Shield List

Lv8 Summary

Details

Growth Experience

The listed experience points per level is not an accumilated total.
Extra exp from defeating a monster will not carry forward when a shield levels up.
(Example: 100 exp until level up, defeat an Archdragon for 240 exp, 140 exp is lost)

Locations Key

Plain Targe

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		An ordinary shield made from carving a hunk of wood. It's plain. It's ordinary. Its defining feature is that it's devoid of any defining features, hence the name.

It's weak, but levels up quickly.
Gains CR Diet at Lv8, making it worthwhile to level as a secondary shield.
Has the highest starting upgrade limit among all shields, so it shines
in dungeons like Gen's Turf where you can obtain lots of Blank Scrolls.

Locations:

Tin Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This is a shield made of tin. It's not that strong, but it offers better protection than a Plain Targe.

Basic weak shield.
A person has to love the design to bother using it.

Locations:

Iron Targe

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This shield is made of tough iron. It's strong and stout, because it's not made from puny wood or bronze. IRON!

Quick to level up, but low base defense.
There are better options for 2 bracelet resonance.

Locations:

Wolfshead

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		The bladesmith of Dotanuki actually created this shield! It was originally called "sword breaker," and as you might have deduced, it was intended to break swords. However, because of the way it looks, everyone just calls it by its nickname.

Defense lags behind Beast Shield at first, but only 1 point behind at Lv8.
Dotanuki is pretty solid, so the set is viable as main equipment.
You'll have to wait until Lv8 to add more runes if you add 6 at Lv2,
since Lively and Rustproof will fill the 2 slots it gains while leveling.

Locations:

Beast Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		The surface of the shield looks like a beast's face. It's so lifelike, it feels like it will jump out at you at any moment.

Solid base defense for early game.
Doesn't gain any noteworthy runes from leveling up.

Locations:

Targite

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		One day, a tremendous tremor shook a mountain. Villagers searched and discovered a meteorite crater. The local bladesmith could hardly contain himself...

Great base defense and rune count, and gains Anti-Theft at Lv8
Defense reaches 16 at Lv2, making it very reliable for early game.

Locations:

Red Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This is a shield made from a hard, red mineral called Shugouseki. It's quite tough.

Great base defense and good rune count.
The best part of this shield is that it gains Anti-Fire and Anti-Peck at Lv8.
It's worth leveling if you weren't able to synthesize Snake Shield or Dragon Grass
before getting close to Archdragon or Abyss Dragon floors.
Some use it as a main shield even without set resonance.

Locations:

Fuuma Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This is a sturdy shield made with a special metal known as Fuuma Iron. It is difficult to create Fuuma Iron, so this shield is an uncommon item.

Shield with high base defense, but slow to level up.
Kabura Katana resonance increases attack damage by 5 points,
which might help you be able to one-shot some monsters.

Locations:

Gold Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This shield is rust-proof. A shield that is rust-proof?! How is that possible? It's all possible thanks to the power of gold! That's right, it's made of gold. It's a bit dirty, so it doesn't look like it's gold, but trust me. It totally is.

High starting rune count, and pretty fast to level up.
However, its base defense is very low, so it's mostly used as a container for runes
while you're working on leveling a main shield to increase rune count.
Its resonance effect is nice for digging up blue Shiny Objects.

Locations:

Diet Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		Resist hunger while this is equipped. A little less starvation, a little more action. "More filling!" "Less hunger!" "Tastes great?"

Fullness depletion slows down even more as it levels up,
but CR Diet is plenty to reduce the risk of starving, so just synthesize it.

Locations:

Heavy Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This shield has high defense, but the shield's heft makes you hungry quicker. You have to think hard about whether or not to equip this.

Gains Unmoving at Lv8, making it a secondary option against high level Fearabbits.
Fullness depletion slows as it levels up, so it's not too difficult to level mid game.
Shines in Old Road, since hunger is basically a non-issue in that dungeon.

Locations:

Midnight Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This shield reduces damage taken from night monsters. However, you'll take more damage from day monsters, so you gotta be wary about when you equip it.

Tricky to level up, since daytime monsters deal more damage to you.
Often synthesized onto a secondary shield for night, such as a Blazing Shield.
That said, its resonance with torches can come in handy at night.

Locations:

• Tanuki Password: Carpe Noctem

Day Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This shield reduces damage taken from day monsters. However, it will increase the damage that night monsters do to you. Be sure to remove this when night falls, Day Man.

Strongest shield in the game by a wide margin.
Reduces damage from day monsters by 25% at Lv1, or 60% at Lv8.
There's no reason not to use it as a main shield if you come across it in a day only dungeon.
That said, its base defense is low, so the effect won't be very visible early game.

