@Totoro I'm surprised at how highly you rank shields . In my eyes shields are like Darkvision; it's more notable when you Don't have them than it is when you do. After all, Barbarians, Clerics, Druids, Fighters, Paladins, Rangers, and some bards all get them. Of those that remain, Monks either multiclass or don't want them, Rogues either multiclass and get them from that, or they have an extra feat, in which case one of the only good half feats is moderately armored and they can and should get them from that.
This only leaves non-multiclassing Wizards, Sorcerers, and Warlocks who *don't* have shields and benefit from getting them from their race, along with some bards. All of which are stuck on light armor, have access to mage armor, the "shield" spell, and typically hang out on the back line. If they intend to be in the front line / need heavier armament, a dip in Cleric or Druid provides that while keeping full caster levels.
Given all of that, do you really think Shield proficiency is *that* indespensible, and a setup present which lacks it and benefits from obtaining it via a means other than multiclassing is *that* common, that it should be valued so highly? In my "recommended party" of Paladin/Warlock, Druid, Cleric/Sorc/Wizard and Rogue/Ranger for example, all of them already have it, regardless of race. In my single player game 3 of 4 have it and the 4th isn't desperate for it by any means. In my multiplayer game, 4 of 4 have it. None of those 11 require their race to provide it.
In fact I find it far more common for someone to have a shield proficiency and not use it due to using 2 weapon fighting or 2 handed fighting than for them to lack the shield proficiency they need. Far more common to have proficiencies provided by their race which double up that which they already get from their class, rendering those proficiencies useless (since in BG3 unlike 5e you don't get to sub them out for other proficiencies when duplicated) than it is for them to deeply benefit from the proficiencies their race provides them.
One other thing, you say advantage doesn't help much when you're far from the target, but the opposite is true - if you only need a 2, going from a 95% to a 99.75% isn't that impactful, it's about a 5% boost in both relative and absolute terms. If you need a 5, it's an 80% to a 96%, a 16% bonus (roughly the equivalent of a +3) in absolute terms, and a 25% bonus in relative terms. If you need an 11, that's going from a 50% chance to 75%, a 25% bonus in absolute terms (a +5, basically) but a whopping 50% in relative terms. A 15 goes from a 30% to a 51%, "only" a 21% bonus in absolute terms (a +4), but a whopping 70% increase in relative terms. The higher the value you need, the *more* advantage helps you.
