hey guys im a recently returning member and i'm stuck between a pally and sk for my main character that i'll be forging using the heroic option, any and all insight will be much appreciated on who tanks better, has better sustain really just pros and cons in each and every aspect on both classes. thank you for your time in advanced!
Which one sounds the most fun to YOU? Answer that, and you have answered your own question. Play what you think is fun and dont let others dictate what you play.
I have both geared and aa's to the teeth from a groupers perspective (no raid). They are both fantastic. On the whole in group content (not counting named), paladins take the least damage. It is possible to keep anything not yellow/red almost permanently stun locked. Paladin pros: -stun lock -strongest steady state self healing (not counting so epic click) -strong group healing -group curing -undead dps -fantastic single target aggro -incoming heal bonus perks via aa for self/group Paladin cons: -worse ae aggro than sks -lower dps vs non undead -fewer pulling tools -unicorns are wuss SK pros: -highest tank dps vs most contet -pulling tools in abundance -group mana taps -capable self healing -epic click is the ace up your sleeve - amazing -masters of aggro regardless of pull size -just plain cooler than paladins Sk cons: -limited on demand group support -less steady state self healing (but still great an sufficient to work without a healer) Both are great classes. I prefer the sk to the paladin but honestly --- the paladin debatably brings more to a group or raid than a sk. They are both outstanding and capable tanks.
Whether you wish to raid may be a deciding factor. It is easier finding a raid guild needing a paladin than an sk currently. If you don't plan on raiding then it all comes down to which is more enjoyable for you. As daegun stated they both have pros and cons and are excellent group tanks.
If you are going to just group it doesn't matter much, both are great group tanks. If you want to join a raiding guild you will find more opportunities as a pally.
SK was recently flavor of the month...for many, many months, so there are vastly more SKs than most other classes. Non-uber Paladins do abysmal DPS vs. anything with the possible exception of undead. If you're going to solo much, a paladin will probably be woefully slow. As someone who plays neither knight, I really have no preference when it comes to filling a tank spot between the two.
If you're planning on raiding eventually... Pally If you plan on playing more of the solo game... SK my 2cp
Best advice was given early on. "Play the one that most interests you" -or- Play them both! Regardless of how the classes play out today, they will play vastly different tomorrow, after a patch, after an expansion, etc.... Just think of all of those "rangers" who rolled a ranger purely to headshot I bet a lot of rangers aren't played anymore, but a lot still are because they didn't roll the character based on other's opinions
On the flip side though, if you're soloing as a Paladin, aside from completing dailies, there's no much reason to NOT be fighting undead. So the "slow soloing" bit isn't really that bad.
Another trick to soloing a Pally 75+ Get a J5 Wiz merc - set it to burn. Pull singles for it and heal it. -Rat (Rangers can do this too)
hey i did all of the feerott and grounds lower quests solo on my new paladin last night with a wiz merc - i'm not saying this is viable for every level of play from 75 to 100 but it certainly worked for 85 - 89.
just on a small side note. where it was pointed out that SKs can self heal, Pallys are pretty good at this too. Load quick heal, group heal, and oh s**t heal. Between tab healing and the fact that out stuns can proc heal over time on us, we are viable self healers also. Personally i have been able to self heal through Heart of Fear Rebirth mobs, i had 2 wizzy mercs on burn and the other active player, SK, afk. so i wasnt getting heals anywhere else. =) just sharing this to promote pallys further =)
Sk have more day to day quality of life utility. Free summon corpse(ive probably saved 100k pp), fd, instant invis, aa instant lev, can itu also sadly not instant. Solo Id go sk, they have more options, more dps, being able to pull and self heal real well. Group Id lean sk. I think in a standard group situation being able to pull singles and control multiple adds agro consistently, i pull add heavy, are more useful to heal/cure/root. On named with bad ae the pally is better. Raid is pally. They heal really well, cure splashes are always welcome, tank fine, and ae hating on raids is generally a bad idea for sks outside of specific situations.
I prefer my paladin for hard content. My sk is better in ROFLstomp grinding. So it all depends on if you are going to be tanking hard content, or if all you want to do is grind mindlessly for XP.
Plenty of situations where I say, man I wish I had a shadowknight instead. Equal number of situations where I say, wow really glad I have a paladin.
I started leveling a paladin because in later hard content I kept saying to myself "man I could really use some Cures right now" or "damn if i had more AOE heal that would be nice". I've got a chanter for multi add's. Sk's are pretty awesome though just not for me.
