What class makes the best tank?

[DivisibleByZero]

Blur and Mirror are just two tools on top of all the other things I mentioned. No class is going to give you 8+ tanking tools right up front; they're all going to have progression.

To be clear, I'm definitely not saying rogue is the best tank. I'm just responding to the claim that they don't get much in terms of tanking tools. In fact they get more than most traditional classes thought of as tanks. And if built/played smart they can be amazing tanks.

With a tiny little bit of multiclassing, I absolutely am making that claim, precisely for the reasons that you listed. Add Int to AC (and an optional fighting style) onto everything they get, and you've got the best tank in the game.

[Emay Ecks]

I think a good tank should be able to either draw enemy aggression or prevent enemies from being able to target the fragile backline. There have been several good suggestions so far, but consider having a tanky caster on the frontline. They will be targeted by every intelligent enemy you fight.

I am playing an incredibly fun tanky druid of the coast right now. Druids are incredible at generating threat and agro against intelligent enemies. What kind of intelligent enemy isn't going to target the caster concentrating on Call Lightning?

I've been stacking AC to get it to 20 (+1 studded leather, cloak of protection (the +1 to saves is fantastic as well), a +1 wooden shield and 16 DEX). I took the War Caster and Resilient (Con) feats to never fail concentration saves. As a coast druid I also get Mirror Image which reduces the likelihood of actually being hit.

It's probably not as optimal as a lot of the other classes suggested here, but it's certainly a fun option to consider.

[MaxWilson]

Elf
Str 9, Dex 16, Con 14, Int 14, Wis 14, Cha 8
or Str 8, Dex 16, Con 14, Int 16, Wis 12, Cha 8 if you wanted to add/subtract one from your AC/WisSave
Fighter 1+ / Bladesinger Wizard 2+ / Arcane Trickster 7+ with Sentinel feat
Best tank in the game.

Fighter 1+ for Protection style and Second Wind
Bladesinger Wizard 2+ for Spellcasting (Healing Elixir), minor Arcane Recovery, Minor Ritual Casting, and Bladesong
Arcane Trickster 7+ for Cunning Action, Spellcasting, Uncanny Dodge, Evasion

You could finish Rogue from there of you wanted to, leaving f1/w2/r17
Or you could add a few more Fighter levels for another ASI and Battle Master.
Or you could add a few more levels of Fighter for more of an even split and go EK, ending f7/w2/r11.
The options really open up. But elven f1/w2/r7 is the base for the best tank in the game.

Best tank in what way? I see your 10th level Fighter/Bladesinger/ArcaneTrickster has an AC of 16, 19 after spending a bonus action to initiate Bladesinging, perhaps 20 if he spent his sole ASI on Dex or Int. He has a reasonably strong opportunity attack (d8+4d6+3 (21.5)) if he can get Sneak Attack to apply, and a weak opportunity attack if he can't (e.g. no other tanks in play).

A human Paladin 9/Sorc 1 Warcaster has as a better opportunity attack (4d8+3 (21.0), only one point lower, plus a Divine Smite option if desired, and it's not dependent on having other tanks in play), two free ASIs for other stuff like boosting Cha or Lucky, and better AC (21).

In what way is the Arcane Trickster a better tank, let alone the best tank in the game?

[Corran]

Elf
That's a misrepresentation. The difference in AC between Dex light armor and heavy armor is literally one point. But if you have Bladesong, you have the best potential AC in the game.

Bladesong aside (since we are talking about rogues - if you have in mind some specific rogue/bladesinger build, then I may or may not change my mind if you explain how it would come together as a tank; not very familiar with bladesingers to speculate on my own), we are talking about a difference roughly of 3-4 AC points. Which is not that negligible, in fact it is a big difference.

Even if you throw on top of an 17-ish AC, defensive boosts like blur and shield (as Zene mentions in her post), then you are still underperforming, and significantly so, when compared with a build that has a base AC of 20-21. Disdvantage on incoming attacks will typically work better for the build with the higher AC (saying typically, because it depends on the enemies' attack bonus, but that just means that a higher AC can profit better from it in the majority of cases, hence typically). And moreover, the less you get hit, the less you need to rely on shield, for which you have only so many casts per day. Edit: And also while you spent your reaction, which means no reaction attacks, which would be the big selling point of a frontliner rogue (if built right).

Well I agree they're better multi-classed. But in terms of suvivability: Evasion is amazing, Uncanny Dodge is amazing. If you're tanking as a rogue you're almost certainly going Trickster, in which case Shield is amazing as well. Plus Mirror Image and Blur. For stickiness: Booming Blade is quite nice, and doesn't have Extra Attack to conflict with it like it does in the other tank classes; expertise in athletics for grapple/shove is amazing. And for positioning, you absolutely cannot beat cunning action dodge (edit: I meant dash) and/or disengage. You are right where you want to be from round 1 onward, while that Dwarf Battlemaster is still 30 feet from the enemy caster.

