"In the vestiges of my homeland, legends speak of the Scarab Bracelet. Fated to curse any other who would sully it. What is mine by right was stolen. Heathmoor suffers, and I'm the only one who can stop it."
"I will reclaim my birthright, by whatever means necessary!"
On the eve of battle, a great pharaoh whose name has long been forgotten once said: "Give me a dozen of my loyal Medjay over an army and I shall win the day."
The day the Cataclysm struck the world, the flourishing kingdom of Egypt collapsed. Its once mighty landmarks were destroyed, swallowed by earth, water and sand. Its significant achievements were forgotten, and its thriving people, no more. But not all was lost. The Medjay are the last survivors of this lost civilization. Warriors once tasked with protecting their homeland, they are now the keepers of their culture. The deserts they call home are filled with lost riches, and the Medjay have long fought back adventurers, explorers and would-be treasure hunters.
With no throne left to defend, the Medjay evolved into something else. Outside of the confines of their old responsibilities, the warriors developed a new, dual-wielding fighting style as they embraced a more offensive approach. With the path to Heathmoor now open to them, the Medjay see a new land in dire need of guardianship. Driven by integrity and honor, these warriors have a strong moral compass that never points toward corruption and dishonesty. They are willing to sacrifice everything to enforce what they believe is right - no matter where they are, or who they choose to fight for.
Armor
Wearing the robes of their people, the Medjay are prepared for the hot desert with their light attire and a linen headdress. Even then, they make sure that they are protected enough with a leather neckpiece and shoulder pads, along with metal-platting on their arms, legs and abdomen.
Weapon
Bifurcated Fan Axes - The Medjay uses a peculiar weapon. The fan axe, also known as the palm axe, originally came as a two-sided polearm. However, the Medjay have chosen to embrace a more aggressive style, modifying their weapon to split into a pair of axes. The elite warriors that they are, the Medjay can mystify those they face, adapting to whichever situation they are placed in with the right setup.
This Hero is based off of the historic group of the same name, the Medjay. The name initially referred to a nomadic group from Nubia, but was later used as a general term for desert-ranger police for the Egyptian Kingdom.
The weapon that the Medjay uses is the Fan Axe, also known as a Palm Axe. The name comes from how the weapon looks like Egyptian fans used in the royal court, which in turn were either made from palm leaves or mimicked their shape.
While its existence is known, little is known of the fan axe's actual history outside small details such as its origin during the Middle Kingdom period of around 1700 BC. Most knowledge of the fan axe comes from artistic depictions and hieroglyphs, leading some to suspect that the fan axe is a misidentified court fan, meaning its existence as a military weapon may be contentious at best.
While the design of a double sided fan axe is plausible, as it strongly resembles a Chinese Crescent Moon Spade, most depictions of the Egyptian Fan Axe, even in pop media, is that of a single-head polearm; if the weapon was large enough, it would have a counterbalance at the other end. There isn't any historical record of it being two-sided or used as individual smaller axes.
The idea of dual wielding Fan Axes may come from the depiction of a similar weapon seen in the action adventure movie, TheMummy Returns, as seen here. The antagonist, Ancient Egyptian priest Imhotep, and his evil army uses a two-sided polearm that has fan axes for its heads; when Imhotep's polearm is cut in half by the protagonist during the climactic fight, he proceeds to wield the weapon as dual axes.
Medjay is the first Hero to showcase an actual "Dual Stance" mechanism, where he can permanently switch between multiple stances. The only time he is forced to return to the assumed "default" Staff Mode is when unlocking from Guard mode or when landing an Executing attack on an opponent.
This is in comparison to Highlander, the other Hero who is known for being the game's "dual stance" Hero, who is unable to maintain his Offensive Stance permanently as he will be knocked out of it if he is hit or does not maintain the input.
Much like Highlander and Shaolin, Medjay features a unique emote in his alternate stance.
Just like the Heroes since the start of Year 4, the Medjay is a genderlocked Hero, his ornaments placed on his shoulder instead of the head, but features Alternate armor variation.
For the most part, Alternate armor variations are an "infantry grade" visual counterpart to their normal variant, featuring less flare in comparison such as the lack of body paint and vambraces. However, much likes the last few Heroes before, the Alternate armor will take on a player's set colours scheme more than the normal variant.
