Mythic+ Tank Rankings: A Tier List for Dragonflight (Patch 10.2. / Season 3)

Last updated on Nov 12, 2023 at 10:59 by Petko 40 comments

From the weakest to the strongest tank specialization, each provide unique character distinction and add value toward shaping the Season 3 "meta" of Mythic+ in Dragonflight. The Tank specialization rankings provided for Dragonflight's third Season of Mythic+ are based on pure tanking strength and group-added-value such as utility, survivability, mobility, damage and self-sustain.

This list will be updated as new tuning and class changes come out over the course of the season.

1.

About the Tier List

This tier list is NOT FINAL; it will change and will be updated as often as necessary prior and during Mythic+. There are often moments of tier set and class tuning, as well as talent changes and secondary stat scaling that will impact the placement of the specs.

I am Petko, a competitive Mythic+ player, known to be pushing the boundaries of High Mythic+ with several World first and Europe first rankings among past seasons on multiple classes. I have worked hard on preparing for Season 3 of Dragonflight, spending numerous hours per day examining each and every class and spec in a dungeon environment. This Tier list will continue to be updated as much as it requires over the course of Dragonflight and it will also focus on what the "meta" will look like as it stabilizes. Along the way, this Tier list will also be supported by various professional Mythic+ players with high credibility in the community, theorycrafters across all specializations, and my own empirical evidence.

To begin with, this Tier list will exclusively focus on the third Season of Mythic+ in Dragonflight. There will be no Warcraft Logs rankings added nor simulation data for the majority of the classes and specs. As a result, this Tier list will be solely based on empirical evidence of the current state of the classes' performance in Mythic+ from my own point of view and the point of view of the group of players testing those classes who are among the best representatives of the class in the community. Moreover, this Tier list will take into consideration every impactful class change and tier set tuning before and after the start of the season.

It is important to note that opinions might vary and that is completely okay, but remember to be respectful when providing feedback as the sole purpose of this tier-list is to help the WoW community with their choice of main or alt each season.

This tier list is entirely based on several factors, such as tank durability, group composition synergy, mobility, damage profile, self-sustain and external party-wide cooldowns.

1.1.

A Final Warning

It is important to understand that this Tier list is NOT permanent , and it will be due to change with upcoming changes and tunings over the course of the season. I have always advocated the "bring the player, not the class" motto, meaning: value the player's skill more than the class itself. This Tier list should NOT discourage you from playing whatever you enjoy the most if having fun is your main drive when you play Mythic+. The list will be updated as much as it requires before and after the start of each season.

2.

Important Note for Season 3 of Dragonflight

This tier list is based on the assumption that you have your 4-piece tier-set present at all times. Places can vary drastically if this measure is not taken into consideration, as our main purpose is to showcase which specializations will become the best months before the season hits its peak.

3.

Tank Tier List for Season 3 of Mythic+ in Dragonflight

Below you can find the full rankings for Tank specializations in Dragonflight Mythic+. We encourage you to further read and understand why some classes are placed lower or higher than expected, with several factors taken into consideration.

All tanks are looking great in Season 3, as the gap between each of them is significantly smaller compared to last season. Regardless of what you play, you will be doing fine, with the only noticeable difference occurring in the higher-end keys.

  1. Vengeance Demon Hunter (S-Tier)
  2. Blood Death Knight (Hidden OP)
  3. Protection Paladin (A-Tier)
  4. Protection Warrior (A-Tier)
  5. Brewmaster Monk (B-Tier)
  6. Guardian Druid (C-Tier)
Data-Driven (Season 3) Mythic+ Tier List
Get the latest data driven tier list for Patch 10.2
View Rankings
3.1.

DPS and Healer Class Rankings

If you are interested in our other rankings for Mythic+ in Dragonflight, please click the links below.

4.

Full Tank Class Rankings

4.1.

S-Tier

4.1.1.

