Over on the forums, poster Berzork makes an interesting point: if both Death Knights and Warriors are designed to be damage-dealers and tanks wearing plate, how will they peacefully co-exist? Though we don't yet have full details on the Death Knight class, it seems as though there's potential for a lot of overlap -- and the big question is how Blizzard can release a class like the Death Knight while continuing to allow Warriors a viable role. And on my end, I have to wonder if throwing another tanking class into the game mix is going to solve any problems -- many Warriors want to DPS rather than tank (see
many previous posts on the subject), and can we expect Death Knights to be any different?
Bornakk attempts to calm everyone's fears by simply stating:
By adding another dps/tanking class, the Death Knight will give players and groups more options for what they need to complete their objective(s).
Some Druids tank, some Paladins tank, some Warriors tank -- and hopefully some Death Knights will pick up the mantle of tank as well.Tags: death-knight, deathknight, tank, tanks, warrior, world-of-warcraft, wow, wrath-of-the-lich-king, wrathofthelichking
Filed under: Warrior, Analysis / Opinion, Death Knight, Wrath of the Lich King, Forums
Sep 17th 2007 at 7:50PM 
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Xorr Sep 17th 2007 7:57PM
You know, I was wondering the same thing. But, I do see the need for more tanks in the game. Ever since the announcement of Death Knights, I've been paying attention to what roles are needed for groups, and it always comes down to healers and tanks. However, I think there is a larger need for tanks than healers.
So... Bring on the Death Knights! I will be making one, and I look forward to being able to tank if a group needs one.
Besides... my main is a rogue, and every rogue's secret ambition is to tank. ;D (Or, more specifically, be able to wear plate!)
Ryan Squires Sep 17th 2007 8:29PM
I see a lot of warriors switching to Deathknights in the next expansion. Myself included. After all, who doesn't want want to tank with a 2H weapon?!!
Talys Sep 17th 2007 8:40PM
Well, if I remember correctly, Blizzard said that they were looking to allow Death Knights to tank with 2-handers or while duel-wielding. Now, I think that surprised most people, but honestly we already have a class that does that... it's called a Druid. Druids don't get a shield, so they end up stacking insane amounts of stamina and dodge on themselves for mitigation and avoidance purposes. Honestly, I don't see why the Death Knights wouldn't work in a similar manner since Blizz also said that Death Knights wouldn't be able to equip shields either.
And, as many TBC experienced raiders already know, certain fights benefit certain tank classes more than others. If any class is going to be "threatened" by Death Knight tanks, I'd say it will more than likely be the druids, not the warriors or pallies.
Baluki Sep 17th 2007 9:28PM
I'll worry about whether DKs will take the place of current tanks when I can reliably find a tank for a dungeon.
I think it's more likely that current tanking classes may switch to DKs, resulting in little-to-no increase in the number of available tanks. Or at least, that's my fear.
I'm currently attempting to level a Tankadin, but she's only up to 34. Let's see which makes it to 70 first: her, or the DK I've yet to make.
Fletch Sep 17th 2007 9:46PM
It's always really bothered me when warriors insist that they should be the best tank for every situation. They're a hybrid class, just like paladins (and deathknights), so there's no reason they should get to corner the market on tanking ability.
Every other class role has multiple classes that can fill it, why are warriors special?
Ryan Sep 17th 2007 9:48PM
@5 They're not, druids can tank just about everything they can, with a couple rare exceptions (and even then it's still possible, just more difficult).
Green Armadillo Sep 17th 2007 9:53PM
Yeah, I'd be pretty worried if I played one of the existing melee classes. DK's are the star feature of the expansion, so Blizz is NOT going to make them the worst class in the game. That means someone (either tanks or melee dps, especially any melee DPS that isn't a rogue) is going to find themselves outcompeted for a group slot.
The sad part? There's still going to be a tank shortage when the dust settles, because people are going to spec their DK's for DPS.
Caylee Sep 17th 2007 10:03PM
Its not the lack of tanks from what I see when I play its finding people who play a tank class not wanting to tank because it requires you to pay more attention and requires you to essentially lead the party.
In the old game there were too many lol dps warriors aka "to dumb to tank".
Then with the expansion and 5 mans that required more skill and to use actual CC I noticed a big shortage of warriors in general.
In stepped hybrid classes because they finally put enough gear for the hybrids to effectively play the roles the primaries did not want to play. We got good druid/pally tanks, excellent pally main healers but then the primaries complained so blizzard buffed "I think" warriors and nerfed pallies a bit but still I can never find a priest-healer warrior tank in pugs.
James Sep 17th 2007 10:05PM
I think it's complete garbage they will get to use 2Hers to tank, unless their DPS gets severely gimped. But if they get to do MS-type damage to hold aggro, and still tank effectively, that's just not fair : (
BUFF PROT DPS
Fletch Sep 17th 2007 10:04PM
@6:
Show me a guild that beat pretty much any post-Karazhan raid encounter for the first time with a druid or paladin tank. Warriors are the tank of choice for endgame progression, druids and paladins get to tank trash or stuff you have on farm status...if you're lucky.