Locations:

• Tanuki Password: Carpe Diem

Binary Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		When the first digit of your HP is 1 or 0, damage inflicted by enemies is halved.

Reduces damage if last digit of current HP is 1 or 0 by 50% at Lv1, or 85% at Lv8.
Powerful when paired with Monster Detector, and can surpass Day Shield if you manage your HP.
It has decent base defense for early game, and gains Magi-Twister at Lv6.

Locations:

Counter Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		Reflects a portion of damage inflicted via direct attacks. This is perfect for people who don't like to turn the other cheek.

The portion of damage reflected increases as it levels up,
and is roughly 100% at Lv8 when paired with a Strength Bracelet.
It was used to counter Gyazas in Shiren 4, but it doesn't see much use in this game
because Gyaza family monsters were significantly nerfed.

Locations:

Student Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This shield converts some direct damage into experience points. Pain is an effective teacher.

Nice to equip for a bit if you find it on the ground right away,
but not worth using as a main shield or rune. Sells for a decent amount.

Locations:

Bowl Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This shield will restore some fullness if you take direct damage. The effect will increase as the shield is upgraded.

Not worth using as a main shield, and using it as a rune is a wasted slot.
You can't replenish fullness by intentionally getting hit by a weak enemy,
since it only has a 6% chance to replenish 1 fullness. Sells for a good amount, though.

Locations:

Spry Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This shield helps you dodge direct attacks. It feels great when monsters miss their attacks. As the shield it upgraded, dodging becomes even easier!

Evasion increases as it levels up, with rates being 22% at Lv1, and 43% at Lv8.
However, it has low base defense and is very slow to level up,
so it's usually synthesized onto a stronger shield instead.

Locations:

Blast Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This shield reduces explosive damage. The special effect on this shield is great.

Reducing explosion damage from Pop Tanks, Explochins, and traps is fantastic.
However, its base defense is low, so you'll likely struggle from around mid game.
The Anti-Blast rune reduces explosion damage by 50%, so that's usually plenty.

Locations:

Lock Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		Zalokleft type monsters can't steal from you while you have this equipped. Your precious belongings won't be stolen anymore with this equipped. Never starve to death pursuing pesky purloining pilferers again!

Lets you hunt Zaloklefts without risk of having items stolen.
Not a strong shield, but gains Anti-Blast at Lv8 and levels up somewhat quickly.
It's worth leveling as a secondary shield for synthesis if you're worried about Cranky Tanks.

Locations:

Safe Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		Froggo type monsters can't steal from you while you have this equipped. You'll never have to do on the fly cost-benefit analysis to figure out if its worth chasing down stolen cash again!

Lets you hunt Froggos for Gitan without risk of having Gitan stolen.
Not a strong shield, but gains Anti-Blast at Lv8 and levels up somewhat quickly.
It's worth leveling as a secondary shield for synthesis if you're worried about Cranky Tanks.
The Anti-Burgle rune gains value if you're using the Costly rune.

Locations:

Gyadon Blocker

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		Gyadon type monsters can't eat your items while you have this equipped. With this, you won't have to worry about your usage counts decreasing frivolously. What a relief.

You can protect items against Gyadon and Gyairas by placing them down or into pots,
but you can't fight Gyandora or Gyandoron worry-free unless you have Anti-Peck.
It gains Agile at Lv8, but it's so slow to level up, it's not worth aiming for it.

Locations:

Snake Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		A shield you made from lizard scales that can reduce fire damage dealt to you. You should've made it with dragon scales, but I guess you're not ready for that.

Decent starting base defense, and reduces fire damage by 50% at Lv1, or 85% at Lv8.
However, it's very slow to level up, and its defense only increases by 1 per level.
Still, some players like to level it as a secondary shield for Abyss Dragon floors.

Locations:

Steady Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		Nullifies any effect that would move you from your position. In other words, even if you use Warp Grass or Swap Staff, it won't work. This sounds...useless.

Essential for Horrabbit and Terrabbit floors.
Without this shield, you could collapse on any given turn by being attracted.
That said, Unmoving negates the effect of items like Pinning Staff and Warp Grass,
so it may be better to keep it as a secondary shield instead of synthesizing it.

Locations:

Anti-Gaze Trge

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This shield makes you immune to Gazer's hypnosis. Everyone hates being hypnotized, so this shield is pretty sweet.

Fantastic for its exclusive Anti-Hypno rune, but lackluster as a main shield.
Ultra Gazers in particular have the potential to cause many accidents.

Locations:

Swap Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This shield transforms the effect of a Magic Bullet hit into damage. It's great that you'll be immune to the effects, but it'll hurt. Suck it up, buttercup.

There's no reason to use it as a main shield unless you're using Burning Blade.
The Magi-Twister rune converts magic bullet effects received into 10 damage,
making it a fantastic answer to DJ Mage family monsters.

