MORDHAU: Shield Guide

In Mordhau, there are four different shields in the game (Targe, Buckler, Heater and Kite). However, the only two relevant ones are the Heater and the Kite. The targe and buckler are practically useless since you can’t hold the block. They work as a regular parry in the sense you can’t hold your block button and the shield will be raised up for as long as you hold it. The only two shields a player should be using is the kite or the heater shield although the heater is better and I will explain why.

Advanced Stats- Heater Shield

Block View Tolerances:
Up-27.5
Left/Right-40
Down-42.5

Turn Cap:
X-287.5
Y-201.25

Parry Drain Negation:
11

Advanced Stats- Kite Shield

Block View Tolerances:
Up-27.5
Left/Right-40
Down-47.5

Turn Cap:
X-287.5
Y-201.25

Parry Drain Negation:
12

Statwise, the Heater shield is better because of a lower parry cost even though it is by 1 point. This may not look like much but in extended fights, that 1 stamina could make the difference. The Kite shield does have a bigger down block view but the Kite shield takes up more space on the screen in my opinion and you want to be able to see where strikes are coming from. The Heater doesn’t take as much space and has a lower stamina cost. These are the reasons why you should always go Heater shield rather than Kite.

Honestly, any one-handed weapon will work well with the shield. It is personal preference. If you want to use a wooden mallet and whoop people’s asses then go for it. My personal favorites are the Mace, Arming Sword, and Rapier (Ooooo I’m so bad). I do occasionally like to use the blacksmith hammer and taunt people that I killed them with it.

They are only a few relevant perks when it comes to using a shield.

Tenacious
Bloodlust (Although you will have to sacrifice leg armor for it and a much more damaging weapon)
Second Wind
Fury
Rush
Flesh Wound
Fireproof

You don’t have to use any perks but they are beneficial to you. On my classes, I usually run Tenacious for the health regen after a fight so I can go back faster and help the team. Bloodlust works great although you will make sacrifices for it. I use it with a short sword and is quite rewarding.

All of the others perk work well, its just personal preference.

Armor

Armorwise, I run 3/3/3.

IMO, there is no reason not to have 3 armor on least your head and chest. With 3/3/3 armor you will be incredibly hard to kill and it is forgiving. Let’s say you fight someone and they land a hit on you. If you’re in maxed out armor then it won’t be as punishing compared to having light armor or none at all. Medium armor works, but you can still be killed relatively easily depending on the weapon your opponent is using for the most part.

I see many people in game getting hit while they have their shield up. They are not blocking properly. Your shield’s block angles are not massive where you can just hold it up and expect to block drag stabs around your shield. The best way to block is to focus on the tip of their weapon and block that rather than just facing them and holding it up. By looking at the tip and blocking, you can prevent drag stabs from hitting you.

MAJOR TIP: DO NOT HOLD YOUR BLOCK AFTER YOU ATTACK AND YOU’RE ON THE DEFENSIVE.

You will get kicked and if you have the shield up when you get kicked, you get stunned and the enemy will get a free hit. Kicks are super short range in Mordhau but it doesn’t mean you should ignore them. Block only when you see an attack coming and if they feint it, just drop the shield again (You practically have no parry cooldown) and wait for them to attack after their feint and block it and continue your offense.

To be honest, I can’t really teach you on how to fight with a written guide. Most of your learning will be done in-game and fixing what you do wrong. Learn from your mistakes. They will make life so much easier. However, I can give you tips and a nudge on what you should do.

When you’re using a shield and fighting someone. Dragging will not help you out so much compared to using a two-handed. You should still utilize it but you can’t drag one-handed weapons (maybe the messer and mace) super well compared to like a greatsword. However, you can still drag stab with most of these which can be sufficient enough. If you’re struggling to get past someone’s defense which will probably be a majority of the time. Use feints or morphs! (Throwing off people’s tempo in a riposte battle works too). Thus leaving an opening). You do not have to worry about getting feinted back because a shield has no parry cooldown so you can block right again after they commence their actual attack. Whenever you fight with a shield, you want to end the fight as quickly as possible. Extended fights are not going to be in your favor because you risk running out of stamina and getting disarmed. It is okay to back off a little during a fight and regain some stamina assuming your opponent doesn’t come after you immediately. Good players will not let you regain stamina easily. Second Wind Perk helps in this regard but it isn’t a get out of jail free card.

These are my tips. I can’t exactly tell you what to do in every situation you encounter because I’m not there with you.