The 45 Best Indestructible-Granting Cards and Enablers in Magic Ranked

Last updated on August 27, 2025

Flawless Maneuver | Illustration by Zoltan Boros

Combat is one of the core elements of Magic: The Gathering, and there are tools that let our creatures come out on top over time. One of the most powerful ways to do so is by making them indestructible. Giving your creatures the ability to survive damage and “destroy” effects doesn’t just help in battle—it can flip the whole game in your favor.

In this list, we’re diving into what makes indestructible enablers so strong—and the spicy payoffs that make them worth building around.

Intrigued to find out which are the best? Let’s dive right into it!

What Are Indestructible Enablers in MTG?

Darksteel Plate | Illustration by Daniel Ljunggren

Indestructible enablers in Magic: The Gathering are cards that give creatures or other permanents the indestructible keyword, either temporarily or permanently. These spells, creatures, or enchantments help protect your board from destruction effects like damage and “destroy” spells.

I'll mention and rank cards according to how efficient they are at giving other permanents indestructible.

#45. Squad Commander

Squad Commander fits perfectly in party-based or token decks. When it enters, it rewards your party count by making a swarm of 1/1 Kor Warriors. But the real power shows at the beginning of combat—if you have a full party, all your creatures get +1/+0 and indestructible until end of turn. That’s a major payoff that turns a full board into an overwhelming force.

#44. Blacksmith's Skill

One of the most efficient protection spells out there, Blacksmith's Skill is an instant that saves any permanent, not just creatures, from targeted removal or destruction effects. And if your target happens to be an artifact creature, you even get a bonus +2/+2. It’s the kind of card that catches opponents off guard and completely blows out their game plan.

#43. Blessed Hippogriff

With Blessed Hippogriff, you get both a flying creature and a built-in protection spell. Its adventure side, Tyr's Blessing, gives any creature indestructible at instant speed—great for surprise blocks or saving a key attacker. Then later, you can cast the Hippogriff itself to support your aerial game. It’s two useful tools in one clean package.

#42. Rootborn Defenses

When you want to protect your army and clone a token while you’re at it, Rootborn Defenses does the job. It gives all your creatures indestructible until end of turn and lets you populate—making a copy of one of your creature tokens.

#41. Shield of the Oversoul

Shield of the Oversoul is a fantastic aura that turns any green and white creature into an unstoppable force. It gives indestructible if the creature is green, flying if it’s white, and +1/+1 for each color—making it a perfect fit for hybrid decks. My favorite target for this is hands down Uril, the Miststalker. Since Uril already has built-in hexproof and gets bigger with every aura attached, this one not only protects it but also helps it hit even harder—and in the air, no less.

#40. Blizzard Brawl

A simple fight spell on the surface, Blizzard Brawl becomes a brutal removal and protection combo in snow decks. If you control three or more snow permanents, your creature not only gets a +1/+0 boost but also indestructible before it throws down. That means you’re clearing the board while keeping your own threats safe, making it a tidy piece of value and aggression.

#39. Dauntless Bodyguard

When you need a cheap way to protect your key creature, Dauntless Bodyguard steps in with a noble sacrifice. You pick a buddy when it enters the battlefield, and later on, you can cash in the Bodyguard to grant that creature indestructible until end of turn. It’s low-cost, high-impact, and fits smoothly into any white deck with creatures worth saving.

#38. Selfless Savior

Few cards offer as much emotional support and utility as Selfless Savior. It’s just a 1/1 dog, but when the moment comes, it gives its life to protect one of your other creatures, making that target indestructible until end of turn.

#37. Tamiyo's Safekeeping

Tamiyo's Safekeeping is a green instant that doesn’t mess around when it comes to saving your permanents. It grants both hexproof and indestructible, meaning you can shut down just about any form of targeted removal or combat trick. And you gain 2 life as a bonus, which makes a difference in tight races.

#36. Final Showdown

Sometimes you just need options, and Final Showdown delivers. Thanks to the spree mechanic, you can customize this instant to fit the moment—whether you’re blanking creature abilities, protecting a creature with indestructible, or blowing up the entire board.

