Shieldbearer

Shieldbearers are one of the earlier encounters in the first few biomes of the game. It is one of the harder ones to hit because of the large shield it carries which protects it from all attacks dealt to the front.

Behavior
One of the few enemies to have a shield effect in the current game, the Shieldbearer has a special effect that it can't be hit from the front, and stuns the player if they hit the shield's protective hit box even if using a dive attack. The shield does not protect it against effects on the ground, but protects it from all effects from grenades, turrets, toxic gas, or other skills or weapons which don't penetrate the shield directly. Their attack can also be parried, which will deal damage to the Shieldbearer.


 * Charging up and rushing



Strategy
To bypass the shield you can simply roll behind it and attack which will stun it, then it can be hit from any angle. Using skills or weapons which are on the floor also bypasses the shield. Firebrands, Torches, the indirect effect of Fire Grenades, Oil Grenades, Wolf Traps, and Cleavers are examples of skills which will inflict damage or effects without stunning it. Three weapons in the current game, Electric Whip, Valmont's Whip and Wrenching Whip, bypass its shield entirely which allows them to be hit from the front without stunning them.

Its attack pattern is simply to stand still then charge forward on the platform it is positioned on. It is fairly quick to turn around to protect itself, which can make it hard to kill if you have a slower weapon. However, if you also have a shield a good alternative is to parry the Shieldbearer's attack.