It's an odd question, it's like asking what is easier, dog paddling or floating? Both of the roles are easy, DPS takes the most practice, but if you can get good at DDR you can get good at DPS.

Raiden_Gekkou wrote: »

Healing is the easiest role. You don't have to worry about stacking adds and keeping aggro as a tank or positioning as a squishy dps while keeping up a sweaty rotation. You can just spam orbs, springs, and ele drain while moving around a little with your 19K health and not worrying too much about getting killed.

Yeah, unless you have a high demand of yourself and actually try to keep up every buff and debuff you have access to.

Here's the real difference between the roles. DD is the only role with an objective metric which allows all members of that role to directly compare their skill level within their role - their actual DPS score. Tank and Healer roles are far more subjective, with different groups having very different perspectives of what makes a good one. Because DPS are so easily able to parse and directly compare skill level to each other, it creates culture of top-tier DPSers always striving to push their scores higher so they can compare their epeens. Yes, perfecting a rotation is hard, but is frankly unnecessary for most content. Just because many DPSers choose to be competitive with each other (which is truly hard to push that score past your peers at the top level), it doesn't mean their role is in general hard. Ignoring that top-tier e-peen contest and only looking at the role in general, it is far easier than Healing or Tanking.

Edit: To many is is is's.

It depends on the content and the team comp. vHoF is miserable for healers, and becomes even more miserable when the dps doesn't focus conduits or runs ahead (ease up, speedy stambois) while the healers struggle to keep everyone healed while dealing with depleted mag pools due to mechanics. vSO sucks for healers too, with DDs not paying attention and dragging Overcharge through the middle of a group while ignoring the Overchargers, then gleefully and intentionally infecting everyone with poison while the healers use up precious resources keeping everyone alive through all of that.

Solo tanking vAA hm though is a beast for tanks, and they take a serious beating in vHRC (thousand cuts). If you're pugging, the likelihood of some roleplaying dimwit gleefully spamming heavy attacks from an ice staff or puncturing the enemy to death with their sword and board dps increases, then you get to deal with the group yelling at you for losing aggro while making derisive noises. Oftentimes it's the little roleplayer with the shield and the 5k dps making the comments because they got instagibbed when the boss they kept aggroing turned around and swiped them. Sometimes though, it seems like the tanks are bored, like in Asylum, so I'm guessing it's a much less challenging job, while healers are running around in there buffing, debuffing, kiting dmg mechanics and trying to keep everyone including themselves alive.

vCR is where things actually become more difficult for the dps, since they have to self sustain while in the "basement" and the group heavily depends on them being able to both stay alive and complete the mechanics. Keeping up a steady and effective rotation can be difficult when there is so much going on.

All in all, I think it's important for every player involved in PvE to make one of each role, and then really try to learn that role. It gives you a much deeper understanding of how they all work together and how each one is crucial to the group's success.

The only reason I picked Healer is because it makes me nervous to heal, I'm hyperfocused on trying to keep everyone alive but then I also have to throw some attacks because it's ridiculous and wasteful not to, but what if I'm attacking and someone gets hurt and the millisecond it takes me to switch bars and hit the skill is too long and they die and then it's all my fault and my friends will abandon me for letting them die and I'll perish all alone and forgotten.

I have a dps toon, a healer toon and a tank toon. All are top geared and can do most endgame content. I can only answer what role is easier for me. First, I would say the healer is the easiest one, then is the tank and the hardest is dps. The healer is easier because I can feel that I have more control. The tank and dps both rely on the healer for their survival (at least in endgame content). But the healer relies on no one. So if as a healer I don't die, my party usually can complete content. The tank most of the time you stand blocking and worrying about keeping debuffs on the boss. As a dps first I have to run around like a madman dodging everything and killing your keyboard. And yes, the weaving and animation cancelling. I still don't get it perfectly. And most of all the dps are more reliant on good tank an healer. You can do almost any content with good tank an healer but low dps (only it will be slower). But you can't do serious content with bad tank or healer. I've been several times in a situation when I spent hours as dps trying to kill boss in dlc dungeon. Then the healer left and new healer comes we do it perfectly and easily. The dps and tank is how fast you complete the dungeon. The healer is about whether you complete it at all or not.

DenMoria wrote: »

AhPook_Is_Here wrote: »

It's an odd question, it's like asking what is easier, dog paddling or floating? Both of the roles are easy, DPS takes the most practice, but if you can get good at DDR you can get good at DPS.

DPS doesn't take practice. By far it's the easiest role in ESO.

Damage dealing takes no skill if you understand the mechanics.

Keeping yourself alive WHILE dealing damage is what takes skill.

Why do so many people think this? If you've never struggled to raise your DPS, your DPS is almost certainly too low to do hard content.

worrallj wrote: »

madarame_77 wrote: »

I have a dps toon, a healer toon and a tank toon. All are top geared and can do most endgame content. I
...
You can do almost any content with good tank an healer but low dps (only it will be slower). ...

Is that really true? Doesn't true end game content usually include DPS checks?

I was talking about non-dlc dungeons mostly. Vet doc and trials yes your dps need at least 25k dps

I would say both are difficult. Mostly because you don't need either in many circumstances running vet dungeons. Players who encounter difficulty often are unfamiliar with the game content.

Yesterday, I farmed a vet dungeon for a friend with only DPS oriented characters. So yeah, Tanks and Healers are for trials except certain vet DLC dungeons but even than, you really just need a self-healing/durable tank build for boss fights.

