Weapon speed and WPF only. I don't have the formula offhand, but i think 100 wpf is maybe 7% weapon speed difference only.
When you use a shield its -30% speed penalty. Whoever has a longer weapon will always, always get the first attack. You need to block and then immediately swing, but even with a slower 1h, you can get hits in just fine. If you put your shield on your back you can see the speed difference dramatically. If you compare the average 2h weapon speed of 92, to even a very quick 1h sword with 100 speed, after the penalty is accounted for, its 92 speed vs 70 - that of a long maul.
Haha, wow, maybe you're right. Isnt it at least a 10% penalty? 30 is def spears in hoplite and 1h/2h swords. I swear to god there's at least a 10% penalty.
As horrible as that sounds, 1h animations are very quick. The left swing is by far the quickest, though it does less damage - if you aim for the face you'll do plenty. Also - when you hold your swings for half a second or so, your character will let out a grunt - this gives you a 50% damage bonus. If you hold your swing and don't release right away, somebody who taps block instead of holding it to be safe will let their guard down, and you'll get a very nice hit on them. Trial and error, keep it up, its a fun game man, definitely takes some practice though. Let me know if you ever want to go to duel server, I'll show you what I can.
You can stay shielder if you want. You can learn manual block on your own time in the duel server if you want, you don't need to play 2 hander or pole ever if you don't want to.