Classes
Warrior
Pure melee tank — highest HP pool, deepest discipline list, the class every other class depends on.
Warrior is the purest melee class in Norrath — no spells, no self-heals, no crowd control. What the Warrior owns is the highest sustained HP pool in the era, the deepest discipline list, the highest weapon-skill caps, and the only aggro toolkit that scales unbroken from level 1 to 65. The Warrior is the commitment class. Every other tank is a hybrid that trades some tanking for spells; the Warrior trades nothing. From level 30 onward they are the assumed main tank for any group, and from level 50 onward the raid scene will not start a Plane of Fire or Halls of Honor pull without one.
Role and identity
A Warrior exists to stand between the mob and everyone else. Aggro generation, hate-cap maintenance, and survival math under heal-checks are the entire job description. Warriors do not control encounters by debuffing them or by killing them faster — they control encounters by absorbing damage longer than any other body in the room.
The class identity is austere on purpose. There is no Lay Hands, no Harm Touch, no fear pull, no lifetap to bail you out. What Warriors get instead is a discipline list that becomes the densest in the game by the mid-fifties, with rotations covering defense, evasion, sustained DPS, fearless engagement, and stonewall last-stand.
Strengths
- Highest HP pool and HP regen in plate
- Deepest discipline list — Defensive, Evasive, Fortitude, Stonewall, Furious, Fearless
- Highest Defense, Riposte, Parry, and Dodge skill caps in the game
- Aggro tools that scale from level 1 (Taunt) through endgame (Defensive aggro multipliers)
- Can equip every weapon type and use every shield
- Most stable raid main-tank against single-target raid bosses
Weaknesses
- Zero in-class healing or spell utility
- Solo grind is brutal — limited to trivials and meditation kills
- Aggro is hate-stack mechanics, no instant taunt-snap
- Slow mid-level group leverage (knights tank as well 20-40)
- Mobility limited to Endurance sprints
Solo, group, and raid
Solo
Warriors solo poorly across every tier. Early levels rely on starting-city greens and the regen of food/drink between fights. Mid-levels improve only through gear; there is no solo spell to lean on. Late levels gain Endurance disciplines but still want a Cleric to make any sustained camp viable.
Group
The Warrior anchors the group. The signature contribution is uninterrupted aggro on the camp's hardest mob while the rest of the group works adds, mez chains, or DPS rotations around it. Discipline timing — Defensive on a heavy-hitter, Evasive when adds appear, Stonewall when heals fall behind — is the moment-to-moment skill expression.
Raid
Raids cluster Warriors into tank rotations. Main tank holds the boss; off-tanks hold adds; backup tanks soak split-mob fights. AA priority leans into Combat Stability, Combat Agility, Planar Durability, and the Warrior-specific Discipline lines that extend Defensive uptime. A geared 65 Warrior with full Plane of Time loot is the apex tanking body in the era.
The Last Camp any-race-class combos
The Last Camp unlocks every race-class permutation, and Warriors gain the most flavor from it. Halfling Warrior stacks the highest natural AGI / DEX in the game onto plate, producing a riposte-and-dodge build that mitigates more swings than a Dwarf Warrior of the same gear tier. Iksar Warrior is the regen tank — the racial regen plus skin-AC bonus closes the gap between heal ticks. Vah Shir Warrior brings Safe Fall and the highest cat-race STR, useful for both solo recovery and 2H crit damage.
On the niche side, Erudite Warrior is mechanically suboptimal but The Last Camp enables it; the build leans into wisdom-based AA progression. Wood Elf Warrior opens forage and natural AGI, producing the leanest backup-tank profile in the game. None of these were possible canonically, and none of them break encounters — they just give roleplay-driven players a Warrior identity that fits their race.
Spell / discipline highlights
Warriors don't cast, but disciplines structure the entire skill ceiling. Early on, Kick / Bash / Slam carry interrupt and aggro duty. By level 30, Defensive Discipline becomes the staple cooldown for any heavy pull. By 50, Fortitude and Stonewall carry the class through fights other tanks couldn't survive, and Furious turns the Warrior into a DPS tank for short windows. PoP-cap raid Warriors juggle three to four discipline timers per major engagement.
AAs to prioritize
Combat Stability and Combat Agility are foundational — invest first. Then Planar Durability, Innate Defense, and Innate Strength. Warrior-specific lines extend Defensive uptime and unlock additional stance options; rank these after the universal mitigation tree is full. Hastened Disciplines is the long-tail pick once core mitigation AAs are maxed.
Leveling path summary
- 1-15: Starting city outskirts and newbie zones. Build up weapon skills with a mix of 1H and 2H.
- 15-30: Blackburrow, Unrest, Najena, Befallen. Find groups and learn shield-tanking.
- 30-45: Sol A, Sol B, Paw, Mistmoore, Lower Guk. Learn aggro control under pressure.
- 45-60: Karnor's Castle, Chardok, Sebilis, Velketor's, Howling Stones. Discipline management becomes the core skill.
- 60-65: PoP progression — Plane of Justice through Plane of Time. Main-tank seat across the raid scene.
Notable gear by tier
Early-game Warriors prize Bone-Splinter Tonfa (newbie 2H), Crystal Caryatid Idol of off-hand stats, and any 1H with proc utility. Kunark introduces Crystallized Shaft of Tranquility and Sword of Pain. Velious gives Glowing Black Stone and Coldain shield quests. PoP endgame is Sword of Truth, Heart of the Frozen family, and the Time-tier 2H weapons. Epic 1.0 Jagged Blade of War (2H slash with Rage of Zek proc) is the canonical capstone for raid Warriors.