Five Signs of a Great Warrior Tank
Here are some things that I think set the truly great warriors apart from the merely good ones.
1. Knows where their Intervene button is
Intervene is a very under utilized ability. Yet, it’s also one of the most versatile.The most obvious use is getting to a friendly target before the mob they pulled can reach them. You can even use Intervene just to reduce threat on someone who hasn’t pulled yet. A slightly less obvious use is to move away from a target quickly by Intervening someone out of range (like a healer). This was a skill I honed on Murmur, but it’s come in handy more than once. The last really great use of Intervene is to take some heat off another tank. Keep in mind that it lowers their threat, so use it with care, but you can eat a hit during a big spike (which might even net you some rage, if you are starved at the time).
2. Can turn a mob without showing their back
Turning your back on a mob is dangerous. The moment you turn around, you can’t block/dodge/parry, opening you up to a big spike. However, we often have to turn a mob on a dime rather quickly (especially during pulls). All tanks should practice this trick, which involves mouse turning (keyboard turners need not apply): Run through the center of the mob, and when you reach the middle, do an about face and back up into position.
3. Knows when to pop cooldowns
A big problem that tanks have with cooldowns is popping them too late. Shield Wall can more than double your effective health, but twice 5% is still trouble. Last Stand is better when you are really low. A great tank is aware of the predictable spikes that can be mitigated with cooldowns, the unpredictable dips that can be pulled out with a quick finger, and the cooldowns that other can give them in a pinch.
4. Can build aggro while kiting
For many tanks, aggro falls through the floor when kiting. The combination of moving backwards and hitting a normal rotation is just too much for their fingers to handle. If you really want to kite and build aggro at the same time, practice your rotation until it’s second nature. Building great aggro should simply be what happens when you are on a mob, no matter what else is going on around you.
5. Never misses a pickup
Adds exist. This is a simple fact. Sometimes, the adds can be avoided, but other times they are part of the encounter. A good tank will usually notice them, and pick them up, but sometimes someone will die before that. A great tank, on the other hand, will never miss a pickup that needs to be made. When a mob comes into a fight, the great tank will charge/intercept/intervene/heroic throw/taunt, whatever it takes to get that mpb. No one needs to tell the tank that you have adds, they already know.
