Discover how to use the Sword and Shield weapon in Throne and Liberty as we explore skills, passives, and off-hand combos in our best beginner Guide.
The Sword and Shield is the best weapon type for tanking and survivability in Throne and Liberty. Players will want to choose this weapon if they intend to play in group play and want a front-line fighter-style build. With crowd control, mobility, and damage reduction, the Sword and Shield shine as the one true tank weapon in Throne and Liberty. Our beginner guide walks you through the weapons skills, off-hand combinations, and Sword and Shield mechanics.
Guide to the Sword and Shield Weapon in Throne and Liberty
The Sword and Shield weapon class in Throne and Liberty epitomizes survivability. You sacrifice damage for massive damage reduction and group utility. Sword and Shield can taunt, and take pressure from bosses and allies. This is your typical tank weapon and skills in Throne and Liberty. However, you can use this weapon on the off-hand to gain many passive defensive benefits and skills.
The downside to using Sword and Shield is the lack of damage, specifically AOE. A common setup is a Greatsword because it pairs well with a Sword and Shield, filling in the gap for damage. If you enjoy survival and group play leading the charge, the Sword and Shield is a good weapon
Basic Mechanics of the Sword and Shield Weapon
The main gameplay loop of the Sword and Shield centers around attracting enemies’ attention with Provoke and Aggression. These two mechanics are your “taunt” from other MMORPGs. Provoke attracts enemies’ attention, and Aggression maintains their attention on you. Therefore, you need to rotate your skills, Provoking Roar and Shield Throw on your primary threat.
Additionally, the Sword and Shield can block and counterattack using the skill Counter Barrier. This is the most important skill because it increases overall survivability and does damage passively. Upgrading this skill and lowering its cooldown is critical.
Sword and Shield Stat Points
The best stats to focus on using a sword and shield are Strength and Dexterity. Strength increases your max health, and Dexterity helps avoid attacks. Reach 30 strength, then swap to Dexterity until 30. Lastly, we look to perception to help with crowd control. Below is the best recommended Stat Point for the Sword and Shield in Throne and Liberty.
- 30 Dexterity: Affects critical attacks, maximum damage, and evasion.
- 30 Strength: Increase max health, defense, minimum damage, and Max damage.
- 19 Perception: Affects Time boost ability, accuracy, maximum damage, crowd control effects, and minimum damage.
- 10 Wisdom: determines maximum mana, maximum damage, skill cooldown, and mana regeneration.
Sword and Shield Active Skills
Below are all the active skills for the Sword and Shield in Throne and Liberty:
Active Skill | Description |
---|---|
Shield Strike | Deals 580% of Base Damage + 129. Weakens the target with a(n) 70% chance to decrease Magic, Melee, and Ranged Hit by 250 for 6s. Shield Strike’s Melee Heavy Attack Chance increases by 50 per 1% of Shield Block Chance. On counterattacking with Counter Barrier, Shield Strike cooldown decreases by 1.3s. The target’s aggression greatly increases. |
Strategic Rush | Charges 4.5 times the distance of Attack Range in the selected direction and deal 280% of Base Damage + 150 damage up to 5 targets with a(n) 70% chance to apply Collision: Push. The target is Stunned for 2s if colliding into a wall. Targets immune to Collision increase Base Damage by 40 for 6s. |
Counter Barrier | Shield Block Chance increases by 34% for 6s. On evading an attack, using Shield Block, or blocking with a Defense skill within 1.35 times the Attack Range (4.5 times for Magic and Ranged), performs a counterattack that deals damage equal to 250% of Damage Reduction to the attacker. The counterattack damage is not affected by Critical Hit and Heavy Attack Chance. |
Chain Hook | Has a(n) 80% chance to apply Collision: Pull to the target and Bind them for 3s. When used on boss monsters, pulls you to them. Increases the target monster’s Hostility to max on hit. |
Provoking Roar | Has a(n) 70% chance to apply Weaken: Provoke on 6 enemies within 3m for 4.8s (7.2s against Monsters, always hits). Provoked targets direct their attacks and skills toward you. |
Shield Throw | Hurls a shield 4.5 times the Attack Range in the selected direction. The shield deals damage equal to 340% of Base Damage to all targets in its path before returning to you. Magic, Melee, and Ranged Heavy Attack Chance increase by 100 for 2s. The targets’ aggression greatly increases. |
Stalwart Bastion | Damage Reduction 103 for 9s for you and party members within a 10m radius. The area lasts for 2s. |
Annihilating Slash | Deals damage equal to 280% of Base Damage + 42 to enemies within Attack Range. If used on a target you have Weakened, deals damage equal to 420% of Base Damage + 63. Annihilating Slash’s remaining cooldown decreases by 8% per damaged target. |
Fierce Clash | Deals 220% of Base Damage with a(n) 80% chance to apply Collision: Push. Has the same chance to Push enemies that collide with the target and decrease the damage they deal. The target is Stunned for 3s on colliding with a wall. |
A Shot at Victory | Deals 880% of Base Damage + 107 to the target. Damage of Sword skills increases by 20% for 6s. |
Immortal Pride | Max Health and Current Health increase by 30% for 6s. |
