Shields

Shields are an important addition to the armour. With a shield at hand it is possible to deflect a foe's blow before it can even hit the armour, thus raising the chances of survival significantly. It also is good for saving the armour from falling apart, since continous blows are not good for any kind of material. Numerous shields have appeared throughout the history of Britannia, each having its own use for the adventurer. However, it should be noted that a shield -logically- can only be used together with a one-handed weapon.

The most common shields, sorted from weakest to strongest, are these:


 * Buckler - A small metal shield with a protection value of 1.
 * Wooden Shield - A round wood shield with a defensive value of 2.
 * Spike Shield - A round shield with spikes, has a defensive value of 2.
 * Decorative Shield - A big metal shield with a defensive value of 3.
 * Curved Heater - A big metal shield with a defensive value of 3.

Besides these basic classes of shields, there do eist special shields, that have better properties than normal ones.


 * Magic Shield - Part of the Magic Armour with a defensive value of 4.
 * Dupre's Shield - A special shield made for Dupre, infused with magic.
 * Shield of Monitor - A shield with the coat of arms of Monitor, otherwise exactly a Decorative Shield.
 * Kiran Shield - Gives a mana bonus of +5.
 * Mage Shield - Protects against 20% of magic attacks.

History
Shields came first into being in Ultima V, where they were already were available in verious qualities. This trend continued, with Ultima VII introducing the above shown number of different shields.

The system changed significantly in Ultima IX, where besides the two special shields listed above, four kinds of shields existed, it rising efficency: small round shield, shield, middle round shield and kite shield.

Triva

 * The Magic Shield is a specialty of the Order of the Silver Serpent in Ultima VI, and the blacksmith Gherick can make one with a Curved Heater and a gold nugget after getting the permision from the order.