Steel Shade

Steel Shade, an elite Armet, occupies a niche position as a budget mercenary helmet in Diablo 2 Resurrected. While overshadowed by superior options, it provides basic sustain for undergeared characters.

Limited Applications

The helm offers +100-130% Enhanced Defense, Replenish Life +10-18, 4-8% Mana Leech, and +5-11 Fire Absorb. The mana leech can benefit Act 2 mercenaries using mana-dependent runewords, while fire absorb provides minor protection in specific areas. However, the lack of life leech, attack speed, or significant defensive stats severely limits its viability.

Why It Falls Short

Vampire Gaze provides superior damage reduction and dual leech. Andariel's Visage delivers attack speed, skills, and life leech. Crown of Ages offers unmatched damage reduction with skill bonuses. Steel Shade simply cannot compete with these alternatives in any meaningful way. Even budget options like Tal Rasha's Horadric Crest or basic Guillaume's Face provide more useful modifiers.

Verdict

Steel Shade typically has minimal trade value, often charsi food outside of very early ladder. If you need a mercenary helm, save your resources for Vampire Gaze at minimum. The helm's only redeeming quality is its fire absorb in specific farming scenarios, but this niche use doesn't justify keeping it over proven alternatives.