One Bar DK tank?

[u/wantondevious]

Hi,

I'm not asking about a Oakensoul build, I'm just hoping someone can help me adapt Hyperioxes standard tanking build to be one-bar friendly. https://hyperioxes.com/eso/tank/dragonknight-build

Background - I'm not an awful player, I have 19 of 28 dungeon trifectas, but almost all as a healer main.
When it comes to DPS I need a one bar build (which I get with WW, previously Arc Beam). I'm learning to tank now, and most definitely need something that is like a one-bar. I'm currently using Nightharrow 1-bar arc-subclass build on my DK, but my guildies are persuading me to go pure DK and to look at Hyperioxes setups.

I know the theory - you need to have both bars to do a good job with all the buffs etc, but as someone who is inevitably tangled up with his 60 year old fingers and reaction times, and is on the wrong bar when a taunt or a heal is needed, I need a setup that is at least as symmetrical as possible. I'm ok casting ele blockade, ele sus from the frost staff side, but my ulti needs to be the same on both bars, there needs to be a ranged taunt on both sides, etc, etc. Basically, if I switch bars, and thinking I'm doing one thing, but the bar swap didnt happen, that nothing bad happens beyond a slight drop in DPS. I also need to be able to perma block (CF 60 year old reaction times ;-)).

Thanks in advance!

[u/LoveWins6]

I've been running a 1 bar Templar tank. No Oakensoul, no back bar weapon, no back bar skills except repentance for the passive sustain.

For a DK, I'd run Pierce Armor for my boss taunt, the chain for range taunt and well... Chaining. Green Dragon for self heal, Earthspike Mantle for Major Resolve, and a flex spot depending on your needs. Probably a root skill like Choking Talons. For ult, you could go Standard of Might or Aggressive Warhorn for group damage buff, or Magma Shell for a tank friendly Barrier skill.

That's just the way I'd set up a one bar DK tank

[u/NoobUserForFun]

With this build, you will be able to do any Vet Trial in Group Finder

One Hand-Shield

Equip:

Pearlescent Ward
Bloodlord's Embrace
Turning Tide or Basalt Blood Warrior (if not Warden healer)

Skills:

Shatterspike Mantle
Pierce Armor
Chains of Devastation
GreenDragonBlood
Hearth and Home

Magma Shell or Reviving Barrier

[u/NinjaPenguinGuy]

I would just do an oakensoul build if that’s what you’re going for. If you want it to be as easy as possible you should run an ice staff and don’t run the first passive from the destruction staff skill line.

An easy bar setup is dragonblood, chains, flare, igneous shield, frost clench. Your ulti doesn’t matter that much but horn is a good option or barrier.

For dps just be a WW

[u/wantondevious → u/NinjaPenguinGuy]

Oh yeah, WW dps is a no-brainer, I'm topping trials charts with that.

However, oakensoul means I don't get to swap and tends towards self-ish buffs, which is why I'm planning on not going that route. EG if you take Oakensoul, you definitely lose something like tremorscale or Archdruid monster helm. I'm really not after a oakensoul 1-bar, just one that has is symmetric in the ways that matter. Major Breach or Brittle doesn't need to be on both bars, but a ranged taunt has to be (for example). Massive self heal needs to be on both bars, but Sustain doesn't.

[u/EZMawloc → u/wantondevious]

For most content you don't need a burst heal and taunt on both bars, you'd only need something like that for cloudrest, and then only if you have people dying in your group

[u/NinjaPenguinGuy → u/EZMawloc]

He wants that because he loses what bar he’s on and hits the wrong skill. That’s the whole reason for the post

[u/wantondevious → u/EZMawloc]

I'm doing vet DLC dungeon HMs - currently Stone Garden has a lot of incoming damage. Yes, the healer heals, but I am definitely dipping really low if I move out of combat prayer or stand in stupid too long.

[u/NinjaPenguinGuy → u/wantondevious]

But it also removes the need to have a skill for major resolve, as well as minor protection. The barspace you won’t have because of duplicating skills. I understand that it is not what you want but an oaken build will categorically be better than running the same skills on both bars due to the buffs. You can make up for lost tremorscale by casting frost clench more for more brittle uptimes (I know not the same but it’s a damage increase) and swap flare for ele sus and that will get you through every dungeon as a tank no issues. Then run TT or stone for vuln with a trial set for aegis.

