[Basics] Tanking - Choosing Your Tank

Many have seen me play it, so it's time to shed some light on this little beauty
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Twitter: @Preachgaming
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[@seremking]

The tauren shaman at the end made my day. "Come back bro, BRO" XD

[@oosmexypandaoo4194]

11:25 skipped ahead in the vid and heard this, this is why i love preach.

[@TonyNumber9]

preach is best tallstrider weifu

[@jamesdoyle1931]

As a Death Knight main, i am happy to see you playing a Death Knight, though for my tanking spec i chose a Protection Paladin. Just a couple of notes i would like to give you, you can death grip to interrupt a lot of uninterruptible casts, like you can do it on the archer mobs that shoot barrage, and as a Blood Death Knight, you have death grip on a lower cd and gorefiends grasp if you talented into into it as interrupts and to sorta mitigate your slow movement speed. Apart from that i have nothing else to input to this, you are an amazing you tuber that puts a lot of time into every World of Warcraft video you produce and your tanking series has given me some awesome insights to things that i hadn't even considered. Keep up the good work and hope you have fun playing a Death Knight.

[@rudy1999]

Imagine Preach playing Blood Elf male lol, never gonna happen.

[@Wheel_of_Kain]

He's not worthy of the master race m8.

[@austinlightner115]

UD DK Master race. obviously

[@Wheel_of_Kain]

Austin Lightner Yeah, nothing says "competence" like dying twice.

[@kuivia]

good one @kain

[@ahmadsoliman9919]

looooool

[@HavocHounds1988]

That Warlock is suffering a dps loss, not only for using a perma Doomguard, but also for having it cast cripple on it's own.

[@Patruskarn]

Playing a Blood DK is by far the most fun I've had in wow with the Mythic+ system. It is, as you say, a very unique set of abilites to move around with. Not the best tank to take massive amounts of damage with, but it is absolutely doable if you position yourself right and use you abilities accordingly. Which makes it so much more challenging than other tank specs. You are going to have a blast. Good Luck Preach!

[@Midweekers]

as someone who has only been playing the game since the start of legion, this series is making me want to roll a tank as they've always intrigued me. You make it look so natural and I'm slightly worried if I do try to tank that I'm gonna be awful! keep up the great vids

[@samuelmiller8942]

Tanked a pug for the first time yesterday. Maw of Souls normal, Blood DK. The healer had only good things to say afterward when I asked for any comments. I get super nervous when I take a role that can make or break and instance. Really couldn't have had a better instance for my first tank run since it's a short instance. Totally following Preacher's tips as I go. Loving the tanking series.

[@seraphthrone]

OCD triggered when you put down DnD and not stand in it

[@reflexgaming98]

not just ocd, there is interactions with talents and stuff that give you buffs for standing in it

[@verocious266]

heartstrike cleaves when enemies are in it, not you?

[@aberemchuk3452]

Jawden rapid decomposition gives 15% buff to runic power regeneration when you stand in death and decay. So yes you should stand in it.

[@verocious266]

Abe Remchuk if you chose that 57 talent true

[@aberemchuk3452]

Don't be a bad DK. Take rapid decomposition.

[@Luciano1571]

Necrotic is actually VERY easy to handle as a DK most of the time, preach. Just spec into tightening grasp and kite mobs in a circle and depending on your comp you're going to handle it better than most tanks even.

[@destro807]

I can never stop watching your videos hall way through...Ive always loved your approach to teaching the game! Thank Preach!

[@wishted]

preach this might be my favorite vid you have ever put out. cant wait to see were this series goes

[@strongside4565]

You have an iron will to be able to resist having a bunch of overgeared guildies drag you through Mythics.

[@austinlightner115]

This is my favorite dungeon to tank just because im a DK and there is so much cool stuff you can do, like Control undead the Lancer on the steps and pull the entire room and let the Lancer stun lock them with his AOE stun, or the cat in the beginning for massive AOE. and not to mention those crispy Grips

[@Mochachocakon]

Hey Mike, my biggest problem with tanking (aside from trinkets not dropping) is that I don't know how to perform/spot tank specific mechanics in fights like tank swaps/tracking the other tanks debuffs (especially Ursoc), preparing for tank busters, and what I should be communicating with my co tank. Unfortunately, I've never really tanked for a raid before outside of stuff that was either on farm to the point where no one cared about my screw ups or just in dungeons.

