Is An Aura an Enchantment? Unraveling the Magic of Auras
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Yes, an aura is indeed a type of enchantment in the context of the card game Magic: The Gathering (MTG). However, it’s more accurate to say that an aura is a subtype of enchantment. While all auras are enchantments, not all enchantments are auras. This distinction is crucial for understanding how these card types function within the game. Auras represent a specific category of enchantments with unique mechanics and interactions that set them apart from other permanent cards in MTG.
Understanding Enchantments vs. Auras
To grasp the relationship between auras and enchantments, it’s helpful to define each concept.
What is an Enchantment?
In MTG, an enchantment is a type of permanent card that generally stays on the battlefield and has a continuous effect. These cards can range from simple static abilities to more complex triggered or activated ones. Enchantments exist independently on the battlefield and are not inherently tied to any other permanent or player, they persist on the field by themselves. They are cast like any other spell, and they remain on the battlefield until removed or destroyed. An enchantment can modify the game in many ways. For example, it might provide all of your creatures with additional power, or it could hamper your opponents’ strategies.
What Makes an Aura Unique?
Auras, unlike standard enchantments, are always attached to something else. They are dependent on another permanent or even a player to exist on the battlefield. When you cast an aura spell, you must specify a legal target—a creature, another object in the game (such as a land), or a player. Auras typically “enchant” the target, granting it specific abilities, modifying its stats, or imposing various other effects. If the enchanted object leaves the battlefield, the aura is automatically sent to the graveyard. This fundamental dependency is the defining characteristic of an aura. An aura is a spell that has a target. Auras, when they are permanents, are attached to other permanents or players.
The Key Difference
The crucial difference lies in dependency. A standard enchantment exists as a standalone permanent; an aura is inherently linked to another entity. An enchantment can be cast at any point during a players main phase, an aura has to have a legal target to be cast. This distinction affects how they are used in gameplay and how they interact with other cards and mechanics within the game. This makes an aura more vulnerable than a traditional enchantment.
Aura Enchantments: Specific Characteristics
Auras, as a subtype of enchantment, share the common characteristics of enchantments, such as being a spell (except for lands), being permanents once played on the field, and having card types that can be interacted with in different ways. However, auras also have several unique characteristics:
- Targeting: Auras are the only type of permanent card that requires a target to be cast as a spell. If the target is not legal, the aura spell can’t be cast. This is crucial when thinking about countering spells, or when your target might be lost.
- Attachment: Once the aura spell resolves, it attaches to the targeted permanent or player. This attachment is not a new spell or effect; it is a state change to the aura.
- Graveyard Bound: If the enchanted permanent leaves the battlefield (is destroyed, exiled, or otherwise removed), the aura is placed in its owner’s graveyard. It does not linger independently or return to your hand, unless another card effect would cause it to do so.
- Control: The controller of an aura is the player who cast the aura spell, regardless of who controls the enchanted permanent.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
To further clarify the nuances of auras and enchantments, here are 15 frequently asked questions:
1. Is an aura enchantment a permanent?
Yes, an aura is considered a permanent card once it has been cast and attached to a target. It exists on the battlefield as long as the enchanted permanent remains.
2. What happens if the enchanted creature gains Hexproof after being enchanted?
Hexproof does not cause auras to fall off the creature, because the aura is not re-targetting the creature. Hexproof only prevents the creature from being targeted by spells or abilities of an opponent.
3. Does an aura fall off if the enchanted creature loses the stated keyword, for example ‘enchant creature’?
No, because the aura is attached to the creature, the aura will not fall off. If the creature loses creature type, the aura can become removed (such as enchanting a vehicle that then is no longer a creature at the end of the turn)
4. Can you move an aura from one creature to another?
Generally, no. Auras are permanently attached to the creature or player they are cast on. They can’t be moved without a specific card effect that allows it, like Aura Finesse.
5. Do auras count as spells?
Yes, auras are spells when they are cast from your hand, much like a sorcery, instant, artifact, or creature spell. Once resolved, the aura becomes a permanent. Only land cards are not spells.
6. If an aura is enchanted to an artifact creature, and the artifact creature loses creature type, does the aura fall off?
Yes, the aura does fall off in this case, because it is no longer a legal target (it is no longer a creature.) If the aura had ‘enchant artifact or creature’ it would stay.
7. If an aura says ‘enchant creature’ can it enchant an enchantment creature?
Yes, it can. An enchantment creature is both an enchantment and a creature, so it is a legal target for the ‘enchant creature’ aura.
8. Can you dispel an aura?
You cannot directly dispel an aura on the field. However, you can dispel the spell when it is being cast, which prevents the aura from entering the battlefield. You can remove an aura if you target the permanent to which the aura is attached.
9. If a permanent is hexproof, can you enchant it with an aura?
You cannot target a permanent with hexproof when casting an aura. You must enchant a target without hexproof, and if it gains hexproof after, the aura does not fall off.
10. Who controls an aura enchantment?
The player who cast the aura spell controls the aura, not the player who controls the enchanted permanent.
11. Can you counter an enchantment?
Yes, you can counter enchantments. A spell that says ‘counter target spell’ can counter sorceries, instants, enchantments, artifacts, creatures, and planeswalkers.
12. What is the difference between auras and equipment?
Auras are attached to permanents and leave the field when the enchanted permanent does, and equipment will stay on the battlefield even if the creature it is attached to leaves the battlefield. Equipment also needs to have an equip cost, which auras do not.
13. What does “enchant” mean?
“Enchant” means to attach an aura to a targeted permanent or player, granting it the effects of the aura card.
14. Do auras get around hexproof?
Auras that are on the battlefield do not target, so auras that are already attached to a permanent stay even if the permanent gains hexproof. The spell does target the permanent when cast.
15. Can auras be placed on a vehicle?
Auras can be placed on a vehicle if the aura has the appropriate ‘Enchant’ wording. For example, an aura that says “Enchant creature or Vehicle” will stay on the field, but one that says “Enchant creature” would fall off once the vehicle is no longer a creature.
Conclusion
In Magic: The Gathering, auras are a unique and essential subtype of enchantments. While all auras are enchantments, their defining characteristic is their dependency on a specific target, be it a creature, another object, or a player. This makes their gameplay and interactions complex but also exciting and strategic, providing unique interactions within the world of Magic.