are OK with that. I've certainly had a few howlers when levelling (PLD was entirely through hunts and dungeons) but haven't so far encountered anyone especially hostile. If you have a fc, see if someone there will level with you, perhaps as healer as you'll then at least have one friendly face in each dungeon.

[alteekay77]

I felt the same as you, Heal_bot. Got bored with healing back in 2.1 and then just thought I should bite the bullet and try tanking. Levelled both PLD and WAR at the same time. Saves time and money as both shares the same armor.

As for the anxiety, it is more or less on how familiar you are with the dungeon. For new ones, I always go in as WHM first to understand the mobs and directions. Once I've gotten those facts, in I go as WAR!

[Heal_Bot]

I felt the same as you, Heal_bot. Got bored with healing back in 2.1 and then just thought I should bite the bullet and try tanking. Levelled both PLD and WAR at the same time. Saves time and money as both shares the same armor.

As for the anxiety, it is more or less on how familiar you are with the dungeon. For new ones, I always go in as WHM first to understand the mobs and directions. Once I've gotten those facts, in I go as WAR!

I'll give that a shot, going in as whm then warr, thanks.

[Tsolake]

I'm no pro tank, but I've been doing it for a while in various MMO's, and in XIV since 2.2, so I'll put in my two cents!

I play WAR as well in fact. Let's jump right in.

First things first, knowing your opponents is more than half the fight for tanks. Just getting that off right now.

Face your mobs AWAY from the group (unless they have a caudal swipe, then face the side TOWARDS the group)

Learn the tank busters. Remember, Inner Beast has a 20% damage reduction, use it to your advantage when that big hit's incoming. Don't be afraid to save your Wrath stacks for a bit to utilize that IB.

DON'T stance dance yet. Learn how to tank like an abrams, then work your way to aggressive tanking. And if you are stance dancing (sometimes it's nice for the 200tp equilibrium) try to compensate for the loss with a cooldown.

[Tsolake]

Don't be afraid to use Overpower a bit too often. At the end of the day, the mob will be dead, and you can wait for the TP to regen.

Dodge like it's middle school gym class dodgeball. But remember to re-assume your position after dodging the telegraph (or no telegraph if it's Chimera/Cyclops). If you don't re-assume position, your melee DPS are gonna hate you.

Try to keep melee DPS in mind. They need to hit their positionals, so keep the boss in a convenient position for everyone, and DON'T just spin him like a DJ.

Cross class provoke.

Marking is nice, everyone loves it, but it's not necessarily essential. And don't EXPECT the DPS to only attack THAT target, SMN DOT'S can pull enmity on all the targets.

Cross Classing flash is nice for dungeons, because you can use it while your Berserk pacification is on.

[Tsolake]

Make a macro to let your healers know when you use Berserk, so they can be ready to esuna that crap.

Holmgang takes about half a second to ACTUALLY register, but can be a life saver if used correctly.

Don't listen to haters, but don't disregard tips.

Try to keep maim/storms eye debuff up when fighting, they're both fantastic, but ONLY if you're feeling confident with your enmity.

No really, CROSS CLASS PROVOKE.

Think of what you love as a healer, and translate that to your tank. IE, as a WHM, I love it when my tank pops Convalescence during XYZ, so I'll do the same while tanking.

[Tsolake]

WAR has a deceivingly high skill cap, there's so much room for improvement always.

Your job as a WAR is usually the damage dealing off tank.

Learn the fight, use your CD's accordingly. Knowing is like 60% of the battle. (execution is also important)

Don't let mobs hit your occipital lobe like a speed bag (face your targets)

DON'T be a dumbass with Raw Intuition, and DON'T be afraid to use it for tank busters (the first boss in fractal continuum has a buster that hits like 5 times, it's a GREAT time to use RA).

Learn to space your cooldowns, don't pop them all at once, but some can be very powerful in conjunction (ie Forsight + Convalescence, Inner Beast + Raw intuition, Raw intuition + Awareness)

Fracture.

[Tsolake]

Storms eye combo usually takes precedence over storms path combo. Storms path combo can really help for tank busters though.

Time infuriate WELL, don't just use it on CD, even though you have 3 stacks of wrath already.

Remember, if you're trying to maximize DPS, Berserk/Raw Int/Vengeance ALL generate a stack of wrath.

USE YOUR CD'S... healers will love you. Even if just in a dungeon.

[Tsolake]

And remember man, very importantly, tanking is a risky job. You're the wall between your group and the big mean monster. Don't be afraid to tank, but don't screw around as a tank either. In fact, just the other day I was in Fractal Continuum on the last boss, and accidently whipped him around for a second. He spewed a tank buster cone AOE and nailed the healer, kill him and wiping the group. Tanking well is important, so start on the easy stuff, master it, and work your way up. Take all rational advice, especially from other tanks. There's so much to learn, I couldn't possibly cover it all here. Just get out there, let the group know you're new to it, and go have fun man. Don't give up easily, stick with it, and remember the basics.