SK vs Paladin

[Serrack]

Just curious what opinions are on the differences between the two when it comes to being MT for an exp group?

Assuming equal (probably crap) gear, which one tanks better, holds better aggro?

Also, which spell set is more useful?

TIA.

edit: for discussion, assume either a DE or Human SK, and a Dwarf Pally.
second edit: how the hell do you carry anything as a DE SK? No strength issues?

[jeffd]

paladin has much more defensive utility (root/stun/buffs/heals/LOH/rez), a stackable HP buff, but a much higher skillcap.

SK does much more damage, has more offensive utility (fear/dots/debuffs), and has an easier time holding aggro (disease cloud spam).

all things being equal, both can get snap aggro, which is really all that's required to tank for an exp group. they both tank equally well and holding aggro is easy on both, so it comes down to your personal preference.

take a look at the paladin (http://moestaverne.com/p1999wiki/index.php/Paladin) and SK (http://moestaverne.com/p1999wiki/index.php/Shadow_Knight) spells to see which set you'd prefer.

re your edit: if you're interesting in min/maxing (as opposed to looking cool/roleplaying), there's no reason to make anything other than an ogre SK. if the choice is only between DE SK and dwarf pally, the dwarf pally is superior, strictly in terms of min/maxing.

[Reiker]

Most people prefer SKs, I prefer Paladins. Their utility is more useful and they have more of it. They don't have an auto "mob never stops attacking me ever" button like SKs do but it's still very easy to hold aggro and you get more tools to do other things like pull.

Edit regarding races: SKs get a much better choice of races, but DE isn't one of them. A dwarf paladin is superior to a DE sk when it comes to stats. Yes, str will be an issue, and a full set of small bronze alone will likely encumber you unless you decide to equip a lot of str gear. The biggest advantage in SK's favor is that they can be ogres.

[Webwolf]

Paladins can hold aggro just as well as SKs. The difference is that SKs get their best aggro spell early in game (Disease Cloud at lvl9) while paladins get their best aggro spell at level 30 (Stun) prior to lvl30 you will have to use flash of light which is a decent aggro spell but not as good as stun or disease cloud. If equally equipped they will have the same tanking ability as far as defensive skills hp and ac. A level 30+ paladin makes for an awesome tank. SKs spells and skills are more offensive while the paladins is more defensive so pallys have more of a support role instead of the SK dmg output.

[Dersk]

Diff between Pally and SK Tanking? (http://www.project1999.org/forums/showthread.php?t=12798)

[Webwolf]

That thread is stupid. Stun is awesome aggro only 1.5 second cast time 35 mana and at lvl49 we get a second stun. As a level 50 paladin I have no difficulty at all keeping aggro and I tank on raids often with DA. Oh and whoever said you need to use root to keep aggro as a pally doesn't have a clue about the class, I usually don't even mem root.

[Mad Jacq]

That thread is stupid. Stun is awesome aggro only 1.5 second cast time 35 mana and at lvl49 we get a second stun. As a level 50 paladin I have no difficulty at all keeping aggro and I tank on raids often with DA. Oh and whoever said you need to use root to keep aggro as a pally doesn't have a clue about the class, I usually don't even mem root.

Agree.

It is actually quite silly comparing taunt capability of SK and Paladins, especially in exp groups. If they are both played competently then neither will have any trouble with the task.

The real question is how many groups have you been in where everyone in the group praised Jesus that you SKs had Harm Touch? I've been in plenty already just in the last few weeks of my participation in P1999 that have been very glad for my Lay on Hands and its timing, and weren't shy about saying it. ;)

Can I get an amen!? "A M E N!"

[Nedala]

I like SKs more mainly because of FD and invis/ivu. Yes paladins have ivu too but no invis afaik. Snare and pet also rocks. I played a pally on live but would go for an SK now :)

[Bubbles]

Another bonus for paladins is they blossom early and maintain a steady growth. You get lull at 15 to split camps, LOH at level 1, offhealing by 9 (15 really), and root at 22, etc...

