Shield of reflection

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Revision as of 12:36, 26 April 2019 by Netzhack (talk | contribs) (The shield is never blind. Also, whether it's optimal to use the shield as a weapon depends on the situation.)
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[   shield of reflection   Shield of reflection.png
Appearance polished silver shield
Slot shield
AC 2
Special
Base price 50 zm
Weight 50
Material silver

The shield of reflection is a rare but useful item. It conveys reflection. It also does silver damage against silver-hating monsters when wielded, although it is not an optimal weapon. When unidentified, it is a polished silver shield; when you are blind, it is a smooth shield.

Every variation of Medusa's lair has a statue of Perseus, sometimes with Medusa on the down stairs, sometimes elsewhere on the level. In the variation of this level with large buildings on the left and right, the statue has a 25% chance of containing a shield of reflection. In all other variations, the chance is 75%. In both cases, the shield is cursed and +0.

All Archons start with a shield of reflection. Angels and Aleaxes have a 25% chance of having one.

In recent versions of UnNetHack, Itlachiayaque is an artifact shield of reflection that Archeologists receive as their quest artifact. It replaces the Orb of Detection.

Strategy

Although reflection is a crucial property, the shield inhibits both two-weapon combat and spellcasting, making it an unpopular choice for the ascension kit. That said, it's still a potentially useful piece of equipment for early- to mid-game characters who don't rely exclusively on spells, as well as for a few late-game characters who can't or don't want to twoweapon and don't need to cast any spells that can't wait for the shield to come off. (Rangers and cavemen often fall into this category.)

This page may need to be updated for the current version of NetHack.

It may contain text specific to NetHack 3.6.0. Information on this page may be out of date.

Editors: After reviewing this page and making necessary edits, please change the {{nethack-360}} tag to the current version's tag or {{noversion}} as appropriate.