I love have everyone is picking apart dilbrt, even though he clearly said "unless grinding".... Lol.
I'm Prot, so I'll just show you my build:
http://www.wowhead.com/?talent=sZV0tIx0dMgqtVbx0h
PROTECTION TREE
Redoubt over Imp. Devotion Aura:
- Really and truly I don't even want Redoubt (I hardly get hit, so it pretty much never procs), but I have to spec for it to get what I DO want (read: Shield Spec). If you are already uncrushable (102.4% avoidance) then this talent is useless so long as you can keep Holy Shield up. If you;re not already uncrushable then you had better get so ASAP.
- Imp. Devotion Aura is nice for times when I'm off-tanking but like I said, I need Redoubt for what I really want and don't have the talent points to spend.
Toughness over Guardian's Favor and Precision:
- 10% increase in armor from equipment with Toughness is nothing to sneeze at.
- Guardian's Favor is nice in certain situations (Moroes' Garrote, Divine Shield is on cooldown and I want to jump from a cliff...) but those situations are few and far between for me.
- Precision is also a very nice talent (since if your melee strike doesn't hit neither does your Seal, meaning less threat), but I used my points elsewhere.
Blessing of Kings, Imp. Righteous Fury, Shield Spec, Anticipation:
- Anticipation is a whopping 20 defense skill, which frees up some of my gear for more Stamina or Dodge/Parry/Whatever-the-occasion-calls-for. A must have.
- Shield Spec is also a must have, since it makes my shield absorb 30% more damage. Most of the hits I take are blocked, which makes this talent *SHINE*.
- Imp. Righteous Fury is an easy choice. 6% damage reduction AND more threat? Hell yes.
- I chose Blessing of Kings because: 1.) I can keep aggro in boss fights like nobody's business (so Salvation is not needed, though I do use it for trash mobs). On boss fights the added Stamina and other stats for my raid party are INVALUABLE, since they are BOUND to get hit by a broken sheep/shackle/sap or AoE damage. 2.) I had one talent point floating around that I HAD to spend somewhere, and it fit PERFECTLY here.
NO POINTS IN Stoicism, Improved Hammer of Justice, or Improved Concentration Aura:
- I like Stoicism, I really do. However, most of the Fears I take are in Heroics and not in raids, and in those cases I have Fear Ward on me (making this talent mostly useless). The 30% resist chance against dispel *seems* nice, but... Meh. My talents are better used elsewhere. My spells don't get dispelled often at all.
- Imp. Hammer of Justice is one talent that I REALLY do want, I just don;t have to points to spend on it. I've often found myself in the scenario in a Heroic where HoJ had 10-15 seconds left on cooldown where I would *really* like to use it, but can't... Oh well. You can't get EVERYTHING you want.
- I never use Concentration Aura... Never. I could delve deeper, but this post is getting long.
Spell Warding and Blessing of Sanctuary over Reckoning:
- The 4% reduction in spell damage taken from Spell Warding may not seem like much (and in fact it isn't), but paladins are SEVERELY lacking in defense against spells, and this talent helps.
- Blessing of Sanctuary is a MUST HAVE as a tank. Your threat comes from Holy damage, and this Blessing causes Holy damage when you block (which is VERY often).
- Reckoning is a talent that makes me cry. If it were in the Ret tree, I would giggle with glee. I might even respec to actually farm (I currently don't). But it is in the same boat as Redoubt. You don't get "hit" often enough for it to proc, making it a waste of points. Also, if Reckoning procs on a Boss and it parries you a couple times (which is very likely), the spike damage is going to kill you and your party (debatable I guess, but it's my opinion). And relying on Reckoning for the threat that it can add is a *horrible* idea since it is unreliable... Very unreliable. (This is coming from the view of a level 70 who is uncrushable. While leveling up I DID take this talent, and I LOVED it. I advise EVERY aspiring Tankadin to get this talent while leveling. The problem is that once you are uncrushable it just doesn't proc enough to be worth any points)
Sacred Duty and One-Handed Weapon Specialization:
- 6% more Stamina with Sacred Duty? Hell yes. Paladins lack health compared to Warriors and Druid, and every bit helps. For me the Divine Shield aspect is just an added "perk".
- ALL damage is increased with One-Handed Weapon Spec, meaning Holy damage as well. Holy damage = threat. Threat = good.
Holy Shield, Improved Holy Shield, and Argent Defender:
- Holy Shield is a *MUST HAVE* for a tank. Enough said.
- Ditto for Improved Holy Shield. The more charges Holy Shield has and the more damage it does, the better.
- Some people like to debate Argent Defender, and they may if they wish. I find it EXTREMELY useful for when spike damage has left me with a big 'ol bruise and my healer needs that extra half second to get a heal off. I'd rather he have that extra split second rather than having me die and wipe the raid.
Combat Expertise:
- 10% more Stamina is awesome, and so is the added expertise (since if I don't hit the mob, I don't gain any addition threat).
Avenger's Shield:
- I love it, some don't. Pulling with it can be a pain since if it bounces and hits a sapped target it can lead to a wipe (I've practiced so much that it doesn't happen). If I open with Avenger's Shield, you're not going to pull the mob off me. I don't care what you do or say, it's been tried.
RETRIBUTION TREE
Benediction over Improved Blessing of Might:
- As a tank I use Seals and Judgements, a lot. And I don't have a lot of mana since I'm stacking up Stamina and armor to catch up to my Warrior brethren. The reduction from Benediction may not seem like a lot at first glance, but during a 8 - 10 minute fight it REALLY adds up.
- I don't use Blessing of Might since I have Blessing of Kings (which I only use on boss fights). If there is another Paladin in the raid, he is most likely our Ret Pally who has this talent.
Improved Judgement and Deflection over Improved Seal of the Crusader:
- Improved Judgement means more Judgements of Righteousness, which makes this Tankadin a happy boy. Especially when I'm offtanking a boss and fighting as hard as possible to be second on the threat list.
- The 5% Parry from Deflection is nice since it allows me to get other stats (Stamina to be precise) over Parry Rating. More Stamina is always a plus!
- Improved Seal of the Crusader just isn't worth the points for a Tankadin in my opinion. It is a very nice talent, and if I had the points this is another one that I would *love* to pick up, but I'd rather use my last three points for...
Pursuit of Justice:
- Paladins, as I have said before, are severely lacking in spell damage mitigation/avoidance in comparison to Warriors. The 3% avoidance from this talent may not seem like much, but it adds up. It is true that mitigation would be much better (read: reliable) than avoidance, but we have to take what we are given. It may be "unreliable" (In that case, so are Dodge/Parry and Miss), but it will occasionally save your ***. The extra run speed is also a perk, and one that I enjoy quite a lot.