Your Ultimate Tanker

[Hyperstrike]

1 hour ago, One IV All said:

Seems like Invuln/Shield might be the way to go for pure unkillable Tank in HM content (outside of granite for Stone).

For a second I read this as Invuln/Shield and was like..."That'd be cool, but having only Brawl, Kick and Shield Charge probably would make it hard to keep Aggro..."

[Linea]

• Inv/ is the easy answer, it practically builds itself, and it's very easy to pilot.
• EnA, Inv, SD, SR, Stone, RadA, Bio, ... and many more.   A good hardmode self contained pug tank should be able to solo AE "801.7 static". 
• If you're more selective with your teams, and your team provides buffs the way it probably should, and actually works as an actual team, then any self resist-capped tank becomes the desired choice,
• then as the team quality improves further you shift into full offense resist based tanks, and several teams start leaning into a full offense fire tank .... which is the exact opposite of a full 801 (Inv, SD, Stone) Tank that would be the above pug hardmode pick.  A full offense Bio/ would also fit this slot.

 

Spoiler

Armor Types (Armor Recommendations):
I recommend:   
Defense Armor: EnA (Any AT), Inv/ and SD/ as the Tank Alternatives.    
Resist Armor: RadA (Brutes and Tanks Only).   
Heal Armor: Bio (Any AT, paired with a Defensive Weapon).   
Offense Armor: SD, Bio

Defense Armors, Expanded and In Order of Durability: EnA (Any AT, Add Resists, Intermediate), SR (Advanced), SD (Intermediate), Inv (Easy). If you’re not picking EnA, I Recommend Inv. Inv is very easy to learn and drive, and very durable. Once you get your feet under you, then you can pick some of the more difficult to drive armors. My personal Favorites are EnA and SD, but I find myself driving EnA and Inv most often.

Notes:
•    Stone can still be very good, I just very much dislike Stone. I would rank stone somewhere between Inv and SD for durability.
•    EnA is not on tanks, if it ever is, I might be forced to move it up or down the ratings, depending on how it's ported.
•    Most SR builds do not add the resists required to get it to the rating I give it. SR is also the most difficult to drive if built my way.
•    Most SD builds also do not add the resists required to get to the rating I give it. I use all three SD build slots: Defense, Psi-Tank, Proc/Offense.
•    Inv is more likely to be built to defensive spec, it's just kinda naturally built that way. It's also so easy to drive. It's pretty much recommends itself.

Heal: Regen
Heal/Defense/Resist: Bio, Will
MRA: Nin, SR,
MRA/Res: SD,
Resist: DA, ElA, FA, Rad,
SLE: EnA, Ice
SLE/Res: Inv, Stone
SLE/Vec: Ice,
Psionic (in order): Dark, ELA, WP, Rad

Linea Durability Ratings
    Based on Solo +4x8 AE 801.# capability.   Where # is 0 to F, Hexadecimal, where F is 15.  
EX: 801.2 is the standard armor test.  If you can complete 801.2 then you have enough dps and durability for 95% of the game.

Anything rated 2 or above can tank the majority of official content.
Most tanks driven by most players do not even rate 2.
 
Defense Tanks rate 6 to 13.
Resist Tanks rate 5 to 7.
Heal-Amor Tanks rate 5 to 6.  Although I have had other players report BIO on Tanks up to 7.
 
Defense Brutes rate 5 to 10
Resist Brutes rate 5 to 7, but tanks rate higher more easily.
Heal-Armor Brutes rate 2 to 5
 
Defense Scrappers, Stalkers, and Sentinels rate 2 to 6.
Resist Scrappers, Stalkers and Sentinels are unrated, but should rate 2 to 4
Heal-Armor Scrappers rate 2 to 3
 
Veats, Heats, Defenders rate 2 to 5  ... I ran an empath through 2, once and only once.  If you want to discount that, then rate them 1 to 5.
Some truly exceptional Veats or Heats may rate 6.
 
