Shields are used in Minecraft for defense against attacks; however, they can also be personalized with custom designs using banners. This was originally a Java Edition feature, but it finally arrived in Bedrock Edition with the release of Minecraft 1.20.

In this guide, we will be covering all you need to know to put a banner on a shield in Minecraft.

How to Craft a Banner in Minecraft

Banners can be crafted from six pieces of wool and a stick in a pattern resembling a sign.

Alternatively, you could buy a banner from a cartographer villager who is an expert or at the fourth level. This trade would be one of the 16 colored banners for three emeralds. 

In Java Edition, expert-level cartographer villagers always offer to sell 1 or 2 blank banners of a random color for 3 emeralds. Expert-level shepherd villagers have a 28.57% chance of offering the same trade. In Bedrock Edition, expert-level cartographer and shepherd villagers both offer to sell one of 16 blank banners for 3 emeralds as part of their trades.

Bleach can be used to remove the color from a banner, producing a white banner. This includes taking patterns off a white banner. (Bedrock Edition and Minecraft Education only)

How to craft a Shield in Minecraft

The crafting recipe for a shield in a crafting table is six wooden planks and an iron ingot in this pattern:

Alternatively, you can obtain a shield through trading. Journeyman-level armorer villagers have a 33.3% chance in Bedrock Edition and a 40% chance in Java Edition of selling a shield for 5 emeralds as their sixth trade.

Using a Loom to Customize Banners

A loom is used to apply patterns to banners. It also serves as a shepherd’s job site block.

The crafting recipe for a loom in a crafting table is two strings and two wooden planks in this pattern:

The three slots on the left are for the banner, dye, and a banner pattern. Banner patterns are special designs that can be acquired by crafting, finding them in chests, or trading with villagers. You don’t need a banner pattern, as you can pick from the preset patterns in the middle of the loom. 

In the loom, you can layer different colored patterns on top of each other to create a larger pattern. You can place up to six patterns on top of each other, allowing you to create letters, numbers, flags, or many other designs.

If you don’t like the patterns, they can be washed off using a cauldron filled with water. This will remove the last pattern and use one level of water. You can keep doing this to remove all of the patterns.

Applying the Banner to the Shield

With the banner and shield, all you have to do is go into the crafting grid, combine the shield and banner into it, and this will apply the banner to the shield. This is purely decorative, but it’s nice to have another piece of equipment that is customizable!