Crafting & Upgrading in Spartan Shields

Shields are made and improved at a normal crafting table through a simple upgrade path.

Getting started:

1. Craft a Crude Wooden Shield - this is the base for almost every other shield. Craft a Wooden Tower Shield instead if you want to apply banners.
2. To make a stronger shield, place an undamaged shield in the crafting grid together with a better material (for example iron, diamond, or a modded metal). The shield upgrades into that material's tier.
3. Repeat the upgrade as you gather better materials, working up through stone, copper, iron, gold, diamond, netherite, and any modded tiers you have unlocked.

Because upgrades use an undamaged shield plus raw material, it is worth repairing or crafting a fresh shield before upgrading so you carry the new tier's full durability. To see exact recipes, open your recipe book or use a recipe-viewer mod such as JEI/EMI if you have one installed.