[@Вларрад]

Omg first 3 seconds, I feel you so much. Ppl always running away on that boss with locust debuff.

[@atnasingetnamn2887]

Funny, I was coming back to check on your old tank video since I'm going to roll an alt- and suddenly, only a week ago you've uploaded a new one! Gonna love listening to it =)

[@MrJustinArt]

"Just wait 'til you get Necrotic, Preacher; that'll teach ye!" That was a good one.

[@geekmp3]

Preacher, will this gearing guide be made available on youtube? You stream in the middle of the night for my timezone. Thanks! Looking forward to it!

[@LilianOrchard]

"I still laugh when I think of pain..." Kinky

[@nennorkiporkos]

Awesome choice Preach :) I main a blood DK, mainly doing M+ due to time not allowing me to raid, enjoying it a lot. I have to ask though, no Icebound Fortitude on your bars?? ;)

[@dapineaple]

So glad you mentioned grips. Having mained a DK since Wrath, I get annoyed when I see other DKs not gripping mobs. Effectively using grip can really set you apart from other DKs. It's a small thing, but gripping a ranged/spellcaster into the group really helps. Or using it as an interrupt for spells that can't be interrupted (Yes they start casting it immediately afterwards, but it buys you some time).

[@brandondavis9224]

Because of your vids and some excellent friends, I've found myself loving the game for the first time since TBC launched. Keep it up man!

[@badassoverlordzetta]

When I play a tank, I go with Paladin because I'm a brain dead fart sponge and paladins cater to my needs

[@NiekVL]

Every single artifact for the DK just looks brutal AF, instant main for me this expac :P.

[@liammurphy7140]

I love adding the ap pints to my weap...it just gets chunkier and meaner all the way.

[@ClawPhD]

Preach you sound like your having... fun!?

[@General12th]

IMPOSSIBRU

[@astavo1667]

Nonsense. Fun is for casuals

[@dagowow]

*you're np.

[@keziaduck5910]

I was REALLY looking forward to seeing you do these on your Brewmaster... i actually started playin my BrM spec (i main a WW) cause i saw your first and second videos of this series... but oh well... looking forward to the rest of it never the less.. thanks for the awesome videos Preach :D

[@wowstonecrab]

Preach do you miss easy access to mass slowing while tanking? I know you said you miss chains of ice a lot but I found when I tanked on my DK in MoP and WoD chilblains was a life saver that made mass pulling a dream. Spreading frost fever to every single mob and having them essentially slowed forever made kiting massive mobs and letting the group DPS them down without fear of dying much easier. Even the casters could DPS them on the move because it was just a beautiful 50% reduced move speed death ball. Up to this point every tank was able to do it. Monks had the no cooldown on their slowing barrel, DKs had chilblains + blood boil, warriors had thunderclap which no longer applies the bleed which means you have to stop and get aggro before moving on, guardian druids had a slow on their thrash, paladins had a daze on their shield. Do you think blizzard doesn't like tanks being able to mass pull for whatever reason? I've noticed it's a lot harder to do so now as a lot of tanking specs that have the kit to do so just end up resource starved. I don't hate all of the tanks this expansion by any means, but it seems like the best tanking experience I've had so far was my guardian druid pre-rank 2 iron fur because rank 2 iron fur nerfs iron fur. Before rank 2 you can press iron fur and build up more rage then when the iron fur buff is just about to expire you can press it again and instead of overlapping and the old buff expiring it would just add a stack and the buff would refresh twice as strong, up to 6 times. So if you stayed in combat and managed your bleeds on every target you could pull entire instances, be flooded with rage and have a permanent 600% increased armor which pretty much leads to the god of all death balls, the entire zul'farrak dungeon. Obviously that wouldn't be okay for max level content but it was a cold reminder of how much harder it is to have big exciting pulls in legion.

[@benedictifye]

You should do a video on advice for us choosing a tank class

[@malevilentwow8332]

did you watch the video? thats what this is

[@Wasteaway44]

benedictify how to pick a tank class, play what you have fun with an survive with.. aka try them out for yourself

[@mid.night9524]

What's that addon called for that character panel at 20:35 ?

