Difference between revisions of "Shields"

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[[Shields]] are a kind of armour worn in one hand, preventing the use of two handed weapons, which use the [[Shields skill]]. Unlike other armour, shields increase a character's [[SH]] defense, giving you a chance at blocking physical (and some magical) attacks entirely. Certain spells can also grant you an SH score.
+
{{flavour|“Let who will boast their courage in the field,<br>
 +
I find but little safety from my shield.<br>
 +
Nature's, not honour's, law we must obey:<br>
 +
This made me cast my useless shield away,<br>
 +
And by a prudent flight and cunning save<br>
 +
A life, which valour could not, from the grave.<br>
 +
A better buckler I can soon regain;<br>
 +
But who can get another life again?”<br>
 +
-Archilochos. 7th cent. B.C. trans. William H. Goodwin, 1878.}}
 +
 
 +
[[Shields]] are a kind of armour worn on one hand, preventing the use of two-handed weapons; they make use of the [[Shields skill]]. Unlike other armour, shields increase a character's [[SH]] defense, giving you a chance at blocking physical (and some magical) attacks entirely. Some other effects can also grant you an SH score.
  
 
==Shield Penalties==
 
==Shield Penalties==
Wearing a shield also gives penalties to attack speed, attack damage, and spellcasting, along with EV penalties of -1 ([[buckler]]), -3 ([[shield]]), or -5 ([[large shield]]). While the penalty for wearing a small [[buckler]] is almost negligible, a [[large shield]] can seriously slow your attacks and make spellcasting unreliable. Sufficient Shields skill will reduce or even negate these penalties, but the amount needed varies by race:
+
Wearing a shield also gives penalties to attack speed, attack damage, and spellcasting, along with EV penalties of -0.8 ([[buckler]]), -3 ([[kite shield]]), or -5 ([[tower shield]]). While the penalty for wearing a small buckler is almost negligible, a tower shield can seriously slow your attacks and make spellcasting unreliable. Sufficient Shields skill will reduce or even negate these penalties. The amount needed varies by race, but can be found in the description of the shield in-game:
  
 
{| class="prettytable" cellpadding="10" border="9"
 
{| class="prettytable" cellpadding="10" border="9"
 
|- align="center"
 
|- align="center"
! Size !! Races !! Buckler !! Shield !! Large shield
+
! Size !! Races !! Buckler !! Kite shield !! Tower shield
 
|-
 
|-
|Little || [[Spriggan]] || 9 || - || -
+
|Little || [[Spriggan]] || 7.2 || - || -
 
|-
 
|-
|Small || [[Kobold]], [[Halfling]] || 7 || 21 || -
+
|Small || [[Kobold]], [[Halfling]] || 5.6 || 21 || -
 
|-
 
|-
|Normal || most races || 5 || 15 || 25
+
|Normal || most races || 4 || 15 || 25
 
|-
 
|-
|Large<br>(normal torso) || [[Centaur]], [[Naga]] || 3 || 9 || 15
+
|Large (normal torso)<br> & Formicids || [[Centaur]], [[Naga]], [[Formicid]] || 2.4 || 9 || 15
 
|-
 
|-
 
|Large || [[Ogre]], [[Troll]] || - || 9 || 15
 
|Large || [[Ogre]], [[Troll]] || - || 9 || 15
Line 26: Line 36:
 
! Shield type !! Shield EV penalty
 
! Shield type !! Shield EV penalty
 
|-
 
|-
|Buckler || -1
+
|Buckler || -0.8
 
|-
 
|-
|Shield || -3
+
|Kite shield || -3
 
|-
 
|-
|Large shield || -5
+
|Tower shield || -5
 
|}
 
|}
  
Line 43: Line 53:
 
|Normal || most races || 0
 
|Normal || most races || 0
 
|-
 
|-
|Large<br>(normal torso) || [[Centaur]], [[Naga]] || -2
+
|Large<br>(normal torso) & Formicids || [[Centaur]], [[Naga]], [[Formicid]] || -2
 
|-
 
|-
 
|Large || [[Ogre]], [[Troll]] || -2
 
|Large || [[Ogre]], [[Troll]] || -2
 
|}
 
|}
  
If you are wearing a shield, wielding a one-handed weapon, and your Shield penalty is greater than zero, the game throws two dices with (Shield penalty) sides. The smaller one is added to your delay.
+
When attacking with any kind of weapon (including unarmed), if you are wearing a shield and your Shield penalty is greater than zero, the game throws two dice with (Shield penalty) sides. The smaller value rolled is added to your attack delay.
 +
 
