Why am i being annihilated in seconds as a shadow tank in pvp

[Srami]

Im confused at the moment.

 

In pvp i feel like either I am doing something completely wrong as a shadow tank or i need to change my spec.

 

I have completed my pvp gear with full augments (endurance power as advised) yet I appear to be squisher than ever.

 

A team in the area will focus on me before anyone else as they know I will be annilated within 5-10 seconds...If anyone has any constructive advice reference this issue It would be most appriciated.

[Jinre_the_Jedi]

Im confused at the moment.

 

In pvp i feel like either I am doing something completely wrong as a shadow tank or i need to change my spec.

 

I have completed my pvp gear with full augments (endurance power as advised) yet I appear to be squisher than ever.

 

A team in the area will focus on me before anyone else as they know I will be annilated within 5-10 seconds...If anyone has any constructive advice reference this issue It would be most appriciated.

 

 

How much HP do you have, what mods and enhancements are you using and is this regs or ranked you're having trouble with?

[Srami]

bit of both really. Im endurance power 186 augments throughout, 55k hp and ditch the defense mods and threw in absorb mods.

[Srami]

bit of both really. Im endurance power 186 augments throughout, 55k hp and ditch the defense mods and threw in absorb mods.

 

Further more i just feel its an incredibly gimped spec in comparison to the other 2. There is very little survivbility difference imho and that shouldnt feel like the case. I imagine all these auto crits are playin a massive part given we was initially designed to be massively shield based

[Srami]

bit of both really. Im endurance power 186 augments throughout, 55k hp and ditch the defense mods and threw in absorb mods.

 

Further more i just feel its an incredibly gimped spec in comparison to the other 2. There is very little survivbility difference imho and that shouldnt feel like the case. I imagine all these auto crits are playin a massive part given we was initially designed to be massively shield based

[sumquy]

try staying away from those marauders, it's in their spec name for christ's sake, what did you think was going to happen?

 

seriously though, i doubt your going to get much sympathy complaining about shadow survivablitiy. you already have it better than most.

[DarthScruffy]

Survivability gets better with either min/maxed 162 gear or with min/maxed 168 or 174 pvp gear with 2018 expertise. It has gotten remarkably better for me (though comparatively pvp is always going to stink with how low TTK is and a lack of healers in queue).

[Kornaker]

Your main problem is that you are too tanky to have a good dps to kill opponent before you die.

 

The second main problem is aboit game mechanic. Absorb was designed to absorb some % of a NON CRIT ability. So with class change absorb is nowaday against some class, useless ( 100% crit mechanic and on ), and it has an only % chance to proc absorb. If you don't proc you absorb nothing. Defense could be cool if it was designed for EVERY attack but it just proc on white damage so 15% of total damage you take in PVP and 80-90% of damage you take in PVE.

 

So to my mind: PVE tank: Absorb def Endu

PVP tank: template for the def, everything in dps with endu something like 50K power surge alot and go kill and guard ( wich seems to have a lot of white damage that´s why we take a shield to have better survival).

 

Krea create a guide about it just follow and make your own build

Edited July 31, 2015 by Kornaker

[Rilok_Singz]

Krea has made a solid guide that includes everything you need to know for tanking from gear, utilities, and rotation. That's a good starting point. If you still have questions - then you can ask him or myself directly.

[Jinre_the_Jedi]

Further more i just feel its an incredibly gimped spec in comparison to the other 2. There is very little survivbility difference imho and that shouldnt feel like the case. I imagne all these auto crits are playin a massive part given we was initially designed to be massively shield based

 

Shadow tank is actually in between Vanguard (best) and Guardian (worst) for PvP tanks. Note that when I say (best) and (worst) that's in reference to how effective they are in solo ranked, however all three tank specs are in a good spot and each has its own Niche role for what it does well.

 

As a Shadow tank, it's more about utility and not brute force (vanguard tank specialty) or face tanking damage (Guardian tanks EXCEL at this). Shadow has a lot of tools that the other two simply don't have. Here's a short list of things EXCLUSIVE to Shadow tanks:

 

*The ability to Pull the enemy tank 30m from their guarded target and insta lift them and then instantly teleport back into the battle with Phase Walk, all in 3 seconds (2 global cool downs). The benefit to this is you expose the enemy team to an 8 second window where they do not receive 50% less damage and can be killed by your team. If you are a pro, you can then use Recklessness to have a 30 meter Cascading Debris and use that to hit the tank who was insta lifted at the end of the lift. This will trigger part 2 of the insta lift utility, which adds a 2second stun to a target who's insta lift is broken early, effectively giving you a 9 second disable instead of an 8 second one.