[@thenickofthyme8923]

One thing I noticed while watching...you should placing your death and decay so its below you AND your target, not just your target. You get extra runic power generation and your heart strike is empowered when in it.

[@Morkhai113]

Love the video. I plan on following to try and learn a little more about tanking even though I'm mainly DPS. I did have one question though, what add on is used to change the character/paperdoll screen? It looks awesome.

[@joeryvn]

Hi Preach, Perhaps a question on an old video. Is there any recent video on tank classes? I want to get back more into the game as a tank and cannot seem to find a descent video explaining the the tanks, and I am not looking for something that states this tank is the best or my tank class is the best since that shifts several times in an expansion anyway. What I am looking for is more of a playstyle video. Thanks.

[@asuttlesniper]

the excitement Preach gets when he grips something helps me get through the day.

[@liammurphy7140]

Loving this series ty Preach.

[@swadow1497]

When is next "legacy of the ...." coming out?

[@MultiPauwel]

yes please, i want some more legacy of the ... ' content, it was awesome!!

[@TonyNumber9]

we need hunter one, especially how the tallstrider army hold your stables hostage was halirous

[@shoddyaerodrome7586]

Love this tanking guide mate, keep 'em coming

[@skallymanga7812]

Don't like Brewmaster? Pfft. Show me another class that can absorb a 50 million spear from Odyn!!

[@NightWraithes]

Preach, do you still find Tremble Before Me the best talent in that row? Or is that just for running heroics? I swapped to tightening grasp quite a while ago and haven't looked back. For tanking mythic+, I find it extremely useful when I can drop that on the ground when mobs are at about half hp... let the dps finish those off.. and run to the next pack.. plus the reduction on Gorefiend's Grasp is oh so amazing.

[@Spinexus]

Tanks: before 7.1.5 its Druid #1, Warrior and Pala #2 #3 after Patch 7.1.5 it will be Druid #1 Pala #2 and Warrior #3 those are all the BiS classes for Raids!

[@holyrunner5466]

Paladin tanks seem fantastically fun right now if just for the LOADS of damage that spams your screen, and perma silencing mobs in mythic+'s is pretty great.

[@chriswarner3771]

preach, your amazing. winning the video game. love the videos thank you for making them

[@BulbASaur-zl1vk]

Hey Preacher, I noticed you were doing this mini series on tanking, but I was curious on how to advertise myself as a dps. In all honesty, without a progression guild it can be hard to pug for achievements. And I would rather not drop my current guild because I have a lot of real life friends in it. I find it especially hard to get into parts of the game where I find it to be progression as I play a melee dps and groups seem to prefer ranged. Currently, I am stuck at a 865 ilvl and without a lucky titanforge or a nice keystone I feel as though all forward progress I can do is just halted. Do you have any suggestions for me? Should I just make the groups myself? Should I try to make contact with people I find through group finder if they are a good tank? It feels weird because at that point I feel like I am taking advantage of these people because of their class or role they play. Thanks for reading. Any advice would be appreciated. Also you make great content, keep it up!

[@niminamino]

This is awesome preacher, I too went through this tank rotation. Started with the brewmaster but couldn't get into the gameplay even though beta was awesome "and the prejudice for BrM and premades on my server" maybe you can talk about some strategy and preemptive though process when tanking with a blood dk?

[@bradylewis2586]

Hey Preach, love playing my DK man, glad to see you playing one. whats that UI you have going on? looks really clean!

[@jayeeffeff6813]

Thank you, Preach, for the videos.

[@toasternoodle2938]

what is the addon in this that plays the fanfare music when you kill the boss at 4:34?

[@pokechu5]

Hey preach I was wondering where (if you use it) I can find the pawn weights for my blood dk. I follow the stat priority haste>crit>vers>mastery like most places I've seen. My problem is when the choice isn't super obvious I turn to pawn but the values are pretty general. I know this is an alt but you know the resources of the community better than I do so I figured I'd ask.

[@Sameji]

Only thing I consider when I make anything right now is if it can do Mythic+ decently, because that's all I see myself doing at the moment.

