Introduction to Shield

(By Derath)
Introduction
One of the greatest things about choosing to work with a shield is that the learning curve is incredibly forgiving. Reaching footman-level with a shield will come quickly but at that point the learning curve stops being so easy. Becoming ‘great’ with a shield takes a lot of practice and an entirely new skill set. Reaching the Vanguard+ level of shield-work often takes years of training to make marginal improvements over your peers. Much like our previous guides it’s easiest to break down the intro into a list of strengths and weaknesses:
==== Strengths ====
* Strongest passive defense
* Works well with all other fighting styles
* Backbone of any army
* Shield charging is incredibly powerful and overwhelming to almost every other weapon style
* Easier to multitask (you don’t have to fixate quite as much on intercepting attacks)
==== Weaknesses ====
* Weak combat range
* Potentially the weakest offense for a melee style
* Lower mobility compared to unshielded styles
* Disadvantage to reds and pikes in a line situation
The Two Approaches
Shields are interesting compared to two-handed equipment. Outside of the extremes (Bucklers and Massive shields), weapon advantage doesn't really apply when your skill levels reach roughly upper-level footman.
It's complicated though. When you're new to shield you will experience medium shields, like the common Round, having a distinct and sizable disadvantage against the standard Tower. This is normal and a direct result of misuse of your shield's unique properties.
Here's what I mean:
Round Shields, with a punch grip, do in-fact offer less coverage than a tower shield. However they allow the fighter to maneuver a sword in very direct manners. This high mobility offense is overwhelming to shields that make use of a strap style grip. Attacks can be so direct/quick that a larger shield may not have enough time to react. Round shields of a 'medium' size are better suited for fighting other shields.
Tower Shields offer the best passive coverage, generally forcing opponents to have to engage in attacks that push them outside of their comfort zone. However, they force the user to always make arching and sweeping attacks that are highly susceptible to counter-play. Effective attack range is also limited. Tower shields are best suited for fighting non-shielded opponents.
So if you want to be more effective against shields, use a Round!
If you want to be more effective against non-shields, use a Tower!
You may wonder how this can be possible when a round shield leaves the lower body completely exposed. It's simple really, for a shield-arm of standard length, you have to be much closer to your opponent to attack the legs than you have to be to attack the upper body. 
When you come that close to attack something that will not result in immediate death of your opponent, you leave yourself in a position where you are extremely vulnerable to your opponent's offensive options. In this position a round shield can make attacks on your torso in a way that would require an extreme block to intercept.
Attacking the legs of a skilled round shields-man is so risky in fact, that many strong round-shield users attempt to bait you into doing it, to force you to expose your back, shoulders, and arm for easy attacking.
Picking a Grip Style
Beyond the general shape/size of a shield, the handle also plays a major role in what a shield excels at. This section is pretty basic as there are realistically only three styles of handles:
Strap – Strap grips offer greater stability and defensive capability. With a strap you won’t really have to worry about your shield twisting out of place or moving around from enemy attacks. This style of shield does however hinder your offensive ability. Your attacks will have to be wider and less direct to compensate for the grip.
Punch – Punch grips offer greater offense and mobility. Your offense is enhanced because your attacks are able to travel in more direct paths, naturally wasting less time. This grip does come at a price though. Your shield is much less stable than a strap shield and is very susceptible to bashing and kicking. It’s this same dynamic that does make it more mobile. At some level this handle truly should not be used for larger shields.
Body – While technically a strap shield, this is a little different! Body shields free up use of your hands because the shield itself is attached to your body somehow. The obvious advantage is you can use red, green, or dual weapons. The most common use of body shields are the Lothtarian back-shields.
Understanding Shield ClassificationsShield styles in modern Antioch are not limited like they used to be. I couldn’t cover every possible shape but there are a few categories I think every shield can fit into:
==== Massive ====
(Amorias, ‘Barn-door’, etc.)
The ultimate defensive shield! Massive shields are full body shields that leave almost nothing exposed in a standard stance. You may think to yourself “Well that has to be the best! I mean NOTHING is out in the open!”
Sadly that’s not the only dynamic that matters in a shield. This style of shield comes at a hefty price: Total lack of mobility and an incredibly hindered offensive ability. Shields of this style do perform exceptionally well in a line but they will struggle in duels to overcome a more agile opponent.
I would only generally suggest this style of shield to anyone who feels being quick is absolutely not going to work out for them.
==== Large ====
(Tower, Large Kite, etc.)
A highly defensive shield! Large shields are shields that cover ‘most’ of your body in a standard stance. Large shields are a more balanced approach to a massive shield. Large shields sacrifice some coverage to gain offensive ability and greater mobility. Naturally the disadvantage is that something on your body is constantly exposed (most commonly your shins). 
