Have sheilds been errated to be not arms slot items?

[MrBeens]

The character builder lets you equip both a magic shield and magic bracers.
It puts the shield in the off hand slot.

 

[Lord Ernie]

No. Just as always, if you equip both a shield and a pair of bracers, it's the last one to be equipped that is considered to be 'active'. I doubt the CB takes that rule into account, however.

In general, using the CB as a rules reference is not a great idea. While it is a great tool for some quick character building, it does have a number of issues.

 

[Aulirophile]

On the bright side you can wear a non-magical shield just fine. Since most Shield enchants are terrible, you aren't losing much.

 

[mkill]

After 2 years of play I still don't get the "shield as arm slot" rule. No matter how you look at it, it just doesn't make any sense. You're obviously holding it in your off-hand, so why not use the off-hand slot??

It just bugs me.

 

[abyssaldeath]

After 2 years of play I still don't get the "shield as arm slot" rule. No matter how you look at it, it just doesn't make any sense. You're obviously holding it in your off-hand, so why not use the off-hand slot??

It just bugs me.

A shield is strapped to your arm. Light shields even allow you to hold something in your hand.

When you use a shield, you
strap it to an arm and sometimes use the hand on that
arm—your shield arm and shield hand.

 

[Ryujin]

After 2 years of play I still don't get the "shield as arm slot" rule. No matter how you look at it, it just doesn't make any sense. You're obviously holding it in your off-hand, so why not use the off-hand slot??

It just bugs me.

Traditionally a shield is not only strapped to your arm, but you also hold a sturdy handle or strap in order to be able to properly angle and direct the shield.

Aside from that there's the simple mechanic, within the game, of limiting the number of items that can be used. This requires no real-world analogue.

 

[AbdulAlhazred]

A shield is strapped to your arm. Light shields even allow you to hold something in your hand.

Yeah, forget applying any sort of reality to 4e shields, there is none. No shield in the history of man ever worked the way the light shield in 4e does. In ALL cases you grip a hand grip. Later medieval shields and some earlier large sized shields like the Roman ones also had some type of strap, usually over the shoulder but later a loop the forearm passed through. I know of no shield design which ever left a hand free, nor would such a thing be at all workable.

However, the rules are what they are and changing it would really seriously mess with the whole set of trade offs built around how it works. For the most part shields aren't much use really. Almost any character that uses one could pick better options. None of the shield enchantments are even worth thinking about either. That however may largely be the fault of IAoP.

 

[Black Knight Irios]

None of the shield enchantments are even worth thinking about either. That however may largely be the fault of IAoP.

I think IAoP are not at fault but the bolded part is the problem. If you release a huge mass of crap and a good item everything will be useless next to the good item.

They should release some good arm slot options and IAoP would no longer be a problem. If defenders take IAoP (*1) b/c there are no good defensive oriented arm slot items that shows how much crap/mediocre stuff there is around.


(*1): It shows as well that almost everyone likes damage/dpr.

 

[DracoSuave]

Why does scientific logic not work on the mysteries of magic!?! HOW CAN THIS BE!?!


Shields are arm-slot items if they are magical.

The reason Character Builder allows a shield and an arms-slot item is very simple: Because you can equip a non-magical shield and an arms-slot item. Character Builder is not a replacement for:

The Rules

or

Your DM

 

[Dr_Ruminahui]

The Recoil shield isn't bad, but it certainly isn't "extra damage to every attack" good. That said, its the best of the heroic level shields (and barely heroic at that... its a level 9) I looked at, so, yes... most shield enhancements are pretty much garbage.