Ashes of Creation Gold: Best Tank Skills and Traits for Your Build

In the expansive world of Ashes of Creation, players are introduced to a dynamic and ever-changing landscape where every role plays a pivotal part in the success of a group. The tank role, in particular, is a cornerstone in both PvE (Player vs Environment) and PvP (Player vs Player) content. As a tank, your primary responsibility is to absorb incoming damage, control the battlefield, and ensure that your allies remain unharmed. This comprehensive guide will walk you through the essentials of building a tank in Ashes of Creation, focusing on key mechanics, attributes, abilities, gear, and strategies to help you excel in the Ashes of Creation Gold.

Understanding the Tank Role

Before delving into the specifics of tanking in Ashes of Creation, it’s essential to understand what being a tank entails. The tank’s role is both simple and complex at the same time. A tank’s primary function is to act as the damage sponge for the group, absorbing hits that would otherwise fall on weaker members of the party. Tanks are tasked with keeping enemies focused on them, allowing damage dealers to unleash their full potential without fear of being targeted.

The tank also controls crowd flow, meaning that they need to manage enemy positions, prevent stragglers from flanking, and control aggro, which is the threat that enemies feel toward a player. This threat can be manipulated using taunts, threat-generating abilities, and strategic positioning. Tanks are often the first line of defense in high-stakes encounters like raids, dungeons, or PvP battles, where managing incoming damage and controlling enemy movement is vital to the group’s survival.

Choosing the Right Class

The next step in crafting a tank build is selecting the appropriate archetype and advanced class. In Ashes of Creation, the class system is structured around Archetypes and Specializations. When it comes to tanking, the Knight archetype is the most viable option, as it is designed with high survivability and threat management in mind.

Knight Archetype

The Knight is a versatile archetype, well-suited to tanking roles due to its inherent defensive capabilities. A Knight can specialize into several classes, each bringing a unique approach to tanking. The three main specializations available to the Knight archetype are:

Paladin: The Paladin is a defensive support tank, offering strong self-healing abilities, damage mitigation, and group support through buffs and debuffs. Paladins can keep themselves and their allies alive in prolonged fights, making them an excellent choice for sustained encounters.

Guardian: Guardians are the classic “big, tough tank.” They focus on soaking up massive amounts of damage and controlling enemy movement. Their strength lies in their ability to lock down enemies with crowd control (CC) abilities and their formidable damage mitigation.

Warlord: A more offensive tanking class, the Warlord excels at controlling multiple enemies simultaneously. While they may not have as much raw damage mitigation as the Guardian or Paladin, their ability to contribute damage while still keeping enemies focused on them makes them a flexible option for both tanking and dealing damage.

For this guide, we will focus primarily on the Paladin specialization, as it is a popular choice for players who enjoy tanking while also providing support to their team.

Key Attributes for Tanking

When building a tank in Ashes of Creation, the right set of attributes is vital for ensuring you can withstand damage and perform your role effectively. The game uses a stat-based system, and certain attributes should be prioritized for tanking:

1. Constitution

Constitution is one of the most important stats for a tank. It directly affects your health pool and survivability. A tank needs to have a substantial amount of health to endure sustained damage in both PvE and PvP. A higher Constitution allows you to soak more damage and survive longer, making you the effective damage sponge your team needs.

2. Endurance

Endurance increases your stamina and your ability to block or mitigate incoming attacks. While Constitution boosts your overall health, Endurance helps with your damage reduction capabilities. It’s especially important for Paladins, who will be using abilities like Shield Wall and other damage mitigation skills. Ensuring that your Endurance is high enough will allow you to sustain these abilities longer and help with mobility, so you can reposition quickly if needed.

3. Armor

Armor is a crucial factor in reducing physical damage. As a tank, your job is to absorb as much damage as possible, and a higher Armor rating will make you more resilient against physical attacks. In many cases, the best gear for a tank will be heavy armor, as it provides the highest level of damage reduction.

