Shield of the gong

Version 0.17: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.

A heavy bronze gong that can be worn as a shield. According to some mystics, beating on such a gong can grant the wearer spiritual protection.

the +18 shield of the gong

+18 shield

-5 EV
rElec
rN+
+40 MR
Makes noise whenever you block

Desirability

Despite first appearances, the shield of the gong is actually incredibly dangerous to use. Admittedly, its excellent enchantment level makes it very effective at defending against pure melee opponents, but its EV penalty renders you much more vulnerable to enemy Bolt spells and other attacks that can't be blocked. Also, the noise it makes is much louder than shouting or even the Singing Sword; using it will attract everything nearby to your position. Unless you're playing a brute force caster who's already making enough noise to wake the entire Dungeon, it is best to use this shield situationally, such as when facing dangerous sources of electricity damage.

Max-piety Qazlal worshippers make comparable noise anyway, and so may not notice the noise penalty.

History

Prior to 0.15, its enchantment was +27.

Prior to 0.14, its enchantment was only +6, and it did not reduce the wearer's EV. This change essentially combined the original shield of the gong with the now-retired shield "Bullseye."

Prior to 0.13, the shield of the gong also provided a spirit shield, making it a fairly iffy proposition for casters.