Much like the Kyoshin, the Medjay's "Arms" only consists of the shoulder plate and vambrace; the arm under said armor pieces, including body paint, tattoos and arm wrapping, is dependent on the Chest armor selected. This contrasts most other Heroes where the "Arms" piece determines the entirety of the arm, from shoulder to fingertips.
The Medjay's Helmet also modifies more than just the head, as it includes the modification of the shoulder plate and neckpiece the Medjay wears. While other Heroes such as Black Prior or Afeera have something similar, their neckpiece is an extension of their helmet unlike Medjay's neckpieces where they are entirely separate from the helmet.
Many of the Medjay's armor sets are based upon Egyptian deities, from Anubis to Osiris. More details noted on their individual gear page.
The Medjay's "Fight Me" Free Roam emote uniquely spawns in a frog, independent of mood effects, which will proceed to hop around for a short duration. This is similar to the Universal Free Roam emote, Magician's Trick.
Medjay's other emotes also feature special but more subtle effects, either in the form of a shine across one of the blade heads, sand coming off of Medjay as he moves, or both.
The language spoken by Medjay is as of yet confirmed. However, based on the findings by user Kasikasiven Djinn on YouTube, they have found that he may be speaking Kemetic, a revival language of Ancient Egyptian.
As a result, while voiceline translations will be noted below, they are tentative as the language used is a dead language, thus translations may not be accurate. Video break down of some of Medjay's voiceline translations can be seen here from Kasikasiven Djinn's YouTube channel.
Prior to this finding, it was assumed that Medjay spoke the same Ancient Egyptian that was used in Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed Origin, where sparse amounts of the language was used based on Alan Gardiner's Egyptian Grammar, as noted in the game's Tours mode. It is unknown if both games use the same "language," if they are separate or if one is built off the other.
Quotes
Combat
Ancient Egyptian: π‘π§ππ (xdb) - English: "Kill!"
Staff Mode's Throne Usurper (Forward Dodge Heavy)
Ancient Egyptian: π π ππ (m mki) - English: "Protect!"
Axe Mode's Throne Usurper (Forward Dodge Heavy)
Ancient Egyptian: π‘πππ‘ (xtt) - English: "Hunt!"
Throne Room Clutch (Staff Mode Bash)
Throne Room Tackle (Axe Mode Bash) from mid-chain
Ancient Egyptian: ππ (xsf) - English: "Punishment!"
Throne Room Tackle (Axe Mode Bash) from dodge
Ancient Egyptian: π΄ππ (sqr) - English: "Strike!"
Ancient Egyptian: ππππ π£ (Htm stX) - English: "Down with Seth."
Fighting Style
Medjay are elite warriors, highly versatile with two fighting styles that let them dominate the battlefield. Wielding a bifurcated fan axe-staff that splits into twin axes, the Medjay can instantly transform their weapon to adapt to any situation. The wide reach of Staff Mode is best suited for group fights while the dual-wielding Axes Mode gives the Medjay an edge in one-on-one encounters. They are poised, indomitable, and above all, powerful.
Difficulty: Hard
Dual Fighting Styles with Weapon Transform
Good Range in Staff Mode, Quick Offense in Axe Mode
Special Capabilities
Unstoppable Staff Mode Chain with great range
Quick Axe Mode Chain that has high aggression
Unique dual utility feats, based on which Mode the Medjay is in: Teamplay for Staff, Solo-play for Axe.
Perks
Available Perks for the Medjay can be viewed on the Perks page.
Feats
Tier
1st
2nd
3rd
1
Sunlight Strength
Passive | Upon landing a killing blow, gain a minor buff depending on the Mode you were in: a Defense buff for Staff, an Attack buff for Axe.
Both mode's buff are separate and can be active at the same time, lasting until death.
Unlocked at level 1
Body Count
Passive | Killing a soldier grants you health and stamina.
Unlocked at level 5
Iron Lungs
Passive | You can still Sprint when Out of Stamina
Unlocked at level 7
2
Moonlight Drain
Passive | Staff: Throne Room Clutch will inflict a temporal Defense debuff to the opponent.
Axes: Throne Room Tackle will inflict a temporal Attack debuff to the opponent.
Unlocked at level 1
Executioner's Respite
Passive | The base healing of Executions are increased by 50%.
Unlocked at level 9
Thrilling Comeback
Passive | When activating Revenge, heal some health.
