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With more than 60 operators available to its evergrowing roster, Rainbow Six Siege is an FPS that encourages a wide range of playstyles. Support-oriented players, for instance, may find satisfaction in using shield operators as they safeguard teammates and relay crucial intel, like enemy positions and trap placements.
Unfortunately, shields have long been a source of scrutiny among the Siege community. Due to game-breaking exploits and controversial mechanics (issues that plagued many releases in 2021), these characters are seen banned from ranked matches quite frequently. While shield operators do suffer from balancing issues, they're also misunderstood. Learning each one's mechanics and how to counter them can be extremely useful, to both shield users and their opposition.
Updated May 10, 2023, by Rhenn Taguiam: Operation Commanding Force has introduced Brava as the newest Attacker in Rainbow Six Siege. Fans of the tactical hero shooter are thrilled to have an Operator who can not only disable Defender gadgets, but may even turn their own tech against them. For those curious about the kinds of Operators they may want to use alongside or against Brava, heavily-armored Shield Operators may come to mind. While there aren't a lot of them among the game’s roster of specialized Operators, these Shield-toting characters have a lot to offer alongside Brava’s Drone.
6 Fuze (Attacker)
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Spetsnaz operator Fuze is the most rudimentary of his colleagues, wielding a standard ballistic shield and underwhelming secondary weapons. His APM-6 cluster charges, however, are excellent for flushing out defenders and eliminating their gadgets. It's exactly what a player wants from a shield operator, but lacking shield-based ability significantly limits his usage. Fuze is among the loudest, slowest, and most situational operators in Rainbow Six Siege, relying heavily on teammates to protect him as he stomps across the map. In many cases, he can be a serious liability to his team by attracting enemy roamers.
Given Fuze's access to the AK-12 assault rifle — the strongest weapon in Siege statistically — choosing the ballistic shield just doesn't make sense. While not a bad operator overall, there are much better options for shield users to play.
Gameplay Tips: Clustered Breaches Need Time
Like other Hard Breach Operators, Fuze specializes in giving his team line of sight and openings past most enemy defenses. However, his sluggish nature makes him less ideal for aggressive play. Though effective, his Breach Charges give a distinct sound when deployed, giving nearby opponents an immediate cue that a Fuze is nearby and removing the element of surprise.
Fuze can circumvent this by deploying the charges first, then waiting a few minutes to detonate them. Sadly, this slow-playing nature does make Fuze timing-heavy. While his Ballistic Shield gives ample defense, it won’t be useful if Fuze waits too long before going to battle.
5 Blackbeard (Attacker)
Released during Operation Dust Line, Blackbeard has always been met with harsh criticism. His rifle shield was first introduced boasting 800 health and has since been subjected to countless nerfs. Unlike traditional shield operators, Blackbeard's shield only protects his head and upper torso from enemy gunfire, but it also lets him fight back. The MK17 CQB and SR-25 are incredible weapons, silencing targets swiftly during mid-to-long-range engagements. As such, he's best played holding angles on defender-controlled rooms to challenge anchors (like Echo), being that he's immune to headshots.
Currently, Blackbeard's rifle shield will shatter to the first bullet that hits (depending on the weapon and distance), which can be a life-saving tool in certain situations, despite its many nerfs. Players are given a replacement shield after the first one breaks, and it can be removed manually to increase movement speed. This Navy SEAL also has access to the powerful D-50 handgun, the best pistol in Siege.
Gameplay Tips: Headshot Shield Is Situational
Blackbeard’s Rifle Shield was a game-changer when introduced, given its headshot protection that can protect players from fraggers. However, due to the recent nerf in Blackbeard’s Shields and his off-meta loadout, he’s not a recommended front-fragger despite his Rifle Shield’s headshot protection.
Blackbeard can set up his Claymores to protect him from jump-outs and run-outs from campers. However, the hyper-focused nature of his kit make him useful more as a combat support than a hardlined DPS, which teams can’t afford in intense Siege matches.
4 Blitz (Attacker)
Blitz offers the most aggressive approach for players looking to rush in. Like Fuze, Blitz is armed with a ballistic shield and handgun for close-range combat, but the shield is also his ability. Using 24 flash-bang grenades inside his shield, one button press will temporarily blind defenders, presenting an opportunity to attack. He has four flashes available with a relatively short cooldown time, but it's not always obvious whether an opponent has been blinded or not. On the bright side, Blitz is the only operator who can sprint with a full-sized shield held forward, protecting himself from incoming gunfire while rushing.
Blitz is an excellent choice for one-on-one encounters, but facing two or more defenders can be tricky, given his flash shield's short range. It's best to pursue stray roamers instead (like Pulse), allowing teammates to move in safely. However, Blitz is not recommended for new players, as he requires extensive map knowledge and experience rushing.
