The 3 non-legendary tanks

Each pet has their own pros and cons. It's just a matter of preference, really.

Volcanic/Crystalline Magmite: Already outclassed by the Glacial Walker. Has good defenses/attacking speed. Poor speed though so it takes awhile to get to monsters. Also has lower magic defense.

Glacial Walker: Same as the Magmites. Its stats compared to the magmites aren't so far apart, though.

Shadou Cub: Balanced defenses (equal m.def and p.def), decent speed but low attack. Also starts with a rare skill (Pounce) which may increase its attacking speed.

I would say Shadou would be the best (personal preference) because both rock pets (magmite/walker) are slow and bulky (hard to see the monster sometimes).

But to each their own, really.

Yeah, there's a reason the cookie-cutter pets are the cookie cutter; they're darn good at their jobs.

The shadau is a very low-hitting pet though, it does survive magic attacks well, but it can't hold aggro worth a damn. Pounce almost makes up for it. If you reskill it... it still won't really hold aggro very well. It's good for luring, though not vastly better than the free wolves.

It's a real shame. Its bigger cousin does a little better, but you won't get to try that for ages

Another tank you may wish to try are the beetles. They act similarly to the shadau, but are much easier to get.

But overall, assuming you want a bog standard physical tank that can survive a bit of magic and hits pretty well - get a glacial walker.

tweakz wrote: »

When you're in an FB with another veno that has a Walker and you can kill in 2 shots but that walker is blocking your targeting : it can slow you down big time.

The Shadou Cub may have small dps but it doesn't get obnoxiously in the way and it can do things like Howl.

None of the pets are keepers, and none can tank like a ranged pet can.

Except that a key part of tanking is aggro management, and ranged pets have none of that. Being able to successfully kill something at a lower level with one pet than you can with another doesn't mean the first pet is a better tank.

Also, why does it seem I'm the only person who knows how to shift click or tab select a mob? It's really not that hard.

tweakz wrote: »

If you have a better DD handy, let them tank. Sorry, but I rarely see FBs and the like getting done with the pets mentioned; if at all. Tab select? - and get mobs on the other side of the wall? I like to specify the mob I hit next. You like driving a car with a reindeer stuck in your windshield? Many bosses are [?] which makes aggro a non issue for most squads in such a predicament that they need a hercless veno for tank.

The way you describe tab-selecting mobs makes me think you really don't know how it works. Tab-selecting does not produce random or even difficult-to-predict results. The way it operates is simple and effective and if you cannot learn this process you simply aren't trying.

I recognize you are an authority on venomancers and in fact have more experience with the game in general than I do and as such probably know everything I have said and more. It's a shame people don't take you seriously but it's easy to understand when you belittle and demerit perfectly viable techniques and tools in this game for no understandable purpose.

As it stands, I'll have to take your word that people cannot steal aggro from a pet on [?] bosses, seeing as I have no experience in this matter. I do find that hard to believe, however, as it would seem that your statement means a pet has the best dps amongst a squad on these and therefore the veno is the best dps class for them, which I have come to the understanding is simply not the case. Unless, of course, you mean using pet skills like bash in addition to the non-penalized damage a pet does as its means of keeping aggro, but we're not talking about that. We're talking about a pet fully tanking, both in terms of survivability and aggro management, at range, i.e. without skills.

Finally, I am having difficulty understanding what you mean by "Sorry, but I rarely see FBs and the like getting done with the pets mentioned; if at all." I think you were trying to find a way to support your statement that ranged pets are the best tanks, but fell back by habit to promoting the Hercules instead. Pick an opinion already.

Lenley - Dreamweaver wrote: »

As it stands, I'll have to take your word that people cannot steal aggro from a pet on [?] bosses, seeing as I have no experience in this matter.

Oh they can, even from my own pet. The issue is that if no one is capable of tanking, it's likely also that they won't be stealing aggro either. Weapon refines, interval, channeling all tends to get much better at about the same point as survival. When it comes to stealing aggro from my own pet on a [?] boss: it's a matter of focusing on debuffs rather than attacks.

Unless, of course, you mean using pet skills like bash in addition to the non-penalized damage a pet does as its means of keeping aggro, but we're not talking about that. We're talking about a pet fully tanking, both in terms of survivability and aggro management, at range, i.e. without skills.

On the topic of aggro management; everyone is responsible for their own aggro management. It's part of the game, and it's wise to learn how aggro works. Hold back on atk and get it done, or wait longer for a tank.

Finally, I am having difficulty understanding what you mean by "Sorry, but I rarely see FBs and the like getting done with the pets mentioned; if at all." I think you were trying to find a way to support your statement that ranged pets are the best tanks, but fell back by habit to promoting the Hercules instead. Pick an opinion already.

In most cases I've seen where a non legendary pet is being used to tank: aggro management is not an issue mostly because the veno is soloing. When soloing a world boss multiboxing; my pure mag wiz did not hold back or steal aggro.

**

There is a huge difference in what a ranged pet cank tank vs a non ranged. These so called tank pets aren't that much different from other non ranged pets. I remember early attempts to solo single mode TT. My perception is that if someone wants a "tank" pet: it's to tank something that most other pets cannot.

threepointone wrote: »

I'm pretty sure there are 4 pets here. :x

The second one doesn't appear to really exist.