Chak Shield

This article is about the skill. For the item, see Chak Shield (item).

Defensive Artifact. Place an electrified shield at your position that blocks projectiles and deals damage to enemies within it.

For a short time after using this skill, your weapon skills that cost initiative refund initiative. — In-game description

Chak Shield

Profession

Thief (skill list)

Specialization

Antiquary

Slot

Profession mechanic

Type

Defensive Artifact

Game link

API

76816

Gallery
Skill effect. Skritt detail.

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Chak Shield

Defensive Artifact. Place an electrified shield at your position that blocks projectiles and deals damage to enemies within it.

For a short time after using this skill, your weapon skills that cost initiative refund initiative.

 Initiative Refund: 100%

 Initiative Refund: 50%

 Damage (5x): 605 (1.5)^?

 Barrier: 394 (0.06)^?

 Barrier: 196 (0.06)^?

 Chak Shield (10s): Your weapon skills that cost initiative refund all initiative.

 Blocks Missiles

 Number of Targets: 5

 Pulses: 5

 Shield Duration: 4 seconds

 Interval: 1 second

 Radius: 240

 Combo Field: Light

— In-game description

Related traits

Deadly Arts

• Improvisation — Use stolen skills twice. Reduce the cooldown of all equipped utility skills when you steal. Cooldown effect will only trigger if all utility slots are filled and if at least one of your active utility skills is on cooldown. Does not affect inactive sequence skills.

Antiquary

• Card Swap — Gain access to Reshuffle. Remove conditions from yourself whenever you reshuffle your artifacts or use an artifact skill.
• Prolific Plunderer — Gain an additional artifact slot. Whenever you pilfer, you gain an additional, random artifact. You can use one additional artifact when you pilfer with Skritt Swipe.
• Meticulous Custodian — Your artifacts have increased effectiveness. Beneficial artifact effects last longer.
• Exhilarating Ephemera — Gain increased damage for a period of time after using an artifact.
• Enterprising Aristocrat — Gain initiative and barrier whenever you use an artifact skill. You take reduced strike and condition damage whenever you have barrier.
• Possessive Hoarder — Artifacts grant boons to allies when used. Offensive and defensive artifacts grant different boons. Barrier granted through Magpie's Defense and Enterprising Aristocrat is now also granted to allies as well.

Version history

For a detailed skill history, see here.

Patch	Changes
January 22, 2026	Reduced the base barrier per pulse from 394 to 196 in PvP only.
January 13, 2026	All artifacts now use the same weapon-type scaling when calculating damage, regardless of the weapon type equipped. Increased the radius from 180 to 240. This skill now additionally grants barrier to nearby allies each pulse. Reduced the initiative refund from 100% to 50% in WvW and PvP.
October 28, 2025	Visions of Eternity release: Chak Shield has been added to the game. In addition to its previous effects, for a short time after using this skill, your next weapon skills that cost initiative refund all initiative.
August 19, 2025	Chak Shield was available during the Visions of Eternity elite specialization Beta Event.