I dont think evasion and uncanny dodge are that good, as tanking abilities, but let me put that aside and talk a bit about the AT strategy you presented.

Shield is a good spell, yes. But, an arcane trickster picking that, is doing that at the cost of another non-enchantment/illusion spell, say, find familiar, which is so good for boosting the AT's dpr. Moreover, to really profit from shield, you need to have a very good AC (as I say to my answer to DBZ above), not only because with a good AC you will spam it less (remember, shield spends spell slots), and not only because you will use it to better effect (since it lasts till your next turn), but also because it competes with uncanny dodge in the most unfavourable way. When you get hit, you will be presented with a serious dilemma (not an actual dilemma, more like trap options, but I digress): Do I use my shield which costs valuable resources and I can only do it that many times per day, in the hopes that it will raise my mediocre AC so that I avoid getting hit, possibly protecting me from more incoming attacks till my next turn? Or do I take the hit and use uncanny dodge with my reaction, that does not cost me any resources, but that leaves me more open to more incoming attacks (which as a tank, is something that is logical to expect)? And all that, while shield will cost you, resources aside, a valuable non-enchantment/illusion pick.

About mirror image and blur (see my point in my answer to DBZ about blur), they are good spells for a tank. But they cost you an action. And a rogue losing actions not attacking (no matter their role, their damage is good and they should always aim to proc sneak attack, afterall killing things means less incoming attacks, so offense is relative to tanking that way -and in other ways, but I digress once again), is a rogue not doing their job well. Granted, with a fighter dip that will get you action surge, that problem is mitigated a bit (or a lot, if you have good ways of maximizing your hit chance, and thus action surge will rarely be needed to make up for missed sneak attack opportunitites). But for a pure rogue, unless precasting these spells (or unless used in very corner case situations), I dont think wasting an action to cast them will be worth it most of the time.

Cunning action is usful for positioning, agreed, but a tank cannot really profit from this (or so I think, perhaps I am lacking imagination and haven't thought of sth important). It's more useful to striker and skirmisher types from what I can understand. BB is nice, but this is not really the control you should be hoping as a tank. Not bad (especially if you somehow get warcaster), but not that great either IMO. Certainly not enough on its own to justify stickiness.

[DivisibleByZero]

Bladesong aside (since we are talking about rogues - if you have in mind some specific rogue/bladesinger build, then I may or may not change my mind if you explain how it would come together as a tank; not very familiar with bladesingers to speculate on my own), we are talking about a difference roughly of 3-4 AC points. Which is not that negligible, in fact it is a big difference.

Even if you throw on top of an 17-ish AC, defensive boosts like blur and shield (as Zene mentions in her post), then you are still underperforming, and significantly so, when compared with a build that has a base AC of 20-21. Disdvantage on incoming attacks will typically work better for the build with the higher AC (saying typically, because it depends on the enemies' attack bonus, but that just means that a higher AC can profit better from it in the majority of cases, hence typically). And moreover, the less you get hit, the less you need to rely on shield, for which you have only so many casts per day.

The general idea for the build was already posted.
As for AC, with Studded you're looking at 12+Dex+Int, which is 18 out of the gate, right at level 2 if you decide to start with Wiz for some reason.
Add 1 for Defense if you choose that style. You can spend 4 of your 5 ASIs (or 6 if you go further into Fighter for War Magic) on stats, and you'll finish with AC23/AC28 with the shield spell, which get as high as 26/31 with magical armor.
Plus Blur (or ProtEvil) for disadvantage on that.
Plus Uncanny Dodge if you still manage to get hit and shield won't help for some unknown reason or if you want to save a slot.
Plus evasion so you can have your casters dropping bombs right on you.
So on and so forth.

[GlenSmash!]

Eldritch Knight can stick, control, and get crazy high AC.

Ancestral Barb can prevent incoming damage to party members and mark targets.

Great options. There's a lot more to being a Tank than just durability. You have to make the enemies want to attack YOU instead of your allies. Ancestral barbarian does great at this.

[Corran]

@DBZ: Ok, I had a quick look at it (so I may be missing sth important), and at first glance, it just seems to me a weaker version of a fighter/rogue sentinel build (specifically a str build, if we are interested in tanking, for better AC and STR saves). At least if the aim is for making sentinel viable and aiming at strong reaction attacks, for which you will also need melee allies (preferably of the type that can attract the enemies' attention).

