Spirit Ward

Spirit Ward is an elite Unique Shield with an item level of 76 and a Character Level requirement of 68. It's good boost to resistances and ability to cast Fade make Spirit Ward pretty useful against spellcasters.

Notes

Shields are incredibly useful items in Diablo II. They work to block all physical and many types of elemental attacks, completely negating those attacks when successfully blocked. Shields are also an excellent source of resistance, when socketed with gems or various runes.

Unique shields have the most beautiful graphics of any items in the game. Every one of them has a customized unique appearance, and all are great. The larger canvas of a shield appears to give the Blizzard artists more room to work, and with that comes more inspiration.

• In 1.10 of the Expansion the odds of gambling a Unique is 1 in 2000.
• Elite Uniques are found only in the Diablo II Expansion, not in Diablo II Classic.

Blocking Basics

Main article: Blocking

Blocking % in Classic: Characters block at the % listed on the shield (when equipped) + any other bonuses. Total blocking is capped at 75%. A character can get more than this with a good shield + Twitchthroe, or a Paladin can use his Holy Shield skill, but no matter how high the display is, 75% is all that can be blocked. This is while standing still, running, walking, fighting, casting spells, etc.

Blocking % in the Expansion: The way blocking works is changed in the expansion. The new formula for blocking is:

Total Blocking % = [Blocking x (Dexterity – 15)] / (Character Level x 2)

This formula basically means that if you have less than half of your stat points into Dexterity, you will have a lower block rating than your shield displays, but if more than half of your stat points are in Dex, then you will have a higher blocking %. Blocking is capped at 5% minimum and 75% maximum and displays if you hover on your Defense in the Character window. Sorcs and Necros who do not devote considerable resources to raising their dexterity will find their blocking at a very low level above Clvl 50, so should pick shields based on their magical bonuses, not for the blocking percent.

• Blocking is reduced to 33% of this value when running, but uses regular values when walking, standing still, or melee attacking.

Key

• Item Level: Chests and monsters must be at least this level to drop the item. Ilvl is used in gambling, sales and other calculations as well.
• Clvl Req: Your character must be this level or higher to equip the item. No Uniques had Clvl requirements prior to v1.07 D2.
• Listed Blocking: All shields vary in blocking percent by character. The Paladin's is always 5% higher than an Amazon/Assassin/Barbarian, and 10% higher than a Druid/Sorceress/Necromancer.
• Weight: All shields are light, medium, or heavy. Light shields have no negative effects, medium have a -5% speed and -5% stamina regen rate, and heavy have -10% speed and -10% stamina regen.
• Speed: A penalty governed by weight; 0 is no penalty, 5 is slightly slower running and stamina regen (but rounds to 0 anyway) and 10 is a bigger running speed and stamina regen penalty. % Faster Block Rate can lower this number to below zero.
• Smite Damage: Only Paladins have the Smite skill, so only they see this damage. It's only of importance to other characters when considering a trade.

v1.10+ Stats

Image	Name	Properties	Special Properties	Shield Stats
	Spirit Ward Ward	153-170 Defense 354.2-478.8 Total Defense 333 Durability 185 Str Required Item Level: 76 Clvl req: 68	+130-180% Enhanced Defense +6-11 Cold Absorb All Resistances +30-40 20-30% Increased Chance of Blocking 25% Faster Block Rate 5% Chance to cast level 8 Fade when struck	Listed Blocking: Pal: 74-84% Am/As/B: 69-79% D/S/N: 64-74% Weight: Medium Speed: -20 11-35 Smite Damage