Shields are a necessity in Valheim, allowing you to block attacks to save HP, or parry and return the favor with high damage.
Even as you reach the later stages of the game, and have acquired a huge base with plenty of resources, some mobs still prove difficult to deal with.
Trolls, Surtlings, Greydwarf Brutes, and Fulings can all hit you hard, so having a trusty shield to hand is important.
Learning to parry is absolutely crucial here. To fend off hard-hitting attackers or survive a gank from a dozen enemies, a good shield is needed.
With so many variants available, you’ll need to know which ones to look out for.
In general, normal shields are better than tower shields, as their movement speed penalties are way too high & they cannot parry.
Note: stats are shown as they’re fully upgraded. Upgrade material numbers are the amount to reach the full upgrade.
How does parrying work in Valheim?
To parry, block an incoming attack, right before it lands.
You’ll hear a bashing sound, the enemy will be knocked back for a moment and takes double damage.
Parry force determines the knockback time, a shield with higher parry force will leave their enemies vulnerable for longer.
What does block power mean in Valheim?
Block power simply reduces incoming damage by a flat amount.
Let us say a Draugr will hit you for 63 damage, a shield with 40 block power will reduce that to 23, which your armor will then deal with.
Sounds like a lot of block power but you can be staggered, so parrying is far more effective than simply blocking!
9. Wood Tower Shield
Weight: 4
Block Power: 45
Movement Penalty: -20%
Parry Force: N/A
Crafting:
- 10 x Wood
- 4 x Leather Scraps
Upgrade Materials:
- 25 x Wood
- 15 x Leather Scraps
Great block power for how early you can get it, the Wood Tower Shield is a decent option for exploring Burial Chambers for Surtling Cores.
You’ll even be able to block Rancid Remains, but the inability to parry will make the fight last a while, so high stamina food is needed.
8. Wood Shield
Weight: 4
Block Power: 30
Movement Penalty: -5%
Parry Force: 20
Crafting:
- 10 x Wood
- 4 x Leather Scraps
- 4 x Resin
Upgrade Materials:
- 25 x Wood
- 10 x Resin
- 10 x Leather Scraps
Being able to parry makes the wood shield superior to its tower variant.
As you’re starting to fight stronger Greyling mobs, as well as skeletons and trolls, you really need that parry bonus, as well as faster movement speed.
This shield will serve you well until you manage to acquire a lot of bronze!
7. Bronze Buckler
Weight: 3
Block Power: 55
Movement Penalty: -5%
Parry Force: 30
Crafting:
- 10 x Bronze
- 4 x Wood
Upgrade Materials:
- 25 x Bronze
- 7 x Wood
Currently the lightest shield in the game, the bronze buckler is a cheap and reliable option for the early to mid-stages of your character’s playthrough.
Great block power, low weight, and a small movement penalty mean it can hold its own in the Black Forest and Swamps.
Weirdly, the bronze buckler has a higher parry modifier, so enemies who are staggered by this shield take even more damage!
6. Banded Shield
Weight: 5
Block Power: 70
Movement Penalty: -5%
Parry Force: 50
Crafting:
- 10 x Fine Wood
- 8 x Iron
Upgrade Materials:
- 40 x Fine Wood
- 20 x Iron
Costing very little iron and supplying a strong block power and parry force, the banded shield is an excellent choice against swamp monsters.
You don’t just visit the swamp for iron, you go to get entrails, bloodbags, and guck, too.
Having a lightweight option to parry, dodge and battle your way through mobs is essential.
5. Iron Tower Shield
Weight: 5
Block Power: 85
Movement Penalty: -20%
Parry Force: N/A
Crafting:
- 15 x Fine Wood
- 10 x Iron
Upgrade Materials:
- 45 x Fine Wood
- 25 x Iron
Perhaps the only level of progression that sees the tower variant best the normal one, you’ll be using this shield to explore Mountains, and maybe even Plains.
Exploring the mountain makes stamina hard to keep track of properly, as you are constantly sprinting and jumping.
So when it comes to a fight in a mountain, movement speed isn’t too big of an issue.
Surviving is far more important, being able to block almost full damage from wolves is essential, as they can easily chase you down if you don’t have a strong shield.
If you do need the movement speed back, simply press the R key to put the shield on your back!
4. Silver Shield
Weight: 5
Block Power: 85
Movement Penalty: -5%
Parry Force: 50
Crafting:
- 10 x Fine Wood
- 8 x Silver
Upgrade Materials:
- 40 x Fine Wood
- 20 x Silver
Very cheap shield, you can craft and fully upgrade it from a single silver ore vein.
Finding silver is nigh on impossible without the wishbone, obtained by defeating Bonemass.
Once you get it, it’ll be possible to block damage from almost every mob you encounter for the rest of the game.
Definitely one of the best shields and also has the properties of a great aesthetic item to decorate your homestead.
3. Black Metal Tower Shield
Weight: 5
Block Power: 115
Movement Penalty: -20%
Parry Force: N/A
Crafting:
- 15 x Fine Wood
- 10 x Black Metal
- 7 x Chain
Upgrade Materials:
- 50 x Fine Wood
- 24 x Black Metal
- 13 x Chain
By far the most expensive shield in the game, coming with the highest block power available.
The Black Metal Tower Shield is the only shield to fully block a 0-star Fuling attack, making it a good option if you’re really struggling against them.
In the end, though, it suffers from being a tower shield, as you really need the parry bonus when you get to the plains.
2. Serpent Scale Shield
Weight: 5
Block Power: 100
Movement Penalty: -10%
Parry Force: N/A
Crafting:
- 10 x Fine Wood
- 4 x Iron
- 8 x Serpent Scales
Upgrade Materials:
- 40 x Fine Wood
- 10 x Iron
- 20 x Serpent Scales
Exceptional stats for how early you can get this shield, requiring you to take down a sea serpent, which is much easier than you think.
To get your hand on the scales, simply fire at the sea serpent while sailing towards land.
Once you hit land, the serpent will stay off-shore for a minute or two, which you can use to finish it off.
I highly recommend getting this shield to use against Bonemass, the 3rd boss.
He literally becomes 10 times easier to deal with, and you don’t even need to cheese it at a vantage point.
1. Black Metal Shield
Weight: 5
Block Power: 100
Movement Penalty: -5%
Parry Force: 60
Crafting:
- 10 x Fine Wood
- 8 x Black Metal
- 5 x Chain
Upgrade Materials:
- 40 x Fine Wood
- 20 x Black Metal
- 11 x Chain
The Black Metal Shield is the best shield in the game, with high parry force and great block power, despite being a light shield.
Sure, its tower variant has more block power but at the game’s current version, the light variant is more than enough for all mobs in the game!
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