Shields
Shields, or Holtzman shields, are personal equipment devices capable of deflecting incoming attacks. They require a power pack to be used, and they can be enabled or disabled at the press of a button.
When a character activates a shield, they become enveloped in a thin translucent blue shimmer of light. Most small projectiles and fast attacks, like from darts and blades, are deflected at the cost of the power pack's energy.
Shields attract sandworms at an extreme level due to its harmonic vibrations. Usage on open sands is not recommended.
Shields are temporarily disabled when firing a weapon because they would otherwise block outgoing projectiles. Shields reactivate based on their refresh time.
One method of getting past a shield is by repeatedly attacking it, thus draining the power pack's energy. When the energy is fully drained, the shield automatically deactivates and cannot be activated again until the power pack fully recharges.
Another method of getting past a shield is by slowly attacking with a blade. This can be done by holding down the attack button with a blade equipped and in-hand.
A character with an active shield can still be staggered when struck with a blade. Additionally, when constantly under attack like from a Vulcan, they move more slowly and can find it difficult to get to safety or retaliate.
Rockets fired from weapons like The Ancient Way or from Ornithopters will only partially be mitigated by shields.
Lasgun beams interact with shields in a catastrophic way, causing subatomic fusion, resulting in a nuclear explosion. As such, dart weapons were introduced as alternatives and became the standard ammunition on Arrakis. Furthermore, Lasguns were modified with an automatic shield detection override, preventing its use when aimed at a shield.