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Reviewed by Benjamin Barr
Traditionally, most MMO games tend to use the “Holy Trinity” to designate class roles for group play. This trinity usually compromises of a healer, damage dealer (DPS), and a tank to balance a party’s survivability and damage output. However, Lost Ark does things a bit differently by not having a dedicated tank class. Instead, you’ll have to settle for picking one of the “tankiest” classes in Lost Ark that don’t mind getting in the enemies’ face.
How “Tanking” Works in Lost Ark
The bosses in Lost Ark don’t really abide by the rules of “threat” and “aggro” that other MMOs go by. As such, bosses in Lost Ark have the potential to constantly change focus like crazy, making it impossible for any single player to hold aggro an extended period of time and be a dedicated tank.
However, some classes do have a taunt ability in their kits that will force the boss to focus on them for a bit. This singular taunt can come in pretty clutch in certain situations, allowing players to force bosses out of unfavorable attack patterns and buying some breathing space for the party.
If you’re looking for a traditional MMO tank, you won’t really find one in Lost Ark. However, there are a couple of classes that come pretty close, so here are the tankiest classes in Lost Ark!
Gunlancer
Big bulky armor? Giant shield? Lance that’s also a gun? This class is quite literally the epitome of a tank’s aesthetic in an MMO and is the closest thing to a tank class in Lost Ark.
At first glance, you can already tell that the Gunlancer class is naturally sturdy and takes less damage than other classes. Aside from having armor that looks like it would double his weight, the Gunlancer brings quite a bit to the table along with its pure tankiness.
These features include a taunt, party shielding, and being able to deal an ungodly amount of stagger and destruction with their skills. On top of all that, Gunlancers also have a highly-desired party synergy, being able to provide increased head/back attack damage.
| PROS | CONS |
|---|---|
| Tankiest class in the game | Slow movement with limited mobility |
| Provides party utility in the form of shields, CC immunity, and a taunt | Spacebar make you hop in the opposite direction; takes time getting used to |
| Very high stagger and destruction damage | Frontal attacker; prone to getting hit more |
Playstyle
PvE Gunlancer
Gunlancers in Lost Ark take up the role of both a melee dps and a support, as they can do respectable damage while providing shields and taunts for the rest of the party to play around. They’re also one of the few classes in Lost Ark that prefer to be in front of the boss when attacking.
Gunlancers gain class identity gauge when hitting enemies with their skills and can choose to spend that identity meter to protect themselves by putting the shield up. Alternatively, they can wait until the shield identity meter is completely full to support their team by putting a protective area up.
This allows the Gunlancer to essentially ignore most boss mechanics and just tank hits instead of having to dodge and move out of the way. Additionally, depending on their class engraving, they will either be trying to primarily use their gunlance skills or shield skills.
PvP Gunlancer
In PvP, Gunlancers can be real bullies with how much damage and CC they can shrug off for themselves as well as their team. Plus, they’ll be constantly applying a ridiculous amount of pressure of their own.
Gunlancers excel in PvP by consistently buffing and peeling for their team. Adding to this, they can simultaneously safely unleash their burst damage skills, with their defensive stance shrugging off any opposing enemies.
Their short and sweet (yet effective) burst combo is perfect for a hit-and-run setting such as PvP, so don’t be afraid to use that to your advantage. Much like in PvE, Gunlancers will be able to make a very noticeable impact without having to put in too much effort because of how much potential their kit holds.
Destroyer
It’s hammer time! Destroyer is a warrior subclass that wields a gigantic hammer as their weapon of choice, bonking their enemies out of existence.
Destroyers use their big hammers to deal devastating amounts of weak point destruction and stagger damage, while also being able to deal heavy damage themselves. This all comes with the drawback of the class being required to hit enemies from the front and being exposed to all kinds of dangerous attack patterns.
Worry not, because of their unique positional requirements, Destroyers are also among the tankiest classes in Lost Ark!
| PROS | CONS |
|---|---|
| Has a taunt | Slow movement with limited mobility |
| Very tanky class with self-shielding capabilities | Damage skills have long charge times; easy to miss big damage skills |
| Very high stagger and destruction damage | Frontal attacker; prone to getting hit more |
Playstyle
PvE Destroyer
As mentioned earlier, Destroyers are one of the few classes in Lost Ark that are incentivized to stand in front of enemies, as their skills get a damage bonus when doing so. Destroyers mainly fill the DPS role in parties but also bring the added benefit of being able to taunt, allowing positional-based classes to have a slightly easier time getting their damage off.
Destroyers gain charges called Gravity Cores when they do damage with their blue Concentration skills, and then they can use these Gravity Core charges to empower their purple Release skills.
In addition to Gravity Cores, Destroyers will also fill up their Gravity Gauge identity. When full, they can enter Hypergravity Mode by pressing [Z], which will grant a big shield, CC immunity, and make all of the Destroyer’s skills much faster with more stagger and destruction damage.
As such, the general idea of the Destroyer’s rotation is to use blue Concentration skills to build up Gravity Cores and then spend those Gravity Cores on your hard-hitting purple Release skills.
The playstyle can also change depending on the class engraving you choose.
Rage Hammer is a very all-or-nothing playstyle. You’re really going to want to try to land your purple Release skills, as this engraving empowers their damage by a good margin depending on how many Gravity Cores you use to cast the skill.
Gravity Training revolves around utilizing the Hypergravity Mode identity, enabling you to deal significantly more damage while in Hypergravity Mode and making it easier to enter this mode.
To summarize – Gravity Training can be seen as the safer option, while Rage Hammer will have a higher ceiling in terms of damage dealt throughout a fight if played well. Both class engravings deal massive amounts of damage while being sturdy, so it’s really just personal preference as to which is best for you.
PvP Destroyer
Destroyer’s playstyle in PvP is actually not much different from PvE, but it does require a little more specific timing to be able to connect your hard-hitting Release skills.
Given that the Release skills require a charge animation on an already slow class, you will want to be using blue Concentration skills to both build up Gravity Cores and try to catch enemies in a CC of some sort. You can then use Release skills when you think that enemies won’t be able to escape the big damage.
Don’t be afraid to press [Z] to go into your Hypergravity Mode in sticky situations, as it will still give you a shield and also slow you enemies down!
Which Class Should You Pick?
Both Gunlancer and Destroyer are very tanky classes that are able to taunt bosses in raids and are the closest things to a proper tank in Lost Ark. If you want to be one of the tankiest classes in Lost Ark, then you really can’t go wrong with either one of these picks.
For all intents and purposes, we can categorize Gunlancer as more of a support than Destroyer, as it provides shields and CC immunity for their party. Meanwhile, Destroyers only really bring damage to the table, but they also deal both insane amounts of stagger and weak-point destruction damage.
While neither of these classes is necessarily required to clear content, they can significantly enhance the raid experience by providing taunts and, in the case of Gunlancer, party protection.
If you do choose one of these classes, don’t forget to stand in front of the boss and try not to run around too much; otherwise, you’ll make it harder for the rest of the DPS in your party to hit the boss!
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