Forum post of the day: The tank surplus
"Remember, Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did, but she did it backwards and in high heels."
- Faith Whittlesey
Kazug of EU-Defias Brotherhood is afraid that he will never be able to take on the role of main taink against Heroic Malygos. He pointed out that although tanks are relatively scarce in five man instances, there is fierce competetion for tanking slots in 25 mans. One out of five players must be a tank in five mans, whereas only one in twenty-five can be main tank in a raid. He feels that only the best of the best, the ones with the most time as he defines it, are able to take on the role of main tank.
Other tanks are left taking out the trash on single-tank fights. Several posters echoed Kazug's sentiment. Despite a dedication to tanking, they're relegated to the roll of picking up adds in most fights. Others indicated that their guilds rotate MTs or even have tanks roll off for main tanking responsibilities. For some guilds the MT is the MT and that's all there is to it.
As a tank, I see things a little differently. If I have to, I will MT, but I actually feel like I'm contributing more and working harder as an OT. A bad OT will wipe a raid and a good OT will save it. I must be ever vigilant for spawning adds. Instead of standing in one place spamming my 2, 3, and 4 keys, I'm dashing about making sure that everyone is safe. I'm watching the main tanks health and ready to pick up aggro on the main boss should anything go wrong. I feel like it's a dance with the MT. When I sway, chasse, and flare it makes my partner look good.
Then again, I'm not convinced that topping the DPS chart means best DPS either. There are many factors in calculating overall contribution. While you're guild will come up with its own solution to main tanking, remember that if you are forever relegated to the OT position, you should be a necessary, valuable, and loved part of the team. If not, your guild has problems. Let's dance!
