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Improving tanking (except with gear and builds)Follow

#1 Jul 23 2009 at 6:49 PM Rating: Decent
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What do you feel has improved your tanking most (ignoring builds and equipment this time)? Things like macros, keyboard settings, different methods of pulling etc... These are a few that come to mind... Most are quite obvious and posted in order of what comes to mind...

Face the opponent
With multiple mobs it pays off to get the majority of mobs in front of the tank in order to increase chance of dodge/parry. Reduces damage a fair bit and makes it easier to use Shockwave efficiently.

Use Pitbull addon
Set the healthbar of all raidmembers to a dark grey or similar. If aggro is lost the healthbar will turn bright red, immediately alerting the tank that aggro is lost and where.

Castbar addon
Perhaps someone could help me remember which one it is... Quartz? Its an addon that lets you customize castbars. The idea is to make enemy spells/abilities appear in a large and visible castbar so its not overlooked in the heat of battle. Increases time available to get a spell reflect in, hide, move etc...

Heal self
Make a macro to heal self with bandage. To be used if there is a break between incoming damage.

Startattack macro
Add the line below to (for instance) the devastate hotkey, or even a few more. Especially nice if off-tanking - makes sure you don't just stand there looking stupid doing nothing after the first mob drops.
/startattack

Warbringer macro
On an enemy it will first cast Charge, then cast Intercept. With an enemy targeting someone else it will cast Intervene (I think if Intercept is on CD) or if you target a player will Intervene to them.

/castsequence reset=15 Charge, Intercept
/cast [help] Intervene; [target=targettarget, help] Intervene;

Use trinkets
I know this is not ideal but otherwise I would not be using my trinkets very much, which is especially bad if they can help improve threat / damage. I bind one trinket to each of revenge and shield slam.

macro 1:
/use 13
/cast Revenge

macro 2:
/use 14
/cast Shield Slam

#2 Jul 24 2009 at 1:50 AM Rating: Good
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For raids use Grid. It has a red top left corner means aggro default. Plus if the other tank drops you notice and can taunt. Also when you use Grid in a raid don't use party frames. Just you, target, target target and focus.

Keybind everything. You want to be in control of everything you do keybinds help.

UI. Make it clean. Example .

Tanking is about controlling pulls. Realize this and do it.

Trinkets should not be key bound to normal attacks, use them when you want to use them. This goes for all classes/specs. If you know a hero is coming and you blow a DPS trink that is macro'd before it that is dumb. Same goes for 'I no like die, I push buttons to live' trinks.

Have enough health then worry about avoidance. This is of course assuming you are uncrittable.

edit: link





Edited, Jul 24th 2009 5:52am by Horsemouth
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#3 Oct 09 2009 at 3:02 AM Rating: Decent
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A combination of XPerl, Omen, and DBM has really put my tanking on the next level.
#4 Oct 10 2009 at 8:19 AM Rating: Decent
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BEER

As stupid as this my sound, but my best tanking experiences were when I was properly tanked.
Not DRUNK ofc, but enough to feel it. Removes the "think what to do" part of a decisions by just doing it. If you don't overdo it with the booze, it quickens your reactions b/c you don't think, you just do it by intuition which is, at least for me, right in 99% of the cases.
#5 Oct 10 2009 at 9:38 AM Rating: Good
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I prefer a nice bourbon myself. Used to be with a cigar, but I kicked that habit after getting married.

I function equally well on (black) coffee up to about the first pot. Then I get jittery and don't tank as well.

Horsemouth wrote:

Trinkets should not be key bound to normal attacks, use them when you want to use them. This goes for all classes/specs. If you know a hero is coming and you blow a DPS trink that is macro'd before it that is dumb. Same goes for 'I no like die, I push buttons to live' trinks.

/agree
#6 Oct 10 2009 at 1:14 PM Rating: Decent
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Any whiskey here please. Jameson, Red Breast, Glenfidditch, Glenlivet, GlenXXXX, Wild Turkey, Jim Bean (Rye preferred), etc...

My previous guild, all 3 of us tanks drank heavily. Sometimes this led to the occasional problem. Our bear would spontaneously start going into song on vent. Which led to us muting him, and then when he actually had something important to say we couldn't hear him. Then he would get angry-drunk... A much better tank while angry, but a **** to his guildies.
#7 Oct 13 2009 at 10:37 AM Rating: Decent
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Quote:
UI. Make it clean. Example.


That's a bit TOO clean for me I NEED a little chaos on my screen but you are right you have to personalise that witch you need and that witch is not nessesary.

Quote:
BEER

As stupid as this my sound, but my best tanking experiences were when I was properly tanked.
Not DRUNK ofc, but enough to feel it. Removes the "think what to do" part of a decisions by just doing it. If you don't overdo it with the booze, it quickens your reactions b/c you don't think, you just do it by intuition which is, at least for me, right in 99% of the cases.


Lol, I have to agree but, again that's not for everyone because lets face it not everyone is able to find that right balance and as much fun as drunken wow is it makes for a bad tank if he is tanked too bad.
#8 Oct 13 2009 at 9:13 PM Rating: Good
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Horsemouth wrote:
UI. Make it clean. Example .


From a minimalistic and efficiency POV, that's pretty neat.

From a designer's POV, that's painful to look at. Reminds me of my UI some four years ago.

Servers are down for maintenance, but I'll post a picture in the morrow.
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#9 Oct 13 2009 at 11:18 PM Rating: Decent
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I have two /cast random macros with all of my tanking buttons. One for oh **** buttons and one for everything else. Each is bound to half the keyboard, so all I have to do to MT is smash my fist against the keyboard while I'm watching House reruns.

^^
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