I think D&D should add different shields just like armor. Ex. Leather/ steel small shields for ranger class + 1 AC str 12, medium shield +2 AC str 13 and lastly large shield for paladins/fighter str 15/16. Just an idea. It would be nice to have some different styles to shields. They could also have disadvantage to stealth depending on size. Also I would like to see dmg for hitting with a shield as well as armor. Why should unarmed strike be 4 bludgeoning when I have a shield or helmet etc. Let me know your thoughts.
If you want it, just have at it. I don't see it being problematic as long as you don't move too far from the regular shield stats. 5E aims to keep things simple, but that doesn't mean you can't or shouldn't add some more in-depth options. As for hitting with a shield, I suggest simply going with the rules for improvised weapons for that one.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Want to start playing but don't have anyone to play with? You can try these options: [link].
I don't see a reason to give shields higher Strength requirements than armor. You could match shield to armor proficiencies easily enough, light/medium/heavy shields, and give characters proficiency in any shield they have armor proficiency in. You'd have to figure out why anyone would bother with a shield lighter than they can carry, but it's an easy start point.
My table's half-formed rules for alternate shield types is that bucklers/light shields provide no passive to AC but weigh only two pounds and can be used to Parry (essentially the Defensive Duelist mechanic, packaged onto a small handful of items for our games rather than forcing people to take the terrible lackluster shitty feat). Medium shields as per the rules. Heavy shields weigh ten pounds and can be set to provide half-cover from projectile attacks against a single direction with a bonus action in addition to their AC bonus, but moving breaks the set. Nobody's really sure it's worth the bother at this point given how rare ranged attacks from NPC enemies are and how often people forget their parry.
With bounded accuracy, any easily added boosts to base AC can be problematic. A Light Shield for +1 AC should be fine, but if the Great Shield grants +3, then it's going to continue to exacerbate existing AC builds.
I like Yurei's option for alternate benefits. Having a buckler allow a user to burn their reaction for an AC bonus against a single attack seems totally fair. And Heavy Shields providing half-cover against ranged attacks, which wouldn't stack with natural terrain, also seem very reasonable.
If I were to add two shields of my own, they would probably be something like this:
Tower Shield (Portable Wall):
-2 penalty to attack rolls while carrying. Bonus Action to gain Total Cover from one direction.
Brawler's Shield (Studded Buckler):
+1 to AC. Can be used as an Off-Hand Weapon to deal 1d4+STR bludgeoning damage.
*Essentially the Dual Wielder Feat with a Dagger
Exotic shields are one of those things that made 3.5e feel too bloated, so while I would enjoy an official set of Light/Medium/Heavy options, I'd probably leave the rest for homebrew.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
I think D&D should add different shields just like armor. Ex. Leather/ steel small shields for ranger class + 1 AC str 12, medium shield +2 AC str 13 and lastly large shield for paladins/fighter str 15/16. Just an idea. It would be nice to have some different styles to shields. They could also have disadvantage to stealth depending on size. Also I would like to see dmg for hitting with a shield as well as armor. Why should unarmed strike be 4 bludgeoning when I have a shield or helmet etc. Let me know your thoughts.
If you want it, just have at it. I don't see it being problematic as long as you don't move too far from the regular shield stats. 5E aims to keep things simple, but that doesn't mean you can't or shouldn't add some more in-depth options. As for hitting with a shield, I suggest simply going with the rules for improvised weapons for that one.
Want to start playing but don't have anyone to play with? You can try these options: [link].
I don't see a reason to give shields higher Strength requirements than armor. You could match shield to armor proficiencies easily enough, light/medium/heavy shields, and give characters proficiency in any shield they have armor proficiency in. You'd have to figure out why anyone would bother with a shield lighter than they can carry, but it's an easy start point.
My table's half-formed rules for alternate shield types is that bucklers/light shields provide no passive to AC but weigh only two pounds and can be used to Parry (essentially the Defensive Duelist mechanic, packaged onto a small handful of items for our games rather than forcing people to take the terrible lackluster shitty feat). Medium shields as per the rules. Heavy shields weigh ten pounds and can be set to provide half-cover from projectile attacks against a single direction with a bonus action in addition to their AC bonus, but moving breaks the set. Nobody's really sure it's worth the bother at this point given how rare ranged attacks from NPC enemies are and how often people forget their parry.
Please do not contact or message me.
With bounded accuracy, any easily added boosts to base AC can be problematic. A Light Shield for +1 AC should be fine, but if the Great Shield grants +3, then it's going to continue to exacerbate existing AC builds.
I like Yurei's option for alternate benefits. Having a buckler allow a user to burn their reaction for an AC bonus against a single attack seems totally fair. And Heavy Shields providing half-cover against ranged attacks, which wouldn't stack with natural terrain, also seem very reasonable.
If I were to add two shields of my own, they would probably be something like this:
Tower Shield (Portable Wall):
-2 penalty to attack rolls while carrying. Bonus Action to gain Total Cover from one direction.
Brawler's Shield (Studded Buckler):
+1 to AC. Can be used as an Off-Hand Weapon to deal 1d4+STR bludgeoning damage.
*Essentially the Dual Wielder Feat with a Dagger
Exotic shields are one of those things that made 3.5e feel too bloated, so while I would enjoy an official set of Light/Medium/Heavy options, I'd probably leave the rest for homebrew.