Nice guide. Will read more carefully when not working 
Feel free to give constructive criticism 
IMHO a good guide is a living document. Changes added as need be.
Havok is back and tanking!
I probably sound like a serious old-timer, but that just gives me the warm fuzzies to see.
CoH Codex : Demo Models/FX/MOVs : Demo Info
Arc 111022: "Doctor Geist and the Scientific Method"
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Controlling Tempo of a Fight
MT's pull first. There are exceptions to this rule but if you DON'T know when to break this rule then stick to it. MT pulls first.
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VERY good comment. In Fact that should probably be posted on every AT forum. Most full party wipes i have see so far are due to an over zealous blaster or scrapper, or in rare cases blast happy defender/controller atarting in while the MT or me(if i happen to be the MT) is resting, or waiting in line at the bubbler.
Anyways, LOVE the post, everyone should read it, too bad its #151 in the list on tanker guides
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... protecting the weak is awesome ... protecting the terminally stupid is not.
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Nice.
It's a great description of tanking as well. I tend to play OTs and Brutes (who are pretty much OTs whether they want to believe it or not) like that. But it's a great rundown of how to do some good tanking.
Nice guide. Have a question:
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Controlling Tempo of a Fight
MT's pull first. There are exceptions to this rule but if you DON'T know when to break this rule then stick to it. MT pulls first. Taunt is a FIFO ability. So if you go in first it takes someone with significantly more Taunt Duration then you to take that aggro. If they are taking it from you then they should be MT and you should be OT.
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I'm wondering if you should mention different tanking (or team play) styles like steamrolling vs herding. I'd like to know your take on whether the tanker dictates the style (i.e. we're herding) since we set the pace or should we "go with the flow?"
When you mention "pull" here, it connotes something different than herding/steamrolling (i.e. you're pulling with Taunt), or is it that the MT is the first to run in?
Nice. It's good to see that, with your return, you have jumped right back into the academic side of gaming. I was very disappointed to see you leave when you did, as I was just hitting the smooth part of my own learning curve, and to lose such a strong member of the community was a blow, from my perspective, anyway.
I like the fact that you have renewed your guide writing with a "training wheels" edition, covering a topic that is useful to the community, but not unneccessarily ambitious in terms of the depth and complexity of the content. Overall, a good effort.
I am looking forward to your next assay.
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Nice guide. Have a question:
[ QUOTE ]
Controlling Tempo of a Fight
MT's pull first. There are exceptions to this rule but if you DON'T know when to break this rule then stick to it. MT pulls first. Taunt is a FIFO ability. So if you go in first it takes someone with significantly more Taunt Duration then you to take that aggro. If they are taking it from you then they should be MT and you should be OT.
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I'm wondering if you should mention different tanking (or team play) styles like steamrolling vs herding. I'd like to know your take on whether the tanker dictates the style (i.e. we're herding) since we set the pace or should we "go with the flow?"
When you mention "pull" here, it connotes something different than herding/steamrolling (i.e. you're pulling with Taunt), or is it that the MT is the first to run in?
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Great question.
First off pulling means pulling initial aggro. I'll clarify that above when I can. So when you've run in and gotten that initial aggro from a group of mobs you have 'pulled' that group.
Secondly on your question about Herding vs. Zerging (Steamrolling). Back in the day I would of told you to Herd however the efficiencies aren't the same now that you can't herd 1/2 an 8 man instanced zone at a go.
Now the most efficient way to take out mobs depends on your group. It's not just the players but also the characters they play. I tend to try a herd or two at the onset of grouping (especially with players I've never played with) if I feel comfortable that the team is efficient at it AND they enjoy it ... I'll continue to Herd.
If I find in those test pulls that they don't herd well or that they don't enjoy it I won't herd. Any efficiency gained by herding is instantly lost when players don't care to help herd.
CoH is a game designed for the Zerg. Get a bunch of bodies run in and obliterate. It works in any non-event encounter and works in most event encounters.
That's my thoughts on the two ... though I admit I still prefer to herd ... I think it takes better advantage of the small area AoE's such as Shadow Maul or Ripper that have these tiny cones of incredible dps if you know how to position for them.
[u]Havok's Guide to Tanking in CoH[u]
)! Now that we have the preamble out of the way ... on to the guide!