 

*The ability to break combat and heal to full. This one happens so little by Shadow tanks and it's a shame. Before you use Force Cloak, double tap your guard hot key. This will take guard off of your target. This is necessary since guard damage puts you in combat. After removing guard, stealth out and heal to full. Now the enemy team has to kill you AGAIN and this gives your dps TWICE as much time to kill targets since now they have guard for twice as long.

 

*The ability to put out HIGH amounts of single target damage, more than the other two tanks. While Vanguards excel at aoe, this is also their downfall as AoE mezzes are broken by damage. Slow time will NOT break mezzes and if geared right, Cascading Debris can do 20k damage on a target (inquisitors and consulars). That's VERY powerful.

 

*The ability to teleport. You can do neat things like jump off a bridge on makeb or the catwalk of orbital station and pull the enemy tank or healer or even dps with force pull. Then you can teleport back to the 2nd floor and insta lift them to keep them down, giving your team an easy 4v3 scenario.

 

These are only just a few of the MANY things Shadow tank is versatile at. It just requires thinking outside of the box and creativity. Shadow tank is less of a straight "tank all the things" type of tank and more of a tactical tank.

Edited August 1, 2015 by Jinre_the_Jedi

[jeveuxjeje]

*The ability to put out HIGH amounts of single target damage, more than the other two tanks. While Vanguards excel at aoe, this is also their downfall as AoE mezzes are broken by damage. Slow time will NOT break mezzes and if geared right, Cascading Debris can do 20k damage on a target (inquisitors and consulars). That's VERY powerful.

 

Can you please explain about how to gear right for that matter?

 

Thanks

[Jinre_the_Jedi]

Can you please explain about how to gear right for that matter?

 

Thanks

 

I have my exact gear broken down to the individual mods in the Kinetic Combat section of the guide in my signature. But you will want to use Cascading Debris with a fully charged 3 stacks and it wil easily hit for 20k on light armored targets.

Edited August 1, 2015 by Jinre_the_Jedi

[Lofsilmo]

what do you mean by insta lift them?

[Jinre_the_Jedi]

what do you mean by insta lift them?

 

There is a Heroic utility that allows your Force Lift/Whirlwind to be casted instantly. The details are in my guide.

[Aetideus]

There is a Heroic utility that allows your Force Lift/Whirlwind to be casted instantly. The details are in my guide.

 

Great tips. I have seen those but not too often.

[Khryn]

Just found this gem. What a beautifully written guide. I'm gonna have to re-read it in the morning.

 

Thank you!

[allexj]

Shadow tanking in pvp is hard, you cant kill crap, and you can't tank like a the other tanking classes, its all about a healer, with one Shadows do better then the other classes without one trash....just saying Edited August 11, 2015 by allexj

[Jiminison]

If you notice Kreas 1 on 1 pvp he/she doesn't tell you how Tanks measure up because 1 on 1 we will get beat overwhelmingly most times elemental damage still destroys us where the other tanks mitigate all damage with their Def cd 's our self heal is lower than anybody's and the pure fact we have to run away and take guard of f and find a hiding place to heal up while the others heal in your face is bupkiss its not in my nature , to run away in any fight unless it's a lost cause . We are result of BW catering to PVE ...blah blah blah there are more pve'ers I've heard it all but there is a reason there are no PVE only games in the top 5 as where there are many pvp only games that are succesful.... I'm done till they fix shadow tanks plain and simple. I do so much more with my Guardian but he is not what chose day one to play the fact is they changed it on many of us it didn't start this way and yes I'm talking about self healing and the many nerfs we sustained in the first 3 balancing patches.

[Aelanis]

Speaking of top 5 healthiest MMOs...

[Jinre_the_Jedi]

If you notice Kreas 1 on 1 pvp he/she doesn't tell you how Tanks measure up because 1 on 1 we will get beat overwhelmingly most times elemental damage still destroys us where the other tanks mitigate all damage with their Def cd 's our self heal is lower than anybody's and the pure fact we have to run away and take guard of f and find a hiding place to heal up while the others heal in your face is bupkiss its not in my nature , to run away in any fight unless it's a lost cause . We are result of BW catering to PVE ...blah blah blah there are more pve'ers I've heard it all but there is a reason there are no PVE only games in the top 5 as where there are many pvp only games that are succesful.... I'm done till they fix shadow tanks plain and simple. I do so much more with my Guardian but he is not what chose day one to play the fact is they changed it on many of us it didn't start this way and yes I'm talking about self healing and the many nerfs we sustained in the first 3 balancing patches.

 

Okay.

