Shields - The best offense is a good defense

[MisterSheep]

In every freaking games that i play, my very first character is always a warrior-like fighter wielding a shield and a one-handed weapon. If i can use the shield to bash the target, it's even better.

I play D&D and my favorite character ever is that fighter that starts every fight with a well placed shield-charge that one-shots most foes.

When i play WoW i try getting the biggest crits i can with my Shield Slam ability on my warrior, but i was really sad when i saw our Shield Bash interrupt go away

For me the shield is not only a defensive barrier, it can also be a deadly weapon. Not only can you deflect incoming attacks, projectiles and spells, but you can deliver strong impacts that can throw your foe off balance. I'm the one who says the best offense is a good defense.


Anyone else shares the same passion?

[Sforza]

I agree, shields are "shaped" for defense purposes mostly, but technically, they work just like any Blunt weapon.

[theredviola]

[QUOTE=MisterSheep;16069584but i was really sad when i saw our Shield Bash interrupt go away[/QUOTE]

I couldn't agree more OP. I really miss that ability. I was tickled when I found out in Skyrim that shield bash was a pretty effective ability =D

[leokegan]

Skyrim shield talents are just sick, especially the last one, raise your shield up while sprinting knock down the most targets.

Aion Templar class too, 4 different types of shield slams, each does different thing.

[Catta]

Spartacus sports all kinds of fighting styles some of which includes small shields, others sport kite shields and then some just have a wrist shield... All offer advantages and disadvantages... Personally in single combat i could see the favorable thing of having 2 swords instead of a sword and shield - speaking irl not games here

[MisterSheep]

Personally in single combat i could see the favorable thing of having 2 swords instead of a sword and shield - speaking irl not games here

Well i've seen real life fights with latex and foam weapons, and i've been in some myself, and i could say:

Sword and board usualy wins against two weapons,

Sword and board usualy wins against grand weapons,

Grand weapons usualy wins against two weapons (the range from two-handed weapon is much more useful than the raw power it offers),

Two weapons usualy wins against a polearm,

Grand weapons usualy wins against a polearm,

Polearm usualy wins against sword and board.


It might sound weird, but wielding two weapons is all about skill. Unexperimented fighters usualy get raped when trying to fight with two weapons, but i did see very agile people showing incredible prowess with two weapons.

Edit: Sorry, instead of saying spear only, i meant to talk about polearms, i edited this.

[Puck]

I'm more of a Rogue/ flashy fighting kind of guy. Sword and Board never really appealed to me.

[Extrakt]

I agree, I always feel so vulnerable if I use a Two handed weapon. So many open spaces to get attacked.

[apepi]

If you are good with your right and left hand, I say go with 2 one-handed weapons, besides that, go sword and board.

[ghostkitteh]

Why not just go with two shields? If they have a spike like some do, two shields can be more offensive and defensive than any other combo.'

That said, I'm a sword and dagger or bow kind of guy.

[Defengar]

Why not just go with two shields? If they have a spike like some do, two shields can be more offensive and defensive than any other combo.'

That said, I'm a sword and dagger or bow kind of guy.

or a buckler with a spike on the front and blade sticking out of the front for fast stabs.

[Taurous]

Why not just go with two shields? If they have a spike like some do, two shields can be more offensive and defensive than any other combo.'

That said, I'm a sword and dagger or bow kind of guy.

Hilarious mental image.

Yeah I'm all about ranged myself.

[Grizzly Willy]

Skyrim shield talents are just sick, especially the last one, raise your shield up while sprinting knock down the most targets.

Aion Templar class too, 4 different types of shield slams, each does different thing.

Yeah, I love it on my fist-fighter. Use a shield to interrupt a target and then proceed to smash their face in. Also great when you disarm them, or when you can charge an archer full speed while deflecting every arrow.

[ghostkitteh]

On dual wielding shields- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_u0tDx3Ky0. The music is sort of awful, and you shouldn't watch it till the end or it'll argue against the idea, but point stands. Personally, I'd want two huge shields, that I could basically close around me, and they'd form a full protective circle. They'd have to be all covered in spikes though.

[Pendulous]

In D&D, there were feats in the PhB2 that allowed you to treat a shield as an off-hand weapon (for the purposes of penalties and such). I think it was called Agile Shield Fighter or something like that. I didn't understand the point of a shield though. For a measly two or three AC that isn't gonna make a difference when monsters hit you 100% of the time later on, you can give up extra attacks. Blah. If you're gonna be a fighter, and you really want some AC, dual-wield and take the Two-Weapon Defense feats.

[Weensie]

I wanna larp, I would destroy everyone with a 2h.

[ambigiouslynamed]

In every freaking games that i play, my very first character is always a warrior-like fighter wielding a shield and a one-handed weapon. If i can use the shield to bash the target, it's even better.

I play D&D and my favorite character ever is that fighter that starts every fight with a well placed shield-charge that one-shots most foes.

When i play WoW i try getting the biggest crits i can with my Shield Slam ability on my warrior, but i was really sad when i saw our Shield Bash interrupt go away

For me the shield is not only a defensive barrier, it can also be a deadly weapon. Not only can you deflect incoming attacks, projectiles and spells, but you can deliver strong impacts that can throw your foe off balance. I'm the one who says the best offense is a good defense.


Anyone else shares the same passion?

no just no, shields are meant for defending yourself not smacking ppl with, they are large and HEAVY

[Edge-]

no just no, shields are meant for defending yourself not smacking ppl with, they are large and HEAVY

The larger shields are (kite shields and the like), yeah, but there are plenty of small/medium sized shields that are relatively light and not meant to cause an loss of mobility. They function less as a "take the full force of hits and cover my whole body" piece of equipment and more of a "accurately block to deflect blows away from me and use it as an offensive weapon to stab (assuming there is a spike at the end) or bludgeon (many of the smaller shields still have more than enough weight to add a significant amount of force to say, a backhanded swing) your enemy.

redit: And yes, I would LOVE to see some more offensive shield using classes in games. I'm a massive fan of using a shield whenever possible (primarily play paladin archetypes), and I get frustrated whenever I play a game where my shield has little to no offensive value.

[ImpTaimer]

Demon's Souls.

Dual Spike Shield.


EDIT: I forgot Rygar, the best shield user ever.

[rol3x]

In my mind a shield is only useful if you take a hit, that is a failure in my style of play.