Rules: Shields

Shield Proficiency

By spending a weapon proficiency, warriors and some priests can become more skilled in the use of their shield.  The extra protection conferred by the shield varies by the exact type the character becomes proficient in:

Shield	Normal	Proficient	# of
Type	AC bonus	AC bonus	Attackers
Small	+1	+2	2
Medium	+1	+3	3
Large	+1/+2 vs.	+3/+4 vs.	4
	missiles	missiles

The number of attackers is the maximum number of times the shield bonus can be used in a single round by the character. Normally, shields can only be used against enemies in the character’s front spaces or in the flank spaces on the character’s shield side.

Shield-Punch

Any character equipped with a shield can choose to forego its protection and gain an extra attack known as a shield-punch. The shield-punch is treated as a normal, secondary weapon attack; the primary weapon suffers a –2 penalty to attack rolls that round and the shield-punch attack is rolled with a –4 penalty. A character may use his reaction adjustment due to a high Dexterity score to offset these penalties. Alternatively, the character can substitute his normal attack for a shield punch, with no penalties.

If the character is trying a shield-punch, he must announce his intention while declaring his combat action and forfeits the defensive benefit of the shield for the round. The character moves into the square of his opponent on his base initiative, then executes the shield punch and backs out into his own square again on the following initiative phase.

Shield Punch

Shield Type	Size	Spd	Dmg
Small	S	2	1d3
Medium	M	6	1d4
Large	L	8	1d6

Shields save lives

Any time a PC takes damage, they can opt instead to say their shield absorbed the force of the blow. The shield is shattered and must be discarded, but the PC doesn't take any damage from that hit. Magical shields lose one 'plus' each time they are used in this way. This rule does not allow normal shields to stop magical attacks like fireballs, but magical shields may be able to improve the save or reduce damage even further, somewhat.  This will completely destroy a magic shield, regardless of it’s bonus.