Overview

A Link to the Past

In A Link to the Past, the Fighter's Shield is a small family shield that belongs to Link's Uncle, and is received from him in the secret passageway leading into Hyrule Castle grounds. As it is the first shield obtained in the game, it is the weakest of all shields and provides very little defense. It is able to protect against arrows, spears and rocks, but little else. The shield can be eaten by enemies, and if the shield is swallowed up by a Pikit or a Like Like, another one can be purchased in the many shops throughout the Dark World.

Link can obtain an upgraded version of the Fighter's Shield known as the Red Shield by throwing it into the Mysterious Pond of the Waterfall of Wishing. Only by answering the Great Fairy's question honestly will she reward him with a better shield.^[2]

The Minish Cap

The Small Shield is sold by Pina at her stall during the Picori Festival Even though she gives Princess Zelda the choice to pick the item she wants, and even has it on display as a prize, she tries to persuade the princess to pick a different item. Zelda shortly after gives the Small Shield to Link.^[3] Shortly after receiving it, he must use it to protect Zelda from a Business Scrub north of Hyrule Town.^[4]

Like most basic shields obtained throughout The Legend of Zelda series, the Small Shield can be swallowed by Like Likes. If this happens, Link can defeat the Like Like to retrieve the Small Shield, or buy a new one at Stockwell's Shop. The Small Shield can defend Link from the most basic of attacks, such as an Red Octorok's rocks and sword strikes from other enemies. After Link completes the main quest, he can turn the Small Shield into the Mirror Shield by allowing Biggoron to eat it.^[5][6]

Other Appearances

A Link to the Past (Ishinomori)

In the A Link to the Past comic by Shotaro Ishinomori, Link's uncle is seen using the Fighter's Shield during his duel against Agahnim. However, after Link witnesses the defeat of his uncle at the hands of his wizard, he rushes to his side and obtains his uncle's sword and shield from him before passing out. Link continues to use the shield only for the first chapter, using it to defend himself from enemy attacks. However, when he reaches the Sanctuary with Princess Zelda and faces off against Agahnim, he loses his sword and shield along with it, and the young hero is never seen using the Fighter's Shield for the rest of the comic.

Ancient Stone Tablets

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In Ancient Stone Tablets, the Small Shield is obtained in the first dungeon, the Eastern Palace.

Trivia

• Screenshots from versions of the game prior to release seen in promotional material for the game show the Fighter's Shield with brown coloring, rather than blue.^{[citation needed]} This possibly explains why some official art depicts it as brown, while others depict it as blue.
• The Fighter's Shield is the first shield to have a bird-like design on it in the series, and many aspects of its design were used for the Hylian Shield.
• The Great Fairy granting Link a better shield when he answers honestly is an homage to the Aesop fable, The Honest Woodcutter. In the story, a man accidentally flings his axe into a lake and begins to weep, having lost his only means of livelihood. The god Hermes decides to take pity on the woodcutter and emerges from the lake holding a golden axe, asking the man if it is his. The man truthfully denies, and Hermes produces a silver axe asking the same. Once again, the man answers honestly saying that he had lost a wooden axe. For his display of honesty, Hermes gives him all three axes. Later, a man overhearing this story decides to fling his own axe into the lake and falsely cry about his loss. Hermes again appears offering to the man a golden axe, which he greedily claims. Disgusted by this man's avarice, Hermes gives him nothing and leaves his axe at the bottom of the lake as punishment.

Trivia

• The Small Shield in The Minish Cap has the same design as the Hero's Shield from The Wind Waker.
• The Hero of Men is depicted as wielding a Shield nearly identical in appearance to the Small Shield used by Link in The Minish Cap.

Nomenclature

Names in Other Regions
Language		Name	Meaning
	EnglishUK	Small Shield
	Japanese	ちっちゃな盾 (Chicchana Tate)	Little Shield
	FrenchEU	Petit Bouclier	Same as English.
	German	Kleiner Schild	Same as English.
	Italian	Scudo piccolo	Same as English.
	SpanishEU	Escudo pequeño	Same as English.

Gallery

• 
  The Fighter's Shield on the equipment subscreen
• 
  Link armed with the Fighter's Shield in official artwork
• 
  Link armed with the Fighter's Shield in official artwork (Game Boy Advance remake)
• 
  Link using the Fighter's Shield
• 
  Link with the Small Shield from The Minish Cap

References