WoW Classic was dominated by Warriors in both DPS and Tanking roles, but TBC will bring on a new breed of both. While melee DPS, in general, is going to play second fiddle to casters and Hunters, Warrior tanks will have to share the limelight with other classes.
There are only three potential specs that guilds will use to tank in raids, and each has its benefits. One spec stands out as the strongest from start to finish throughout the expansion, but there’s a good chance you’ll see guilds clearing content with all three different spec throughout TBC.
Top guilds will find a time and place to use each of these specs over the course of the expansion.
Classes
Feral Druid—A
Feral Druid tanks have the best armor in the game with their bear form. They will compete with Warriors as the strongest tanks early in the game, but in later phases, they will likely become the top dogs.
Additionally, they bring powerful utility to raids through debuffs like Faire Fire and Mangle, as well as buffs like Mark of the Wild, Thorns, and Leader of the Pack.
Protection Warrior—B
Warrior tanking changes significantly from Classic to TBC. While Classic was all about finding the correct balance between Fury and Protection, everyone will be deep in Protection for TBC and highly value more defensive stats and gear.
They will start out the expansion strong, but will be overtaken by Feral Druids later on. They will still likely be usable throughout TBC even if some fights are more suitable for Feral or Paladin.
Protection Paladin—B
Protection Paladins are the gods of AoE tanking. They won’t likely ever be the top tanks in the game due to potential single-target threat issues.
They will earn a spot in many raids during TBC Classic to fill AoE tanking needs and buff their raids with Blessing of Kings and Blessing of Sanctuary.
