The Rising of the Shield Hero

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.
Best offense is a legendary defense.

Naofumi Iwatani was an easygoing Japanese college student until he read a unique book and got summoned to another world. He is summoned with three other young men from alternate Japans to become the Cardinal Heroes. Each one is equipped with a Legendary Weapon that comes in the form of a sword, spear, bow, and shield. Naofumi has been gifted with the Legendary Shield looked down upon by the kingdom and the other heroes. One person allies herself with him, a young woman named Malty, but then his luck turns for the worse. She then turns out to be the Princess and falsely accuses him of an act most foul. His name is tarnished and treated like a felon; he becomes incapable of trusting anyone but gains companions nonetheless. Naofumi learns how to survive in this new world while gaining allies and strength on his journey.

The Rising of the Shield Hero started as a web novel by Aneko Yusagi on Shōsetsuka ni Narō from 2012 to 2015. The light novel was illustrated by Minami Seira and began publishing on August 22, 2013, by Media Factory. The manga was published by the same company on February 5, 2014. A 25 episode anime has been produced by the studio Kinema Citrus; the first season premiered on January 9, 2019, and finished on June 26, 2019. The second season starts airing on April 6, 2022.

Tropes used in The Rising of the Shield Hero include:
  • Actor Allusion: Ren's voice actor played a sword-wielding black-haired man who plays VRMMOs.
  • Alternate Realm Boon: The four young men summoned are each given one of the Four Legendary Weapons: a sword, a spear, a bow, and a shield. These weapons grant their users different abilities while also having various forms unlocked through conditions and what materials the weaponry can absorb.
  • Alternate Universe: The Cardinal Heroes each comes from an alternate version of Japan.
  • Anti Christ: The Church portrays the Shield Hero this way, which is in fact a Malicious Slander with the intent to discredit him.
  • Aristocrats Are Evil: Let's see, where to start here...
    • While it would be easy to assume King Aultcray Melromarc XXXII and his daughter Princess Malty were Unwitting Pawns of the Church, they were both willing accomplices for selfish reasons, mostly for political power and wealth.
    • Lesser nobility was no better, using false justifications for higher taxes simply to fund the Church.
    • While Queen Mirellia is on the protagonist's side, even she is Not So Above It All. In the original Light Novel, she was rather vindictive towards Aultcray and Malty, her recommendations their punishments very harsh, suggesting having them crucified in public or worked to death via slave labor.
  • Blind Idiot Translation: Erst Shield, one of Naofumi's skills, got turned into Air Strike Shield instead of First Shield as the actual translation.
  • Break the Haughty: M A L T Y.
  • Blatant Lies: Melty's lie about how Naofumi tried to rape her where he is Level 1 with stats towards defense, and she's at a much higher level with powerful fire magic.
  • Cap: There is a level cap at 40 where a Dragon Hourglass needs to be used to break it. Another is at level 100, but unknown rituals are necessary to go beyond 100.
  • The Chosen Many: The Cardinal Heroes are the only ones who can wield the Legendary Weapons when they have been summoned. There are also the Seven Star Heroes that use the Seven Star Weapons or Vassal Weapons. The Seven Star Weapons have less power compared to the Legendary Weapons but have fewer restrictions. There are also heroes in other worlds, such as Glass' with four Legendary Weapons and 8 Vassal Weapons.
  • The Church: The Church of the Three Heroes is a sect of the Four Saints Faith that branched away to worship the Spear, Sword, and Bow Heroes. The Shield Hero is seen as the devil who will destroy the world, while the other three are divine.
  • Clingy MacGuffin: The Legendary Weapons have to be on their hero's person while they also can't wield any other weapons.
  • Combination Attack: Skills and magic can be used in combination of two or more people to create more potent attacks.
  • Corrupt Church: The Church of the Three Heroes, the national religion of Melromarc (well, former national religion now); technically an offshoot of the far more benign (but mostly forgotten) Four Saint's Faith, the church has degenerated into a politically motivated and corrupt cult intent on demonizing the Shield Hero and normalizing discrimination against Demi-Humans; and speaking of the Church:
  • De-Power: The Dragon Hourglass can be used to turn a person's level to 1. This is used as a form of punishment, such as Bitch, formerly known as Melty, to render them offensively harmless.
