Metal_Gear_Raxis posted... I gotta say, going from a shield and poke build to a Darkmoon Greatsword build feels like taking the training weights off, bosses are a lot less bs when they don't survive long enough to drop their nonsense.
I think dropping the shield in general would help train a lot of players. A lot of players are very passive and timid, which means the fights go on longer, which means there's way more room for mistakes. You also have to use a lot of stamina on blocking and therefore a lot of time waiting just to block again, meaning it's not being used to attack.
Obviously this does rely on being able to dodge, but it also forces you to learn movesets, identify openings and evade efficiently. Most bosses in Elden Ring (and DS3 before it...) are too aggressive to be able to successfully hide behind a shield unless you proper commit to a great shield build.