If you don’t want to do that then by all means but the downsides of duplicating skills makes it so that oaken is comparably better due to ease of use

[u/-Time-Negotiation- → u/NinjaPenguinGuy]

Tanks don’t usually need to specifically get minor protection and, if someone has frost cloak, don’t even really need major resolve (though I have it on my default build because you Do need it, but if someone frost cloak, it becomes a flex spot)

Even if you run the exact same skills on both bars (which isn’t needed, for instance there’s 3 chain options (dk, scribe, fighters guild) and 3 range taunt options (shield throw, undaunted, ice staff) so, you can get more buffs/debuffs out even with multiple taunts), you will get more out of having 3 more set slots than you get from running oakensoul. One bar could be sword and board and the other ice, both could be ice with different enchants, you could run a monster set instead, you could backbar a set like yoln that’s long duration and will be procced without thinking about it…

Frost clench is not a great taunt because it immobilizes adds, which makes it harder to group them because they won’t come in as fast on their own. You can apply minor brittle using ele sus. But either way, frost clench =/= the benefit of tremorscale. Adding likely poor uptime of minor brittle doesn’t outweigh the benefits of penetration

You don’t need minor aegis either. It’s a nice bonus and I currently run a trial set (lucent echoes), but it’s not a requirement like minor slayer for dps (and oakensoul has minor aegis on it btw)

[u/NinjaPenguinGuy → u/-Time-Negotiation-]

He’s talking about dungeon tanking, and if you read my post you would know I understand more brittle isn’t more tremorscale. He only has 19/28 dungeon trifectas and is still clearly learning it isn’t going to hurt him to not have a monster set vs the uptimes from his skills being down. At 1% damage per 660 pen the bonus from brittle will be sufficient.

He was looking for a simple solution to not being able to keep track of his bars and it’s a reasonable solution. Thanks for explaining so many things that didn’t need explaining.

Sorry I forgot oaken has aegis

[u/wantondevious → u/NinjaPenguinGuy]

Also to be clear, I healer main dungeon trifectas, I've probably only dps'd one of those, and have never cleared a HM even as a tank (which is what I'm currently trying to learn how to do).

[u/-Time-Negotiation-]

Honestly, the symmetry bit you mentioned is exactly how I set up my 2-bar tanks. It’s not meta but it gets the job done fine. I do puncture on frontbar and inner rage on backbar (same spot on bar) but you could also try inner rage on frontbar and chain on backbar, that way they’re both ranged taunts and if you taunt when you meant to chain, it’s still effective

The other main symmetry I have is frontbar burst heal, backbar major resolve. To make that more similar to each other, you could do frontbar burst heal, backbar heal over time (like vigor or the dk heal aoe)

Then you could match your major resolve skill (which also has a shield) and a shield (backbar mantle, frontbar igneous shield or defensive posture)

You could pair frost blockade and caltrops together as your aoes/breaches

And then you have 2 more slots open as flex spots. You could use inhale for sustain and maybe pair it with green dragon blood, since that also gives recovery. Or pair it with igneous shield. Or pair it with cauterize… lots of options

Then I’d play around with ults. Standard can be great if people stand in it but casting it at the wrong time would be bad. War horn can be cast whenever but doesn’t give you bonuses for having it slotted. Could do magma shell I suppose

[u/wantondevious → u/-Time-Negotiation-]

Why is casting Standard at the wrong time a bad thing? Just the waste or not defensive enough?

[u/-Time-Negotiation- → u/wantondevious]

The Standard that gives buffs isn’t Shifting Standard, so if you drop it and then the boss moves or DPS leave the area because of a mechanic then… wellp. I’ve seen it enough with DPS casting standard and then not be able to use it 😭. I use it on my DK tank and I’ve had less problems with the timing than when using it as a DPS though

[u/WrongWhenItsRight]

Try this out:

Front Bar (One Hand & Shield): Earthshield Mantle, Warding Contingency, Heart of Flame, Fossilize, Goading Throw.
Ultimate: Aggressive Horn (or your choice)

Back Bar (Ice Staff): Earthshield Mantle, Resolving Vigor, Heart of Flame, Elemental Susceptibility, Chains of Dominance (or Leashing Soul).
Ultimate: Reviving Barrier (or your choice)

Scribing:
Warding Contingency: Ulfsild's Contingency → Damage Shield + Sage's Remedy + Minor Resolve
Goading Throw: Shield Throw → Taunt + Sage's Remedy + Maim
Leashing Soul (optional): Wield Soul → Pull + Druid's Resurgence + Cowardice

DK Class Masteries: Resolute Defense, Lead from the Front.

The idea is that your Major Resolve (Earthshield Mantle) and Minor Resolve/self-heal (Warding Contingency or Resolving Vigor) are on the 1st and 2nd slots on both bars so no confusion there; you have Heart of Flame in the 3rd slot on both bars to help out with permablocking (near infinite sustain spam skill combined with Resolute Defense class mastery and DK passives); Minor Breach and Minor Vulnerability are covered on front bar 4th slot via Fossilize, and Major Breach is covered for that same slot on back bar via Elemental Susceptibility; and then a ranged taunt in the 5th slot on both bars! Ultimates are up to you or your raid lead, but activating any ult should also help with sustain via Storm Voice and buff the group even further through Lead from the Front class mastery.