In Magic: The Gathering, hexproof is one of the most powerful mechanics.
In MTG, hexproof implies that a card, creature, or player “cannot be the target of spells or abilities controlled by your opponents.” This might protect a player from incoming damage from lightning bolt or shock spells, common in Burn decks.
Hexproof creatures and cards are frequently employed as a secondary safety net in decks that would otherwise be vulnerable to removal or direct damage effects. Some tactics rely primarily on boosting the same monster again and over again. Giving your powered-up creature Hexproof is crucial to preventing your opponent from removing it.
How Does Hexproof Work?
Hexproof is a more powerful version of the shroud trait, both commonly seen on creatures in Magic. Hexproof only stops opponents from targeting a card with effects, leaving you free to attach equipment, auras, or other boosts to your unit. Shroud prohibits all players (including yourself) from targeting a card with effects, whereas hexproof prevents opponents from doing so.
While these characteristics are usually beneficial to creatures, a small number of spells offer you the benefits, preventing your opponent from using their malevolent abilities and spells against you. Direct damagers (like “Lighting Bolt”), curses, and forced discards are all protected by shroud and hexproof. But, with so many possibilities, which fortifications are the most effective? These are Magic: The Gathering’s top 10 player-hexproof and shroud cards!
The greatest Hexproof cards in Magic: The Gathering are listed below.
Leyline of Sanctity
For matches against Burn players, white decks keep Leyline of Sanctity in their sideboard as one of their best cards. With Hexproof, the card can prevent your opponent from wasting your life with a slew of one-shot red spells.
The nicest aspect about Leyline is that you get to play it for free if you have it in your opening hand. Many players will make use of this against more aggravating decks by mulliganing several times until they have Leyline in their hand, even if it means only having three or four cards in their starting hand.
Ivory Mask
Ivory Mask is a white faction card that costs four mana, like many other player-concealing cards. This enchantment provides no additional powers and grants the somewhat less desired shroud. However, it’s still a helpful barrier against opponent tactics, and it was precious as part of the Ninth Edition set it was launched in (back in 2005).
Slippery Bogle and Gladecover Scout
The apex Hexproof animals are Slippery Bogle and Gladecover Scout. Even though they’re just 1/1, they’re frequently employed in decks that rely on auras, enchantments, and instants to pump them up so they can inflict insane levels of damage.
The creatures aren’t very spectacular on their own, but as you level them up, opponents will be able to only chump block your Slippery Bogle when it acquires abilities like Flying and Trample, as well as increased power and toughness.
Orbs of Warding
Orbs of Warding costs a hefty five mana, but it can be used in any deck and frequently surprises opponents as a colorless artifact. It also gives you hexproof and lowers any damage you take from creatures by one.
This useful feature decreases both battle and effect damage, and because it affects all monsters, not just your opponent’s, even your own self-harming soldiers will do you less harm.
Swiftfoot Boots
Swiftfoot Boots are a mainstay of the Commander genre. Once you have your Commander online, getting the card in your opening hand or early in a game might help you get into the action fast.
This is something you’ll want to put up before bringing out any scary creatures you wish to protect, thanks to the combination of Haste and Hexproof.
Witchbane Orb
Witchbane is another sphere that gives hexproof. It lacks Warding’s creature damage reduction, but it costs one less mana, grants hexproof, and removes curses connected to you instantly when it reaches the battlefield. Curses are an uncommon collection of magical auras that impose a range of drawbacks; Witchbane not only protects you against future jinxes owing to hexproof, but it also heals you (which hexproof alone won’t accomplish).
Nine Lives
In the Historic format, Nine Lives is one of the most vexing cards to deal with in best-of-one matchups. If you combine Solemnity with it, you may basically make yourself unbeatable unless your opponent has Enchantment removal in their deck.
Imperial Mask
So far, orbs and masks appear to be the order of the day. Imperial Mask is a more costly version of Ivory Mask that is excellent in multiplayer. In a one-on-one match, most players would choose Ivory’s slightly lower mana cost to Imperial’s benefit of hexproof over shroud.
When Imperial is used in two-headed giant games, each of your comrades receives a token duplicate of it, giving your whole squad the hexproof attribute in one fell swoop.
Thrun, The Last Troll
Thrun isn’t as popular as he once was, but at only four mana, he’s a powerful card for controlling the state of the board in a grindy game.
The 4/4 creature is not only Hexproof but he also can’t be countered. If you manage to kill him, you can resurrect him for only two mana.
Sigarda, Heron’s Grace
Sigarda, a legendary creature capable of acting as commander in EDH format, is neither an artifact nor an enchantment to mix things up a little. This green/white combination provides one of the game’s most powerful angels, arriving on the field as a solid 4/5 with flight, allowing her to soar over ground-based blockers.
Sigarda bestows hexproof not just on you but also on any human-type creatures you command! Fortunately, human is one of the most common kinds (particularly among the white faction), providing excellent protection for numerous troops.
Finally, Sigarda can exile a card from your graveyard and pay two mana of any color to produce a 1/1 human soldier token. It’s not a particularly powerful ability, but it’s a fun way to use up some extra mana, especially considering the token will be hexproof, thanks to Sigarda.
Solitary Confinement
Solitary Confinement by White is a powerful defense, but it comes at a cost. Confinement costs just three mana and grants you shroud, which prevents any player (including yourself) from casting spells or abilities against you. Even better, it protects you against all harm, including combat, effect, and even damage from sources you control!
You forgo your draw step and must sacrifice Confinement during your upkeep unless you discard a card, so that’s a lot of great obstacles for only three mana. Even yet, if you have additional troops on the field that can draw cards (such as “Staff of Nin” or multiple members of the wizard clan), you’ll have a constant defensive that opponents will find difficult to breach.
Shalai, Voice of Plenty
Shalai is another famous angel with a formidable defense. She’s a 3/4 with flying for only four mana, plus she gives hexproof to you, your planeswalkers, and your other creatures! Shalai can also spend six mana (two of which must be green) to give each creature you control a +1/+1 counter. That’s a costly ability, but it’s simply frosting on the cake for a device that’s already fantastic.
True Believer
True Believer requires both of his mana to be white, making him difficult to incorporate into multicolor decks. He is, however, significantly less expensive than most of his counterparts, with the shroud effect costing only two mana. He also has good 2/2 battle numbers for his low price, and his human and cleric subtypes provide several synergies.
True Believer is not only a cheap and competitive troop that can be used in a variety of decks (he’s a natural fit for many of my EDH decks and pairs nicely with Sigarda), but he’s also very cheap, frequently costing less than two bucks!
Aegis of the Gods
Aegis of the Gods is a two-mana spell that works similarly to Believer. Although his numbers are somewhat inferior at 2/1, he requires one mana to be white, and instead of shroud, he gives hexproof. Add in the enchantment creature type and the human soldier subtype mix, and you’ve got one hell of a versatile fighter that can enhance a variety of spells while also sheltering you.
Aegis is a low-level beatstick and early-game hexproof that players have greatly affected in various white decks. Fortunately, despite his rarity and strength, Aegis is not beyond reach, with a price tag of fewer than five bucks! After seeing Leyline’s pricing, we can assure you that Aegis’ is a steal.