 +
==[[Ego]]s==
 +
All three types of shields can spawn with the following egos<ref>{{source ref|0.25.0|makeitem.cc|806}}</ref>:
 +
*~3%, [[Resistance_(ego)|resistance]]
 +
*10%, [[fire resistance]]
 +
*10%, [[cold resistance]]
 +
*10%, [[poison resistance]]
 +
*10%, [[positive energy]]
 +
*19%, [[reflection]]
 +
*39%, [[protection]]
 +
 
 +
Shields of [[cold resistance|cold]] and [[fire resistance]] can occasionally be found in [[ice cave]]s and [[volcano]]es.
 +
 
 +
==Blocking==
 +
===Effect===
 +
It's possible to block a melee attack or a ranged projectile attack if you wear a shield of some kind or are under the effect of a magical shield ([[amulet of reflection]], [[Qazlal]]'s Storm Shield, or [[the Shining One]]'s Divine Shield) or have the [[Good_mutations#Large_Bone_Plates|Large Bone Plates]] mutation. Your ability to block missiles doesn't benefit from [[Repel Missiles|missile-repelling]] effects like a [[scarf]] of repulsion, and you cannot benefit from any form of shield while you are [[confuse]]d.
 +
 
 +
All melee attacks can be blocked (except for successful [[stab]]s), but many ranged attacks are unblockable:
 +
*Bolt spells: [[Starburst]], [[Lightning Bolt]], [[Bolt of Magma]], [[Shock]], and [[Searing Ray]]
 +
*Explosions: [[Fireball]], [[Damnation]], [[Fire Storm]], [[Conjure Ball Lightning]], [[Lee's Rapid Deconstruction]], [[exploding (brand)|exploding]]-branded weapons
 +
*Electrical discharges: [[Static Discharge]], [[Chain Lightning]]
 +
*Enchantments: [[Agony]], [[Pain]], [[Confuse]], [[Mesmerise]], etc
 +
*Beams with perfect accuracy: [[Magic Dart]], [[Sticky Flame]] (only the player's version)
 +
*Other ranged attacks that are not beams: [[Shatter]], [[Tornado]], [[Airstrike]], [[Smite]], [[Ozocubu's Refrigeration]], [[Freeze]], etc
 +
*[[Penetration]]-branded weapons (primarily [[javelin]]s)
 +
 
 +
Some examples of ranged attacks that can be blocked:
 +
*Ranged weapons like [[Bows]] or [[Slings]]
 +
*Spells that fire projectiles like [[Iron shot]], [[Poison Arrow]], [[Orb of Destruction]], [[Lehudib's Crystal Spear]], [[Throw Icicle]], [[Stone Arrow]], [[Throw Flame]], [[Throw Frost]], [[Sting]], [[Sandblast]]
  
If you are wearing a shield, wielding a hand-and-half weapon, and your Shield penalty is greater than zero, the game throws one dice with (Shield penalty) sides, and adds that to your delay.
+
If the attacker's pierce value is less than the defender's blocking value (see below for details), the attack does no damage. Shield blocking is done before rolling your [[evasion]] or your [[AC]], but if you have already blocked some attacks in that turn, your blocking ability will be decreased greatly.  
  
The penalty for [[Unarmed combat]] is like the penalty for one-handed weapons, but your delay is increased by one [[aut]], 50% of the times, regardless of your Shield penalty.
+
===Calculation===
 +
The defender's blocking value depends on the nature of the shield:
 +
 
 +
Physical shields:
 +
SH = Block × (1 + Shield skill/40)
 +
+ Enchantment bonus + Stat bonus
 +
+ min(0.38×Shield skill, .57 + 0.19×Shield skill)
 +
 
 +
or [[Helm card]] (this does not stack with a physical shield):
 +
SH = 4.5 + 0.375×[[Invocations]]
 +
 
 +
and then on top of either of those:
 +
+ Divine shield bonus
 +
+ Qazlal shield bonus
 +
+ Mutation bonus
 +
+ Amulet of reflection bonus
 +
+ Any SH bonus from artifacts
 +
 
 +
For a physical shield (Buckler, Kite Shield, and Tower Shield), '''Block''' is the shield's blocking value, equal to the base shield bonus (3 for Buckler, 8 for Kite Shield, 13 for Tower Shield), modified by a size factor:
  