Well I may sound like a broken record but I'm exceedingly happy at being back in CoH. After spending sometime playing the game yet again I decided there was some value in putting out another series of guides. The first of these is one on simple basics of Tanking, next I hope to work on a guide to Inv/SS. In some ways I feel this is the least 'valuable' of my guides I'll be write. Why? Well in CoH Tanking in and of itself is very easy. Don't assume by that statement I think this is a bad thing. Indeed I think it's a good thing. CoH is designed to be an enjoyable game not a stressful one. As such there are very few areas in CoH where Tanks really need to be on their A-Game. It's in those instances where this guide is designed to help you refine your skills.
I'm going to follow a used information from a WoW tanking guide by Cardaxar and referencing several existing CoH guides. Their value is insurmountable. I wish I was half as good a tank as my guides make me sound but I'm not. Indeed I've seen several CoH tankers out there, Tic-Toc for example, that I consider a better CoH tank. Use the information that these tanks give you (I know I do
Tanking ... what is it?
Juzam's Tao of Tanking for beginners is a wonderful starting point in understanding the purpose of a Tank. In many ways the purpose of a Tank and that of a Defender and Controller overlap.
In essence a Tank:
1) Controls the Aggro of the fight.
2) Absorbs damage to prevent the rest of the team from receiving the damage.
3) Controls the tempo of combat.
Now by now some of you advanced players may be saying 'Pshah like that's needed in CoH' and to an extent you are correct. However, I fall back on my original preamble and restate in the vast majority of the game those attributes are not really needed. It's in those rare instances that a Tank makes an encounter far easier that this guide is meant to help you. A prime example is the new Rikti War Zone Event. Tanks most assuredly make that entire encounter go easier. So now lets define some terms that most MMO vets are knowledgeable on.
<ul type="square">[*]Main Tank: To quote Cardaxar who said it very well: "Basically, the 'Tank' job, you will be directly responsible for the security of your group, through mitigation, positioning, and making sure to hold enough threat so that other players in your raid can do as much damage as they can without getting aggro. Truth must be said, sometimes this position is quite wanted by some people in order to gain a kind of "fame" or "respect". If you intend to do this job, leave that aside, and concentrate on doing your job the best that you can for your group." This job can occasionally be frustrating though in CoH is usually wrote with grandeous amounts of fun. Because of the simplistic aggro control system implemented, unlike any other MMO I've ever seen, you can actually enjoy this job if you simply follow basic principles. This job should almost always be taken by the Tank with the highest level of Taunt.
[*]Off Tank: This job in CoH often feels exceedingly boring. You are the second tank in the group and many have stated they feel they lack value as a second tank. You definitely don't lack value, but due to the aggro system put into CoH it often feels that way. Things that you can do as the off-tank to help your group:
1) Because you are free to roam as need be you can traverse the battle field more then the Main Tank. That means that if a Scrapper is stuck in Scrapper-Lock and is out of range of the healers AoE heal don't send the Healer to save him ... get that big ol' butt of yours over there and get aggro and let the Scrapper do his job ... kill! If you see the team just got attacked by a Patrol or a Hit Squad get back and take control of the situation until they can get beat down.
2) Play Back-Up Tank! Tanks do die. I know we find that reprehensible but it does happen. When that occurs you need to be on your A-Game to pick up the aggro and prevent a team wipe. When there are two tanks and less then 17 mobs there should NEVER be a group Wipe simply becuase the MT is dead.
3) Assist with DPS. You are no scrapper but lets face it you can do SOME DPS especially single target.[/list]
Controlling the Aggro of a Fight
Now that we have some basic terminology and hopefully you have looked at Juzam's guide I'm going to touch on Controlling the Aggro of a Fight. I want to point out one of the best guides on the forums Circeus's guide: "So you want to know about Taunt ...". I beg you please please read it. No really it's more valuable to you then this guide I'm writing right now. Go read how Taunt works. No It's not a guide on Taunt the power it's a discussion about Taunt the EFFECT.
