Berserker Tanking Strategy Discussion..

[stank]

<DIV>I would like to get some info on Berserkers out there about how they tank...I recently turned Level 30 and I think I am a pretty decent tank, but I have noticed that sometimes I do have trouble holding agro with multiple mobs. For the level 30 zerker skill I did go for the AOE taunt (forgot name). I have not used it yet but its description seems to make me think it'll work better than enrage. So if I can get some tanking strategies out there from various Zerkers I would be most appreciated as the last thing I ever want to be called is a crappy tank. Thanks.</DIV>

[-Aonein-]

<P>Being a good tank requires effort, there is no doubt about that. There is a few ways i hold agro which all work for me and let casters chain click, cause they just love to set stuff on fire, so i strive my hardest at putting them to full use when in a group.</P> <DIV>Im roughly the same lvl as you are so it will be safe to say what works for me will work for you, but dont take what i say as the way it is, this is the way it works for me.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>To begin with i always use a One hand wep and Tower Sheild when tanking, well depends really, if there Blue or Green, i use Dual weps, White and above, one hand + sheild.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Only skills i use at this lvl is <FONT color=#ffff00>Focus rage</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( Adept I )</FONT>, <FONT color=#ffff00>Fury</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( Adept I )</FONT>, <FONT color=#ffff00>Reckless Stance</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( Adept I )</FONT>, <FONT color=#ffff00>Vicious Blow</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( Adept III )</FONT>, <FONT color=#ffff00>Maul</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( App III )</FONT>, <FONT color=#ffff00>Sunder</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( App III )</FONT>, <FONT color=#ffff00>Knee Break</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( App III )</FONT>, <FONT color=#ffff00>Raging Strike</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( Adept I )</FONT>, <FONT color=#ffff00>Concussion</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( Adept I )<FONT color=#ffffff>,</FONT> <FONT color=#ffff00>Press</FONT> ( App III ), <FONT color=#ffff00>Berserker Barrage</FONT> ( Adept I )</FONT> thats when fightning and buffs i use before each fight is <FONT color=#ffff00>Blood Rage</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( Adept I )</FONT><FONT color=#ffffff>,</FONT> <FONT color=#ffff00>Bloodlust</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( Adept III )</FONT>, <FONT color=#ffff00>Battle Tactics</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( App IV )</FONT>, <FONT color=#ffff00>Battle Chant</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( Adept I )</FONT>. I eat Tier 3 food and have no trouble chain pulling. <FONT color=#ffff00>Mad Cry</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( App III )</FONT> for my pulling tool, unless i need to pull from a distance where i use a bow, or <FONT color=#ffff00>Balok's Furious Chant</FONT> which is my AoE taunt skill i got at lvl 30 speciality skill, and is of <FONT color=#ff3300>Adept II</FONT> skill. I also use <FONT color=#ffff00>Havoc</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( App III )</FONT> during combat.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV><FONT color=#6666ff>Fighting ^^ con mobs</FONT> :</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I buff with Bloodlust, Battle Tactic's and Battle Chant right before pull. I always use a One Hand and Sheild on ^^ con mobs cause riposte's hurt, unless the mob is a green / blue con, thats about the only time i use Dual Weild, every thing else above gets a One Hand Axe to the head and Sheild in its face.</DIV> <DIV>Generally my main pulling tools are <FONT color=#ffff00>Mad Cry</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( App III )</FONT> if its a group of mobs its <FONT color=#ffff00>Balok's Furious Chant</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( Adept II )</FONT>, if i need the use of a bow to pull, Mad Cry for singles is used asap or Balok's for groups. During combat i use <FONT color=#ffff00>Havoc</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( App III )</FONT> after the first Taunt has hit. Becuse of Balok's lower reuse timer then all your naturally gained AoE taunts, its also great as a single target agro generator, so u can easily get 2 quick taunts in, Havoc, and have Mad Cry ready to go again, and also because Balok's is of Adept II quality, its a great agro generator.</DIV> <DIV>Press is a great skill, interupts a enemy's actions but requires a sheild, great for any type of mob.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV><FONT color=#6633ff>Fighting Dual ^ con or no ^ con group mobs</FONT> :</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Fighting Duo's or Group's of mobs is what i really love about EQ2, the group encounters are much more fun then single's.</DIV> <DIV>Depending on the encounters con colour is how i decide weather to go One hand a Sheild or Dual Weild, if its a named mob with friends, its always One hand and Sheild, and i let the DPS in the group grind him down.