Hello .so I have played dps for quite some time and now I am getting that itch to try my hands at tanking .
I will be trying guardian druid for tanking so if you can give some tips and fillers for it .I would appreciate it .
Also please any content creator that plays tanks and has beginners guide would also be appreciated . I’m ready to learn .I probably will get some kicks from parties and some scolding too but that is part of the game .I don’t mind 
Iron fur is your best friend. Other then that: check some youtube videos, or run a few heroics to get the feeling for it.
There is not a single best way to play tank, its situational.
2 Likes
This guy is really new tank friendly. Has addon profiles you can download etc.
https://www.youtube.com/@quaziiwow
If i may add my own advice you should take to heart, tanking is a dance. Don’t just use all of your damage reduction (ironfur is low level damage reduction and always has to be up) in 1 go. Space out it. Use it for big hits and big pulls especially, but make sure you have enough juice to go the distance. But at the same time, make sure you have something up. You can’t use your buttons when you’re dead. If you’re pulling 6 packs in 1 go, make sure a cooldown is used. Better early then late. As you improve, you will be able to “feel” when things are starting to hurt or ease up and use cooldowns accordingly. You’ll be able to predict what pulls will hurt. LEARN AND TRACK TANKBUSTERS! (tank only damage designed to hurt or kill only you) Bigwigs has a built in countdown timer if you’re unsure.
The most important thing i would say, is that people are going to flame you. Part of the job. You need thick skin. Don’t take it to heart. Examine your mistakes and try to improve.
2 Likes
I dont tank. But if I can give you 1 advice as a healer:
Early on, on your first keys whisper your healer to ask if they had trouble keeping you alive. Cause sometimes you get good information from that.
In easy keys, the healer can cover-up some of the mistakes you do. So you wont really notice them until later on when the healer cannot heal through the crazy damage a tank takes.
If you ask the healer, you will know early on.
Be very vigilant on streamers and guides on the internet. As a tank, make sure that any suggestions you read are intended for beginners.
Like routes. If you look up dungeon routes, make sure they are the most “press W” routes you can find. Because you will have other things to worry about other than complicated routes with weird skips.
2 Likes
Join a friendly guild or community (like Dungeon Dojo), tanking is going to be a much better experience that way. You can even tell the group that you are new to tanking, so they can advise you on dungeon routes and boss tactics. (It is good to read upon the dungeon you would like to tank in advance though.) If the boss or the mobs knock back, then tank with your rear against the wall. If the boss puts something bad under you, then take it for a walk. Time your omg! buttons. If there are too many mobs in a room + patrols, then corner pull. Keep an eye on the other players, in case someone accidentally pulls the whole room. In this case, try to save the healer.
Good luck and have fun!
1 Like
Make a weak aura tracker for iron fur , or any defensive in general , place them on the spot where your eyes are always focused on , so if one big def drops you gonna be aware of what you do next , never go into packs without pre barkskin , specially if you reach that +10 key level , or if there is fortified on lower ones.
Make sure to spam your moonfire on procs , always that’s gonna be one your biggest rage generators on packs , and never turn your back on mobs so you can parry some attacks.
Check some tank players route and try different ones till you feel more comfortable tanking.
2 Likes
Get a hard skin and don’t get bothered if people flame you. Only compete with yourself, try to progress each day…it is similar for a healer
3 Likes
Thx.that is good advice .
1 Like
One important advise is to get an addon like Plater which colours the nameplate of caster in a different coloure.
Its very important to know which mops are casters/ranges and which are meeles. Always pull the meeles to the casters/ranges.
Nothing sucks more than having one range standing outside and casting nonstop on your groupe.
1 Like
My advice, as a guardian myself, to you is to avoid Druid of the Claw hero spec completely until you’re warm in your fur.
Also Iron Fur: don’t bake it into your macros (as someone will suggest eventually)! Always keep one up and as a beginner you’ll probably want 3-4 stacks at all times.
Don’t panic going into pulls; your health will drop low if you start a pull with no rage and/or IF up. You have 3 other defensives for it to roll: Barkskin, Incarnation and Survival Instinct. Don’t “sit” on them (aka save up for later). And don’t pop them together (altho incarn + survival is one strong combo on a large pull, and/or when your dps accidentally pulls way too many extra adds).
Barkskin, depending on your talent choices, will have either a 1 min CD or a 32 sec CD. You should have one up for all and every pull and should be your most natural CD to fire off.
Rage; as you’ll most likely be playing as Elune’s Chosen with Thons of Iron talent: spend all of your rage on ironfur during trash fights just to have a more relaxed playstyle. Weave in some Mangles, under Lunarbeam, during boss fights.
I’m not sure which spec I’ve on my Druid currently. I think it’s my elune’s chosen that focus HEAVILY on defensives and self+group healing. I’d recommend playing using it as a starter build. 
As you gain more experience and confidence as a tank you’ll take on a more offensive mind. In the beginning it’s all about defense. Best of luck!
1 Like
Yes .that’s what I have started with
1 Like
dreamgrove. gg (without the space between . and GG) is an AMAZING information source for all things Druid. Their builds and breakdowns are even better than the other 3 popular sites. 
Don’t mindlessly spam ironfur unless you are in incarnation. A few stacks (2 usually) are more than enough.
Don’t Macro ironfur with other spells. You will be rage starved and your dmg will be very low (and your aggro).
2 good tanks to follow are squishvegan (r1 bear) and dorki (multi r1 tank). Both are super chill.
2 Likes