Otherwise, meaning, if the above is not the aim (ie strong reactionary attacks), I just see it as an AC tank -just like a bladesinger- with slower access to ASIs, so I dont quite see the value in it (since bladesingers are not that great tanks on the whole).

[DivisibleByZero]

@DBZ: Ok, I had a quick look at it (so I may be missing sth important), and at first glance, it just seems to me a weaker version of a fighter/rogue sentinel build (specifically a str build, if we are interested in tanking, for better AC and STR saves). At least if the aim is for making sentinel viable and aiming at strong reaction attacks, for which you will also need melee allies (preferably of the type that can attract the enemies' attention).

Otherwise, meaning, if the above is not the aim (ie strong reactionary attacks), I just see it as an AC tank -just like a bladesinger- with slower access to ASIs, so I dont quite see the value in it (since bladesingers are not that great tanks on the whole).

The idea is that it creates a catch22.
If they attack you they'll probably miss. If they don't, they're going to take a beating.
Extreme AC and Sentinel combined with a powerful single strike (which uses no resources) is a ridiculously good tanking recipe.
Uncanny Dodge and Evasion are just gravy on top of that recipe.

[Lombra]

Elf
Str 9, Dex 16, Con 14, Int 14, Wis 14, Cha 8
or Str 8, Dex 16, Con 14, Int 16, Wis 12, Cha 8 if you wanted to add/subtract one from your AC/WisSave
Fighter 1+ / Bladesinger Wizard 2+ / Arcane Trickster 7+ with Sentinel feat
Best tank in the game.

Fighter 1+ for Protection style and Second Wind
Bladesinger Wizard 2+ for Spellcasting (Healing Elixir), minor Arcane Recovery, Minor Ritual Casting, and Bladesong
Arcane Trickster 7+ for Cunning Action, Spellcasting, Uncanny Dodge, Evasion

You could finish Rogue from there of you wanted to, leaving f1/w2/r17
Or you could add a few more Fighter levels for another ASI and Battle Master.
Or you could add a few more levels of Fighter for more of an even split and go EK, ending f7/w2/r11.
The options really open up. But elven f1/w2/r7 is the base for the best tank in the game.

I'm looking at a 19 AC guy (12+3+3+1) with:
20+10+8+35=73HP + (1d10+1)/short rest heal

Level 4 spellcasting slots (4 lv.1, 3 lv.2)
Shield 4/ long rest blur 3/long rest (with space for rituals for utility I guess) and some racial spells (faerie fire from drow is cool)

Very good at concentrating (3+2+4 =+9)

Pretty mobile

Bad damage output (unless you have a buddy near you 24/7)

It's hard to hit, and will likely take few damage in the long run, but it's saves are terrible and can lock down only one enemy at a time if he gets the chance to hit it. The fact that it doesn't do a lot of damage and that is not easy to hit is probably gonna drive the enemies towards someone else, so bad aggro. It is very survivable, but it's not a tank unless you are fighting in a 15feet corridor.

A paladin of equal level without much effort has marginally more HP(and a 50HP pool to cure whoever he wants) marginally more AC, more spells (5th level caster) and more damage. Spells include sanctuary and compelled duel, which manipulate aggro in his favor. Hos saves are beautiful, and if he really feels like it he can get PAM+sentinel and still get another ASI or for more HP (tough) or for even better saves (resilient) (variant human, no elf restriction).

Not to mention all of the aura goodies that he's getting (both for him and the party)

I'm not saying that you did not see a rogue tank in action, I'm saying that a tank rgue is a poor tank among the other options. But I like the build, I'd use it for skirmishing rather than tanking tho.

Eldritch knights are great tanks too.

[Sir cryosin]

Warlock 6 / bear barbarian 14. You pop armor of Agatha's then you go into rage. AoA gives temp HP and damage while rage half all that damage. You also get some fun invocations. I'll would go pact of the chain so I can pick the new invocation that when you roll to heal you get full heal. And clock of fly's could be fun to.

[Lombra]

Unpopular opinion: fighter1/bladelock x is one very spikey sticky piece of character with AoA and HAM. (And hellish rebuke but slow down with all those slots eh Lombra?)

Semi-shadow-monk'd.

[DivisibleByZero]

I'm looking at a 19 AC guy (12+3+3+1) with:
20+10+8+35=73HP + (1d10+1)/short rest heal

Level 4 spellcasting slots (4 lv.1, 3 lv.2)
Shield 4/ long rest blur 3/long rest (with space for rituals for utility I guess) and some racial spells (faerie fire from drow is cool)

Very good at concentrating (3+2+4 =+9)

Pretty mobile

Bad damage output (unless you have a buddy near you 24/7)

It's hard to hit, and will likely take few damage in the long run, but it's saves are terrible and can lock down only one enemy at a time if he gets the chance to hit it. The fact that it doesn't do a lot of damage and that is not easy to hit is probably gonna drive the enemies towards someone else, so bad aggro. It is very survivable, but it's not a tank unless you are fighting in a 15feet corridor.