SK's camp splitting ability doesnt come till 30 with feign death, and they get their fear/kite line until 15 (22, really for their decent snare). Obviously they get their aggro-causing dots and lifetaps early on to compensate.

You can argue the paladin is more useful for utility earlier, and the SK comes into its own a bit later. Both are solid tanks, solid aggro generators, and have many tricks up their sleeves.

Really the only negative thing i could say to someone rolling either a SK or Paladin is : "Be aware you will spend most of your EQ career being group dependent". Which most are anticipating, anyways, if you are rolling a melee in the first place. :)

[Tseng]

What's the difference between using the search feature and not using the search feature?

[Bubbles]

What's the difference between using the search feature and not using the search feature?

New threads to re-iterate the same information over and over, so no one has to use the search feature!

Now, if only there was some way I could find out if Rangers could tank and/or were desirable in groups on p99...

[Serrack]

I was posting from work because I had a few minutes. I did a couple quick searches and got some hits that were somewhat on topic, but nothing that looked like a straight up pal/sk comparison. I did find lots of threads that were mostly about warriors though.

So instead of taking another 5 or 10 minutes search through 3 pages worth of hits, and spending an hour reading through multi page threads that were not exactly answering the question, I spent 30 seconds making a post. I am at work, and I do actually work at work so I'm busy. I'm pretty sure I didn't harm anyone, or hurt the community by making a thread. On the topic of community, are you guys trying to build one here, or trying to keep it an exclusive little club?

Reply if you want, or skip it if you can't be bothered. Simple really.

[Seeatee]

you know what tickles me? new thread about something that has been gone over - why doesn't anyone use search ? someone actually searches, finds an old thread, has a question and posts it to said thread - whats up with the necro posting?! its a lose lose situation.

I cant speak for paladins, I know I played a warrior on live from just before Kunark up until about 4 years ago when I retired him for a berserker, here on P1999 I am playing an SK, and by a rather wide margin I am having far more fun on my SK then I ever did on my warrior.

I really like the fact that SKs get invis / IVU / FD, not only can they pull, but they are pretty self reliant getting to almost anywhere in the game, where a pally would have to wait for invis from someone else, plus if your in sol b or L guk or even old seb once kunark come out and some ass hat trains your group with 20 mobs you have a better then average chance of not dying with FD.

just my 2 cents on the situation based on what limited experience I have with it.

[Webwolf]

BTW don't get me wrong, SKs are awesome tanks and I'm sure they are alot of fun to play. To me from what I have seen one isn't better than the other its just a matter of play style. I was just saying that people who cant keep aggro as a level 30+ paladin are doing something wrong or just are not very good players.

[jeffd]

use search hurr durr

new people asking questions is what keeps a community/forum alive. and don't say that it clutters up the board, because if it wasn't for threads like this, every post would just be the poopsockers shitting all over eachother and arguing about whose pixels are more important.

[Aarone]

new people asking questions is what keeps a community/forum alive. and don't say that it clutters up the board, because if it wasn't for threads like this, every post would just be the poopsockers shitting all over eachother and arguing about whose pixels are more important.

Amen to that, brother - Amen!

[Bubbles]

new people asking questions is what keeps a community/forum alive. and don't say that it clutters up the board, because if it wasn't for threads like this, every post would just be the poopsockers shitting all over eachother and arguing about whose pixels are more important.

You had me.. at hello.

[Straif]

Is it just me, but aren't pallys like the bastard children on EQ?

I've never played on above 20. On live during velious I fantasized about being about to twink one out and level it up. The potential is awesome. Theres so many items / quests that pertain to pallys that go unused & rot.

I remember being on raids where nothing but pally only gear would drop and everyone would be so pissed!

[Tork]

It's like everything - it's the player who counts; play the class and race you want for whatever reasons are important to you (aesthetic, min/max, rp) and let your skill, personality or other talent shine - you'll get noticed. Keep getting noticed and you'll get groups, guilds, &c.

Everything else is just down in the noise.

If you want my opinion, paladins are good for LoH but really shine with AoV (because they die).