#35. Plaza of Heroes

If you’re running a legendary-heavy deck, Plaza of Heroes offers way more than just flexible mana. It doubles as a surprise shield: Tap 3 mana, exile it, and suddenly your legendary creature gains hexproof and indestructible until the end of the turn. That kind of instant-speed protection from a land slot is hard to come by and makes this card a great piece of tech, especially for Commander players.

#34. Basri, Tomorrow's Champion

Don’t sleep on the cycling ability of Basri, Tomorrow's Champion. While you can play it for one white mana and slowly create lifelink cats, the real upside is when you discard it to draw a card. Doing so gives all your cats hexproof and indestructible for the turn—a powerful surprise that turns defense into offense or saves your board from a sweeper.

#33. Selfless Spirit

Flying just above the battlefield, Selfless Spirit is always ready to make the ultimate sacrifice. It's already a solid creature with evasion and a low cost, but its real strength lies in its ability to give all your creatures indestructible for the turn. It's especially useful in creature-heavy decks that are vulnerable to wraths, and it’s the kind of card that opponents always have to plan around.

#32. Arwen, Mortal Queen

Coming into play with its own indestructible counter, Arwen, Mortal Queen is already tough to take down. But it also acts as a support piece—by removing its counter, it passes indestructibility to another creature while handing out lifelink and +1/+1 counters to both itself and the target.

#31. Basri Ket

Basri Ket brings some serious utility to the battlefield. Its +1 ability grants a +1/+1 counter and indestructibility to a creature, making even small creatures into confident attackers. Whether you’re looking to grow your army or just need to protect a crucial piece, its loyalty abilities offer both immediate impact and long-term value—especially in aggro strategies.

#30. Bello, Bard of the Brambles

If you’re playing a deck loaded with big non-creature artifacts or enchantments, Bello, Bard of the Brambles turns them into indestructible 4/4 elementals with haste. That transformation opens up wild combat lines and makes sweepers far less scary. Plus, those animated permanents draw you cards when they connect in combat, turning utility pieces into threats that stick around.

#29. Boromir, Warden of the Tower

Whether protecting the Fellowship or your board, Boromir, Warden of the Tower does its job with heroic flair. While its static ability punishes free spells, the real value is in its sacrifice effect, giving all your creatures indestructible until end of turn. It's a powerful defensive play, especially in multiplayer games where you need to protect your board from surprise wipes or game-ending effects.

On top of that, when you sacrifice it, you get tempted by the ring, making it an auto addition to decks that care about the mechanic, or just to at least make something harder to block.

#28. Darksteel Plate

There’s something incredibly satisfying about suiting up your commander with Darksteel Plate. This equipment is indestructible itself and gives the same protection to the creature it equips, and at just 3 mana to cast and 2 to equip, it’s a budget-friendly and reliable way to lock in resilience.

#27. King Darien XLVIII

While King Darien XLVIII buffs your entire board with a global +1/+1, it also has a trick up its sleeve. You can sacrifice it to grant your creature tokens hexproof and indestructible until end of turn—an incredible way to save a go-wide army from destruction.

#26. Unbreakable Formation

Timing is everything with Unbreakable Formation. You can cast it at instant speed to give your creatures indestructible until end of turn, perfect for dodging a board wipe. But if you cast it during your main phase, it also puts a +1/+1 counter on each creature and gives them vigilance. It’s a great card for both defense and offense, giving you options depending on the situation.

#25. Elspeth, Knight-Errant

With its ultimate ability, Elspeth, Knight-Errant offers one of the most permanent forms of indestructibility you can get: an emblem that makes all your artifacts, creatures, enchantments, and lands indestructible. It takes some time to reach that 8 loyalty, but once there, your board becomes almost untouchable. Its other abilities are solid even before that, making it a reliable planeswalker for any white-based deck.

#24. You Look Upon the Tarrasque

With two very different modes, You Look Upon the Tarrasque can either protect your board or turn one creature into a giant, unstoppable threat. The Gather Your Courage mode gives a creature +5/+5 and indestructible until end of turn, and forces all of your opponents’ creatures to block it if able. It’s perfect for board control or punching through defenses.

#23. Indestructibility

Simple and straightforward, Indestructibility is an aura that makes one permanent… well, indestructible. It’s not flashy, but in slower or more Voltron-oriented builds, protecting an important piece with this enchantment can be exactly what you need.

