Start with getting your STR to 34. Tower Shield is good until you can get this one. This one has insane stability and the same requirements as a Tower Shield. The Greataxe is the fastest heavy hitting weapon you can use. It's not flashy, but it's fast and it kills poise. You can block everything including poison with this shield. If you don't want the extra pyro, go bandit. I'm about to create this character.