A paladin of equal level without much effort has marginally more HP(and a 50HP pool to cure whoever he wants) marginally more AC, more spells (5th level caster) and more damage. Spells include sanctuary and compelled duel, which manipulate aggro in his favor. Hos saves are beautiful, and if he really feels like it he can get PAM+sentinel and still get another ASI or for more HP (tough) or for even better saves (resilient) (variant human, no elf restriction).

Not to mention all of the aura goodies that he's getting (both for him and the party)

I'm not saying that you did not see a rogue tank in action, I'm saying that a tank rgue is a poor tank among the other options. But I like the build, I'd use it for skirmishing rather than tanking tho.

Eldritch knights are great tanks too.

The higher the levels go, the better he becomes, in every respect.
He has more potential healing via Healing Elixir than you give him credit for.
Shield/blur become less and less needed as you level.
Doesn't do a lot of damage? SCAG cantrips + sneak attack at-will and sneak attack on OA is minor damage? A paladin certainly doesn't exceed it over the course of the day, despite what you say.
You say he can only lock down one enemy at a time? And how many tanks can lock down multiple enemies at once in 5e? This one actually can. He can lock down two enemies, one with Booming Blade and a second with Sentinel.

You just haven't seen it. It works. And it is anything but "poor" on the tanking front.

But you're right. It's also a skirmisher, if there's another tank around.

[Corran]

The idea is that it creates a catch22.
If they attack you they'll probably miss. If they don't, they're going to take a beating.
Extreme AC and Sentinel combined with a powerful single strike (which uses no resources) is a ridiculously good tanking recipe.
Uncanny Dodge and Evasion are just gravy on top of that recipe.

Ok, I dig this idea, and I have git it a try on my own in the past (though I haven't got to play it yet).
From what I had figured back then, a fighter (battlemaster) dip would achieve it better, looking at combining a good base AC (20 if dex based, eventually; 21 if str based -ie heavy armor- once you got access to plate), rather than going with a bladesinger approach. Of course this was just my opinion, and I'll admit that I hadn;t looked that much on a bladesinger dip, mainly because I prefered to spend feats/ASIs on things like shield master and resilient wisdom, rather than on improving intelligence. But it's not like I can say for sure that a bladesinger approach would not be good, or perhaps even better. Will look into it at some point (ie the bladesinger route for the idea you presented) in more detail, to get a better grasp (at least in theory) of how well it would work.

One thing you might want to keep in mind though, is that such builds (the catch22 idea as you put it), would probably work a lot better if you are having them fight next to other melee allies (and possibly even having the familiar fly right above your own square), so that you can add sneak attack damage to OA's (the familiar prevents smart enemies from avoiding your sneak attack damage on OAs, by maneuvring first out of the reach of your melee allies, and then out of your reach -hence why the familiar must stay in the square right above yours). Also, the familiar, is the only way I can think of, that can grant you advantage on your sentinel reaction attack, and being it logical to assume that it would require for a very specific initiative order dor that to happen, you would need the familiar to take the ready action -I assume this is RAW, not sure though- for that to happen. That because due to extra attack (or gaining advantage in other ways, such as via shoving prone, during your turn), means that advantage via the familiar would be much more profitable with your sentinel reaction attacks rather than with your main action (in dpr terms).

Oops, I rambled....

[Shining Wrath]

I'm going to throw out the idea of a Tank Monk, because nothing protects the squishy people like stunning the other side's Striker. As always, there's things you just can't stun (hello dragons!), and stunning burns ki - but a Monk gets respectable AC, proficiency in all saves (eventually), does enough damage to draw fire, and has the mobility to always get in between the squishy people and the bad guys, or to get to the other side's squishy people and force the enemy to fall back into defensive positions.

Best in all situations? Nope. Absolute nightmare for any glass cannon enemy with high DPR but low Con save? Yep.

[Citan]

In your opinion, what class makes the best tank?

At the moment I'm thinking fighter (battlemaster) with protection style & the sentinel feat. But I can definitely see arguements for other classes.

A tank is in my opinion someone that is geared towards damage prevention on other people, by reducing enemy's efficiency or inciting them to attack him instead of others (and having enough resilience to survive being a practice target).

As a pure class, I'd rate like this...

FIRST TIER
From level 1 to 20, has a nice balance of abilities to control the way enemies act or mitigate damage for allies, and has the resilience to go with it.

