Assassin's Creed Valhalla: how to block shield attacks

How to Block in Assassin's Creed Valhalla

The Viking era, you know, was particularly violent. This is why in the new chapter of the Assassin's Creed saga, set in early medieval England, combat is the order of the day and is characterized by a rather realistic brutality.

Vikings like Eivor and his companions raids made shield fighting a true art. They used to fight in tight formations and protect each other using this defense tool flawlessly. In Valhalla, you will receive your first shield after the game's opening sequence, playing as Eivor as an adult.

How to block with the shield

Once equipped, just hold down the button L1 / LB (PlayStation 4 / Xbox One) on the controller or the X key on the keyboard to hold it in front of you and parry incoming attacks. However, for each hit absorbed by the movable shield, the stamina bar will drop by one notch, depending on the force with which the attack was launched. When your energy is at zero you will no longer be able to use the shield and you will have to wait until you have energy available again; in these cases it is better to move away or dodge the opponent's attacks.

To avoid running into this problem, try to make a timed parry: press the button to raise the shield just as the attack of the enemy is about to hit you. The block will turn into a parry, the attack will be deflected leaving your opponent's defense open for a quick counterattack. Do you already know how to select the Eivor character at the beginning of the game?