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What is your method for Assisting tanks?

Been in 3 pugs so far, and I am having trouble assisting the tank. I am a Lancer and usually we get a bunch of adds as is normal. But since tank has to go around and grab up all the aggro from 5-6 mobs, usually mobs that are all identical...I find myself having to wait until he settles on one, noticing the hp dropping, and then join in. 

I haven't made a macro yet but it's on my to-do list. I noticed there were a bunch of different ways to make one for this issue.  I know about marking the targets but I haven't seen anyone use them yet. 

So what is your process as a dps'r? anyone have a macro they can share?

Thanks in advance. 

Comments

  • BigdaddyxBigdaddyx Member UncommonPosts: 2,039
    I click on tank and type /assist. Works fine for me.
  • LissylLissyl Member UncommonPosts: 271

    When I'm not on my healer and the mob we're on is nearly dead, I'll click the tank's name next to the mob's at the top of the screen.  They'll switch places, and as soon as he targets a new one I click back on it.  So basically I just keep my mouse right at the top of the screen and make two slow clicks right before the mob dies. 

     

    As a healer I just drop down to the mob aggro list below the party frames to toss Aero or Virus as needed.

  • svannsvann Member RarePosts: 2,230

    I have 4 macros:

    /assist <1>

    /assist <2>

    etc

    When we first enter the dungeon I hit alt-m (my keybind for macros window), and pull the one corresponding to the position the tank is.  If it looks like he is switching targets a lot then Ill keep hitting it in between my attacks until he settles down.

  • Awesome. That's what I needed. Thanks all.
  • fistormfistorm Member UncommonPosts: 868

    First tell your tank about the Marking system.   He can have it open and hit 1, 2, 3, 4 on all the mobs he wants killed in what order.  Your tank will love you for it.   I ran a dungeon already where the tank had numbers on in a mater of milliseconds, as if it was a second nature to just mark everything, was super fast and we owned that dungeon in record time, no deaths.

     

    Secondly,  If you target your tank and press the "T" button on keyboard, it will target the mob your tank is targeting currently, and to target back to your tank, just hit "T" again and it goes back to your tank, up to a second after the mob is already dead.   So you will have time to retarget your tank and then back to the mobs.

     

    Third, if you have a blm in party and the tank isnt good at taking damage or holding agro on alot of mobs, have the blm sleep all mobs, then dps the one tank is on by using the second method I just described.  Most blm automaticly know to sleep mobs when a tank isnt good at keeping agro on everything because it goes right to the healer if they cant.

     

    Fourth, If your tank is good, just aoe everything to death, unless all the agro goes to the aoe'r.

  • RidelynnRidelynn Member EpicPosts: 7,383

    I do the same as you - wait to see where the tank settles, then assist.

    It doesn't work if other DPS lays in early though. If that happens, I just ask to have a mark on at least the first mob

  • Snowdon_CloudripperSnowdon_Cloudripper Member CommonPosts: 584
    As a WAR tank the best thing ANYONE can do is this. Attack ONLY the mob i am . And sleep the ones im not . DO NOT attack any mobs until i ( the tank ) attack them . Simple really 

    http://absoluteretribution.enjin.com/ Guild Website and Recruitment link

  • svannsvann Member RarePosts: 2,230
    Actually come to think of it even though I do assist the tank at first, a couple seconds in I generally start aoe'ing.  Am I going to have to quit that sometime soon?  So far L20 is the highest dungeon Ive gone.
  • Damage99Damage99 Member UncommonPosts: 202

    F2-F8 whereever your tank is

    create a macro that just contains 

     

    /assist <t>

     

    and use it

  • Damage99Damage99 Member UncommonPosts: 202
    Originally posted by svann
    Actually come to think of it even though I do assist the tank at first, a couple seconds in I generally start aoe'ing.  Am I going to have to quit that sometime soon?  So far L20 is the highest dungeon Ive gone.

     

    Yes AE's are bad in groups unless youre all in agreement.  Overall just assist the MT - any good THM will be sleeping adds.

  • TwoThreeFourTwoThreeFour Member UncommonPosts: 2,155

    I pay attention to which target he is actually hitting and then I hit that. 

     

    I don't like "assist button" and I do not like "auto-lock on", I manually target the mob.

    Also for those who do not know: you need to face in the direction of a target to be able to hit it, if you face 180 degrees away from it, you will be unable to use skill on it; i.e. realism. The default mode is that the game will auto-switch the direction you are facing if you have a target selected; that way strafing "left/right" will actually move you in a circle. If you remove the auto-lock on like I do, you need to constantly readjust the direction you are facing manually, specially when the mob moves a lot or if you move around the mob. 

  • udonudon Member UncommonPosts: 1,803
    Originally posted by SeriphinX

    Been in 3 pugs so far, and I am having trouble assisting the tank. I am a Lancer and usually we get a bunch of adds as is normal. But since tank has to go around and grab up all the aggro from 5-6 mobs, usually mobs that are all identical...I find myself having to wait until he settles on one, noticing the hp dropping, and then join in. 

