To Block or Parry? A Pro Gamer‘s In-Depth Guide

Hey friend! Terry here, back with another guide for my favorite online community. You‘ve been asking about defensive techniques in action and fighting games – when to block versus parry. As a competitive gamer for over a decade, I‘m here to break it all down for you!

Blocking and parrying can mean the difference between an untimely game over or a flawless victory. Mastering these fundamental skills is essential for any serious gamer. This comprehensive guide will teach you when and how to utilize blocks and parries.

Blocking – The Safe Option

Let‘s start with blocking, your good ol‘ reliable defense. By holding back or down on the D-pad or analog stick, you put up a protective barrier against enemy attacks. Blocking is typically the easier and lower-risk option, though it comes with some drawbacks.

The Benefits of Blocking

• Safer and more consistent than parrying
• Reduces damage taken, even if not completely negated
• Easy execution just by holding your guard
• Great against heavy attacks you‘re unsure how to parry
• Still blocks damage when timing is off

According to testing by redditors on Street Fighter V, blocking only took chip damage of around 10% from heavy attacks. Not bad!

The Downsides of Blocking

• Chips away at health bar with blocked damage
• No opportunity for sweet counter attacks
• Can be broken by throws and grapples
• Useless against unblockable red attacks
• Still depletes your stamina meter when blocking

So while blocking has your back, it won‘t turn the tide of a battle on its own. Now let‘s check out its riskier cousin – the parry.

Parrying – High Risk, High Reward

Unlike blocking, parrying requires well-timed button presses to deflect enemy attacks altogether. This leaves them stunned and open for counter combos. The potentials rewards are great, but mess up the timing and you‘ll be smashed!

Where Parrying Shines

• Nullifies all damage from properly timed parries
• Opens the enemy up for nasty counter attacks
• Enables those sweet Max Damage Critical Hits
• Extremely effective against humanoid bosses once you get the timing down
• Highly satisfying and aggressive playstyle!

I‘ll never forget perfectly parrying Father G‘s giant tombstone slam in Bloodborne – it left him wide open for a devastating visceral attack, chunking half his health bar!

The Dangers of Parrying

• Much more difficult execution requiring tight timing
• High risk if mistimed against heavy attacks – expect to eat full damage
• Leaves you completely vulnerable if you miss a parry
• Typically useless against non-physical and elemental attack types
• Requires proper positioning and angle relative to the enemy

I‘ve definitely whiffed some parries and paid sorely for it against the likes of Pontiff Sulyvahn in Dark Souls 3. His combo chains would quickly finish me off!

Blocking vs. Parrying By the Numbers

Let‘s break down the numbers on blocking efficacy vs parry windows across some major fighting game titles:

Street Fighter V

• Blocking reduces damage by chip damage of around 10%
• Parry window between 3-8 frames depending on character

Tekken 7

• Blocking decreases damage taken by up to 50%
• Just 3-5 frame parry windows for most fighters

Elden Ring

• 100 Physical and Magic Damage Negated by blocks
• Up to 23 frame parry windows on medium shields

The numbers don‘t lie – parry timing windows are tight! But mastery pays off in spades.

Case Study: Blocking and Parrying in Elden Ring

The mix of blocking and parrying comes to life in FromSoftware‘s acclaimed action RPG Elden Ring. Let‘s examine their implementation and strategy for this brutal game.

Strong Blocks with Drawbacks

• Holding up a shield or two-handing a weapon allows blocking
• Reduces damage taken, but still chips away at health
• If "guard broken", leads to a devastating critical hit from the enemy
• Requires heavy investment in Endurance stats for best damage mitigation

Parrying for Riposting

• Certain shields and parry Ashes of War enable parrying
• Precise timing will allow you to stagger an enemy for a few seconds
• During this window, a riposte with your weapon causes massive damage
• Whiffing a parry against bosses spells certain doom!

When to Block vs Parry in Elden Ring

Here are my recommendations based on hard-fought experience:

• Block against mobs and heavy attacks from unfamiliar enemies
• Parry bosses and humanoid enemies once you learn timings
• Don‘t get greedy! Mix parries between blocking combos
• Block when low on health or facing multiple foes
• Parry to counter aggro/poise break tough enemies

With practice, you‘ll get a feel for when to block vs parry against each perilous foe. Patience and mastery of both is key to conquering Elden Ring.

Mastering Parry Timing

So you want to parry like a pro? Excellent, young grasshopper! Here are my essential tips:

• Choose a parry-capable shield, weapon skill, or fist weapon
• Study enemy movements and look for attack windups
• Press the parry button just before impact, not during windup
• Aim to parry the hand/weapon, not the body, for best consistency
• Parry in the direction the attack is coming from
• Use audio cues on fast attacks you can‘t always see

It takes time, but you‘ll be pulling off parries consistently against all your favorite enemies. Extremely satisfying!

In Conclusion: The Balancing Act

And there you have it – the full scoop on blocking versus parrying! Here‘s a quick recap:

• Blocking is lower risk but provides no counterattack
• Parrying opens up high damage at the cost of strict timing
• Ideal strategy is mixing both based on the situation
• Practice makes perfect – study enemy patterns and experiment!
• Parrying excels in 1v1 fights once you learn opponents‘ tells

If you found this guide helpful, drop me any other gaming topics you‘d like to see covered. This is just the tip of the iceberg on mastering defense in action games. We‘ll dive deeper into dodging, iframes, and building guard stats in the future.

Stay safe out there and happy gaming!

Terry
Gaming Analyst at 33rdsquare.com