Tears Of The Kingdom: 15 Best Shield Fusion Combinations

Shields are back in Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom with a completely new Fusion mechanic, and here are some of the best fusions to try in the game.

After the forgettable implementation of Shields in Breath of the Wild, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom introduces a slew of options and a completely new Fuse Mechanic that players can use to convert their run-of-the-mill shields into something different entirely.

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The ability to experiment is at the core of Tears of the Kingdom's gameplay loop, and Shields are a core part of it. To fuse something to a Shield, stand near the material you plan to use (or drop it if it's in your inventory) and select Fuse from the abilities menu. Then, press ZL to fuse.

Updated by Hamza Haq on May 29, 2023: With new innovations and discoveries being made left and right, Tears of the Kingdom has matured a lot since the initial iteration of this article. Players have discovered new and varied ways to take full advantage of the tools Nintendo has made available to them. New entries have been added to reflect the latest greatest and the list for the strongest and most useful Shield combinations has been expanded.

Stone Slabs are often found in the Depths in conveniently placed caches of reusable materials Link can use as needed. Instead of leaving these behind to gather dust after you’re done with them, slap one on a shield for some added durability.

Stone Slab Shields are also fireproof, giving you a way to reliably tank the hits of a Fire Gleeok without having to resort to dodging. In the right circumstances, these shields can turn a hard fight in your favor.

The Spring Zonai device allows your Shield to become a jumping pad you can use to get an immediate boost in height, useful for when you need to reach something just out of reach.

However, Spring attachments are a one-time deal, use it once, and it's gone. To use a Spring Shield to get a boost, draw your Shield out by pressing ZL, then jump by pressing X, and then press A to have Link move the Shield under his feet. If done with a regular shield, this will allow you to shield surf.

Speaking of shield surfing, getting around Hyrule is made much, much easier by using your Shield as a skateboard in the places that allow it. Deserts, snowy landscapes, and gentle slopes are all perfect for shield surfing.

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You can fuse your Shield with a Sled—a Zonai device—to get some more mileage while surfing. With sufficient practice, you can surf indefinitely on the right landscape. Hylian Shield is the perfect candidate for a Sled Shield because it never breaks.

Like in Breath of the Wild, Octo-Balloons have the ability to lift anything they’re attached to, giving it a modest boost in air time. You can fuse these to your shield to get yourself a few feet of height.

The Rocket Shield does essentially the same thing but better. However, the Octo-Balloons are a more common resource and you might not want to use your precious rockets for something like this.

Rocket Shields do the same thing as Spring Shields and Octo-Balloon Shields but only in a much more… explosive way. They're easier to use as well. Just fuse any shield with a Rocket and draw it out by holding ZL.

The Rocket will activate and propel you upwards for a decent distance before the battery runs out. Using the rocket power does drain the durability of the Shield, so try to fuse this with weaker shields that are just meant to be replaced by better ones down the road.

If you need to get some air time, Wing Shields are here to help. If you fuse a Wing Zonai device with any Shield, it will form the Wing Shield. When you try to shield surf with this device, you’ll find yourself jumping far higher than natural.

Use this to climb to greater heights or gather some much-needed momentum if the slope you’re planning on shield surfing on is not ideal. Wings are one of the more common Zonai devices you’ll find, mostly in the Sky Islands.

Spike Balls are rare materials you can find around Hyrule if you look hard enough. In the overworld, they appear as large, menacing balls of spiked steel easily twice Link's height. When fused with a Shield, they get a lot smaller but no less deadly.

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A Spike Ball Shield has the unique functionality of damaging any enemy that hits it. Meaning you can effectively become a spiked hedgehog that damages enemies by getting hit. This is particularly useful for dealing with mobs of weak enemies like Keese and Mokoblins.

A Mine Cart Shield does the same thing as a Sled Shield but better. Not only can players use it as a drastically superior shield-surfing vehicle than any other type of shield, they can also use it to ride the rails in the Depths.

The Depths is also home to the vast majority of Mine Carts in Tears of the Kingdom and players can easily find plenty to play around with. Slap a cart on your weakest shield and go surfing!

