Just hit DRK 50 today...

[Numenor1379]

I really am enjoying the class, but this is my first tank. So... with that in mind, I was wondering what I can start doing now to set myself up for when I get to 70?

What sort of skill usage should I get used to early so it's second nature to me later?

DA I know needs to be used when possible. Don't use the arrgo combo if not needed. Keep Darkside on always...

I know I am missing a lot so any linked guides or just your experience will be appreciated.

Thanks. =)

[ArianeEwah]

I'm glad you enjoy the job. For lvl 50 you already mentioned most points for DRK. I took a look at your lodestone profile to check whether you already tanked or not - and noticed you already have full AUGMENTED Ironworks gear! Your healer mates will love you
If you plan to level via HW dungeons your gear should be more than enough for Aery. Every loot there and onward will help for the last dungeon, though not necessary.

Anyway... my tip is to get used to general tanking. I don't know how comfortable you are with it. Positioning, using defense abilities, when to turn off DPS stance (not recommended for trash mobs) or use aggro combo.

If you think you've got this... then the only thing left is to train lvl 50 rotation.

Fortunately, DRK probably has the easiest rotation on lvl 50. Your highest DPS combo is the DA Souleater combo. If you're going to be OT (paired with any other tank job on 50... preferable - 'cause PLD highest DPS combo is their enmity combo, and WAR has Defiance/tank stance only) you will spam this combo on single target. If you have overflowing mana in your opener, you can use Dark Passenger, but keep in mind it generates high enmity... you might grab aggro from your co-tank.

For aoe rotation: pull with Unmend, followed by 1 or 2 Unleash. If you have 3-5 enemies, use your Souleater combo as it does more damage than Unleash. Souleater's additional healing effect - DA preferred - also increases its efficiency. If you feel like you lose aggro on some adds, don't hesitate to use Unleash - it doesn't break your combo. Once you have 6+ adds on you, Unleash becomes superior.
[Math behind it:
Souleater combo ~average: 233.33 (+ 46,67 for every DA applied) potency/GCD
Unleash on 5 enemies: 250 potency/GCD]

For MT/dungeon tank single target rotation: 1 DA Power Slash in Grit should be enough to keep aggro for the whole fight. After that do your Souleater combo until boss dead. Whether you use tank stance or not is up to you, and your CD management.

Welcome to the Darkside :>

[Mikey_R]

It should be noted that you should not DAs any time you can. I recommend always having some MP in your pool for potential unforeseen circumstances, plus, you do not lose anything by holding onto it (just don't overcap). I tend to try and keep about 25-50% of my MP reserves but others might have different reserves that they keep. Just find what you are comfortable with and go with it.

[Xenosan]

Just because its likely not something you'll find in a guide or posted elsewhere I want to mention

Find a comfortable spot for Reprisal and Low Blow on your hotbars, and get comfortable using them as much as possible (quick reflex). Stun doesn't work vs bosses but does on most mobs in dungeon pulls. And it has a low recast so you can stun repeated times in a pull, it will help you keep mobs stacked for AOE (stun mobs with AOE telegraphs like Sandworms in The Burn), and stunning also keeps a mob from hitting you for several seconds.. Really its contribution aint bad but it is often overlooked. I think it would be a good idea to find a nice spot for those 2 skills at your level, so you can manage your hotbar real estate as you continue to unlock actions and have to decide how to map them.

[shao32]

welcome to the darkside enjoy you stay and eat some cookies ^^

primary warning, since we are in the end of the expansion and is hinted that DRK can have heavy changes on his current kit and mechanics for SWB please check the news about job changes at the end of this month if you wanna keep playing DRK just for case and don't use current mechanics if they get outdated.

as i see you are doing good, my first tip is about dark passenger, the skill is a dps gain with 2 or more targets if slaishing debuff is not present and use dark mind when you are facing magic enemies like sprites and such, try to learn what is magic and what is not, you don't have much to work with yet so i give you tips for you next skills.

-salted earth lvl 52 use it always, no matter the number of targets, you want to keep you targets all the duration of the skill inside, so set the targets and put the aoe.

-plunge lvl 54 keep it on recast, its worthy use dark arts pre-pull with plunge on bosses so you get extra enmity.

-abyssal drain, this one you will work a lot with, when you set you multiple targets with unleash you will want to select the one is in the middle of the crowd and spam abyssal drain for max dps, you can use DA with him to get some nice self heals and help you healer to keep you up, control you mp at lower leves is limited until lvl 70 saddly but get use to this for now.

-sole survivor lvl 58, keep it on recast, ignore the heal its imposible to sinc it with you healer thanks to the 15 sec the debuff stay up, so use it for the extra mp it gives you with is handy, in mass pulling you get it use it in the one with the lower HP so meaby you get the full enefic of the skill.