If you are wearing a 0 EVP armour, you need less shield skill to eliminate just the casting penalties:
 
 
{| class="prettytable" cellpadding="10" border="9"
 
{| class="prettytable" cellpadding="10" border="9"
 
|- align="center"
 
|- align="center"
! Size !! Races !! Buckler !! Shield !! Large shield
+
! Size !! Races !! Buckler !! Kite Shield !! Tower shield
 
|-
 
|-
|Little || [[Spriggan]] || 1.53 || - || -
+
|Little || [[Spriggan]] || +2 || - || -
 
|-
 
|-
|Small || [[Kobold]], [[Halfling]] || 1.19 || 15.19 || -
+
|Small || [[Kobold]], [[Halfling]] || +1 || +0.5 || -
 
|-
 
|-
|Normal || most races || 0.85 || 10.85 || 20.85
+
|Normal || most races || 0 || 0 || 0
 
|-
 
|-
|Large<br>(normal torso) || [[Centaur]], [[Naga]] || 0.51 || 6.51 || 12.51
+
|Large<br>(normal torso) & Formicids || [[Centaur]], [[Naga]], Formicid || 0 || 0 || 0
 
|-
 
|-
|Large || [[Ogre]], [[Troll]] || - || 6.51 || 12.51
+
|Large || [[Ogre]], [[Troll]] || - || -0.5 || 0
 
|}
 
|}
  
==Blocking==
+
*'''Stat bonus''' is 38×DEX for bucklers, 19×STR + 19×DEX for kite shields, or 26×STR + 12×DEX for tower shields. Then this value is multiplied by (block + 13)/26, and by 100.
===Effect===
+
 
It's possible block a melee or ranged attack if you wear a shield of some kind or are under the effect of a magical shield (the [[Helm]] card's Magic Shield, the [[Ice Magic]] spell [[Condensation Shield]], or [[The Shining One]]'s Divine Shield). If the attacker's pierce value is less than the defender's blocking value, the attack does no damage. Shield blocking is done before rolling your [[evasion]] or your [[AC]], but if you have already blocked some attacks in that turn, your blocking ability will be decreased greatly.  
+
*The Shining One's '''Divine shield bonus''' is based on Invocations skill.
  
All the melee attacks can be blocked (except a successful stabbing), but many ranged attacks are unblockable:
+
*'''Mutation bonus''' is +4/6/8 SH depending on your level of the [[Good_mutations#Large_Bone_Plates|Large Bones Plates]] mutation.
  
* Bolts: [[Bolt of Fire]], [[Bolt of Cold]], [[Lightning Bolt]], [[Bolt of Draining]], [[Venom Bolt]], [[Bolt of Magma]], [[Shock]]
+
The resulting value is rounded to the nearest integer and displayed as the player's SH value.
*Explosions: [[Fireball]], [[Hellfire]], [[Fire Storm]], [[Ice Storm]], [[Conjure Ball Lightning]], [[Lee's Rapid Deconstruction]]
 
*Other electricity-based beams: [[Chain Lightning]]
 
*Enchantments: [[Agony]], [[Pain]], etc
 
*Beams with perfect accuracy: [[Magic Dart]], [[Sticky Flame]] (only the player's version)
 
*Other ranged attacks that are not beams: [[Shatter]], [[Tornado]], [[Airstrike]], [[Smite]], [[Ozocubu's Refrigeration]], [[Freeze]], etc
 
  
Some examples of ranged attacks that can be blocked: [[Iron shot]], [[Poison Arrow]], [[Orb of Destruction]], [[Lehudib's Crystal Spear]], [[Iskenderun's Mystic Blast]] (the explosion is special), [[Throw Icicle]], [[Stone Arrow]], [[Throw Flame]], [[Throw Frost]], [[Flame Tongue]], [[Sting]], [[Sandblast]]
+
For reference, a 15-Dex, 15-Str character wearing a buckler has an average blocking value of:
 +
*3 with a Shield Skill of 0
 +
*6 with a Shield Skill of 8
 +
*8 with a Shield skill of 15
 +
*11 with a Shield skill of 27
  
===Calculation===
+
With a large shield, it becomes:
The defender's blocking value depends on the nature of the shield:
+
*11 with a Shield Skill of 0
*Buckler: 1d(Block) + 1/4*1d( Dex ) + 1/4*1d((Shield Skill)*2) - 4
+
*15 with a Shield Skill of 8
*Shield: 1d(Block) + 1/4*1d((Dex+Str)/2) + 1/4*1d((Shield Skill)*2) - 4
+
*19 with a Shield skill of 15
*Large Shield: 1d(Block) + 1/4*1d((Dex+3*Str)/4) + 1/4*1d((Shield Skill)*2) - 4
+
*25 with a Shield skill of 27
*Magical Shield: 1d(Block) + 1/4*1d((Int)/2) + 1/4*1d((Shield Skill)*2) - 4
 
