Want to try tanking, looking for tips

srfrogg23 · February 2019

Tanking has always been a bit of an enigma to me since I'm mainly a solo player and dont need it for that content.

Does anyone have suggestions for what kinds of stats I should aim for? I've looked at some guides and, well, holy cow they're indepth... but they dont seem to offer suggestions on things like "you need a minimum of x health and y resistance to avoid being one-shotted in veteran content".

I really just need some numbers to aim for when I start my build.

(And yes, there have to be some baseline stats that work for the majority of the content - the wishy washy philosophical answers about different situations aren't what I'm looking for here.)

Jeremy · February 2019

srfrogg23 wrote: »

Tanking has always been a bit of an enigma to me since I'm mainly a solo player and dont need it for that content.

Does anyone have suggestions for what kinds of stats I should aim for? I've looked at some guides and, well, holy cow they're indepth... but they dont seem to offer suggestions on things like "you need a minimum of x health and y resistance to avoid being one-shotted in veteran content".

I really just need some numbers to aim for when I start my build.

(And yes, there have to be some baseline stats that work for the majority of the content - the wishy washy philosophical answers about different situations aren't what I'm looking for here.)

I personally like to have at least 30k health and resistance.

If you play as a Vampire - I also recommend feeding before you do a dungeon so as to get rid of the fire damage penalty. If you plan on pugging a lot - I'd also equip some self-healing capabilities.

Drummerx04 · February 2019

For old vet content, you can basically tank it in straight up light armor...

But for newer content just to survive, you'll probably want around 25k+ resists, and 30k+ health. Even then some bosses and adds hit hard. Depending on enrages, I've seen hits through block in full armor for as high as 40k+ on some bosses.

Pack a good self healing plan, because you can't always depend on the healer, and it's not uncommon to run without a healer.

For starting out I would recommend tanking the older dungeons as they will be way more forgiving. Also mentally prepare yourself for low dps if you queue using group finder.

valeriiya · February 2019

I have an Orc DK tank and a Redguard Sorc tank. Both have 40k health and 30k resistance. I use Ebon and Warrior Poet for random dungeons that I pug. Start with non DLC older dungeons to get the hang of it. Woeler has a great site that will help a lot https://woeler.eu

VaranisArano · February 2019

I tend to go for the method of "Overbuild until I get confident."

So for content I'm comfortable with, I've ended up in about the same range at Drummerx04 suggests. 30k+ health and 25k+ resistances. That's usually a decent balance on my MagDK between tankiness and fueling my group support: crowd control and buffs.

But for doing a blind run or dungeons I'm not comfortable with yet? I find its better that I go for a more "selfish" set-up with higher health and getting much closer to the resistance cap because its that much more important that I stay alive. Having a more "selfish" build is much more forgiving while I'm learning the mechanics and the situational awareness I need to survive in my more group-oriented build. And it makes for a smoother run while we're learning.

On the flip side, this method kinda bit me in the butt when it comes to moving from Normals to Vets. See, I'd overbuilt for Normal dungeons so much that I learned to ignore mechanics. So when I started running Veteran Dungeons, I had to relearn all those mechanics that can one-shot me if I don't follow them.

MaleAmazon · February 2019

My advice is to not worry about stats at first. With max resist, 30k should be enough, 40k I´d imagine you could clear everything with. Resistances are not the only source of mitigation...

You should worry more about how you actually tank. Tanking is way different than DDing, since you don´t regen stamina when blocking (so you need to know when you can drop block for a while), you should taunt but not taunt everything, and you have to know about specific mechanics.

Oh and you also need to know what boss attacks cannot be taunted, so you can respond with 'L2P issue, you can´t tank stupid', rather than 'sorry', when the DD accuses you of not tanking

The no 1 problem I´ve had while tanking is that sometimes the block is not responsive, especially when you are channeling something. I solve it by using bash to break the animation and then keeping the block down.