  • Dracolich: Ren slew a dragon, but since its corpse wasn't correctly disposed of, it resurrected as a Dracolich that spread disease to a nearby town.
  • Empathic Weapon: A hero who feels powerful negative emotions can unlock one of the Curse Series based on it. They have powerful skills, but it intensifies the emotion and brings other disadvantages.
  • Evil Weapon: The Curse Series of the Legendary Weapons grants powerful stats and moves. The problem is how they can curse the user and corrupt their soul.
  • Evolving Weapon: The Legendary Weapons level up with their hero while also being able to absorb material from monsters and other objects. The absorption method unlocks new forms that come with new stats and skills.
  • Fantastic Racism: Kingdoms like Melomarc discriminate against demi-humans and beastmen to the point they can be enslaved. One interesting note is how the previous Shield Hero treated beastmen and demi-humans like people that caused such ire in the past. It's one of the reasons for Naofumi's treatment by Melomarc.
    • Demi-human kingdoms show similar traits towards humans but revered the Shield Hero due to one of the previous ones treating them fairly.
  • The Four Gods: The Guardian Beasts of Raphtalia's and Glass' World are based on the Four Symbols from Chinese and Japanese mythology, respectively. The Raphtalia's World Guardian Beasts are:
    • The Spirit Tortoise is a large tortoise monster that can hold a country on its back. It can fire large beam of destruction and release infectious cells that can turn organisms into its familiars. Glass' World Guardian Beast is the Black Turtle.
    • Phoenix is a pair of twin flaming birds where one specializes in magic and the other in physical attack. Glass' World Guardian best is the Vermilion Bird.
    • Kirin are a pair of tiger-dragon hybrid creatures with an unknown history. Glass' World Guardian Beast is the White Tiger who specializes in wind magic.
    • The Dragon King is unknown but said to have a connection to the Dragon Emperor. Glass' World is the Azure Dragon.
  • Functional Magic: Magic is a power system found in the world that is usually an invisible matter that few people can actually see. The potency is determined by MP or mana and the caster's skill. Spells can be categorized by function but aren't limited to Attack, Support, Recovery, and Illusion. There are also classified under elements such as Earth, Fire, Wind, Water, Light, and Shadow. Magic is tiered on three levels from weakest to strongest: First/Fast, Zweite, Drifa, Sacrifice, and Liberation. There are three main types of magic:
    • Ritual Magic is the most common type where people can learn any spell, but most people stick to their affinities. It requires vocal chants, which can be customized for multiple targets.
    • Way of the Dragon Vein is a rare type of magic usually used by high-class monsters. Rather than using MP, it takes energy from the environment. This means that the surroundings determine what magic is used.
    • Cooperative and Ceremonial Magic is magic that needs many people to use. Cooperative Magic needs only a few people to cast, while Ceremonial Magic requires a large group. It is difficult to cast due to the casters needing to be in unison. Ritual and Way of the Dragon Vein magic can be used for both Cooperative Magic and Ceremonial Magic.
  • Glass's World has magic that works differently due to being more technologically advanced. Traditional magic is still accessible; however, the other forms are seen as more convenient. Some spells from other worlds can be cast but have different effects, but other spells are lost. They fall under three types:
    • Ofuda is common magic that uses single-use wooden, paper, or stone tags imbued with a spell. They are written with magic ink which determines the type and power of the tag. It only requires magic to create but not to cast where ordinary people can use it.
    • Jewel Magic is similar to Way of the Dragon Vein. Instead, it draws magic from jeweled accessories rather than the environment. The higher quality of the accessory, the greater the power and range.
    • Music Magic doesn't use MP but depends on the user's musical ability.
  • Gold-Silver-Copper Standard: 100 copper coins equal 1 silver coin. 100 silver cost the same as a gold one.
  • The Goomba: The most common and weakest enemies are Ballon. They look like angry ballons with sharp teeth and come in three different colors: orange, yellow, and red.
