Aegis

Aegis:
Protected from one enemy spell or effect (but not from battle damage).

Aegis is a battle skill. Its effect can be applied to units and players. It was first introduced in The Empty Throne, and appears on cards of every faction.

Find more cards with Aegis in its category page.

Details

Aegis appears as a blue aura around units and player avatars while active. Units with the skill gain this aura when played. Otherwise, the aura appears on units or players as they gain Aegis from effects, or as a weapon with Aegis is played on them.

An active Aegis protects the unit or player from the first enemy spell or effect that would affect them. This stops the effect from happening; any spells stopped this way are effectively negated (although additional effects not targeting an enemy with Aegis may still occur - see Spells with Multiple Effects below) and go to their owner's void. Aegis protects from both effects that target the unit or player directly (such as Torch), and ones that don't target directly (like Harsh Rule).

Aegis also protects attachments on units and players with an active aura. For example, trying to use Ruin to destroy an attachment will pop unit or player's Aegis instead.

Aegis does not protect from your own spells or effects, or from neutral, unowned game effects, such as the damage from NightNight:
When you start a turn at Night, draw an additional card and take 1 damage.

Nightfall:
The first Nightfall card played in a turn makes it Night and extends it by a turn for each player.. Aegis will not protect units from dying to DeadlyDeadly:
Kills any unit it damages. damage, or from attacks by units with KillerKiller:
May be exhausted one time to attack any enemy unit..

After Aegis protects from a spell or effect, the aura is removed (often referred to as "popped"), and the keyword will appear grayed out while inactive. If a unit or weapon with the Aegis keyword leaves play and is later returned, Aegis will be reactivated for an additional use.

Aegis only protects units in the play zone. Units with the Aegis keyword are not protected in the deck, hand, void, or market (however, they can be protected by player Aegis).

Spells with Multiple Effects

Aegis will completely protect a unit or player from one spell, even if it has multiple effects. For example, Shen-Ra Speaks, when played with its Decimate ability, will silenceSilence:
Remove all text from a card and its attachments. and kill all units, but a unit with Aegis will not be silenced or killed. Similarly, Treachery would pop a player's face Aegis and they will not take damage or discard a card.

Some spells have a two effects, with the second being dependent on the first in some way. These are written as "A, then B"; examples include Eye for an Eye and Cast into Shadow. If the first of these effects is blocked by Aegis, the second will not occur.

For spells with two effects listed separately, such as Ice Bolt or Conflagrate, blocking the first effect with Aegis will not prevent the other effects.

Face Aegis

Aegis can be given to a player through cards such as Eilyn's Favor. Aegis on players is commonly referred to as "face Aegis".

Like it does for units, Aegis protects the player from a spell or effect that affects them directly. It protects any relics or relic weapons attached to the player.

Face Aegis also protects from effects on cards in the player's hand, deck, or void. This can lead to some surprising results for people not familiar with these interactions. For example:

• If you gain a face Aegis after being cursed by Azindel's Gift, the Aegis will be popped the next time you would be forced to discard (preventing the effect that turn).
• Face Aegis will not protect from Firebombs generated by enemy effects like Light the Fuse. Although the card is detrimental, the Firebomb was added to your deck and is owned by you. When you are forced to play it with DestinyDestiny:
  Automatically play when drawn, then draw another card., it is not an enemy effect.
• If one of your units is Equivocated, your face Aegis doesn't stop it from being put back into your hand, but it does stop the card from being transformed once it's there.

Face Aegis will block effects that make you sacrifice units, such as Imprison, or deal damage to yourself, such as Yeti Taunt Patrol.

Face Aegis does not block "positive" enemy effects which make you draw or play cards. Some examples are Cursed Prophet Deleph, Refracted Sentinel, Unraveling Fanatic, and Ice Bolt

Notes

Aegis does not stop and is not broken by "static" effects, such as Sandstorm Titan's "Can't Fly" ability or Groundbreaker's "The enemy player can't gain health" ability.

Vara, Vengeance-Seeker's "Nothing can have an Aegis" ability removes all Aegis auras when she is played. They are not restored if she leaves play or is silencedSilence:
Remove all text from a card and its attachments..

Related Cards