The most common use for valuable ores like Ruby, Sapphire, Topaz, and Opal in Breath of the Wild was to be sold for a good chunk of cash. This is still the case in Tears of the Kingdom, but they also make for excellent fusion material. Any shield fused with a Sapphire will release a blast of freezing cold on being struck that turns enemies into ice cubes. Topaz releases a wave of electricity, Ruby does a small explosion, and Opal douses them with water.

Shields (and weapons) fused with Ruby or Sapphire also have the property of affecting the nearby temperature. Decreasing it (Sapphire) or increasing it (Ruby) if you have the shield fused with the respective stone the stone equipped. Use this to navigate extreme weather conditions without having to commit any resources.

There are four types of Emitter Zonai devices, all of which can be fused to a shield to amazing effect. The Flame Emitter Shield spits out a persistent flamethrower if you hold the Shield out by pressing ZL. The Frost Emitter Shield releases a torrent of freezing air, and the Shock Emitter converts your Shield into a Tesla coil.

Lastly, the Beam Emitter produces a thin beam of laser that deals damage to any enemy it hits. It has a much longer range than the other types of emitters. Take note that using an Emitter Shield by activating its unique effects reduces the Shield's durability even if no enemy is actively hitting you.

Firebreath and Icebreath Lizalfos often drop horns on defeat. If fused to a shield these horns do essentially the same thing as precious stones (Ruby/Sapphire), but with an additional benefit.

A Firebreath Horn Shield will cause an explosion just like a Ruby Shield, but you can also apply direct fire damage to enemies by doing the parry maneuver without waiting for enemies to attack. The same with the Icebreath Horn Shield, which will freeze enemies solid if you parry near them.

There are plenty of Bomb Barrels all around Tears of the Kingdom's vast open world, and now you can have some fun with them. If an enemy strikes a Bomb Barrel Shield, the barrel will explode, dealing massive AoE fire damage to enemies caught in the blast.

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Typically, these barrels are located in or around Mokoblin camps, meaning you can run in with nothing but a shield to your name, fuse it with a barrel, lure the entire camp of enemies to one area, tank one hit on the Shield, and watch the world burn. Oh, and also, you are completely immune to the ensuing explosion.

As showcased in the trailer, the Puffshroom Shield is made by slapping a Puffshroom on any shield. If an enemy hits your Shield while you're holding it out, the Puffshroom is activated, releasing a massive cloud of white gas that blinds enemies.

Blinded enemies can be taken down by sneaking behind them and dealing backstab attacks for massive damage. You can lure a whole horde of enemies in a Puffshroom cloud and take them out one by one quite easily.

The Cannon Zonai device is one of the best fusions for a shield. If a shield fused with a Cannon is held out in front of Link, the Cannon will undergo a small animation to show its charging up, and then it will release a massive cannon shot that deals AoE explosive damage to enemies at the point of impact.

The cannon shot will lower the Shield's durability, but it can be very useful when fighting high HP targets. You'll come across Cannons often in Zonai building hubs and puzzle-solving shrines. Instead of leaving them to gather dust, fuse them with your sturdiest Shield to always have a trump card in your back pocket.

Muddle Bud is a versatile mushroom in Tears of the Kingdom that can massively turn a fight in your favor if used right. It is one of the best arrow fusions in the game, but for clearing out groups of enemies, fusing it with a Shield can be even more effective.

Hold out your fused Muddle Bud Shield when facing an enemy and wait for it to attack. If hit, the Shield will release a small puff of pink gas that will confuse any enemy caught in its effect. Confused enemies attack anyone in sight, including other monsters. An easy way to clear a Mokoblin camp is to lure all the enemies in a group towards you, tank one attack, and watch your enemies kill each other for you. With this, you can clear entire camps without having to lift a finger.

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Hamza Haq is a firm believer in Keyboard/Mouse supremacy and will play Tekken with WASD if you let him. As a List Writer at DualShockers, Dota 2, Pokémon, and Elden Ring is his gaming trifecta, but he's never one to turn down a 3rd person action RPG if it catches his interest. When he's not bent over a keyboard, he's reading fantasy novels, discovering obscure podcasts, experimenting with home-brewed coffee concoctions, and trying to convince his dad that his career is, in fact, a real job.