  • Happiness in Slavery: Enslaved people under Naofumi become quite loyal due to his treatment. One of his shields also gives passive bonuses that can help empower them if they are enslaved by him.
  • Hate Sink: Malty, who not only ruins Naofumi's life, but schemes to murder her own sister. Even when she's in court, she shows no remorse for any of her actions, and she continues to lie while under oath. It's a small wonder she was sentenced to execution. Fortunately for her, Naofumi shows her mercy...but not for her sake, but rather for her sister's sake.
  • Hero of Another Story: The other Legendary Heroes go throughout the land to fix problems that plague the areas. Though they ended up causing another issue after their initial actions that Naofumi fixes, which improves his reputation.
  • Horse of a Different Color: The kingdoms use Knight Dragons or Tyrella for transportation. They are smaller than other species of dragons and do not possess wings while resembling dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaurs.
    • Filolials are also used for transportation, especially when pulling carriages. They are giant birds that look like Chocobos from the Final Fantasy Series.
  • Ki: Life force or chi is one of the Power Systems found in the multiverse. It is internal energy found in every person. It usually takes years of training to use and understand life force, but anyone can utilize it. The energy can be infused for attack, evasion, and defense.
  • Level Grinding: Level grinding is done by killing monsters but Naofumi lacks offensive capabilities and depends on his other party members to gain experience.
  • Little Bit Beastly: Demi-humans look like humans except their animalistic tails and ears.
  • Lost in Transmission: The Spirit Turtle shrines hold the history of past Legendary Heroes and why the turtle monster was sealed than slain. Unfortunately, the writing found in them is illegible, especially critical information that Naofumi theorizes has to do with being responsible for the Waves of Calamity.
  • Matriarchy: The Melomarc Kingdom is under the rule of the Queen and her female descendants by default unless she gives it temporarily.
  • Otaku: All of the Legendary Heroes are geeks and Naofumi speculates that past heroes were ones, too.
  • Psychic Powers: Naofumi has the ESP ability to have a high affinity with animals along with immunity to poisons and sickness. Itsuki came from a world of ESPers with the ability to use ranged weapons with great precision.
  • RPG Mechanics Verse: Everyone in the world of the Rising of the Shield Hero works quite similar to an RPG. Everyone has MP, which represents their mana, are used for magic and skills. The Cardinal Heroes have SP, which is used for skills from the different forms of their weapons. There is also once a person's level is max out at 40; they can use the Dragon Hourglass to get a class up, which means better stats, skills, and magic. The heroes do not have to worry about such limitations because their weapon allows them to level up without restriction.
    • The Status Magic System or SMS found in the multiverse maintains these features. It is connected to the Dragon Hourglasses plus the Legendary and Vassal Weapons. The SMS is also linked to Guardian Beasts, legendary beasts that act as a safety feature for certain worlds as the last line of defense against the Waves of Calamity. There are also other beings connected to it called Pacifiers and Dragon Emperors. There is only one Pacifier and Dragon Emperor active in each world. Pacifiers are meant to see that Heroes of the Legendary and Vassal Weapons do their jobs. A Pacifier will enact punishments such as weakening their weapons to correct their path if they don't. Dragon Emperors are demon dragons with special knowledge that can perform a level-break ceremony or summon a Guardian Beast.
  • Slave Brand: The Slave Crests makes the person marked with them incapable of disobeying orders from their master. If they try to disobey them, they are shocked until they complete it. Slaves with Naofumi's Slave Crest become beneficial to them due to the power of one of his shields passively boosting them.
  • Shout-Out:
    • The Filolials look similar to a particular species of giant chickens that are also used as beasts of burden with intelligence from the Final Fantasy franchise.
    • The tenth episode of the anime has this quote from Itsuki " Someone needs to be taught that with great power comes great responsibility." Naofumi even questioned if he's been bitten by a spider.
  • Supernatural Martial Arts: Hengen Muso Style is a martial art that manipulates life force for combat. It was created from the desire to protect the world without relying on the Legendary Heroes.
  • Stat-O-Vision: People can check their stats and levels through an interface that can pop up on command. Heroes can use this to manage their weapons' functions.
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