Do characters automatically get the number off shields shown on the card?

There aren't any shields shown on the cards. No character can have more than 3 shields (upgrade cards that give extras not included). I think the number you may be looking at is the characters health points (top right corner) which represents the amount of damage they can take before being defeated.

6 hours ago, Orjo Creld said:

Do characters automatically get the number off shields shown on the card?

At the start of the game the player who doesn't play their battlefield get to allocate 2 shields as they wish.

Otherwise, you have to roll dice to gain shields.