[@jakewood5617]

I feel as if there is a gap of 5 or so item levels that heroics give u no Item level upgrade, you won't get accepted into mythic dungeons or EN norm and the world quests that give a gear upgrade are rare , the only option is raid finder

[@darkstrike055]

I wonder, What issues did you have with BrM that kept you from enjoying it for this series? Is it that the optimal way to play was different that what may have been intended like keeping up ISB 100% rather than just at key times to smooth damage?

[@Greenscyth22]

Waiting on that next Legacy video...hoping it's for hunters.

[@killer88327]

Greenscyth22 prayin for cata legacy vid

[@TonyNumber9]

cata is my bae and I lust my tencles all over it

[@darkstrike055]

You mentioned you like the relation between the 2 DK resources, I actually find that's what missing from blood. Frost has Runic empowerment and Unholy has Runic Corruption but nothing for Blood. I would enjoy Blood so much more if they brought back a way to regen runes baseline and have the ability activated or fueled by consuming RP.

[@bartoszbanaszewski2071]

Hey Preach, i'm so glad you take your grippy grip on Blood Dk (it's my main from WoTLK with little cheat with mage in Cata). I find it very fun to play and i hope from some good words of advice later on from you. Like not guide, but just tips from pro playah you are. Woop woop!

[@Aegishand]

I swear Preach its the oddest phenomenon as a guild leader with the iLvL above 840 issue... when I ask if they have bothered to get the third relic its almost always a no... people cant be bothered to quest at all. Whats scary is that so manny people still don't understand how the artifact iLvL influences overall Item level or weapon Ilvl. Anyways Love all your content cheers to you and Mr Ghost for the Holidays.

[@frededy4]

Make sure you always standing in your Death and Decay as well. BC with he right talents you gain 15% runic power generation, even single target use it on cd and stand in it as much as possible. Also in BRH you can control undead and have a pet as a tank, pro tip.

[@MrTitanshammer]

Your commentary is in the top 10 of anyone on YT! Keep up the blood thirsty love :D

[@jesperjacobsen7134]

Welcome fellow DK to the Ruski Party

[@kristiankristensen6563]

I would love to try raiding but every time i get max level i get bored of playing that class

[@domiflex1568]

same for me :D thats why i got some alts on the realm also :p only thing is that im waiting for the patch on our artifact weapon

[@jamesmorrison9757]

I have been playing a Enh shimmy because I'm enjoying how it plays so much, just hit 852 today after being 822 a week ago and only playing 3 days this week, but despite ilevel I love how much variety they have now for how you can play, also love how much I get out of storm strike from the weapon and AP tree

[@toaonua523]

BLOOD DK MASTER RA-...class

[@wolfpsx6210]

Racist, classist, sexist, bigot.

[@TheSynthisis]

Honest conclusion from honest facts.

[@moldy_gecko]

I find as a 855 Prot Warrior, sometimes at 12:40 I'm worried about death too. It's a tricky beast.

[@Hirotoro4692]

that pull as Brewmaster just tickles lol. Stagger FTW

[@Hyunkel33]

200k is "slow" dps ? In a random heroic ? I would be ECSTATIC having those guys in my runs, the DPS I get when I tank those are usually around 130/150k...

[@raptownie2]

i smashed that like button when i saw you picked blood dk :0

[@jonathancamarena3117]

brewmaster is the most fun ive had with a tank in a long while. Its a very dynamic playstyle. I was hoping to see you play it through. 9

[@davidbell4768]

dang it id really have loved to see you do a tanking series as brew im currently playing brew and not very confident to raid or do mythics, so tips from the man himself would have been great, keep up the great work though mate.

[@MrDre10day]

super hype about this gear progression vid!!! When is it coming out?

[@cArLaEzXy1992]

I main a Prot Pally, In my Heroic Last week was another Prot Pally who was in Mythic ToV Progression on his main. I asked alot about their tanks, they ran warrior demon hunter. He said the demon hunter seemed to have far less problems than the warrior, the point being that unless you want those first down and the absolutely beast comp, all tanks work. I have alot of time tanking and for me it is about syncing with my healers. Knowing when heavy damage is coming to me or the raid. Your health pool only matters if its less than 1;) Also Blood DKS are severely underrated imo, at least for mythic+ where they are incredible.

