So yesterday my party was having a dispute over the rules around using a shield. One person said that you needed to spend an action to hold up a shield, while I thought you could just equip one. Is preparing a shield a normal rule or a house rule? I couldn’t find it in the rules, that I knew of, and it wasn’t on the Shield details page. So I’m not sure if you need to spend an action to prepare a shield, or can just have a shield equipped.
RAW, a Shield is a piece of armor. You don't have to do anything to prepare a Shield. As long as you have one equipped it occupies one of your character's hands and your AC increases by 2. That's it. Unless you have something like the shield master feat or a class feature that allows you to use the shield in a different way, all it does is increase AC and requires no further action on your part.
Shields provide +2 AC (or more, if magical) when equipped. There's nothing more to them unless you have special abilities or feats.
If your character wants to don a shield while in combat, then it takes a full action to equip it (not to hold it up).
For example, your party is sleeping and is attacked. Warning is given and on the fighter's turn, he stands up (shield not equipped) and uses his action to equip his shield (shield equipped, now has +2 AC).
There's a thing in Pathfinder where even after you have it on, you need to spend an action to use a shield each round. Maybe they were thinking of that.
For the sake of accuracy: if you do not have a shield equipped, it takes an action to equip one (at which point you always benefit from the +2 AC with no further actions required). If you have one equipped, and you wish to take it off, it also takes an action (at which point you lose the +2 AC).
See Players Handbook- Chapter 5 - Armor and Shields - Getting Into and Out of Armor
So yesterday my party was having a dispute over the rules around using a shield. One person said that you needed to spend an action to hold up a shield, while I thought you could just equip one. Is preparing a shield a normal rule or a house rule? I couldn’t find it in the rules, that I knew of, and it wasn’t on the Shield details page. So I’m not sure if you need to spend an action to prepare a shield, or can just have a shield equipped.
In addition to what everyone else has said, there needs to be some disambiguation between shield and Shield. The first is an item that is found on the armor page and has been very well explained by the other responses. The second is a spell that is cast as a reaction (not the action) when a creature makes an attack roll against a target to increase the caster's AC (+5) for that attack to help the caster avoid the attack.
Even this doesn't use an action to use, thus not candidate for whatever your friend/fellow player was thinking of wouldn't be covered by this.
I could see it being a homebrew rule that someone can raise a shield as an action providing them with 1/4 or half cover pending on the size of the person and shield.
I could see it being a homebrew rule that someone can raise a shield as an action providing them with 1/4 or half cover pending on the size of the person and shield.
Maybe. There might be scenarios where that would be better than dodge, but I'd probably rather have dodge.
There's a thing in Pathfinder where even after you have it on, you need to spend an action to use a shield each round. Maybe they were thinking of that.
It's been a few years since I played Pathfinder (1E) but that absolutely was not a thing. You really need to straighten out your friend. And fact-check all the other BS he's told you while you're at it.
Well, in pathfinder 2e, it is a thing, which is more relevant since that’s the current edition. Go ahead and fact check it yourself.
I'll take your word for it. I don't play PF 2E, and if it takes an action to use a shield I probably never will.
The action economy is different. In 2e it does take an action to raise your shield. Your shield doesn't block all damage, and can get destroyed as it has its own "hp".
None of that is relevant since this is DND Beyond, not Pathfinder Beyond. In D&D 5e, a Shield only requires an Action to don/doff, the use of it is free.
So yesterday my party was having a dispute over the rules around using a shield. One person said that you needed to spend an action to hold up a shield, while I thought you could just equip one. Is preparing a shield a normal rule or a house rule? I couldn’t find it in the rules, that I knew of, and it wasn’t on the Shield details page. So I’m not sure if you need to spend an action to prepare a shield, or can just have a shield equipped.
RAW, a Shield is a piece of armor. You don't have to do anything to prepare a Shield. As long as you have one equipped it occupies one of your character's hands and your AC increases by 2. That's it. Unless you have something like the shield master feat or a class feature that allows you to use the shield in a different way, all it does is increase AC and requires no further action on your part.
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Shields provide +2 AC (or more, if magical) when equipped. There's nothing more to them unless you have special abilities or feats.
If your character wants to don a shield while in combat, then it takes a full action to equip it (not to hold it up).
For example, your party is sleeping and is attacked. Warning is given and on the fighter's turn, he stands up (shield not equipped) and uses his action to equip his shield (shield equipped, now has +2 AC).
There's a thing in Pathfinder where even after you have it on, you need to spend an action to use a shield each round. Maybe they were thinking of that.
For the sake of accuracy: if you do not have a shield equipped, it takes an action to equip one (at which point you always benefit from the +2 AC with no further actions required). If you have one equipped, and you wish to take it off, it also takes an action (at which point you lose the +2 AC).
See Players Handbook- Chapter 5 - Armor and Shields - Getting Into and Out of Armor
Shields take an action to don (equip), but once donned they don't require anything else to grant their benefit.
In addition to what everyone else has said, there needs to be some disambiguation between shield and Shield. The first is an item that is found on the armor page and has been very well explained by the other responses. The second is a spell that is cast as a reaction (not the action) when a creature makes an attack roll against a target to increase the caster's AC (+5) for that attack to help the caster avoid the attack.
Even this doesn't use an action to use, thus not candidate for whatever your friend/fellow player was thinking of wouldn't be covered by this.
I could see it being a homebrew rule that someone can raise a shield as an action providing them with 1/4 or half cover pending on the size of the person and shield.
Maybe. There might be scenarios where that would be better than dodge, but I'd probably rather have dodge.
It's been a few years since I played Pathfinder (1E) but that absolutely was not a thing. You really need to straighten out your friend. And fact-check all the other BS he's told you while you're at it.
DICE FALL, EVERYONE ROCKS!
Well, in pathfinder 2e, it is a thing, which is more relevant since that’s the current edition. Go ahead and fact check it yourself.
I'll take your word for it. I don't play PF 2E, and if it takes an action to use a shield I probably never will.
DICE FALL, EVERYONE ROCKS!
The action economy is different. In 2e it does take an action to raise your shield. Your shield doesn't block all damage, and can get destroyed as it has its own "hp".
It was an interesting mechanic.
None of that is relevant since this is DND Beyond, not Pathfinder Beyond. In D&D 5e, a Shield only requires an Action to don/doff, the use of it is free.
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