GamesRPGElden Ring: Shadow of the ErdtreeElden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree players are sleepwalking through bossfights with the DLC’s silly, pointy shieldsWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
GamesRPGElden Ring: Shadow of the ErdtreeElden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree players are sleepwalking through bossfights with the DLC’s silly, pointy shieldsWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: From Software)
One of Elden Ring’s greatest joys is the freedom it provides for exploring different philosophies of combat. Maybe you favor the tried-and-true strategy of hitting things with extremely large swords. Maybe you delight in the arts of high wizardry, measured in laser beams and hurled boulders. The options are endless—but they’re also wrong. Thanks to the new thrusting shields from Shadow of the Erdtree, players are discovering that they’ve been wasting their time finding the best builds for blood loss or Frenzied Flame incantations. Instead, they should’ve been asking one question: What if I was attackingwhileI was blocking?
If you wield a thrusting shield two-handed, you’re able to attack while holding the block button, allowing you to safely spam light attacks and only suffer little bits of chip damage in exchange. The two thrusting shields, both of which are located in the DLC’s Shadow Keep dungeon, can be freely modified to suit your damage type and scaling tastes. Better still, they pick up extra counterattack damage from theSpear Talisman, and because you’ll be two-handing them, they benefit from theTwo-Handed Sword Talisman’s damage boost, too
As players on theElden Ring subreddithave noticed, the thrusting shields are extremely potent—too potent, perhaps, particularly when you’ve got some stamina regen and guard-improving effects in play. Because it allows attacking without risk or concern, players are claiming that the weapon type trivializes boss fights, including some of the harder bosses of thenotoriously-difficult DLC. “Being able to just spam attacks and tank through everything only taking chip damage is insane,” redditorDrstrangelove899said, calling the weapons “absolutely busted.”
Busted might be right; Tarnished who’ve taken the thrusting shields for a spin have noticed that they’re conspicuously lenient on stamina drain. Athrusting shield testing videofrom YouTuber mmlubergames demonstrates that attacks blocked conventionally with a thrusting shield knock the expected chunks off your stamina bar, but attacks blocked while attacking with the safety poke only shave off tiny slivers. It’s a huge disparity that lets someone wielding a thrusting shield functionally ignore almost every attack coming their way, both in PvE and PvP. I’m inclined to agree with the assessment of Japanese Twitter user@pirochanbanzai, who posted a video showing how simple thrusting shields make Rellana’s fight with the Google-translated caption “Nerf inevitable.”
【ナーフ不可避】DLCで追加された刺突盾、特定動作中はスタミナ無消費でガードできてしまうため盾チクしているだけで一方的にボスをタコ殴りできると話題に#ELDENRING #エルデンリングDLC pic.twitter.com/P762ebarS7June 27, 2024
【ナーフ不可避】DLCで追加された刺突盾、特定動作中はスタミナ無消費でガードできてしまうため盾チクしているだけで一方的にボスをタコ殴りできると話題に#ELDENRING #エルデンリングDLC pic.twitter.com/P762ebarS7June 27, 2024
Of course, I can only speculate whether thrusting shields are due for a healthy adjustment. If a tricky boss has you tempted to try a thrusting shield for yourself, though, you might want to do it sooner than later.
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