Shield

Shields are weapons in .

Description
Shields are unique in that they deal no damage, but always have "blocking enabled." This means any melee attack that happens to hit a shield will receive a block penalty as if the opponent parried the attack with their melee weapon. Shields also provide the largest surface to block incoming projectiles. This makes Shields by far the best defensive item available, especially when wielded by a player who moves the shield to block incoming attacks.

Shields come with an innate movement speed penalty.

Tips

 * Unlike One Hand Weapons and Two Hand Weapons, the shield will not automatically move toward incoming enemy melee attacks, you must do so manually.
 * When wielding a shield, point your shield in front of incoming melee and ranged attacks. For instance, if an enemy is aiming for your head, look up at the sky.  If the enemy is aiming for your arm, turn toward the attack.
 * Increased Movement Speed Percentage can offset the innate penalty that comes with all shields.
 * Equip Opponent Block Stun Multiplier to greatly penalize enemies who accidentally hit your shield, giving you more time to counter-attack.
 * Traits that trigger on block or on shield block are potentially very powerful, due to how easy it is to block incoming attacks with a shield.
 * Arguably anyone who wishes to be "tanky" should wield a shield. As long as the shield wielder avoids being flanked, they can live quite a long time, even against many opponents at once.
 * Yes, you can equip two shields at the same time. No clue why you would want to do that though...

Skill Level
Shields are easier to block with than One Hand Weapons and Two Hand Weapons due to their size, despite lacking the auto-blocking that those weapons have. As long as the shield user remembers to always face incoming attacks, shields are invaluable.

Shields are very nice to have for new players. Even an inexperienced shield user can appreciate how many hits simply never connect due to the size of the shield. Shields pair well with both starter weapons, Pistol and Spear. However, some players do not enjoy that shields may obstruct their view.