Breath of the Wild Guardian frustration question

[DustinApproximately]

I've got the ancient armor full set and like 38 defense on it. I went and bought two ancient shields for 1000 a piece. My goal was to load up on as many ancient shields as possible before going into the castle. (Follow up question in a minute)

I take on a few guardian crawlers and after two shots where I parryed each shield broke! Is there something I'm doing wrong or why are they breaking that quickly? I feel like I just wasted 2000 doing that.

Also, my favorite and most easiest way to get ancient shields is to keep playing the Major Tests Of Strengths over and over, with the occasional 1000 rupee purchase at the lab. Is there a more efficient way to stock up on ancient shields?

When I start fighting the guardians in the castle I can't afford to have my shields break after every 2 shots. Is there a better way to do it?

Thank you.

 

[Azure Sage]

There's a difference between Guardian Shields and Ancient Shields. You can only get Ancient Shields from Robbie, and you can only get Guardian Shields from Guardian Scouts in shrines like major tests of strength.

Ancient Shields are not the only shield you can use to parry the Guardian's attacks, literally any shield will work. You need to use Perfect Guard to avoid losing durability on your shields. Only Ancient Shields will automatically parry it for you, but they lose durability in the process. Mine lasted like that through 5 or 6 Guardians, so idk what to tell you about the durability.

 

[DustinApproximately]

Ahhhhh!!! Nice to know, thank you.

How long does it take to fully regenerate Perfect Guard? I've been running around for a long time and it's still at x1. I thought there was a total of x3.

 

[Azure Sage]

Ahhhhh!!! Nice to know, thank you.

How long does it take to fully regenerate Perfect Guard? I've been running around for a long time and it's still at x1. I thought there was a total of x3.

You're confusing Perfect Guard with Daruk's Protection. Perfect Guard is the shield parry attack you use by pressing A at exactly the right moment. There's no limit on that. Also, none of the Champion powers regenerate until you've used them up.

 

[DragonEleven]

I personally find that parrying/perfect guard goes through shields too quickly to be a worthwhile strategy to use... I think simply evading their lasers and hitting them with ancient arrows is a far better approach... as long as you keep moving, you can get pretty close without being hit, virtually guaranteeing you a perfect shot with an arrow, which is an instant kill.

 

[Ronin]

I personally enjoy hunting Guardians now. Without the right tools, it was nearly impossible to do, but after learning to deal with them, I quit using shields and instead went with a more indirect approach. Like you said, the Guardian's lasers eat through the durability way too quickly, and even when Perfect Guarding the shield still tends to break. That's when you need to find something that won't break.

The number one key to success is: Pay attention to your surroundings at all times. What's around you? What's around the Guardian? Is there something you could possibly use as cover? A tree might be a good starting point, but they are going to break with one beam. So you need to find a wall or a crag to hide behind. Second of all: If you're fighting a Guardian Stalker, don't go to them; let them come to you. It can be intimidating at first, but they're big enough to get stuck on things and will give up chase once you're well-hidden. Third of all: Once they're close enough, fire an arrow into the eye (any arrow will do, so long as you have plenty on hand) and go straight for the legs. Taking out the legs ensures that they can't avoid your attacks, and I find that swords work best for this. Eventually, they'll become stationary like their turret counterparts and that's left is whittling the last of their health down. Any weapon will do; just stun them to prevent a barrage.

In summary, this is what I use:
-Either high-end armor or a stealth outfit and LOTS of recovery food (The first attempts were rocky, so go prepared)
-Normal arrows for stunning the eye (Ancient arrows are wasted on them as they're much harder to come by, in my opinion)
-A one-handed sword for destroying the legs (Much easier after attaining the Master Sword; but claymores work fine too)
-A high damage weapon to finish them off more quickly (They usually have half of their health left once immobilized)

Rinse and repeat until you have the process down, or experiment and come up with your own method. I've never really fought one on horseback yet, but there's a lot you could do from a mount to gain the upper hand. Breath of the Wild gives you so many options to work with, so go at it however it suits you best.

 

[DragonEleven]

Ancient arrows are wasted on them as they're much harder to come by, in my opinion

Ancient screws, springs and shafts are the most common drops from guardians, so they're not too difficult to get hold of... you'll typically find yourself getting more parts from a guardian than you put in to the arrows used to take them down, so your arsenal should build up fairly quickly.

 

[the8thark]

Only Ancient Shields will automatically parry it for you, but they lose durability in the process.

Do you have to press A to attempt to perfect block still with the Ancient Shield or can you just have the Ancient Shield up and it automatically reflects the beam?

 

[Zachie]

Do you have to press A to attempt to perfect block still with the Ancient Shield or can you just have the Ancient Shield up and it automatically reflects the beam?

If you want to keep durability, you need to push A or it will break quickly.

 

[the8thark]

If you want to keep durability, you need to push A or it will break quickly.

That didn't answer the question I asked but thanks for the reply. I'll ask in a different way.

Do you have to press A for this shield to reflect the beam or can I just hold it infrony of Link's face for this shield to reflect the beam?

 

[Zachie]

That didn't answer the question I asked but thanks for the reply. I'll ask in a different way.

Do you have to press A for this shield to reflect the beam or can I just hold it infrony of Link's face for this shield to reflect the beam?

If you're using an Ancient Shield it will deflect without pushing A but it will break quicker.

 

[Tibari]

I went through the game thinking that perfect guard doesn't work against normal Guardians. And some days ago a friend told me that I can perfect guard them with any shield. Now I feel like I'm cheating using a poor wooden shield to kill them in 3 hits x)

 

[Cartoonmaniac]

I went through the game thinking that perfect guard doesn't work against normal Guardians. And some days ago a friend told me that I can perfect guard them with any shield. Now I feel like I'm cheating using a poor wooden shield to kill them in 3 hits x)

Wow... you can actually do that?

 

[Tibari]

I had a lot of gameover because I was careless, but I went through Hyrule Castle with a naked Link, and some shields, and I killed every guardian I met before reaching Ganon. (I killed him too, without any clothes and the same shield + the master sword because it takes too much time to kill him without attacking him)

 

[AncientPoe]

For dealing with Stalkers outside, I've also found that if you can find a hill to engage them on (the steeper the better) dropping or throwing a bomb so that it is underneath them and then detonating it, or repeatedly shooting them in the eye can cause them to topple over completely, leaving their underside vulnerable. I've noticed that sometimes (maybe with lightning weapons?) striking the plate on their underside shuts them off completely for a few seconds. Their lights go completely off or turn blue for a bit while they reboot.