</DIV> <DIV>Same buff routine as above, <FONT color=#ffff00>Balok's Furious Chant</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( Adept II )</FONT> is my main pull toy here, unless im pulling from a distance which i use a bow and follow it up by Balok's as soon as there close enough.</DIV> <DIV>The trick is with groups of mobs is that ive noticed on EQ2 mobs, they hate people buffing groups more then anything, its a great way to get the mobs to notice you, so when pulling groups of mobs with a bow for instance, u risk the chance of someone with a longer range spell or nuke / debuff landing before u do a taunt, so pull with a arrow, and drop a buff like <FONT color=#ffff00>Havoc</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( App III )</FONT> ive had great success with this and works everytime, when there close enough use a AoE taunt, and there all over you, this works in dungeons too when u run around a corner and u have a good lead on the mobs, drop down Havoc, by time they get to the group, AoE taunt will be up and ready, to keep control use another type of buff, cause your fighting a group of mobs its unrealistic to swap between 5 - 6 targets all single taunting till aoe taunt repops, so drop some sort of other buff down, by this time AoE taunt will be back up, also Havoc should of repopped by this time also, buffing is your friend in the agro department.</DIV> <DIV>Also a good way to keep agro is DPS, using <FONT color=#ffff00>Blood Rage</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( Adept I )</FONT>, <FONT color=#ffff00>Berserker Barrage</FONT> <FONT color=#ff3300>( Adept I )<FONT color=#ffffff>,</FONT> <FONT color=#ffff00>Furious Onslaught</FONT> ( Adept I )</FONT> in conjuction with buffing while in combat with spells such as Havoc and dropping AoE taunt will keep the attention on you just fine enough to let a Assassin let lose or a Caster to let comets fly one after the other, if you can hold agro of a chain casting AoE nuking Wizard or a Assassin who loves to show u how strong they really are, people will love you tanking for them, the rest is all up to your healer.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV><FONT color=#6633ff>Postioning</FONT> :</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Postioning mobs when pulling or moving around is a key part to staying alive and not getting swamped by repops. If you can find a nice cosy place to camp and get some nice pulls ( which is hard to find in EQ2 ) u will do well, but i prefere to be on the move all the time, clearing and moving as we go, so we clear, move, camp, clear, move, camp clear etc etc, its keeps people awake and less time for ninja AFK's which get people killed.</DIV> <DIV>Postioning mobs in the right spots for the Melee in your group to get to with ease is a thing to watch also, no point in fighting a mob on the wall with its back to the wall, Mobs have a lower defense rating and lower parry skill when attacked from behind.</DIV> <DIV>Facing the mob in the right direction is also a big thing on EQ2, as if u face the mob towards your group they can possibly die for being what they call Barraged to death, these most of the time seem like full un-mitigated damage. </DIV> <DIV>So always be weary on your surroundings and where you came from and where your going.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Main things to remember when tanking is <STRONG><U>Agro control</U></STRONG>, and strong communication, control the agro, keep it on you, talk to your group, you are the main man, and your group will love you for it, there is nothing worse then being in a group where your chasing and peeling mobs of your fellow players, its a nightmare, while amusing to watch if im not the tank, but agro control will ultimately make or break a group, its as simple as that.</DIV> <DIV>Always upgrade your taunts, even if its from App III to App IV to Adept I, till u can save some money to buy a Adept III, upgrade your DPS ones later, i would also recomend upgrading group buff skills also every chance u get, you have no idea how much these will server you in controling agro during any encounter, they are life savers.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Taemek Frozenberg 31th Berserker<BR>10 Outfitter</DIV> <DIV>Leader of Justice Bringers</DIV> <DIV>Everfrost Server<BR><BR>Aonein Amillion 26th Monk ( retired )<BR>17th outfitter<BR>Everfrost Server<BR><BR>Enlightened Aonein Amillion ( retired )<BR>70th Stone Fist of The Celestial Fist<BR>Five Rings on Luclin Server<BR><BR>"We are the two halves of the Flowing Circle, the light and the dark. If either grows too weak or too strong, the circle collapses on itself. Here, I will draw a Flowing Circle in the sand for you. Meditate upon the dual nature of our order and ourselves as you practice Kitten Swims Upstream. Perhaps, if you learn something from your meditations, Brother Tenshin will teach the kitten to become a tiger."</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <P>Message Edited by -Aonein- on <SPAN class=date_text>01-15-2005</SPAN> <SPAN class=time_text>01:36 AM</SPAN></P> <P>Message Edited by -Aonein- on <SPAN class=date_text>01-15-2005</SPAN> <SPAN class=time_text>01:36 AM</SPAN></P> <P>Message Edited by -Aonein- on <SPAN class=date_text>01-15-2005</SPAN> <SPAN class=time_text>01:45 AM Spell checks :smileysad:</SPAN></P> <P>Message Edited by -Aonein- on <SPAN class=date_text>01-15-2005</SPAN> <SPAN class=time_text>01:54 AM</SPAN></P><p>Message Edited by -Aonein- on <span class=date_text>01-15-2005</span> <span class=time_text>01:58 AM</span>