1. Ancients Paladin: 30 feet permanent auras (+CHA to saves, resistance to Magic), concentration buffs (including Circle of Power!), control spells (Paladin spells such as Command/Compelled Duel + Ensnaring Strike, Moonbeam), Protection fighting style, 20 AC, regen make him an extremely good tank in all aspects.
Crown Paladin would come not far behind, thanks to Channel Divinity and ability to take damage in place of someone else.

SECOND TIER
Classes that have one main flaw: being really reliable late, being very limited in some aspect, or being "just good enough" overall.

2a. Life Cleric: thanks to Warding Bond and Domains "auto-heal when healing others" you can give much protection to someone else while healing yourself automatically. And you have the most buffs you can apply to self or others to help taking hits. You also get a handful of good spells such as Command or Guardian of Faith. Another nice guardian would be Light domain (Warding Flare) or Nature domain (resistance to elemental damage).
Put there first because it's a very balanced build from start to finish.

2b. Totem Barbarian: you have absolutely no way to actually control people, but you are generally a powerful threat enough to make people want to try and kill you, at least until they realize how sturdy you are. Best "tank value" against melee, because you are extremely resilient, can usually reliably push people prone, and make strong enough attacks to dent them. Even more true if you take some feats, which you should be able to do so.
Put there as a second because, as far as "meat shield goes", nobody can beat a Barbarian's resilience (except Ancients Paladin and Monks, at higher level).
So very focused class, but still very effective against all melee creatures that do not have a tactical mind (which should be most).

2c. Eldricht Knight: focusing on buffs (Shield, Blur, Haste) until you are high-level, at which you can apply very effective spells (Slow, Fear), and the ability to stack many feats makes an EK close to a Bear Barbarian against melee enemies defensive-wise, and potentially better offensive-wise, simply because it's easier for him to grab the most important feats (Sentinel, Polearm Master) to lock-in the enemies: so while, as Barbarian, he cannot impose a course of action to enemies, he can force them to stay put until they are dead.

2d. Arcane Trickster Rogue: in addition to access to same buffs as above, can much more easily (and earlier) enable AOE control, also has some of the best defensive features of the game (Cunning Action, Uncanny Dodge, Evasion) and ends with native Wisdom saving throw. Could be as good or better as any other second tier option depending on campaign and player's wits.

2e. Long Death Monk: AOE Fear as an action is just, just, the best free feature ever! Big regret is that it's not compatible with Martial Arts (no bonus action attack) nor Flurry of Blows IIRC so it's essentially a turn spent solely on that, but it's really good. It's also the most resilient class of all barring Ancients Paladin (overall) and potentially Bear Barbarian or Abjurer Wizard, depending on the campaign.
Put there as the third though because a) its best defensive features come late, before that you are more frail than others b) there is a strong competition for resource management from start to finish.
Honestly, the fact that you cannot contribute to damage when using your main ability could be arguably a reason enough to drop one tier below. YMMV.
A case could be made for Open Hand Monk as an alternative because of their free control on Flurry, but it's really much more limited.

THIRD TIER
Classes that fall short in one or several aspects, or become really good as tank so late most people will never see it.

3a. Swashbuckler Rogue: level 9 features makes him possibly the best at locking a single enemy. Plus it's still a Rogue. However, he has much lesser versatility and overall resilience compared to Arcane Trickster. In particular, he has nothing else than Panache as a way to control how enemies act.

3b. Abjurer Wizard: IF you manage to survive the first three quarters of your life (in which "tanking" would require either a very particular build, or spending all your spells solely on this), then you become great: Abjurer Ward + advantage and resistance against spells mean your main threat becomes physical attacks. So you can use more freely all the good battlefield/mind control spells you can cast. Still, it's only when you reach level 18 that you really become truly resilient.

3c. Bladesinger Wizard: much better than an Abjurer defense-wise until level 14, lesser after: getting INT bonus to AC and concentration makes your life much easier. Level 10 feature though (use slots to absorb damage) is probably always a bad use of a slot unless it's really "this or die".

3d. Moon Druid: one of the most schizophrenic classes. XD
Both in "how well you can tank" (good at specific levels, bad others, until the end of career when you become the ultimate tank, trumping everyone except Paladin)... And in "am I a beast or a spellcaster" (most of your career, you cast a concentration spell then Wild Shape for the remaining).
Provided you reach level 18th tough, the spell/WS duality disappears. And if/when you reach level 20, you simply trump everyone else except Paladin (because of permanent auras) and Wizards (because Simulacrum/Wish/etc): Barbarians/Fighters/Rogues (infinite Wild Shape = incredible replesnishable source of THP) and Clerics (Conjuration spells, battlefield control spells to provide protection for your allies) fall short.

