Greater Ward
School	Restoration
Skill Level	Adept (50)
Magicka Cost	86
Effect	Increases armor rating by 80 points and negates up to 80 points of spell damage or effects.
Spell Tome	Purchase
Tome ID	000A2722
Spell ID	000211F0

Greater Ward is an Adept-level spell of the Restoration school that is found in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. It is used as a magic shield for blocking spells and reducing physical damage by increasing armor class. The shield does not block physical attacks such as arrows or melee weapons; only spells and other magical attacks are absorbed. Enemy spell-casters frequently use this spell if their opponent also casts magic. Of the three Ward spells, Greater Ward ranks first, with Lesser Ward, and Steadfast Ward ranking below it.

UsefulnessEdit

Mage builds employ wards best, especially if they do not have high skill levels or perks invested in armor-based skills, such as Light Armor or Heavy Armor. Additionally, Wards may also be effective against Necromancers and other mages, who frequently cast spells. Wards can dispel magic damage inflicted by Soul Gem Traps found in Skyrim.

Summoning Atronachs or undead may make better "shields" than Wards for an armor-less mage. Employing this option also frees up a hand for double casting Destruction spells. 

It could easily be argued that this ward, as well as the others, is a very specialized type of defensive spell with limited applications.  The majority of attacks that just about any player will face in the game will be physical rather than magical, and while the greater ward will add 80 points to the player's armor rating when cast, archers and nearby melee attackers can quickly negate those 80 points because the ward does not literally block arrows or the weapons of melee attackers.  It's all very well for a skilled player to be so equipped that he or she can project and maintain a ward at no cost more or less indefinitely, but this simply isn't necessary very often, nor is it the only way to deal with a spell-casting enemy mage.  An alternative method would be for the player to use a shield enchanted with Resist Magic coupled with the Elemental Protection perk, which decreases incoming fire, frost, and shock damage by 50%.  The shield will provide the player with protection from magical as well as physical attacks simultaneously while utilizing just one piece of equipment, leaving the other hand free to use a weapon or a spell.  Admittedly, it is fun and challenging for a player to test his or her skills against an enemy mage by using only magical defensive and offensive abilities, but frankly such straightforward, one on one encounters are fairly rare in the game.  It is much more common for a player to be outnumbered by a diverse group of antagonists like the Forsworn, for example, and such groups frequently have semi-skilled spellcasters along with archers and melee attackers.  In these situations, even a continuous ward will only provide protection from enemy spellcasters, while the enchanted shield/block perk mentioned earlier will provide protection from all attackers.  

Spell tomeEdit

AttributesEdit

• Weight: 1
• Value: 341
• See Spell Tome for a complete table of spell tomes, their descriptions, and their values.

AcquisitionEdit

• Purchase from Collette Marence at the College of Winterhold.

ExploitsEdit

• To maintain the spell indefinitely, assign it to one hand. Then, in the other hand, assign a one-shot projectile Destruction spell, such as Incinerate, Ice Spike, or Firebolt. Fully charge the ward. Once it has, charge up and fire the selected Destruction spell. Almost immediately after doing so, sheathe the spell while keeping the ward's respective button held down. The result should be that the Dragonborn is merely standing there, empty-handed, with a ward projected before themselves and no magicka lost. While this is active, you cannot sprint, attack, or jump without deactivating it. This trick is very useful against dragons, since the ward blocks dragonbreath and apparently, also dragon shouts like the Drain Vitality shout that the legendary dragons are so fond of using.

AppearancesEdit

• The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (First appearance)