Masterminds, Corruptors, Controllers and Doms are not far behind Defenders, and rate 0 to 5, but are harder to get to rate higher.
Some truly exceptional Controllers and Doms rate 6.  I am NOT that player, mine rate 2 to 5.
 
Blasters rate 0 to 4
 
Regen is Unrated, in this context Heal-Armor means Willpower and Bio Armor.
If you want to account for build quality, set all low end numbers to zero.

Defenses Armors rate up to 13
Resist Armors rate up to 6 (or 7)
Heal-Tank Armors rate up to 5 (or 7)
IO Armor rates up to 2

 

 

Edited January 3, 2023 by Linea

[ZemX]

8 hours ago, Hyperstrike said:

For a second I read this as Invuln/Shield and was like..."That'd be cool, but having only Brawl, Kick and Shield Charge probably would make it hard to keep Aggro..."

 

Even better...

 

[Mezmera]

11 hours ago, StriderIV said:

This is specifically Invuln, correct? I know you probably can’t hit max resists on Shield, BUT you probably trade some sturdiness for a bit more offense (AAO, Shield Charge). You make great points Hyper 😂 I know you have a Mo Durable build floating around somewhere.

 

I've set my Shield up nice.  With most of my base resists high I can cap most of them when I need to easily through using One With the Shield or Melee Hybrid with Toxic being in the 80's and Psi in the 70's (with Melee Hybrid, naturally built to 50%) and even Demonic.  So I can cap or get real high on my resists at will and maintain them which is really only necessary on the new 4-star content.  Plus being able to build in additional hp to 3100 multiplies the effectiveness of your resists and defenses along with any regen you can pull in.  

 

I also have the tanker and entomb +absorb procs slotted to fire nicely which based on my hp lets me maintain an additional 900+ hp which is a quasi heal so long as I'm staying aggressive attacking.

 

Paired with the high positional defenses you can get along with the 91% DDR I can get without using Ageless you get one hell of a balanced tanker.   

 

About the only thing missing which gets highlighted most in the HM stuff is the lack of a heal which I use Unrelenting and Rebirth for.  Or having an endurance debuff get through your defenses like what those Smelters hit you with so I also picked up Unleash Potential to ward that kind of thing off which also comes with the additional benefit of lots more defense and high regen.  

 

You also bring a nice team buff to the table with Grant Cover which will net your teammates a nice 15-18% defense buff plus some DDR.  

 

Then you have the fun offensive powers like AAO and Shield Charge which I use to maintain aggro that may come from the side.  

 

Shield is just a fantastic set on tankers with plenty of options to shore up any holes it might have.  

Edited January 3, 2023 by Mezmera

[One IV All]

10 hours ago, Hyperstrike said:

To be honest, one of the reasons I'm squeezed as much out of things like Shield and Invuln is that I'm generally a lazy player.
My manual dexterity and fine motor control SUCK DISEASED MOOSE WANG.
And my "skill" at playing never really grew beyond "I can Tank it!"

I mean, how pathetic is it that I've Tanked a Fire/Fire/Pyre blaster on an STF/MLTF?
And you know what's REALLY pathetic?

I ACTUALLY MANAGED IT!

Proof that God occasionally smiles on fools and other children.

You and me both my friend 😂

[Troo]

For newer tankers Invulnerability and Shield are excellent choices. Dull Pain possibly giving Invulnerability an edge.

 

As a tanker grows in experience and know how.. other sets can become compelling. (Bio, Dark, Elec, Fiery, Rad)

 

Sure a player can go Super Reflexes or Stone, in a lot of ways it is preference and playstyle. If someone loves the teleport travel powers and being a giant stone golem, please be a Stoner.

 

Mentioned tanker reads:

(some suggest skipping to page 10 or 11 if I remember correctly)

 

Edited January 3, 2023 by Troo

[One IV All]

11 hours ago, Zect said:

 

Your attitude is extremely admirable. I need to emphasize there is zero shame in admitting one is not particularly skilled at build design or play. On the contrary, one who knows one's limitations shows wisdom which is a far rarer and more precious trait than mere skill or knowledge.

 

With that said...