[NoSympathy_FU]

First I buff myself with single buff, and warn others I am about to pull so I wait for them to cast buffs and HoT.In the case of multiple mob, when pulling, I usually throw a mad cry at the main mob, then on my way back I cast Battle Tactics or Ureth*something (dont remeber the name), anchor with Hold The line, Taunting blow, Shout (at this point everyone starts hitting and wiz starts casting), Havoc, Battle Cry, Press, Berserker Barrage. Mad Cry reseted by that time and start a new cycle of taunts/group buffs and throw a couple of styles here and there.It is working well for me I dont loose aggro, except for those Grizzlies at ZEK that seems a one point to break and attack AFK characters in the group <img src="/smilies/69934afc394145350659cd7add244ca9.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />This strategy proved to be power pool effecient for me and the healer (never really goes under 1/3 sometimes 1/2 of the power pool when I decide to style more or if I am unlucky and the mob land a couple special attacks in a row), we can 'chain' slaughter group mob of yellows over and over and over and over again in ZEK. I usually group with a templar, ranger, fury (wich mainly nuke and keep as backup in case something goes wrong) and 2 wizards.I tank using a shield and 1h weapon. I dont try to proc Berserk state while MT because (even if I read somewhere on these forums that berserk no longer send ou defense down the ditch) I have not tested if going berserk dont lower our defense anymore. I would like to hear more about that with log parsers to back tehory.I am not claiming this to be the only way it should be and of course I wish I could learn new tricks from fellow berserkers but this seemed to be working well for me and my group after the patch./saluteOdenn32 Berserker on LucanHonor & Steel

[Reol]

<DIV>I think since the changes, your going to have to use whatever defensive buffs we have available to us, like soldiers stance etc, to help in damage mitigation. However I don't know how helpful that will be since we don't get very much in the way of defensive abilities to help our skills when tanking.</DIV>

[-Aonein-]

<DIV>Officer in my guild is a Guardian, the only difference i have seen in his abilities is he can get upto a max of 8 buffed skill points to his <STRONG><U>Defense</U></STRONG> abilities where we can 8 to our <STRONG><U>Offense</U></STRONG> abilities.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>We have tested all of our guilds healer arch type class on us and there is basically little difference between Damage mitigation when both equipped in pretty much close to the same gear. And im talking testing over 100's of mobs, not 2 or 3.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>There is <STRONG><U>no</U></STRONG> doubt in my mind that we can tank just as well as a Guardian, but our buffs give us that Offensive Edge at the very <STRONG><U>MINIMAL</U></STRONG> cost of Defense skills and Guardians get buffs that boost Defense at the very <STRONG><U>MINIMAL</U></STRONG> cost of Offense skills, so whats the problem?</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Taemek Frozenberg 31th Berserker<BR>10 Outfitter</DIV> <DIV>Leader of Justice Bringers</DIV> <DIV>Everfrost Server<BR><BR>Aonein Amillion 26th Monk ( retired )<BR>17th outfitter<BR>Everfrost Server<BR><BR>Enlightened Aonein Amillion ( retired )<BR>70th Stone Fist of The Celestial Fist<BR>Five Rings on Luclin Server<BR><BR>"We are the two halves of the Flowing Circle, the light and the dark. If either grows too weak or too strong, the circle collapses on itself. Here, I will draw a Flowing Circle in the sand for you. Meditate upon the dual nature of our order and ourselves as you practice Kitten Swims Upstream. Perhaps, if you learn something from your meditations, Brother Tenshin will teach the kitten to become a tiger."</DIV>