But if you really want to know only about stats? Depends on your CP, too, but 25k hp / resist should be enough for normal content even at no CP. Not counting DLC as normal Moon Hunter Keep is harder than veteran Fungal Grotto 1.

For veteran... I play a medium DD at max CP, but for pledges I can PUG in fortified brass 5med+2heavy, with endurance jewelry and chudan. With that I get basically max resist and I think a little over 30k HP. I can tank all vet content up to Falkreath hold with it, but I haven´t really tried the later DLC dungeons. Make of that what you will.

and good luck to you. Tanking is fun, if nothing else for a change of pace.

lolli42 · February 2019

dont go over the res cap of 33k?
better invest in some health or other recources and utility

VaranisArano · February 2019

MaleAmazon wrote: »

Oh and you also need to know what boss attacks cannot be taunted, so you can respond with 'L2P issue, you can´t tank stupid', rather than 'sorry', when the DD accuses you of not tanking

Good advice overall!

And yeah, there's nothing like having a Red Phase Centurion chasing a DD who's yelling, "TANK?!!!!"

And I'm watching it like "Believe me, if I could taunt it off you, I would."

Shantu · February 2019

35+ health, max resistances, as large a stamina pool as you can get, plenty of traits/enchants/CP's to reduce the cost of blocking, and enough magicka to sustain those skills (if any).

Then, of course, you'll need to learn how to tank effectively.

Alpheu5 · February 2019

Numbers to start? 30k+ health, 21k-26k resists, both unbuffed. The resists fluctuate because of the amount that sets can provide. Major Ward/Resolves gives +5k, proccing Warden brings it to +8k, and if you've got Bloodspawn instead it changes to +11k. Really the end goal is to be close to max while you're fighting. Try to avoid going over 34k as at that point it's definitely over the cap.

Know when it's important to block. You can tell someone is just starting out as a tank when they hold block through every single attack and rarely regain resources. Heavy attack when possible, keep up the debuffs, and be ready to move when necessary. Even tanks aren't always exempt from the "stay out of the red" rule.

The things that typically one-shot you in dungeons will one-shot you regardless of what your resistances are if you're not blocking at the right time, so health and resists at that point are irrelevant. If the boss has yellow lines shooting into it, best bet is to block. Most of the efficiency of tanking comes from knowing the dungeons' mechanics inside and out, so run them until your footprints make trenches in the concrete.

(Philosophical) Exact gear depends entirely on the competency of the group and/or your confidence in your personal ability, but really you should only need 2 different setups, the "helpful" and the "selfish".

My every-tank setup that I use for most trials, achievement runs with friends, etc.:

Alkosh
Dragon
Bloodspawn

My "independent" setup that I use most when doing random queues, duoing, or just want to have fun:

Ironblood
Leeching (Talking shield is BiS)
Lord Warden

vgabor · February 2019

I'd say minimum stats if you know what you're doing are 30k+ health and 20k+ res. If you new to tanking, you want more than that to have a comfortable error of margin, so aim for at least 35k+ heath and 25k+ res unbuffed, but at the beginning I would even recommend going over 40k health since you inevitably will make mistakes and this lets you survive even those. Also aim for 20k stam as min, you need stamina for blocking and at least 12-15k mag as well for buff and cc spells.

While learning don't worry if you using selfish sets. If you don't know anything at all about tanking and you try it first, go full out on survival: plague doctor and fortified brass. Monster set whatever defensive you have, dont even have to be a full 2 pc set, an example one domi and one warden good as well. Ignore divine trait, you want infused with tri-stat glyphs on big pieces and sturdy on small ones. Have 5 heavy, 1 light and 1 medium for the undaunted passives, best if belt light and hand medium, but it can depend on what monster pieces you have.

General rule for tanking: taunt and turn away the boss from the rest of the teams, block when the boss has those diagonal white lines around them and interrupt when they have the red lines around them.

