What if, instead of a shield bash, shields got abilities? (I may have suggested this already... xD) This is intended to liven up shields a bit, which are all defending against things and such...there isn't much like for 'em.

Abilities get stronger when heated up or alchemical to the next level. (Denoted by this text format) There will also be a UV for enhancing abilities.

There are two ability types: toggle and instant. Toggle abilities can be activated only when the shield has maxed HP. They will gradually drain the shield's HP until the HP runs out or when the user uses the ability again. (Thus disabling it.) Users may not use their shield while the ability is active, so shielding disables it.

Instant work as the shield bash does now. Instant abilities drain half of the shield's HP, and can only be used when the shield's HP is full.

• Defender line: Shield Bash/Greater Shield Bash/Mighty Shield Bash/Valiant Shield Bash -- INSTANT: Current shield bash. Increases damage.
• Heater Shield: Overheat -- INSTANT: Chance of inflicting Moderate Fire to the user and enemies in a small area. (Good for breaking freeze.) Increases chance of burning.
• Jelly line: Jelly Bubble/Brute Jelly Bubble/Rock Jelly Bubble/Royal Globe -- TOGGLE: Creates a sphere of jelly around the user. If a melee attacker hits the user, the attacker is knocked back depending on how much normal damage they do. When attacked, the shield loses some HP. Increases knockback.
• Skelly line: Arcane Hex/Scary Hex/Sinister Hex/Terrifying Hex -- INSTANT: Hexes the the user for 5 seconds. When the hex runs out of time, it explodes, stunning the victim. The next time the user damages an enemy, the user is cured of the hex, and the enemy is marked with a hex. (If the player uses a bomb, and several enemies are damaged at once, all of them will be hexed.) The enemies may pass it back to players as well. Increases the strength of the stun. Note: I was going to say this would poison, but that's a bad idea because it makes the shield not so good against one of the two things it defends against: poison.
• Blackened Crest line: Jaded Bravery/Renewed Bravery -- INSTANT: For every enemy in an area around the user, the user's attack damage is slightly increased. (Jaded Bravery has a smaller AoE.) Increases damage boost.
• Plate line: Might/Boosted Might/Solid Might/Iron Might -- TOGGLE: For each unit of Normal defense, the user gets one unit of Piercing, Elemental, and Shadow defense. Decreases shield HP drainage.
• Volcanic Plate Shield: Volcanic Bastion -- TOGGLE: Creates a large field around the user. All damage taken by allies within the shield gets redirected to the shield. The user may not move, attack, or do anything else while the ability is active. Decreases damage taken by the shield.
• Ancient Plate Shield: Unstoppable Bash -- INSTANT: Shield Bash. Does massive Normal damage (around 500), Strong Stun, massive knockback (think Kamarin Charge) and makes the user invincible for its duration. Deals Strong Stun to the user when the attack is done. Increases damage.

And so on and so forth. I don't have time to list all the possible combinations, but I see this as a way to easily balance some shields, as well as make them unique. (Oh, do I take Jelly or Snarby? The one has a damage bonus, of course!) There aren't many possible combinations, and shields are usually upgraded last. This could make shields more valuable.

Note that I will not be replying to comments or bumping this thread. (At least for now. I might check back later.)