5.5e / 2024 · 5e / 2014 · Pathfinder 1E · D&D 3.5e
Magic Armour & Shields
Magic armour improves defence through an enchanted suit, shield or special property. The four supported editions use different item rules, enhancement scales and attunement systems, so use only the section matching the campaign.
Rules: choose the edition tab below. The legacy catalogue follows the rules panels.
Explore: Magic Item Descriptions · Armour · Special Materials · Games Master Resources
5.5e / 2024 Magic Armour
In the 2024 rules, magic armour is a magic-item category. A magic suit or shield uses the armour or shield rules for wearing and wielding it, then adds the properties in the item’s own description. A +1, +2 or +3 item adds that bonus to Armor Class while it is worn or held as required.
- Use the item’s listed rarity and attunement requirement; not every suit or shield requires attunement.
- A magic shield grants its magical AC bonus in addition to the shield’s normal AC benefit when the character is using it correctly.
- Special properties such as resistance, concealment or movement work only as the specific item states.
- Do not use Pathfinder/3.5 enhancement-equivalent pricing or the +10 effective-bonus system in 2024 play.
5e / 2014 Magic Armour
The 2014 rules likewise treat magic armour and shields as individual magic items. +1, +2 and +3 armour add the listed bonus to AC while worn; a magic shield adds its magical bonus on top of the shield’s ordinary AC benefit while held.
- Check each item’s rarity and whether it requires attunement.
- Donning the armour or wielding the shield is still required unless the item says otherwise.
- Special properties follow their own item text; dispel magic does not automatically remove every magic-item property.
- Do not apply Pathfinder/3.5 masterwork, enhancement-equivalent or gp-construction tables to 5e items.
Pathfinder 1E Magic Armour
Pathfinder 1E magic armour uses enhancement bonuses and special-ability bonus equivalents. An armour or shield enhancement bonus cannot exceed +5; the combined effective bonus used for pricing special abilities cannot exceed +10. An item with a special ability must have at least a +1 enhancement bonus.
- Magic armour and shields are masterwork items under Pathfinder 1E rules.
- Enhancement bonuses improve AC; special-ability bonus equivalents increase price but do not themselves increase AC unless the ability says so.
- Shields use their own enhancement and special-ability rules; a shield can also be enchanted separately as a weapon when the rules and cost are met.
- Special materials affect the mundane item and can combine with magical enhancement according to the individual material and item rules.
D&D 3.5e Magic Armour
D&D 3.5e uses a closely related enhancement framework, but its item lists, prices and special abilities must be read from the 3.5e rules rather than copied from Pathfinder 1E. Enhancement bonuses to armour or shields normally run from +1 to +5, while special abilities contribute bonus equivalents toward the item’s effective value.
- Magic armour and shields are masterwork items under 3.5e rules.
- A special ability normally requires at least a +1 enhancement bonus first.
- Use 3.5e item prices, caster-level requirements and special-ability descriptions when running 3.5e.
- Do not import Pathfinder-specific armour types, properties or price changes into a 3.5e campaign unless deliberately converting them.
Browse the Magic Armour & Shields Cluster
Start with the item or property closest to what you need. Each linked page keeps 5.5e/2024, 5e/2014, Pathfinder 1E and D&D 3.5e mechanics separate where those editions use different rules.
Core Cross-Edition Armour
Adamantine Breastplate · Elven Chain · Dwarven Plate · Demon Armor · Armour of Invulnerability · Armor of Etherealness · Celestial Armor · Mithral Full Plate of Speed
Defensive Properties
Fortification · Spell Resistance · Ghost Touch · Wild · Glamered · Locking · Twilight
Energy Resistance
Acid · Cold · Electricity / Lightning · Fire · Sonic / Thunder · Improved Fire Resistance · Greater Fire Resistance
Stealth, Mobility & Transformation
Shadow · Slick · Silent Moves · Fleet Armor · Fleshshifter Armor · Dragonhide Plate
Celestial, Infernal & Soul Protection
Angelic · Empyreal · Sacred · Exalted · Soulfire · Fiendskin · Demonmight Ward · Fiendish Full Plate · Devilhusk Armour
Magic Shields
Animated Shield · Arrow-Catching Shield · Arrow Deflection · Bashing Shield · Shield of Blinding · Reflecting Shield · Lion’s Shield · Winged Shield · Asura Shield · Absorbing Shield
Legacy 3.x Armour & Shield Catalogue
The tables below preserve the site’s legacy 3.x random-item tables and linked collection of armour, shields and special abilities. The collection includes D&D 3.5e, Pathfinder 1E conversions and third-party 3.x material. Use the four edition tabs on each individual item page for current campaign mechanics.
