Pre-Raid Bear Tanking Gear Part One

After going through the various faction rewards available, I thought I would now go through all the items available to a Pre-Raid Druid Tank. I am looking at this from my own casual point of view. In this first part we will go from Head to Hands.

Head:

[Titan-forged Leather Helm of Triumph] (40 Wintergrasp Marks of Honor)
Tank: 46931.2
[Hateful Gladiator's Dragonhide Helm] (49,600 Honor points -- basically as good as Titan-Forged, and easier to acquire)
Tank: 47806.8
[Helm of Cheated Fate] (drop in Heroic Gundrak)
Tank: 38797.1
[Headguard of Retaliation] (quest in normal Utgarde Pinnacle)
Tank: 38257.8
[Eviscerator's Facemask] (crafted, 50g)
Tank: 37280.4

Even though [Eviscerator's Facemask] is at the bottom of the list, I think this is the best choice for me initially. Hopefully I will be able to run the occasional instance and may get a chance to get [Headguard of Retaliation].

Neck:

[Titanium Earthguard Chain] (crafted, mats 1,500g)
Tank: 15375.2
[Chained Military Gorget] (25 Emblem of Heroism)
Tank: 14426.3
[Susurrating Shell Necklace]>/[Choker of Feral Fury] (10 Champion's Seal from Argent Tournament)
Tank: 11169.8

The [Susurrating Shell Necklace] is an easy choice to make. Depending on how much gold I have, I may look at the [Titanium Earthguard Chain]

Shoulders:

[Trollwoven Spaulders] (crafted, mats 250g)
Tank: 38963.1
[Eviscerator's Shoulderpads] (crafted, mats 50g)
Tank: 31055.1

For around 250G, [Trollwoven Spaulders] are the easy choice.

Back:

[Shawl of the Shattered Giant] (crafted, mats 3000g)
Tank: 22212.3
[Durable Nerubhide Cape] (crafted, mats 200g)
Tank: 20851.0

There is no way I could spend 3000G on a cloak that isn’t really that much better, so I will stick with the [Durable Nerubhide Cape].

Chest:

[Titan-forged Leather Tunic of Triumph] (40 Wintergrasp Marks of Honor)
Tank: 54597.0
[Darkheart Chestguard] (Knights of the Ebon Blade exalted)
Tank: 45762.8
[Polar Vest] (crafted, mats 250g -- has long-term use for your STA set)
Tank: 50352.2

Emmeralds List puts the [Polar Vest] above the [Darkheart Chestguard]. I tend to agree, but I will probably end up going for both, however the [Polar Vest] will be first and I will retain it for Stamina Gear regardless.

Wrist:

[Deadly Gladiator's Armwraps of Triumph] (31,600 Honor points)
Tank: 26890.7
[Wristwraps of the Cutthroat] (800g, probably not worth it compared to Deadly Gladiator's)
Tank: 23191.7
[Dragonfriend Bracers] (Wyrmrest Accord Exalted)
Tank: 23321.1
[Eviscerator's Bindings] (crafted, mats 40g)
Tank: 20419.8

There is not much in it here. I will initially get the [Eviscerator's Bindings] and then either [Wristwraps of the Cutthroat] or [Dragonfriend Bracers] depending on Gold/Faction Progress.

Hands:

[Gloves of Fast Reactions] -- BoE drop from Heroic Naxxramas (Sapphiron), currently about 1k-2.5k on the AH.
Tank: 36454.4
[Heroes' Dreamwalker Handgrips] (60 Emblems of Heroism)
Tank: 33981.3
[Handwraps of Preserved History] (quest in normal CoT: Strat)
Tank: 30573.7
[Eviscerator's Gauntlets] (Crafted BoE, 60g)
Tank: 28118.1

I have to say, the Eviscerator's Battlegear is such a handy set to help gear up. I will go with the [Eviscerator's Gauntlets] until I can get the [Gloves of Fast Reactions] for a nice price.

References

The Above information was compiled from the following thread from Elitist Jerks and Tank Points are from Emmerald's Bear Mitigation List.

Razorbax