3.e Bards: both PHB Colleges have their goodies (Cutting Words on one side, proficiencies on the other). I'll go on a stretch and say that counter-intuitively Lore Bard is the best of both, but it will require some investment (Mage Secrets for Mage Armor and Shield). Also all his "tanking" is based on spells except for Cutting Words, so his only forte is the ability to cherry pick.

As for best "tank" in a multiclass situation... I'll look into past posts when I have some time again (runned out for now ^^). But there are, for theorical level 20 builds, probably a few dozen equally viable combinations. :)

[DivisibleByZero]

Ok, I dig this idea, and I have git it a try on my own in the past (though I haven't got to play it yet).
From what I had figured back then, a fighter (battlemaster) dip would achieve it better, looking at combining a good base AC (20 if dex based, eventually; 21 if str based -ie heavy armor- once you got access to plate), rather than going with a bladesinger approach.

Fighter does it well.
But Fighter lacks the "powerful single strike" portion which makes the Rogue so much better at forcing the catch22 IMO. The only way for him to get it is to force a Str build and take GWM and take a -5 to hit with that powerful single strike.
So the Rogue is better at forcing the choice, which in turn means he's better at doing what a tank is supposed to do.... force people to attack him instead of others.
Attacking someone else is a bigger threat/gamble when you're standing next to a Rogue with Sentinel than it is with any other class, because he can literally punish you severely all day long without spending any resources.
Throw excessive AC on top of that, and voila, excellent tank.

Edit, I see now you're talking about a Fighter dip.
BM is good indeed, and an argument could be made for Swashbuckler in this case as well. Lose a little versatility and a little burst AC, and in exchange you get better sticking and don't need allies on hand.

[Lombra]

The higher the levels go, the better he becomes, in every respect.
He has more potential healing via Healing Elixir than you give him credit for.
Shield/blur become less and less needed as you level.
Doesn't do a lot of damage? SCAG cantrips + sneak attack at-will and sneak attack on OA is minor damage? A paladin certainly doesn't exceed it over the course of the day, despite what you say.
And how many other tanks can lock down multiple enemies at once?

You just haven't seen it. It works. And it is anything but "poor" on the tanking front.

But you're right. It's also a skirmisher, if there's another tank around.

How are you getting SA if you are alone versus what you are tanking? How are you getting reliable advantage? At 13th rogue level you get the thing with mage hand, at character level 16.

The PAM sentinel guy is able to make 3 attacks per round with an as reliable reaction. Who's the worst at damage again? Even 2 BB/round can't exceed the damage of 4 attacks.

The PAM sentinel guy is locking down a guy with sentinel, and a guy with compelled duel, or all the guys with sanctuary on the VIP.

What is healing helixir anyways? (Can't find it in SCAG or PHB)

On the level-up thing: paladins simply get very, very good as they level up, what is a rogue getting to tank better past level 7? Slippery mind at 15? Spell thief at 17 (Character level 20)? More slots to use on shield and blur? (Which is pretty good, but not much)

One cool part of your build is that you still get 5 ASIs despite multiclassing for 3 levels.

Again, I'm seeing a very slippery character in your build, but not a tank. To be able to survive is not sufficient to classify as a tank IMO. Wether it tanked or not in a game you played doesn't matter. In the game that I'm playing the tanks are a monk and a cleric, so personal experience is not very useful when discussing about the ideal best.

Edit: I can see the: "you really have to make me use my reaction on uncanny dodge or you are risking a lot from my OA (if somehow he can get sneak attack), and don't get close to someone else because if you do so I'm gonna stab you and it's gonna hurt" and it's a good tactic, but far from the best.

[MaxWilson]

Doesn't do a lot of damage? SCAG cantrips + sneak attack at-will and sneak attack on OA is minor damage?

Highly situational sneak attack. It's not like you're a Swashbuckler: you rely on having advantage and/or an adjacent ally in order to get your sneak attack damage. Since your job is to tank, you don't want other guys next to you (or they will get attacked in lieu of you). So yes, mediocre damage. On par with a paladorc using Booming Blade; far worse than a Battlemaster fighter with GWM.

You're be better off multiclassing Swashbuckler and Bladesinger at around a 3:1 ratio.

[Citan]

Rogues are very high on the list, probably a contender for the top spot. Sneak Attack makes them a credible threat with regard to OA's, Uncanny Dodge stops them dying from "drawing aggro" and Evasion means the party artillery can happily blast away with them right there in the midst of the target area. A decent Con more than makes up for their lowish HD and Hill Dwarves and Tough exist if you're that concerned about HP. Arcane Tricksters have a slew of defensive options, including Shield, Haste and Mirror Image. Out of the box, Rogues make great tanks.