[Kazz_Devlin]

Im confused at the moment.

 

In pvp i feel like either I am doing something completely wrong as a shadow tank or i need to change my spec.

 

I have completed my pvp gear with full augments (endurance power as advised) yet I appear to be squisher than ever.

 

A team in the area will focus on me before anyone else as they know I will be annilated within 5-10 seconds...If anyone has any constructive advice reference this issue It would be most appriciated.

 

1.) Don't go in high end PVE gear have full suite of PVP gear (because when I spike your *** for 13k and then follow that up with a discharge for 10-12k it really hurts)

2.) If you don't have PVP go in low end PVE gear to get bolster (162 or 168)

[Kaos_KidSWTOR]

1.) Don't go in high end PVE gear have full suite of PVP gear (because when I spike your *** for 13k and then follow that up with a discharge for 10-12k it really hurts)

2.) If you don't have PVP go in low end PVE gear to get bolster (162 or 168)

 

The OP has full PvP gear... This comment was un-needed.

 

To the OP: Shadow/Assassin Tanks suck in PvP. They do not have any Defense stat and it is bad for them to stack it, because of the way they play. You are better off to get a DPS set and spec Hatred/Serenity, or play A Juggernaut/Guardian or Powertech/Vanguard tank if you want to PvP tank.

[Buckwildjoe]

The OP has full PvP gear... This comment was un-needed.

 

To the OP: Shadow/Assassin Tanks suck in PvP. They do not have any Defense stat and it is bad for them to stack it, because of the way they play. You are better off to get a DPS set and spec Hatred/Serenity, or play A Juggernaut/Guardian or Powertech/Vanguard tank if you want to PvP tank.

 

Lol sin tanks do not suck. There def not as good as pt tanks are right now but they are better than guardians. Personally if you like the style of the sin tank then play it you will have fun.

[allexj]

Shadow tank is actually in between Vanguard (best) and Guardian (worst) for PvP tanks. Note that when I say (best) and (worst) that's in reference to how effective they are in solo ranked, however all three tank specs are in a good spot and each has its own Niche role for what it does well.

 

As a Shadow tank, it's more about utility and not brute force (vanguard tank specialty) or face tanking damage (Guardian tanks EXCEL at this). Shadow has a lot of tools that the other two simply don't have. Here's a short list of things EXCLUSIVE to Shadow tanks:

 

*The ability to Pull the enemy tank 30m from their guarded target and insta lift them and then instantly teleport back into the battle with Phase Walk, all in 3 seconds (2 global cool downs). The benefit to this is you expose the enemy team to an 8 second window where they do not receive 50% less damage and can be killed by your team. If you are a pro, you can then use Recklessness to have a 30 meter Cascading Debris and use that to hit the tank who was insta lifted at the end of the lift. This will trigger part 2 of the insta lift utility, which adds a 2second stun to a target who's insta lift is broken early, effectively giving you a 9 second disable instead of an 8 second one.

 

*The ability to break combat and heal to full. This one happens so little by Shadow tanks and it's a shame. Before you use Force Cloak, double tap your guard hot key. This will take guard off of your target. This is necessary since guard damage puts you in combat. After removing guard, stealth out and heal to full. Now the enemy team has to kill you AGAIN and this gives your dps TWICE as much time to kill targets since now they have guard for twice as long.

 

*The ability to put out HIGH amounts of single target damage, more than the other two tanks. While Vanguards excel at aoe, this is also their downfall as AoE mezzes are broken by damage. Slow time will NOT break mezzes and if geared right, Cascading Debris can do 20k damage on a target (inquisitors and consulars). That's VERY powerful.

 

*The ability to teleport. You can do neat things like jump off a bridge on makeb or the catwalk of orbital station and pull the enemy tank or healer or even dps with force pull. Then you can teleport back to the 2nd floor and insta lift them to keep them down, giving your team an easy 4v3 scenario.

 

These are only just a few of the MANY things Shadow tank is versatile at. It just requires thinking outside of the box and creativity. Shadow tank is less of a straight "tank all the things" type of tank and more of a tactical tank.

 

 

Would have never thought about playing like that...thanks for the tips hahahah this will make things interesting

[truevalon]

*The ability to teleport. You can do neat things like jump off a bridge on makeb or the catwalk of orbital station and pull the enemy tank or healer or even dps with force pull. Then you can teleport back to the 2nd floor and insta lift them to keep them down, giving your team an easy 4v3 scenario.

 

.

 

 

This is a part that I really love about sin tank. Its even more fun to troll with in reg if you get chased and can jump off a ledge then teleport back as the players chasing you are in mid air.