Agent of Treachery is one of those cards players keep asking about. Here is, in plain words, what its official text says, the rulings published by Wizards of the Coast, and the combos players actually run.
Official card text
When this creature enters, gain control of target permanent. At the beginning of your end step, if you control three or more permanents you don't own, draw three cards.
Complete guide
Agent of Treachery is a powerful Human Rogue that can completely shift the momentum of a game by stealing any permanent your opponent controls. Not only does it strip your opponent of their best assets, but it also rewards you with massive card draw for maintaining a collection of stolen goods. This card is a staple in strategies that focus on flickering creatures to repeatedly trigger its devastating entrance ability.
What Agent of Treachery Does
When Agent of Treachery enters the battlefield, you target any permanent—be it a creature, land, planeswalker, or enchantment—and gain control of it indefinitely. This control effect does not end if Agent of Treachery leaves the battlefield. Additionally, it features an 'intervening if' clause at the beginning of your end step: if you control three or more permanents you do not own, you draw three cards.
Step-by-Step Resolution
First, the enters-the-battlefield trigger is put on the stack and you choose a target permanent. When it resolves, you gain control of that permanent immediately. Second, at the start of your end step, the game checks if you control three or more permanents you don't own. If you meet the requirement, the card-draw ability triggers. Upon resolution of that trigger, the game checks again; if you still control three stolen permanents, you draw three cards.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
A common point of confusion involves Auras and Equipment. Gaining control of a creature does not give you control of the Equipment attached to it, though the Equipment remains attached. Similarly, controlling an Aura doesn't change what it is currently enchanting. Remember that for the end step trigger, the check happens twice: once to see if it triggers, and once to see if it resolves. If an opponent destroys one of your stolen items in response to the trigger, you may lose the card draw.
When to Play It
Agent of Treachery is best played when you can immediately steal a game-ending threat or a vital resource like a land to put your opponent behind. Because the control effect is permanent, it is an excellent target for 'blink' effects that exile a creature and return it to the battlefield, allowing you to quickly reach the three-permanent threshold for the card-draw engine.
Interaction examples
Consecrated SphinxIf you play Agent of Treachery and target your opponent's Consecrated Sphinx, you gain control of the Sphinx. If you already controlled two other permanents owned by your opponent, Agent of Treachery's end-step ability will trigger, allowing you to draw three cards. Because you are drawing cards, if your opponent also had a way to draw, your newly acquired Consecrated Sphinx could trigger its own ability.
Hullbreaker HorrorWith Hullbreaker Horror on the battlefield, casting Agent of Treachery allows you to trigger the Horror's ability. You can return a nonland permanent to an owner's hand, then, when Agent of Treachery resolves and enters the battlefield, you can steal a different permanent that remained. This combination allows you to effectively clear the opponent's board while growing your own.
Guide written with AI from the official text and rulings. Official English text prevails.
How it works : Agent of Treachery
Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall
- #1· Wizards of the Coast
Gaining control of a creature doesn't cause you to gain control of any Auras or Equipment attached to it. Gaining control of an Aura or Equipment doesn't change what it's currently attached to.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #2· Wizards of the Coast
If you gain control of a permanent "until end of turn," that effect will wear off during the cleanup step, after the end step. You'll control that permanent while considering Agent of Treachery's last ability.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #3· Wizards of the Coast
A token's owner is the player who created it.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #4· Wizards of the Coast
Agent of Treachery's effect lasts indefinitely. It doesn't wear off during the cleanup step, and it doesn't expire if Agent of Treachery leaves the battlefield. In a multiplayer game, it does expire if you leave the game.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #5· Wizards of the Coast
If you don't control three permanents you don't own as your end step begins, Agent of Treachery's last ability doesn't trigger. If you no longer control three permanents you don't own as it resolves, you won't draw three cards. Those don't have to be the same three permanents each time.
No other card is named in this ruling.
Legal formats
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Meta decks with Agent of Treachery
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