Aegislash #681: The Royal Blade That Shifts Forme Mid-Battle

A sword, a shield, two forms. Aegislash (Exagide in French) is the only Pokémon able to switch between pure defense and pure offense in the middle of a battle. The Pokédex says it has brought joy to generations of kings — and caused the downfall of at least one of them.

Contents

• Who is Aegislash?
• Shield Forme and Blade Forme: the heart of the character
• Steel and Ghost type: a rare defensive profile
• Evolution: a Dusk Stone, not a level
• Excalibur, aegis and the Mega question
• Aegislash fact sheet
• Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Aegislash?

Listed as No. 681 in the National Pokédex, Aegislash is the "Royal Sword Pokémon" of Generation VI, the generation of Pokémon X and Pokémon Y. It stands 1.7 meters tall and weighs 53 kilograms: the little starting blade has become a human-sized golden sword.

Just above the guard, a purple eye with a slit pupil sits on the blade, ringed with black markings. Two bands of fabric, black then light purple, emerge from the hilt and serve as its arms; one of them always holds a shield adorned with three rings.

Its legend is that of the great European swords. It is said that Aegislash can sense the qualities of a king in humans, and that whoever wins its favor is sure to ascend the throne.

The flip side is chilling. Pokémon Shield shows it controlling people and Pokémon to build a country that matches its ideals, and tells of a king who once ruled at its side: having his life energy drained brought about his downfall and that of his kingdom.

Shield Forme and Blade Forme: the heart of the character

Aegislash has two forms, and that is its whole signature: the Shield Forme, with its shield held in front of the blade and its arms crossed behind, and the Blade Forme, with the shield on its left arm and the blade exposed. Outside of battle, it is always in Shield Forme.

The switch is handled by its exclusive ability, Stance Change. As soon as it uses a damaging move, it takes on its Blade Forme. And there is only one way for it to return to Shield Forme mid-battle: by using King’s Shield.

This is the trap many players discover the hard way: once it goes on the attack, it stays in Blade Forme. It also returns to Shield Forme when it is switched out, but as long as it keeps attacking, it no longer protects itself.

What changes? Its numbers, exactly reversed. In Shield Forme, it has 140 Defense and 140 Special Defense for only 50 Attack and 50 Special Attack; in Blade Forme, the four values swap. Its HP and Speed stay at 60, and its total at 500 points.

King’s Shield is its signature move : no other Pokémon can learn it, and it gets it right at the moment it evolves. This Steel-type move blocks attacks and lowers the Attack of any Pokémon that touches it with a contact move.

🎁 Got a Ghost-type fan to delight? The blade of Kalos's kings is waiting for you in our Pokémon gift ideas.

Steel and Ghost type: a rare defensive profile

Aegislash shares with Honedge to Doublade the type Steel and Ghost, a combination never seen before them and carried by only one other Pokémon since: Gholdengo, in Generation IX.

The result is impressive. Three types do absolutely no damage to it — Normal, Fighting and Poison — Bug is cut to a quarter, and eight other types are halved: Grass, Ice, Flying, Psychic, Rock, Dragon, Steel and Fairy. That's twelve types out of eighteen held in check.

Only four get through, dealing double damage: Fire, Ground, Ghost and Dark. Water and Electric hit it for normal damage.

In Shield Forme, its 140 Special Defense is the highest of any Ghost-type Pokémon. Pokémon Sword explains it in its own way: between its steel body and its psychic barrier, it weakens all kinds of attacks.

Evolution: a Dusk Stone, not a level

Aegislash evolves from Doublade, and this is where many people get it wrong: this step doesn't depend on level. Doublade has to be exposed to a Dusk Stone, that strange stone the games describe as dark "as a moonless night."

Earlier in the line, Honedge evolves into Doublade at level 35, plain and simple. So the whole chain comes down to one level-up and one item: no trade, no friendship, no time-of-day or location condition.

The leap is spectacular: from 0.8 meters and 4.5 kilograms, it grows to 1.7 meters and 53 kilograms, and its stat total climbs from 448 to 500. Amusingly, Doublade's base Defense (150) remains higher than that of Shield Forme (140).

Excalibur, aegis and the Mega question

Its French name, Exagide, is a masterful blend: Excalibur, the legendary Arthurian sword, the Agiads, a dynasty of Spartan kings, and the aegis, Athena's divine shield. The German name, Durengard, draws on Durendal, the sword of the knight Roland.

A very rare occurrence in the series: Aegislash was nerfed by its own creators. Both of its formes used to show 150 where they now show 140, and its total of 520 was cut to 500 starting with the eighth generation. It was the first Pokémon in the series to have its base stat total lowered.

The question that keeps coming up: does Aegislash have a Mega Evolution ? No. Yet it is very much present in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, which is set precisely in Lumiose City, at the heart of Kalos, with new Pokédex entries for both of its formes — but no Mega Stone bearing its name.

The design of the entire line is by Hitoshi Ariga. As a Shiny, Aegislash trades its gold for a black body with a red edge: a look that hasn't gone unnoticed by fans of figures to display and Pokémon plushies.

Aegislash fact sheet

Frequently Asked Questions

• How does Aegislash change forms?
  Through its exclusive ability, Stance Change. It always starts a battle in Shield Forme and switches to Blade Forme as soon as it uses a damaging move. To return to Shield Forme, it has to use King’s Shield or be switched out. Outside of battle, it is always in Shield Forme.
• What is the difference between Shield Forme and Blade Forme?
  Four stats are simply swapped. In Shield Forme, Aegislash has 140 Defense and 140 Special Defense, with 50 Attack and 50 Special Attack. In Blade Forme, it's the reverse: 140 Attack and Special Attack, and 50 in both defenses. Its HP and Speed stay at 60, and its total remains 500 either way.
• How do you get Aegislash from Doublade?
  By using a Dusk Stone on Doublade. This step doesn't depend on any level, trade or time-of-day condition. Earlier in the line, Honedge evolves into Doublade at level 35 simply by leveling up.
• What is King’s Shield?
  It is Aegislash's signature move, the only one that lets it return to Shield Forme during a battle. No other Pokémon can learn it, and Aegislash knows it as soon as it evolves. A Steel-type move, it blocks attacks and lowers the Attack of any Pokémon that makes contact with it.
• What are Aegislash's weaknesses?
  As a Steel and Ghost type, it takes double damage from Fire, Ground, Ghost and Dark attacks. On the other hand, it is completely immune to Normal, Fighting and Poison, Bug deals only a quarter of the damage, and it takes half damage from Grass, Ice, Flying, Psychic, Rock, Dragon, Steel and Fairy.
• Does Aegislash have a Mega Evolution?
  No. Neither Aegislash, Doublade nor Honedge has a Mega Evolution, a regional form or a Gigantamax form. Aegislash does appear in Pokémon Legends: Z-A, the game built around Mega Evolution in Lumiose City, but no Mega Stone is associated with it, either in the base game or in its expansion. Its two battle formes are not Mega Evolutions: they come from its ability.

In short

Sword when it strikes, shield when it takes a hit, Aegislash remains one of the cleverest Pokémon to wield in the entire Pokédex. A single Dusk Stone is all it takes to claim the blade of Kalos's kings.