Starting Your Tanking Journey in FFXIV
Tanking in Final Fantasy XIV can feel intimidating at first. You’re leading the group, enemies are hitting you, and it often feels like everyone is watching your every move.
The good news is that FFXIV tanking is far more forgiving than it looks. This beginner guide will walk you through exactly how tanking works in dungeons, how to hold aggro confidently, and how to use your mitigation correctly so you can queue for your first run without second-guessing yourself.
If you’re new to tanking in Final Fantasy XIV, the most important thing to understand is this:
Your job is simple.
Make sure everything attacks you, and stay alive while it does. That’s it.
Tanks in FFXIV are built for this. You naturally have:
- A permanent 20% damage reduction just for being a tank
- Higher defence gear
- Multiple mitigation abilities designed to reduce incoming damage
You are meant to take hits. The game is designed around you doing exactly that.
Understanding Aggro (Enmity) – Why It’s Easier Than You Think
Aggro, also called enmity, threat, or hate, determines who enemies attack. Enemies always target the player with the highest enmity value.
In FFXIV, maintaining aggro is extremely forgiving.
As long as:
- Your tank stance is turned on
- You are hitting enemies
You generate massively increased enmity. Every time you land an attack, you create far more threat than your party members.
In normal dungeon content, it is almost impossible to lose aggro if you are actively attacking with tank stance on.
This is important because new tanks often panic about threat. You don’t need to.
You don’t need to spam Provoke.
You don’t need to stare at meters constantly.
You just need to keep hitting enemies.
Reading the Enmity List Properly
On your screen, you’ll see an enmity list with coloured symbols:
- Green circle – you are not being targeted
- Yellow triangle – building enmity
- Orange triangle – close to gaining aggro
- Red square – you have aggro
Your goal is simple: everything should be red.
If something isn’t red, target it and hit it with:
- A ranged ability
- An AoE attack
- Or Provoke if needed
One important detail: the list shows the build-up of enmity, but it does not gradually show you losing it. If you lose aggro, it often flips from red straight back to green.
On bosses, you’ll also see an aggro indicator next to your name in the party list. “A” means you are first in threat, and numbers show the order beneath you. This becomes more important later in raids, but for beginners it’s simply reassurance that you’re doing your job correctly.
All of this may sound complicated, but in practice it’s very simple:
Tank stance on.
Keep attacking.
Everything stays on you.
Even while running between trash packs, if you tag enemies once or twice, you will usually hold them.
Before You Enter Your First Dungeon
At level 15, you unlock both dungeons and your ranged attack (Gladiator and Marauder get this early on).
Your ranged attack is extremely important because it allows you to grab enemies from a distance while moving.
Before you queue:
- Complete all job quests up to your level so you have every available skill unlocked.
- Finish Hall of the Novice training. The armor is decent early on, but the real prize is the Brand-New Ring for bonus stats and experience.
These small preparations make your first dungeon far smoother.
All Tanks Feel Similar at Low Level
At low levels, tanks are very similar. You don’t yet have your full toolkit, so job differences are minimal.
Don’t stress about picking the “wrong” tank early on. Pick one you enjoy. You can level every tank job on a single character in FFXIV and switch freely once unlocked.
If you want help choosing, check the beginner tank tier list, but at low level, fundamentals matter far more than job choice.
Not Sure Which Tank Job to Start With?
If you’re still deciding which tank to level first, take a look at our Best FFXIV Tank for Beginners guide. It breaks down which jobs are the most forgiving, easiest to learn, and best suited for new players just starting their tanking journey.
The Three Core Steps of Dungeon Tanking
Dungeon tanking always comes down to three things:
- Pull enemies
- Use mitigation
- Use your combat rotation
Everything else builds on this foundation.
Practising Before You Queue
If you’re nervous, practise in the open world.
Find an area with several enemies and:
- Tag them with your ranged attack
- Keep running and tag more
- Watch them appear on your enmity list
- Notice how little damage you take while moving
When you gather 8–10 enemies and stand still, you’ll see how manageable the damage is. It’s slower than most people expect.