| Armor and Shields | ||||
| Minor | Medium | Major | Item | Base Price |
| 01-60 | 01-05 | – | +1 shield | 1,000 gp |
| 61-80 | 06-10 | – | +1 armor | 1,000 gp |
| 81-85 | 11-20 | – | +2 shield | 4,000 gp |
| 86-87 | 21-30 | – | +2 armor | 4,000 gp |
| – | 31-40 | 01-08 | +3 shield | 9,000 gp |
| – | 41-50 | 09-16 | +3 armor | 9,000 gp |
| – | 51-55 | 17-27 | +4 shield | 16,000 gp |
| – | 56-57 | 28-38 | +4 armor | 16,000 gp |
| – | – | 39-49 | +5 shield | 25,000 gp |
| – | – | 50-57 | +5 armor | 25,000 gp |
| – | – | – | +6 armor/shield1 | 36,000 gp |
| – | – | – | +7 armor/shield1 | 49,000 gp |
| – | – | – | +8 armor/shield1 | 64,000 gp |
| – | – | – | +9 armor/shield1 | 81,000 gp |
| – | – | – | +10 armor/shield1 | 100,000 gp |
| 88-89 | 58-60 | 58-60 | Specific armor2 | – |
| 90-91 | 61-63 | 61-63 | Specific shield3 | – |
| 92-100 | 64-100 | 64-100 | Special ability and roll again4 | – |
| 1 Armor and shields can’t actually have bonuses this high. Use these lines to determine price when special abilities are added in. |
| 2 Roll on Table: Specific Armors. |
| 3 Roll on Table: Specific Shields. |
| 4 Roll on Table: Armor Special Abilities or Table: Shield Special Abilities. |
| Random Armor Type | ||
| Light armor | ||
| d% | Armor | Armor Cost1 |
| 01 | Armored Kilt* | |
| 02 | Padded | +155 gp |
| 03 | Quilted Cloth | |
| 04 | Leather | +160 gp |
| 05 | Rosewood armor | |
| 06 | Gladiator armour | |
| 07 | Leaf armor | |
| 08 | Parade armor | |
| 09-16 | Studded leather | +175 gp |
| 17-18 | Wooden | |
| 19-32 | Chain shirt | +250 gp |
| 33-41 | Hide shirt | |
| 42 | Light hoplite armor* | |
| Medium armor | ||
| 43-44 | Armored Coat | |
| 45-46 | Hide | +165 gp |
| 47-48 | Heavy hoplite armor* | |
| 48-49 | Scale mail | +200 gp |
| 50-51 | Chainmail | +300 gp |
| 52-55 | Breastplate | +350 gp |
| 56-57 | Breastplate (agile) | |
| Heavy armor | ||
| 58 | Andabatae armor* | |
| 59-60 | Splint mail | +350 gp |
| 61-62 | Banded mail | +400 gp |
| 63-64 | Half-plate | +750 gp |
| 65 | Half-plate (agile) | |
| 66-100 | Full plate | +1,650 gp |
1 Add to enhancement bonus on Table: Armor and Shields to determine total market price.
All magic armor is masterwork armor (with an armor check penalty 1 less than normal).
| Random Shield Type | ||
| d% | Shield | Shield Cost1 |
| 01-08 | buckler | +165 gp |
| 09 | Madu, leather | |
| 10 | Madu, steel | |
| 11-15 | Shield, light wooden | +153 gp |
| 16-20 | Shield, light steel | +159 gp |
| 21-30 | Shield, heavy wooden | +157 gp |
| 31-95 | Shield, heavy steel | +170 gp |
| 96-100 | Shield, tower | +180 gp |
1 Add to enhancement bonus on Table: Armor and Shields to determine total market price. All magic shields are masterwork shields (with an armor check penalty 1 less than normal).
Caster Level for Armor and Shields; The caster level of a magic shield or magic armor with a special ability is given in the item description. For an item with only an enhancement bonus, the caster level is three times the enhancement bonus. If an item has both an enhancement bonus and a special ability, the higher of the two caster level requirements must be met.
Shields; Shield enhancement bonuses stack with armor enhancement bonuses. Shield enhancement bonuses do not act as attack or damage bonuses when the shield is used in a bash. The bashing special ability, however, does grant a +1 bonus on attack and damage rolls (see the special ability description).
A shield could be built that also acted as a magic weapon, but the cost of the enhancement bonus on attack rolls would need to be added into the cost of the shield and its enhancement bonus to AC.
As with armor, special abilities built into the shield add to the market value in the form of additions to the bonus of the shield, although they do not improve AC. A shield cannot have an effective bonus (enhancement plus special ability bonus equivalents) higher than +10. A shield with a special ability must have at least a +1 enhancement bonus.