#22. Kyodai, Soul of Kamigawa

Kyodai, Soul of Kamigawa enters at instant speed and immediately shields another permanent by giving it indestructible for as long as you control Kyodai. That alone makes it a powerful reactive tool. But Kyodai isn’t just about defense—its activated ability pumps it into an 8/8 threat, making it a late-game finisher that also protects your key pieces early on.

#21. Call the Spirit Dragons

For dragon tribal decks, Call the Spirit Dragons is a dream come true. It gives all your dragons indestructible, making it incredibly difficult for opponents to wipe your board. On top of that, during each of your upkeeps, it distributes +1/+1 counters among your dragons by color, and if you manage to hit all five colors, you just win the game. It’s protection, synergy, and a win condition all in one enchantment.

#20. Season of the Burrow

Offering a unique spin on modal spells, Season of the Burrow lets you choose up to five paw’s worth of effects, including one that reanimates a permanent with an indestructible counter. That kind of recursion with protection baked in is fantastic in grindy matchups, letting you stabilize the board and preserve your best threat for another round of combat.

#19. Soul of New Phyrexia

Whether on the battlefield or chilling in your graveyard, Soul of New Phyrexia provides your team with a powerful defense. For 5 mana, you can make all your permanents indestructible until end of turn, and you can even activate this ability from the graveyard by exiling it. That makes it a persistent threat and a reliable backup plan for when things go sideways.

#18. Darksteel Forge

If you’re playing artifacts, Darksteel Forge is the ultimate fortress. It makes all your artifacts indestructible, which locks opponents out of most interaction—especially useful for decks built around artifact synergy or combos. It’s a bit pricey at 9 mana, but in formats like Commander where big mana is common, this card can completely warp the game.

#17. Salvation Colossus

Salvation Colossus brings raw power and team protection in one massive package. It’s a 9/9 with flying, vigilance, and trample, and every time you attack, it gives the rest of your creatures +2/+2 and indestructible until end of turn. It’s a terrifying finisher, especially in aggressive decks that want to protect their alpha strikes. And with unearth for energy, it even has a second life.

#16. Almost Perfect

Turning any creature into an indestructible 9/10 is no joke, and that’s exactly what Almost Perfect does. It’s a big aura that sets base power and toughness and grants indestructibility, turning even a 1/1 token into a massive, nearly-untouchable threat. Great for Voltron decks or any build that wants to go all-in on a single creature.

#15. Eagle of Deliverance

Flying in at 6 mana, Eagle of Deliverance grants an indestructible counter to another creature you control when it enters the battlefield. If that creature’s power is 2 or less, you also get to draw a card. That makes this card both protective and value-generating, especially in decks with small utility creatures worth protecting.

#14. Perennation

For graveyard-focused decks, Perennation is a powerhouse. It returns a permanent from your graveyard directly to the battlefield and puts both a hexproof counter and an indestructible counter on it. That means not only do you get something back, but it’s immediately protected from most forms of removal. It’s an ideal recursion tool in grindy midrange or reanimator builds.

#13. Crested Sunmare

If your deck includes any sort of lifegain, Crested Sunmare is a beautiful payoff. Not only does it create a 5/5 Horse at each end step if you gained life, but all your other horses—tokens included—gain indestructible. That makes it a one-card army engine that’s difficult to deal with and floods the board with a lot of horsepower.

#12. Lorehold Command

Lorehold Command offers flexibility for 5 mana with four strong modes, two of which combine for a deadly swing. Giving your team indestructible and haste along with a power boost can turn a modest board into a lethal strike force. The other modes offer removal, lifegain, card draw, and token creation, making this a very well-rounded tool in red-white decks.

#11. Selfless Glyphweaver / Deadly Vanity

Whether you cast the front half or play it as a board wipe, Selfless Glyphweaver brings a lot of flexibility. As a creature, it can exile itself to give your whole team indestructible until end of turn—great for saving your board on the fly. And when you need to clear the battlefield, Deadly Vanity lets you keep your best creature or planeswalker while sweeping away everything else.

#10. Mithril Coat

Similar to Darksteel Plate, but with flash, Mithril Coat is a protective surprise your opponents won’t see coming. It enters the battlefield and auto-attaches to a legendary creature, instantly giving it indestructible–perfect for saving your commander or another key legend from removal or damage.

