First added during the System Override event, the Evo Shield is an armor item that encourages combat and makes battles much more interesting. Respawn has announced that in Season 6: Boosted, the Evo Shield will become the new standard. But what exactly is the Evo Shield?
Here's an overview of how the shield works and tips and tricks to get the most out of it.
What is the Evo Shield?
Unlike the Legendary Golden Shield, which is static, the Evo Shield levels up as you play through a match. Each level is reached by hitting a damage threshold for how much the player has dealt. You automatically start with a level 0 shield that only takes 50 damage to scale.
Note: This does not include damage dealt to downed enemies, and you will need to use Shield Cells or Batteries when leveling up the Shield, as new levels deplete.
| Colour | Health added | Damage required for evo | |
| 0 level | N / A | 0 | 50 |
| 1 level | White | 25 | 125 |
| 2 level | Blue | 50 | 250 |
| 3 level | Violet | 75 | 500 |
| 4 level | red | 100 | N / A |
The final level, the 100 Shield, is red and is labeled the “fully evolved” shield. This is the strongest shield currently in the game. Having this shield gives you a leg up on the competition, especially late in the game.
Starting out with only a level 0 or level 1 shield can be difficult, but at level 2 you start to have more leverage. This armor change can be jarring, but there are plenty of ways to strategize to get through the risky part of wearing your Evo Shield, even if you're not a high-level player.
Finding Pre-Evolved Evo Shields
Starting in Season 6, pre-evolved shields are now part of the loot you can find. You can naturally find Tier 1, 2, and 3 Evo Shields the same way you can find other items. The Tier 4 Evo Shield can only be achieved by either Evolving it a Tier 3 yourself or looting it from another player's Mortal Box.
It is currently unclear if the level 4 shield will be able to be crafted through the crafting system at any time.
Best Legends for Evo Shield
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is the perfect Legend to pair with a novice Evo Shield user. He has the Fortified perk, which means he takes 15% less damage, and he has his own additional shields: both his dome shield and his gun shield, and any damage from his ultimate bombardment of capacity, will also increase the Evo shield.
Caustic
Caustic is also a great choice, both due to being the other fortnite legend and the fact that he can weaken enemies with his traps. If you're early in a game and find yourself in close combat with another player, gassing them can quickly increase your damage output and allow you to easily hit a target. This allows you to easily upgrade your level 0 shield.
safety rope
Lifeline is a great legend to pair with the Evo Shield, because when you start, if you get hit, Lifeline can self-heal with her drone. You'll use fewer shield cells when your Evo Shield is small, giving you more leeway to get back into the fight and level up or find a better shield if things go wrong. You can also help your teammates in the same way.
Rampart
The Legends roster has gotten a bit wilder with the addition of maverick modder Rampart. She's perfect to use with the Evo Shield because she can load more bullets into an LMG's magazine, set up walls with her tactics, and her ultimate can melt through the competition. Rampart is perfect for the Evo as it is designed to maximize damage from a safe distance.
Best Strategies for Leveling the Evo Shield
Tireur d'izard
One of the best ways to improve your shield is from a distance. Try to get a sniper rifle and a good scope early. Inflicting significant damage from a distance will allow you to gain in risk of death. Adding a skull jumper to a longbow is highly recommended, if that's the weapon of choice. If you can get your hands on a Kraber, leveling up will be a breeze.
- Sentinelle
- Charge Rifle
- Triple take
- Longbow D.M.R.
- Kraber .50-cal sniper (legacy level)
High rate of fire
While not as safe as shooting from a distance, getting a high fire rate weapon like the M600 Spitfire or the new Volt SMG will get you into the action sooner and faster. Leveling your level 0 shield is particularly useful. You need to be more careful with incoming damage, especially with close range SMGs, but you should level up with a lot of ease.
- M600 Spitfire
- LMG Devotion
- Prowler (with Selectfire)
- It was SMG
- R-99 (legacy level)
Overall, the now standard Evo Shield encourages damage dealing and getting in on the action. It shows that active play is rewarded, and the more you fight, the more you can handle.
As of August 2020, the Evo Shield has replaced all regular body armor except for the Gold Body Shield in all game modes.