**Note: (Shield Skill)*2 is capped at (Shield Skill)+3.
 
  
For a physical shield (Buckler, Shield and Large Shield), Block is the shield's blocking value, equal to the base shield bonus (3 for Buckler, 5 for Shield, 7 for Large Shield), increased by 5% per Shield Skill, by 13% for dwarven shields (27% for dwarves), by 7% for elves wearing elven shields and by 13% for orcs wearing orcish shields (up to 30% for high-piety followers of Beogh).
+
The attacker's pierce value is equal to:
  
For magical shields, Block is equal to:
+
1d(15 + to hit/2 + 5×past_blocks^2) - 1 (melee attacks)
*2 + (Evocation)/6 for a Magic Shield
 
*2 + (Ice Magic)/6 for a Condensation Shield
 
*3 + (Shield Skill)/5 for a Divine Shield
 
  
Finally, this value is divided by 3 against an invisible opponent.
+
1d(1.3×to hit    + 5×past_blocks^2) - 1 (ranged attacks) 
  
For reference, a 15-Dex, 15-Str character wearing a buckler has an average blocking value of:
+
"To hit" is the monster's [[To hit]] value (based primarily on the monster's [[HD]], type, and weapon accuracy) and "past_blocks" is the number of attacks already successfully blocked in the current turn.
*0 with a Shield Skill of 0
 
*2 with a Shield Skill of 8
 
*3 with a Shield skill of 15
 
*5 with a Shield skill of 27
 
  
With a large shield, it becomes:
+
The defender's blocking value is equal to:
*2 with a Shield Skill of 0
+
  2d(2×SH)/6 - 1.3 (Divided by 3 against melee attacks from invisible opponents)
*5 with a Shield Skill of 8
 
*8 with a Shield skill of 15
 
*11 with a Shield skill of 27
 
  
The attacker's pierce value is equal to:
+
If this value is greater or equal than the attacker's pierce value, the attack is blocked.
  
1d(15 + to hit/2 + 5*past_blocks^2) - 1
+
==History==
 +
*Prior to [[0.25]], [[kite shield]]s were known as just "shields" and [[tower shield]]s were called "large shields".
 +
*Prior to [[0.17]], [[unarmed]] attacks had a speed penalty when attacking with a shield equipped.
 +
*Prior to [[0.16]], the amount of skill required to negate penalties for wearing a shield were more complex.
  
"To hit" is the monster's [[To hit]] value (based primarily on the monster's [[HD]], type, and weapon accuracy) and "past_blocks" is the number of attacks already successfully blocked in the current turn.
+
==References==
 +
<references/>
  
[[Category:Item]]
+
[[Category:Items]]
 
[[Category:Shields]]
 
[[Category:Shields]]

Revision as of 06:43, 31 August 2020

Version 0.19: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.
“Let who will boast their courage in the field,

I find but little safety from my shield.
Nature's, not honour's, law we must obey:
This made me cast my useless shield away,
And by a prudent flight and cunning save
A life, which valour could not, from the grave.
A better buckler I can soon regain;
But who can get another life again?”
-Archilochos. 7th cent. B.C. trans. William H. Goodwin, 1878.

Shields are a kind of armour worn on one hand, preventing the use of two-handed weapons; they make use of the Shields skill. Unlike other armour, shields increase a character's SH defense, giving you a chance at blocking physical (and some magical) attacks entirely. Some other effects can also grant you an SH score.

