Warrior or Monk

[shams]

Hey all, curious as to what the communities thoughts are on monks and warriors as tanks. I have a level 14 monk but played a warrior on live and I really like being the tank. I'd heard awhile back (a year or so ago) that ac was a little bit off on p99 and monks could tank as well as warriors could.

Also, is there a lack of tanks on the server and if so, what class(es) in particular? I already know I like tanking, I just want to know what would be the most useful/effective type. My main is a druid so I can probably scrounge up some plat for some good starter gear pretty easily.

Thanks!

[Jimjam]

Both are solid, just load AC, grab some haste, some hp rings and some fast, hurty weapons and you'll be fine.

By the way, if AC is working properly monks SHOULD be tanking as well as warriors, this is why the AC system got overhauled luclin/pop era. Warriors get innate MR boost, better HP and a taunt button though.

[shams]

Cool, thank you for the insight.

Whereas warriors get more HP and MR, monks are better at avoidance, right?

[Phantasm]

Monks mitigate damage much better than warriors hence their usefulness as tanks.

Monks can tank most groupable mobs and even low end raids. Warrior can tank it all but really shine on raid encounters. I play a monk and the only things i fear are roots and raid mobs. Really up to you and your goals. If you want to tank be a warrior, if you want to be involved in pulling, dps, offtanking, positioning etc, play the monk.

Or roll both xD

[Danth]

Monks can do the tank job adequately if necessary. That being said, the job plays away from the class's strengths. It's fundamentally an offense-minded class and being the tank means a lot of potential offense gets wasted via the opponent's dodge/parry. Overall damage reduction is potentially superior to that of anyone else except a Warrior using a discipline, however it's tougher for a Monk to gear for durability than it is for a plate tank, and again doing so may play away from the class's strengths--up until high-end (north temple veeshan) gear which has all stats in abundance. Monks also have lower hit point pools than Warriors, so from the perspective of a Cleric they can be tougher to heal efficiently even in spite of taking somewhat less average damage per minute. With the lower health pool Monks are more vulnerable to the sort of burst damage that kills tanks (unslowed adds, spell damage, harm touch, etc).

Monks are (correctly) regarded as the strongest overall melee class during this game era, and they get better with very high-end gear, but I wouldn't advise picking the class with the intention to primarily tank. Few groups advertising "looking for tank" have Monks in mind. The class has legitimate problems with burst and snap hate management. If you want to be a tank as your primary role, pick a proper tank class.

Danth

[Jimjam]

Ah, yes, Phantasm! I forgot to mention the big difference for raiding; warriors get decent duration defensive disciplines that vastly reduce the damage coming in (either by boosting evasion or mitigation), with a quarter hour cool down time. They also get some decent duration dps disciplines that boost their damage when not on tank duty, with a half hour cool down time.

The other boost warriors get over monks is critical (and when low hp crippling) hits. Basically more damage (and the potential to stun for crips).

In non AE fights lasting 3 minutes or less warriors can actually spit out decent dps by combining crip hits with their offensive disc.

Both classes are desired in groups and raiding, but you'll have to work hard on your equipment if you want to be a top end raid tank warrior. If you're grouping you can get away with phoning in your equipment, really.

Edit: slightly ninja'd by Danth, he touched on a lot of these points better than me, but I'll keep the post as it is to try keep it coherent.

[Ravager]

Monks live. Warriors die. FD is king. Does it look like shit is going to hit the fan? FD let your group die then go find a stronger group.

[fadetree]

You got to be a little bit of a masochist to play a warrior. Good stuff end game, but getting there will make you want to rip your hair out.
Monks are fun, and a lot easier than wars. You're going to be expected to pull a lot, so if you're not into that beware.
When I see a 60 war, I am mildly impressed. When I see a 60 monk, not so much.

If you want to tank and NOT be frustrated for 59 levels, try a Knight. Great tanks, lots of fun, cheap gear.

[Daud]

Lotta super great information in the comparisons, very nice writeups, etc.

The real question is: Are you ok with being expected to pull the majority of the time? You need to have a real honest moment with yourself about this, this shit will get old fast if you're not into it. Anyone thinking about making a monk should consider this first imo.

[Baler]

Monk Monk Monk
Pull Pull Pull
(Iksar)

Ogre Warrior,. screw ogre warrior.