as a rule of thumb don't mix tanks. generally when one tank is active the other is not. all slots should work together.

decide which tank fits your style and train the skills to use it. a pilot should be able to fit at least one good tank.

buffer tank.

a buffer tank simply means the ship can take a lot of damage but generally cannot repair that damage.

buffer tanks consist of two things. hp point additions and resist enhancers.

Main use of a buffer tank is PvP.

the buffer should be at least 50k effective hit points versus the weakest resist.

buffer tank should generally have a damage controll2 module in a low slow.

recommended: PvP, new pilots

general Advantages: combat Simplicity, low cap usage.

shield buffer

generally consists of large shield extenders2's and invulnerability fields2's. both of these are med slot modules.

minimum slots: 3xmedium

modules: 2+ large extender and 1 invulnerability are generally minimum.

rigs: 2xem and 1x thermal shield resist rig

advantages: Natural repair, hull and armor give a little time to get out.

disadvantages: needs 3+ medium slots, needs power, cap and CPU, makes the ship a little easier to hit.

example: http://eve.battleclinic.com/loadout/16563-Fleet-Ferox.html

armor buffer

generally consists of 1600mm rolled tungsten plate and Energized adaptive nano membrane2's both of these are low slot modules. the rolled tungsten is considered superior to tech2 plate.

minimum slots: 3xLow

modules: 1x1600mm rolled plate and 2xEANM2's are generally minimum.

rigs: medium trimark armor pumps but these are expensive.

advantages: armor resists start higher then shield resists, requires 0 cap, low cpu usage.

disadvantages: armor plates and armor rigs slow reduce maximum speed and add time to agility, very high power usage

ex: http://eve.battleclinic.com/loadout/33199-Armor-Buffer-Hurricane.html

Hull Buffer

this is generally not used. consists of damage controll2 and reinforced bulkshead2

advantages: low power, no cap, WTF factor, 1 DC2 gives 60% hull resists across the board

disadvantages: speed and agility penalties, small buffer.

Passive shield tank concepts.

similar to buffer tanks. shields self repair. the shield repair time stays the same when the shield hit points are extended. doubling the stock shield hit points doubles the shield hit point repair rate. adding resists increases the effectiveness of the repair.

recommended: PvE.

minimum slots: 2xlow 3xmedium 3xrigs

modules: 2x Shield power relay2, 2xinvulnerability2, 1 large shield extender2 varies greatly according to ship.

rigs: 3x medium core defense field purger.

advantages: low cap usage, always on, repair can get very high.

disadvantages: low available cap, uses both medium and low slots. makes ship easier to hit. shield rate is on a lopsided bell curve. the peak of the repair rate is when 3/4 of the shields are gone. if the shield repair rate is overwhelmed ship can be destroyed very quickly.

EX:http://eve.battleclinic.com/loadout/1890-Solo-Level-4-Passive-Tank-Drake.html

active Tanks

Generally an active tank is some combination of a buffer tank with repair. they use a lot of cap, cpu, and power.

active shield tank

shield booster, shield resists and cap recharge enhancers. setup between PvP and PvE are very different

recommended: PvP, PvE(on a battle ship) cap often becomes too critical on BC hulls for PvE shield boosting.

minimum slots:3xmedium

modules:1xXlarge c5-L emergency shield booster, 1xmedium cap booster2, 1xinvulnerability2

rigs:2xem and 1x thermal shield resist rig

advantages: high repair, 5 sec repair cycle time. low slot usage.

disadvantages: very high cap usage, high power, high cpu.

ex: http://eve.battleclinic.com/loadout/25441-Ferox-PvP.html

active armor tank

armor rep, armor resists and cap rechargers. setup between PvP and PvE are very different

recommended: PvP, PvE

minimum slots:4xlow 2xmedium

modules PvE: 3 specific active armor hardeners, 1xmedium armor repair, 2x cap recharger2's.

modules PvP:  2xEANM2's, 2 medium armor rep2's, 1x medium cap booster2.

rigs PvE: cap boost and armor resist boost

rigs PvP: armor repair boost, resist boost

advantages: less cap cpu and power needed then shield boosters.

disadvantages: shields take a while to self repair.

ex pve:http://eve.battleclinic.com/loadout/34165-Prophecy-L3-lower-skills.html

ex pvp:http://eve.battleclinic.com/loadout/28573-Myrmidon-Dual-rep-Myrm-38K-eHP-470DPS.html

active hull tank

generally not used. pretty much the same as hull buffer but with hull repair.