Dear Tanks That Aren't Me

[Violyre]

Or you know, do the JP thing and have Alliance B main tank lol

You're so right. I should've had Alliance B tank Titan.

Oh wait.

[MihaelB]

You're so right. I should've had Alliance B tank Titan.

Oh wait.

Edited for the sake of people who don't understand context of discussion.

[Khubla_Kha]

You're so right. I should've had Alliance B tank Titan.

Oh wait.

So you're this worked up over face roll content that can effectively be solo'd by pretty much anyone?

Again sounds like you need to do Levequests you aren't meant to be doing cooperative activities with other human beings.

And again this is generic MMO issue #7800000000000000000000000000000. The correct response is "deal with it" as it isn't going to change. Just as you can be assured that your heart will pump blood through your body while you make your next reply you can be guaranteed that this post wont help this issue.

[Dualgunner]

In the example of Titan HM you gave, a Warrior only has a tank stance. They can turn off Defiance and just be a marauder, true, but all their other options involve massive amounts of aggro gain: Butcher's Block, their highest dps combo, is their aggro combo. Unchained allows them more dps and thus more aggro. Berserk offers more dps and thus more aggro.

Again, if OTing lv50 just take Defiance off in most cases, but there are reasons why you can easily lose aggro to other classes lol

[MrsFluffyButt]

Please....stop, I'm dying! xD
(rofling intensifies)

Serious note:
I don't know if you know this, but you're beating a dead horse. This has been happening since the release of CT in early 2.0. Do what everyone else does: hush your gums and deal with it.

Also, the only Tank you have levelled is WAR, a job that excels in the OT role, not that of MT.

[Garotte14]

Reminds me of when I went into a Trial on PLD. I was teamed with a WAR. When we got in, he put Defience on, so I switched to SwO to let him main tank. He pulled like normal and I immediately stole hate, so I stopped attacking for a good 6-7 seconds. Still, I took hate back. So at the point, I'm not gonna fight with the guy anymore. He clearly wanted to MT but couldn't do it, so I put ShO on and he stayed in Definance the whole fight while I MT'd. I don't mind being OT at all, but not when I'm still pulling hate in DPS stance.

[DevilsDontFly]

But you only have WAR at 60. If you're trying to be a 100% MT WAR on duty finder you're kinda playing WAR wrong. If there's a DRK/PLD with you, it's best foryou to stay on dps stance since your damage potential is far better than the other two tank counterparts. If you're talking about your lvl 52 PLD you should be able to keep aggro if you MT even if someone uses Provoke to take your aggro, since you'll still have your own Provoke to take that aggro back.

It also doesn't hurt to change to dps stance if you feel like you're undergeared compared to the other tank and can't hold aggro if both have tank stance on. So many times I've been in duties with tanks not dropping tank stance but they can't steal aggro from me regardless, so they use common sense and go dps stance since it's a lost cause. If that's your case you should probably start going dps stance as well when it happens.

It also doesn't hurt to "/p Hey [tank's name] you mind if I MT or do you want it?". Simple and fast.

[Lambdafish]

You won't stop this behavior so it is best for you to improve rather than cry and rant on the forums (disrespecting your own knowledge of tanking in the process). When you pull, watch your OT, if you are losing hate and they are in tank stance, immediately tank swap, there is no use fighting for hate, and it is easier for you to bow out and let them tank than fight for hate and die, this will make you look like the far better player. Yes it is annoying, but players are morons and you need to deal with that situation in a way that will keep the run smooth. The other tank is simply an unexpected mechanic that you should deal with appropriately to keep your team from wiping :P

- A fellow PLD who hates MT WARs

[LineageRazor]

While there are exceptions, typically these rules apply:

If the tanks are different, PLD MTs if there is one. WAR OTs if there is one. DRK fills whichever role is leftover. If either tank wants to change things up, that's what the keyboard is for - and this is perfectly fine. All tanking roles need to be capable of main or off tanking, and if one wants to practice, that's marvelous.

If the tanks are the same, the need for communication is even greater. If you have a preference, state it. If you don't, make the offer: "Do you want to MT or OT?" I ask that at the start of any instance where the other tank is the same type as I am.

If you are trying to dive in first to MT when it doesn't make sense for you to, yeah, don't be surprised if the other tank gets a bit confused. How hard is it to say, "I would like to main tank?"

And definitely, if the other tank is "fighting" you for hate - LET THEM WIN. Continuing to trade off back and forth is much more harmful than just one, initial yank.

[Beckett]

I'm not really understanding all the hate this concept is getting. If one tank pulls, how is the second tank not at fault if they try to pull aggro off of the defacto main tank? Even if there was no communication, it's very clear that that person is currently tanking and it's completely pointless to try to pull hate off of them.

I've been in plenty of situations where I've been a Paladin who outgeared the Warrior or Dark Knight I was with, but they went into tank stance and pulled first. Sure, it would make more sense for me to be the main tank, but I'm not going to have a pissing contest over it and potentially wipe the group. I'm going to switch to Sword Oath and do the best I can to off-tank.

there is no use fighting for hate, and it is easier for you to bow out and let them tank

And definitely, if the other tank is "fighting" you for hate - LET THEM WIN. Continuing to trade off back and forth is much more harmful than just one, initial yank.

Also this! If I pulled first and another tank really wants to be the main tank, to the point that they are spending every cooldown to get hate, I'll just let them have it. Again, not worth potentially wiping the group to show how big of an aggro peen I have. And besides, the off-tank mechanics are usually harder/more important anyway.