Vengeance Demon Hunter

Patch 10.2 update: Vengeance Demon Hunter received a complete rework going forward to Season 3, as well as a brand new tierset along with it. The 2-piece bonus activates when you attack a target afflicted by Sigil of Flame Icon Sigil of Flame; your damage, healing, and Stamina are increased by 2% for 8 sec, stacking up to 5 times. In addition, the 4p effect allows for Sigil of Flame Icon Sigil of Flame's periodic damage to have a chance to flare up, shattering an additional Soul Fragment from a target and dealing additional damage. Each 40 Fury you spend reduces its cooldown by 1 sec.

The recent changes to Vengeance Demon Hunter have made them extremely "tanky", thanks to the removal of the 5-target cap on Fiery Brand Icon Fiery Brand. Additionally, Fel Devastation Icon Fel Devastation baseline cooldown has been reduced by 20 sec, further enhancing their defensive capabilities. The combination of the specialization's strong survivability and great utility make Vengeance Demon Hunter one of the best tanks options for Mythic+ in Season 3. And if the DPS meta favors magic damage, don't forget that Chaos Brand Icon Chaos Brand will provide a noticeable damage boost for the entire group. Overall, with the most recent buffs, Vengeance Demon Hunter is shaping up to be one of the best tanks in Season 3.

4.1.2.

Cons

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4.1.3.

Mythic+ utility

Functionality Spells Notes
Core Chaos Brand Icon Chaos Brand 5% extra Magical damage
Core Darkness Icon Darkness % chance to avoid all damage from an attack.
Core Sigil of Silence Icon Sigil of Silence Silences all enemies affected by the Sigil for a short period of time.
Optional Sigil of Chains Icon Sigil of Chains All enemies affected by the Sigil are pulled to its center and snared.
Optional Chaos Nova Icon Chaos Nova AoE stun effect.
Optional Imprison Icon Imprison Single-target out of combat crowd-control.
Optional Consume Magic Icon Consume Magic Remove 1 beneficial Magic effect.
Optional Sigil of Misery Icon Sigil of Misery AoE disturb effect.
4.2.

Hidden OP

Blood Death Knight has the hidden OP label since we don't have any news on the new upcoming 2-h Legendary weapon. Depending on the tunning and its performance, the specializations might or might not change placements. If we were to rank them right now, it would be A+.

4.2.1.

Blood Death Knight

Patch 10.2 update: Blood Death Knight received massive changes going forward to the next season, as well as a brand new tierset along with it. The 2-piece bonus triggers when consuming Runic Power, giving you a chance to cause your next Heart Strike Icon Heart Strike to apply Ashen Decay, reducing damage dealt to you by 10% and increasing your damage dealt to afflicted targets by 20% for 8 sec. In addition, the 4-p effect allows Soul Reaper Icon Soul Reaper's execute damage and Abomination Limb Icon Abomination Limb's damage to apply Ashen Decay to enemy targets, and Heart Strike Icon Heart Strike and Blood Boil Icon Blood Boil's direct damage extends Ashen Decay by 1 sec.

Blood Death Knight is feeling fantastic in Season 3, with one of the high-damage profile and a tank spec that has excellent survivability, combined with the highest self-sustain in the game. The most exciting part is that Blood Death Knight is the only tank to benefit from the 2-H strength Legendary. No details have been released about the Legendary yet, so depending on its tuning and unique effect, the class rankings could fluctuate. However, for now, it is a top pick. Could Blood Death Knight be the secret OP spec for Season 3? Only time will tell.

4.2.2.

Cons

There are several bugs surrounding the spec that must be cleared out before having a 100% judgment on its performance. Overall, there aren't any direct details to seek improvement on.

4.2.3.

