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Bushido = no shield?

Elessar

Journeyman
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I have anatomy, bushido, chivalry, parry, swords, and tactics at 120. I shifted around my gear to use a 1-hander (longsword) and shield so I could round out some missing stats. Also, I think the sword-and-shield is a very cool look.

However, less cool is the fact that I realized this evening that my parry chance is 8% while using a shield. Is it as simple as "If you have bushido, don't use a shield."? Or is there some approach I'm not thinking of?
 

Billy Butcher

Journeyman
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Yes if you have bushido don't use shield. Check you last parry chance just using sword it will be much higher. I enjoy the stats on shield with some toons but those I use without bushido and run healing.
 

Nero

Journeyman
Stratics Veteran
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- bushido and shield = parrying chance penalty
- throwing and shield = hit chance penalty (unless you add parrying skill)

These are the two infos you need to know when it comes to skill combos and equipping a shield.
 
Last edited:

JBOlsen

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You also gain a higher parry chance with a 2-handed weapon, if you use bushido.

Try the calculator:
 

Merlin

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If you insist on running a shield in your build for certain stats or aesthetics, you should consider Soulstoning Bushido.
 

Elessar

Journeyman
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Sadly, I have shelved the shield for now. I may experiment with swapping bushido for healing or resist, but for now I'm back to my double-axes. They are extremely nice weapons; I just like the shield look.

This gives me an opportunity to build up a new character - maybe a macer paladin with no bushido. Thanks everyone for your help. Parrying at 35% is much better than parrying at 8% :)
 

Akiho

Seasoned Veteran
Stratics Veteran
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This is one of those things that has always bothered me along with the lack of weapon diversity (see everyone running with double axe/bladed staff).

The benefits of Bushido are too good to miss whether it be increased damage through Perfection, especially on non slayer vulnerable enemies or through increased damage for whirlwind and counter strike, extra healing and stamina regen through confidence, complete damage mitigation from evasion and of course combined with Parry a higher chance to parry than a pure parry warrior providing you use a 2 handed wepon. There is also the mana cost reduction for special moves for having 300 points across certain skills which almost certainly would include a weapon skill, Parry and Bushido. The other benefit of being 'forced' down the 2 handed weapon route is you will easily cap out all stats on your weapon due to the increased imbue cap where a one handed weapon will not.

For any play these days, Bushido is almost critical to play successfully (not for everything, don't jump on that bandwagon). And the result is you simply can not use a shield, and using a one handed weapon without a shield would be pointless.

I've heard the argument a million times "But you have to consider all the extra stats you get on a shield", absolute nonsense! See all the benefits I've listed in para 2 above, there is absolutely no way in hell you can make up all those lost stats/abilities on a shield, it's just insanity.
The other argument "But that's the benefits you get for spending an extra 100+ point in Bushido". That's fair enough, but I don't want to be forced down the 2 handed route and run around with a double axe/bladed staff like 99.999% of all other players. A one handed/shield user should not be crippled for spending an extra 100+ points in a skill.

I understand from a lore perspective that those who practice the art of Bushido would not use shields, but they sure as hell would not use double axes either!!!
Using a double axe should cripple Bushido users the same way it cripples shield users!
 

Nero

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I agree, bushido is by far the best supplementary skill for non-caster combat. Another advantage is that you often SAVE gold by squeezing in some bushido into your template as a 7th skill. You do not have to buy 6x120 scrolls this way.
 

Elessar

Journeyman
UNLEASHED
Yeah, I agree Akiho. I would really like to run a sword & shield combination, but can't justify doing it. The benefits from going 2-handed with Bushido are just too great.

I think I will try rolling up a macer paladin with mace/anatomy/tactics/parry/chiv/(healing or resist). Maybe I'll play around with a 7th skill. I haven't played a macer in ages, and it will be a good chance to see how it measures up to my dragoon (bushido/chivalry swordsman).
 

Merlin

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While Bushido is required if you truly want to have the best Melee fighter possible, that doesn't mean you cannot be effective without it. There are plenty Sword and Board builds out there that are capable of doing high end content if you have the right set up and decent gear.

Here is my Paladin Sword & Shield Fighter:
120 Swordsmanship (or swap for Mace Fighting)
120 Tactics
120 Chivalry
120 Parrying
100 Healing
080 Anatomy
080 Resist Spells

I am running high end bone suit for LMC bonus, with 215 Stamina, 141 HP, set of cameos, elemental Longswords and Scimitars. If you don't want to rely on bandages, you could swap Healing for Necromancy to get Vamp Form. Faster Casting helps too. I have debated a move to a plate suit, but that's a different topic.

Are my two traditional sampire builds with Bushido better than this one? Yes... but that doesn't mean you can't make something like this work - especially in a group setting. Back 15+ years ago, warriors who could stay close and work cross healing on each other were amongst one of the most effective tag teams you could run. The art of cross healing is something that seems to have been lost with time.
 
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