Questions about Shield and Shield feats

[dreadfury]

I'm making an abjuration wizard for PFS and I was wondering if you can apply shield feats to the Shield Spell. the way shield focus reads it seems like you are allowed to add the bonus AC to the spell. If I can't its not that big of a deal but i thought it would be interesting to rock out a defensive wizard being able to maximize his shield spell.

[Black Powder Chocobo]

Technically no; shield provides a shield bonus to AC, but you do not actuall wield the shield. If that was the case, then you'd need shield proficiency to use the thing (making it far less desirable for wizards and sorcerors to say the least!).

Could be an interesting idea; choose your level 1 feat as Shield Proficiency, make the shield your arcane bond (since shields can be enchanted as weapons), and have fun with that, hoping for a mithril shield early in your career to reduce/negate the arcane spell failure penalty.

Also look into the skirnir magus archetype for a caster that uses shields.

[dreadfury]

Prerequisites: Shield Proficiency, base attack bonus +1.

Benefit: Increase the AC bonus granted by any shield you are using by 1.

it just seems like the language used here indicates that it could apply to shield. maybe I'm just being silly

[Morgen]

You'd have to burn a feat for Shield Proficiency and you'd be tying up your resources into buffing up your AC which traditionally isn't a very useful thing to do as a arcane spell caster.

[CRobledo]

I agree with BPC and the shield feats would not apply to the shield spell.

Most "defensive" casters I have seen do it through other spells (mirror image, blur, displacement, blink, resist energy) rather than raw AC numbers because over a few levels it's impossible for casters to keep up with monster's BABs and STR scores.

[dreadfury]

i was more looking at later on shield feats but im scrapping the idea. ill just focus on counter spells