Terrified...

[SpookyGhost]

Glad to see completely pointless arguments have made their way into a simple "which tank should I level first?" topic.

Anyway, as many have mentioned, GLD is your best option. If you're starting to level physical DPS you level LNC first, if you're starting to level caster DPS or healer you level BLM first, and if you want to level a tank you go with GLD first. Even if GLD isn't particularly amazing >35, it'll get you a good feel on how tanking works. MRD isn't much different, you just press your AOE less. Anyone who tells you MRD is just "spam OP" doesn't remember what low level MRD is like. I do find MRD more fun than GLD, and consequently WAR more fun than PLD, but that's irrelevant because the first thing you'll want to get out of the way as a tank is Provoke.

Once you've gotten Provoke, then you can either stick with GLD or play the field. MRD is a lot of fun, as is DRK, and people find enjoyment in playing all 3 for one reason or another. While I've never been fond of GLD, you might love it, so I'm not going to try and shove my opinion down your throat.

Here's 2 quite useful images that will give you the jist of what you need to know as a tank, the first is more basic knowledge and the latter is more technical:




Hope you have fun with tanking - it can be a very demanding job, but it can also be very rewarding. Don't feel forced into it, but I'd recommend sticking with it as long as you can muster as it only really gets engaging at later levels.

[PogueX]

snip

that is the most coolest guide ever, love the 16bit sprites


spun mob(s) is great. You can watch your fellow party members as well as avoid having them get AOE or cone damage. I always spun when fighting both bosses and trash, unless it won't work well with the boss mechanic

[Alisi]

SNIP!

That picture is full of so much awesome that it's blinding. Thanks! I think I've been playing a healer for way too long. I've seen it all. Literally. And I don't want to become that tank but I'll have to be that tank a couple times while learning. XD I feel bad for my poor party mates. LOL

[Ashkendor]

Hope you have fun with tanking - it can be a very demanding job, but it can also be very rewarding. Don't feel forced into it, but I'd recommend sticking with it as long as you can muster as it only really gets engaging at later levels.

I love that ez-guide to tanking. As an aside, the Bishop Turret is safe to stand near and mobs should stay in the AoE:



I've seen a few newer tanks try to move away from it thinking it's a mob AoE. xD

@OP - Honestly, Paladin is probably the easiest tank to start with to learn the fundamentals of tanking. I main PLD, but also have DRK at 60 and WAR at 50 and have played all 3 in endgame content (WAR in endgame as of 2.55, not post-HW). The PLD playstyle gives you a lot less to worry about overall so you can concentrate on the basics of positioning, aggro management, and cooldown usage.

I'm a little disappointed (but not really surprised) that people came stomping in here carrying on about the fact that Paladin is the weakest tank in the current endgame. I won't lie to you and say anything different - it truly is the weakest, because the current endgame is heavily focused on DPS and ours is... well, not great. It doesn't really matter in any other content, though. Even if you do go on to tank in endgame, you'll need some Paladin skills to do so, making it a logical place to start.

Don't be afraid of tanking. You have a leg up already - as a healer, you know when tanks take big damage and you know how tanks should be doing their job to make things easier on you. So, just do as you like to see tanks do when you're healing them. :3