Shielded by Faith Draft Priority: Timing, Synergy, and Value

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Shielded by Faith card art—an ivory glow surrounds a vigilant knight as light pierces the battlefield

Image courtesy of Scryfall.com

Draft Priority: Timing, Synergy, and Value

In the realm of limited formats, some cards feel like safety nets tucked into a random pile of plans. Shielded by Faith is one of those that rewards thoughtful timing as much as a steady hand with a pen. This white enchantment — an aura costing 1 generic and 2 white mana — carries a simple but powerful promise: your enchanted creature becomes indestructible. In a world where sweepers and removal spells loom large, that protective bubble can swing turns and shift momentum with barely a sigh. The aura’s flavor text is mild but the implications are mighty: indestructible on the creature you attach it to, and it can hop to a newly entering creature whenever another creature steps onto the battlefield. That last line is a gem in draft environments where every ETB (enter the battlefield) trigger stacks up value, tempo, and survivability 🧙‍♂️🔥.

“Enchant creature. Enchanted creature has indestructible. Whenever a creature enters, you may attach this Aura to that creature.” — a lesson that turns the battlefield into a moving target of protection.

From a drafting perspective, Shielded by Faith occupies a delicate position. It’s not just a shield; it’s a strategic tool that scales with the board. In a white-heavy or tokens-friendly deck, you can leverage the conditional reattachment to protect your newest, often most impactful creature, while preserving the aura for late-game abuse. The mana cost of {1}{W}{W} makes it relatively affordable to cast alongside early plays, and the aura itself is a robust answer to aggressive starts, where a single slam can swing the course of a game if the right creature sticks around. The rare status from Commander 2015’s c15 set hints at a design that rewards patient deployment and tactical reallocation of protection as the battlefield evolves. As a result, you’ll find Shielded by Faith shining most in decks that lean on a handful of powerful ETB creatures or creature-heavy boards that frequently refresh threats — think tokens, auras that pump big bodies, or any build that demotes a single target or two into legendary status via indestructible resilience 🧙‍♂️🎲.

What to look for in a draft pack

  • Indestructible is king in late-game power turns. If you can protect your finisher or a key blocker, you gain outs against mass removal and wipes that otherwise wreck your plans.
  • Reattachment cadence matters. The clause that moves the aura to any new entrant creature provides a surprisingly strong tempo play. If you have a stream of small bodies entering the battlefield, Shielded by Faith can hop along and keep your board intact, turning small gains into stubborn persistence 💎.
  • Pawn or tempo pieces deserve a shield. Early creatures that become indestructible have outs to trade more efficiently, especially when supported by other protective or defensive elements in white.
  • Be mindful of enchantment removal. While indestructible protects the creature against destruction, the aura itself can still be removed by disenchant-style effects. The reattachment ability helps mitigate this, but you’ll want to weigh the risk against the board state and available answers 🔥.

Synergy and deck-building angles

Shielded by Faith doesn’t live in a vacuum. Its true value emerges when you weave it into a broader white strategy that leverages the aura's mobility. If your deck features multiple ETB triggers — creatures whose arrival changes the board state in meaningful ways — this aura becomes a flexible shield that travels with your most valuable target. Tokens, Zoo-style boards, or heroic white builds that flood the field with creatures can often capitalize on the aura’s ability to reposition protection as waves of creatures flood in ⚔️. The card also asks you to consider how you allocate your auras: you might start with a smaller, earlier threat and move the glow to a larger finisher once it hits the battlefield, keeping a resilient presence even as your opponent pivots to remove your threats.

From a lore and design perspective, Shielded by Faith embodies a classic white mechanic: the promise of steadfast protection in exchange for tempo and timing. It’s a flavorful reminder that, in the multiverse, sometimes the best defense is a shield that opportunistically picks the moment to shine. The balance of mana cost and effect keeps it within reach during a draft, while the “entering creature” clause invites careful reading of the board state before you cast — a nuance true fans relish 🔥🎨.

Practical drafting guidance

  • Early in the pack, if you’re seeing a handful of white or highly resilient creatures, Shielded by Faith is worth a first-pick eye. It buys you time to curve out and stabilizes your board in a format where life totals swing quickly.
  • Mid-pack patience pays off if you’re a tempo deck builder. Save it for a moment when you’re ready to pounce on an opponent’s doomed board state — moving it to the newest threat can feel like discovering a secret weapon mid-game.
  • Late-game value often rides on resilience. Even if a removal spell eats the aura, the reattachment clause means you’re not stuck with a useless aura; you can reposition it to the next best creature and keep the pressure alive 💎.

As a viewer of the broader ecosystem, it’s nice to see how a single card — tucked in a Commander 2015 set — can still spark lively drafting debates about tempo, board control, and protection. It’s a tactile reminder that limited formats reward both careful reading of card text and agile adaptation to the board’s pulse 🧙‍♂️.

Beyond the Draft: Value and Culture

Even outside of sealed or draft rooms, Shielded by Faith carries collectible and cultural weight. It’s a testament to Magic’s enduring love affair with resilience and protective playstyles. In older formats like Legacy and Vintage, where indestructible is a commonly leveraged concept, this aura can be a spicy add to certain white-control or midrange shells that prize board presence. The art by David Palumbo in Commander 2015 carries the drama and elegance that fans associate with iconic white enchantments, making the physical card a nice piece for collectors who enjoy auras that actively affect the battlefield’s texture 🧙‍♂️🎨.

For players who mix online and physical play, Shielded by Faith is a reminder of the joy of reattachment plays — a mechanic that rewards careful attention to the moment a creature enters. The aura’s mobility can create memorable comebacks, where a single untapped, indestructible threat stands as a bulwark against the opponent’s sweeps, turning a rough early game into a resilient late-game showcase 🔥⚔️.

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Shielded by Faith

Shielded by Faith

{1}{W}{W}
Enchantment — Aura

Enchant creature

Enchanted creature has indestructible.

Whenever a creature enters, you may attach this Aura to that creature.

ID: 4ecbb947-2085-40ca-82a0-c2e1cbc94221

Oracle ID: 79085dea-8daa-41c0-a975-61e3e6da2e26

Multiverse IDs: 405375

TCGPlayer ID: 108033

Cardmarket ID: 285833

Colors: W

Color Identity: W

Keywords: Enchant

Rarity: Rare

Released: 2015-11-13

Artist: David Palumbo

Frame: 2015

Border: black

EDHRec Rank: 3544

Set: Commander 2015 (c15)

Collector #: 8

Legalities

  • Standard — not_legal
  • Future — not_legal
  • Historic — not_legal
  • Timeless — not_legal
  • Gladiator — not_legal
  • Pioneer — not_legal
  • Modern — not_legal
  • Legacy — legal
  • Pauper — not_legal
  • Vintage — legal
  • Penny — not_legal
  • Commander — legal
  • Oathbreaker — legal
  • Standardbrawl — not_legal
  • Brawl — not_legal
  • Alchemy — not_legal
  • Paupercommander — not_legal
  • Duel — legal
  • Oldschool — not_legal
  • Premodern — not_legal
  • Predh — not_legal

Prices

  • USD: 4.55
  • EUR: 5.01
Last updated: 2025-11-15