Mount&Blade/Shields

The bigger a shield is the slower it is to respond to blocking, however the better the blocking it provides. A kite or tower shield will even protect the legs, which a round shield cannot (even if it visually appears to). Note that the shield's hitbox is not the same as its protective range: if you shoot at the head of a foe with a raised shield the projectile will hit his shield even if you are actually aiming at his helmet visible just above it.

Shield hit points are fully restored after each battle. The shield's resistance value is subtracted from each blow that is blocked before it is applied to the shield's hit points. Putting points in the Shield skill will also reduce the damage your shield receives and improve the shield speed and coverage. As with other items, shields are available in varying qualities; Cracked and Battered shields provide less protection but are cheaper, while Thick and Reinforced shields offer more protection but cost much more.

These tables are raw data extracted from  using the M&B Item Editor. In practise, merchants will normally charge more for shields they sell and pay less for those they buy. Putting points in Trade will bring these amounts closer to the item's true value.