Kinngrimm your style of playing seems like doing art. That's what I was trying to do at my second gen, but due to a strange build I attempted to make I think I couldn't be as much effective as you. My build was 18/21 6 PS, 7 Ath, 5 shield, 5 weapon master. Not a bad build I say, but I never see any other guy tried the same build. At first I was pissed off at my choice of class, due to the considerably low damage. But after I realized, I have to play a bit more strategically. I did wonders with my non-loomed italian falchion and non-loomed long espada. In crowds, I was able to hold my block and hit at the right moment to kill the enemy. Not to mention, shielder class is the best class to not hit your teammates in a total chaos. Also, high athletics and shield is golden for multicombat something that is one of the most satisfying when you are succesful. Yeah, if pasting a throwing axe to the head of my foe comes first; killing 3 opponents by myself comes second in terms of satisfaction
Well, oh... what I was saying? Ahha! If your warband is automatically updated, you may try to play some native multiplayer nowadays perhaps. For me, it is much more stable to learn the game mechanics. In native, everyone is equal and it shows which player is actually the best. In cRPG there are level 35 ninjas with mw katana, mw body armor, mw boots, mw gloves, mw head armor, mw boots and mw snowflakes who are actually nothing but spammers in Nditions duel server. Well, they are not spammer noobs in Nditions but that's what they do in cRPG for sure. So, go to native. It may seem dubious and limited at first, but in my opinion it is better.
Edit: I think there is another piece of advice I can give. Since you are first gen, you have no loomed weapons. Therefore carrying 2-3 different kind of weapons -let's say steel pick, broad axe, espada eslavona- might increase your flexibility. It's going to be a total chaos, pick steel pick and short length will be your avantage; an enemy shielder is coming towards you, grab your axe and tear it's shield to pieces; a lightly armored foe is coming, pick espada eslavona and do some superfast thrust attacks. Considering all of one handed weapons are one slot, and are not heavy; this might not do you harm after all. Also, it is a good way to find out which weapon is better for your liking; therefore which build suits more to your liking.