Now that you have read it (if not ... SHAME) I want to point out a very critical piece of information that Circeus provides us on item #25 and #26. If you take these two items together you realize that if you are doing your job right you should NEVER lose aggro while keeping Taunt up UNLESS another Tank has Twice the Taunt duration of you (they may be overslotted for Taunt Duration) OR you are pulling mobs but not bothering to switch targets to keep everything constantly taunted (there may be a few exceptions to this such as Trip Mine though I have not personally tested TM and Taunt at this time). Taunt is a FIFO ability that is only overridden by someone with a Taunt Duration of twice the current Taunt holder.
Some additional things to remember ... Aura's may be auto hit Taunt's but their effectiveness is not guaranteed! It may seem like it most of the time but that simply is not true. When you start facing +3 or higher mobs you will begin to see some of your Aura's become insufficient in holding aggro. Taunt the power is an auto-hit against PvE mobs and it has a much more potent duration so it is a far better solution against +3 or better mobs but remember ... it only has a 5 target radius.
Absorbing Damage
Ok this is a no brainer right? Not really. We've all read wonderful guides on how to build tanks to mitigate damage (heck I wrote a few back in the old days myself). I'll not rehash how damage mitigation works instead you can read BuffyASummers guide: "Tanker Primary Information for Issue 7". What I will discuss though is something tanks almost completely forget about in CoH:
POSITIONING. Most baddies do single target damage and as such we can stand right next to the Empath and not worry. Unfortunately some opponents do targeted AoE's. When you stand next to your buddies while playing the role of MT you fail in this role IF they are taking unnecessary splash damage.
Sometimes this is unavoidable. If a mob is coded for melee combat, and can't locked down, he's going to come up and pound on you. For scrappers to do their job they will take splash damage. That's simply a reality. However, there is no need to drag said mob over to that Empath that's healing your big hairy butt, or itty bitty skinny butt, or stony butt, ... well you get the picture! Simply take a second and position yourself so your allies and friends don't take unnecessary splash damage. That may mean you don't get to fire some of your favorite melee attacks but sacrifice is what really forms the character of an MT. You sacrifice for you team so they don't have to. I truly believe this is the biggest thing that most CoH tanks do not do well enough. I'm as guilty of this as others. It's simple to do and can save allot of people if you take control and reposition the mob to prevent damage to your friends.
On second thought I will add one more mention on damage mitigation ... don't forget about your secondaries! They can mitigate damage too! If that Rikti Magus or crazy CoT Death Mage is flopping like a Pancake before breakfast he's not hitting anyone. If you have the abilities keep those opponents from attacking. Makes everyone's job easier!
Controlling Tempo of a Fight
MT's pull first. There are exceptions to this rule but if you DON'T know when to break this rule then stick to it. MT pulls first. Taunt is a FIFO ability. So if you go in first it takes someone with significantly more Taunt Duration then you to take that aggro. If they are taking it from you then they should be MT and you should be OT.
Beyond that Tempo should be set based on your Teams level of comfort. In teams that I run in I often find myself teamed with another tank. We know each other and are a well oiled machine. In some bases we'll split up simply because there is no threat of either of us dying. Members will follow who they want. In other missions we know when to follow the MT/OT format and when in the roll of OT I'll often hop the MT and bring more mobs back to him or take turns pulling with him to speed up the entire encounter. Keep in mind the comfort of your team though. If they don't feel comfortable with speedy fights then slow down. When you go too fast for them there will be deaths, unrest, and eventually pitch forks and torches. You determine how fast the team runs if you know what you are doing.
Watch the health and endurance of your team. I often fail to track the endo of my team but I've become a much better player at pointing out health and try and do my best on TS to announce when a player is low. If you see a player taking alot of damage in your group on a consistent basis then watch what they are doing. If you can find a complimentary method to get that aggro off them and on you. They may have a trick that is highly effective but extremely risky. If you can find a way to mitigate that risk it may benefit the whole team. If they are simply retarded though let them die ... protecting the weak is awesome ... protecting the terminally stupid is not.
Don't get fixated! I think that Juzam covered this exceedingly well. When you become fixated on a single target you are often letting outliers run free. You can get those buggers too!
[u]Addendum[u]
Below is a list of guides I personally recommend some were named above:
Juzam's Tao of Tanking for beginners
BuffyASummers guide: "Tanker Primary Information for Issue 7"
Circeus's guide: "So you want to know about Taunt ..."
Aett_Thorn's guide: "Taunt Myths Debunked"