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Fabled Tortoise is a legendary turtle shield manufactured by Pangolin.

In Borderlands 2, it is obtained randomly from any suitable loot source but has an increased chance to drop from Blue located in Caustic Caverns.

In Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, it is obtained randomly from any suitable loot source.

Special Weapon Effects[]

Win by a hare – Increased capacity and health penalty. Movement speed is reduced when active but is increased when depleted.

Strategy[]

Usually frowned upon due to the speed reduction, the Fabled Tortoise can give some moderately solid defense if used for healthgating strategies. If combined with appropriate class mods, some characters can have a shield capacity upwards of 6 million if using Overpower levels.

A low leveled variant can be effectively used in conjunction with shield capacity reducing items such as Zer0's Sniper class mod or a self-damaging item such as the Orphan Maker to activate the movement speed increase.

Notes[]

  • A hidden cap in the capacity calculation can lower effects that increase shield capacity based on percentage.
  • The speed effects is a rough 50% multiplier, increasing speed to about 150% while depleted (capacity at 0 or below) and decreasing to about half while active (capacity at 1 or above). Jumping distances are affected.
    • In Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, the speed penalty is less significant.
  • The Fabled Tortoise can spawn with a Torgue capacitor, granting the Blast-Proof prefix and explosive damage reduction to its user. It cannot spawn with any elemental immunities.
  • Any Overpowered (greater than level 72) variant may reduce the wearer's maximum health to one if appropriate skills or Class mods aren't used in conjunction. While not directly killing the wearer, any damage penetrating the shield will bypass the health gate and activate Fight For Your Life immediately.
  • Gaige sports several skills that work with this shield. Her Myelin skill boosts capacity, and Buck Up can assist with restoring the shield in combat. With Blood Soaked Shields, any kill will fully restore capacity. With Fancy Mathematics, the health reduction from this shield means it is more likely to recharge quickly and she can easily use a healing skill or a Moxxi weapon to quickly restore her health. With Unstoppable Force, Gaige can withstand DoTs (especially if combined with Blood Soaked Shields) and gains a brief boost in her speed. Sharing is Caring would allow Deathtrap to also utilize the impressive shield capacity.
  • The speed bonus can be permanently triggered thanks to class mods that reduce the shield capacity (e.g. Raider, Titan, Legendary Titan, Sniper and Legendary Sniper). A low-level variant of the shield will minimize the health penalty and ensure the class mod's penalty will exceed the capacity.
    • This strategy will not permanently activate skills that require shields to be depleted, such as Fearless. These skills activate when the shield capacity hits 0, and will not count negative capacity.

Trivia[]

  • The flavor text references the Aesop's Fable The Tortoise and the Hare, a story of a race between a tortoise and a hare; the tortoise wins the race even though he is slower because he is able to stay on task while the hare is distracted.
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