Locations:

Shoddy Plank

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		Its defense is strong at first, but it drops as the shield takes damage. In the end, you'll probably discard it. This process seems wasteful.

Seal it and use it as a high stat shield until you find something better.
Keep in mind that sealed equipment won't gain skill points, so you can't level it up.

Locations:

Glass Buckler

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		A famed glassmaker created this work of art. It looks beautiful, but it shatters easily because it's made of glass. Who wants to use a shield made of glass?

Seal it and use it as a high stat shield until you find something better.
Keep in mind that sealed equipment won't gain skill points, so you can't level it up.
Its resonance effect is great, but you're unlikely to come across both items in the same run.

Locations:

Pauper's Plank

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		Every time damage it taken, Gitan is spent to reduce the damage. If you have no Gitan, the shield's strength is nullified. What a money grubbing shield.

Receive less damage, but Gitan is subtracted every time you get hit.
The rate is 30G / 15% reduction at Lv1, and 250G / 50% reduction at Lv8.
If you don't have enough Gitan, defense falls to 0.

It rivals Daytime Queen (60% reduction) at Lv8, but is strictly worse in day-only dungeons.
Don't read unidentified scrolls in dungeons where Bankruptcy Scroll can appear.
Consider synthesizing it onto a Day Shield or Binary Shield instead.

Locations:

• Tanuki Password: Golddigger

Rush Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		"As the name implies, this shield is made for offense. It's not really even a shield. Why you ask?" (To be continued...)

Shield strength is added to attack instead of defense.
Its resonance effect conflicts with both items, since critical hits eliminate the need
to increase attack, and defense is needed to cover for Extreme Sword's lower accuracy.

Locations:

• Tanuki Password: O-FENCE!

Blazing Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		Burn items to illuminate surroundings. This ability cannot be synthesized. Hold the fire aloft and walk through the night.

Quite rare, but makes for an excellent secondary shield for night.
Its resonance effect illuminates everything on-screen, and activates with any torch.

Locations:

Onigiri Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		Attacks that turn you or your items into onigiri are nullified. Now you can ensure your precious items' safety and make sure nothing is turned into friggin' onigiri.

Fantastic as a rune, but its base defense is lacking as a main shield.
That said, it's worth leveling it to Lv6 for CR Diet before synthesizing it.
Basically exclusive to Primordial Chasm in the base game, but appears in PS Vita dungeons.

Locations:

• Primordial Chasm (first clear)

Parry Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This shield occasionally deflects direct damage to nearby creatures. As the shield is upgraded, the likelihood of getting a deflection increases!

Occasionally redirects direct attack damage to another creature within a 1 tile radius.
The chance to redirect damage is 30% at Lv1, or 51% at Lv8.

This ability might sound beneficial at first glance, but there are a few drawbacks.
The attacker levels up if they defeat a monster through redirected damage,
redirected damage can cancel paralysis if there are paralyzed enemies nearby,
and if using it as a main shield, it gains Unmoving at Lv8 which hinders run-away play.

Locations:

• Lost Well (first clear)

Nirvana Board

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		Actions won't make you hungry, but max fullness is set to 1. Your max fullness won't return to normal even after unequipping the shield, so be very sure you want to equip this.

Stops natural fullness depletion while equipped, and sets max fullness to 1.
Powerful ability, but losing the shield due to a Swordsman or Gazer can end your run.

Locations:

• Master's Footprint (clear reward)

Pathetic Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		A very weathered and battered shield. Its stats are quite low. It's better than nothing...barely.

Extremely slow to level up, and is nearly worthless before Lv8.
It unfortunately loses its 2 bracelet resonance effect when it reaches Lv8,
and instead makes monsters occasionally take 1 step back.
It's only used in dungeons that allow carry-in items by enthusiasts who like the design.

Locations:

Fox Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This is Koharu morphed into a shield. "Shiren! It's me! I'm Koharu! I'll work hard as your shield! I'll do my best to protect you, Shiren!"

Obtained by asking Koharu to transform into a shield.
High defense, but effectively 0 rune slots and has the slowest growth rate among all shields.
The only sane way to level up this shield is to use the Gambler's Scroll technique.

Locations:

• Ask Koharu to change into a shield.

Helix Shield

Lv1-7	Lv8	Lv1 Description
		This miraculous shield's existence still defies belief. Its spiral shape will enhance the effectiveness of Fuuma Iron.

Obtained by wishing for an invincible shield in Inori Cave.
Strongest regular shield, but can't compete with Daytime Queen's damage reduction.
Its resonance effect lets you deal slightly meaningful damage to night monsters,
which can be boosted further by equipping a Night Ward.

Locations:

• Wish for an invincible shield in Inori Cave.