State of Guardian - returning to class?

[namax]

<DIV>Hello - </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>For various reasons (mostly guild need related), I haven't played my guardian more than few times in the last year.  Now, we find we could use a tank for all the alts, so I need to get back to playing the character.  He's currently lvl 59, and I'm trying to understand how to adjust to all the changes since I last played him.  To clarify, he won't be a raid tank, we have that.  I'm just looking to make him a viable group tank to take ppl to get their Hoo'loh updates, Grizzle's etc., and possibly a substitute for Eof content when our main tanks aren't on.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>For gear, he has a mix of some medium quality fabled (sacred prismatic etc.) and crafted (the old stuff, before the re-vamps).  My goal at the time was to maximize HP and Mitigation.  From what I'm reading, it looks like Mitigation is no longer as important as Avoidance.  Is this true, or just a matter of picking a style?</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Also - his primary/secondary set up is seemingly outdated.  One handed sword and Aranae (sp?) tower shield.  Are most ppl in favor of bucker's now?</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>He's really weak on AA's, only 18 or 19 atm.  I was going down the Str line to get to the hate increase.  It seems from reading that aggro is harder to keep now more than ever.  But I also read that ppl like the buckler line for the aa's.  Any advice?</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Also - what about the defense hate buff?  Inflaming defense I think it's called.  I used it as my Master II choice.  But if we're all about avoidance now, won't this trigger less?</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I know I have a lot of catching up to do, so any adice would be appreciated <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />  Thanks.</DIV>

[FrostyX]

The diminishing returns system, in my opinion, has not  made raising mitigation any less "important", however it did seem to make raising avoidance more important.  Mitigation is still a huge factor as a tank.  The returns are lower now, but, still, 2% mitigation is 2% less damage each time you're hit, after a few hundred blows, the 2% mitigated from each hit really has added up in the end. You can keep an eye open for gear with +'s to parry/defense.  There is actually quite a bit of this gear in t7. And regarding your aa questions, the buckler line might be a viable route for you to take since you stated that you will not be raid tank.  The dps increase is huge down the buckler line which helps a ton when it comes to keeping aggro.  Most of the heroic content in the game should be easily tanked by decently geared guardian with a buckler.  Some of the EoF zones are pretty hardcore, but you can always use your free respec later down the road if you're taking too much damage.  If you're mostly looking to just maximize hate with your aa's, the stamina line would probably be your best bet.  I've never experimented with the buckler line myself, but from what I hear, if you're tanking for a solid group you shouldn't have a problem using a buckler against heroic content. Yep, I think this all made sense, 4 am; I'm running on empty.  Good luck in your tanking endeavors!<div></div>