Thread: Returning again, looking for guidance.

As above, thrice-returning player looking for a little guidance here.

I really can't decide what class to play, I want to bring a lot to a group but can't stand pure-dps roles, and I'm unsure if I could be responsible enough to be a main tank. I also have to have this 'survivable' feeling, and I recall getting that with a warden over a year ago, when I played them last (to about 40, think I was at angmar) - I could take on elites and more and not really break much of a sweat. I recall tanking GB without much bother, though I doubt that is much of an accomplisment on-level.

The key point is - all of the HoTs included, and the OHSHI- buttons factored in, wardens used to seem to be much more survivable than cappies.

I've heard that this has changed, and that they are a fell shadow of what once was. I have a baby loremaster, a very baby captain and deciding which to play (in addition of making a warden, because for some reason I deleted the old one eons ago) is proving to be hard. I can't stand alting, so if I pick one then I have to enjoy ALL the things about it, and focus on it. Otherwise I inevitably come back to this quandry.

Can some educated or experienced individuals weigh in on this, please? It'd be greatly appreciated. Thanks! It would help (and be a huge help) if this post was dissected to cover as many points.

I want to preface this with the disclaimer that this is all my opinion and only YOU can truly decide which class is best for YOU.

I'm going to focus on your statement that you want survivability but do not want to be main tank. Although I really enjoy my loremaster, based on your post I am going to focus on the warden and captain classes.

The warden class got hit hard with the recent changes last fall to armor mitigation and revisions to the combat system for finesse. In short, with the reduction in damage mitigation from medium armor and no corresponding changes to warden HoT or ToT values, wardens were getting clobbered. They also had similar issues with getting and holding aggro, making it very difficult to effectively tank. Turbine has made two patches since then to address the warden issues, the most recent being the last update which included a major revision to the class. Wardens are much better now then when the big change occured last year, but I don't know if they will ever be the 'solo elite mob' class they once were.

Captains are quite survivable as you noted but it is due to armor mitigation, pet usage and a few 'Oh Snap!' skills. If I had to compare, I feel more survivable playing my warden than my captain. I haven't parsed out and compared numbers, it is purely how the classes 'feel' when I play them.

One area you may want to consider is how needed your class may be for group content. Wardens have had a bad rap lately due to the changes last fall and the perception is that most groups would prefer a guardian to a warden as main tank. However, since you prefer not to main tank, I would think that having a warden as an off tank would work out quite well.

The other side of that coin is that captains seem to always be welcome in a group. Since captains, champions and wardens can all off tank, there will be a tendancy for some groups to prefer the captain or champion as the off tank because they bring additional skills to the group.

If you enjoyed the warden class before, you will most probably still enjoy it, but it is not quite as 'solo-elite' friendly as it once was. If you anticipate playing mostly solo then I would suggest the warden for you. If you anticipate a lot of group play then I think the captain would be a better selection.

Hopefully this gives you some things to consider when making your choice.