Please rate Divine Shield

[smetzger]

Divine Shield [Divine]
You can channel energy to make your shield more effective for either offense or defense.
Prerequisites: Ability to turn or rebuke undead, Cha 13+, Str 13+, Power Attack, Improved Shield Bash.
Benefit: Spend one of your turn/rebuke undead attempts to channel energy into your shield, granting it an enhancement bonus equal to your Charisma modifier. This enhancement bonus applies both to the shield's attacks and defense, and lasts for a number of rounds equal to your Charisma modifier.

 

[ashockney]

I've seen a paladin use it to be nearly unhittable.

 

[Artoomis]

It's only average because it's requirements are very high, it takes an action to activate it, and it's an enhancement bonus so it does not stack with the shield's enhancement.

In limited circumstances it might be very powerful.

 

[Apok]

Below average. Requirements are high and some (Power Attack & Improved Shield Bash) just don't make any sense. Like Artoomis mentioned, the fact that it's an Enhancement bonus makes it less usefull at higher levels unless you've got a massive Charisma mod. The fact that the bonus applies to attack and damage rolls with the shield is nice but only if you are specializing in shield-bashing people.

 

[reapersaurus]

well, considering that I'm probably the one who popularized it's power-use, I can tell you that in my experience, if you go massive-CHA mod with it, it's probably the most unbalanced feat in the game.

I have been asked to power down 2 PC's that I used it in, and those were power-gaming groups.

It's the Divine Might/Divine Shield/Shield Charge smackdown that most games are incapable of handling the threat of.

DR becomes useless, and high-hp's are soaked up by the Shield Charge faster than anything else short of a Holy Sworded lance from horseback with mounted feats.

I haven't voted on it yet, though.

It's hard to vote without knowing the context:
are we voting on the feat in general, or are we voting with the assumption that you're going to make a character and specialize him to take advantage of this feat?

 

[smetzger]

It's hard to vote without knowing the context:
are we voting on the feat in general, or are we voting with the assumption that you're going to make a character and specialize him to take advantage of this feat?

Your voting on your perception of its usefulness.

On a further note, what do you think the min Cha is to make this a good choice?

 

[Alhandra]

all I know is I wish I had enough feats to take advantage of that Shield-liciousness.

 

[maddman75]

I gave it an average. While the prerequisites are pretty steep, a melee/shiled character is already going to have them. And to such a character the feat is very useful. Especially if you go by the Sage's ruling that makes activating Divine feats a free action.

 

[Ridley's Cohort]

I gave it a '5'.

While I am impressed by how reapersaurus' diabolical paladin mind works, the prereqs are very steep for this feat.

Improved Shield Bash is almost a wasted feat, a Cha-strong paladin won't have the Str to gain real advantage from it against troublesome foes.

A paladin built around Power Attack, Improved Shield Bash, Divine Shield, Divine Might is going to do heaps of damage. But that is a one-trick pony that requires one or two actions to power up. It is not a given that you will get even a single Shield Charge off if you are standing around powering up your abilities for the first third of combat.

 

[Elder-Basilisk]

7- It's a very good feat for the people who can actually use it--high level paladins (or clerics with a high charisma).

Lvl 1: Power attack, Improved Shield Bash
Lvl 3: Shield Expert
Lvl 6: Shield Charge
Lvl 9: Divine Shield

By level 9, most paladins will have at least an 18 charisma. And that's when this feat starts working. By level 12, even an iconic spread paladin (15 starting charisma) probably has a charisma of 22. The only other way to get an enhancement bonus of +6 is wielding the Sword of Kas. Since there's no limit to the amount of enhancement this feat can give a shield, I'd expect to see shields with a +10 offensive and defensive enhancement bonus by level 20.

That's very impressive for any feat.

I haven't seen Reapersaurus's shieldbash paladins but I expect they'll make the Holy Sword mounted combat paladins from the Sultans of Smack thread look like wimps. . . and all that without needing much in the way of special circumstances.