Shields | Zelda Tears of the Kingdom Wiki

Fuse Ability

One of Link's newest skills in Tears of the Kingdom is the ability to magically fuse objects to his Weapons. With the Fuse ability, Link can take an object — almost any object — and combine it with his currently equipped weapon, be it a sword, spear, or a bow and arrow. Doing so not only increases the weapon's durability and damage, but can also impart various effects, or change the weapon's properties depending on the items used in the fusion process. Fusing a boulder to a bat, for example, creates a hammer that deals much more damage, while fusing a large piece of plywood or similar will result in a very large fan that releases strong gusts of wind with every swing. 

This ability extends to Shields as well, giving Link a plethora of new ways to interact with enemies both offensively and defensively. 

Shield Fusion

With the Fuse ability, Link can affix his shields with nearly anything he comes across. This can add effects to the shield when he blocks attacks. One such example is fusing a shield with a Puffshroom. While the concept of a mushroom shield seems almost too ridiculous for combat situations, it does have practical applications.

Blocking with this fused shield will result in a large explosion of spore clouds, causing enemies in the area to lose sight of Link, allowing for a safe getaway when things get too hairy, or the opportunity to stealthily dispatch groups of enemies while their vision is obscured.

This is only one facet of Shield Fusion, and experimenting with other materials may also modify Link's other shield-related abilities such as Perfect Guard and Shield Surfing.

How to Fuse Equipment

Once the Fuse ability is unlocked, it can be used at any time. There are two main ways to Fuse equipment:

The first method is fusing directly from the environment by activating the Fuse ability, selecting an object to attach and then pressing the button corresponding to the equipment you wish to fuse (ZL in the case of Shields).

The second method is fusing via the materials menu, allowing you to attach your collected materials such as monster parts to your equipment.

Fusion Materials

Nearly anything can be used as Fusion materials for your equipment. This includes rocks and boulders in the environment, leaves from a tree, fruit and vegetables, as well as Monster Parts. Items such as Chuchu Jelly can impart weapons with elemental properties, while Keese Eyeballs can grant arrows homing capabilities. The possibilities are endless! 

Weapons can even be fused with other weapons! While spears have an inherently longer range than most melee weapons, try attaching a second spear or similarly long object to it and you will be able to keep enemies away and dispatch them at twice the distance! It is currently unknown if shields can be fused with other shields or weapons, but Fuse's incredible flexibility would suggest so.

Detaching Fused Items

Objects fused onto Weapons & Shields can be detached at any time by entering the equipment menu, selecting your fused weapon or shield and choosing Destroy Fused Material from the options menu. This will destroy the fused object, but will revert the weapon or shield to the state it was in prior to fusion. Only one object can be fused onto a weapon or shield at any one time, and undoing fusions is a useful feature to extend a piece of equipment's usability.

Fusion & Durability

One of the most divisive aspects of Breath of the Wild was the breakability of equipment, and while the Durability mechanic returns in Tears of the Kingdom, it has been heavily addressed with the Fuse ability.

One of Fuse's most important effects is its ability to extend Weapon & Shield durability. When you fuse an object to your equipment, it essentially creates a separate durability meter, allowing you to continue using the weapon or shield for longer. Note that this does not eliminate breakability completely, and your fused equipment will eventually still break with continued use.

However, the ability to detach fused items and fuse a new one onto the same piece of equipment before it breaks completely can theoretically allow you to keep using the same equipment for a much more extended duration, as long as you keep a healthy stock of fusion materials. This also helps tremendously with equipment hoarding and the limited amount of space Link has in his Weapon & Shield inventory, which is also a returning mechanic.

Shield Block

Blocking is the standard defensive ability afforded by Shields. Hold ZL with a shield equipped to raise Link's shield in front of him and block any attacks from the direction he is facing.

Note that the shield cannot be drawn if Link has both hands occupied, such as when wielding a two-handed weapon. Link can still raise his shield with a two-handed weapon equipped, as long as it is not currently unsheathed. 

Perfect Guard

Perfect Guard is an advanced technique that utilizes shields to parry attacks. It can be performed by raising Link's shield with ZL and pressing the A button the exact moment an attack lands. This effectively deflects the attack and can stagger the opponent. Using shields with a high enough Shield Guard rating can even disarm an attacker. In the case of beam-type attacks, performing a perfect guard can reflect the beam at the source.

Perfect Guard also has the added utility of eliminating durability damage for the parried attack, preserving even the flimsiest of shields on the verge of breaking. It is a high risk, high reward ability that can be very useful when mastered.

Shield Surfing

Shield Surfing is an ability of Link's which allows him to ride his shield like a snowboard to quickly descend hills and slopes. It can be performed any time link is in the air by holding ZL and pressing the A button. Shield Surfing requires some downward momentum and will stop if Link slows down too much. While surfing, Link can aim and shoot his Bow, as well as perform a spin attack by pressing the Y Button.

While Link can surf down any terrain, his shield will take durability damage while doing so, except when surfing on snow or sand.