Spiral Knights - What is the "best" shield?

What is the "best" shield?

9 replies [Last post]

Fri, 04/18/2014 - 22:17

Rothni-Halias

I'm interested in buying the shield that I can get the most use out of.

I'm aware of the benefits of the Swiftstrike Buckler but I want a shield that I can use to defend myself from as many things as possible. I figure specialty shields will defend fully against certain kinds of attacks, but I don't know if such an investment will be worth it. I also don't know what kind of shields would be best for bashing.

Currently I'm going for the Volcanic Plate Shield or the Ironmight Plate Shield. I have no idea which is better (except that Volcanic is good for Vanaduke).

Fri, 04/18/2014 - 22:26

Janeks

bts

Fri, 04/18/2014 - 22:31

Skepticraven

↓

Best general use shield for shielding would be omega shell.
Best for offensive strategy is quickstrike/barb thorn.
Best for a specific situation depends on the status resistances first and then damage type resistances.

Fri, 04/18/2014 - 22:34

Midnight-Dj

Midnight-Dj the valkyrie scholar is here

Volcanic and Ironmight are both great shields, it is really depends on what r u planning on doing in the future with your knight. Are you willing to invest more money on grey owlite and the crest of Almire/dread skelly ? If you are not stingy and want to invest some for the shields, then make Ironmight. If you planning on vana-guard all day and don't think it is worth it to invest money on 3 shields, then go for volcanic plate.

ps. In theory, omega shell and the savage tortoise are the toughest shield around. Can take a lot of punishment against multiple race of monsters. But do keep in mind that they will never be as good as specialized shield like crest of Almire vs. fire fiend/undead

Fri, 04/18/2014 - 22:38

Skepticraven

@Midnight-Dj

Omega has 20% more health than other shields [confirmed on D1, estimated on lower depths] and massive normal resistance.
Savage tortoise does not.

Fri, 04/18/2014 - 22:53

Dibsville

Proto Shield

There really is no best shield per se, but I'd say Grey Owlite Shield is one of the better shields, and I'd recommend it for your first 5* shield. It has Normal and Elemental resistance, which makes it useful for a wide variety of areas, and it has max resistance against what most people consider the two most annoying statuses in the game, that being Fire and Shock. It's all around a solid shield, and I can't think of much to put in it's place except Crest of Almire for the Shadow defense over Elemental defense.

Volcanic and Ironmight are both great, but Barbarous Thorn Shield is honestly a better choice than Ironmight, and Volcanic doesn't have much uses except in a few areas like FSC. Ancient Plate Shield would usually work better otherwise, since it's the same exact thing but with more Normal defense, plus you can get it for free.

So basically, I'd say Grey Owlite Shield, or Crest of Almire as a secondary replacement.

Sat, 04/19/2014 - 09:00

Bopp

Shieldbearer Guide

Have you read the Shieldbearer Guide on the wiki? It's not perfect, but it's a place to start.

There is no single "best shield" for everyone. If there were, then there would be no point in the game offering any other shields, right? The game is not perfectly balanced, but it's not that unbalanced.

What is your "character class"? Bomber? Gunner? Hybrid sworder-gunner? In this game, most expert players favor armor that offers offensive bonuses, even at the cost of a little defense. So we have to know what weapons you use.

After offensive bonuses, people favor status defense, because tests on shields suggest that status defense makes a bigger difference than damage defense. The key statuses are probably fire, shock, and freeze. Maybe stun and poison. After status, people like damage defense.

So some shields to consider are Swiftstrike Buckler, Barbarous Thorn Shield, Grey Owlite Shield, Crest of Almire, maybe Dread Skelly Shield, Volcanic Plate Shield. Some people also like Omega Shell. I don't know enough about the details of how shields work to recommend it or not.

Sat, 04/19/2014 - 11:01

Bamzalot

If you are looking for the best all around shield, get the Shell

The Omega Shell may seem weak with nothing but a decent amount of normal defense. However, it has the most health of any shield in the game, which means it can protect you by at least a tiny bit against anything you encounter. So you may want to get this.

If you prefer a shield with more specialized resistance, the Grey Owlite Shield or Dread Skelly Shield will be good options. If you farm Vanaduke enough, you can eventually trade your tokens for a Crest of Almire which is basically a mix between Grey Owlite and Dread Skelly.

Ironmight Plate and Volcanic Plate are good options as well. They can defend you from most monsters thanks to their high normal defense, but they also work well for specialized occasions too.

For anyone's first 5 star shield, I like to point them in the direction of the Omega Shell or Grey Owlite. These will help you the most until you can get your arsenal piled up.

For offensive purposes, the Swift Strike Buckler is a shield that can be acquired with ease and make fighting a lot easier. Just remember that it can barely protect you from a single hit in Tier 3.

Sat, 04/19/2014 - 17:57

Killingsand

colbalt

i would say colbalt shield. I say that because throughout all the way to 5*.

Sat, 04/19/2014 - 19:03

Dibsville

"i would say colbalt shield. I say that because throughout all the way to 5*."

What.

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What is the "best" shield?