Shield Penalties

Wearing a shield also gives penalties to attack speed, attack damage, and spellcasting, along with EV penalties of -0.8 (buckler), -3 (kite shield), or -5 (tower shield). While the penalty for wearing a small buckler is almost negligible, a tower shield can seriously slow your attacks and make spellcasting unreliable. Sufficient Shields skill will reduce or even negate these penalties. The amount needed varies by race, but can be found in the description of the shield in-game:

Size Races Buckler Kite shield Tower shield
Little Spriggan 7.2 - -
Small Kobold, Halfling 5.6 21 -
Normal most races 4 15 25
Large (normal torso)
& Formicids
Centaur, Naga, Formicid 2.4 9 15
Large Ogre, Troll - 9 15

Your Shield penalty is (Shield EV penalty) - (Shields skill)/(5 + (Size factor)). Shield EV penalty and Size factor can be looked up in these tables:

Shield type Shield EV penalty
Buckler -0.8
Kite shield -3
Tower shield -5
Size Races Size factor
Little Spriggan +4
Small Kobold, Halfling +2
Normal most races 0
Large
(normal torso) & Formicids
Centaur, Naga, Formicid -2
Large Ogre, Troll -2

When attacking with any kind of weapon (including unarmed), if you are wearing a shield and your Shield penalty is greater than zero, the game throws two dice with (Shield penalty) sides. The smaller value rolled is added to your attack delay.

Egos

All three types of shields can spawn with the following egos[1]:

Shields of cold and fire resistance can occasionally be found in ice caves and volcanoes.

Blocking

Effect

It's possible to block a melee attack or a ranged projectile attack if you wear a shield of some kind or are under the effect of a magical shield (amulet of reflection, Qazlal's Storm Shield, or the Shining One's Divine Shield) or have the Large Bone Plates mutation. Your ability to block missiles doesn't benefit from missile-repelling effects like a scarf of repulsion, and you cannot benefit from any form of shield while you are confused.

All melee attacks can be blocked (except for successful stabs), but many ranged attacks are unblockable:

Some examples of ranged attacks that can be blocked:

If the attacker's pierce value is less than the defender's blocking value (see below for details), the attack does no damage. Shield blocking is done before rolling your evasion or your AC, but if you have already blocked some attacks in that turn, your blocking ability will be decreased greatly.

Calculation

The defender's blocking value depends on the nature of the shield:

Physical shields:

SH = Block × (1 + Shield skill/40)
+ Enchantment bonus + Stat bonus 
+ min(0.38×Shield skill, .57 + 0.19×Shield skill)

or Helm card (this does not stack with a physical shield):

SH = 4.5 + 0.375×Invocations

and then on top of either of those:

+ Divine shield bonus
+ Qazlal shield bonus
+ Mutation bonus
+ Amulet of reflection bonus
+ Any SH bonus from artifacts

For a physical shield (Buckler, Kite Shield, and Tower Shield), Block is the shield's blocking value, equal to the base shield bonus (3 for Buckler, 8 for Kite Shield, 13 for Tower Shield), modified by a size factor:

Size Races Buckler Kite Shield Tower shield
Little Spriggan +2 - -
Small Kobold, Halfling +1 +0.5 -
Normal most races 0 0 0
Large
(normal torso) & Formicids
Centaur, Naga, Formicid 0 0 0
Large Ogre, Troll - -0.5 0
  • Stat bonus is 38×DEX for bucklers, 19×STR + 19×DEX for kite shields, or 26×STR + 12×DEX for tower shields. Then this value is multiplied by (block + 13)/26, and by 100.
  • The Shining One's Divine shield bonus is based on Invocations skill.

The resulting value is rounded to the nearest integer and displayed as the player's SH value.

For reference, a 15-Dex, 15-Str character wearing a buckler has an average blocking value of:

  • 3 with a Shield Skill of 0
  • 6 with a Shield Skill of 8
  • 8 with a Shield skill of 15
  • 11 with a Shield skill of 27

With a large shield, it becomes:

  • 11 with a Shield Skill of 0
  • 15 with a Shield Skill of 8
  • 19 with a Shield skill of 15
  • 25 with a Shield skill of 27

The attacker's pierce value is equal to:

1d(15 + to hit/2 + 5×past_blocks^2) - 1 (melee attacks)
1d(1.3×to hit    + 5×past_blocks^2) - 1 (ranged attacks)   

"To hit" is the monster's To hit value (based primarily on the monster's HD, type, and weapon accuracy) and "past_blocks" is the number of attacks already successfully blocked in the current turn.

The defender's blocking value is equal to:

 2d(2×SH)/6 - 1.3 (Divided by 3 against melee attacks from invisible opponents)

If this value is greater or equal than the attacker's pierce value, the attack is blocked.

History

  • Prior to 0.25, kite shields were known as just "shields" and tower shields were called "large shields".
  • Prior to 0.17, unarmed attacks had a speed penalty when attacking with a shield equipped.
  • Prior to 0.16, the amount of skill required to negate penalties for wearing a shield were more complex.

References

  1. makeitem.cc:806 (0.25.0)