 

If you want to stretch your toes a little, try rad armor. It is currently extremely strong in the 4* HM ITF meta (which, FYI, is a tank, a kin, 3 or so colds, and half a dozen barrier cores). It has lower defense than Inv, which matters less in such a def-abundant environment, but more sustain with particle shield. High-end rad armor tanks easily cap all resists except cold/psi, particle shield every 30ish seconds for gigantic amounts of absorb, and have 90-100% slow resistance. They easily shrug off the colossi's -recovery/rom's -recharge. Building and playing rad armor also teaches valuable lessons in how to construct res/rech builds as a contrast to turtle builds. An option for those who want something different. A rad armor with a parry 2ndary that stacks double -res procs on AV's and can i-cap its own def in melee is simply the chef's kiss.

Hear hear!

Excuse me now while I work on some Rad Armor concepts haha. I could see Katana pairing well, and I know SS is a classic pairing. Dark Melee I think could have some nice synergy to create a very sturdy unit of a Tanker.

[One IV All]

4 hours ago, Linea said:

• Inv/ is the easy answer, it practically builds itself, and it's very easy to pilot.
• EnA, Inv, SD, SR, Stone, RadA, Bio, ... and many more.   A good hardmode self contained pug tank should be able to solo AE "801.7 static". 
• If you're more selective with your teams, and your team provides buffs the way it probably should, and actually works as an actual team, then any self resist-capped tank becomes the desired choice,
• then as the team quality improves further you shift into full offense resist based tanks, and several teams start leaning into a full offense fire tank .... which is the exact opposite of a full 801 (Inv, SD, Stone) Tank that would be the above pug hardmode pick.  A full offense Bio/ would also fit this slot.

 

  Reveal hidden contents

Armor Types (Armor Recommendations):
I recommend:   
Defense Armor: EnA (Any AT), Inv/ and SD/ as the Tank Alternatives.    
Resist Armor: RadA (Brutes and Tanks Only).   
Heal Armor: Bio (Any AT, paired with a Defensive Weapon).   
Offense Armor: SD, Bio

Defense Armors, Expanded and In Order of Durability: EnA (Any AT, Add Resists, Intermediate), SR (Advanced), SD (Intermediate), Inv (Easy). If you’re not picking EnA, I Recommend Inv. Inv is very easy to learn and drive, and very durable. Once you get your feet under you, then you can pick some of the more difficult to drive armors. My personal Favorites are EnA and SD, but I find myself driving EnA and Inv most often.

Notes:
•    Stone can still be very good, I just very much dislike Stone. I would rank stone somewhere between Inv and SD for durability.
•    EnA is not on tanks, if it ever is, I might be forced to move it up or down the ratings, depending on how it's ported.
•    Most SR builds do not add the resists required to get it to the rating I give it. SR is also the most difficult to drive if built my way.
•    Most SD builds also do not add the resists required to get to the rating I give it. I use all three SD build slots: Defense, Psi-Tank, Proc/Offense.
•    Inv is more likely to be built to defensive spec, it's just kinda naturally built that way. It's also so easy to drive. It's pretty much recommends itself.

Heal: Regen
Heal/Defense/Resist: Bio, Will
MRA: Nin, SR,
MRA/Res: SD,
Resist: DA, ElA, FA, Rad,
SLE: EnA, Ice
SLE/Res: Inv, Stone
SLE/Vec: Ice,
Psionic (in order): Dark, ELA, WP, Rad

Linea Durability Ratings
    Based on Solo +4x8 AE 801.# capability.   Where # is 0 to F, Hexadecimal, where F is 15.  
EX: 801.2 is the standard armor test.  If you can complete 801.2 then you have enough dps and durability for 95% of the game.

Anything rated 2 or above can tank the majority of official content.
Most tanks driven by most players do not even rate 2.
 
Defense Tanks rate 6 to 13.
Resist Tanks rate 5 to 7.
Heal-Amor Tanks rate 5 to 6.  Although I have had other players report BIO on Tanks up to 7.
 