What are you buying then? The Paladin's non-existent alternative? The Fighter's non-existent alternative?
The difference between a Rogue and either of them is 1hp/level. One. And he has a bunch of tools to survive.
A raging Barbarian has an alternative, sure, but they're usually much easier to hit in the first place so they need it more. But we're discussing what's possible, and a tanking Rogue is just that. Possible. I've seen it myself, used to great effect.
Rogues are a TON more survivable than people generally seem to think; that viewpoint being largely based on non-applicable experiences from previous editions.

Guys.
Seriously.
Stop with that.

Rogues are NOT tanks, except Arcane Tricksters that would be built to do so in spell selection.
Rogues are VERY SELF-SUFFICIENT AT SURVIVING. That's a big difference.
Uncany Dodge is not the "hey I'm not even really hurt" ability you sell. It halves damage but a) uses your reaction b) works against ONLY ONE attack.
Against several attacks a turn, you will fall quickly. And since a tank's job is to ensure his pals are not attacked, then because you have very few spell options to force creatures to do as you wish, you want them to at least attack you. So you will sustain several attack per turn.
Defensive Duelist feat does not help that much, because has the same problems than Uncanny Dodge.
And if you want to use Sentinel benefit, then you used your reaction, so you are defenseless.
Arcane Trickster is much better in that regard thanks to Shield (lasts a round), Mirror Image (great on a DEX character) and Blur (and -much later- Greater Invisibility). But these are still costly, limited resources.

Even in the best, most defensive build you could make as a pure Rogue, you are still extremely far behind Barbarians, Paladins or Monks as far as overall resilience is concerned, and even more so as far as tanking is concerned.

In the end, a Rogue is still someone that actively tries to limit the threat that is directed to him to one enemy, two at the most.

By the way...

Rogues are very high on the list, probably a contender for the top spot. Sneak Attack makes them a credible threat with regard to OA's, Uncanny Dodge stops them dying from "drawing aggro" and Evasion means the party artillery can happily blast away with them right there in the midst of the target area. A decent Con more than makes up for their lowish HD and Hill Dwarves and Tough exist if you're that concerned about HP. Arcane Tricksters have a slew of defensive options, including Shield, Haste and Mirror Image. Out of the box, Rogues make great tanks.

Elf
Str 9, Dex 16, Con 14, Int 14, Wis 14, Cha 8
or Str 8, Dex 16, Con 14, Int 16, Wis 12, Cha 8 if you wanted to add/subtract one from your AC/WisSave
Fighter 1+ / Bladesinger Wizard 2+ / Arcane Trickster 7+ with Sentinel feat
Best tank in the game.

Fighter 1+ for Protection style and Second Wind
Bladesinger Wizard 2+ for Spellcasting (Healing Elixir), minor Arcane Recovery, Minor Ritual Casting, and Bladesong
Arcane Trickster 7+ for Cunning Action, Spellcasting, Uncanny Dodge, Evasion

You could finish Rogue from there of you wanted to, leaving f1/w2/r17
Or you could add a few more Fighter levels for another ASI and Battle Master.
Or you could add a few more levels of Fighter for more of an even split and go EK, ending f7/w2/r11.
The options really open up. But elven f1/w2/r7 is the base for the best tank in the game.



That's a misrepresentation. The difference in AC between Dex light armor and heavy armor is literally one point. But if you have Bladesong, you have the best potential AC in the game.

I love how you dare say that "Rogue is the best tank in the game" and just after that post a heavy-multiclass build (which, by the way, still falls very short of pure-classes such as Monk or Paladin sadly when you consider all aspects, as others tried to explain).

I truly think it depends on what you're going up against to determine the best tank. Here are my choices for best tank based on particular situations.

1. My first choice is a Totem (Bear) Barbarian. I would suggest medium armor, a shield, Sentinel, and Resilient Wisdom. I would personally multiclass with Rogue after 5-6 levels of Barbarian, but the class works just as well as a tank being a pure Barbarian. The weakness of this class though, is Intelligence and Charisma saves (and Wisdom saves until you get Resilient Wisdom). You're dependent on allies to help you deal with Int/Cha saves.

2. My second choice would be an OotA Paladin. This archetype is amazing at standing up against casters, as well as defending itself against them. They will have a pretty solid bonus to saves (they can consider Resilient Con) with their save aura and Bless. They will eventually have a pair of don't die abilities (Death Ward at level 13 and an Oath specific don't die mechanic at 15), and their level 20 grants them HP regen. Weaknesses I see with the class in regards to tanking include damage reduction that isn't spell based. OotA Paladins are amazing when dealing with spell casters, but when dealing with anything else dealing massive amount of damage (certain Dragon breaths), Paladins in general won't stand up for long.

