DPS hybrids: Do you feel pressured to spec Tank or Heals?

[Lovestar]

This poll is for people who play a hybrid-capable class, but prefer to play its DPS spec(s).

Something I see come up when discussing adding extra specs to classes (such as Shaman or Lock Tanking, etc) is that people find the idea vile because they will then be pressured into doing a role they don't like. As long as the class cannot Tank and/or Heal, then they feel safe from ever being badgered into doing it.

This is a legitimate concern, but I would like to investigate if it actually occurs with any significance in practice.

So, I know this is a very rough sampling, but I am curious if people who play Hybrid classes as DPS now, feel that this is true — do you feel pressured socially to spec more 'needed' roles (Tank, Heal) because you are able, even though you would prefer to be left alone and just DPS?

[ACES]

Sort of. I played a Shadow Priest for the majority of MoP (coming off of a Mage) and I really liked it but when I was in a guild, I was always asked to be the guy who swapped to heals when we needed to three-heal. I hated playing Holy and Disc and so eventually I just left the guild and became a pug raider and have so far done much better with raiding and haven't been asked to swap to heals.

[ThePants999]

Yes. Oddly I'm the RL, so the pressure is coming from myself, but I still feel it :-)

[Darsithis]

I play a DK and I am required to have a tanking spec for offspec tanking when necessary I can't say I feel pressured into it. What else was I going to do with the other spec anyway?

[Warlord Booty]

Never. Shadow has always been top notch DPS in the right hands (not that I've always been that great at it, but a guild has always been) and neither of us has ever been asked to go heals. I can't even really think of anyone that was ever really asked to switch, there were several who would ask which role they should be for a particular raid, but never pressured.

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I play a DK and I am required to have a tanking spec for offspec tanking when necessary I can't say I feel pressured into it. What else was I going to do with the other spec anyway?

pee vee pee!

[Teriz]

I have a Shaman and a Monk. Never have I been pressured to tank or heal on either class.

[delk]

On my Shaman whether I am pressured to spec healer or DPS alternates by the week in the guild raid depending on who couldn't make it, who ragequit the previous day, etc, etc. And whenever we do achieve runs or go do last tier's heroics or whatever I always somehow end up on my Monk tank alt. I don't really mind though...

[TheWindWalker]

I normally play a Monk and DPS when I'm coming along for alt runs. At worst, I'm pressured to "not heal" due to there being a line of people wanting to and nobody really wants to pressure anyone to tank who isn't comfortable with it. Back when I was a Shaman I got "on-the-spot pressured" to heal and it was one of those "last straw, later guys" type of deals. I don't know how Warlords is gonna be for Monks but I certainly wouldn't mind being pressured to heal or DPS and under the right circumstances I could see myself tanking when someone else is out.

Never. Shadow has always been top notch DPS in the right hands

You might want to reword that.

[Kelimbror]

It's more that that dating from TBC - Cata I was pretty much required to be a Bear. I managed to get out of I in ICC, but that was to heal. It caused me to dislike the people I had known for so many years, hate the game, and hate my druid. For small guilds, good tanks don't grow on trees so it was actually the game that forced my hand. I used to enjoy tanking, but I play everything as a DPS now except for my Shaman healer. Now that LFR is a thing, I feel zero pressure to be anything but the role I want to play.

[Ciddy]

I've played Fury Warrior since around the start of BC and hate tanking. I actually didn't get pressured to tank that often. Once or twice, I briefly switched to prot just for one encounter or two because my guild was desperate (as in, "you spec prot and tank this one boss or we don't raid at all tonight" desperate). My guildies know how much I hate tanking, so they don't ask me to do it unless it's one of those situations.

I have occasionally been in pugs where the tank left, or got disconnected, or whatever else, and someone said a "Hey, you're a warrior, you tank now!" line. As long as they asked me nicely, I didn't have a problem with it. No prot spec, but I'd just pull out my shield and be a fury tank for a few trash pulls until a replacement came along. I could usually get away with that as long as the healer was awake.

[Ariluz]

You might want to reword that.

I wouldn't trust noxxic as a reliable source. Using Raidbots, Shadow is slightly above middle of the pack overall. Their main weakness is single target fights, but really only two fights meet that criteria in SoO: Malkorok/Iron Juggernaut.

The main thing that raidbots does show is that locks (affliction in particular) need to be tuned down a little bit.

[TheWindWalker]

I wouldn't trust noxxic as a reliable source. Using Raidbots, Shadow is slightly above middle of the pack overall. Their main weakness is single target fights, but really only two fights meet that criteria in SoO: Malkorok/Iron Juggernaut.

The main thing that raidbots does show is that locks (affliction in particular) need to be tuned down a little bit.

While I'll gladly agree with Noxxic tends to only sim single-target despite anything they might disclaimer, even "middle of the pack when there's multiple targets" is far from "top notch dps."

[Ariluz]

While I'll gladly agree with Noxxic tends to only sim single-target despite anything they might disclaimer, even "middle of the pack when there's multiple targets" is far from "top notch dps."

How do you explain how this single target fight matches with noxxic's charts?
http://raidbots.com/dpsbot/Iron_Jugg...100/14/60/p90/

Frost, according to noxxic is the 2nd highest on single target, but in practice is just barely ahead of the specs that no one really plays in heroics. Affliction is supposedly the worst lock spec for single target, but is well above the other 2. I could point out more differences, but trusting noxxic for anything (or using simcraft dps rankings to compare classes) is a dumb idea.

[zoomgpally]

You might want to reword that.

Noxxic as source...(isn't the fact that affliction is down at 18th, far behind demo enough to prove its bullshit?)
Only thing they got right is that dks are top dps at low ilvl, then drop to the bottom as people gear up

May as well quote somebody saying shadow word: pain is a heal...

Also, it is singletarget, all those "dps rankings" are always singletarget, how realistic is that in a game where 2 out of 14 fights(IIRC) is actually singletarget?

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I wouldn't trust noxxic as a reliable source. Using Raidbots, Shadow is slightly above middle of the pack overall. Their main weakness is single target fights, but really only two fights meet that criteria in SoO: Malkorok/Iron Juggernaut.

The main thing that raidbots does show is that locks (affliction in particular) need to be tuned down a little bit.

Note to self: noxxic crew play shadow priests and affliction locks and are fishing for buffs with weird dps rankings...

[delk]

Note to self: noxxic crew play shadow priests and affliction locks and are fishing for buffs with weird dps rankings...

I highly doubt Blizzard puts any stock into Noxxic's DPS rankings when the majority of the informed playerbase does not.

[zoomgpally]

I highly doubt Blizzard puts any stock into Noxxic's DPS rankings when the majority of the informed playerbase does not.

I know, but it obviously doesn't stop them from trying

[Bad Ashe]

pressured? no
you're going to accumulate enough gear eventually to make at least a workable offset, so why not even if it just sits in your bank. even pure dps classes do this for even minor stat variations.

[soulyouth]

I had to heal if I wanted to raid during vanilla but was shadow the rest of the time (pvp,duggys,farming)
However since TBC I have never had to raid as heals, to have a raid spot.

[Monoxyde]

my main is a ret paladin, but i always maintain a viable set of gear for at least one of the other specs. i do this not because of pressure from other people, this is so i'm able to be more appealing and useful to the groups i participate in. doing this allows me to always have an easy time finding groups for nearly anything i want to do. from my perspective i can either be selfish and suffer because of it, or i can be versatile and get much more enjoyment from my game time.

[Firebert]

Yes, by the LFD/LFR queue.