Defense Brutes rate 5 to 10
Resist Brutes rate 5 to 7, but tanks rate higher more easily.
Heal-Armor Brutes rate 2 to 5
 
Defense Scrappers, Stalkers, and Sentinels rate 2 to 6.
Resist Scrappers, Stalkers and Sentinels are unrated, but should rate 2 to 4
Heal-Armor Scrappers rate 2 to 3
 
Veats, Heats, Defenders rate 2 to 5  ... I ran an empath through 2, once and only once.  If you want to discount that, then rate them 1 to 5.
Some truly exceptional Veats or Heats may rate 6.
 
Masterminds, Corruptors, Controllers and Doms are not far behind Defenders, and rate 0 to 5, but are harder to get to rate higher.
Some truly exceptional Controllers and Doms rate 6.  I am NOT that player, mine rate 2 to 5.
 
Blasters rate 0 to 4
 
Regen is Unrated, in this context Heal-Armor means Willpower and Bio Armor.
If you want to account for build quality, set all low end numbers to zero.

Defenses Armors rate up to 13
Resist Armors rate up to 6 (or 7)
Heal-Tank Armors rate up to 5 (or 7)
IO Armor rates up to 2

 

 

Thank you for this Linea.

Invuln and SD are ones I'm messing with, as well as Rad Armor. What are your thoughts on Electric Armor for a Tanker or Brute?

[Enots]

My SR/Fire Proc tank- >Brute damage with way >Brute survivability. 

 

SR has the ability to spend minimal slots/sets on survivability, Ageless makes End a non-factor. The focus of everything else is procs and +damage.

[Erratic1]

7 minutes ago, Enots said:

My SR/Fire Proc tank- >Brute damage with way >Brute survivability. 

 

SR has the ability to spend minimal slots/sets on survivability, Ageless makes End a non-factor. The focus of everything else is procs and +damage.

 

*scribbles some notes*

[Linea]

1 hour ago, One IV All said:

Invuln and SD are ones I'm messing with, as well as Rad Armor. What are your thoughts on Electric Armor for a Tanker or Brute?

I personally haven't done ElA/ in over a decade, but there are several that have run 801s with me, and I'd say they, with those players as pilots, rate at least a 7.

 

[Linea]

This is Lucy's combat monitor. SD/RadM.  SD and SR can stack DDR, which can be very valuable at times.  RadM for the self heal, DM being another alternative for self healing.

Tank Proc, if slotted for it, can stack up 21 ish resistance.  If you swing away from SD, and don't mind low damage, you can push that another 7 or so points with /Staff and have a dynamic up to about 30 ish resistance.  Which is were you probably start leaning Inv/Staff.   Which then leads to Granite/Staff which is just silly and probably can't kill a fly.  But I know a few of those and they are indeed durable.

Rune/Hybrid/Rune/Demonic ... Demonic is an accolade, so it IS available in hardmode.  No her resists aren't perma, but they're up ... 7 minutes down 1 minute ... or something like that.  It's pretty ludicrous.  There's also a very viable offensive variant with the new SD/Axe where you could use /recharge procs.   You could even explore that route further and off into the direction of Axe/EnA on a brute for an overload/burnout/overload stacked with Rune/Hybrid/Rune/Demonic/...

 

[Warboss]

6 hours ago, ZemX said:

 

Even better...

 

 

Awesome, but I think damage might be a bit limited until we get Shield Melee....

[Warboss]

15 hours ago, Hyperstrike said:

I could PROBABLY cap several of the Resists.

But it'd likely compromise the build elsewhere.

