The trinity, party responsibility, and how to try and improve the game from within

[DPZ2]

the term is not really new
But maybe not as old as 1998
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For MMOs it might not be old.

I first encountered the concept in role-playing dungeon instances in college 40 years ago.

It was a lot looser then, and 'tank' wasn't really a role so much as the fact that the heavy metal group [aka those who wore Plate] were always up front and close with the trash/boss, while the squishies [aka those who died easily when hit up-close] were casting fire bolts or firing arrows from afar. Healers [clerics] generally belonged to the heavy metal group and we could DPS for sure.

The heavy metal group had a job to contain the monsters and prevent them from running at the squishies, while the squishies had the job of wreaking as much havoc on the enemy as possible. Clerics, um, we bashed and blessed and cured as necessary.

I like to think there would be fewer arguments if healers in MMOs still belonged to that heavy metal group.