Move up to half your speed to an ally and position yourself to take the brunt of what’s coming. Until the start of your next turn, you must remain adjacent to that ally to maintain this effect.
Choose one of the ally’s Defensive Ratings. All attacks against the ally that resolve against the chosen DR have their Success Band reduced by one step (Devastating becomes Strong, Strong becomes Normal).
Additionally, you may roll Hero Dice and add the total to the ally’s chosen DR for the duration.
Design note, preserved as an open playtest concern, not resolved here: this currently applies regardless of attack range or type — it protects against ranged or magical attacks the protector couldn’t plausibly intercept in the fiction. Flagged for playtesting; if it proves overpowered, restrict to melee/thrown attacks or those originating within reach.