Tanks....To Taunt or not?

No one has mentioned BBQ yet? I'm ashamed of you all.

Speaking as a frequent squishy, it's criminal not to take it.

{unless you're soloing, in which case nobody is relying on you to get the aggro}

An open letter to NCsoft

One more here for the "useful, but not essential" pack. Personally, I always take it on my tanks simply because it's a ranged power, which most tanker sets lack until you can unlock ancillary pools. I'm also lazy and use it to make the three guys standing over there come over to the bunch I'm about to attack instead of jogging by them or smacking one of them.

Also, some of the Taunt IO sets have nice bonuses and are usually cheap. Can't wait for the purple one

I always take taunt. I feel more efficient and better equiped with it than without it. I am always leary of a tank without it. If a tanks job is getting and keeping agro, taunt is his best friend. imho

Taunt is a tool, just like any other power. Take it if you like it, don't if you don't want to.

I tend to take it, map it to the ~ key and use it as part of my attack chain. As I don't usually build for extreme recharge (and almost never take Hasten), I've usually got a small gap in there somewhere to throw in a quick Taunt just to pi** off the mobs even more.

That said, I've got non-Taunt tankers that are just as viable. They tend to be a bit more Scranker type builds though, with more focus on personal damage output.

A good tanker can hold aggro well, with or without taunt. But, taking taunt will make any tank instantly better at holding aggro. I happen to like old-school aggro tanking, which means I like taunt. I also like its slot-friendly, endurance-friendly nature.

As at least one other has pointed out, if you're aiming to build a scranker, then there isn't a good reason to take taunt.

It comes down to what your objectives are for the character you're building.

It's worth noting that Taunt only gets 5 enemies max per use. So all you Blasters who "strip the aggro off a Tank without Taunt" are going to strip 11 of his 16 targets off him even if he does Taunt.

I'm all over the map myself -- some of my Tankers have it six-slotted (great set bonuses are available), some don't have it at all. One has Taunt and Provoke (Granite Tanker, got tired of wishing Taunt had recharged). One determinant is how squeezed I feel for power choices; another is (sometimes) concept.

Also, when I do use Taunt, people who attack before I Taunt, or at the same time as I Taunt, get the aggro just as surely those who attack before I use Gauntlet or before my aggro aura ticks.

If you are having fun and you don't want it, then don't take taunt. This shouldn't be about us, but about you and your moment of glee.

Now the only reason I absolutely have to take taunt on my tankers is because I LOVE to herd. I am the crazy tanker that rushes ahead and continuously grabs 3-5 rooms worth of foes and brings them all back for the Big Ol' Smackdown. I am the type of tanker that wants all 4 AV's on my sorry butt near the end of STF, just to see how long I can last. I am the type of tanker that feels gratifying to steal aggro from all other other visible tankers from the fighting GM. Taunt only helps me accomplish my goal better, and faster.

This tactic isn't for everyone but the feeling of withstanding 30+ foes and your whole party lives to tell about it is enthralling for me. Despite the aggro cap limit, yes, I feel I still handle 30-50 mobs well with little to zero deaths just because of mixing my taunt, my aura, and gauntlet to manage my aggro. Also, I don't consider myself a taunt bot; I feel far from it cause how active I get when I herd.

I am the tanker that relies on tanks / scrankers (and scrappers) like you without taunt for when I get too crazy, and it does happen much like others' blind fury rage on villains. They are there to help me keep the mobs centralized for the AoE's. They are the ones that get secondary aggro before the squishes. They are usually the tankers with higher damage and / or great AoE. You're not just a backup tank, you're my best teammate. For this I thank you for making your tanks.

I'll reiterate what people have been saying: Taunt is only a tool. Use it if it'll improve your play style, otherwise leave it alone and have fun.

I usually take taunt on my tanks and always on my scrappers.

Having a ranged attack that you can slot that uses 0 end is pretty useful, even solo, but especially if you play +2x8 or x4 or anything else that generates a goodly mob.

Nice to be able to pull. Most scrapper sets don't have a decent range attack.

I tank all the time with my willpower scrapper. Rise To the challenge and taunt and you can really fill the role if you don't have an actual tank.
See, it all depends on the makeup of the team whether this is useful or not. A small team doesn't need me to tank, so I can lay into the bad guys. A bigger team might, depending on what powersets are there. If there are lost of squishies with AOE's I'll off-tank and pick any strays the tank loses and pull them off the beleagured.

Whether is is useful is situational and based on play style.

Are you are a cautious player who thins the herd before charging?

Do you barrel in battle all guns ablazing, using inspires and everything you've got?

Taunt is clearly useful in the first and not so much in the second.

But you ask a hundred people a question and you will get about 70 different answers. Try it, you might like it. If not you can always spec out of it.

Taunt comes down to two things: the player and the build.

Depending on those two factors, there is no wrong answer.

(Although I'd recommend new tankers take it until they get more proficient with aggro management).

For the record, I love tanks, and have only taken it once ever. I asked because the other night I was on, and one of the people on the team was like you gotta get it and I thought, no, I don't but I was like yeah, gonna pick it up soon. I have no problem running into mobs and then let the rest attack. I just don't like the power, and don't like the whole dual build thing either.