Mythic+ utility

Functionality Spells Notes
Core Anti-Magic Zone Icon Anti-Magic Zone Provides extra durability against heavy magical damage.
Core Death Grip Icon Death Grip Repositions an enemy of your choice.
Core Raise Ally Icon Raise Ally Combat-resurrection.
Optional Abomination Limb Icon Abomination Limb Every 1 sec an enemy is pulled close to you.
Optional Gorefiend's Grasp Icon Gorefiend's Grasp Mass-grip.
Optional Insidious Chill Icon Insidious Chill Reduces the auto-attack speed of your target by 5% stacking up 4 times.
Optional Control Undead Icon Control Undead Mind-control an undead enemy to fight on your side. This ability can also Mind-control Incorporeal Icon Incorporeal (similar to Priest's Dominate Mind Icon Dominate Mind) to gain the full benefit of the affix.
Optional Asphyxiate Icon Asphyxiate 5 sec single-target stun.
4.3.

A-Tier

4.3.1.

Protection Paladin

Patch 10.2 update: Protection Paladin received minor changes leading up to the next season, as well as a brand new tierset along with it. The 2-piece bonus will enable Judgment Icon Judgment to grant a stack of Sanctification, reducing your damage taken by 2% per stack. Upon reaching 5 stacks, your next cast of Consecration Icon Consecration is empowered, increasing its damage and healing by 200% and its radius by 30%. Sanctification's stacks are reset when your empowered Consecration Icon Consecration ends. In addition, the 4-p effect triggers once you are within an empowered Consecration Icon Consecration, your abilities have a chance to deal 40% bonus damage or healing as Fire.

Protection Paladin currently is one of the strongest tank specializations available in Mythic+. It boasts an impressive damage profile and unmatched group-wide utility, making it a highly sought-after choice. Additionally, its durability has improved since the last season, as its positioning was overtaken by the incredibly "tank" Guardian Druid, in the second part of Season 2. Moreover, this specialization is one of the few tanks with exceptional off-healing abilities, making it a valuable asset when fulfilling extreme HPS Mythic+ requirements.

4.3.2.

Cons

Playing around Consecration Icon Consecration is simply an underlying issue that has been going on for a while for Protection Paladin, starting with Season 3, the problem will only run deeper since their tier set is directly attached to that spell.

4.3.3.

Mythic+ utility

Functionality Spells Notes
Core Avenger's Shield Icon Avenger's Shield Extra interrupt option that has a follow-up silence effect.
Core Devotion Aura Icon Devotion Aura Permanent 3% group/raid-wide damage reduction aura.
Core Retribution Aura Icon Retribution Aura In case you already have Devotion Aura Icon Devotion Aura from another Paladin, you can choose the Retribution Aura Icon Retribution Aura to help your party/raid do more Damage and Healing.
Core Hammer of Justice Icon Hammer of Justice A powerful single-target 6 sec stun effect.
Core Lay on Hands Icon Lay on Hands Heals a member of your party/raid to full health.
Core Intercession Icon Intercession Combat-resurrection
Optional Blessing of Spellwarding Icon Blessing of Spellwarding Granting magical damage immunity for 10 sec on a chosen ally.
Optional Blessing of Sacrifice Icon Blessing of Sacrifice Helps a single member of your raid in a critical situation. This can be further improved by talenting Sacrifice of the Just Icon Sacrifice of the Just.
Optional Blessing of Protection Icon Blessing of Protection Physical immunity, which can help you with some boss encounters.
Optional Blessing of Freedom Icon Blessing of Freedom Immunity to movement impairing effects.
Optional Repentance Icon Repentance / Blinding Light Icon Blinding Light You have the option between single-target crowd-control effect or a powerful mass AoE stop.
Optional Cleanse Toxins Icon Cleanse Toxins Removes all PoisonPoison and DiseaseDisease effects from the target.
Optional Turn Evil Icon Turn Evil Be able to fear any Undead, Aberration or Demon, which is an additional form of crowd control.
4.3.4.

Protection Warrior

Patch 10.2 update: Protection Warrior received minor changes leading up to the nexy season, as well as a brand new tierset along with it. The 2-piece bonus triggers when spending Rage, having a chance to cause your next Shield Slam Icon Shield Slam to consume your BleedBleeds on a target, instantly dealing 40% of the remaining damage of your Deep Wounds Icon Deep Wounds and Rend Icon Rend and 100% of Thunderous Roar Icon Thunderous Roar's and reducing your damage taken by 10% for 5 sec. In addition, the 4-piece effect allows for each BleedBleed effect consumed from a target to reduce your damage taken by an additional 2%. When Shield Slam Icon Shield Slam consumes a BleedBleed, the cooldown of Thunder Clap Icon Thunder Clap is reset and the cooldown of Thunderous Roar Icon Thunderous Roar is reduced by 3 sec.