    I haven't made a macro yet but it's on my to-do list. I noticed there were a bunch of different ways to make one for this issue.  I know about marking the targets but I haven't seen anyone use them yet. 

    So what is your process as a dps'r? anyone have a macro they can share?

    Thanks in advance. 

    I pugged with a tank who tagged the target he was attacking and I automatically snapped to that target when I tabbed.  Seems like SE puts some smarts in the tagging systems.

    Tanks need to be tagging the targets they want people to attack especially since cast through doesn't work.

  • immodiumimmodium Member RarePosts: 2,610
    Originally posted by svann
    Actually come to think of it even though I do assist the tank at first, a couple seconds in I generally start aoe'ing.  Am I going to have to quit that sometime soon?  So far L20 is the highest dungeon Ive gone.

    TBH, aoe's aren't that much of a problem if used at the right time. If the tank is skilled with his taunt/threat management it really shouldn't be a problem.

    image
  • rpmcmurphyrpmcmurphy Member EpicPosts: 3,502

    I don't agree with tank assist, any decent tank will build enimty on the main target and then cycle through secondary/tertiary targets periodically to stop them bee-lining the healer, and also get a jump up on enimty for when the main target is dead.

    Assist should be for a designated dps, failing that tank should mark.

  • TheRealDarkeusTheRealDarkeus Member UncommonPosts: 314

    Pray you don't get my noob self....  Lol

     

    Seriously though, tanking is a little bit more involved in this game.  You have to mark and use strategy.  That is why I find the timed dungeons interesting.  For a game that dictates use of good strategy to beat dungeons, a timer seems only needed for hard versions.

     

    Tanking is fun though, but a lot more involved.  I feel like a straight noob in this game (For the record, I never played WoW or EQ.  I am a long time gamer, short time MMO player.) 

  • twruletwrule Member Posts: 1,251
    Never used a macro or anything, just waited a sec. If the tank marks, I follow that; otherwise, just eyeball the situation and use good sense.
  • nickster29nickster29 Member Posts: 486

    On my 46 warrior I will mark targets, run in, throw a few AoE down to get threat, and let a BLM (if there is one) do their AoE sleep.  Otherwise if no CC, I will mainly stick on the primary target while throwing some enmity increase abilities on the other targets to keep em off the healer.

  • spankybusspankybus Member UncommonPosts: 1,367

    As a tank, i gotta say the duty finder puts together some horrible parties. Lancers and Archers who just spam damage to any targets they want, won't listen when I ask them to target my tatget...call be a bad tank 'cuz u can't hold hate, dudz'...really?? it isn't hard to take hate from a tank..just keep mashing those skills and you'll be tanking for me in record time.

     

    GLD/CNJ

     

    /venting off

     

    just finished the longest copperbell mines of my life like 5 minutes ago. my foerhead he red from all the facepalms

    Frank 'Spankybus' Mignone
    www.spankybus.com
    -3d Artist & Compositor
    -Writer
    -Professional Amature

  • ArakaziArakazi Member UncommonPosts: 911
    Tank here. Assist can be a bad idea since I switch targets to keep agro up so I don't have to spam flash or whatever. Generally I will number them or stick a chain on the ones I want sleeped. Main problem I have with groups is they tend to start spamming before I get good agro on my target. Healers that spam AOE heals are a particular problem.
  • jordiincraasjordiincraas Member UncommonPosts: 59
    As a marauder tank I have 2 taunts, a single-target taunt and a cone taunt. What I do is single target taunt the one I want to attack first and stay on him, for the most part. As the group gets to me I cone taunt the rest to grab aggro and I attack my first target. Every couple of hits I re-use my cone taunt to keep aggro, and slowly kill them one-by-one. If one so happens to break off and go for somebody else then I target them and single-target taunt them back and apply my cone taunt again. And all the pugs Ive been in so far, my group has picked this up within 2-3 groups, max. Sure Ive had some mark specific members of the group to let us know which they're going to sleep or whatnot and if they do I just roll with that, but it just means I cant use my cone taunt and I have to jump between targets to keep aggro. And yes Ive died tanking in dungeons, but mostly because I dont get out of the way of those stupid bombs in Hatali or if the healer doesnt keep up with me.
  • ArakaziArakazi Member UncommonPosts: 911
    Originally posted by spankybus

    As a tank, i gotta say the duty finder puts together some horrible parties. Lancers and Archers who just spam damage to any targets they want, won't listen when I ask them to target my tatget...call be a bad tank 'cuz u can't hold hate, dudz'...really?? it isn't hard to take hate from a tank..just keep mashing those skills and you'll be tanking for me in record time.

     

    GLD/CNJ

     

    /venting off

     

    just finished the longest copperbell mines of my life like 5 minutes ago. my foerhead he red from all the facepalms

    I tell them if you pull it you tank it.

    Worse guy I had was a lancer who seemed to want to solo the dungeon. Knowing how long DPS have to wait in Q makes threatening to leave pretty effective. I admit it's a little childish but it works.

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