So currently i am a Level 4 Wizard Level 1 Cleric (Life Domain) chosen originally due to a story driven elements but I have now learnt there are other benefits of Life cleric which is the ability to wear improved armour and shields.

My default AC is 11, and generally up until now I have been casting Mage Armour + Dex for a 14 and using shield when needed. However with my understanding of what I have gained as a Life Cleric a few more doors have opened up. I am looking at the potential already of picking up Chain Shirt when i get to the next city which will give me a default AC of 14 and also enable me to drop MA and have it for a different prepared spell.

The question I had was around Shields and their impact on my ability to cast as both a Wizard and a Cleric. I have not been able to find definitive answers anywhere and was looking for help.

So I am aware that Wizards can have an Arcane Focus in place of the components specified for a spell (not including spells that consume a material, or require XGP of an item)
Clerics I believe have holy symbols for their spell focus though i believe you can technically engrave that on your shield and i believe I read that 

The question is without taking Warcaster as a feat am I able to wield a Shield and still cast as both a Cleric and Wizard. I do have a quaterstaff that I currently use for my Wizard though i expect if i had that and the Shield it would mean i would be un able to do the Somatic parts of spells, but I suppose the question is do i need the staff out to cast spells or could I simply have the shield with the holy symbol engraved (potentially also make the shield my arcane focus, or maybe get a Hat of Wizardry. (I have the quater staff again from a story point, though, I don't even know if as a Wizard if i need a staff/wand to cast, my head says I dont but again i could be wrong). But the primary question is:

Can as a Multiclassed Wizard & Life Cleric I carry a shield and still freely cast as both classes? (without the war caster feat)
If so what configuration do i need?

Thanks :)

Holy Symbol (Amulet, Emblem, Reliquary) only works for cleric spells.

Arcane focus (Crystal, Orb, Rod, Staff, Wand) only works for Wizard spells.

However, a Holy Symbol does not need to be actually held, it can be 'worn visibly' or 'bear it on a shield'. 

Spells that require a Somatic component require a free hand to cast. The hand holding the shield cannot be used. Even if that shield bears a Holy Symbol and the spell uses a Material component, you still cannot use that hand because the shield itself is not a focus. You can ignore Material components that lack a cost, still, but only if you use your other hand if the spell also needs a Somatic component.

The staff, however, can still be used to cast spells - but only if the spell requires both a Material component that lacks a gold cats and a Somatic component and is a Wizard spell.

No two ways about it, you're greatly reducing your spellcasting by having both shield and staff, unless you have warcaster feat.

If you don't need a weapon you can just use a shield and component pouch.

I usually go with the component pouch as they will work for both classes and you don't need to worry about the shield.

That said the key rule is if the spell has a material component you need that or a focus in your hand when casting.  If the spell has a somatic component you need a free hand, unless the spell has a material component as well in which case you can use the hand holding the material component or focus.

Without warcaster, if you have your holy symbol emblazoned on your shield that you are holding:

1. You can cast any spell from either class that does not require a somatic or material component

2. You can cast any spell from either class that requires a somatic component but no material component only as long as your other hand is free

3. You can cast any cleric spell that requires a material component without a stated cost regardless of what is in your other hand.

4. You can cast any wizard spell that requires a material component without a stated cost only if your other hand is holding a focus or component

5. You can cast any Wizard or Cleric spell with a component with a stated cost only if your other hand is holding that component.

Thanks for the information guys, The theory I was running with:

Shield with Holy Symbol Emblazoned
Hat of Wizardry: (You can use the hat as a spellcasting focus for your wizard spells.)

So both Holy Symbol & Arcane Focus Covered. 

Other hand free (No Staff). The Shield and Hat act as my material requirements and my free hand does the Somatic.

But if I am reading above correctly I believe would be possible? Though I may have misunderstood it that the Symbol/Focus replaced the need to have materials but I think do I understand it now that you still need a hand for it even if you have a Focus/Symbol seperately. I think I am at the point where if I want to have both the Shield and full casting options i just need to take the Feat.

This obviously excludes anything with a consumption as part of the spell. Feels like I am trying to do too muchw ithout a feat ;)

People said it. Have backup component pouches stashed around if you can. Don't need an arcane focus to cast a wizard spell (unless the DM says otherwise), just the material component for some of them.

An equipped component pouch counts as both a worn and a strapped object like a donned shield according to some DMs, so they might be harder to knock off your character compared to an unstrapped or held object (shields specifically have the doffing mechanic though). Free hand performs both somatic and material when a creature's equipped with one or more component pouches. Make sure the caster can breathe at the location they're providing a verbal component, or run the risk of suffocation according to some DMs by the way.

War Caster does more than facilitate casting, it also facilitates concentration if creature usually lacks advantage for that check and the creature also gets to expand their attack of opportunity options. It can be a powerful Feat for a spellcaster.

Hi there,

Correct, the shield (Holy Symbol Emblazoned) + Hat of Wizardry + a free hand will allow you to have the somatic and material components covered for your cleric and wizard spells. This combo should work well for a lower level character. However, at higher levels you may need the Warcaster feat as you'll probably find a magic staff or another useful hand item.

Quote from Nepheh >>

Thanks for the information guys, The theory I was running with:

Shield with Holy Symbol Emblazoned
Hat of Wizardry: (You can use the hat as a spellcasting focus for your wizard spells.)

So both Holy Symbol & Arcane Focus Covered. 

Other hand free (No Staff). The Shield and Hat act as my material requirements and my free hand does the Somatic.

But if I am reading above correctly I believe would be possible? Though I may have misunderstood it that the Symbol/Focus replaced the need to have materials but I think do I understand it now that you still need a hand for it even if you have a Focus/Symbol seperately. I think I am at the point where if I want to have both the Shield and full casting options i just need to take the Feat.

This obviously excludes anything with a consumption as part of the spell. Feels like I am trying to do too muchw ithout a feat ;)

I believe the focus needs to be held in your hand when you cast a spell with a material component requirement.

I think you need to take off the hat of wizardry in your hand to use it as a focus, kind of like a street magician does (i.e. pull a rabbit out of the hat).  So your hand would not be free.

When you are using your shield as a focus you are holding it in your hand already

Actually I think you don't have to handle it. 

This antiquated, cone-shaped hat is adorned with gold crescent moons and stars. While you are wearing it, you gain the following benefits:

• You can use the hat as a spellcasting focus for your wizard spells.
• You can try to cast a cantrip that you don’t know. The cantrip must be on the wizard spell list, and you must make a DC 10 Intelligence (Arcana) check. If the check succeeds, you cast the spell. If the check fails, so does the spell, and the action used to cast the spell is wasted. In either case, you can’t use this property again until you finish a long rest.

I think it would be hard to gain that benefit to use as a focus if you need to remove and handle it, but somehow still wear it at the same time.

Given it's other benefits are very mild, even for a common magic item, I believe the RAI here is you only need to wear it. This just replicates what Clerics can already do with Holy Symbols (which have the same function as an arcane focus without needing to be held), so it's not exactly broken or anything.

The thing is that it's up to the DM like all things, some require handling like with holy symbol amulet despite knowing the wording and some don't, the potential pent-up stress from trying to schedule session might have them worn down and they might not be too receptive sometimes. Go with the flow, leave the refereeing to the referee, focus on your tactical plays, which, ideally, should be far more impactful overall.