Rules / Weapons & Armor / Shields
Shields
Using a Shield
To use a shield you mostly raise it: Raise Shield costs 1 Action Point and needs the shield in a hand (a buckler can be raised while that hand is free or holding a light object that isn't a weapon). Until the start of your next turn, the shield's Bonus is added to your Parry, Dodge and Deflect against attacks. A raised tower shield also counts as cover you can Take Cover behind: its Bonus is +2 while raised and +4 while you're taking cover behind it.
You can strike with a shield (Bash), an attack with the Shields skill just like a weapon attack. With 1+ Rank in Shields you can catch a blow with Shield Block (1 Reaction Point, shield raised): the shield stops damage up to its Hardness, and you and the shield each take the rest, which may break or destroy it. With 2+ Ranks you can Parry ranged attacks while you have a shield equipped.
Shield Table
| Shield | Price | Bonus | Speed Penalty | Bulk | Might | Hardness | HP (BT) | Bash | Technique |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buckler | 1 gp | +1 | — | L | 1 | 3 | 6 (3) | 1d4 B (2) | Reactive Shield |
| Light Shield | 1 gp | +2 | — | 1 | 1 | 3 | 12 (6) | 1d6 B (3) | Aggressive Block |
| Heavy Shield | 2 gp | +2 | — | 1 | 2 | 5 | 18 (9) | 1d8 B (4) | Shoving Block |
| Tower Shield | 10 gp | +2 | −5 ft | 4 | 2 | 5 | 24 (12) | 1d10 B (5) | Shield Warden |
Reading the Shield Table
- Bonus: added to your defense against attacks while the shield is raised.
- Speed Penalty: taken off your speeds if you don't meet the shield's Might requirement.
- Bulk: for a shield sized for a Medium creature.
- Might: the minimum Might to carry the shield without its Speed Penalty, and to use shield techniques with it.
- Hardness: subtracted from any damage the shield takes.
- HP (BT): the damage the shield can take before it's destroyed, and its Broken Threshold, the point at which it's broken and unusable. These matter mostly for Shield Block.
- Bash: damage of a shield bash; the number in parentheses is Secondary Damage.
- Technique: the shield technique that works with this shield.
Shield Techniques
Shields work like weapons: for every 2 Ranks you gain in the Shields skill, choose 1 shield technique. You can use it while wielding the shield it names, as long as you meet that shield's Might requirement. Shield techniques are reactions costing 1 Reaction Point (Aggressive Block and Shoving Block are paid on top of a Shield Block) and can't be Pushed.
Shield Descriptions
Buckler. A small steel disc strapped to the forearm, loved by duelists and quick skirmishers. You can raise it while that hand is free or holding a light object that isn't a weapon.
Light Shield. A round or kite shield of wood or thin steel. Wooden versions are cheaper; steel ones last longer.
Heavy Shield. A broad, reinforced shield of steel or iron-bound planks, heavy enough to shove a foe back.
Tower Shield. A massive wall of metal-banded wood that covers nearly the whole body. Once it's raised, it gives you standard cover, and you can Take Cover behind it to make that greater cover.
Shield Techniques
Reactive Shield
Reaction (1 RP)
Technique, Reaction, Shield
Requires: Wielding a Buckler.
Trigger: An enemy hits you with a melee strike while your shield is lowered.
When an enemy hits you with a melee strike while you're wielding your shield but haven't raised it, spend 1 Reaction Point to jerk it into place just before the blow lands. You immediately Raise Shield, and its bonus counts toward your defense against the triggering attack.
Aggressive Block
Reaction (1 RP)
Technique, Reaction, Shield
Requires: Wielding a Light Shield.
Trigger: You use Shield Block against an adjacent creature your size or smaller.
When you Shield Block against an adjacent attacker your size or smaller, spend 1 more Reaction Point to shove back as you block. The attacker chooses: it's pushed 5 feet in a direction you pick, or it becomes Off-Balance until the start of your next turn. If the push would slam it into a solid object, move it into difficult terrain or into another creature's space, it becomes Off-Balance instead.
Shoving Block
Reaction (1 RP)
Technique, Reaction, Shield
Requires: Wielding a Heavy Shield.
Trigger: You use Shield Block against an adjacent creature no more than two sizes larger.
When you Shield Block against an adjacent attacker no more than two sizes larger than you, spend 1 more Reaction Point to drive it back 10 feet. If it has to stop early because it hits an object, it takes damage equal to your Might (minimum 1).
Shield Warden
Reaction (1 RP)
Technique, Reaction, Shield
Requires: Wielding a Tower Shield.
Trigger: An adjacent ally would take damage from a physical attack while your shield is raised.
While your shield is raised and an adjacent ally would take damage from a physical attack, spend 1 Reaction Point to put your shield in the way. The shield absorbs damage up to its Hardness; your ally and the shield each take whatever is left, which may break or destroy the shield.