[ArivenGemini]

<blockquote><hr>-Aonein- wrote:<P>Being a good tank requires effort, there is no doubt about that.<hr></blockquote>Yeah, I find of the four alts I play (one of each archetype) playing my serk is the most intense and draining of them. I find if I am tired my length of time I can handle doing pulls gets cut dramatically short and I will call a halt.<blockquote><hr>u risk the chance of someone with a longer range spell or nuke / debuff landing before u do a taunt, so pull with a arrow, and drop a buff like Havoc ( App III ) ive had great success with this and works everytime<hr></blockquote>With the three line macro system its easier to automate some of this. You could make a pull macro with the following two lines:/togglerangedattack/useability HavocIf you wanted to be plucky you could even toss in line 3 of:/useability Balok's Furious Chant(be sure to get the name of the abilities accurate). You cant normally put more than two combat abilities in a macro, so that should work.The one case where you can use a third is when you are using the HO caller since it is effectively zero time. I have built a macro for Solo use that calls the HO caller, does the starter chain skill of my choice then the HO completing skill of my choice, it works fantastic and gets HOs in noticibly less time and effort.. nothing like hitting a single key instead of three.You can stack two buffs together this way too, and I am thinking of using the ranged pull macro I described here exclusively.. though you could make a upclose pull one that starts with Balok's and then finishes with the Havoc and a toggleautoattack (to go into melee mode)

[reakshav]

<DIV>-----------------------------------In the case of multiple mob, when pulling, I usually throw a mad cry at the main mob, then on my way back I cast Battle Tactics or Ureth*something (dont remeber the name), anchor with Hold The line, Taunting blow, <FONT color=#ffff00>Shout</FONT> (at this point everyone starts hitting and wiz starts casting), Havoc, Battle Cry, Press, Berserker Barrage. Mad Cry reseted by that time and start a new cycle of taunts/group buffs and throw a couple of styles here and there.<BR><BR>---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Do you use shout or sunder? I think sunder is upgrade to shout?</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV>

[-Aonein-]

<BR> <BLOCKQUOTE> <HR> Ariven wrote:<BR><BR><BR><BR>With the three line macro system its easier to automate some of this. You could make a pull macro with the following two lines:<BR><BR>/togglerangedattack<BR>/useability Havoc<BR><BR>If you wanted to be plucky you could even toss in line 3 of:<BR><BR>/useability Balok's Furious Chant<BR><BR>(be sure to get the name of the abilities accurate). You cant normally put more than two combat abilities in a macro, so that should work.<BR><BR>The one case where you can use a third is when you are using the HO caller since it is effectively zero time. I have built a macro for Solo use that calls the HO caller, does the starter chain skill of my choice then the HO completing skill of my choice, it works fantastic and gets HOs in noticibly less time and effort.. nothing like hitting a single key instead of three.<BR><BR>You can stack two buffs together this way too, and I am thinking of using the ranged pull macro I described here exclusively.. though you could make a upclose pull one that starts with Balok's and then finishes with the Havoc and a toggleautoattack (to go into melee mode)<BR> <HR> </BLOCKQUOTE><BR> <DIV>So thats how u work it in this, i been trying /doability numbers 1 - =, but havent been able to get it too work, where did u find out how to use the 3 line macro system Ariven id like to read up on it.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Taemek Frozenberg 31th Berserker<BR>10 Outfitter<BR>Leader of Justice Bringers<BR>Everfrost Server<BR><BR>Aonein Amillion 26th Monk ( retired )<BR>17th outfitter<BR>Everfrost Server<BR><BR>Enlightened Aonein Amillion ( retired )<BR>70th Stone Fist of The Celestial Fist<BR>Five Rings on Luclin Server<BR><BR>"We are the two halves of the Flowing Circle, the light and the dark. If either grows too weak or too strong, the circle collapses on itself. Here, I will draw a Flowing Circle in the sand for you. Meditate upon the dual nature of our order and ourselves as you practice Kitten Swims Upstream. Perhaps, if you learn something from your meditations, Brother Tenshin will teach the kitten to become a tiger."</DIV>

