New Tank - and Admittingly, a little lazy.Follow

- Title kind of covers it - LSS - 56 Paladin - Tanking experience from level 46-56 for the most part. Want to check build and see if I should just keep going or re-spec totally.

http://www.wowarmory.com/character-sheet.xml?r=Borean+Tundra&cn=Londono



So long story - I leveled a paladin as retribution to 74, mainly solo and stumbling through the game, and then changed servers. After many characters, and servers, I'm leveling a dwarf paladin on borean tundra named Londono. Borean Tundra was a new server with the launch of Lich King, and I didn't realize people could transfer after 90 (or 180?) days, so thought it would be nice to ... re-level on a new server, since i knew so much more now... or so I though, and it was also a PvE server, which I had never played on.


Since starting all over, no help from friends with gold, etc, I've leveled a priest, rogue, paladin, and dk a good bit. Leveled up characters of other classes as well, but those are level 40 minimum.

I left the pally at 46/47 for a long time, just sitting there, while I got my priest to 44, and rogue to 43. Then the pally bug hit me again, and the LFG improvement had helped my priest level quickly, so i tried it.



Initially, I was queuing as DPS, and only tank if I really wanted to concentrate and try, since i was retribution through and through. Eventually, I decided to queue as tank, and was very successful, even as retribution spec.


I was curious what protection would offer, so tried a new prot build, trying mainly to up my stamina and see what kind of tricks prot had. After a couple builds, I came up with -

http://www.wowarmory.com/character-sheet.xml?r=Borean+Tundra&cn=Londono

Should I be running blessing of sanctuary, or only take it for holy shield, and buff myself with kings/wis/might? Should I skip this whole branch?

I went far enough into retribution to get seal of command, and its really seemed to help my ability to hold aggro. Should I put everything into protection, or am i on the right track?


I have played this build for the last 4 levels, and it works, but I still feel drawn to a straight ret build.


Suggestions???

I disagree with your talent raw because it cuts out many of the damage reducing talents in favor of damage increasing talents. For example guarded by the light reduces spell damage by an additional 6% and increased devotion aura for the 6% increased healing. Touch by the light effectively increases your threat because all your threat comes from Holy damage which comes from spell power. Divine shield and divine gaurdian are always nice in clutch aoe situations. The only reason to go that deep into the ret tree is to get command aura for easier group threat management.

http://www.wowhead.com/?talent#sZE0tAbuGGsIufzxf0z:Nzk
thats my recommended spec

If you have mana problems, which you shouldn't you can change points form heart of the crusader into benediction.

As for sanctuary I keep it on myself for the mana benefit once you become blocking, dodging, or parrying every attack which will happen because holy shield and redoubt give you 60% increase to block so that's a nice way to regain mana.

But tanking isn't for everyone, I have dual spec so when tanking gets boring because basically its just sitting there letting everyone hit you... So my suggestion is to just dual spec it and have a designated tanking and ret spec.

I'd personally go down Prot to HotR (51 point talent) before investing into Ret talents. At your level, I might try something like this for tanking.

yeah i realized this after rereading the OP but w/e. I would still take 3 talents out of reckoning and put them into touched by the light for threat generating power.

Neither of which is useful at lvl 56. Until you get HotR use Glyph of Judgement and Glyph of Seal of Righteousness. Once you get HotR swap in the HotR glyph for the judgement one and once you get Seal of Veng use the glyph for that seal. I wouldn't bother with Glyph of Divine plea until you hit 80.

Always bless yourself with Sanc, and if there's a warr or another pally in the grp ask for might or battleshout so you can do more tps/dps.

Some of the builds suggested in this thread don't use Judgements of the Just, but you really need at least 1 pt in the talent so you can get extra procs off of Judgements.

Edited, Feb 25th 2010 12:17pm by mahlerite

Thanks Borsuk, it was nice to come back to this thread, and find I was doing most of what you suggested :)

I haven't changed glyphs yet, simply to not spend the gold right now and just level up. I don't play non-stop, so taking awhile to get him to 80, but I Haven't seen a lot of reason to worry about glyphs right now, I've not had any problems.

I am spec'd to avenger's shield, put a few other points into prot, and filling out the increased parry talent in the ret tree right now.

I know some things that are rarely proc'ing now, I can take points out of, so waiting til I have to before re-spec'ing.

Still reading up when I can on tankspot, and here, picking up tips during runs...

I read that Holy Shield will lose charges, and just be an effect for cata changes, so that will be nice, I do worry they will nerf it a bit though..


I have loved learning to tank, and normally get a positive comment at some point, so I haven't worried too much about rotation or what I was doing, as long as no one is complaining :)

Someone posted recount statistics all through a run the other night, and I actually had top DPS for the whole run also, so that made me feel alright ;)

Tanking doesn't require too much attention in a 5man.