The 38 Best Hexproof Cards in Magic Ranked

Last updated on February 19, 2026

Swiftfoot Boots | Illustration by Yunnan Tao

Hexproof is one of those Magic keyword abilities which, although it can be incredibly frustrating, plays an important role in the mechanics of the game. While it’s now generally replaced by ward, it’s an incredibly powerful mechanic that means cards with hexproof are playable pretty much forever.

What are these powerful MTG cards that are difficult to get rid of, though? And what’s the best way to make the most of them?

Let’s have a look together at some of the best ways to annoy your opponents!

What Are Hexproof Cards in MTG?

Shalai, Voice of Plenty | Illustration by Victor Adame Minguez

For the purposes of this list, I’m looking at cards that have hexproof themselves, or can give your stuff hexproof. There may even be a card or two that can give you, the player, hexproof, and I’m also including hexproof from color in the list, because it’s hexproof, too! Kinda….

Hexproof reads “this card can’t be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control.” This means that most of your opponents’ cards that deal with your problematic cards are null and void. Of course, this doesn’t extend to effects like board wipes or even edict effects, but it does cut out a significant number of their answers.

#38. Enter the Avatar State

Part of me wishes Aang's first lesson was How to Enter the Avatar State. It's difficult to really capitalize on all four abilities in one turn, but just using it for hexproof is fine. If I turn that into surprising and defeating a flier, that's satisfying and the lifelink makes it a solid bonus.

#37. Collective Resistance

Hexproof is a good ability to grant a creature in a pinch, but it can be situational. But if you attach it to a modal card like Collective Resistance, the card’s value goes up in value. Of course, if that modal spell has escalate, it’s even better as you can keep adding on. This instant is a great little modal spell that’ll rarely be useless.

#36. Silkguard

Silkguard is great for scaling and also for protecting more than one creature. It’s one of those X spells that you’re more than happy to cast for X=0, although putting some mana into it isn’t a bad thing either. A lot of green decks are going to find ways to modify creatures (using the definition of the mechanic modify, of course), but in a pinch you can use Silkguard to modify them anyway. It's an effect that's mimicked on other cards, but that doesn’t stop it from being a good option.

#35. Invisible Stalker

Invisible Stalker is a pretty good “Bogles” style card (named after Slippery Bogle). Two mana is more than you’d usually want for a bogle card, but being unblockable makes up for that. Load it up with auras and counters, and go to town!

#34. Everybody Lives!

Hexproof often means that your creature lives, but with Everybody Lives!… well, everybody lives! It’s a white instant that’s good in a pinch and can save you (and everybody else) from your opponent’s game winning play. It’s not infallible, but it covers most bases.

#33. Privileged Position

Privileged Position is a classic Selesnya card () that can be used to protect your things. It does what it says on the tin and gives all your (other) permanents hexproof. Note that this enchantment doesn’t get hexproof itself, but if you were to clone it somehow, this and the clone will work well on each other. Five hybrid mana in both green and white means there are likely better options in the modern game, but it’s still a good consideration.

#32. Simic Charm

Once again modality saves the day with Simic Charm, with multiple modes that are good for 2 mana. The modes are quite different from each other, too, but giving your whole team hexproof, while maybe slightly over the top as most spells only target a single creature, is a good bit better than just giving hexproof to one of them. Neat little trick, this charm. Don’t overlook it.

#31. Lazotep Plating

Lazotep Plating doesn’t just give your creatures hexproof, but all your permanents. It also sneaks you in a 1/1 token for your troubles, too. If you’re playing with amass, this blue instant is a bit better than a 1/1, but it does a lot of nice things for just a couple of mana. Pretty sweet, really.

#30. Blacksmith’s Skill

Hexproof and indestructible for a single mana is a nice rate, to be honest, and Blacksmith's Skill is a little better than that, giving you a power and toughness boost if you’ve built your deck correctly. This is a great one as it can also be used as a good combat trick if needed because of the indestructible, which is something hexproof can’t do well by itself. I really like this white card and am surprised I haven’t seen it around more than I have.

#29. Captain America, Super-Soldier

I'm so glad Magic inserted shield counters into the Streets of New Capenna, because Captain America, Super-Soldier is already limited enough as a mono-white card. Slide Cap' in to the Jeskai commander and back up the Super-Soldier with cards like Proud Pack-Rhino, Aegis of the Legion, and Boon of Safety.

#28. Inspirit, Flagship Vessel

Inspirit, Flagship Vessel is nearly free to station to the first mode which is solid. The effort to get to 8+ is surprisingly low, especially with as big a payoff as indestructible and hexproof for your artifacts. A younger me would go for a Platinum Angel, but a Darksteel Reactor is more proactive.

#27. Dragonfire Blade

Dragonfire Blade benefits from lots of ways to cheat the equip costs, but the baked in one counts the colors on say a 3-color legendary or free on Avatar Aang is all too common a scenario. Turns out lots of removal players rely on is monocolored, so there are definitely ways around it, but some decks will be locked out of interaction.