[NoSympathy_FU]

<blockquote><hr>reakshavoc wrote:<DIV>-----------------------------------In the case of multiple mob, when pulling, I usually throw a mad cry at the main mob, then on my way back I cast Battle Tactics or Ureth*something (dont remeber the name), anchor with Hold The line, Taunting blow, <FONT color=#ffff00>Shout</font> (at this point everyone starts hitting and wiz starts casting), Havoc, Battle Cry, Press, Berserker Barrage. Mad Cry reseted by that time and start a new cycle of taunts/group buffs and throw a couple of styles here and there.<BR><BR>---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</div><DIV> </div><DIV>Do you use shout or sunder? I think sunder is upgrade to shout?</div><DIV> </div><DIV> </div><DIV> </div><DIV> </div><hr></blockquote>Is Sunder working the way it should now? I was still using shout because I though Sunder was broken. Going to run some test tonight I guess... Odenn32 Berserker on LucanHonor & Steel

[ArivenGemini]

<blockquote><hr>-Aonein- wrote:<BLOCKQUOTE><HR>Ariven wrote:With the three line macro system its easier to automate some of this. You could make a pull macro with the following two lines:/togglerangedattack/useability HavocIf you wanted to be plucky you could even toss in line 3 of:/useability Balok's Furious Chant(be sure to get the name of the abilities accurate). You cant normally put more than two combat abilities in a macro, so that should work.The one case where you can use a third is when you are using the HO caller since it is effectively zero time. I have built a macro for Solo use that calls the HO caller, does the starter chain skill of my choice then the HO completing skill of my choice, it works fantastic and gets HOs in noticibly less time and effort.. nothing like hitting a single key instead of three.You can stack two buffs together this way too, and I am thinking of using the ranged pull macro I described here exclusively.. though you could make a upclose pull one that starts with Balok's and then finishes with the Havoc and a toggleautoattack (to go into melee mode)<HR></BLOCKQUOTE><DIV>So thats how u work it in this, i been trying /doability numbers 1 - =, but havent been able to get it too work, where did u find out how to use the 3 line macro system Ariven id like to read up on it.</DIV><hr></blockquote><a target="_blank" href="http://eqiiforums.station.sony.com/eq2/board/message?board.id=Newbie&message.id=69655#M69655">from this thread</a>make 100% sure you spell useability right (it is Use Ability) and that you get the spelling and case of the skills/spells correct.I am using this stuff (especially the solo-HO) on all four of my alts.. on my swashy I can get a solo HO off and firing before you realize whats up (rather impressive in a group <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /> )On my cleric for soloing I have a "pull" that will hit with both offensive spells I have and toggleautoattack (since casting a spell doesn't kick you into melee mode). I need to set up a ranged pull for my serk that toggles auto attack as well, since currently I am manually hitting the button to go into ranged combat then hitting the one for melee... so I can make things more efficient.I use macros to notify groupmates when I am going to pull (/g I am pulling %T please hold your actions until I secure agro), when I am afk (/g I am AFK on follow %T with a line 2 of /follow), when I am going to do a HO (/g I am going to start a HO in 4...) and so on..Another one I am playing with on my swashy is a stun with a stopping of melee.. line 1 is /toggleautoattack and line 2 is an entangle and line 3 is a stun.. usually one or both of the skills hits letting me get out of melee range and run if I have to, or just get a break. I have one for the swashy that kicks off my two main self buffs for defense thats my "Oh crap" button.. so I can pound that if something big jumps me and i need to live long enough to run.<p>Message Edited by Ariven on <span class=date_text>01-14-2005</span> <span class=time_text>01:46 PM</span>