How should shields be used?

[tbird99]

I shield a lot and I can tell that it is hurting my play more than anything right now. I get grabbed way too much and it is making me lose games. What situations is shielding good and how often should I do it?

 

[pagedMov]

Most of the time you should be using other movement options like dash dancing/wavedashing as defensive options because using your shield too much basically locks you in one place, and immediately gives your opponent free reign to run around you with absolutely no repercussions. You should really only shield when you know you can follow up with an oos punish or when you have no choice but to shield (i.e. Falco's lasers)

 

[EPsilon933]

Shield > attack
Attack > grab
Grab > shield

Don't shield when the opponent is grab happy

Marth's OOS game is pretty bad. The best options for him are probably roll away and wavedash away. His shield grab is really good since it's fast and reaches far. Just don't get addicted to it. Opponents can space themselves outside of your reach, wait for you to whiff, then hit you for it

Up B OOS can be a stylish KO move. It's obviously super risky

 

[AirFair]

I wouldn't rely on shield very much. It does it's purpose well when used correctly, but don't let it keep you still. Marth can wd OoS back into Dashdances and also grab out of shield on unsafe approaches (shieldgrabbing)

 

[-ACE-]

It should be used as a last resort to maintain any strategic advantage you may have, to bait your opponent, to power shield, etc. How much you use it depends mainly on your character's oos options.

 

[Sleepy Driz]

if you're not exclusively blocking attacks by power shielding, are you even trying?

 

[tbird99]

if you're not exclusively blocking attacks by power shielding, are you even trying?

Of course I'm powershielding everything but you can't powershield grabs

 

[Pauer]

Shielding, or any decision in melee, should serve one purpose only: to gain an advantage.

I believe the possible advantages gained from shielding, excluding powershields, can be simplified to:

-Moving around projectiles
-Getting a shieldgrab, aerial, up-b or shine OOS
-Avoiding a hit that couldn't have been avoided otherwise.
​

Thus, any time your shield is up, it should be because of one of those 3 reasons. Additionally, being in shield is a state inferior to many alternative states such as dashing, crouching or being in wait since your options are very limited in shield. This means that if alternatives exist that offer similar advantages, these are to be preferred.

I also believe that until you reach a rather high understanding of the game, you don't know when shielding for the sake of avoiding an attack is absolutely necessary in a given situation. Thus, for improvement purposes it might be wise to refrain from shielding as a mean of avoiding attacks and instead force yourself to explore alternatives such as preemptive tilts or movement.

Probably the main mistake that I did and continue doing is shielding simply because I am afraid of being hit. Most of the time this is a manifestation of my inability to effectively deal with some of my opponent's options.
This is why I am focusing on only shielding with the goal of getting a grab, etc. (and maneuvering around projectiles in specific matchups) in order to learn to deal with my opponent's threats, which has helped me a great deal.

 

[tbird99]

Shielding, or any decision in melee, should serve one purpose only: to gain an advantage.

I believe the possible advantages gained from shielding, excluding powershields, can be simplified to:

-Moving around projectiles
-Getting a shieldgrab, aerial, up-b or shine OOS
-Avoiding a hit that couldn't have been avoided otherwise.
​

Thus, any time your shield is up, it should be because of one of those 3 reasons. Additionally, being in shield is a state inferior to many alternative states such as dashing, crouching or being in wait since your options are very limited in shield. This means that if alternatives exist that offer similar advantages, these are to be preferred.

I also believe that until you reach a rather high understanding of the game, you don't know when shielding for the sake of avoiding an attack is absolutely necessary in a given situation. Thus, for improvement purposes it might be wise to refrain from shielding as a mean of avoiding attacks and instead force yourself to explore alternatives such as preemptive tilts or movement.

Probably the main mistake that I did and continue doing is shielding simply because I am afraid of being hit. Most of the time this is a manifestation of my inability to effectively deal with some of my opponent's options.
This is why I am focusing on only shielding with the goal of getting a grab, etc. (and maneuvering around projectiles in specific matchups) in order to learn to deal with my opponent's threats, which has helped me a great deal.

The main reason why I shield is because it's a reaction to attacks and I started doing it from playing sm4sh before melee. I don't really use it strategically like I should, which I really need to work on. I should probably stop shielding entirely until I can learn when to use it and actually have it help me and not have it be my reaction to my opponent attacking

 

[Pauer]

I don't really use it strategically like I should, which I really need to work on. I should probably stop shielding entirely until I can learn when to use it and actually have it help me and not have it be my reaction to my opponent attacking

That's that's the main thing I and I believe pagedMov and Ace were trying to get at.

The other big thing imo is that avoiding/punishing an attack by for example dashing is simply better than avoiding/punishing it through shielding because if your opponent does not do that attack you will be in dash which is far better than being in shield.