Energy shields in Dune: Awakening provide wearers with an extra layer of defense against conventional weaponry. They absorb damage with little to no cost to the wearer, allowing them to shrug off ballistic weaponry and other projectiles. However, much like in the source material, slow blades are more than capable of defeating a shield user. It’ll take a while before players can get their first shield in Dune: Awakening, and once they do, they’ll be able to venture deeper into the more dangerous parts of the deserts of Arrakis without fear. Still, considering how differently shields here work compared to other games, you’ll want to know the little details that make Dune: Awakening’s Holtzman shields so unique.

Related

Dune Awakening – Interactive Map (Arrakis)

Our interactive map for Arrakis in Dune Awakening. All the enemy camps, shipwrecks, and merchants, found in the game.

How to Get a Personal Shield in Dune: Awakening

Players will be able to craft the Holtzman Shield Mk2 after they unlock its schematic via the Research menu, though this won’t be available until after players leave the Dune: Awakening tutorial zone. You can build one at a Fabricator using the following materials:

15 Iron Ingot

10 Particle Capacitor

10 Holtzman Actuator

Particle Capacitors and Holtzman Actuators can be found in old Imperial ruins, such as Imperial Testing Stations. Imperial Testing Station 10 in Vermillius Gap has quite a lot of these components inside it, but it is also filled with heavily-armed scavengers. Solo players will need to get crafty with how they fight here. Otherwise, bring a friend or two to take some pressure off your shoulders.

Shields can also be bought from vendors or looted from the world, though they will often be in bad condition if found randomly.

Dune: Awakening – Shield Mechanics

As the game’s tutorial presented, shields cannot be penetrated by projectile weapons or shrapnel from explosives. However, they can be bypassed by heavy melee attacks or overloaded by large volumes of fire. Additionally, they must be manually turned on or off once equipped. Stamina management is the key to success in Dune: Awakening’s melee fights. Players who run out of stamina first are often the first to go down in a fight. Force reactions from your opponent by using light and heavy attacks, and when they tire themselves out, move in for the kill. As for ranged combat, Disruptors can overload shields with their extreme rate of fire. Some weapons also fire poison darts that disperse toxic clouds on impact. The darts themselves won’t penetrate shields, but the poison will damage targets directly.

Shields will continuously regenerate until they overload completely. They will break if the damage players take outpace the shield’s regeneration rate.

Additional Mechanics

Turning a shield on while on open sand will attract sandworms.

Shields will automatically turn off when their wearers are firing weapons or throwing items.

Shield recharge rates are based on your equipped Power Pack.

Base Shields

Players can also protect their bases with shields by placing and powering a generator. When a base is shielded, it cannot be raided by other players, and it will resist damage from sandstorms. However, sandstorms in the Deep Desert will still short-circuit base shields, making them vulnerable to attack.