Well, first we need to address your assumptions, that the kite/tower shield change will be going live as is. We have been repetedly told that the current combat testing will not be going live. Everyone keeps wanting to freak out as if they are despite this, and despite other portions of the combat testing have been changed then reset on Test already (parry buffing, for example). This change may or may not go live.
There may very well have never been any intention of brining any of this live, since the behavior of the devs regarding the combat testing is in line with data gathering rather than actual changes to the final product (abrupt, gross changes to the system in seperate and independant stages). Again, parry buffing is a good example. They disabled all parry buffs, eliminating 100% of that system, let the testers play in this environment for a while to gather data, then reinstated parry buffing as it was prior to the test with no changes.
But, assuming that some form of shield change is intended to go live, you then assume that the change is to the relationship between kite shields and tower shields. And you further assume that the final change will be a complete elimination of the difference in blocking between kite and tower shields. IF every one of these assumtions proves true, we may then question what purpose tower shields have, and what if any significance the tower shield skill has to Warriors. Even as the system stands now, many Warriors prefer certain kite shields to the availible tower shields in the same tier due to superior stats and effects.
Of course, this is all based on quite a string of marginally supported assumptions, that support only being the Developers past tendancy to drop stuff on test and then publish it live with little to no thought. And we all know what happens when you assume...
Message Edited by Oakwood on 05-03-2005 12:47 PM