Hey all, I have a 35 DK and just started going through some old pages on this form. Seeing alot of people saying STR/DEX then STR/CON after 50+. Is this still how things should be? I've been max STR/CON and leftovers into DEX since I started and seem to be doing fine. I am worried by switching out my CON for DEX that I will lose alot of HP and not be able to solo as well (or tank in a group as good). Thoughts?
If you are getting good crits as you are, no need to change. the idea behind Str/Dex is the Dex will give you more crits and help you to kill faster. Personally, I have always went Str/Con/Dex from the beginning and have had no problems either. If you are having no problems at this point, no need to change.
and dont forget, you can parry more often with a high DEX. in my view a tank doesnt need STR, because the rest of the group does the damage. But for soloing STR is important to kill mobs. CON is important for your life, no other archetype needs CON, only the tank. So its more defensive. DEX is both in my opinion: for parry and crit. I guess in a raid, you need defense as much as possible, but in a small group and soloing you need some offense too. As a Lesser Giant DK I am going for STR + CON, rest in DEX.
Strength = more damage More damage = more hate More hate = better aggro Better aggro = more dps able to be done by group
STR directly affects block rate also, which is pretty big for a tank. What race is it? I chose an Orc for my DK. I put full points into CON, then balanced out STR, DEX, and INT. It does mean I'm at a minor disadvantage against mobs immune/buffed by physical, but it works out when I can debuff them. With only the cyrstal from physic for raid loot, you can pretty much do whatever you want as a DK. Solo Vi'Rak? Ok. Solo Apprentices in BoD (not all of them)? Ok. Solo KDQ t1-t3 trash and nameds (not all of them)? Ok. Short of a Pally's Virtue burn, he can hold aggro without much issue and contend with other DK's using better weaponry.
the stat tab, which new players never seem to read hence the 4525634567367 what stats should my X level up questions
Ouch, lol. Strength does boost block chance for tanks, which is significant because our block % is much higher than parry. It is much more effective to max strength for the damage and resulting hate, plus the block boost, than it is to try to boost parry through dex.
Every stat is useful. I think one of the most under developed stat is Vitality but it gives such useful attributes such as a movement boost and health regeneration. Don't forget to add in Vitality now and then.
There should be almost no reason for DKs and Warriors ever to add Vitality. The rate of returns is very very low to be worth anything. You can easily get items with +Health Regen or just buffs from others to get run speed, or worst case buy a Run Speed potion from the AH or the SC store. As a levelling paladin who plays mostly solo Vitality can be semi-useful as a secondary and tertiary stat with some added wisdom. But once you hit 50 if you want to tank anything serious, you will switch to the Str/Con/Dex (in whatever order) build anyway.
