Shields 2/11/05

[WayneO42]

Shields
The use of a shield is an effective defensive tactic. They can be used to block most melee and ranged weapon attacks as well as some magical attacks. Shields however are not indestructable. The amount of damage a shield can take is dependent upon the material it is made from not necessarily its size. The three types of shields are light, medium, and Heavy. The materials and time required for the craftsman to make shields is located on page $$.

A light shield can take one 5 damage attack and is then destroyed. Light shields are made from hide, wood, or steel. Light shields cannot have an area greater than 350 square inches or a side longer than 18 inches. Medium shields can take one 10 damage attack before they are destroyed. Anything less than 10 damage does not destroy the shield. Medium shields are made from wood or steel and can be of any safe size (see below). Heavy shields can take 15 damage before they are destroyed. Anything less than 15 damage does nothing to the shield. A heavy shield is made from steel or wood. Heavy shields may be of any safe size (see below) Damage done to shields is not cunulative. All destroyed shields must be discarded. If the shield cannot be discarded then all attacks that hit the shield are considered crush damage.

The protection of a shield comes with a draw back. Shields are often heavy and akward to use, therfor, if a character is using a shield their armor category is increased by 1. Thus if they are wearing light armor and carrying a shield, they are considered to be in the medium armor catagory. Armour points are still awarded based solely on the light armour actually worn (See the Armour section on Page $$).

Shield Safety
At no point may a shield be used for striking in combat. The shield may not be swung and any contact with the body of another player is to be avoided. The rim of the shield must have sufficient enough padding that the shield rim cannot be felt through it. The face of a shield may not have any protrusions. Any shield bosses used must be rounded and contain no rough edges.

An oversized shield can also cause safety issues on the field. A shield may never be so large that it covers the users complete body. A legl target area must be presented when the shield is held in the ready position in a combat stance. The head and feet are not legal target areas. As a good guideline, a shield should at most cover the area from the users shoulder to 2 inches above the knee. A shield that is of legal size for one user may not be for another. At any time a player is using an oversized shield they will be warned and told to drop the shield immediately.

Shield Tags
All shields must have an appropriate item tag attached to the back of the shield. Furthermore, the type of shield must be identified through the use of strips of tape attached to the back of the shield. The tape should be a contrasting color to the shield back. A single strip of tape will denote light shields, two strips will denote medium shields, and three will denote heavy shields. The strips of tape should be atleast 1/2" wide and 5" long.