[@TheValkyron]

preach what didnt you like about monk? im curious because seems like playing it with blackout combo and the brew charge refilling brew would be the kind of playstyle youd love

[@RukisYT]

What monitor do you use for gaming preach if you don't mind be asking a random question

[@Mrnatox]

on all my 4 lvl 110, only 1 was pure dps (mage). My MS on all classes were dps, but I had to off-role to get to do the content I wanted gear from to improve my MS. So to answer your question: It takes much longer to gear up if you can't 1. do a tank/healing role and set your loot to MS, or 2. get a guild group going that do the content with you. The queue to do anything; PUG, LFR, M+ has always been longer if you are dps, in fact; this was the main subject of one of your old vids in regards to getting more tank - back in the day xD Kinda funny that you have "forgotten" that :p

[@921ELopez]

Mrnatox doesn't take that much longer to hit 840 though. Maining warlock for nighthold have 3 healers at 860+ and though queue times a bit annoying as pure dps, to simply hit 840 was still extremely easy. WQ and lfr got me there pretty easily. AP was been a much bigger issue, but gea would be with switching mains.

[@JentleSticks]

You rated the Brewmaster #1 in your tanking comparison, now you are not liking it? I thought having something #1 meant you could commit to that class throughout the entire expansion.

[@semipork]

that was months ago people can change their opinions given that time.

[@JentleSticks]

Semipro Gamer I guess so, I was just trusting what he said about the list but I guess his lists are just not that accurate anymore

[@TonyNumber9]

well shuckles

[@irrisus8]

@Preach Gaming, how much time you need to get into Skilltrees, which have pretty high complexity and any advice how to understand fast complex Skilltrees? Strugle in another mmorpg which has so many options @.@

[@thovarisk8699]

hey Preach! what's that paper doll (character screen) addon you have? looks crisp AF

[@jonatanjohansson867]

I like how you say you played prot warrior through a most of WoD, but you rerolled Prot warrior during HFC (Last tier in WoD) and then you kinda quit before Gorefiend to play Legion Alpha?

[@Kneos88]

Good vid mate. Though how'd you get the epic mythic war forged ring from that stabby gas guy if this is on heroic?

[@Zbroja69]

Liked the video. Preach called prot paladin simplistic and that there is lack of choice. I disagree, I think prot pally brings a lot to the table utility wise and you have to make choice when you have to pick what skills to use to save yourself or raid/party members. Also you have to time your shields more precisely, otherwise your hp will be very spiky or you can die easily depending on your gear. Regarding warriors I agree for the most part: reliable, relatively simple. All you have to think about is how to get as much rage as possible as fast as possible so this is where you spam your devastate to get shield slam procs. What I want to say is that ignore pain requires less thinking than paladin's sotr. I would say warrior is closer to guardian druid in terms of their simplicity rather than to paladin. By the way I am warr/dru/pala tank. Love all of them :-)

[@dtulip1]

I know I've said this before, but I adore my Blood DK, even if she's not "the best" or most "OP"....there's alwasy been a certain .something that makes me love playing her :)

[@Dreadnorth7734]

as a prot warrior that rerolling to dk i love this pick

[@xDeathWish1]

I know you explained why not to pick guardian but i feel dk is same way since forever.

[@Commandos12]

i do not see IBF on ur bar e_e...

[@iceee420]

Commandos12 also not using consumption also no control undead in black rook cm on preacher your better than this :P

[@raeesgaba9270]

His defence they re-added it in 7.1, might've touched his DK after the patch

[@Lux355]

I know I completely missed them adding this back for my alt DK, had to have a friend tell me they had it when we were talking about cooldowns.

[@christophmeyer3558]

19:24 the part where that shaman is perma cced by the poison lol

[@Generalizedfeelings]

I play guardian. Most fun I've ever had tanking in any expansion. Coming from a warrior I was like "warrior master tank class" then I tried guardian and was like god damn. This is gonna be amazing.

[@bigmeaty1257]

what is that addon that displays his character screen so beautifully, showing all item ilvls and durability?

[@potentiallyRealWarrenGraham]

[@bigmeaty1257]

Big Red i have elvui and i don't have that. Is it an additional addon

[@1trevor30]

What is the addon that makes the final fantasy victory music?

