Proper balance of DPS and Tank?

Okay. I've settled into the routine of 'stand in one place and hammer away at the target' mode; and I've been playing with various options for it... But I can't seem to find a balance of DPS and Tank that will refrain from gimping me further down the line.

I've come up with a couple characters who could barely be scratched... But their DPS was low enough that some enemies just couldn't be killed. I've come up with some who generally shred anything in front of them... But they die in one hit. I can't seem to find a happy middle ground.

Sword and Board - I love it. Pumping shield block is pretty nice... But I always end up with relatively low DPS.

Dual - I'm thinking this is considered one of the middle-ground styles; but the block chance seems too low to be noticeable, and I don't see much DPS increase.

Staff - Another middle-ground style? Slightly less DPS than the other two-handers. A little bit of, again, barely-noticeable block.

Two-Handers - Big damage. Slightly higher DPS. No defense.

Bows - DPS focus, again no room for a shield. The benefit of range and the poison arrow are fun.

Wands - Range... But it seems incredibly weak. It does allow a shield, though.

As far as the armour types go...

Armour - Yes, that's nice. Flat damage reduction is always fabulous... However, being hit by everything was a tad annoying.

Evasion - Very hit and miss (see what I did there?); great most of the time, spikes of damage. And out of nowhere, death.

Eshield - I love it, really. But it really doesn't seem to synchronize well with either of the other sorts.

Armour/Evasion - I liked this combo. Didn't get hit too often; and when I did it didn't hurt too badly.

Armour/Eshield - Counterproductive. I loved the idea of just stacking brute force on brute force... But the no-being-hit regen on the Eshield ruined it for me.

Evasion/Eshield - Slightly better than the above. The concept of dodging long enough to allow a regen is good... It just didn't work in practice.

So, what should I do? Is there some combination of armour type and weapon type that'll give me a good balance? Am I just gimping myself with bad builds? Am I not being patient enough to grind out an extra level or a new sword? Is there no happy medium?

*sigh*

Advice, please. Maybe even some target numbers for a merciless-quality solo build?