Aion 2 · Guides
Aion 2 Templar guide: the main tank, its skills and boards
NCSOFT / AION 2 official Steam screenshots
TL;DR
- Templar is the main tank of Aion 2: sword and shield, front-facing melee, and the class that holds aggro when a party has both tanks.
- Creators agree it is one of the most forgiving classes. It can block or absorb mechanics that would kill other classes.
- Your damage centres on Judgment. Shield Smite, Warding Strike, Shield Rush and Doom Shield each trigger it.
- Its party value comes from Fury, which raises the party's damage when you block, and from shields and damage sharing such as Nezekan's Shield and Comrade in Arms.
- Creators expect Templar to deal less damage than DPS classes and Gladiator. Groups still want one for raids.
Is Templar right for you?
Pick Templar if you want to be the player the group is built around. Most creators we checked describe it as the true main tank: it holds aggro, keeps the boss facing one way and protects the party. Anders and Storyteller both point out that raids need a main tank, so a Templar rarely waits long for a group.
Creator tip
Overall, Templars are not only highly welcomed in any party, but required for some of the more challenging pinnacle fights. As a former Templar main, I would also say they are the most forgiving and probably easiest class to play in the game.
| Question | What creators say |
|---|---|
| Difficulty | 2 out of 5 when tanking raids, 1 out of 5 for everything else (SywoGG). Gladiator and Templar are the easiest classes, because they can block a mechanic instead of dodging it perfectly (FRESHY, TheWhelps) |
| Damage | Below the DPS classes and Gladiator (Kanon, TheWhelps, FRESHY) |
| Leaderboards | Less suited to solo leaderboard content, where personal clear speed matters (MistaWigglez) |
| Raid tanking | Can feel like a thankless job (Anders) |
| Solo | No trouble with open-world farming or solo bosses (Grobs). Tanks do well in solo boss content because they keep attacking through mechanics (TheWhelps, FRESHY) |
Creator tip
More mistakes are generally okay on a templar without people starting to yell at you.
Grobs is more positive about the damage:
Creator tip
Templar also deals a lot of damage, and I do not mean just good damage for a tank. The class can deal genuinely high damage, and if you build more offensively, you can almost compete with some of the bigger damage dealers.
Templar or Gladiator?
Both are front-facing melee classes that can tank. Creators compare them this way:
| Trait | Templar | Gladiator |
|---|---|---|
| Tank style | Defensive | Offensive |
| Aggro tools | More, including Taunt | Fewer |
| Party buffs | Offensive and defensive | Fewer defensive tools for the party |
| Damage | Lower | Higher |
| Both in a party | Holds aggro (TheWhelps, FRESHY) | Leaves aggro to the Templar |
| Learning a raid | Usually preferred, since extra mitigation makes progression safer (Grobs) | Less preferred |
TheWhelps and FRESHY both list Templar, Gladiator, Chanter and Cleric plus one DPS as the most optimised party, since each class brings a different buff.
How Templar plays
Most of the time you face the boss, block when it attacks and keep your rotation running. Fury raises your Front Attack Damage Boost and, when you block, raises PvE and PvP Damage Boost for you and your party. Grobs points out that timing your blocks well directly raises your group's damage.
Your damage loop is short:
| Skill | What it does |
|---|---|
| Vicious Strike | Restores 100 MP |
| Pummel | Costs 120 MP. NoBS Game Guides holds it together with Vicious Strike so they alternate and you never run dry |
| Judgment | Main damage skill. Triggered by Shield Smite, Warding Strike, Shield Rush and the Doom Shield stigma. Its fifth specialty, from rank 16, removes its cooldown |
| Punishment | Charge skill, three charge levels. Grants Executor: +200 Accuracy, +20% PvE Damage Boost |
| Annihilate | Works only on Stun or Knockdown targets, or as a 5% proc on immune targets such as bosses. Doom Shield can reset its cooldown |
| Debilitating Smash | Inflicts Debilitate: -25% Defense |
Creator tip
So now you might understand why I've said it is the most important ability on our kit. That said it goes without saying you want to level it up as much as possible.
Poach pulls a target from up to 20 m in front of you and can root it. Storyteller, TheWhelps and FRESHY all single out this pull for PvP, where a Templar on the front line can drag ranged players into its group.
The build in one panel
These are the skills the creators single out. The rank priorities, stigma choices, passive order and macro are in the Templar PvE build.
Core Templar skills and stigmas
PummelRank first while leveling
JudgmentMain damage skill, rank as high as you can
PunishmentCharge it fully, use on cooldown
Warding StrikeTriggers Judgment, adds damage tolerance
Shield SmiteTriggers Judgment
Doom ShieldStigma, triggers Judgment
Battlefield BannerStigma, Attack from Defense
Punishing BenedictionDamage passive, keep it high
FuryParty damage buff on Block
Daevanion boards
Templar has five boards. Each of the first four has one node for each of Templar's twelve base active skills, so together they add four ranks to every one of them.
| Board | Unlocks at | Crystals |
|---|---|---|
| Nezekan | Level 12 | Daevanion |
| Zikel | Level 20 | Daevanion |
| Vaizel | Level 30 | Daevanion |
| Triniel | Level 40 | Daevanion |
| Azphel | Level 45 | Battle |
None of the creator guides we checked recommends specific Templar nodes. Plan your own route in the Daevanion planner, which shows every node's stats and the totals for your build.
Templar guides
- Templar PvE build: skill priority, stigmas, passives and the early macro.
- Daevanion planner: plan a route and check the stat totals.
- Templar skills: every Templar skill with its specialties and stigma tiers.
- Beginner guide: the first hours on any class.
- Gear score guide: each item level gate and how to reach it.
- Daily and weekly checklist: what to run every day and week.
- Which class should you play?: Templar next to the other seven classes.
- Class finder: answer a few questions to find a class.
- Gladiator guide: the other tank.
Explore the encyclopedia
Sources
- NoBS Game Guides: Aion 2 Templar guide, skills introduction and early game macro
- Kanon: AION 2 ultimate class guide (breakdown and rankings)
- Grobs: AION 2 classes explained, PvE and PvP gameplay
- SywoGG: AION 2 class guide, don't pick a main until you watch this
- Anders: Which AION 2 class is right for you?
- Storyteller: AION 2 newbie guide 2, class overview and recommendations
- MistaWigglez: AION 2 complete PvE meta class tier list
- TheWhelps: What class to main? Aion 2 class recommendation
- FRESHY: Watch this if you still haven't picked your main class in AION 2
- Corpus: Aion 2 Templar skills
Related articles
- Aion 2 Templar PvE build: skill priority, stigmas and macro
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