Bracers of Defense 5e give a +2 bonus to Armor Class while you wear no armor and hold no shield. They are a rare wondrous item that requires attunement, and the rules text is identical in substance in the 2014 and 2024 SRDs. They are worth an attunement slot for a Monk, a caster relying on Mage Armor or a Draconic Sorcerer, and for a two-handed Barbarian. Anyone who already wears armor gets nothing from them.
The 2014 card (SRD 5.1) is first, then the 2024 card (SRD 5.2.1).
Wondrous item, rare (requires attunement)
While wearing these bracers, you gain a +2 bonus to AC if you are wearing no armor and using no shield.
Wondrous Item, Rare (Requires Attunement)
While wearing these bracers, you gain a +2 bonus to Armor Class if you are wearing no armor and using no Shield.
One sentence each. The 2024 text spells out "Armor Class" and capitalizes Shield, which signals the Shield item from the equipment chapter. Nothing else moved.
The +2 applies only while both are true. Put on a chain shirt and the bonus stops. Strap a Shield to your arm and it stops too, even if you have no armor on. Take the Shield off and the bonus returns at once; the text has no delay or reset.
That makes them different from almost every other AC item in the SRD. A Cloak of Protection or Ring of Protection works over plate. The bracers work only on characters who already chose not to wear armor.
Spells and class features that set your base AC aren't armor:
The Shield spell isn't a shield. It's a +5 reaction from a spell, and it stacks with the bracers because neither text says otherwise.
Bracers don't change your base AC. They add a flat +2 to whatever formula you're using. That matters because you can only use one base AC calculation at a time; the 2024 multiclassing rules give the example of a Monk/Sorcerer who must pick either Unarmored Defense or Draconic Resilience. With bracers on, the +2 rides on whichever one is higher.
Bonuses from different magic items do add together. Bracers of Defense (+2), a Cloak of Protection (+1) and a Ring of Protection (+1) give +4 AC, at the cost of all three attunement slots.
Both SRDs say a character can't normally wear more than one pair of bracers, and that paired items work only if both halves are worn. So you can't wear Bracers of Defense and Bracers of Archery together, and one Bracer of Defense on one arm does nothing.
They need attunement: a short rest spent focused on them while touching them. There's no class requirement, so any character can attune, but only an unarmored one benefits. You can't attune to two pairs, and a second pair couldn't be worn anyway.
Against an attacker with +6 to hit:
| Your AC | Attacker needs | Hit chance |
|---|---|---|
| 16 | 10+ | 55% |
| 18 (with bracers) | 12+ | 45% |
That's about 18 percent fewer hits taken (10 points off 55). Against a monster that attacks three times a round, it's roughly one fewer hit every three rounds. The worse your AC to begin with, the less the +2 matters in percentage terms, so the bracers do the most for characters already sitting at 16 or higher.
| 2014 (SRD 5.1) | 2024 (SRD 5.2.1) | |
|---|---|---|
| Rarity / attunement | Rare, requires attunement | Rare, requires attunement |
| Bonus | +2 to AC | +2 to Armor Class |
| Requirement | No armor, no shield | No armor, no Shield |
| Value | No price in the SRD | 4,000 GP (rare) |
The item didn't change. What changed is around it:
The bracers are strong for a few builds and worthless for the rest. Here's where they land:
| Build | AC before | With bracers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monk, Dex 16, Wis 16 | 16 | 18 | Built for this item |
| Wizard with Mage Armor, Dex 16 | 16 | 18 | Needs Mage Armor up |
| Barbarian, Dex 14, Con 16, greataxe | 15 | 17 | Same AC as a shield, both hands free |
| Barbarian, Dex 14, Con 16, Shield | 17 | 17 | Bracers do nothing with the Shield |
| Fighter in plate | 18 | 18 | Wearing armor, no benefit |
Monks get the most. They can't use armor or shields without losing their own features, and their AC usually trails the front line's. +2 puts a mid-level Monk level with a fighter in plate.
Wizards and Sorcerers with Mage Armor or Draconic Resilience gain a lot, since they're the party's most fragile members. Remember that Mage Armor lasts 8 hours and has to be cast; without it, the bracers add 2 to an AC of 10 + Dexterity.
Barbarians with a greataxe or greatsword get the AC of a shield without giving up the two-handed weapon. A Barbarian who already uses a shield gains nothing.
Compare the three common AC items for one attunement slot:
| Item | Rarity | AC | Saves | Works in armor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bracers of Defense | Rare | +2 | No | No |
| Ring of Protection | Rare | +1 | +1 | Yes |
| Cloak of Protection | Uncommon | +1 | +1 | Yes |
For an unarmored character, the bracers win on AC and lose on saving throws. Casters who rely on Concentration might prefer the +1 to Constitution saves. A Monk gets proficiency in every saving throw at level 14 (Diamond Soul in 2014, Disciplined Survivor in 2024), so before then the trade is closer, and after it the bracers are the clear pick. The best answer, if you have the slots, is bracers plus a cloak.
When they're a trap: for a party member who might switch to armor later. Attuning to bracers and then putting on a breastplate wastes a slot. They also take the one bracers slot, so a Monk who wants Bracers of Archery can't have both.
Where they turn up. Rare items fit treasure hoards in the middle levels. The bracers fit naturally in a monastery, a wizard's tower, or the gear of an enemy that fights unarmored: the Mage stat block already counts Mage Armor in its AC 15 (2014 and 2024), so a Mage wearing bracers simply has 17.
What they change. Little, unless the only person who can use them is already the hardest to hit. A Monk with AC 20 or more can make low-level monsters irrelevant. If one character's AC gets far ahead, attack with saving throw effects and area spells, which ignore AC.
Pricing. The 2024 SRD values a rare item at 4,000 GP and says uncommon and rare items are usually found only in cities. The 2014 SRD has no price; any 2014 figure comes from the Dungeon Master's Guide, not the SRD. Use the magic item rarity calculator when a player asks what else that money could buy.
Edge cases you'll get asked about:
Hooks.
Who's attuned to what is easy to forget between sessions. Loreify records the game and keeps the loot list in the recap.
Yes. Bracers add +2 to your Armor Class on top of a Monk's or Barbarian's Unarmored Defense, as long as you wear no armor and use no shield. A Barbarian who uses a Shield loses the bracers' bonus.
Yes. Mage Armor isn't armor; it sets your base AC to 13 + your Dexterity modifier while you wear none. The bracers add +2 to that.
Yes, in both the 2014 and 2024 SRDs. Any class can attune to them, but only a character wearing no armor and using no shield gets the bonus.
Yes. Bonuses from different magic items add together, so bracers (+2) and a Cloak of Protection (+1) give +3 AC. Add a Ring of Protection for +4, using three attunement slots.
4,000 GP under the 2024 SRD, the standard value of a rare magic item. The 2014 SRD doesn't list magic item prices.
No. Both SRDs limit a character to one pair of bracers at a time, so you have to choose between them.
Item text: System Reference Document 5.1 (2014) and 5.2.1 (2024), Wizards of the Coast, CC-BY-4.0. Analysis, rulings and ideas are Loreify's own.
This page includes material from the System Reference Document 5.1 and 5.2.1 by Wizards of the Coast LLC, available under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Loreify is not affiliated with Wizards of the Coast.
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