Cursed Shield



The Cursed Shield is the cursed shield of unknown origin in Final Fantasy VI. The shield can transform into the Paladin Shield, the most powerful shield in the game, after winning a certain amount of battles.

The Cursed Shield is the worst shield in the game; not only does it inflict numerous status ailments on the wearer, it makes the equipped character weak to certain elements.

To obtain the shield, the player must re-recruit Locke in the World of Ruin and go to Narshe with Locke in the party, because he's the only one who can open the locked doors within the city. The shield is found inside the house right up the stairs near the weapon shop.

Attributes
The Cursed Shield gives stat penalties; -7 to Strength, Speed, Stamina, and Magic and no boosts to Defense, Evasion, Magic Defense, and Magic Evasion. It inflicts Doom, Silence, Berserk, Confusion, and Sap on the wearer. The player can equip a Ribbon on the character to prevent the status ailments, except Doom. The Lich Ring will make Doom heal the wearer, and the Minerva Bustier can negate the elemental weaknesses. Cursed Shield makes the user weak to Fire, Ice, Lightning, Poison, Earth, and Water. All characters except Umaro can equip the Cursed Shield. If a character has the Cursed Shield equipped and has won 256 battles, the shield will transform into the Paladin's Shield, the best shield in the game.

Dispelling the Curse
Players should not equip Gogo with the Cursed Shield if they want to dispel the curse, because the only characters that can dispel the shield's curse are those who can gain Magic AP in battle. Those who cannot earn AP, like Gogo and Umaro (if he could equip shields), are unable to dispel the curse.

The player is advised to equip the wearer with a Ribbon to counter nearly all the status ailments, except for the Doom status. It will also help if one of the characters in the party is also equipped with the Alarm Earring to prevent back attacks and pincer attacks, speeding up the battle.

The easiest and fastest way to dispel the curse from the shield is to fly to the Solitary Island and fight the Peepers. Since they have innate Sap and only one HP, they will usually die before or after its first turn. Players must be careful when fighting in the desert nearby, as a Black Dragon may occasionally show up.

Dispelling Conditions
There are certain conditions that must be meet for the battle to count. The player must win the battle, but they don't need to defeat the enemies. If the opponent flees, like Deathgaze, or dies from Poison or Sap status, the battle will count as won. If the equipped character is in KO, Zombie, or Petrify status when the battle is won, it will not count towards dispelling the curse. Battles won at the Dragon's Neck Coliseum do not count as an actual battle. Battles where Gau leaps or returns on the Veldt during battle do not count either.

The shield must be equipped to a character other than Gogo because he/she can't uncurse the shield. Removing the Cursed Shield from the equipped character, or changing the wearer, does not reset the counter.