Best shields in Elden Ring

Best shields in Elden Ring

Not everyone needs or likes to use shields in Elden Ring, but it’s unquestionable that they are powerful tools for those who learn how to use them. Shields aren’t only useful to block attacks and prevent you from taking damage. You can attack enemies with them or parry their attacks, which creates a window to land critical hits.

Now, when it comes to finding the best shield, there are a few aspects that you should take into consideration. Every shield has a specific Guard Boost number and Physical Damage Reduction. While the former determines how much stamina is spent when an attack is blocked, the latter reduces the amount of damage you take from Slash, Standard, Strike, and Piece attacks. The best shields offer a solid Guard Boost while keeping at least – for medium and greatshields – 100 of Physical Damage Reduction.

At the same time, it’s important to consider the shield's weight. Even if you could use a shield with 100 Guard Boost, it would not be worth it if it increases your equipment load to heavy. Lastly, prioritize the shields that you can infuse Ashes of War, which gives you the chance to use the best parry abilities in the game.

Below, you find the best shields in Elden Ring!

Fingerprint Stone Shield

This shield gets the idea of taking cover to another level. The Fingerprint Stone Shield, which is literally a large chunk of stone, is a greatshield that requires 48 Strength for you to use it and adds to your equipment load. All these high numbers are justified by the fact that this shield has a Guard Boost of 77 and a Physical Damage Reduction of 100, making it one of the best when it comes to staying unscathed.

You can find this weapon in the Subterranean Shunning-Grounds, the underground area of Leyndell. In a lower level of this area, you can find a room where you face Mohg, the Omen. After defeating him, you can access a secret area by hitting the altar behind the chest. From there, you must platform your way down to where the Fingerprint Stone Shield is.

Brass Shield

When picking a shield for your character, you may want to consider focusing on medium-size ones because they offer a good balance between weight and protection. The Brass Shield is one of the best in this category. It offers 100 Physical Damage reduction and 56 Guard Boost. With these numbers, you can handle a few blows and stay alive during a sequence of attacks.

The minimum requirement to use the Brass Shield is 16 Strength, while it only adds 7 to your equipment load, making it easier to stay in the medium level. Besides offering all we look for in a medium shield, you can actually find a Brass Shield fairly early in the game. In the Gatefront Ruins, one of the first areas you visit when starting the game, you can find Godrick Soldiers. By defeating them, there’s a chance they will drop the shield.

Carian Knight’s Shield

When still thinking about medium shields, another fantastic shield is the Carian Knight’s Shield. You want to consider running this one instead of others, especially if you want to increase your defence against magic. Besides having 100 Physical Damage Reduction, it also has 71 Magic Reduction, which is higher than the Brass Shield. On the other hand, the Carian Knight’s Shield has only 49 Guard Boost.

In addition to being a great shield against magic attacks, it’s also quite light, adding 4.5 to your equipment load. It is a little more demanding in terms of stat requirement than the Brass Shield though. You need 10 Strength, 10 Dexterity, and 15 Intelligence to use it. If the Carian Knight’s Shield is what you’re looking for, you can earn it by defeating Moongrum, the Carian Knight, who you find in the Raya Lucaria Academy before the elevator that takes you to the area before Rennala’s boss arena.

Coil Shield

Among the small shields, the Coil Shield stands out not for its stats but for having a great skill. The 65 Physical Damage Reduction of this shield is more than enough if what you want is a shield of this category. It has 29 Guard Boos which is not necessarily great. However, the Coil Shield comes with the Viper Bite skill, which inflicts enemies with deadly poison, a more potent version of the Poison detrimental effect. This skill is such a great feature for many builds, like the Scarlet Rot Build, that makes it one of the best in the game.

Small shields aren’t a problem when it comes to weight and, with the Coil Shield, this is not different. It only adds 1.5 to your equipment load. At the same time, it requires only 10 Strength and 10 Dexterity for you to use, affecting very little to builds in general. To find this shield, you need to explore the Volcano Cave, a dungeon located in the Mt. Gelmir region. Inside the cave, you can find a body with the Coil Shield.

Spiralhorn Shield

Now, if you don’t need a specific small shield like the Coil Shield, then the best option for you is the Spiralhorn Shield. It has 35 Guard Boost and 61 Physical Damage Reduction. The lower Physical Damage Reduction is compensated by a passive ability this shield has of increases the Immunity, Robustness, and Focus of the user, which is a great buff to have. In case you hit an enemy with this shield, it can cause blood loss buildup.

In terms of stat requirement, you only need 8 Strength and 10 Dexterity to use it. The Spiralhorn Shield is a little bit heavier than the Coil Shield, adding 2 to your equipment load, but it’s nothing to worry about. To acquire this shield, you need to look for the Uld Palace Ruins location northeast of Liurnia of the Lakes. Closer to a lake, there is a Walking Mausoleum and, upon one of the rocks around it, you find a body from which you get the Spiralhorn Shield.

Need more help? Jump back to our list of Elden Ring bosses or our Elden Ring walkthrough.