Here's just a "Just trying to max Def/Res" without really trying.

https://www.midsreborn.com/builds/download.php?uc=1559&c=650&a=1300&f=HEX&dc=78DA7594CB6F125114C6CF3083DA0222E5D54AA1585B5B2CA5C1C4B536526A0B2424BA27137A85B12320C342F73E773E776AEBCEE7CEE7CEE74EB73EFF061F891ADD8D070EA7B90DE126437EF7CCB967BEF39D1B0AA732EEF7EFF20741711F3275CB2A1DD56BABA2E92CE815A30CEDB5159F28454B19714CD42C913A523584B9C2DB48F76D419842A472464DB48C7269BED5D2CBABE029D6EB662A6B54AA2DA35671777679A13770E3E5CD8A685A55A3E1A254B39DEB5F6818E5D47CB3DC2E55D0AD96689E1E4625717C321EFC518097ED04585601D21A3820CBF09B40833F0C7F09B6C03F82E3BE9E3297B46ECA65826D7085E12AC1205C63B84EB0806A14A98CA64050E9BC71B3AC599635078B0C4B04268A5065112A9CD1BAA7CF126C87730CE70976C005868B045914E194CB38D980213660880D08B0010108E391A80621D84791450FCD9BCBE0C6C6052750E5801C1FA0F861CC77291B26DAE002CBD1A9B4846F3C9220D5C3AE842040300C39B50BBF086AF819AFDC85171E517F3BE131C313825178CAF08C2006CF0996F1DB3E79223EFE768C2732C71349F344D23C913A8AF04BA7153FAC514F49582770A04741D98E20D9A1623C2CEB0FF314623C85384F21CE539885FD4A171208531AE450FF885C66043EF0A18F04BBE013C367862F04BBE12B41031B89C865227043EBA6DC64B84530016B047B609DE13681864D45653FA2ECE6044F3284296372CA584FCA4914332E8B19873BFCA1BB0453708FE13EC30382043C2468629949D9F94972BE882D4FCBE5A7E1051F7DC9F08A602FBC6678C3F096C0878DCCC8B776862F4C922F4CB2E7C2D81B6B540379D9EDA7AD2EA16DFEA7B1F37D128B9A9C877185E2DF063717E0FC1F7DE2DFFBC47FF6891FF06327B2C0FF260BEBB8

 

That's a pretty nice "base" build. Thanks for posting.

[Spaghetti Betty]

2 hours ago, Linea said:

Rune/Hybrid/Rune/Demonic

Just wanted to shout and say that I've been considering this for quite a few of my Tanks now thanks to your constant preaching. Now my Ice Tank is nigh unkillable.

[Hyperstrike]

1 hour ago, Warboss said:

 

That's a pretty nice "base" build. Thanks for posting.

It's got a few problems.
This was just a hack to see how much I could squeeze in without resorting to Rune of Protection and ignoring things like Health and Stamina...

Here's a ROP build...

 

Edited January 4, 2023 by Hyperstrike

[PLVRIZR]

Another vote for classic Inv/SS.  This is my go-to, ultimate tanker.  Not quite a "Mo Durable" build, but with Pyre Mastery, you get Char and the absorb proc and Melt Armor, which is -7% Def and -11.25% Res debuff, auto-hit (10' AoE).  Nearly 500 vet levels and I can count his (non-HM) defeats, probably on two hands.

 

https://www.midsreborn.com/builds/download.php?uc=1912&c=827&a=1654&f=HEX&dc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

[Mythical Creature]

I am surprised more folks don't mention stone armor, especially after Issue 5 (or was it 4?) the set got improved outside of golem form. Stone has many different layers that add up to feeling like I don't get touched at all. One thing I like about my layers of protection is that there is always a reason to group with a defender or other support type because while everything either has a maxed out defense or resistance stat related to it, only S/L/F/C are capped for both res and defense, so when I group I benefit from defense or resistance buffs while not feeling like I am really any less survivable for it because the third layer (regen/healing) is also very powerful with around 500% regen and my +HP buff/heal.

 

On top of all my survivability, stone armor gets a damage increase without having to sacrifice survivability (like bio armor) or taking a less survivable set (fire armor). Brimstone armor now adds fire damage to my attacks on top of my survivability. This seems to pair really well with radiation melee, that has it's own damage aura and increased damage mechanic (contamination). 

Stone Armor Tanker, especially with the addition of Radiation Melee feels powerful defensively and offensively. It is my favorite tanker yet.

