2 ironflesh is not enough in my opinion.
Main problem being a shielder is friendly hits , your team damage you more than the enemy team.
You can block like 120 degrees infront of you but your teammates hurt you too much from the remaining 240 degrees
You can't blame them all the time though.
For example when you fight against an enemy shielder , if your teammate with great maul comes to "help"(or in other words "1 hit the guy you try to kill for few minutes") you should move away and let him get the kill otherwise you can get killed
.
Worst teammates are spearmen , they stick their spear to your arse so deeply that you cannot ever sit again, hell they hurt too much lol.