Warrior, SK or Pally
 

I'm new here. Played a bit back in the day on Quellious but I'm basically a total noob.

Does race matter for Warrior? I really don't want to be an Ogre. I want to make a Human like some guy that helped me a couple times on Quellious when I played(gnome warrior, lol). I can't remember his name. I think it was after a Cleric spell or w/e that's what I remember about it. lol.

Are tanks needed here like most other MMO's or are there reasonable classes that can tank well enough(monk, ranger from what I've read)? I don't remember from back in the day.

Though I think Pally may be more useful with the heals and that for grouping.

What should I do!?

Thanks.

So, here's a over-simplified version:

Warriors are the best dedicated tanks (ie they stay alive while things are beating on them) but this is only really relevant at the very endgame. They are incredibly gear dependent, and until the ultra lategame have a harder time holding a mob's attention than a paladin or sk.

Paladin's and SK's are the best "instant hate" tanks. If you're grouping, and the mob switches to hitting your wizard or cleric, these two have spells that can snap it's attention right back. This makes them great for grouping, but they aren't quite as durable as a comparably geared warrior, so they aren't the preferred raid-boss tanks.

Rangers and monks, if well geared, can tank in a "no better options available" scenario. Your healers will have to spend more mana keeping them alive, and this just doesn't work on the really hard hitters. However, if it's just you and a shaman buddy having a casual hunting experience, they work just fine.

Ultimately, if you want to play a paladin, that's the right choice for you. If you find yourself at level 60 and wanting to tank for Aftermath, then spend some cash and make a warrior.

EQ's an old game, with some faults. None of the tank classes here could be called full-service. They're all lacking someplace. Warriors are ideal for raids, not as great in normal groups, and are almost unable to solo. Paladin and Shadow Knight (collectively referred to as "knights") are very good in regular groups, but weak in raids. Point being no matter which you pick it'll be lacking somewhere. None of the three are great across all facets of the game.

Tanks are popular as an archtype. No raid and virtually no regular groups willingly forego a plate-type tank. Groups sometimes use light melees (Monks or Rangers or Bards) if necessary but the community rarely regards that situation as ideal.

Race does matter to an extent (higher starting statistics, etc), but not to the point where you should feel like you must pick one. If you want to make a Human, do it. It can act as a tank for anything an Ogre can. Your class you pick determines your role in this game, not your race.

What should do you? Pick what sounds best to you and jump in. If Paladin sounds fun, go for it. There's no substitute for experience. If it doesn't work out, switch to something else. You have time on your side--Ptoject1999's not going anyplace, and unlike the original game you have no fear of falling behind an unending expansion rush.

Danth

Danth always giving solid advice. Sounds like you’d find paladin enjoyable and they are super fun group tanks.

Regarding pali/sk, they both tank just about the same. In group where you are missing some heals or when fighting lots of caster, the pali will be way better, for other groups the sk will be slightly ahead but the difference is low. The pali has more group support thing, the sk has more pull tools and attack/dispell spells. I'd propose to choose based on what you prefer to do, for me clearly sk are funnier to play but your mileage can vary... Or you could go full warrior, need lots of gear, will be agro challenged but endgame lots of targets can only be tanked by warrior with discs...

Race opens up different deity options, which in turn inform your roleplay and starting city options.

Race matters when you go gnome steampunk warrior!

Good post but I think there is some wiggle room in this statement. I've noticed as a warrior that almost all groups I am in that have a SK or Pally still have me as the main tank. Sure, SK and Pally's have better snap aggro but over the course of killing a mob warriors will always outshine in tanking ability and not needing as much attention from a healer.

Also, warriors have a reputation for not being able to solo. Sure, purely based off class, yes warriors trail far behind most classes in being able to solo. However, if able to be well geared, warriors can solo lvl 1-60. There might be some tough levels in there but it can be done and not be very terrible. I solo'd quite a bit especially between levels 25-45. At times it was the better exp option to grouping.

IMO it depends if you plan on raiding as a key component of your gameplay. If so choose warrior. Otherwise go with a knight class.

Edit: @theonesler: To me having the warrior tank when you have a pali or a sk in an exp group makes little sense... Knight will keep agro quicker and better, mobs dies quickly enough for heals not changing much. Knight not tanking will be poor dps no matter what, warrior not tanking can be quite good dps... Warrior are better tank for sure, but it do not means that the group will work better when they tank...