Ballistic Shield good or bad for other team members.

[RimBlock]

So with the new Defense build with the ballistic shield being used a lot now, what are peoples impressions as people who do not use it but have been in teams where others are using it.

From my experience, people with the ballistic shield tend to run right in front of the AI and seem to be completely unaware they have blocked the ability for any other team members to shoot them.  This is magnified if they run in to block a doorway or down a narrow corridor.  I am finding myself having to run up alongside them or I cannot get the shots in a lot of the time.

People moving across my line of fire is understandable.  People running in to my line of fire and standing there is pretty irritating but people with a ballistic shield doing it is getting a bit silly now.  A few 'accidentally' miss aimed grenades may help them to get the message as they are toe to toe with the heavy completely blocking any other angle to shoot the heavy from.

Friendly fire, how I wish you were a thing, even if just for the shield.

What are other people experiences with others using the ballistic shield since 1.5 ?.

 

[Oh. daesu]

The bad, as you said. Last night i had one guy persistently wanting to walk right up to the AI.Completely blocking my line of sight, no matter how i moved. Maybe he was a bad shoot and needed to be in their face to get that headshot.

The good. when they all space, the aggro works really well. Another guy, I'd just run with him and pick off the mob one by one at close range, as if i was invisible. Amost seemed like cheating.

 

[DeadSockPuppet]

I'm a little confused, aren't shieldbearers supposed to be tanks and draw agro?  I understand you're not able to shoot enemies too, but if the tank is still standing, doesn't that mean the rest of the group is still alive?  

 

[ChowYunFats]

I'm a little confused, aren't shieldbearers supposed to be tanks and draw agro?  I understand you're not able to shoot enemies too, but if the tank is still standing, doesn't that mean the rest of the group is still alive?  

And I hear the only way a Shield user can really get some decent  DPS going outside of a handgun is with a certain armour set if I remember rite 

 

[RimBlock]

Yep the ballistic shield tank is meant to draw aggro but most users seem to be completely unaware when they run in front of others and block other players shots.  As the shield is twice the width of a slayer it is like two players standing in front of the bad guy so anyone else behind is less able to get any shots in (no headshot kills / crit weapon talent props etc) unless you manouver and some times that is just not possible given the location.

Yep the other players are fairly safe but also left not being able to contribute as much as they would like and so the game gets boring.

I had two shield guys in the last Lexington run and felt like I might as well just sit in the corner.

I also suspect loot drops are based on your damage to bad guys.  If that is being blocked then you get less loot.

 

[DeadSockPuppet]

I also suspect loot drops are based on your damage to bed guys.  If that is being blocked then you get less loot.

I didn't think about that.  I did run with a guy that had a shield last name for and he was a pain in the ass.  If I ran my reclaimer build with smart cover and support station he would have worked better with the ninja turtle.  That being said, I just kept ducking behind and jumping out from behind the shield guy to attack. 

 

[quinch1199]

I also suspect loot drops are based on your damage to bed guys.  If that is being blocked then you get less loot.

I don't believe so. From my understanding, the loot tables are set with RNG based on a fixed % on drops regardless (as long as you actually DO damage during the run and more importantly the end boss). XP however is purely based on damage output from what I've witnessed and that equals more field cache drops. 

Building loot drop modifiers based on damage output would significantly penalise support classes such as those running TA builds or other Electronic heavy builds. 

I could, of course, be horribly wrong though! lol!

 

[Juliet Tango]

I thought I was the only guy getting pissed off at this. I was running Lexington and had a couple guys with shields standing in front of me on the roof totally blocking me from being able to do anything of value. I ended up running back around to the entrance of the roof and set myself up on the upper section and laid down fire from there instead. Incredibly annoying though having someone blocking your view completely in a small area.

 

[ChowYunFats]

That's the part I do not care for about tanking if there going to play the role of a tank draw ARGO not play MVP and leave the team to die man that really burns me when that happens