Shield Warrior Feat - Not Actually Captain America

[Eno Remnant]

Shield Warrior

Prerequisites: Proficiency with shields, Strength 13 or higher

You have learned a style of combat that encapsulates the idiom "The best offence is a great defence." You gain the following benefits:

• You can wield two shields, and while doing so you gain a +1 to AC. You gain no additional benefits for wielding two shields, as normal.
  
• You can shield bash as an attack with a shield you are wielding, dealing 1d4 + Strength modifier bludgeoning damage. Additionally, if you successfully shield bash a creature, you can cause the target to make a DC 12 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone. You can do so a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus, and regain all uses after a long rest.
  
• When you take the Dodge action while wielding a shield, you can make a weapon attack as a bonus action.

[Grod_The_Giant]

Way too strong. Like, each of the three bullet points alone is a strong feat, if not overpowered all by itself.

• A flat +2 AC is... you could get away with it, I think, because you're also trading off weapon damage. At higher levels, with magic shields, this starts to get really dangerous. I really can't recommend anything like this.
• Shields as a 1d4 bludgeoning weapon is fine. Shields forcing a save-or-prone on every attack is too much, both from a power perspective and a "seriously, that's just so many saving throws to roll" perspective. Remember, you're going to be triggering the save two or three times a round. It should be attached to a specific action or bonus action, so it can't be spammed, and the save DC should scale.
• A bonus action attack when you Dodge is fun. At higher levels this is certainly fine, but if you pick this up at level 1 via vHuman or a custom lineage it's shockingly dangerous.

[Eno Remnant]

Thanks for the feedback. Let's go over this:

Way too strong. Like, each of the three bullet points alone is a strong feat, if not overpowered all by itself.

• A flat +2 AC is... you could get away with it, I think, because you're also trading off weapon damage. At higher levels, with magic shields, this starts to get really dangerous. I really can't recommend anything like this.

I feel like that's highly dependent on what the DM makes available in terms of magic items, and so this doesn't concern me too much. They have the power to decide how strong this becomes as appropriate for their campaign.

Admittedly, magic item crafting (and Artificer in particular) can get around this. Perhaps you can only benefit from the effects of one, but you gain +2 to AC from wielding both?

• Shields as a 1d4 bludgeoning weapon is fine. Shields forcing a save-or-prone on every attack is too much, both from a power perspective and a "seriously, that's just so many saving throws to roll" perspective. Remember, you're going to be triggering the save two or three times a round. It should be attached to a specific action or bonus action, so it can't be spammed, and the save DC should scale.

You make a good point. I'll limit it to proficiency bonus uses per long rest.

• A bonus action attack when you Dodge is fun. At higher levels this is certainly fine, but if you pick this up at level 1 via vHuman or a custom lineage it's shockingly dangerous.

I don't know about dangerous. Certainly it's harder to hit the player character, but PCs not dying tends to be the intent of the DM. If anything it becomes a unique exercise for the DM in challenging the player.

Having said that, do you think requiring Extra Attack to use that part makes it more reasonable? Perhaps a level requirement?

[JNAProductions]

With this, a Fighter could hit AC 26 before magic items.

[Eno Remnant]

With this, a Fighter could hit AC 26 before magic items.

This would be in the realm of min/maxing, and if your DM is letting you do these things, that's kind of on them. I can't live or die on the most optimal build possible, otherwise I'd never stop writing corollaries on these things.

I appreciate the concern, but I feel that if your DM is delving into permitting homebrew, they're probably using enough discretion to decide whether or not building towards AC 26 is something they'll allow, and what to permit with that in mind.

[Composer99]

This would be in the realm of min/maxing, and if your DM is letting you do these things, that's kind of on them. I can't live or die on the most optimal build possible, otherwise I'd never stop writing corollaries on these things.

Not really. Plate plus two shields plus Defense Fighting Style gets you 23, and that's not min/maxed at all.

[JNAProductions]

With this, a Fighter could hit AC 26 before magic items.

AC 24. I done goofed on my math, so Imma correct the record.

AC 23, as said above, is more realistic since Dual Wielder isn't a very good feat.

[Eno Remnant]

Not really. Plate plus two shields plus Defense Fighting Style gets you 23, and that's not min/maxed at all.

AC 24. I done goofed on my math, so Imma correct the record.

AC 23, as said above, is more realistic since Dual Wielder isn't a very good feat.

I stand by my statement about DM discretion, but in respect to me wanting the feat to actually see some level of play, I have adjusted it somewhat. You now only gain a +1 to AC from having a second shield, and you cannot gain any other benefits from having two shields.

[paddyfool]

Is there any historical account of this ever being a thing? One shield is great, but two shields just strains credibility. (Yes, I know this is a world with magic, dragons etc... But I still don't thing two shields make much sense unless maybe you have 4+ arms and a lot of body area to protect).

[Eno Remnant]

Is there any historical account of this ever being a thing? One shield is great, but two shields just strains credibility. (Yes, I know this is a world with magic, dragons etc... But I still don't thing two shields make much sense unless maybe you have 4+ arms and a lot of body area to protect).

That's... not a question I'd have ever expected to see in a D&D homebrew forum. However, I do have an answer.

There are no historical accounts that I'm aware of in regards to wielding two shields. It's viable, defensively, but you're far better off using an actual weapon in place of one of those shields.

That being said, this is a game, and multiple people have had the dual shield fantasy (the Fire Giant Dreadnought in Volo's being a relevant example). I can't say that there's really any concern on most people's end about realism in tabletop games (though you'll find many videos and threads on the subject which find far more than the impracticality of dual shields to criticise), and it's not a factor I intend to keep in mind with regards to this feat.