Overhaul of blocking mechanics

Base assumptions:
o Impact of ping should be minimised
o Skill expression which is trivial, and/or primarily the result of confusing, frustrating or broken mechanics is not desirable.
o One such skill expression is fighting with the paper doll. (Here I mean the correct management of weapons in combat)
o Where such trivial skill expression has obvious outcomes, it's preferable for those outcomes to be granted "for free" and not require engaging with the frustration or broken mechanics.

The problem:
In the ideal scenario, where a player has 0 ping and never faces problems with the paper doll, they can block with a shield at all times when they are not performing another action. This is frustrating for players because trying to reach this ideal scenario can result in some pretty un-fun consequences (being stuck holding the wrong weapon)
The solution:
(There are a couple of solutions to this, but the one which moves us closer to the ideal state with the current balance is described here)
o Allow shield to be equipped with any weapon
o The shield should only confer protection bonuses while being actively used or used with a 1h weapon
o Blocking should be possible with all weapons, and should cause the shield's protection value to be applied
o Blocking should be possible without any shield equipped at all

This would reliably yield the "Ideal" case without massively overhauling the paper doll and weapon switching systems.