Brewmaster Tanking Question(s)

[Akshak]

Are there any guides out there centered around tanking the LFR instances as a brewmaster? I've done all of the LFR's from MoP as a windwalker and have been gathering up a gear set aimed at tanking but wanted to read up on the fights from the tank PoV rather than DPS.

[Wardley]

I don't think anyone's ever sat down and produced an LFR raid guide - mainly because most people doing LFR would bother to go and read it.

From memory though - basic tanking in MSV:

Stoneguard: Group up all Dogs together. Let DPS nuke them down. No tank swaps needed.
Feng the Accursed: If the other tank doesn't go and grab it - go and get the crystal that spawns on the right side of the stairs as you walk up to the boss. This will allow you to cast a shield. Use this during his 2nd (fire) phase when he casts Call Flame to stop the flames reaching him (cast the shield standing underneath him - and it's a channeled spell so don't move). You can also cast it at other times in the other phases to reduce damage to the raid. The left crystal that spawns will allow you to spell-steal a debuff that's been cast on someone else. This isn't really needed in LFR. You can try tank swapping when the other tank gets a couple of stacks of each debuff - but in my experience the other tank will just taunt the boss straight back again because they don't like sharing.
Gara'jal the Spiritbinder: Tank boss as normal. One tank will get sent into the other realm and the other tank needs to pickup the boss (may need to taunt then depending on threat). In the other realm, kill the LARGER add that's in there and that'll send you back to the normal realm (this is different than the DPS in there who just need to get healed up).
Spirit Kings: Nothing different here between DPS and Tanking. This is actually a one tank fight anyway. Just avoid stuff.
Elegon: 1 tank takes Elegon, the other the adds. Let the adds get DPS'd down to around 25% on the platform, then move it off the platform to explode. This can be tricky with over-enthusatic DPS. If it explodes on the platform it'll do higher damage - although not neccessarily raid-wiping damage. Your healers will love you more if you get it off the platform though.
Will of the Emperor: Ok - this is the real tanking test. Firstly, talk to the other tank and agree which boss you're both taking (this is a really important step!). When the 2 bosses spawn, pickup your boss and move him to the base of the stairs on whatever side you are. You can't move too far away from the boss or else he'll pull you back in. The bosses will periodically do a 'devastating combo'. If you've got an addon such as DBM or Bigwigs this should tell you which way you have to move to avoid those combos. With DBM, you get an arrow either pointing left, right, forward or no arrow at all. For left, move left, for right, move right, for forward move so you're behind the boss and if there's no arrow move away from the boss as he'll do a stomp. And the arrows are always relative to the direction you're facing the boss. If you avoid all 5 combo movements you'll get an extra action button appear 'Opportunistic Strike'. Click it and you'll do a lot of damage to the boss. This bit is important because if the DPS is doing their job correctly, they'll mainly be on the adds so you'll be doing most of the damage on the bosses.

That's it for MSV.

Heart of Fear is slightly more complicated so I'll let someone else deal with that.

[Fhi]

I'll just list what's different from DPS PoV. Heart of Fear:

Imperial Vizier: One tank fight. Just tank and spank, while dealing with stuffs you deal as WW.

Blade Lord: Taunt swap at 2 stacks of Overwhelming Assault - 3 if you're feeling brave and have the cooldown for it. Move the boss if there are too many tornadoes around your area.

Garalon: This one's a bit tricky. Always be in front of the boss in order to soak the cleave, and ideally have the other tank next to you as well. Garalon will chase whoever who has Pheromone, so Garalon will be moving you, not the other way. If someone else has experience kiting with Pheromones, nicely ask them to do so. If not, you might have to.

Wind Lord: Nothing different from DPS. Have people CC 3 adds, then tank the remaining together. When you have better gear and more experience, you can even one tank it as BrM and watch yourself do more dps than everyone combined.

Amber Shaper: In phase 1, you and your co-tank will be alternately transformed. This is the same as WW, but don't eat any pools. Let the DPS people damage you until you are released. Taunt when one tank is transformed, obviously. When the big monstrosity is up, be sure to pick it up. Monstrosity will fling the current tank occasionally, at which point the other tank should taunt the monstrosity or it'll rampage on the healers. In LFR, a plate dps can handle monstrosity, but for good tanking practice, be sure to do your job. Final phase is just a burn phase.

Grand Empress: Taunt swap at 3-4 stacks, and avoid the purple fear cone. On the add phase, both tank pick up adds from either side (decide beforehand) and bring them together to the center for dps to mass AoE. Nothing much else.

Terrace of Endless Spring:
Protectors: One tank is sufficient. Tank all together. Move Kaolan away when he has the healing pool under him, but in LFR it isn't a big deal.

Tsulong: Taunt swap when each tank gets the Shadow Breath debuff. Tank him near the beam, but don't face him towards the beam, otherwise he will breath on the raid. Clear stacks at around 8-10 stacks, depending on your damage intake. If you have a boss mod, the timer bar can tell you when it is safe to clear a stack, i.e try not to run to the beam when there is 2 seconds left before the next breath. In the day Phase, help out with small adds, and tank the big add right in front of Tsulong. Rinse repeat.

Lei Shi: Spec into Diffuse Magic. Taunt swap at 8 or so stacks. Stacks build very quickly, so expect 2-3 extra stacks to get on you before a swap occurs. You can taunt while she is shielded by a bubble during add phase. If you aren't tanking boss, pick up the adds, mark one for dps to burn down. Save cooldowns like Fort Brew and Diffuse Magic for tanking boss at add phase (when the other tank might be pre-occupied with adds and you may have more than 10 stacks on you). You can also Zen Meditation during Get Away (be sure to glyph it).

Sha of Fear. Most boring, and easiest to tank. Stand in circle. Kill add on platforms. Rinse, repeat. No tank swap needed - Sha will pick his target.