I personally use this style because I 'grew up' in an era of Antioch where you needed a shield that would be strongest against red weapons and two handed weaponry. The biggest power of a large shield is that it forces red weapons to break your shield to get to you, limiting most of their options. Against pikes it forces opponents into attempting to either attack your shins (something you can easily turn into a situation where you pin a pike to the ground) or somehow get around and behind your bulwark to get to you. For both red and green weapons, they are at a disadvantage.
The balance of this shield leans towards defense. Meaning that the shield is so large that your offense will have to maneuver around your own shield to make attacks. It may not seem like a big deal but it means that you will always have slower attacks compared to a smaller shield. Smaller shields will be able to mount a quicker and more direct offense against you, and because you do not have full coverage they can very easily snipe a kill.
==== Medium ====
(Round, Small Kite, Heaters, etc.)
The most aggressive shield! Medium shields usually only cover roughly half as much as a large shield. Medium shields are very popular among fighters who like to exert a strong offense. These shields allow for you to be more direct with your attacks because you don’t have to maneuver around your shield so much. Medium shields sacrifice defense to increase their offense and mobility. Medium shields start to fall short on a line and are better suited for flanking, skirmish, and dueling situations.
Generally speaking, with this style of shield you’ll have to start really focusing on how your shield intercepts enemy attacks. It can seem overwhelming to a new fighter, but that doesn’t mean this kind of shield isn’t newbie friendly. Like the large shields I think medium shields are also a good starting place.
==== Small/Tiny ====
(Bucklers)
The best mobility shield! This style of shield is very new in Antioch so the place it holds is still developing. But from what we can tell about these shields, they are focused on out maneuvering your opponents. All its defense is highly reactive because the shield’s passive defense is pretty terrible. I’ve personally found that this shield style holds up surprisingly well verses the rest, but you absolutely have to keep your distance!
As a new fighter: I’d stay away from this style of shield until you have some basic foundation for shield fighting. 
General Tips(For now these tips make the assumption you aren’t just stuck in the line. We will talk about what to do in a line later!)
When you decide to ‘primary’ as a shield you’re going to have to get some concepts down before you attempt to best other’s primary style. You’re biggest focus is going to be how to effectively attack without giving up your greatest asset (defense).
I truly hope some of these concepts are already heavily understood, but too often I see fighters not taking the little adjustments they could make to give them a little bit more of an edge. Failing to take advantage of any technique at your disposal is just ensuring your defeat.
* Stance – Your stance is so important that I should realistically make a full guide on how you should stand! A weak stance will ensure your defeat before the fight has even truly begun.
**     A strong stance would be one that limits an enemy’s initial kill potential. There are many stances that accomplish this and I won’t go over all of them! If you think someone could easily kill you in one standard (non-elaborate) swing: your stance is probably weak.
* Swinging with purpose – A big problem with new fighters is that they try to emulate flashy moves they’ve seen somewhere. Limiting your swings to purpose driven attacks is something you’ll want to get into the habit of doing very quickly. Every time you strike, you are incredibly vulnerable. In fact, it’s when your enemy will most likely attack you! So if you’re swinging just to swing, you’re effectively negating the greatest thing about being a shield: having a strong defense.
* Returning to a strong defense – It’s self-preserving to operate under the following thought process: “For every attack I make… there WILL be a counterattack from my opponent!” Many new fighters start swinging away and slowly devolve into a one handed swordsman. If you want to fight like this, there’s really no reason to be a shields-man. When you attack: it is generally best practice to return to a position that will unlikely succumb to a counter-attack.
* Constantly evaluate your positioning – Unlike other styles, shields have this excellent ability to rush someone into submission without much risk of taking significant damage. Against the unshielded fighters, the more you stand still, the better your chances are of losing. Most other styles cannot function in very close combat so attempting to close that gap is incredibly beneficial to your survival.
* Don’t Spin – Yes you’ve seen every experienced fighter do some sort of spin at some point in their fighting career. And I know it looks so flashy! Here’s why you don’t do it as a shield-man: When you spin, you are basically saying, “Hey want to see the whole part of my body that my shield is not covering?”
**     Even putting the shield on your back while spinning still leaves your entire front unprotected. As an experienced shields-man, let me be incredibly frank: when an enemy does this I gleefully scream inside because I will just slash away at the very generous opening you’ve given me!
**     So when is it okay to spin? Pretty much in one situation: to gain control of your momentum. Sometimes you’ll ram someone on a bad angle or swing your weapon/shield too hard and actually put yourself off balance. Spinning in this single case can help you restore balance quickly. This is a move of desperation, a last resort!
* Hold your weapon properly – There are two parts to this: Your grip and your weapon position. When you hold a weapon you should always do so in a way that will warrant you the greatest amount of control over it. To do this, you need to simply put your thumb on the back or side of the handle to help stabilize it (think of it almost like a firm handshake instead of attempting to squeeze something). When you stabilize your weapon with your thumb, you can accelerate the weapon faster, recover from strikes faster, and change directions mid swing much easier. If you’re not sure why everyone seems to be able to attack faster than you are, this is generally the first place you should consider.