#26. Overprotect

Overprotect has a little bit of keyword soup going on, but this makes it a very strong card for only a couple of mana. An amazing combat trick that allows you to win almost any combat, it’s something of a modal spell as you can also use it only for protection and nothing else. It’s proving popular and will probably never be complete bulk, unless it’s reprinted to hell.

#25. Champion’s Helm

Champion's Helm is certainly a card for Commander, but what card isn’t these days? It’s a good rate and an ability that sticks around well. Moving it for only a single mana is really solid, and you really have something cooking if you can find a way to do this at instant speed. It’s a popular equipment that sees a lot of play, and it’s pretty clear why.

#24. Loran’s Escape

We’ve seen 1-mana tricks that give hexproof and indestructible be popular so far, and Loran's Escape is another solid one. It also works on non-creature artifacts, which you don’t always see, and the scry 1 is a nice bonus added on top. Nice and simple, but effective. Great design.

#23. Shimmer Dragon

Shimmer Dragon takes a little work to make hexproof, but it doesn’t really, does it? If you’re playing this you’re playing with artifacts, and those artifacts are easier to make than ever between Food tokens, Treasure tokens, Blood tokens, and other artifact tokens. Drawing cards with those artifacts that are just sitting around, too? That’s a win to me.

#22. Lotus Field

There aren't many hexproof lands, and even fewer that are used to give something else hexproof. Lotus Field is definitely an outlier. It’s a great design, though, and sometimes on the verge of breaking something which is where the best designs lie. Obviously, you don’t want to play this straight up as your land drop for turn, but you certainly can if you want.

#21. Paradise Druid

Paradise Druid is an unsuspecting card, but you have to remember that it gets around one of the fundamental rules of Magic: You’ve gotta Bolt the Bird. This bird is entirely unboltable, which goes a long way and ensures you can get that 4-drop on turn 3. Very useful little piece that does exactly what you want.

#20. Gaea’s Gift

Gaea's Gift is a fantastic common green pump spell that also seems to provide all the keywords. Like Overprotect it’s really a modal spell that is a combat trick or a saving spell, but that’s great and sometimes you end up using both ‘modes’ at once, and it feels great. This is the green card that made green not completely unplayable in The Brothers’ War, and I’m surprised we haven’t seen it more outside of there.

#19. Tam, Mindful First-Year

Tam, Mindful First-Year provides a lot of hexproof and the activated ability turns it into a mom of sorts like Mother of Runes.

#18. Shalai, Voice of Plenty

Shalai, Voice of Plenty has a really appealing passive ability (and the rest of the card isn’t bad, either). Players love their angels, but this white creature often finds its way into any deck that can play it. Note that it gives more than just creatures hexproof, and getting hexproof yourself as a bonus isn’t something to ignore.

#17. Surge of Salvation

Although it’s slightly skewed against black and red, Surge of Salvation is very efficient at a single mana, and the hexproof isn’t limited to those two colors, either. Don’t underestimate this March of the Machine instant for not being a rare MTG card.

#16. Sylvan Caryatid

Hexproof mana dorks are great, and Sylvan Caryatid is probably the first, at least of the ones I can remember…. It’s a solid green creature for the mana cost, and you never really want to attack with your dorks anyway!

#15. Defend the Rider

Despite how it sounds, Defend the Rider is excellent for protecting your lands, enchantments, artifacts and planeswalkers too. The alternate mode of creating a pilot is certainly handy at instant speed.

#14. Saryth, the Viper’s Fang

I love the combination of abilities on Saryth, the Viper's Fang; it all fits together so nicely. It’s such a pain to play against, too, as it does the things you don’t want it to at the worst possible times. Really sweet design, and I’m sad this human warlock doesn’t see more play.

#13. Padeem, Consul of Innovation

What do you need if your opponents keep destroying your key artifacts? Padeem, Consul of Innovation! Useful ability in the right deck, and if you’re playing with artifacts it’ll probably also draw you a card or two. I’m impressed.

#12. Skrelv, Defector Mite

Skrelv, Defector Mite only gives hexproof from a single color at a time, but it’s still pretty good. Since you can choose the color at the time of activating, it’s not really a downside, either. Phyrexian mana on the ability, while being very flavorful, is also great mechanically, and it’s just really neat all round.

#11. Flare of Fortitude

Ah, free spells. At least the Flares from MH3 didn’t completely break multiple Magic formats! Speaking of Flare of Fortitude, it’s actually not bad. It feels like a Teferi's Protection variant that you don’t necessarily need mana for, and it’ll definitely catch people out when it happens.

#10. Asceticism

What do you do when all your hexproof creatures are caught out by a board wipe? Well, Asceticism isn’t your worst option. Obviously it doesn’t save you from everything (oh, the infamously tricky regeneration mechanic…), but it does do a lot.

