WoW: Tanks are a nuisance in PvP, but Blizzard is sticking with them

In World of Warcraft’s newest PvP mode, tanks are a big problem. But Blizzard believes that this will be dealt with.

For many years, World of Warcraft PvP fans have been clamoring for a “solo que,” a way to queue up for solo ranked PvP. That is now possible – but then again many are dissatisfied. The new problem: tanks in solo mode make the game hell for everyone else. You can just have too much.

Blizzard has commented on the problem and remains quite adamant: tanks are not excluded from the mode.

What game mode is this? The “Mixed Singles”, in English “Solo Shuffle” is a PvP mode for which you can only register alone and which is still provided with a ranking. A total of 6 players play several rounds in changing teams of 3. So everyone has to play with everyone else and compete against everyone else at the same time. Whoever has won the most times at the end of the 6 games wins the highest score.

What is the problem? The general goal of solo shuffle is clear: stomp an opponent into the ground as quickly as possible. As a rule, this is the player with the fewest life points.

But tanks cause special problems in this mode. Because they are not only much more resistant, but often have massive self-healing, can even heal their teammates and deal out solid damage themselves. In this mode, you are particularly strong as the “jack of all trades” and can lead to a lot of frustration for everyone else who only plays healers or DPS characters.

The players’ demand was therefore clear: tanks should be excluded from the solo shuffle.

What is Blizzard changing now? in the official WoW forum Blizzard has commented on the tank problem. We recognize the problems, but want to make one thing very clear:

We want to be clear that excluding tanks from Arena or Mixed Singles is not an option we are considering. We create content that is available to everyone, no matter what specialization they are, and there are players who only enjoy one class or specialization. We don’t want to isolate these players and believe there are other design options we can explore instead.

Instead, Blizzard wants to introduce new rules in Mixed Singles, which are scheduled to go live in World of Warcraft next week (November 16):

• In the future, protection paladins will be considered “healers” and will only be sorted into games in which the other healer is also a protection paladin.
• All other tanks will be classified as a DPS character going forward, and there can be a maximum of one tank DPS character in the match.

Players react mixed: Players’ reactions to this decision tend to vary. While many welcome Blizzard’s at least acknowledgment of the problem, others are dissatisfied. They demand the direct exclusion of tanks from this mode, as they are simply impossible to balance. Some voices from the WoW forum post:

• “I’m glad all the toxic people were wrong and Tanks is sticking around.”
• “If there’s no chance of you banning tanks from this mode, then finally balance them out so they’re fun to fight. Currently, fighting tanks is only fun for one: the tank”
• “I would like to state that cutting Dragonflight out of my budget and having $15 more per month is an option I am considering.”

What do you think? Should tanks be allowed to remain in the “mixed singles”? Or don’t tanks belong in this PvP mode?