Also look up the dungeon mechanics beforehand, dds can get away not knowing but you as tank have to know the mechanics.

FierceSam · February 2019

Woeler is my tank mentor. His YouTube and site are tanking gold.

Ebon, from Crypt of Hearts, is a great general tanking set that’s easy to farm as a starting point. Match it with something that protects and buffs you first, before moving on to something more team focused once you get more confident.

Your priorities are staying alive, controlling the boss, managing ads and buffing/debuffing.

Make sure you have some way of drawing in ads - DK chains or Silver Leash.

If you’re PC/Mac then Untaunted is a great add-on

Xynode’s All About Mechanics YouTube series will let you know how all the bosses behave.

Above all have fun

RANKK7 · February 2019

https://woeler.eu/ The guy is very skilled not only as a player, he's also able to explain things pretty clearly even for people new to the game.
Take a look, I think you'll find it incredibly useful as it's been for me and many.

r34lian · February 2019

My nord dk uses bloodspawn + ebon + plague doctor all points in stamina orzorga's red Frothgar drink with atronach mundus she has around 44k health 20k+ stamina 2k+ mag regeneration and ~34k resist with bloodspawn proc tanky as hell and she never runs out of resources!!

Dubhliam · February 2019

Stat priority:
1. Block cost reduction - never enough
2. magicka regen - anything over 1200 is okay, unless you use Balance
3. health - over 35k
4. resists - over 28k

EDIT: these stats are for DK tanks ofc, since you can return stamina by casting Igneous Shield

srfrogg23 · February 2019

Thanks for the responses everyone! I put together a setup on my Breton Nightblade using Malubeth's, Fortified Brass, and Shacklebreaker. Ended up with 35k health and 32k/35k resistances. I can even do about 7k dps, lol.

Tanked a few vet dungeons today, even a couple DLC, and I was able to take the hits just fine, so it was really just a matter of looking the mechanics and doing it. I'm not sure if the setup is ideal, but it seems to get the job done and the self-healing is pretty insane.

Isteris · February 2019

You should look to replacing your gear with sets that buff the group or de buff the boss, not right now of course but when you feel comfortable in the role, Ebon from the crypt of hearts and something like Alkosh and or Torug,s but certainly Ebon asap.
I have a dk Argonian tank un buffed health is 33k stam 21k and both resistances at around 29k (capped when buffed) and its enough not to struggle in the 4 man vet hm's and all the normal trials.

* mind you we will have to see after tomorrow.

Draxys · February 2019

IMO, knowing the “little” things is the key to tanking. Anyone can get the right stats and gear, but not everyone is good at things like A) managing your resources when you have to chain a million adds and still block the heavy hits (B) positioning the boss and big adds for maximum group benefit ... etc etc. Positioning and timing is huge for a tank, and not that many people teach new tanks how to do it properly. You can look up something like “jdub eso” on YouTube, the guy puts out end game tanking guides a lot, he’s great.

MartiniDaniels · February 2019

Isteris wrote: »

You should look to replacing your gear with sets that buff the group or de buff the boss, not right now of course but when you feel comfortable in the role, Ebon from the crypt of hearts and something like Alkosh and or Torug,s but certainly Ebon asap.
I have a dk Argonian tank un buffed health is 33k stam 21k and both resistances at around 29k (capped when buffed) and its enough not to struggle in the 4 man vet hm's and all the normal trials.

* mind you we will have to see after tomorrow.

Why ebon is ASAP for dungeons where OP will be in nearest time? It's trial set, worthwhile mostly for regen food dps to meet 17k HP requirement. And with new changes to food which will provide more HP, it may become obsolete even for trials. In dungeons you have crazy mix of people with 14-20k HP and ebon is useless to group there. Alkosh is good only if your mates bothers to send synergies each several seconds, which is very inconsistent in PUGs.

