Lightning Shield

The Lightning Shield, otherwise known as the Magnetic Shield, is a power-up first introduced in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and a variant of the standard Shield. In addition to serving as a one-shot barrier against damage and life loss, the Lightning Shield attracts rings towards the player if they get close enough. It is often considered a particularly useful power-up because of this feature.

While all variants of the shield drag rings in, minor details differ from game to game. In Sonic 3 & Knuckles, the shield would be lost if the player took it underwater; and when playing as Sonic, holding a Lightning Shield exchanged the Insta-shield move with a sparking double-jump, enabling the hedgehog to leap much higher and potentially access otherwise difficult platforms. Neither of these features are in effect in any other game where the shield appears: namely Sonic R, Sonic Adventure, Sonic Adventure 2, Sonic Advances 1, 2 & 3, and Sonic Rush.

Sonic Unleashed did not need the shield, as using the Sonic Boost gave Sonic rings around him as he ran by them as the Lightning Shield would.

Other variants of the basic shield include the Fire Shield, Water Shield, and Gold Shield.

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  S&K Monitor

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  Active shield

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  Adventure 2 monitor