The Tank's Pledge (a damned fool's idealistic notion)

[Jpec07]

Lately, I'm afraid I've been thinking (a dangerous pastime, I know). I've been hearing a lot more horror stories lately from my FC about bad groups they've had, and about half of the time, it comes down to bad attitudes from the tank and/or healer.

As tanks, we inherently have a responsibility and an expectation on us to be the leaders of the groups we run with, and we have a very strong tendency to wave our massive HP pools around like clubs, bludgeoning our groups into submission (or attempting to). And when egos collide, it can get very ugly, and can have an extremely negative impact on the groups.

As we are inherently leaders, it falls to us to not only determine the pace of the dungeon, but also the atmosphere and mood. All it takes is one jerk to ruin a good run, but we as tanks also have the power to redeem it through our words and actions.

So I drafted a sort of pledge for us to take, regarding how we should behave in group content. I'm open to suggestions about it, and have absolutely no qualms with people copying it for their own use (I would just appreciate if this thread is referenced alongside).

Take it or leave it, this is what I will try to maintain while I am tanking, both in FFXIV, and in any other game where I may tank.

The Tank's Pledge

I am a tank. I stand in the line between disaster and success, and am the first line of defense. I lead the charge for my group, and so I am first and foremost a servant to its members, without whom I can accomplish nothing.

I promise to know my place, and to understand that without Healing and DPS characters with me, I will not be able to conplete anything. We play this game together, and we must work as a team to succeed.

I promise to communicate with my group at the start, and to control our pace to the best of my ability.

I promise to explain mechanics as needed, and to coordinate with other group members for what we plan on doing.

I promise to be polite and courteous, and to help players as they may need it, and as I am able. As I was once new and needed others to help me learn, so too do I recognize that I can help others learn.

I promise not to let my temper, pride, or ego get the better of me, and to lead the group in humility. For while I do lead by design, a leader's place is to serve, and to respect those that look to them.

I promise to cover for any mistakes the group makes, and to do my very best to keep enemies attacking me, and to survive their onslaught.

I promise to only pull when everyone can participate, and to only pull what I know I can hold and survive. And if I err in this regard, I promise to apologize, and to do what I can to make up for it.

I promise to be open to suggestion, and to consider advice enthusiastically. We never stop learning in life, and we all have things we can learn from one another. Our experiences are not universal, and while we will never be perfect, we can always be better than we are.

I promise to face each situation with optimism, and to try to see the best in all things. Even when we are stuck against a wall and we cannot win, I promise to never bemoan our situation, and to take away from each attempt whatever we can.

I promise to be humble, to ask for your help where I need it, and to be reasonable in my requests. We don't play this game in a vacuum, and I cannot succeed without the support of those who are with me. So where I may be weak, I promise to ask for your strength.

Where I fail in these, I promise to be humbly apologize, and to make it right however I can. For while I have made promises, I am still human.

I promise not to betray your trust in me, and to perform in my role as tank to the very best of my ability.

And of course, we have a good precedent in game:

"To serve; to protect; to sacrifice... there is no greater calling for a knight." - Count Edmont de Fortemps

Do we, as tanks, need anything more? We serve our fellow adventurers, protect them, and we shall be damned if anyone dies before we do.

[Jican]

You see, your first sentence in the pledge is exactly what's wrong with the mentality of tanks. You are NOT the leader, no one is, ever, at all, period. You are all there as a TEAM, and not a single person can run any dungeon solo. Once everyone accepts that fact, realizing what it means, then and only then will people be able to get through this game in a good attitude. There are some good, some bad, and some down right ugly.

[Freyyy]

Peace is a lie, there is only passion.
Through passion, I gain strength.
Through strength, I gain power.
Through power, I gain victory.
Through victory, my chains are broken.
The Fell Cleave shall free me.

[MiniPrinny]

"To serve; to protect; to sacrifice... there is no greater calling for a knight." - Count Edmont de Fortemps

Do we, as tanks, need anything more? We serve our fellow adventurers, protect them, and we shall be damned if anyone dies before we do.

[Jpec07]

You see, your first sentence in the pledge is exactly what's wrong with the mentality of tanks. You are NOT the leader, no one is, ever, at all, period. You are all there as a TEAM, and not a single person can run any dungeon solo. Once everyone accepts that fact, realizing what it means, then and only then will people be able to get through this game in a good attitude. There are some good, some bad, and some down right ugly.

I think this is a very good point, and I'll be rephrasing the pledge a little bit later to account for this. While general leadership philosophy basically echoes what you said, and while tanks are naturally and mechanically the leaders of the group (in that they literally lead the charge), it's very easy to take the idea of "leadership" as meaning "I automatically assume that because I am a tank I get to autocratically make decisions about how the run will work." Instead it ought to mean "I understand that my role as a tank puts a mantle of leadership on me, and gives me a greater responsibility to be sensitive to the needs of my group."

EDIT: I modified the phrasing a bit - do you think that makes it a little better?

[Jican]

There are still a lot of "I am the leader" that should be modified, but ultimately, it sums up nicely. I think that everyone should live by those rules, despite the role. Wishful thinking, I know.

[Syzygian]

Peace is a lie, there is only passion.
Through passion, I gain strength.
Through strength, I gain power.
Through power, I gain victory.
Through victory, my chains are broken.
The Carve and Spit shall free me.

Fixed that for you -_^

[Lan_Mantear]

Peace is a lie, there is only passion.
Through passion, I gain strength.
Through strength, I gain power.
Through power, I gain victory.
Through victory, my chains are broken.
Through Royal Authority, shall I be set free.

Fixed that for you -_^

Double fixed!

[Kumori_Kumo]

I butt heads with a lot of people ideologically, but the dungeon is sacrosanct. It doesn't matter who comes in with me, the team gets 100% every time.

[Ladon]

What is all this nonsense? I tank because the armor looks cool.