FromSoftware's latest entry, Elden Ring, was released to mass acclaim on the 25th of February, 2022. The world of Elden Ring is large and perilous, taking the excruciating difficulty FromSoft fans have come to expect from their titles and making the setting open world, Elden Ring is not for the faint of heart.
Shields are among the many tools players are provided with to tackle the ever-growing challenge of Elden Ring. While not for every playstyle, players that choose to use shields benefit largely from them for shields have the ability to negate a lot (and sometimes all) damage in exchange for stamina.
Given the many options Elden Ring provides players to aid their journey through the lands between, shields come in many shapes and forms. From greatshields to small shields to shields that negate physical damage to shields that negate magic damage, Elden Ring has them all. Here are some of the best Elden Ring shields that negate lightning damage.
8 Spiralhorn Shield
- Requirements: Strength 8, Dexterity 10
- Lightning Absorption: 39
While small shields are not ideal when it comes to damage negation of any kind, they make for excellent parrying tools and can be used to block when absolutely necessary. Having a lightning damage negation of 39, the Spiralhorn has the highest lightning negation amongst small shields. This shield is great for players that go for builds that prioritize nimbleness and speed and try to remain as light as possible. The Spiralhorn shield will allow players to have a low carry load while giving them decent lightning absorption that can be very handy in situations such as a hard to dodge lightning attack from a boss.
The Spiralhorn shield can be found in Liurnia of the lakes. From the Ruined Labyrinth Site of Grace, head straight towards the lake shore. Upon arriving there, head left and straight towards a corpse that has this shield.
7 Beastman's Jar Shield
- Requirements: Strength 10
- Lightning Absorption: 60
Beastman's Jar Shield is a strength-focused medium shield in Elden Ring. Alongside its high lightning negation of 60, Beastman's Jar Shield also offers a physical damage negation of 95. This shield also has no skill so players are free to choose a skill of their liking. Despite not being solely focused on lightning negation, the Beastman's Jar Shield will provide players with a very good amount of protection from lightning attacks.
Players will have a chance of picking up Beastman's Jar Shield from the corpse of any Azula Beastman wielding it they kill. These Beastmen can be located throughout Crumbling Farum Azula.
6 Candletree Wooden Shield
- Requirements: Strength 8
- Lightning Absorption: 50
The Candletree Wooden Shield is an excellent all-rounding Elden Ring medium shield that has relatively low weight, decent lightning negation, and high physical damage absorption. This shield also offers parry as its skill and can have a different skill through ashes of war. The 50 lightning negation means this shield will give players ample protection against lightning attacks.
Players can acquire the Candletree Wooden Shield in Sage's cave. In the cave, there is an illusory wall, behind that wall lies the Candletree wooden shield in a chest.
5 Marred Wooden Shield
- Requirements: Strength 8
- Lightning Absorption: 50
The Marred wooden shield is another all-rounding shield in Elden Ring fit for players that want a build that is not too heavy but still has a dependable shield. Offering a lightning negation of 50, this shield will suit most players as a shield that can give decent protection against lightning while offering high physical damage negation all while being not so heavy.
Players can find the Marred Wooden Shield in Stormveil castle. From the Rampart Tower site of grace, go towards the area with the war hawks carrying the barrels. After killing the hawks on the western tower, proceed straight and fall down to the ledge. From here, players should head straight until they fall on a pillar holding the Marred Wooden Shield.
4 One-Eyed Shield
- Requirements: Strength 36
- Lightning Absorption: 59
The One-Eyed shield is a greatshield suited only for the strongest of builds. It offers full physical negation alongside 59 lightning negation. It has a skill that spits fire from it and does quite a bit of damage, making it both a defensive and an offensive weapon. The 59 lightning negation will ensure players get decent lightning negation that can be useful again any and every lightning attack in the game.
Players acquire the One-Eyed shield after beating chief guardian Arganthy in the Guardian's Garrison located in the Mountaintop of The Giants.
3 Visage Shield
- Requirement: Strength 40
- Lighting Absorption: 65
The Visage shield is the third strongest Lightning negating shield in Elden Ring. Having 100% physical negation alongside a lightning negation of 65 makes the Visage shield an extremely powerful shield and a shield capable of protecting every player from strong lightning blows. On top of all this, much like the One-Eyed shield, the visage shield has a skill that spews fire, making it a powerful offensive weapon too.
Players can find the visage shield after they beat the Godskin Duo boss protecting a treasure chest in Caelem ruins.
2 Dragonclaw Shield
- Requirement: Strength 28, Dexterity 12
- Lightning Absorption: 76
The Dragonclaw shield is the second strongest lightning negating shield in Elden Ring. With a lightning negation of 76, the Dragonclaw shield is the perfect shield to equip when facing foes that have strong lightning blows. This shield will ensure players suffer minimal lightning damage when getting hit with lightning attacks. The Dragonclaw shield also has a shield bash skill that knocks off enemy shields and can be very powerful if used correctly.
Players receive the Dragonclaw shield after beating the Draconic Tree Sentinel in the Capital Outskirts.
1 Fingerprint Stone Shield
- Requirements: Strength 48
- Lightning Absorption: 79
The Fingerprint Stone Shield is the strongest lightning negating shield in Elden RIng. This shield, coupled with lightning negating armor, will mean players will barely receive any lightning damage. When it comes to negating lightning damage, nothing comes close to the Fingerprint Stone shield and every player with a high equipment load looking for a lightning resistant shield should aim to go for the Fingerprint Stone Shield.
After beating Mohg in the Cathedral of the forsaken, players should roll forward towards the chest to see a path open it. Follow the path and drop down the ledges until the last ledge, proceeding forward from there will bring players to where the Fingerprint stone shield is.
Elden Ring is available on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.