Unlocked at level 11
3
Scarab Relief
Staff: Heal yourself and nearby allies for a small amount
Axes: Heal yourself only for a mediocre amount
Unlocked at level 1
Heal on Block
Passive | Blocking regenerates your health.
Unlocked at level 13
Second Wind
Recover some of your health.
Unlocked at level 15
4
Astral Manifestation
Staff: After a delay, throw a Bomb that deals medium damage in an area.
Axes: Throw your Axes at a target for high Damage.
Unlocked at level 1
Catapult
Call a catapult strike over an area.
Unlocked at level 17
Arrow Storm
Aerial attack that deals medium damage in multiple areas.
Unlocked at level 19
Moveset
General
Renown: Hybrid - Renown is balanced across activities. (non-Dominion/Breach gamemodes only)
Revenge Mode - Boosts Damage and Health. All Attacks are Uninterruptible. Parry and Throws knock enemies down. Attacks are Auto-Parried on activation.
Dodge: No Guard - When performing a Dodge, your Hero's Guard disappears until the end of the Dodge.
Hero Specific
Dual Stance - Medjay has two Stances: Staff Mode and Axe Mode. While each Stance modifies Medjay's kit, his overall moves are the same inputs.
Stance Switching - To switch between Stances, press the back + GB inputs. Stances can be switched during the recovery of any move (except Throne Room Clutch), after a Parry or when entering Guard Mode for a faster switch.
Nomad Swing - Perform Nomad Swing by inputting a Zone Attack after any non-Finisher move, including Nomad Swing itself. Nomad Swing in both stances is similar to Axe Form's Nomad Slash, except coming from the Right Guard instead of the Left, and will automatically switch Medjay's Stance.
Static Stances - Unlike other Augmented Stances where one Stance is temporal, both Stances are treated as Static for Medjay. While Staff Mode is Medjay's primary Stance, Medjay will maintain Axe Mode until he exits Guard or lands an executing blow. Stance Switching does not cost Stamina, nor is there any additional costs for Axe Mode, thus it can be maintained even when Out of Stamina.
Heavy Chain Openers - Nomad Rush, Throne Guard, Throne Usurper, Nomad Slash and Nomad Swing are all Heavy Chain Openers, chaining into a Chain Light or Finisher Heavy.
Bash Openers - Throne Room Clutch and Throne Room Tackle are Bash Openers, chaining into a Chain Light or Heavy, but only on-hit.
Mid-Chain Bash - Medjay can perform Throne Room Clutch or Throne Room Tackle in their respective Stance after any non-Finisher Light attack by pressing the GB input.
Chain Finishers - Using the same attack twice (Light into a Light, Heavy into a Heavy) during the Thousand Suns chain will end the chain.
Staff Mode Properties - While in Staff Mode, Medjay has greater range and defensive properties to help him in teamfights.
Greater Range - Staff Mode's attacks have greater reach and attack range.
Enhanced Lights - Non-Opener Lights are Enhanced in Staff Mode.
Uninterruptible Heavies - Non-Opener Heavies have Uninterruptible properties, which starts up earlier into the attack than most instances of Uninterruptible.
Pinning Bash - Medjay has access to Throne Room Clutch while in Staff Form. Throne Room Clutch is a pinning Bash that costs a major amount of Stamina, but will deal moderate damage and push them back at the end of the pin.
Teamfight Feats - While in Staff Mode, Medjay's Unique Feats will feature effects that are more multi-target and defense focused, making them optimal for support and teamfights.
Axe Mode Properties - While in Axe Mode, Medjay has greater speed and offensive properties to help him in one-on-ones.
Greater Mobility - Axe Mode's forward and side walk speed are faster.
Faster Offense - Medjay's overall kit is faster in Axe Mode. Moves that are faster in this Form are as follows: all Heavy Chains, Chain Lights, Throne Guard, Throne Usurper, and Nomad Slash.
Unique Finishers - Light Finishers are Undodgeable while Heavy Finishers are Unblockable.
Swift Bash - Medjay has access to Throne Room Tackle while in Axe Form. Throne Room Tackle is a fast Bash that costs a minor amount of Stamina, guaranteeing a follow-up Chain Light. This Bash also features faster Recoveries.
Aggressive Feats - While in Axe Mode, Medjay's Unique Feats will feature effects that are more single-target and offense focused, making them optimal for one-on-one skirmishes.
LMB, RMB or RMB, LMB