[Hyperstrike]

53 minutes ago, 723wolf said:

I am surprised more folks don't mention stone armor, especially after Issue 5 (or was it 4?) the set got improved outside of golem form. Stone has many different layers that add up to feeling like I don't get touched at all. One thing I like about my layers of protection is that there is always a reason to group with a defender or other support type because while everything either has a maxed out defense or resistance stat related to it, only S/L/F/C are capped for both res and defense, so when I group I benefit from defense or resistance buffs while not feeling like I am really any less survivable for it because the third layer (regen/healing) is also very powerful with around 500% regen and my +HP buff/heal.

 

On top of all my survivability, stone armor gets a damage increase without having to sacrifice survivability (like bio armor) or taking a less survivable set (fire armor). Brimstone armor now adds fire damage to my attacks on top of my survivability. This seems to pair really well with radiation melee, that has it's own damage aura and increased damage mechanic (contamination). 

Stone Armor Tanker, especially with the addition of Radiation Melee feels powerful defensively and offensively. It is my favorite tanker yet.

The problem with Stone is that YES, it's quite literally the toughest thing going.

But the tradeoffs for that toughness quite simply do not mesh well in the current paradigm of the game.

Want an ultimate Hami Tank?
BOOYAH!

Want to NOT get left behind on pretty much any other teaming activity?  Turn off half your build or use something else.

[Hjarki]

1 hour ago, Hyperstrike said:

Want to NOT get left behind on pretty much any other teaming activity?  Turn off half your build or use something else.

With Granite Armor, Stone is as close to unkillable as you get. Without Granite Armor, it's still one of the toughest - and most damaging - sets around.

[Mythical Creature]

3 hours ago, Hyperstrike said:

The problem with Stone is that YES, it's quite literally the toughest thing going.

But the tradeoffs for that toughness quite simply do not mesh well in the current paradigm of the game.

Want an ultimate Hami Tank?
BOOYAH!

Want to NOT get left behind on pretty much any other teaming activity?  Turn off half your build or use something else.

 

I honestly have no idea what you mean? I don't get left behind my team? I have teleport, so perhaps I just don't notice the problem you are mentioning because I built around it? I never turn off any of my toggles, stone armor is essentially a passive set, the only active ability from the set is the heal (or granite form which I skip). Perhaps you are referring to the old version of stone armor before the non-granite form toggles were improved upon? 

 

Using stone armor like a passive set and my build grants me 45-60% defense to S/L/F/C/E/NE/Psi, 90% Resistance to S/L/F/C/Tox, 496% regeneration, and the neat damage increase in Brimstone armor, with the epiphany core (with def debuff resistance) my defense debuff resistance is capped most the time as well. Assuming there was still a movement speed decrease (which I am pretty sure was removed in page 4), teleport is easy enough to add to your build.

 

I am having a hard time understanding your reasoning that it doesn't mesh well with the current paradigm of the game. Care to explain what you mean? Are you referring to out of date information about Stone Armor?

[Thrax]

My stone/ma is soft capped defense to all but psi and hard capped to all resist including psi. It’s fun flipping around in granite too.  Has taunt, a taunt aura, and an aoe. 
 

I think the ultimate tank is one that has taunt. Too many times I’ve teamed with tanks and brutes that don’t have taunt and refuse to acknowledge that they suck. 

[Neiska]

For me personally, I have had the most success with Bio/Savage and Bio/Energy Melee. Both are fantastic, each for different reasons. Honestly the Savage was a surprise as that one began as a theme build.

[Heatstroke]

Im surprised there is no love for Willpower..

 

But that being said.. I think my Inv/Nrg tank that has perma dull pain, capped S/L resists, and 35% defense is as sturdy as it gets.

[PLVRIZR]

40 minutes ago, Heatstroke said:

Im surprised there is no love for Willpower..

 

...mostly due to lack of DDR.  I love my WP/Fiery Melee tank.  Actually used him as a fire farmer...to PL my Spines/Fire brute into the primary farming role.  He rolls through 98% of all non-HM content, without blinking, but I wouldn't dream of lead tanking him on a +4/8 ITF or 801 AE.