Protection Warrior will perform exceptionally well in the early stages of Season 3 with an impressive damage profile. On top of that, they are also considered one of the most durable tanks going forward to the next season. Spell Reflection Icon Spell Reflection is proving to be an extremely useful tool in the Season 3 dungeon pool, which will positively influence their rankings. Additionally, looking at how strong melee characters are, Battle Shout Icon Battle Shout is looking a lot more appealing. Overall, Protection Warrior has a great offensive and defensive profile, making it a promising choice.

4.3.5.

Cons

As always, Protection Warriors may suffer if anything cannot be blocked or reflected. Although their utility has never been considered the best, they make up for it with their raw power in terms of damage and survivability.

4.3.6.

Mythic+ utility

Functionality Spells Notes
Core Rallying Cry Icon Rallying Cry Temporary increasing the health of your raid/party.
Core Battle Shout Icon Battle Shout Extra 5% attack power.
Optional Spell Reflection Icon Spell Reflection Usable in niche situations.
Optional Intimidating Shout Icon Intimidating Shout AoE disturb effect capped at 5 targets.
Optional Storm Bolt Icon Storm Bolt 4 sec single-target stun.
Optional Shockwave Icon Shockwave AoE Stun
4.4.

B-Tier

4.4.1.

Brewmaster Monk

Patch 10.2 update: Brewmaster Monk received some changes going forward to the next season, as well as a brand new tierset along with it. The 2-piece bonus enables Breath of Fire Icon Breath of Fire to deal 40% bonus damage as Shadowflame and causes you to heal for 50% of your Fire damage dealt. In addition, the 4p effect allows for attacks against targets afflicted by Breath of Fire Icon Breath of Fire to have a chance to deal 15% extra damage as Shadowflame, and each Celestial Brew Icon Celestial Brew to also grant a Stagger Icon Stagger absorb for 100% of the Shadowflame damage you have dealt, causing damage delayed by Stagger Icon Stagger to instead be prevented.

Although an improved version from last season, the Brewmaster Monk class will remain relatively squishy compared to other tank classes. However, their damage output is one of the highest, if not the highest, in the game. This makes them a great fit for lower to mid-level keys. Just keep in mind as you progress through higher-level keys, you may encounter more survivability issues. Overall, the utility package of Brewmaster Monk is great, providing all the necessary tools to tackle any issue in Mythic+. Whether or not the Brewmaster Monk will become a competitive spec or remain in a mediocre state will depend on further Season 3 tuning.

4.4.2.

Cons

The only way this spec can improve rankings is by further buffs on behalf of their survivability.

4.4.3.

Mythic+ utility

Functionality Spells Notes
Core Mystic Touch Icon Mystic Touch 5% extra Physical damage for your raid.
Core Generous Pour Icon Generous Pour Extra damage reduction against area-of-effect damage.
Core Close to Heart Icon Close to Heart Increased healing from all sources for all allies within 10 yards.
Core Leg Sweep Icon Leg Sweep 3 sec stun effect.
Optional Tiger's Lust Icon Tiger's Lust Removes all roots and snares.
Optional Ring of Peace Icon Ring of Peace It can be used to help your tank kite and as a AoE disturb effect.
Optional Detox Icon Detox Removes all PoisonPoison and DiseaseDisease effects from the target.
Optional Paralysis Icon Paralysis Single-target disturb effect.
4.5.

C-Tier

4.5.1.

