Which attribute FOR FOW is better? Purely stance or stance and mixed healing?

Ok,i would like to ask u guys about this. Should i use pure stance? or should i mix abit of the stance attribute into healing for mending and healing breeze?

and can u guys recomeed me which stance is suitable for fow?

You're a W/Mo? If so...prepare to get flamed for even suggesting using Mending.

My warrior is like so for FoW:

1> Cyclone Axe
2>Any other spike damage axe skill
3>Bonetti's Defense
4> Defensive Stance
5> Shield Stance
6> Any other stance you'd prefer
7> Healing hands<elite>, or healing breeze
8> Rebirth/Rez Sig/Restore Life/Normal rez

Only ever have died twice a week max down in FoW out an average weekly amount of 40 FoW runs. Take this as you will.

Don't bring any continual enchantments, at all on your tank. Why? You'll be stancing most of the time anyways, and even if you thought that mending/continiual could have helped you, you'll get a shatter enchantment cast on you. Word to the wise: Bring at lease 4 stances if you'll be book farming FoW, or if you're damage, only two stances, rest damage.


--The Shim

Mending is useful to activate the Malinon Shield on my War/Mo... And just about every solo farm build for warriors involves Mending...

oic,so,im using a sword,how much pts did u put on healing?u have only 1 healing spell and is it worth it to put too much healing attribute?

"Just about every" may be a little of an overstatement. I only ever use mending to farm ettins. That's as far as it goes

Not saying it's bad to have a +4 PIP mending, but eh. I can find better things to activate enchanted shields, such as vigorous spirit for instance.

Mending has it's uses, but should not be overplayed. ^_^

For the post above me: My attributes are as follows:

13-14 Tactics<sup runed>
7-10 healing
11 Axe Mastery
Leftovers in strength.

--The Shim

oic,so u only got a healing spell? why not add healing sig?

None of the areas that you solo farm have necros or mesmers that strip enchantments. In areas where enchantment stripping is common, mending is worse than useless.

You probably don't need it. The key is staying in stance 100% of the time. You've got other people to heal you, your self heals are just if your monk starts falling behind on healing, the aggro gets partially broken or a patrol jumps you and they need to do mad healing, out of energy, etc. In my experience, even in stance, when you've got any more than about 3-4 monsters after you, the amount of health you'll gain from sig is about the same as the amount you lose from the -40 armor.

Rico

Why do always,when i run in the front 1st, i don get aggro? the shadow warrior always run behind me and the shadow rangers/casters behind the shadow warriors target my ranger/casters teammates behind me? whats the use of a tank then? can anyone teach me a good way to get most aggro on me?

the problem with being a stance tank is that skeleton berserkers carry wild blow

no offense to any of the posters before me, but going stance in fow and investing 50% of your skill bar in it is one of the worst ideas ever.

stances are probably only useful against shadow warriors, shadow rangers, and abyssals. everything else there either casts spells that stances don't protect against or have something that bypasses stances.

to the OP, i would highly suggest against going pure stance.

I take it you've never used the book tank. This involves taking the book from the Priest of Menzies, and using it to aggro everything to you. Carrying an item = mobs attack you, and only you, if you're in their aggro range. Stances ftw.

i'm actually quite aware of the book trick. i'm also quite convinced that using it is for lesser warriors/groups.

but please, enlighten me. i do have a few questions.

how will stances protect against shadow elementalist spells?
how will stances protect against shadow mesmer hexes?
how can stances be useful when wild blow from berserkers end them?
how will stances protect against icehand spells?
how will stances protect against the air spikers in the forest?

the list goes on and on, if you catch my drift. stances help against attacks. but when the majority of damage comes from spells, hexes, and other degen, that's 50% of your skillbar not being very useful.

I hav been playing a Stance Tank for quite some time now, and i find that this build works great!

Healing - 5
Axe Mastery -13 (+1) Minor Rune
Tactics - 13 (+1) Minor Rune
Strength - 4

Execution Strike, Dismember, Gladiator's Defense {Elite}, Bonetti's Defense, "Watch Yourself", Balance Stance (For Those Off knock-Down periods), Endure Pain, Healing Breeze

Not the best....but for me it works great, serve my team well as a true "Stance Tank"

i myself find it useless to even use defencive stances. most of the physical damage dealers go straight for your casters anyway, and in case you can bodyblock and tank something, you can easely survive that without any stances. I usually go 100% offensive in FOW, for the obvious reason that the longer foes stand, the harder it gets for my casters to stay on their feet :P

my build in FOW :
W/R
eviscerate - axe rake - cyclone axe - executioner's strike - disrupting chop - sprint - tiger's fury - res signet

12 + 3 (sup rune) axe mastery
10 beast mastery
8 + 1 (helmet) + 1 (minor rune) strength

in UW however, warriors usually do tank aataxes, and there, stances can save your life (i usually use shield stance and sprint in UW)

Hm.. I thought the whole book idea was to give your casters a chance to kill off the enemy without dying and giving your monk only 1 target (the book carrier) to keep alive?

Even if you think only lesser groups are inclined to do that, I much prefer that (both as monk and other classes) to the complete chaos often created when this is not the case.

As for stances good against wild blow.. don't have the skills infront of me.. but.. isn't there one which doesn't let you get knocked over? and how about doylak signet? not a stance, I know, but it has its uses.

The elementalists should be taken care of by an interupter, you guys don't take one of those to fow, or at least one skill to interupt firestorm with?

Mind you, I'm supposed to give the op useful help with his/her question, not picking on other fow teams. To be honest, I've never taken my warrior down there, and I'd say that doylak signet would be an emergency measure not a norm for fow, however, UW, take it

<offtopic> You can more efficiently distribute your attribute points by swapping in a +1 axe helmet. You can then distribute them:

Axe: 11+1(helmet)+3(sup rune) = 15
Beast: 10
Str: 10+1(min rune) = 11 (you get an extra point)
</offtopic>

Instead of stances I usually just buff my defense really high with dolyak sig and watch yourself and defy pain as an elite. Enchants don't really help as they get shattered alot in fissure of woe.