The basics of boosters:
>each booster increases the value of your shields by a % depending on their quality
>Boosters can stack their increases, but they only modify the base value provided by the shield generator so multiple boosters do not increase shielding exponentially. Two boosters providing 10% increases are exactly equal to one booster providing 20%
>All stock boosters use the same power per % increase in shield strength, so there is no functional benefit in using multiple weak boosters to equal a stronger one. (except when they are engineered)
The basics of shields:
>Shields generators generate their strength values based on the base hull mass of your ship,a modifier unique to each ship, and a shield value associated with the generator. This means that while ship mass falls into the calculations, it is not affected by changes to your outfitting no matter how much weight you add via armor/cargo/modules
>each step from E-A grade provides a % increase to the generators base shield value.
>Each generator has a minimum, optimal, and maximum hull mass associated with it.
>Maximum mass determines the absolute maximum size of ship that can be protected with that shield. The closer this value is to the base hull mass of your ship, the weaker the shield will be.
>Optimal mass is the maximum hull mass of a ship that will get the absolute best performance from this shield. Being heavier than this value means the shield will be weaker. Think of it as stretching the shield thinner if it has to accommodate larger ships.
>The minimum mass sets a limit on the lightest ship that can possibly use the shield. I don't know that this value ever comes into play in the game, so it appears to be largely fluff. No ship is too light to equip the largest shield it's module slots will allow.
