Well i tested resistance against a skill attack, and it seems it does actually reduce damage taken.
I stuck a L11 resistance on my saff and she took 8k less damage than w/out it, against a driving blow.
Everything else was the same, shield wall was dealt 1st, then the driving blow was the first hit from opposing player.
I had thought about this previously, but lacked the enthusiasm to actually test it, thanks Yelsha.
Think i may be changing my defense runes around abit for pvp, and using flinti and resis on all until my flav has enough stars to make him worthwhile using