#9. Emeria's Call / Emeria, Shattered Skyclave

At 7 mana, Emeria's Call gives you two 4/4 flying Angel Warriors and protects your non-angel creatures with indestructibility until your next turn—perfect for setting up a swing.

On the flip side, Emeria, Shattered Skyclave is just a land that taps for white mana, making it a flexible inclusion in white-heavy decks that want power and consistency in one card slot.

#8. Flare of Fortitude

You don’t always need mana to protect your whole board—sometimes, a single creature will do. Flare of Fortitude lets you sacrifice a nontoken white creature instead of paying its cost, and in return, it gives all your permanents hexproof and indestructible until end of turn, while also locking your life total.

#7. Archangel Avacyn / Avacyn, the Purifier

At first glance, Archangel Avacyn looks like a simple flash flier that gives your creatures indestructible when it enters. But the story doesn’t end there. If one of your non-angel creatures dies, this transforms into Avacyn, the Purifier, dealing 3 damage to all other creatures and each opponent. It’s a dramatic shift, I know.

#6. Eldrazi Monument

Eldrazi Monument turns your entire army into a flying, indestructible force of nature—at a cost. You have to sacrifice a creature each upkeep, or the Monument topples. But in decks with token production or recursive creatures, that’s a small price to pay for the huge boost in survivability and power. It's especially deadly in go-wide strategies that want to close the game quickly.

#5. Avacyn, Angel of Hope

Few cards command the board quite like Avacyn, Angel of Hope. With flying, vigilance, and indestructible, it also grants indestructibility to all your other permanents. That means your entire battlefield—from lands to creatures to artifacts—is shielded from destruction. It’s a huge investment at 8 mana, but once it lands, it’s incredibly hard for opponents to deal with your board.

#4. Boros Charm

There are few spells as iconic as Boros Charm. For just 2 mana, you can choose between dealing damage, granting double strike, or—most importantly—making all your permanents indestructible for the turn. It’s a classic inclusion in any red-white deck and can single-handedly save your entire board from a wrath effect when needed.

#3. Dawn's Truce

With a bit of diplomacy, Dawn's Truce turns into a full-blown fortress. On its own, it gives you and your permanents hexproof until end of turn, which is already solid. But if you offer an opponent a card draw as a gift, your board gets indestructible as well.

#2. Flawless Maneuver

Free spells always get a second look, and Flawless Maneuver doesn’t disappoint. If you control your commander, you can cast it for free and instantly give all your creatures indestructible. It’s no wonder it’s a staple in so many Commander decks.

#1. Heroic Intervention

If you're looking for a green way to keep your board safe, Heroic Intervention is the go-to. For just 2 mana at instant speed, it makes all your permanents hexproof and indestructible until end of turn. That means no targeted removal, no board wipes, and no headaches.

Best Indestructible Payoffs

One of the most straightforward and satisfying ways to use indestructible creatures is by turning board wipes into one-sided blowouts. Take a spell like Hour of Reckoning, which uses convoke and wipes out all non-token creatures. If you play an indestructible enabler, you can destroy your opponent’s while keeping your board intact.

That said, it’s worth mentioning that pairing every form of indestructibility with board wipes is a “payoff” on its own. Blasphemous Act is another classic board wipe that deals 13 damage to every creature, but if yours are indestructible, they shrug it off while everything else gets flattened.

As you can see, indestructibility isn’t just about defense—it can also enable powerful combos. One fun example involves Apex Altisaur and Outmuscle. Outmuscle grants indestructibility and makes the Altisaur fight another creature. Because of the Altisaur’s enrage ability, each time it takes damage, it fights again and again until you clear the board.

At the end of the day, building around indestructible creatures isn’t just about making your board harder to remove. It’s about finding clever ways to turn that into winning the game.

Wrap Up

Heroic Intervention | Illustration by James Ryman

As you can see, indestructible enablers come in all kinds of colors and mana values, and their usage varies depending on whether you’re leaning into typal themes or just looking for a reliable way to protect your deck as a whole.

What do you think? Do you have a personal favorite that I didn’t mentioned? Let us know in the comments!

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Take care, and we will meet again in my next article.