-carve and spit lvl 60, no mistery, always always use DA with this one, you gain 350 of potency when you SA it compared with the 140 of potenty DA brings to the rest of skills, you will lose the mp it give you but the trade off is bastly wordy, use it to generate more MP in mass pulling or when you mess a bit as a last resort.

-delirium lvl 62, this sill extend the duration of blood price and blood weapon for 50 blood, in optimal gameplay you will use it over the other gauge skills and with blood weapon always, never never without one of both price or weapon.

-quietus lvl 64, here fun begins, this skill grant you extra MP per target hit, its you aore gauge skill, will help you to build MP in aoe situations, if you use it with blood weapon the MP gain is increased.

-bloodspiller lvl 68, its you single target gauge skills, you use it any time you have 50 blood except when you have to use delirium, on grit you will always want to DA it without exception, offgrit it dosent matter if you DA it or not.

-The Blackest Night lvl 70, the backbone of DRK in his mitigation, this skill is you primary mitigation tool, you will want to have at minimun 2400mp to use it at demand when you need it, the skill grant you 50 blood if the target consume the shield HP, if the target din't hit you hard enough you will waste the potency of the MP since it have the same cost of a DA, the best use is on casted attacks, you can use the shield on you team mates but normally is not worthy but you can save someone if you are fast enough and something go wrong.

so TBN (the blackest night) bring you more deep in you aoe situations at lvl 70, if you use the skill you will get 50 blood and you can use that blood to get more MP with quietus so you can spam more abyssal drains and then use TBN again to repeat the cicle, will grant you a lot of defense, self healing and better MP economy.

i hope i din't miss anything, so GL and enjoy the job ^^

[Numenor1379]

Thank you for all of the helpful advice. I hit Lv61 today and in the process (with full Augmented Shire gear) tanked Wiping City the first time, did my first MT Lv60 Trial (Thordan) and also tanked on my first Raid (A8).

...so, normally I am either BLM (main), WHM or RDM. Ummmm, I am REALLY liking tanking. XD

[Melichoir]

Okie dokie For starters

Go join the Balance Discord. I recommend it cause you can ask questions from pretty knowledgeable people there. It's a pretty good resource.

Second:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1...fjq2CcVYE/edit

That link should take you to a DRK guide that is currently somewhat relevant. As people pointed out, things might change with ShB. Keep that in mind.

Beyond that, whats most important is to ensure you understand tanking as a broad aspect (Managing cooldowns, knowing boss mechanics and positioning, etc), then worrying about the nuance of your class. Im sure you probably got the gist of tanking down, but Ill point this out: Your job is a tank first and foremost. Do what you have to do to achieve that goal. If that means in a fight you have to lose DPS by going back to grit for some mechanics to ensure your survival, then do it. This doesnt mean sit in grit 24/7, but rather be ready to adapt as the situation needs. If you get a vuln stack, Use grit to mitigate damage taken to make it easier on your healers. It's better for you to suffer a 20% dmg loss temporarily than to tax the hell out of your healers trying to keep you alive. particularly if you think theyre struggling to keep you up. Dead tanks dont do any dps, and typically kill everyone else. Be the tank first, DPS second. Find that balance between the two.

It's worth noting that you should investigate tanking strategies broadly (Circle shirking as an example).

Shao is more or less on point with her advice, btw. I personally wouldnt use Plunge prepull and would learn a proper opener (The guides opener is pretty good), but it's not game breaking in any regards. Having a proper opener is better for lining up your Damage spikes with other classes to maximize DPS. But it's not the end of the world if you open with it. If it works, it works.

It is recommended, however, to always Pre DA before the Pull. So cast DA, wait 5 seconds for mana regen, then pull. As long as you use a skill before the DA drops, you end up better off mana wise then if you were to wait for combat to start and casting. (CnS, Plunge, or DP is a good go to choice; DADP Btw is a decent aggro generator so dont be afraid to use it in an opener for burst of aggro.)

Depending on the fight (8 man fights), using TBN on your cotank during Busters is useful in helping mitigation. But you should coordinate for that as they may over CD or use an invuln if they dont know youre using TBN. Speaking of Invulns, LD is a skill. You can use it more frequently as long as your healer is coordinating with you. Of the Invulns, its the weakest, but you can use it to eat some attacks that would otherwise be fatal so you can save your CDs for other mechanics. For example, if the boss does a 120k attack that youre supposed to split with your cotank with Cooldowns, instead of wasting their Cooldowns with yours, you could LD it, survive, and just be healed back. Short term is taxing on a healer, but it saves long term by having your CDs for both tanks more readily available.

As someone pointed out, dont burn up your mana on DA. Keep some in reserves for TBN. Just dont overcap.

Anyways, thats just some thoughts.

[Numenor1379]

...and Lv70 DRK as of 9:30p CDT.

Got myself a Seeing Horde Guillotine as a reward.

[Age_of_Oblivion]

Problem with DRK is that TBN radically changes how the class is played, and for 60-70 at least the class feels halfbajed until you get it.