Why I NEVER use the Shield of Cthulhu

mm yes I would like to waste my accessory slots. please use my demon heart to bring me back to how many accessories I would have had in classic
-statements of the utterly deranged

#terraria #gaming

[JohnShotbites]

real gamers use the SoC for the 2 defense it gives

[keej]

My biggest problem with it is that once I get it in my playthroughs I become so dependent on it that trying to free up an accessory slot by replacing it feels like losing a leg

[damnthisisabadname]

The world if there was an OPTIONAL direct dash button
(IF YOU WERE STILL ALLOWED TO KEEP THE OLD DOUBLE TAP SYSTEM)

[AlphactoryAT]

I hate the required self knockback. If skeletron is charging me and I bounce on a zombie, I'm dead. Other terraria dashes don't have that problem.

[purplehaze]

If you'll pardon my devil's advocacy for a moment: I'm sorry, but there are way more disadvantages to dodging with a hook than just it requiring you move your cursor and therefore disrupt your attack flow (which is a way bigger drawback than you seem to think it is regardless). It is not "way more versatile".
It relies on having a surface nearby, which I _suppose_ is acceptable enough at the stage you get the SoC because flight is either outright nonexistent or.. just kinda bad in pre-hardmode; but once you hit hardmode itself, having to rely on something to grapple onto nearby is rather daft unless you want to waste time making an arena so large that you could comfortably stay in it over the entire duration of a boss fight.
Compare this to a dash; doesn't matter where you are, doesn't matter what's around you, you can do it at literally any time and in any place.

Also, as a rebuttal to the example of double jumps, horizontal mobility becomes significantly more useful in hardmode because, with vertical mobility as high as that provided by hardmode wings or flying mounts, adding onto that becomes largely redundant; and even if it wasn't, the fact there's always going to be more room to dodge horizontally than vertically in a world means going side-to-side is more optimal for dodging than going up or down.
Hell, the argument can be made that going too far up is, itself, bad for dodging, because going into space and either having to maneuver around a sky island or getting stuck on it both really suck to deal with while in the middle of a boss fight.
Also, the amount you can dash is limited only by the slight cooldown between each dash you do. By comparison, you have a finite number of jumps before you need to land to reset them.

[daneelaart]

i use the shield as a way to instantly proc hermes boots and not much else

[reedworsham]

The huge boost to acceleration that the shield of cthulu gives you outweighs any minor inconviences in my eyes. Grappling is omnidirectional but takes noticeably more effort than dashing and lowers your damage output a bit unless you have a weapon with excellent tracking and also requires you to build your arena specifically to allow grappling to be used as reliably as dashing.

[hotcashgrimh]

This is why I love terraria, everybody can have their own way of playing the game. There are so many ways of doing something which makes the game so replayable and fun.

[tpeter]

I’m going to have to respectfully disagree. Really the only reason I use any dash in any game is to change my momentum instantly. It’s just such a good thing for me to be able to not have to ever deal with acceleration. Yes, the mandatory bounce can be pretty bad in certain situations, but I find it helps more than it hurts. And personally, I don’t tend to have any issues where I procrastinate the dash accidentally, but maybe that’s because I play with a mechanical keyboard. But, maybe I’ll try playing without it and change my mind. IMO though, terraria needs more than 3 dashes

[Marko_bou]

3:51 oh that lizard explains it perfectly

[damnthisisabadname]

My main problem with soc is just that it's really easy to accidentally use when "nudging" (for example when tapping right to make a platform row)

[Rossiter]

You know what's really funny?

The Thorium mod has a way to make the Shield almost completely redundant by this logic.

In Expert Mode, the Grand Thunder Bird (a pre-Eye boss) drops a grappling hook that has the unique quality of being usable in the air - something most other grappling hooks can't do. This means that you can change horizontal or vertical direction basically whenever you want - granted, you can only use it once in the air unlike the Shield, but it fixes the only real issue that grappling hooks have for use during boss fights, in my opinion.

[Atouhoufan-mwyf]

I can't even count how many times i accidentially dashed off my skybridge or into lava with this thing, yet i still use it lol

[VintageJigmac]

My only gripe with shield is the knockback when hitting and the nudging problem, but thats about it.

Aside from that, i use the shield in conjuction with other mobility tools to further prevent taking damage.

[paladin]

after using the shield of cthulhu for so long, i found out the correct rhythm to use it so that i can move slowly while not activating it

[scientistB]

There was once a time where I just didn't use the Shield because I was so afraid of Expert Mode I just stacked on as many survivability accessories as possible. My Worm Scarf days are long over though and I appreciate the mobility. However, now I'm on the opposite end of the spectrum and I stack so many mobility accessories that I rarely care about sustain; maybe squeeze in one or two damage accessories if possible.
As others have already said, I don't mind if the dash is a double-tap or a dedicated key, I get used to it either way. While I get what you mean with the accidental dashing from tiny movements, for me I usually have the timing down to avoid it. In the case of building, I usually don't have it on because I use another loadout for building/mining.
I'll agree that one must be very careful dealing with the Skeletron fights if you're using the Shield. Only dash if it's safe or use a grapple.
I will say though, in a recent run I finally decided to give Crystal Assassin armor a fair try and I was pleasantly surprised. Not only is the dash better, but it saves up an accessory slot for more build variety. Great stuff.

[commandergs]

Go ahead and tell me if I’m super off base with this but this whole video seems super elitist. The main argument seems to be “I don’t need it because I can dodge without it”, which is fine but I’m feeling this kind of “get good” mentality. Like that hook dodging is the same thing but the drawback is it’s hard. Does anyone else get the kinda vibe that I’m being told that this is the new player crutch item until you resolve your skill issue and use hook dashing?

I use hook dashing a lot, but I use the shield almost all the time too. They aren’t actually that similar. The shield dash is limited to horizontal movement and a fixed distance, but is quick and responsive. The hook is more versatile in a lot of ways but requires a platform or block in the direction you want to go, and the hook travel time makes it less responsive. They are both good in different situations and having them both in your kit makes movement really fun and effective.

The weirdest part is that (if I’m not alone in this feeling) I’m being told that I have a skill issue and the other main argument is that the knockback and activation key is hard to use. I never dash by accident anymore, and I don’t use a dash key because it feels weird. Besides, I’ve gotten quite good at using the knockback to my advantage, say to dash into Skeletron to get a boost away from him but with not enough velocity to hit the hand.

It seems like Sorbet Cafe started before 1.3 and was good at hook dashing when the shield was introduced. He never felt the need to learn it, and that’s why he’s less proficient at managing its quirks. Absolutely no problem with this. For me, I also started then, but really liked the item, and my constant use helped me master it. Again, no problem. It’s really personal preference, but I want to share how someone who is good at hook dashing still gets a lot of usage from this.

I just got a really weird vibe from this. If you are reading this, Sorbet Cafe, know that I’m just giving my read on this, if I’m wrong, don’t let this bother you.

[PrincessFelicie]

I love having a dash. I don't know if the SoC's dash is the _best_ one, the bouncing on enemies can be a blessing and a curse, but it's rare that I don't run some form of dash accessory until very late game wings.

[ironnnnnnnnn]

the shield is actually extremely useful if u never build arenas like me, most of the time theres no good spots to grapple, the double tap keybind is also useful since you can use it dynamically and stay focused on fighting

[lahiruerangafile]

"when you see I'm not using it this is why"
*shows a lizard*

my guess is lizard threatened sobert to not use dashes.