Board Thread:Suggestions forum/@comment-27179278-20160127025124/@comment-27179278-20160128223625

In regards to the shield recipe, I think that it would heavily depend upon how they were integrated with the current aesthetic shields. This is the reason that I left the subject untouched. I agree with AlteOgre's choices in materials though, planks and iron/bronze seem like a good way to go. I personally feel like a small number of different strength shields, with a limited number of attributes (namely, block length and max block) is the best balance between a more realistic combat system and that good old Minecraft feel that we all know and love.

As for dual wielding, I believe that a new shield slot is the best way to handle this. I believe that simply adding shield items that you placed like any tool in your hotbar would get cluttered, and wouldn't allow for a smooth transition between shielding and striking that is necessary for combat to feel natural and exciting.

I haven't seen the threads on dual-wielding, so I'll have to look these up. If the code is the problem, then I would point Mevans to the Mine and Blade Battlegear mod, which TheblueWizard referenced. The shield mechanics for Battlegear were my starting point in trying to suggest a more interesting combat system, and the mod happens to be open source. Mevans would have the option to see their implementation before integrating it with his mod, thus simplifying his work quite a bit.