Shield Hardness and Hit Points: Each +1 of enhancement bonus adds 2 to a shield’s hardness and +10 to its hit points.
Activation Usually a character benefits from magic armor and shields in exactly the way a character benefits from nonmagical armor and shields-by wearing them. If armor or a shield has a special ability that the user needs to activate then the user usually needs to utter the command word (a standard action).
Armor for Unusual Creatures The cost of armor for nonhumanoid creatures, as well as for creatures who are neither Small nor Medium, varies. The cost of the masterwork quality and any magical enhancement remains the same.
Magic Armor and Shield Special Ability Descriptions
Most magic armor and shields only have enhancement bonuses. Such items can also have one or more of the special abilities detailed below. Armor or a shield with a special ability must have at least a +1 enhancement bonus.
1 Add to enhancement bonus on Table: Armor and Shields to determine total market price.
2 If you roll a special ability twice, only one counts. If you roll two versions of the same special ability, use the better.
1 Add to enhancement bonus on Table: Armor and Shields to determine total market price.
2 If you roll a special ability twice, only one counts. If you roll two versions of the same special ability, use the better.
Specific Magic Armor
The following specific suits of magic armor usually are pre-constructed with exactly the qualities described here.
| Specific magic armor | ||||
| Minor | Medium | Major | Specific magic armor | Market Price |
| 01-40 | 01-2o | – | Mithral Shirt | 1,100 gp |
| 41-50 | 21-25 | – | Celestial Argentum Breastplate | 2,100 gp |
| 51-65 | 26-35 | – | Dragonhide Plate | 3,300 gp |
| 66-80 | 40-45 | – | Statuesque Armor (Cursed) | 4000 gp |
| 81-100 | 46-55 | – | Elven Chain | 4,150 gp |
| – | 56-60 | – | Rhino Hide | 5,165 gp |
| – | 61-65 | – | Razor Armor | 5,600 gp |
| – | 66-70 | 01-05 | Sticky Armor | 6000 gp |
| – | 71-75 | 09-10 | Tinted Mail | 8000 gp |
| – | 76-80 | 11-15 | Adamantine Breastplate | 10,200 gp |
| – | 81-83 | 16-20 | Grim Defender | 11,350 gp |
| – | 84-85 | 21-25 | Fleshshifter Armor | 13,160 gp |
| – | 86-88 | 26-30 | Armor of the Dread Emperor | 14,650 gp |
| – | 89-90 | 31-35 | Dwarven Plate | 16,500 gp |
| – | 91-97 | 36-40 | Blade Resistant Armor | 18,000 gp |
| – | 98-100 | 41-45 | Banded Mail of Luck | 18,900 gp |
| – | – | 46-50 | Rusty Armor | 20,000 gp |
| – | – | 51-55 | Vassal Armor | 20,250 gp |
| 56-60 | Fiendish Full Plate | 20,650 gp | ||
| – | – | 61-65 | Celestial Armor | 22,400 gp |
| – | – | 66-70 | Plate Armor of the Deep | 24,650 gp |
| – | – | 71-75 | Fleet Armor | 25,000 gp |
| – | – | 76-80 | Breastplate of Command | 25,400 gp |
| – | – | 81-85 | Mithral Full Plate of Speed | 26,500 gp |
| – | – | 86-90 | Devilhusk Armor | 33,165 gp |
| – | – | 91-95 | Death Armor | 40,000 gp |
| – | – | 96-100 | Demon Armor | 52,260 gp |
Specific Shields
The following specific shields usually are preconstructed with exactly the qualities described here.
| Specific Shields | ||||
| Minor | Medium | Major | Specific Shield | Market Price |
| 01-30 | 01-20 | – | Darkwood Buckler | 205 gp |
| 31-50 | 21-30 | – | Darkwood Shield | 257 gp |
| 51-80 | 31-45 | – | Shield of Battle (Cursed) | 1,000 gp |
| 81-90 | 46-60 | – | Mithral Heavy Shield | 1,020 gp |
| 91-92 | 61-70 | 01-05 | Shield of Disguise | 1500 gp |
| 93-95 | 71-75 | 06-10 | Slippery Shield | 1500 gp |
| 96-100 | 76-85 | 11-20 | Caster’s Shield | 3,153 gp |
| – | 86-90 | 21-40 | Spined Shield | 5,580 gp |
| – | 91-95 | 41-60 | Lion’s Shield | 9,170 gp |
| – | 96-99 | 61-80 | Winged Shield | 17,257 gp |
| – | 100 | 81-90 | Asura Shield | 27,180 gp |
| – | – | 91-100 | Absorbing Shield | 50,170 gp |
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