How do you feel the shield changes have affected pvp?

Biro123

My confusion is around blocking..

I mean, where does the shield sit? The effect looks like a big bubble around the caster - so it makes sense with the old way of shields taking all the damage, then what gets through is mitigated by block/armour etc.

Now armour 'protects' the shield. So are we to believe that the shied sits on the skin - under the armour? Then how does block NOT protect the shield? How does that make sense?

Now in a gaming sense.. why do we have something like bound aegis - with a max mag boost (the main reason to slot it being to increase shield size) - but also a blocking bonus? What the hell is this ability for? Is it for shielding or blocking? It obviously isn't for both since shielding and blocking just don't go together at all..

I guess what I'm getting at is that magsorcs still don't have a viable primary defence outside of shields. The heals aren't there to rely on ice-staff blocking - unless you use pets to heal (which still need shields to keep alive!). Maybe if shields truly worked like a heal - and were protected by blocking like your health is, we could work with a block/shield (with crappy heals) setup and have good synergy with aegis - similar to how a magplar may go for block/heals.
Yes, it doesn't get away from shields - but it means that it could be workable given the lack of heals.

Or alternatively, why not have aegis help with block cost rather than damage..? Make it easier for MAGsorcs to use some blocking without having to build heavily for it.. Shields could still be a primary defence, blocking could be a viable secondary choice..

Sorry - it isn't really feedback on shields - more aegis and how bad the synergies are with both itself and the shields that sorcs just cannot get away from..
The class doesn't seem to know what it wants to be.

Priyasekarssk

Lieblingsjunge wrote: »

This was a good change overall. Sorc is still doing decent, but lost some of it's enourmous strength that it had because of the shields last patch.

But as always... Good sorcs are still doing really well on the class. Look at Malcolm on PC/EU. Still rockin' that sorc and still killing whatever he fancies. Bad sorcs are failing miserably due to them being unable to adapt - and find other ways to get around the shields.

But in general, I think this change was good. For more than just sorcs.

Dude do you even know who malcolm is ?
All noobs come here to vomit garbage. No good player is playing sorc. Last time in duel tournament in EU do you know how many magic sorc joined ? ZERO . Probably you can create a magic sorc and join and win a dueling tournament.
GO and hide behind cheese class noobs

IAVITNI

So update to the builds I've been running. Due to the lack of bar space, sorcs pretty much have to virtually forgo healing all together. Doing so netted me the best results. The only problem to this is that all the shield "counters" that were implemented to balance shields still remain in the game.

Shield gameplay currently needs strong HoTs or strong shields to be a viable defence. Every class but sorc has reliable HoTs and so the class suffers a bit too much.

Final conclusions after finding shield builds that works on both magden and magsorc:

• Costs of shields are too high as a result of the nerfs
• high crit builds REALLY hurt shields. This aspect of shields is out of tune. One may reason the crit change is balanced by the lack of Defile on shields. In that case, a middle ground would need to be reached such as giving Annulment/Conjured Ward innate crit reduction since building high crit has less opportunity cost than gaining access to Defile.
• secondary defences are needed to make shields work. Shields cannot be the only defensive mechanism anymore. Strong HoTs or reliable disengagement are necessary.
  • Cloak and Wings perform this task well enough.
  • Streak is ok, but could use QoL changes and Boundless may be fine with just a cost decrease.
  • Magden really needs Falcon Swift Major Expedition duration increased.
  • Magplar Sun Shield could use an accessibility buff. This would buff magplar DPS and survivability, possibly allowing magplar healing "nerfs" [redistribution of defensive strengths] that would allow for overall Templar healing buffs to give stamplars some healing back
• Oblivion Damage and Bleeds and hard shield counters such as Shield Breaker are overbearing. Especially on a magsorc, which has no reliable HoTs. Too many sacrifices are needed to reliably use shields and these hard counters are outdated and honestly should have been addressed alongside any shield nerfs. Possibly make it so that bleed/oblivion damage cannot decrease a players health past 1%

On a side note. I have found a sorc setup that is miles and above everything else I have tried. It revolves around 1 particular set. As a magsorc main, diversity has been lacking for the class for a very long time. Supplemental mechanics to shields need to be buffed.

I feel that outside of Oblivion damage and bleed builds, sorc has the potential to surpass their previous balance potential this patch. Outside of costs, shields themselves feel to be in a good place. The rest of the game simply has to be brought up to date (oblivion damage-bleeds-class kits)