Shields-Our house rule

We decided that to make shields more important and useful to modify their use. They always add +1 to armor and can be used either to bash the opponent at the user's strength at -1 to hit or to parry, where you can parry if you tie the roll rather than just beat it. They cannot do both in the same turn.

It has worked rather well and everyone seems to like it.

Seems quite a lot though for 5gc... though I think +1 to AS in CC is a good house rule (we use it)

I like the idea of shield bashing... but maybe as a strength skill, no?

Shield Bash.
The warrior gets an extra attack, which always strikes last. The attack is carried out by using either a buckler or shield. A buckler Shield Smash will be at strength like user -1, and a shield bash using anormal shield will be at the users S.

If you really want to make shields competitive for more than just particular, armored heroes you can't have their bonus tied to a skill.

A bash goes a long way to redressing the issue. Honestly, with how poorly armor saves perform in Mordheim I wouldn't be against letting shields straight up grant an additional attack just like dual wielding. Consider that it would then be 5 gc for a shield that gives an +1 A and +1 AS, and also 5 gc for an axe that gives +1 A and -1 AS.

Of course, it doesn't necessarily FEEL right, though I think people greatly under estimate how a shield can be used on the offensive.

We've decided to just get rid of bucklers and make shields grant parry by default, and we're seeing how that works.

May I point you to our house rules..
https://boringmordheimforum.forumieren.com/rules-and-gameplay-f1/w22-house-rules-t3608.htm
.. where we presented a shield bash technique very similar to yours..

And a shameless quote of myself:

REminenz wrote:

...
Key changes:

• -1 to hit when using two weapons (including weapon + shield)
  
• added new combat skill to compensate for that
  
• +1 AS on all armor types except toughened leather in hand-to-hand combat
  
• shields and bucklers have the shield bash special rule which grants +1A that hits on a fixed 5+ and suffers -2 on injury rolls
  
• added new combat skill to make shield bash attacks hit based on WS
  
• Critical hits dont ignore armour but rather give a -2 modifier
  
• Handguns roll 2 injury dice and may cause and all alone test
  
• Same for the Hochland Long rifle but with S5
  
• Spears grant +1I in the first round of hand-to-hand combat
  

The -1 to hit modificator should balance out one-handed and two-handed (spear, morning star, halberd, THW, ..) weapons.
The shield bash special rule should make shields more attractive in comparison to a second weapon.
With shields being more common, the enhanced (+1AS) armours could also be seen more frequently.
And with armour in general more present the axe should also have it's place in game.
...

While I like the idea of shield-bashing, I'm squarely in Opheliate's camp in my thinking that it should be a skill (as I stated in REminenz's thread).

In my opinion, an important part of fixing shields and various other weapon options is making dual wield worse somehow. I am a fan of the -1 to hit for all attacks when attacking with two weapons. Add an "ambidextrous" skill, give shields +1AS in close combat when used with a single-handed weapon and you'll find a LOT of different weapons and shields are suddenly more useful.

(See the Sticky on Dual Wielding if you want to see more on this.)

The problem with buffing shields with a skill is that only heroes will be able to get it. Henchmen will still be better off dual wielding, and only specific heroes who people decide to stack armor on will bother with the shields.

Like Popmouth, we are going with the simple additional +1 to armor saves in close combat. It does seem to me making shields quite a bit more popular.

I like the skill version too. In our rule mod (besides necessary armor/shield buff and DW nerf already mentioned above) I'm following the idea of skills for every weapon, not just swords (swordsman, parry skills), making them all viable choices for heroes. And shield being in armour section is one I missed.
From my point of view on skills I'd rather prefer another effect, than additional attack (only Art of silent death with claws and Berserkr do this if I remember well). Maybe additional attack which cannot wound, but if succesfuly hit it makes the opponent to hit on -1 for the rest of that turn. It is not of permanent use in combat, but that is what most skills are like and IMO it's right.

In my group we house ruled shield with +1AS in close combat.
On the other hand we decided that it costs 15gc to get the dual wield ability with a -1 to hit modifier for the offhand and a new skill to compansate the -1 modifier.
It seems to work so far.

Shouldnt shield be +1 As in ranged combat instead? Its easier to walk around with your shield raised in front of your body when fired upon. You cant just stand firm with your shild in close combat, as it will more or less actually deflect blows by countering them rather than just blocking, as is the case with missile fire.

A 5+ save vs missile weapons for shields is something I could agree on.

Maybe, though gamewise this would most likely make shields attractive to your best heroes, like the captain, and perhaps on your ballistic warriors (since they get a cheap protection against other shooters)

Plus, I believe the additional +1 in close combat is present in Warhammer, so there is a consistency.

Our House rules was that if you had a shield and a hand weapon that was a 5+ armor save. It wasn't equal or better then duel wielding, but it made my lizardman hard to wound. All of my lizardmen had a 3+ or 4+ armor save between their Scaly Skin and a shield.

I like the idea of a shield bash. I always liked the Feat in D&D, and I think of skills in Mordheim as similar to Feats in D&D.

Maybe you could have a "Special" Shield that costs a little more, but gives you the Shield Bash ability.

Opheliate wrote:

Shouldnt shield be +1 As in ranged combat instead? Its easier to walk around with your shield raised in front of your body when fired upon. You cant just stand firm with your shild in close combat, as it will more or less actually deflect blows by countering them rather than just blocking, as is the case with missile fire.

A 5+ save vs missile weapons for shields is something I could agree on.

The +1 save in combat represents the ability of a warrior to anticipate where his enemy will strike and his ability to move quickly enough to block it. It's a bit more difficult to do against arrows and bullets; if your shield was in the right place, you block it (hopefully), if it wasn't, you don't.