This is important because most early dungeons follow a pattern of two trash packs between bosses. Pulling 8–10 open world enemies is similar to handling a dungeon pull, except in a dungeon you also have a healer supporting you.
You’ll also see glowing areas on the ground. These are telegraphed AoE attacks. Step out of them and you take no damage. This applies in dungeons too.
Practising like this builds confidence before you ever enter a party.
How a Dungeon Pull Actually Works
Most early dungeons follow this pattern:
- Enemies → enemies → boss
- Enemies → enemies → boss
- Enemies → enemies → boss
As the tank, you lead.
You start by using your ranged ability on the first group. Then you continue running forward, tagging additional enemies as you go.
While you run:
- Enemies follow you
- DPS attack while moving
- You take very little damage
When you reach the second pack or the “wall” (where you physically can’t go further), you stop.
Now:
- Turn and face the enemies
- Use an AoE ability to hit everything
- Then activate one mitigation cooldown
This order matters.
If you use mitigation while running, you waste part of its duration before enemies are actually hitting you. Wait until everything is stacked for maximum value.
Using Mitigation Properly
Mitigation abilities reduce the damage you take.
You already have a natural 20% damage reduction just for being a tank. When you activate something like Rampart, you are stacking additional reduction on top of that.
Use one mitigation at a time.
Don’t overlap them at low levels.
Rotate them as they come off cooldown.
In early dungeons, trash packs are often more dangerous than bosses. Don’t save all your cooldowns for bosses. Tank busters at low level won’t kill you outright, and healers have plenty of time to recover you.
Pay attention to how many enemies are still alive. If most are nearly dead when your cooldown ends, save the next one for the next pull instead of wasting it.
Some abilities provide party-wide mitigation. These are better saved for bosses or emergencies.
Wall-to-Wall Pulling (And When Not To)
Many groups expect tanks to pull “wall to wall,” meaning you gather everything until you hit a barrier near the boss.
This is normal in FFXIV.
However, you are allowed to adjust.
If the healer seems new or overwhelmed, it’s perfectly fine to pull one pack at a time. If the healer is comfortable and experienced, they may encourage larger pulls.
The key is awareness, not ego.
Healers expect to heal you. When they see a large pack, they are prepared for incoming damage. You have mitigation, they have healing, that’s how the role balance works.
Positioning – Why Facing Enemies Away Matters
Once enemies are grouped or bosses are aggroed, stand still and face them away from your party.
Why?
- Many enemies use frontal cleave attacks.
- Some attacks are not telegraphed.
- DPS deal more damage from the rear or flank.
If you move constantly, DPS lose positional bonuses and fights take longer. Longer fights mean more damage taken and more healing required.
Keep bosses steady.
Turn them away.
Give your party a stable target.
Boss Tanking Basics
Bosses work the same way as trash:
- Hold aggro
- Rotate mitigation
- Avoid telegraphed attacks
At low levels, simply rotating cooldowns one by one is enough. Later, you’ll learn to time mitigation for specific mechanics, but that comes with experience.
One mechanic you’ll start noticing as you progress is something called a tank buster. This is a heavier hit designed specifically for the tank. In many fights, you’ll see a clear red marker or visual effect wrapped around your character. That’s the game telling you a strong attack is about to hit you.
When you see this, it’s your cue to use a mitigation ability and prepare for incoming damage. In early dungeons these won’t usually kill you outright, but in higher-level content they become important to handle properly. Think of tank busters as a signal: “Press a defensive cooldown now.”
You don’t need to memorise every boss ability as a beginner. Just recognise the visual cue, use mitigation, and trust your healer to do the rest.
Final Reassurance
If you remember nothing else, remember this:
Tank stance on.
Keep attacking.
Use one mitigation at a time.
Face enemies away from the group.
Everything else comes with repetition.
Tanking in FFXIV is far less stressful than it looks from the outside. The game gives you strong defensive tools and a clear role.
You are built to survive.
And once you’ve done your first few dungeons, you’ll realise just how manageable it actually is.
Useful Links
- FFXIV Best Beginner Tank Guide
- FFXIV Tank Tier List for Savage Raids and Dungeons.
- Browse the Best Console MMORPGs
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