World of Warcraft (en) Forums -> TBC Bear Tanking Gear List

Emmerald

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0. TBC Bear Tanking Gear List 02/01/2007 15:19:02 PST

*** TBC Bear Tanking Gear List ***

This list ranks currently known Feral gear in order of how much the items improve Bear form's life expectancy.

Updates:
12.1.2007 - Total re-evaluation of the list based on higher base values.
23.2.2007 - Re-evaluated the item values based on feedback. The reasoning has been explained in a post on page 7. Corrected the calculation of Feral weapon skill.
23.2.2007 - Added missing green leather armors.
6.3.2007 - I no longer plan to update this Forums version of the list. Check http://forums.wow-europe.com/thread.html?topicId=218481871&sid=1 for info on web based gear lists. Also, http://druid.wikispaces.com has a version of the list.

The calculation has been made using an Excel sheet with a model of the Bear mitigation model. The following key assumptions have been made:
- Infinite rage for DPS effect calculation. That is most likely possible only for multiple mobs and physical bosses, but hey, isn't that where we are supposed to excel at? :)
- Lvl 70 mitigation and calculation model. This has two effects: 1) the value of Armor is significantly lower in increasing life expectancy, and 2) any items lower than lvl 60 have an incorrect value for their Armor (as they still use the better pre-60 formula in the game). Take this into account when choosing items lower than lvl 60! (I might provide a separate list for pre-60 gear, if there is enough demand for the list)

The following issues have been taken into account:
- Recent changes to Idol of Brutality and currently known other idols
- New skills and talents
- AP scaling for Swipe
- Sockets, at a general level
- Survival of the Fittest at 0/3 (ie. the model includes it, but the calculations don't)

The following things have not been included in the model:
- Naturalist, as it has a linear effect on all damage.
- Omen of Clarity, as it would be quite difficult to model due to its randomness
- Primal Fury, as we assume infinite Rage.
- The non-damage based threat model for Lacerate. Actually, threat generation is not calculated at all, just DPS.

Mitigation points measure the increase in life expectancy for the Bear tank. In order to use the list intelligently, it is important to understand the difference between health and mitigation. Mitigation (including avoidance) reduces incoming damage and therefore the need to heal the Bear tank, while health reduces the lethality of damage spikes. There is no formula when one is better than the other, so only the total effect on life expectancy has been measured. You have to consider your choices in the context of what kind of opponents you are generally facing.

Used attribute values for Mitigation Points are:

+1 Agi = 3.46
+1 Sta = 3.91
+1 Defense Rating = 2.36
+1 Dodge Rating = 2.49
+1 Resilience Rating = 1.38
+1 Armor = 0.62

Very Important: These values have now been calculated using base values that does not assume very good gear. If you already have very good gear, you have to adjust the values as suggested in my post in page 7.

Used attribute values for Bear DPS Points are:

+1 Str = 2.00
+1 Agi = 1.18
+1 AP = 1.00
+1 Weapon Skill Rating = 1.76
+1 Hit Rating = 1.44
+1 Critical Strike Rating = 1.34
+1 Haste Rating = 0.81

Sockets in the items have been valued as follows:
Red : 25 (9)
Blue : 40 (0)
Yellow : 20 (0)
Meta : 70.4 (0)
- NOTE: Since it's potentially difficult to get the best gems to each item (especially pre-lvl 70), remember to check also the base value of the item without gems to make more informed decisions regarding the true effectiveness of the items. The list really only shows the potential of the socketed items; the actual value is dependent on the gems you can get to the items.

The starting values used for the model are:
Level : 70
Health : 12000
Dodge% : 30
Armor : 20000
Defense : 380
Resilience Rating : 0

Base DPS : 145
AP : 1300
Crit% : 27
+Hit% : 3
Haste Rating : 0

Armor Multiplier : 6,05
Survival of the Fittest : 0/3
Predatory Insticts : 5/5

In order to use this list appropriately, take the following issues into consideration!
- The model calculates a mathematical average based on the given initial attributes. If your attributes differ greatly from those given, it is possible that the valuation of various stats is higher or lower than used in this list.
- DPS model assumes infinite Rage. If you don't have it, the values for DPS may be slightly different.
- There is always the possibility of errors in the calculation model. While I'm fairly confident that the model provides reliable values, I will not make absolute guarantees on anything.
- The item list has been drawn off Thottbot's beta information and there are no guarantees that the list of items is comprehensive. I will make irregular updates to this list as time goes on and new items are found.
- The model uses the lvl 70 calculation values and maths. This distorts the data slightly for character below 70 (and more so for chars below 60, especially regarding Armor), but I didn't see any other reasonable alternative for making general comparisons between the items. The old (lvl 60, pre-TBC) version of the list is still valid for evaluating items before 60+ (http://forums.wow-europe.com/thread.html?topicId=31473635&sid=1).

The calculation model Excel will be available on a separate web site for those who wish to tinker around with the initial stats or examine the calculation model. http://www.gurgleblaster.net/forum/index.php?topic=167.0

Wishing you all enjoyable adventures and über gear in TBC,

Emmerald

[ Post edited by Emmerald ]