Guardian Druid

Patch 10.2 update: Guardian Druid received massive changes leading to the next season, as well as a brand new tierset along with it. The 2-piece bonus allows you the Rage you spend during Rage of the Sleeper Icon Rage of the Sleeper to fuel the growth of Dream Thorns, which wreath you in their protection after Rage of the Sleeper Icon Rage of the Sleeper expires, absorbing 25% of damage dealt to you while the thorns remain. In addition, the 4-p effect grants you for each 40 Rage you spend while Rage of the Sleeper Icon Rage of the Sleeper is active to extend its duration 1 sec, up to 5 sec. Your Dream Thorns becoem Blazing Thorns, causing 100% of damage absorbed to be reflected at the attacker.

Even though the new tier set is not as powerful as the old Season 2 set bonus, Guardian Druid will still perform well in all key levels. Despite not being as dominant leading up to Season 3, the spec possess decent damage and amazing utility, making them an all-around well-rounded tank that can transition well into the next season.

4.5.2.

Cons

Guardian Druid received one of the worst trade-offs regarding tier sets among all tank specializations. Unfortunately, this trade-off will ultimately hinder their performance in Mythic+. The only solution, therefore, is to completely rework the tier set or buff the current version significantly.

4.5.3.

Mythic+ utility

Functionality Spells Notes
Core Mark of the Wild Icon Mark of the Wild Increasing the Versatility of your raid/party by 3%.
Core Entangling Roots Icon Entangling Roots Single-target root effect.
Optional After the Wildfire Icon After the Wildfire Extra off-healing.
Optional Innervate Icon Innervate Allowing 1 friendly healer to cast spells without spending mana for 8 sec.
Optional Stampeding Roar Icon Stampeding Roar Increasing the movement speed to all raid members by 60% for 8 sec.
Optional Remove Corruption Icon Remove Corruption Removes all CurseCurse and PoisonPoison effects from a friendly target.
Optional Soothe Icon Soothe Dispelling all Enrage Effects from an enemy target.
Optional Hibernate Icon Hibernate Single-target crowd-control effects against beasts and dragonkins. It also works on Incorporeal Icon Incorporeal.
Optional Incapacitating Roar Icon Incapacitating Roar / Mighty Bash Icon Mighty Bash You have the choice between AoE disturb effect or a single-target stun.
Optional Typhoon Icon Typhoon Aoe knockback.
Optional Mass Entanglement Icon Mass Entanglement / Ursol's Vortex Icon Ursol's Vortex You have the choice between AoE root effect or AoE wind-of-vortex, pulling all the mobs to one location.
5.

Changelog

  • 12 Nov. 2023: Further Adjustments based on the most recent class hotfix.
  • 05 Nov. 2023: Reviewed and Updated for 10.2 Patch.
  • 04 Sep. 2023: Reviewed and Updated for 10.1.7 Patch.
  • 22 Aug. 2023: Further Adjustments based on the most recent class hotfix.
  • 09 Aug. 2023: Further Adjustments based on the most recent class hotfix.
  • 25 Jul. 2023: Further Adjustments based on the most recent class hotfix.
  • 17 Jul. 2023: Further Adjustments based on the 10.1.5 Patch.
  • 10 Jul. 2023: Further Adjustments based on the 10.1.5 Patch.
  • 27 Jun. 2023: Further Adjustments based on the most recent hotfixes.
  • 06 Jun. 2023: Further Adjustments based on the most recent hotfixes.
  • 23 May 2023: Further Adjustments based on the most recent Patch.
  • 07 May 2023: Further Adjustments based on the most recent hotfixes.
  • 01 May 2023: Fully Updated for Season 2 of Dragonflight.
  • 21 Mar. 2023: Updated based on the most recent changes for 10.0.7. Patch.
  • 04 Mar. 2023: Further Adjustments based .
  • 14 Feb. 2023: Further Adjustments based on the most recent Patch.
  • 25 Jan. 2023: Further Adjustments based on the upcoming 10.0.5 Patch.
  • 21 Dec. 2022: Further Adjustments based on the latest class changes.
  • 18 Nov. 2022: Updated with the initial iteration for Season 1 of Dragonflight.
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