Recently I've been seeing some of the end-game tanks stack their Shield Block rating into the thirty percentie and showing no sign of stopping. My question is, why so high? I understand that 25% must be achieved to maintain 100% block why the buff is up, bu beyondhat it seems like all they're doing is stacking it incase of 1 of 2 scenarios, either they're taking multiple mobs that can easily get through the buff charges, or 1 quick hitting mob that can get through the charges. When the block buff isn't up, wouldn't Dodge/Parry serve the same purpose as block, with of course the added benefit of not taking any damage, or is this some sort of rage generating mechanic?

Thanks, I meant rating, was merely a typo, however I do beleive theres been varous screenshots posted on these very forums that say that you need to achieve 100% block, notthe combination of others, meaning that it doesnt follow the singe roll theory of the combat system.

[Warrior] MT itemization theory

I suppose this quote answers your question:

Shield Block eats up a very small portion of item budget, if you ever wanted to start knocking off crushing naturally, that is, without the ability "shield block" you could go about doing it by stacking items with block rating, at least that's my own personally little theory.

If that were the case, it would be impossible for Paladins to become uncrushable as tanks.

I also believe the number 102.4% total avoidance (including incoming missrate).

I think you can read about the 25% block issue in each of the 10 latest warrior threads in this forum. Search is your friend.

Anyways, you don't need 25% block to be crush immune and block rating is generally a waste of item budget.

Dots summed it up pretty well. The only possible advantage I've seen is if you wanna somehow buff yourself enough to become uncrushable without shield block vs dual wield mobs, and even then you're better off doing it with dodge.

I see Block Rating as something very important for one style of play: 5-mans, and weak trash.

As said, Block rating needs only 7.9 points at 70 for 1% block. It's therefore much much easier to stack high levels of Block percent than either Dodge or Parry. Of course, in most situations, it's completely pointless. Against hard hitting raid bosses, the amount you block will be fairly inconsequential compared to fully dodging an attack, and if you can use Shield Block to force a block on all hits, block rating is completely and utterly useless.

However, consider a 5man spec. I wear heavy Block Value and Block Rating gear for this - about 33% block, 640 value. At this point, where mobs are hitting for the same kind of value that you block, your blocks become almost full avoidance, and thus block rating gives a much higher return of mitigation than dodge/parry.

Consider a Shattered Halls pull. Perhaps 6 orcs hitting you at once, hitting for maybe 700 damage. There's no way you can keep Shield Block up to block all incoming hits, so you're going on your flat mitigation percentages. If you block an attack, you're basically avoiding all the damage, so Block Rating will give you -twice- as much total mitigation as dodge (as you only need half the rating to get a block).

Yes, this isnt particularly useful for raid tanking, but all good tanks should have a kit for both roles. I view Block Rating as being the best form of mitigation for fighting multiple weaker mobs, but completely avoid it on my raid boss tanking gear.

I have a few nitpicks with that viewpoint:
1) You aren't including the cost of the block value you additionally needed to stack.
2) Raid tanking gear is in fact viable in 5 mans (I can't think of a 5 man where you'd need a higher threat-per-second than you could generate with your raiding gear, thoughg a higher TPS might be better.)
3) Block has some extra limitations (elemental melee damage cannot be blocked, abilities like the stacking debuff in black morass will proc off of blocks, to avoid the debuff you need a dodge/parry/miss, and so on.)


You can make a case for it, stacking block vallue can be fun (and we all play to have fun.) You can even argue that it's worth it from a threat perspective since it boosts shield slam damage.

I even agree that there are fights in the game where it's a pretty amazing stat (back in AQ40 offtanking the bugs during Fankriss being an obvious example that comes to mind.) I just don't think anyone needs a block rating + block value set.

5man tanking? I have a really hard time to get damaged in 5mans anyway. Going for more mitigation is just out of the question. I'm already at the point where I can't use shield in some heroic pulls, because the incoming damage isn't enough to do threat.

Forget blocking some orcs who hit for meaningless numbers. Take out your dps gear, some big 2 hander and just tank with damage. At least you feel like you're doing something, and you aren't boring your healer to death.

So yeah. Stacking block value has its uses if you are prot spec. But block rating, I just can't see a situation where it's useful - for a warrior.

I heard Styleen's was still being regarded as one of the better tanking trinkets from some warriors I know (go figure, it seems almost strange that all the BWL trinkets have amazing lasting power)... and I thought people said that because of the block on it. Is this just something that people who don't understand what block is worth are saying, or is there something to that trinket that I'm not looking at?