Gameplay Tips: No Sight Is The Winning Sight
As an Attacker, Blitz's Tactical Shield immediately cements his aggressive position. Alongside its protection capacity, its built-in flash can become an effective offensive tool. Ideally, players should flash an opponent and rush in for the melee kill using Blitz’s speed advantage.
However, the volatile nature of melee fights in Siege means Blitz is better as an aggressive scout, flashing potential angles to mark distracted opponents. This enables his team to kill them or identify better points of entry. This strategy only works in locations with multiple entry and exit points. Flashing in open environments can make Blitz more vulnerable to more opponents.
3 Montagne (Attacker)
Montagne, meaning "mountain" in French, is the perfect name for this heavily-armored operator. He carries a massive, collapsible shield, protecting his entire body from both direct gunfire and peripheral flanks. When collapsed, his shield offers similar protection to Fuze and Blitz's ballistic shields and allows the use of a handgun. The GIGN's LFP586 revolver, for instance, is a hard-hitting weapon for accurate players, holding six deadly rounds within its revolving cylinder (much like the weapons in Red Dead Redemption 2). The best use for Montage isn't fighting however, it's encroaching on enemy territory to distract the defenders so that teammates can take them out.
On the game mode Bomb, Montagne can use smoke grenades to mask himself as he plants the defuser, then linger nearby to stop any approaching defenders. While less lethal than other shield operators, he provides a significant tactical advantage using his impenetrable shield, which can't be displaced by bullets or melee attacks, only explosives.
Gameplay Tips: The Perfect Body Shield
Montagne's LE ROC Shield covers his body even when he’s standing. This makes him the perfect sentinel for his Attacking team, though his loadout leaves much to be desired. This turns Montagne into more of a scout and intel-gatherer than a forward tank, using his shield advantages to locate defenders while protecting his own teammates.
In the process, Montagne can communicate points of interest, where his fellow Attackers can focus on pushing without risking retaliation. However, Montagne's use in the frontlines without being too aggressive can make his position risky, unless he’s with reliable front-flaggers.
2 Osa (Attacker)
Osa is a Croatian operator who, alongside Blackbeard, is among the few hybrid shield operators in Siege, using her Talon-8 transparent shield for both mobile cover and fixed cover (like a deployable shield). In combination with either the 556XI assault rifle or PDW9 submachine gun, she proves herself as a candid threat to defenders, able to observe her targets before peeking out of cover to attack. Osa plays a strong role in denying enemies control of vital positions, then picking up her shield to advance safely, just as a traditional shield operator would.
One creative strategy with Osa is placing a claymore behind a cracked shield — which obstructs defenders' view of the trap — then waiting for an unlucky victim to vault over the shield. In many ways, she behaves more like a defender than an attacker, placing traps and denying entry being her strong suits.
Gameplay Tips: Secure Flanking, Secure Defense
In Rainbow Six Siege, Osa's Clear Shield is the only shield capable of fully defending the team’s flank. This pair of deployable shields, alongside her support-oriented kit, allows Osa to boost the team’s utility needs in almost any situation.
Smoke Grenades allow Osa to conceal her team’s planting objective by incentivizing a rushed attack. Likewise, Claymores can prevent jump-outs and run-outs from the enemy team. She can also carry Impact EMPs to disable electronics, such as Kaid’s claws and Bandit’s batteries.
1 Clash (Defender)
British operator Clash is among the most controversial characters in Rainbow Six Siege. She's notorious for her CCE high voltage shield which protects her body head to toe (much like Montagne's shield), allowing her to prevent full-scale pushes by shocking attackers — inhibiting movement speed and inflicting low damage over time. As such, she's best used guarding key locations across the map and keeping the invaders at bay (bearing similarities to Ghost of Tsushima's multiplayer).
When in need of a more lethal approach, Clash is armed with the exemplary SPSMG9 machine pistol, possessing a high rate of fire that mows down enemies instantaneously. Unlike other shield users, however, Clash must switch between her shield and gun, she cannot wield both at the same time — one of her only flaws. Fortunately, her Super Shorty pump-action shotgun and impact grenades provide unbeatable utility, permitting players to blast through walls and hatches for repositioning as needed. Accessible exclusively to defense, Clash is undoubtedly the most intimidating and effective shield operator Siege has to offer.
Gameplay Tips: Electric Shocks From The Front
Clash is more than capable of using her Crowd Control Electro Shield not just within a defended site, but also as a surveying tool. While she can’t use melee attacks or side arms with her shield deployed, the Electro Shield’s incredible resilience against front attacks can allow Clash to check her attackers.
As a Defender, Clash can taunt opponents from potential entry points and slow down their approach, while the rest of the team reinforces defenses or outflanks the enemy team. The Electro Shield’s taser functionality can be debilitating to foes that get tagged, making it unideal to face Clash head-on. This can be a problem if Clash herself is pursuing them with a nigh-indestructible shield.
Rainbow Six Siege is available now, for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Microsoft Windows.