Any point in upgrading shields?

[Chaosolous]

Looks like all it does is increase damage when used as a weapon and doesn’t increase any kind of defense. Or am I missing something?

[Grey Mauser]

Increases defense by a bit every few levels. Not much point but there is point.

[Pacino]

More stability. Might not seem much to some but it can be the difference between winning and losing.

[LovelyHick]

In the souls series it would increase the parry window, honestly not sure if it works the same in elden ring

[nfinite.recursion]

Every few upgrades (~3) Guard Boost will increase. A higher Guard Boost will result in less stamina loss when blocking.

[Figs]

Their 'whatever stability is called' / guard boost rating goes up with upgrades.

Some shields get it more than others, for example twin bird shield gets a lot of guard boost upgraded vs not.

Greatshields in particular go up a lot.

Having a high rating makes stamina drain when you block be lower. It costs less stamina to take a hit. That's very good.

So if you like the shield you have, upgrade them.

An exception, before you have miner smithing stone bells (and thus can buy unlimited upgrade stones) -> prioritize weapon upgrades before shield upgrades.

[helegos]

huge difference in the stamina loss when blocking. upgrade shield is a must if u use shields for blocking

[Grey Mauser]

Originally posted by LovelyHick:

In the souls series it would increase the parry window, honestly not sure if it works the same in elden ring

It doesn't.

[Morton Koopa Jr.]

Originally posted by helegos:

huge difference in the stamina loss when blocking. upgrade shield is a must if u use shields for blocking

Yep. If you're blocking constantly in your game, def worth upgrading.

[Darth Invader]

Originally posted by Grey Mauser:

Originally posted by LovelyHick:

In the souls series it would increase the parry window, honestly not sure if it works the same in elden ring

It doesn't.

It doesn't for Souls games either.

[Bricky strong]

upgrades stamina loss while blocking, thats why you upgrade.

[Artek [General]]

Upgrading shields increases 2 things:
+Damage (you can use shield to battle enemies weak to Strike, bonus points if shield comes with Bash skill) ;
+Stability, a stat that reduces how much stamina is consumed on a block.

Although I noticed in ER that stability just barely climbs up, like 1 point for every 2 upgrades, so... I mean 10 extra stability in the end is a lot, but you can skip on upgrading it until you just have nothing else to upgrade.

[Shift]

The most important thing is guard boost. It means you'll waste less stamina in blocking and with a good build, that may be the difference keeping you from breaking stance and dying.

[Umbral Priestess]

Raises guard boost, however, in most cases it's never worth it to waste a ancient stone to +10/25 it, unless you have nothing else to use them on.

[›Kolanaki]

Only if you wanna use them to deal damage. 🤷🏻‍♂️

And I don't mean with an ash of war; I mean using it as a weapon itself (which is totally possible but not very effective lol)

Some also get increase Guard Counter boosts if upgraded.

[Dusk of Oolacile]

Stability. You can block better, losing less stamina, getting guard broken less easily. Upgrading your shield should be top priority. Shield damage isn't a thing, no one but challenge runners use them as a weapon. It's a remnant from the old DeS/DS1 era.