[@KUStuctEng]

The warlock with cripple on auto cast was killing me, lol

[@tomrichardson5508]

Preach I switched from hunter to Prot Paladin to fill in when tanks dont show. So far I have my AoTC for H en, but healers are telling me that i am a bit spiky, reason being im not 100% sure when to burn big CD's I usually save em for those moments i see my self heal isnt keeping me above 50%. Is there a guide or better way to figur when i should be popping my cool downs?

[@ebolachan8198]

its easy: Dudu bear because the artifact skins, blood knight for balance of power because the reaper skin, Warri for hidden skin, rest is pretty wayne

[@velocirapturedinosir8164]

Preach! I just got into tanking as a pally recently and I got to +7 mythics for the first time. This week as you know is skittish/teeming and we finished with like 2 mins left. Every other pull like 2 mobs would drop but I can only taunt 1. So obviously people would die. How do keep the other dude alive as a pally? What can I do to keep them from dropping? I really really struggled that run. I defiantly do NOT want to do my +1 key now.

[@mikepopovici4810]

I'm planning to come back for legion, I'm dead set on playing fury warrior but are they bad? Or sub par compared to other melee classes?

[@Josh-tr9nk]

just an fyi to anyone that doesn't know, after experiencing BRH multiple times (sadly) with mythic keystones (as a vengeance tank) me and my regular group have figured that the bats on the stairs are passive and will not attack you unless you attack them, anyone else found this? Usually I pull the demons to the side or even back down the stairs (only on normal mythics, don't want to waste time),

[@TheAsaoirc]

preach I've been using your add-on list but with most recent patches I've started having icons disappear off my bars and bags.

[@jezior_lca]

I love my prot warr, but I get depressed when I log in to PTR. FeelsBadMan

[@semipork]

why is that? other than the focused rage and revenge changes did i notice anything different? I got pissed off when i saw revenge costing rage but when i saw it could proc free (and it does so quite frequently) i was even happier with this change

[@jezior_lca]

Revenge proc is the same as on live, difference is that it's on GCD now (big nerf). You have no choice to stack FR for those sweet 1.5M SS crits, you just spend rage on SB and IP. And I don't like the general feel of the rotation.

[@BunnychanFarabee]

Actually DKs are amazing for Necrotic. AMS prevents you from gaining stacks. DRW can give you enough avoidance to let stacks dropped. Heart Strike and, if talented, DND slow mobs so you can kite.

[@phayes2]

Glad to see you tanking again even if it isn't on the ONLY tanking class. Prot Warrior 4 Life Yoh !

[@Jimmys-rw6fn]

12:02 godly spirit link totem here to save the day

[@jonasbohlin3245]

Control Undead though m8

[@asphtherogue]

Couldn't have come at a better time as I've just switched to a Blood DK and want to get some gameplay tips for it! Cheers!

[@Mael6469]

Heck, my DH got an 870 chest with perfect stats for my tanking off spec from a world quest. Most of my world quests seem to drop tanking gear instead of my main DPS spec.

[@foxstarwind99]

I share your love of the Blood DK tank, but I hate that Blizz took away the refresh on Death Grip we used to have. Other than being the slowest tank in the game, that is literally only two things that could possible be put on a negative list about the Blood DK. Anyway, gearing up to 850 is super easy now with the Dauntless Gear Tokens from the Broken Shore. It sucks that you can't get two trinks or rings out of it, but only having to farm 1 trink and 1 ring is not a bad deal honestly. If you are lucky with drops, you can gear up your fresh 110 to 850+ in 2 days. Not 48 hours mind you, but two days worth of Broken Shore Grinding dailies and such for nether shards and legionfall supplies. My mage got her 1st leggo on the very first 100 legionfall supplies chest. Also, I am really enjoying the Vengeance DH as well. I feel immortal just like I do on my DK, just with a lot better mobility and the ability to turn into a goddamn demon god for a short time lol. (but I miss Death Grip every time I play something other than my DK) Imagine Vampiric blood turning the DK into some hulking flesh/blood beast thing... now that i said it that doesn't sound as cool, but something more visual than what we have would be more fun. :P