It's exceedingly easy to forget that you can fuse things to your shield in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, and if you have forgotten, you're missing out. Fusing things to your shield can give you some extra offensive and defensive measures or make moving around the map a significantly more fun experience.
Some items are one-time use and will need to be replaced after your shield is hit for the first time, but other items can be used right up until it, or your shield, breaks. All it really takes is some creativity and to get lucky with finding some materials.
10 Zonai Cart
Shield surfing has never been easier, and all you need is a cart. If you aren't lucky enough to pull one from a Zonai Device Dispenser (you can check which ones by hovering over it on the map), you can find one at Tarrey Town's racing track after you've completed the side quest there.
Just beware, as soon as your shield breaks, the cart will go with it. If you want to get the most possible use out of your cart-shield fusion, make sure that you fuse it with a brand-new shield (and preferably one with a raised durability).
9 Zonai Rockets
If you're struggling to get to some of those hard-to-reach sky islands, or you just don't want to make Tears of the Kingdom into Climbing Simulator 2.0, consider fusing a rocket to your shield. This is a one-time use deal and as soon as the rocket expires, you're left on your own again.
However, you can easily pick them up from the dispenser at Tarrey Town's construction/mining yard and start all over again. Just make sure you have solid ground under you or that you're ready to equip your customized paraglider asap.
8 Zonai Spring
The Spring is a great option if you're trying to get a bit of air to glide a short distance, or you want to get a jump start on your climbing. Pair it with the climbing gear, and you'll be soaring up the mountain quickly, though you can only use them once, so choose your moment carefully.
Using it in combat, however, is arguably funnier, because if your enemies hit it, they're just sent flying backwards and are left prone for a moment. Assuming you can react fast enough and run towards them, you can get a few good hits in before they can clamber back to their feet. This option has multiple uses, as compared to the one-time bounce for Link.
7 Zonai Fan
With the Zonai Fan, you can create your own knockback effect without taking or dealing any damage. Once the enemy has been blown away and is on the ground, pull out your weapon and get swinging.
With this, you can generally keep the weaker enemies off of their feet, though you may have a much more difficult time if you try to fight a Lynel or a Gleeok with this fusion.
6 Dazzlefruit/Puffshroom
Prepare to blind your enemies or take them off guard with this new fusion for your shield. As soon as an enemy smacks a shield fused with a Dazzlefruit or a Puffshroom, they will instantly be blinded or stuck in a cloud of smoke.
Of course, this effect is one-time use, but it's great if you get caught in the middle of a battle you absolutely were not prepared for, or if you're trying to get the jump on a group in melee combat. Just know that if you want to use it again in the same fight, you're going to have to duck away quickly to re-equip.
5 Muddlebud
Muddlebuds are an excellent item to fuse to arrows, but they're also a great item to fuse to your shield. Although you could, theoretically, confuse your enemies from a distance and watch them fight it out, you could also charge into battle with a Muddlebud-shield fusion and gain a few temporary friends during your fight.
Like with other fruit and flower-based fusions, this is a one-time use deal, and you'll have to refuse a Muddlebud to your shield as soon as you want to try this effect again.
4 Bomb Barrel
Bomb Barrels are commonly found at Bokoblin and Moblin camps, though if you want to fuse one to your shield, you're going to have to be careful nothing hits it while you clear the camp out. Assuming you're left with a barrel, you can easily fuse it to your shield and celebrate the benefits of dealing a huge area of effect explosion to your enemies.
Although this seems like a dubious fusion at first, you won't take any damage from an enemy hitting the barrel, so don't hesitate to take advantage of it!
3 Gemstones
Yes, you'll probably want to sell every gemstone you can get your hands on because exploring Hyrule and building your home with Hudson's Construction Company is expensive. However, you should hold off on that for a minute and instead consider equipping one of your gemstones to your shield.
Depending on what you equip, it will deal different effects - a ruby will deal fire damage, an opal will deal water, a sapphire will deal ice, and a topaz will deal lightning. When an enemy hits your shield, an area of effect blast will radiate out and deal the damage of whatever gemstone you have equipped, turning your defense into a pretty good offense.
2 Flame/Shock/Beam Emitter
Zonai Emitters are a great way to deal damage while protecting yourself. The Flame and Beam Emitters will deal a constant amount of damage, whereas you need to hit someone with your shield (or poke them with it) to deal some damage with the Shock Emitter.
Although the latter isn't the best option, it's better than nothing, especially if you're struggling to find a Flame or Beam Emitter. Though, in all fairness, Flame Emitters can be pulled fairly easily from the Great Sky Island Device Dispenser.
1 Giant Spiked Balls
Coming across a giant spiked ball is a rare treat, and they are very hard to miss, considering they're bigger than Link is. However, size doesn't stop the power of the Zonai and you can fuse it to your shield regardless. Charge into battle with your shield drawn, and you're set - in fact, you may not even have to draw your weapon once against the weaker enemies with this shield fusion.
Of course, you're going to want to make sure you're fused to a shield with good durability, otherwise you're going to lose that spike ball all too soon. If you're struggling to find one, stop by the Hyrule Field Skyview Tower and there will more than likely be one waiting for you