So, I started a sword and board character, although that might be better described as a hammer and board char. I’ve never made a shield user for long, as I always get tired of melee. I really am not into playing melee in games, but Blitz has made it somewhat fun. Well, that lasted until the end of Veteran when I just wanted to try something different. Enter the Flame of Ingaffar, sword and board character.
Current progress: http://www.grimtools.com/calc/bVAv8DRZ
It’s been a difficult growing period. FoI is tough as is, and I tried to get the shield working as soon as possible. That was probably a mistake, but I’m finally at a point where this character is shredding, and not taking damage.
Now I have a few questions about the shield:
Do you have to face your target to block? It doesn’t appear so, but I have seen comments from people on the forum to suggest you do.
How do you deal with the cool down of Overguard? I found a shield in Malmouth that had a -2 second cool down and 4% reduced cool down, which brings me to a .1 second window where I cannot keep it up. Even then, having to rebuff at the moment it drops is a little problematic. Do you guys kite a little right before it drops?
I’ve also noticed a lot of builds go for 95% reduction to recovery time. Is that the point where you don’t gain anything from more? Is it over kill? There are options to chose more chance to block vs. recovery time. What’s generally the consensus on what is best? With the use of Inquisitor Seal, the shield is more for the big boss hits, and not for the hordes of trash.
Thanks for any enlightenment you can shed onto a new shield user.