Edited: Most people build glass-cannon characters that cannot handle vet trash mobs on their own - that's bad for them but good for those whole evolve their characters to hold themselves upright under pressure than whine about their build, the lack of tank or effective healer. It's like running a vet dungeon with a group of PVP players who sustain DPS sucks ars - those are the groups that need tanks and healers, a very patient tank and healer to tolerate their *** poor dps performance.

Sahidom wrote: »

Yesterday, I farmed a vet dungeon for a friend with only DPS oriented characters. So yeah, Tanks and Healers are for trials except certain vet DLC dungeons but even than, you really just need a self-healing/durable tank build for boss fights.
...

Edited: Most people build glass-cannon characters that cannot handle vet trash mobs on their own - that's bad for them but good for those whole evolve their characters to hold themselves upright under pressure than whine about their build, the lack of tank or effective healer. It's like running a vet dungeon with a group of PVP players who sustain DPS sucks ars - those are the groups that need tanks and healers, a very patient tank and healer to tolerate their *** poor dps performance.

Ya my main is a dps imperial Magicka templar. He couldn't tank harder content but most fights he can survive almost like a tank thanks to a little skill called puncturing sweep...😜. Still having a hard time getting that DPS number up past the 25k mark though. Hence my conviction that DPS is harder.

worrallj wrote: »

Jeremy wrote: »

ValkyriesWolf wrote: »

I main a tank. I once tried to use a healer, but boy, how do you healer guys see everything at the same time and can give heals accordingly when everyone is running (like) crazy??? And I am kind of a movement hater, I like standing firm and as a tank you can stand in more sh*t before you die. I think it's far easier, just hold taunt and not die, instead of having to look where I can stand without dying ans simultaneously looking where other ppl are dying and need help....

Same here. I like to stand my ground and actually engage in melee. Not run around like a headless chicken. I don't know when it became fashionable on MMORPGs to run all over the ___ _____ place but it's irritating and I prefer more traditional MMORPGs in that respect.

I also have the same issue you do when I play as my healer. It's just so annoying trying to heal people when they are are spread out running all over the place. It's just not fun. At all.

This game needs to hire a new team to design their healers and healing generally. They don't seem to understand the role very well or how to make it effective and fun to play.

There are only certain fights where the DPS should be running around like that. Most of the time they're doing it because they are inexperienced and don't know what they're doing. In general they should stay together behind the boss, so you can just lay down the love and everyone gets a taste.

I don't understand why they just don't let healers heal people who are behind them or to the side of them. They let you use shields on people who are standing behind you. Why not heals too?

This game just seems to enjoy making it extra annoying for healers. I wonder how damage dealers would like it if in order to do damage to enemies they would have to have all their party many members lined up in front of them. Or in order for tanks to use their taunt they had to have all their party members in front of them.

It's just stupid in my opinion and I've never played an MMORPG where the healer has to be looking at the person to heal them. Making breath of life have a frontal cone was one of the dumbest changes ever to this game. There just isn't enough time to run around to stare at people before healing them. People die in like a second and need instant healing. And it's so rare for other players to actually stay in front of me or within the range of of my ritual I don't even consider that an option anymore.

worrallj wrote: »

Ya my main is a dps imperial Magicka templar. He couldn't tank harder content but most fights he can survive almost like a tank thanks to a little skill called puncturing sweep...😜. Still having a hard time getting that DPS number up past the 25k mark though. Hence my conviction that DPS is harder.

Totally agree with you. Especially when trial guilds layout strict parse requirements. I've heard of one guild that requires you to parse 50+k to join veteran trial runs. Many posted parses demonstrate the do-ability; but for many that parse is an urban legend for them.

Another guild example would be having their trial players to have a 25k parse minimum to join normal trial runs. Again, very do-able but balancing the DPS iron-triangle (resource management, penetration, damage output) can be difficult. You have a better chance to join a trial watching for groups in Craglorn than your own guild (from the perspective of non-veteran trial players).

But I do stand that Tanks and Healers are very optional outside Trial content.

idk wrote: »

Linaleah wrote: »

idk wrote: »

runkorkoeb17_ESO wrote: »

idk wrote: »

Heelie wrote: »

DPS is at least 5x as hard to do at a top 1% level than tanking and healing I don't think you can possibly argue against that. Obviously any person can arrow spray.

Healing is to an extend easier than tanking, but this has something to do with the ceiling. I don't think anyone would argue main tanking Olms is hard, at the same time some stacks i vMoL can be very tricky.

Have you healed or tanked at the top 1%? That would mean you have cleared all vet HM trials including vAS+2 and vCR+3 as a tank or healer.

I think most in this thread stating that DPS is so much harder than healing or tanking are judging based on experience with less challenging content which is not challenging for any role.

So end game is challenging only for tank and healer ?
And since when 1% is leading in any statistic

I suggest you read what you quoted again. To suggest I am saying that would be nothing less than putting words in my mouth. At no point did I belittle the work of DPS and it is pathetic so suggest I did.

It takes much dedication to be in the top 1% of dps, which is what the person I quoted was stating. They suggest tanking and healing at that level is fairly easy since they say DPS is 5x more challenging than either of the support roles.

My comment was mostly calling into question their experience. I question if they have cleared all trials on the most challenging settings let along healed or tanked them to have a basis for their judgement.

I seriously doubt any dps in a competitive raiding group (which is what they were actually speaking to) thinks their healers and tanks have it easy. Especially since most healers and tanks cannot handle the job well.

its not about having it easy. its about which role is harder.

When someone ways one role is 5x more difficult they are saying the other roles are absurdly easy. That is laughable.

nope. you are falling for a logical fallacy. something being much harder does not mean other thing is absurdly easy.