MartiniDaniels · February 2019

srfrogg23 wrote: »

Thanks for the responses everyone! I put together a setup on my Breton Nightblade using Malubeth's, Fortified Brass, and Shacklebreaker. Ended up with 35k health and 32k/35k resistances. I can even do about 7k dps, lol.

Tanked a few vet dungeons today, even a couple DLC, and I was able to take the hits just fine, so it was really just a matter of looking the mechanics and doing it. I'm not sure if the setup is ideal, but it seems to get the job done and the self-healing is pretty insane.

Well, it's "potato" setup like any dps will tell you, but at this point it's better to be alive and learn limits of damage you may take and then go for group support sets. As for now there are only 5 sets for which you won't be blamed for selfishness (in organized trial) - Alkosh, Ebon, Akaviri dragonguard, Powerful assault and Torug's pact.
Alkosh and Ebon are "best", but they are trial sets, and effective in dungeons only if your healer and dps run trial setups too.

idk · February 2019

Drummerx04 wrote: »

For old vet content, you can basically tank it in straight up light armor...

But for newer content just to survive, you'll probably want around 25k+ resists, and 30k+ health. Even then some bosses and adds hit hard. Depending on enrages, I've seen hits through block in full armor for as high as 40k+ on some bosses.

Pack a good self healing plan, because you can't always depend on the healer, and it's not uncommon to run without a healer.

For starting out I would recommend tanking the older dungeons as they will be way more forgiving. Also mentally prepare yourself for low dps if you queue using group finder.

This is probably the best advice provided here. Especially the self healing plan if you are pugging (using GF).

If you have been running the dungeons in damage or healing roles then you should be aware of much of the mechanics and that will help much.

VaranisArano · February 2019

MartiniDaniels wrote: »

Isteris wrote: »

You should look to replacing your gear with sets that buff the group or de buff the boss, not right now of course but when you feel comfortable in the role, Ebon from the crypt of hearts and something like Alkosh and or Torug,s but certainly Ebon asap.
I have a dk Argonian tank un buffed health is 33k stam 21k and both resistances at around 29k (capped when buffed) and its enough not to struggle in the 4 man vet hm's and all the normal trials.

* mind you we will have to see after tomorrow.

Why ebon is ASAP for dungeons where OP will be in nearest time? It's trial set, worthwhile mostly for regen food dps to meet 17k HP requirement. And with new changes to food which will provide more HP, it may become obsolete even for trials. In dungeons you have crazy mix of people with 14-20k HP and ebon is useless to group there. Alkosh is good only if your mates bothers to send synergies each several seconds, which is very inconsistent in PUGs.

I like to use Ebon in dungeons for two reasons.

1. My friends like to run squishy DDs and my healer friend appreciates it.
2. I PUG, so rolling into a dungeon showing those red orbs is a nice indicator that "Hey, I'm a real tank, not a DD who jumped the queue."

Obviously those are personal preference

Otherwise, I'd pick up Ebon just because it is really good to have on hand when you make the jump to trials.

Just don't get Ebon weapons. Unless you want to troll your healers every time you bar swap...

idk · February 2019

VaranisArano wrote: »

MartiniDaniels wrote: »

Isteris wrote: »

You should look to replacing your gear with sets that buff the group or de buff the boss, not right now of course but when you feel comfortable in the role, Ebon from the crypt of hearts and something like Alkosh and or Torug,s but certainly Ebon asap.
I have a dk Argonian tank un buffed health is 33k stam 21k and both resistances at around 29k (capped when buffed) and its enough not to struggle in the 4 man vet hm's and all the normal trials.

* mind you we will have to see after tomorrow.

Why ebon is ASAP for dungeons where OP will be in nearest time? It's trial set, worthwhile mostly for regen food dps to meet 17k HP requirement. And with new changes to food which will provide more HP, it may become obsolete even for trials. In dungeons you have crazy mix of people with 14-20k HP and ebon is useless to group there. Alkosh is good only if your mates bothers to send synergies each several seconds, which is very inconsistent in PUGs.