Witty Strike | Deals damage equal to 290% of Base Damage + 64 to up to 3 targets within 120 angle range. Recovers mana equal to 240 per target. |
Sword and Shield Passive Skills
Below are all the passive skills for the Sword and Shield in Throne and Liberty:
Passive Skill | Description |
---|---|
Skillful Evasion | Magic and Ranged Evasion 30 per 1m of proximity to the target, up to 300. Additionally increases Magic, Melee, and Ranged Evasion by up to 120 against Provoked targets. Only applies to targets within a 10m radius. |
Resilient Mind | Evading an attack restores Mana by 46, and each successful Shield Block or Defense skill block restores Mana by 36% of the damage blocked. Additionally restores Health by 21. |
Aegis Shield | Magic, Melee, and Ranged Defense 9.6 per 1% of Shield Block Chance. Reduce Damage: Shield always gains 5.5%. |
Spectrum of Agony | On hitting a target you have Provoked and applied Cleaving Roar to, the remaining time for Provoke and Cleaving Roar increase by 0.4s. Deals damage equal to 72% of Base Damage + 37 to all targets Provoked and affected by Cleaving Roar within a 3m radius. |
Gerad’s Patience | On evading, using Shield Block, or blocking with a Defense skill, all CC Resistance 18.75 for 3s. Stacks up to 10 times. |
Impenetrable | Increases Magic, Melee, and Ranged Defense proportional to the number of targets within a 9m radius. Magic, Melee, and Ranged Defense 299 if there are 2 or fewer targets within range, 400 if there are 3 to 6 targets, and 820 if there are 7 or more targets. |
Morale Boost | Colliding the target with another applies cooldown 14% to all skills. Each subsequent Collision applies cooldown 7% to all skills per Collided target, up to 3 times. |
Sword and Shield Defensive Skill
The Sword and Shield defense skill is the Shield Survival Technique. Defends against attacks. On defending against a Fury Attack while stationary, 690 Health regenerates, creates a shield equal to 14% of Max Health for 3s, and Shield Survival Technique changes to Retaliatory Strike for 1.5s. Defending against a Fury Attack within 0.5s increases Damage Reduction by 141 for 6s. Wrath Attacks can’t be defended. Use with the directional buttons to defend against attacks while moving 4m in the designated direction for 0.5s. Defending against a Fury or Wrath Attack creates a shield equal to 14% of Max Health for 3s, and the Shield Survival Technique changes to Retaliatory Strike for 1.5s.
Retaliatory Strike: Deals 380% of Base Damage + 147 damage to the target. Defending Fury Attacks with Shield Survival Technique before using Retaliatory Strike increases Retaliatory Strike damage by 65%, up to 3 times. Retaliatory Strike from the Shield Survival Technique with a directional button deals the maximum damage.
Best Mastery Tree
The Sword and Shield Weapon Mastery is broken into three skill trees: Provoke & Counter, Boss, and Collision. The Provoke Mastery Treey centers on damage reduction, health, and health regeneration. This is a helpful tree for survivability in PvE and PvP. The Boss mastery tree is focused on PvE tanking, helping control the primary target. Collision is helpful for crowd control and damage.
Provoke & Counter Mastery Tree
The Provoke & Counter Mastery Tree is the best for damage reduction and survivability. Below are all the Provoke & Counter Mastery Tree bonuses:
Column | Bonus | Number |
---|---|---|
Melee Defense | +40 | 1 |
Mana Regen | +14 | 2 |
Spell Flexibility | Mana Cost Efficiency +6% | 3 |
Magic Hit | +40 | 4 |
All Evasion | +40 | 5 |
Mana Blessing | Mana Regen +56 | 6 |
Mana Regen | +42 | 7 |
Melee Defense | +120 | 8 |
Reverberation Shield | Silence Resistance +125 | 9 |
Boss Mastery Tree
The Boss Mastery Tree is the best for PvE tanking and taunting bosses. Below are all the Boss Mastery Tree bonuses:
Column | Bonus | Number |
---|---|---|
Melee Defense | +40 | 1 |
Mana Regen | +14 | 2 |
Spell Flexibility | Mana Cost Efficiency +6% | 3 |
Magic Hit | +40 | 4 |
All Evasion | +40 | 5 |
Mana Blessing | Mana Regen +56 | 6 |
Mana Regen | +42 | 7 |
Melee Defense | +120 | 8 |
Reverberation Shield | Silence Resistance +125 | 9 |
Collision Mastery Tree
The Collision Mastery Tree is the best for crowd control and damage. Below are all the Collision Mastery Tree bonuses:
Column | Bonus | Number |
---|---|---|
Melee Defense | +40 | 1 |
Mana Regen | +14 | 2 |
Spell Flexibility | Mana Cost Efficiency +6% | 3 |
Magic Hit | +40 | 4 |
All Evasion | +40 | 5 |
Mana Blessing | Mana Regen +56 | 6 |
Mana Regen | +42 | 7 |
Melee Defense | +120 | 8 |
Reverberation Shield | Silence Resistance +125 | 9 |
Best Sword and Shield Weapon Combinations
The best off-hand weapon combinations with Sword and Shield are Wand or Greatsword. The Wand allows you to heal yourself and others, giving you the ultimate survivability setup. However, the SnS + Wand will limit your damage and be brutal to level or outside of group content. The SnS Greatsword gives you good area damage, more crowd control, and mobility. This is a great combination for leveling because you have high durability and good AOE damage.
Looking For More About Throne and Liberty?
Thank you for reading the Best Beginners Guide to the Sword and Shield in Throne and Liberty. We provide the latest news and create guides for Throne and Liberty, Enshrouded, ESO, Baldur’s Gate 3, and More. Also, watch me play games on Twitch or visit my YouTube channel!