**     The second part is to have your sword at the ready to strike. This means do not have your sword hanging behind you. Have it shouldered, at the side of your shield, etc. With a ready sword you can react much quicker to any given situation.
Matchups
How will this style perform against others? (duels)
Shields are the MOST common style on the field. Generally speaking you will always be at a passive advantage in duels. So unlike the heavy red section where I talked about how to beat seemingly impossible match ups, I will talk about little techniques to heavily increase your chances of survivability.
==== Pikes ====
Pikes are going to try to keep you at their max range for as long as they can. A pike cannot contest a shield in close combat. They will make desperate shots at open areas you have or attempt to force your shield out of the way. You have one ultimate technique versus a pike: Charge!
* Don’t back off – Doing so will only keep you where the pike wants you to be. Stand your ground and pick your opportunity to charge. While charging use your shield to pin the pike against the ground. Deflecting it to the side can be dangerous against expert pikes that will choke up on the weapon as you charge and stab you in the side with it. Pay attention; don’t just assume that you’ve won because you’re gaining ground rapidly!
* Commit to the fight – Once you charge a pike, you really should not be backing down. If you back down they reset the fight with a greater understanding of your technique. This information they’ve acquired will prove deadly for you the longer this fight continues.
* Pay attention while charging – The key here is to swing rapidly and aggressively at key areas of your opponent. Most good pikes will go into a defensive stance, and from there they cannot mount much of an offense. Some pikes will attempt to trip you as you charge, so watch out for that as well.
**     If they have a sidearm and they go for it: be sure to intercept their strike and cut their arm off or kill (Don’t just ignore it! Make sure you KNOW you’ve blocked their final attack). In this state they are acting as a pseudo-shield. And the truth of it is: you’re better equipped for this kind of fight than they are!
==== Ranged Fighters ====
Ranged fighters will most likely just run from you. But if you have them in a situation where they can’t/won’t run: just charge them. Intuitively, make sure you’re actually blocking whatever projectile is fired at you!
==== Red/Black Weapons ====
Reds can be troublesome if they know what they are doing. I will assume you are fighting someone good! There are a few techniques you should remember in your fight against a powerful red user:
* Charging – Self-explanatory; reds struggle at very close range and will not be able to effectively resist your attacks.
* Intercept the strike – Most shields are content with blocking the red strike with their shield and charging forward. While not a terrible technique, it does end up being a gamble against skilled fighters. If your opponent is good, it is unlikely you will easily charge him before he/she swings twice. And without your shield, you will probably be easy prey. 
**      If given the opportunity, use your sword to stop their strike. If you block with the lowest part of your blade (the part closest to the handle) you can effectively stop the swing before it reaches your shield. Many red users will be thrown off by this technique, because they are just thinking about hitting your shield. When you have their weapon stopped, fling your arm so it pushes their weapon outward and push in with your shield. You will be able to deliver an attack before they can recover.
* Smart attacks – When you are in a position of attack: Don’t make predicable or pattern driven strikes. Switch it up so your enemy doesn’t find a way of escape.
==== Shields (higher skilled fighters) ====
Here’s why the learning curve is so strange: There’s just so many people who are shielded fighters; so veteran fighters end up getting most of their experience fighting enemy shields. This whole dynamic is dipping into intermediate and expert territory so I’ll just list a few things to keep in mind:
# Don’t swing just because nothing is happening. It’s not a race.
# Don’t make the same move three times in the same fight. Good fighters will know your ‘tells’ by the second time (if not the first).
# If you feel uncomfortable: back off and stay at a range you’re comfortable in.
# Don’t cower behind your shield.
# Just because your offense isn’t working: don’t panic!
# Attempt to be unpredictable. Most fighters respond the same exact way, so don’t think of your style as unique.
# Keep your shield high to cover your shoulder! (most common area to strike)
# Keep your sword in a position to cover a natural area your enemy will attack.
# If your opponent is wildly aggressive: cut off his sword arm!
# Don’t doubt yourself.
Your Job in the Line
Stay Active! Don’t be timid! Keep your friends alive! Close the gap!
# Maintain order. Do not break rank or fall back if your line is holding ground.
# Intercept EVERYTHING you possibly can. Even if you know it won’t kill you! The truth is your unshielded partners will be more devastating in a line than you are. So if there’s a javelin or pike coming that you can stop, it is 100% your job to do so! If you want to just worry about yourself, don’t main as a shield-user.
# Make opportunities for your reds and pikes to attack the enemy. This means do not stand 15 feet away from the enemy line. Push the lines together!
# Charge when the enemy is weak. If you stand still you’re allowing the enemy team to reinforce, thus effectively negating every ounce of work your team put in to dwindle the enemy line.
# Always get to the front of the line and fill gaps left by fallen shields.