4. Agility

While Agility isn’t a tank’s primary focus, a moderate amount of it can be useful for mobility. Agility improves your dodge chance, allowing you to avoid some attacks, especially in high-paced PvP encounters or against bosses with fast-moving abilities. While you should not neglect more vital stats like Constitution and Endurance, having a bit of Agility can improve your overall survivability in certain situations.

Tank Abilities and Skills

Every tank must have a well-rounded set of abilities that allow them to control aggro, mitigate damage, and protect their allies. Here are some key abilities you should focus on when building a tank:

1. Taunt Abilities

Taunts are core to a tank’s ability to manage aggro. These abilities force enemies to focus their attacks on the tank instead of other party members. Effective taunting abilities not only generate threat but can also increase the tank’s control over the battlefield, ensuring that damage dealers and healers remain unharmed.

Aggro Generation: Your taunt abilities should be used to pull enemies off your damage dealers. Be mindful of the threat generated by your DPS—if they surpass you in damage output, it could cause the enemy to switch targets.

Area-of-Effect Taunts: Some taunts have a broader range, allowing you to gather multiple enemies and keep them under your control. These are particularly useful in dungeon runs or group combat.

2. Defensive Abilities

The foundation of any tank is their ability to absorb damage. Defensive abilities provide crucial damage mitigation, allowing tanks to take hits that would otherwise wipe out squishy party members.

Shield Wall: This ability significantly reduces the amount of damage taken over a short period, making it indispensable in high-damage phases of a fight.

Defender’s Resolve: A self-buff that increases your resilience against incoming damage, often coupled with a boost in damage reduction or a temporary health shield.

Divine Shield: A powerful ability that grants complete immunity to damage for a short time, perfect for avoiding lethal damage spikes during boss fights.

3. Crowd Control Abilities

Crowd control (CC) is essential for managing multiple enemies or preventing specific high-priority threats from overwhelming your party.

Stuns: Stuns prevent enemies from acting for a short time, allowing you to control their movement and prevent them from dealing damage.

Roots and Slows: Roots keep enemies from moving, while slows reduce their overall mobility. These can be crucial when dealing with fast-moving mobs or preventing enemies from flanking your group.

4. Support Abilities

Although tanking is primarily about survival, supporting your team through healing, buffs, or debuffs can significantly impact the outcome of a fight.

Lay on Hands: A classic Paladin ability that allows you to heal yourself or an ally. This is particularly useful in extended fights where your healer may be overwhelmed.

Aegis of Protection: A supportive AoE ability that grants damage reduction to allies within a certain range. This can turn the tide of battle by boosting your party’s survivability when the going gets tough.

Gear and Equipment

Your gear plays a crucial role in enhancing your tanking capabilities. As a tank, your main priority is to maximize survivability and threat generation.

1. Armor

Plate armor is the go-to for any tank, as it offers the best damage reduction and protection from physical attacks. Make sure you prioritize armor pieces that increase your Constitution, Endurance, and Armor.

2. Weapons

A sword and shield combination is optimal for most tanks. The shield not only adds protection but also increases your block chance, while the sword offers consistent threat generation. For Paladins, this setup also provides synergy with their defensive abilities, making it easier to generate and maintain aggro.

Some tanks may prefer a two-handed weapon for higher damage output and threat generation. However, this comes at the cost of reduced defensive capabilities. Two-handed weapons are better suited for tanks that want to balance offense with defense.

3. Enchantments and Glyphs

Certain enchantments can provide additional damage reduction or threat generation. Make sure to use glyphs that increase your survivability or bolster your taunts. Health regeneration enchantments can also keep you alive longer in tough fights.

Conclusion

Tanking in Ashes of Creation is a rewarding yet demanding role that requires a mix of cheap Ashes of Creation Gold, reaction time, and team coordination. The Paladin offers a balanced tanking option, with a focus on defense, healing, and providing support to your team. By prioritizing the right attributes, skills, and gear, you can create a tank that excels at managing damage, controlling enemies, and ensuring the safety of your party. Whether you're diving into PvE content or engaging in PvP battles, mastering the tank role will be key to your success in the world of Ashes of Creation.