Shield block skill

Skill 'shield block'.

• Group: 'defensive'.
• This is a passive skill, it works automatically.
• Available to classes: anti-paladin 2, cleric 12, druid 15, necromancer 20, ninja 6, paladin 1, ranger 10, samurai 5, thief 7, vampire 10, warlock 20, warrior 2, witch 20

Shield block is the art of taking blows on a shield. Everyone can learn it, but not everyone holds a shield equally well: melee fighters are best at it, hybrid classes slightly worse, agile classes worse still, and mages are downright clumsy. The chance to block depends on your skill, the shield's weight, your strength and constitution against the attacker's strength, the level difference and the attacker's weapon: whips and flails curl around the rim, while a heavy axe or mace blow lands squarely on it. The light weapons of agile fighters glance off a shield, but a warrior's full swing is harder to hold. Every successful block costs a little stamina, and a heavy shield tires you more.

Once in a while a shield can even stop a combat spell, a breath or a combat skill -- the shield takes the whole blow and suffers for it.

A shield wears down in battle: a short skirmish leaves a couple of nicks, a long fight leaves a lot more, especially against axes and maces. Shields of hard materials last longer, and indestructible ones never wear at all. A battered shield is much easier to cleave.

A failed block against a heavy blow can knock you off your feet, and an unskilled fighter may even lose the shield. A warrior's masterful block, on the other hand, slams the shield rim into the attacker and stuns them. In rare cases paladins and warriors can deflect projectiles with a shield.