Hi all,
I have several newbie questions:
1) I will start with the most stupid question. Let me know if I'm wrong: I guess that, for body armor, only the ones named like *Heraldic* are the only ones that actually show the heraldics when you wear them, right? And could you please tell me which are the shields that show the heraldics on them as well? I would say that only the ones shown in white color at the shield shop, but I'd prefer you confirmed it before I waste my money 
2) What do you value most in shield statistics and WHY? Bonus to body armor, hit points, speed... BTW, for speed I've read another thread where it seems that nobody can confirm its actual use but, anyway, it would be nice if you let me know your thoughts on the best kind of shields in relation price/quality (I'm not planning to acquire very expensive stuff so I don't end up losing money, hehe). Oh, and in case it helps you out: The main use that I would have for the shield is to try to survive as much as possible in battles/sieges while in the middle of the action, so not for dueling.
3) Which of the heraldic armor do you prefer? I see that the heraldic mail, the heraldic with surcoat and the heraldic with tabard have the same value of body armor + leg armor, but the price varies a little bit... Would you actually recommend more body armor even if it's more expensive?
4) What would you suggest to heirloom first? Body armor as it would be used for any build that I use later on, (be it polearms as of now, 1H that I'm going to try afterwards, etc)?
5) And, finally, the craziest question: Has anybody tried with a character with both shield and polearm? I know that, if wearing the shield, you can only stab with the polearm with one hand, but I mean if somebody has done well switching the shield so you can use your polearm as usual (2H) and then using shield and pole (1H) for certain situations.
1. Correct. If it's white, it's heraldric.
2. Let me break these down:
Body armor: reduces the damage before it affects your shield hit points.
Hit Points: pretty obvious. How much damage it can take.
Speed Rating: One thing you should know, a shield's animation HAS NO BEARING on whether it's blocking or not. A shield with 100 speed will block even if it's not all the way up. A shield with a speed rating of say 61 won't block right away even when it is all the way up. So, the actual animation is irrelevant as far as blocking. To summarize; you can tap block with a 100 speed shield, slower shields you have to be more careful. Just so you know though, I have no problems blocking attacks with my 87 speed shield and 5 shield skill.
If you get a shield with high body armor, it is very effective against any weapon that's not a shield breaker as high armor shields often have low hitpoints. If you plan on using your shield against shield breaker weapons, you're better off using one with a ton of hitpoints. To get the best of both worlds, just put your shield away and manual block against shield breakers. Round shields offer the best overall coverage from arrows and from people attacking around the sides. With heater shields, kite shields and board shields you need to watch your facing more.
3. Armor is entirely about preference. Pick armor that you think looks cool and offers decent coverage. The important things to remember is the more weight you have on, the slower you move and the more your WPF is reduced. Personally, I use a loomed Heraldric Mail with Tabard.
4. As of right now, you'll get the most efficient looms with armor, (especially gloves for the amount of protection you get for weight) however a lot of people still loom their weapons first. If you plan on switching up your weapons a lot, armor would probably be better for you too.
5. Using a polearm with shield (especially the awlpike) is FANTASTIC if you're playing with other people. If you're running around by yourself expect to get smacked around. If you're running with other people it is ridiculously good. The awlpike itself is a fantastic weapon if you get good at it. If you're on NA and you see Noobie_ATS watch him wreck people with that thing.
Hope this helps.
