Roshan's timer and the four shields
What the clock in the header counts down to, and which shield is which.
3 min read · updated Sep 9, 2026
Two pieces of furniture confuse first-time players: the clock labelled Roshan in the header, and the shields that show up on the board, in reports and next to the puzzle streak. They are unrelated, and neither one is a currency.
The clock
Roshan respawns at 00:00 UTC, and the timer counts down to it. That is 08:00 in Beijing, 01:00 in London during summer time, and 20:00 the previous evening in New York. Four things happen at once when it hits zero.
- A new daily seed. The site moves to
d-YYYYMMDDfor the new day and everyone draws the same fresh rosters, offers and events. - A new board. Today's board starts empty. Yesterday's is not deleted: it is the board of that seed, at
/board?seed=d-YYYYMMDD. - A new Daily Draft puzzle. Odd days ask for a hero from thirteen ratings, even days for the five players of a TI roster.
- The streak day turns over. Streaks count UTC days, so a run at 23:50 UTC and one at 00:10 UTC are two different days.
Finish a run before the timer runs out and it lands on that day's board. Finish it after and it is on the next one. Nothing you have already submitted is affected.
The Aegis
The Aegis of the Immortal is what a run is for: win The International at the end of your season and the report says you lifted it. It is not a reward you spend, it is the result itself. Two Aegises on consecutive daily seeds unlock Back to Back, one of the hardest achievements on the site. Free seeds don't count for it.
The two shields on the board
Next to a name on the board you can see up to two small shields, and neither changes a rank.
- Grey. The run is verified: it was finished while signed in, so it counts toward achievements and career totals. Guests can top the board too, they just don't collect anything.
- Gold. The player has Pro. It is a badge and nothing else.
The puzzle Shields
The Daily Draft streak has its own Shields, and these are the only ones you hold and spend. Playing counts, solving doesn't: open the puzzle and make one guess and the day is yours.
- Every seventh consecutive day earns one Shield. You can hold three at a time.
- Miss a day and a Shield is spent automatically to bridge it, so the streak continues.
- With no Shield left, the streak breaks, but it can be bought back for three days: finish two drafts in one day and it returns. That never costs money.
- Signed in, the streak follows your account across devices. As a guest it lives in the browser and merges into your account when you sign in.