Can you take WF and WS for shields?

[geosapient]

Could you take that feat line if you want to specialize in attacking with a shield (spiked shield / shield bash)?

Suppose a fighter lost an arm and wanted to keep his AC up and still be effective in combat could he take those feats? And if so, would it be per shield type (buckler, small, large, tower) or possibly just for spiked shield?

 

[phindar]

Yes.

(I mean, I'm assuming. But since you can use them as weapons, I can't think of a reason why you couldn't Focus or Specialize in their use.)

Edit: Going by the SRD, it looks like Heavy Shield, Light Shield and Buckler are considered different weapons for bash attmepts. I'd say spikes are an add on, since I wouldn't require a different feat for say, gauntlets and spiked gauntlets. Spikes don't really change how you bash, they just change how the other guy feels about it. (Since spikes are designed to make shield bashes more effective, it doesn't make sense for a guy specialized in shield bashing to be less effective with a spiked shield, to me. YMMV.)

 

[wolff96]

Since you can use them for attacks, there is no reason that a person couldn't take Focus and Specialization in their attacks.

If I had to make a recommendation, though...

Get weapon focus and specialization in your main weapon -- either bludgeoning or piercing. Then take Melee Weapon Mastery for the required damage type (bludgeoning for non-spiked shields and piercing for spiked). Then you can have your cake and eat it, too.