Anyway, Asceticism, while slightly dated now, is still good!

#9. Dawn’s Truce

Bloomburrow‘s gift mechanic really found its home in Commander. Dawn's Truce is a great example where giving a specific person an extra card isn’t really a downside, and putting some Commander politics into the mix makes for more fun games.

#8. Snakeskin Veil

Snakeskin Veil is nice and simple, but that’s what makes it so great. Temporary hexproof, but a permanent buff for a single mana is pretty great, especially in 1v1 formats. If you’re brewing in Standard or Pioneer, it’s one you should consider.

#7. Tyvar’s Stand

Tyvar's Stand was pretty different from the other “pump and protection” spells we’d seen in green to date when it was printed. This was a protection spell that could just be used to win the game, late game, when you have a bunch of spare mana to sink into it. I don’t see a whole lot of it in many formats, but I’d be shocked if this was the case forever. It feels like it just needs to find a home.

#6. Plaza of Heroes

Plaza of Heroes does a lot for legendary decks, and protecting your legends in a pinch is a nice upside to this colorless card. It obviously doesn’t do a whole lot outside of that… unless you’re playing Commander, of course, and want to protect that legendary creature that’s likely heading up your deck from the command zone. It’s almost a free addition to most EDH decks and will continue to see some good play.

#5. Tamiyo’s Safekeeping

Tamiyo's Safekeeping may seem kinda lackluster, with the bonus this time just being a little life, but it’s pretty important if you’re facing off against an aggro deck. Of course, the protection element is good against all sorts of decks, so this card is protecting you against both ends of the spectrum, particularly in 1v1 formats. Do you have a specific creature you want to protect in a diverse meta? This could be the element you’re looking for.

#4. Legolas’s Quick Reflexes

It makes sense why we’ve seen a lot of hexproof-granting instants. Hexproof is a good word to put on a combat trick, or a way to save your creature from a removal spell. What if your opponent has more removal they can cast in response, though? Legolas's Quick Reflexes is definitely worth consideration. Split second is a mechanic that’s rarely seen, but that’s because you need to be very careful with it, as it means opponents can’t respond to it with most actions.

This card also does quite a bit for the mana cost, too. Untapping is huge as it allows you to block out of nowhere, and it can act as a removal spell if you find a way to tap it? So many words here….

#3. Veil of Summer

Veil of Summer raised a lot of eyebrows when it was first printed, and it’s seen plenty of play everywhere it’s been legal since. Yes, it’s aimed specifically against blue and black, but these are colors you really need to look out for, and this is fine in the main, never mind as an awesome sideboard option. It’s eaten a ban or two over the years, and it’d take quite a bit to get those reversed.

#2. Heroic Intervention

Heroic Intervention is the green protection spell, and it would take quite a card to beat this in the colors. Giving all permanents hexproof and indestructible is awesome in a format dominated by board wipes, but you’re happy to use this against a single well-aimed piece of spot removal if the target is important enough. Reprints really can’t keep the price of this one down, and it does look like Wizards have been reprinting it enough to try and do that!

#1. Swiftfoot Boots

I don’t think everyone would put Swiftfoot Boots at the top of this list, but I can’t think of a card that deserves the spot better. It’s a complete Commander staple, and you need to think of a reason not to include it in the deck rather than a reason to put it in in the first place. Obviously, it’s the little brother of Lightning Greaves, but that doesn’t have hexproof, does it?

Yes, I think Boots has earned the place at #1, and it’ll take some convincing to get me away from that take. Or some insane power creep, of course!

Best Hexproof Payoffs

It’s difficult to think of cards that work especially well with hexproof creatures. Certainly not a lot of “hexproof matters” in Magic. If there is one archetype that springs to mind when I think about hexproof creatures it’s Bogles, or maybe Voltron strategies.

In short, you get one creature out, preferably with natural hexproof, and load it up with the best equipment, auras, and pump spells you can. Key cards that you’d be looking at are the likes of Ethereal Armor, which gets insane with a lot of other auras, or Blazing Shoal which you can use to make a creature huge for not much mana. Then you can finish off with a good, old-fashioned Fling.

How Do I Beat Hexproof?

Shadowspear, Arcane Lighthouse, and The Fire Nation Drill are among the select few cards that can remove hexproof. If you play with hexproof creatures, look out for these in addition to board wipes.

Wrap Up

Plaza of Heroes | Illustration by Gabor Szikszai

That’s the end of today’s list. Was everything you expected in there? It is safe to say that many players find hexproof annoying, which is why Wizards has moved away from it a little and moved towards using ward instead. It’s still pretty iconic to some cards, though, and probably still has a place in the design of new cards, despite alternatives now being available.

What do you think? Have I missed any key cards? If I have, it's because hexproof stopped me from targeting them! Either way, be sure to drop me a comment or over on Discord, and tell the world your thoughts on hexproof.

Catch you next time!