Illithiel Sep 19th 2007 12:36AM
I find it funny that warriors cling so tight to their tanking roles,
honestly as a paladin tank, I like it more then my warrior tank.
BY FAR.
it's something different.
so warrior's have the right to attempt to grasp as the "only tank"
but I think it has become obvious that other classes can and will tank.
the people that piss me off are the ones who are in your group of 4 people waiting for one more, and leave once a warrior pops in Queue,
is there any greater way you can shoot yourself in the foot?
cause either way you are screwed, you just lost respect from that guy's whole guild (and we all know how well paladins are grabbed as useful in guilds) or if they eventually go healer cause of your decisions, they dont heal you,
oh joy
Illithiel out-
Matthew Rossi Sep 17th 2007 10:19PM
Actually, most warriors won't spec protection because it gimps you in soloing and grinding, not to mention daily quests and PvP. In short, once you go prot, ALL YOU CAN DO EFFECTIVELY is tank.
Now, I've done quests specced protection. I've done dailies, I've grinded primals, I've done everything I do as arms or fury as protection. Is it possible? Yes. Will I be even remotely as effective? Not even close. So for me, at least, I only spec protection to run instances for my guild. It simply isn't worth it to me to spec protection, lower my DPS so drastically that it takes me twice, if not three times as long to do anything aside from running an instance, and then tank for PuG's when I have a guild I can do instances with.
The reason warriors don't want to tank for you is that you won't take anyone but prot warriors to tank, because you actually have to mind your DPS and let the warrior have more time to establish aggro with any other kind of warrior. Paladins and druids can tank five mans, sometimes better than we can, and can still grind and solo with their tanking specs.
Warriors often insist we should be the best tanks because it's all you want us to be able to do. You don't want us to DPS, so we should at LEAST be able to be the best tanks to make up for the lack of utility. Most groups won't bring a warrior to offtank, the only form of CC we can offer, so yes, warriors who feel trapped in one role want to at the minimum excel at it. Instead, warrior tanks probably take the most effort to play compared to druids, who can also heal, caster DPS or melee DPS, or compared to paladins, who can heal and burst DPS. Both classes also often forms of cc like hibernate, stuns, roots, cyclone, etc etc. (Yes, they're situational CC, but it's a world better than Piercing Howl, a talent most tanks won't have, or hamstring, not even a cc at all.)
Personally, like I said a while back, I'm not worried about another tank making it so warriors can't *tank* instances so much as I'm worried that warriors will see their slice of the DPS pie shrunk even further, between new ret pally buffs and the new death knights. Meanwhile, to stay competitive as tanks, warriors have to sacrifice all meaningful DPS and take twice to three times as long to grind the same mobs.
Yet we're constantly told to shut up and tank, and worse, when we DO shut up and tank, we're told that we should shut up about tanking and let other people do it.
Tabuti Sep 17th 2007 10:30PM
@9 Jindo the Hexxar in ZG
first time we did it was with a druid tank. Post kara enough?
Hakawne Sep 17th 2007 11:22PM
@9
Tidewalker. First kill, we specifically assigned a druid to MT.
WatcherZero Sep 17th 2007 11:30PM
We use druid tank's on tidewalker too, its a role their ideally suited for. And while the main tank of the guilds a warrior our tankig lineup is 2 warriors, 2 druids and one paladin who are for the most part interchangable on bosses through to T6 which weve just started.
slayerboy Sep 18th 2007 12:00AM
So if this class is going to be dps as well, wtf happens to hunters? As it is, my guild is talking about doing endgame (albeit far far off in the future), and my 53 hunter is like..."wtf am I gonna be useful for in endgame, especialy with 46% of the guild with hunters?" Imagine what would happen with DK's? Maybe it'll even it out and hunters won't be as popular, I dunno.
rick gregory Sep 18th 2007 12:37AM
@12.. um, ZG is pre-Kara. Post means after, ya know?
And frankly I don't see the point in worrying about DKs when we have so little info. I think the idea is misguided in that they seem to overlap with existing classes. I *might* roll a DK, but I probably won't. I have a melee DPS toon (a rogue) and I don't have any interest in tanking.
The ability to summon friendly adds and the rune system that lets you tailor your abilities sounds interesting though, so who know?
Arioch Sep 18th 2007 1:29AM
Maybe wait until we know something concrete about how Death Knights work before people start to panic.
All I can say is: more tanking classes means more tanks.
curveball2004 Sep 18th 2007 1:34AM
@9 i tanked gruul and HK maulgar for our first kills of them, along with all of kara so....
WoW Obsessed Sep 18th 2007 3:16AM
Yes I have been wondering about this myself. How would Blizzard make playing warriors attractive once DK's come out? It seems DK's and Warriors fill the same role. From what we know now it seems DK's seem to be even more interesting since they can tank with a 2 hander and they have some cool spells to make the DK class have that sinister feel.
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