3. My third choice is an OoD Paladin. Similar to OotA, these Paladins are great when put up against a pretty specific group of creatures. Anything that charms you, or is an: Aberration, Celestial, Elemental, Fey, Fiend, or Undead, will have a tough time against your OoD Paladin. Essentially, any time you're dealing with something not of the prime material plane, an OoD Paladin will be an ideal tank. These Paladins have a similar weakness to massive amounts of burst though, as they don't have any real damage reduction available to them.

If you know what the campaign is going to focus on story wise, you could choose a "tank" that does well in that particular scenario. If the big bad is going to potentially be a Lich, both OotA and OoD will probably do well. If the big bad is going to be a Tarrasque, your Barbarian might be a decent choice.

This is all theory craft though. I'm sure there are others who have actually played the role of tank beyond the first 12 levels of the game who can provide more insight.

Totally right, "who is the best tank" depends heavily on party composition and more importantly on campaign. 100% approved. ^^

As for best multiclass build (I ****ing should have gone already, I'm really too weak XD) I will post a detail after, but I'm pretty sure it would be...
- either a heavy armor + shield Ancients Paladin based (around 8 levels, rest in multiclass)
- or a DEX-based with Bladesinger, Rogue, Battlemaster and Sorcerer mixed.
- or a Monk based class with just dips in Rogue, Cleric or Druid.
Depending on campaign and starting level.

[Mikal]

Using UA?

Ancestral Guardian Barbarian, maybe with Stone Sorcerer.

You get an ability that lets you mark an opponent, forcing them to deal with you as they get half damage against everything else.
You get an ability to lower damage from the marked opponent even further.

I don't think any other subclass has that ability.

Add Stone Sorcerer if you have the stats for additional defensive utility.

[DivisibleByZero]

To the people complaining about having an ally in melee with you....
How many games have you played where there was only one melee combatant, and that one was the tank?
I've been playing since around 1989 or so, and I have never seen it. Not once.
Not. One. Time.
Getting sneak attack damage is not a problem.
And if some crazy turn of events occurs, and this becomes true wherein you're the only melee combatant, then just roll a different tank. Or don't play a different tank, and just play this one as a skirmisher who punishes anyone that goes after the casters with your extreme mobility.

[mgshamster]

Bard with bagpipes. Enemies will focus on him just to get him to shut up.

[Lombra]

To the people complaining about having an ally in melee with you....
How many games have you played where there was only one melee combatant, and that one was the tank?
I've been playing since around 1989 or so, and I have never seen it. Not once.
Not. One. Time.
Getting sneak attack damage is not a problem.

I have. Always. One tank (which has never been built to tank, he just stands there because he happens to have high AC/HP), one or more skirmishers, and casters in the back. Well then if you assumed that your build relies on being with someone else in the front line there's nothing wrong, a paladin needs half the men you are needing tho. By the way I would love to combine your build with a paladin companion, it sounds like a lot of damage and control. Your build is a good tank. It's not the best as you claim, because an effortlessly built paladin can be better in almost any situation/party composition.

[King539]

Single classed? Paladin?

Multiclassed? Paladin/sorcerer.

[N810]

I would say Barbarian but rage is ridiculously easy to shut down. Charm, fear, or pretty much any effect that requires a Wisdom save will end their rage. Especially with the Barb's crappy Wis saves.

Paladin and Fighter are both much better tanks.

and that's why Berserker is a better tank than Bear.

[Yagyujubei]

there are no true tanks in 5E really unless your DM is willing to allow UA imho

[Lombra]

there are no true tanks in 5E really unless your DM is willing to allow UA imho

I can agree that there isn't a dedicated tank class but saying that no class can be a true tank is not true in my opinion (see my paladin posts above)

[mephnick]

Man, poor Crown Paladin. Completely ignored even in favour of worse Paladins

[MaxWilson]

To the people complaining about having an ally in melee with you....
How many games have you played where there was only one melee combatant, and that one was the tank?
I've been playing since around 1989 or so, and I have never seen it. Not once.

1989 isn't relevant. 5E has only been out since 2014. AD&D works differently than 5E.

In 5E, I think the majority of the parties I've seen in play have had only on melee specialist/tank. Perhaps 40-45% of the parties I've seen have two melee specialists.

If you consider a fairly iconic 5E loadout of paladin/bard/wizard/rogue, only the paladin is a natural tank. In a larger party of course things are different--an eight-man party will almost certainly have multiple tanks. Even there though, your Arcane Trickster relies on having another melee specialist next to him, which means he can't tank independently to cover another threat vector. At best it's an off-tank, supplemental to the primary tank.

[Findulidas]

Man, poor Crown Paladin. Completely ignored even in favour of worse Paladins

To be fair there are many decent tanks.