I like to use Ebon in dungeons for two reasons.

1. My friends like to run squishy DDs and my healer friend appreciates it.
2. I PUG, so rolling into a dungeon showing those red orbs is a nice indicator that "Hey, I'm a real tank, not a DD who jumped the queue."

Obviously those are personal preference Otherwise, I'd pick up Ebon just because it is really good to have on hand when you make the jump to trials.

Just don't get Ebon weapons. Unless you want to troll your healers every time you bar swap...

And Ebon is the set a tank can where that does the most to increase survival for the entire group. It is a great tanking set.

AbysmalGhul · February 2019

A couple of tips

1. Resource managment

Start with dividing your stats properly. I usually put 20 points into health and magicka, and 24 points into stam. I put more into stam so when I synergize, I'll restore stam. I use magicka recovery glyphs on my jewerly pieces and I use the magicka recovery mundus. I usually sit around at 1850-1900 magicka recovery. I don't worry about stam because I can get in a few heavy attacks before I have to block or bash. Why so much magicka recovery? Self heals and support abilities aren't cheap! Use tri pots for harder and busier content like Vet Moon Hunter Keep.

2. Abilities

Level up your destruction staff,healing staff, undaunted, and pvp abilities for your back bar set up. You want to have skills like elemental drain, orbs, and vigor for support. Depending on the class you play, you might want to have a group healing skill. I use ash cloud because I'm a DK. Balance your skill morphs between magicka and stam versions for better resource managment.

3. Stats and gear

Get both of your resistances up to at least 32k. I usually keep my health around 40k for better heals with Green Dragon blood. Use gear to adjust to the situation and to keep your resistances up and you'll be fine.

I sit at roughly 40k health, 20 magicka and 21k stam. 32k resistances. 1850-1900 magicka recovery and 800 + stam recovery

MartiniDaniels · February 2019

idk wrote: »

VaranisArano wrote: »

MartiniDaniels wrote: »

Isteris wrote: »

You should look to replacing your gear with sets that buff the group or de buff the boss, not right now of course but when you feel comfortable in the role, Ebon from the crypt of hearts and something like Alkosh and or Torug,s but certainly Ebon asap.
I have a dk Argonian tank un buffed health is 33k stam 21k and both resistances at around 29k (capped when buffed) and its enough not to struggle in the 4 man vet hm's and all the normal trials.

* mind you we will have to see after tomorrow.

Why ebon is ASAP for dungeons where OP will be in nearest time? It's trial set, worthwhile mostly for regen food dps to meet 17k HP requirement. And with new changes to food which will provide more HP, it may become obsolete even for trials. In dungeons you have crazy mix of people with 14-20k HP and ebon is useless to group there. Alkosh is good only if your mates bothers to send synergies each several seconds, which is very inconsistent in PUGs.

I like to use Ebon in dungeons for two reasons.

1. My friends like to run squishy DDs and my healer friend appreciates it.
2. I PUG, so rolling into a dungeon showing those red orbs is a nice indicator that "Hey, I'm a real tank, not a DD who jumped the queue."

Obviously those are personal preference Otherwise, I'd pick up Ebon just because it is really good to have on hand when you make the jump to trials.

Just don't get Ebon weapons. Unless you want to troll your healers every time you bar swap...

And Ebon is the set a tank can where that does the most to increase survival for the entire group. It is a great tanking set.

How extra 1k HP critically increase survival of dps in dungeon? Dps either knows how to avoid damage and then his 16k HP are enough to survive mob attention and minimal time to react to aoe or he doesn't know how to avoid damage and then those 1k HP won't help him anyway. Compare it to power assault where dps receives regular additional healing from vigor and +160 to base damage. Tanks love ebon so much because it's actually selfish set with in-built group utility, similar to lord warden. And because red balls shows "I'm "serious" trial tank!". And nobody says that ebon is bad. But it's not must-have and ASAP until person starts tanking trials.