Green Ward MTG Card


Green Ward ensures longevity on the battlefield, granting creatures essential protection against green-targeting removal. The spell’s ability to secure mana creatures bolsters your resources, maintaining a stronger presence in-game. Its specificity makes it a tactical choice in matching against prevalent green-spell reliant decks.
Card setsReleased in 12 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost1
RarityUncommon
TypeEnchantment — Aura
Abilities Enchant

Text of card

Target creature gains protection from green.


Cards like Green Ward

Exploring the array of protective spells within Magic: The Gathering reveals Green Ward as a classic option for safeguarding your creatures. It’s akin to Blue Ward and other ‘Ward’ cards that grant immunity to specified colors. What makes Green Ward distinctive is its exclusive focus on negating green spells, a niche safeguard reminiscent of the Circle of Protection cards that shield against color-specific damage.

Comparable enchantments like Lance offer similar defensive capabilities but add the advantage of first strike, broadening the tactical uses beyond merely color protection. Yet for those who face decks predominantly green in nature, Green Ward’s targeted defense can be unparalleled. Then you have Spectra Ward, which is more costly but yields more comprehensive protection, granting immunity from all colors and boosting the enshrined creature’s potency.

Assessing the overall utility and application of these enchantments spotlights Green Ward as a situational yet potent choice. It excels in Mono-Green matchups, carving itself a unique space within the suite of defensive MTG cards.

Blue Ward - MTG Card versions
Lance - MTG Card versions
Spectra Ward - MTG Card versions
Blue Ward - MTG Card versions
Lance - MTG Card versions
Spectra Ward - MTG Card versions

Cards similar to Green Ward by color, type and mana cost

White Ward - MTG Card versions
Holy Strength - MTG Card versions
Lance - MTG Card versions
Consecrate Land - MTG Card versions
Animate Wall - MTG Card versions
Black Ward - MTG Card versions
Blue Ward - MTG Card versions
Holy Armor - MTG Card versions
Red Ward - MTG Card versions
Land Tax - MTG Card versions
Brainwash - MTG Card versions
Spirit Link - MTG Card versions
Green Scarab - MTG Card versions
Blue Scarab - MTG Card versions
Armor of Faith - MTG Card versions
Kithkin Armor - MTG Card versions
Flickering Ward - MTG Card versions
Limited Resources - MTG Card versions
Mask of Law and Grace - MTG Card versions
Sheltering Prayers - MTG Card versions
White Ward - MTG Card versions
Holy Strength - MTG Card versions
Lance - MTG Card versions
Consecrate Land - MTG Card versions
Animate Wall - MTG Card versions
Black Ward - MTG Card versions
Blue Ward - MTG Card versions
Holy Armor - MTG Card versions
Red Ward - MTG Card versions
Land Tax - MTG Card versions
Brainwash - MTG Card versions
Spirit Link - MTG Card versions
Green Scarab - MTG Card versions
Blue Scarab - MTG Card versions
Armor of Faith - MTG Card versions
Kithkin Armor - MTG Card versions
Flickering Ward - MTG Card versions
Limited Resources - MTG Card versions
Mask of Law and Grace - MTG Card versions
Sheltering Prayers - MTG Card versions

Card Pros

Card Advantage: The Green Ward MTG card is particularly adept at protecting your key creatures, ensuring they remain on the battlefield to continue providing value turn after turn. This leads to sustained card advantage as it prevents opponents from easily removing your threats.

Resource Acceleration: While Green Ward itself doesn’t directly provide resource acceleration, it aids in safeguarding mana-generating creatures. By ensuring your creatures survive, you effectively maintain your mana base, allowing you to cast more spells or larger threats earlier in the game.

Instant Speed: As an enchantment, Green Ward may not have instant speed, but its ability to be cast preemptively ensures that when your opponents are ready to act, your creatures are already shielded. This preemptive protection often forces opponents to spend their removal inefficiently or not at all, which can be as valuable as the flexibility offered by instant speed spells.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: One notable downside of Green Ward is that it doesn’t come with a discard requirement, but rather, it faces other specific limitations that could deter players from including it in their decks.

Specific Mana Cost: The mana cost of Green Ward is exclusively green, which ties this protective spell solely to green or multicolor decks, thus restricting its versatility across the wide array of deck archetypes in the game.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Though not exorbitant, the mana cost for Green Ward is one green mana, which can be considered high when compared to other protection options available in the game that provide a broader range of protection or additional benefits.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Green Ward offers a level of protection to your creatures that’s invaluable in games where color-specific targeting is commonplace. Its ability to shield your valuable creatures from any green-spell threats makes it a flexible addition to any deck that prioritizes long-term board presence.

Combo Potential: This enchantment opens up the floor for a variety of combos, especially in decks designed around creature-based strategies. By coupling Green Ward with creatures that have potent abilities, you effectively prevent opponents from disrupting your board, allowing your strategies to flourish unimpeded.

Meta-Relevance: Given the shifting sands of the meta, Green Ward’s capacity to safeguard key creatures keeps it relevant. In a landscape that often cycles through dominant colors, having an answer to scenario-specific threats—like that of a prevalent green deck—helps to ensure your setup weathers the competitive storm.


How to beat

The Green Ward is an aura in Magic: The Gathering that can be a nuisance if you’re unprepared. It grants protection from green to the enchanted creature, which can be a formidable shield against green-based decks. The key to overcoming Green Ward lies in its specificity. Since it only offers protection from green, creatures, spells, or abilities from other colors can interact with it without issue. Cards that cause loss of life or reduce the opponent’s life total can bypass the Ward untouched, as these are typically not color-specific.

Moreover, board wipes that don’t target, such as “Wrath of God” or “Damnation,” can remove the creature without being hindered by the protection granted by Green Ward. Another strategy involves using colorless artifacts or abilities, which are outside Green Ward’s scope of protection. Artifacts like “Brittle Effigy” can exile creatures, permitting you to directly deal with threats armored by the Ward. Additionally, using spells that force your opponent to sacrifice creatures can be an effective way around the Ward’s protection.

All in all, it’s critical to diversify your tactics and maintain a suite of answers that aren’t color-restricted when facing down enchantments like Green Ward. With the right mix of strategy and card choice, turning the tide against this protective spell is well within reach for savvy players.


Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Green Ward MTG card by a specific set like Limited Edition Alpha and Limited Edition Beta, there are several reliable options to consider. One of the primary sources is your local game store, where you can often find booster packs, individual cards, and preconstructed decks from current and some past sets. They often offer the added benefit of a community where you can trade with other players.

For a broader inventory, particularly of older sets, online marketplaces like TCGPlayer, Card Kingdom and Card Market offer extensive selections and allow you to search for cards from specific sets. Larger e-commerce platforms like eBay and Amazon also have listings from various sellers, which can be a good place to look for sealed product and rare finds.

Additionally, Magic’s official site often has a store locator and retailer lists for finding Wizards of the Coast licensed products. Remember to check for authenticity and the condition of the cards when purchasing, especially from individual sellers on larger marketplaces.

Below is a list of some store websites where you can buy the Green Ward and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Green Ward Magic the Gathering card was released in 11 different sets between 1993-08-05 and 2022-11-28. Illustrated by Dan Frazier.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
11993-08-05Limited Edition AlphaLEA 201993NormalBlackDan Frazier
21993-10-04Limited Edition BetaLEB 211993NormalBlackDan Frazier
31993-12-01Unlimited Edition2ED 211993NormalWhiteDan Frazier
41993-12-10Intl. Collectors' EditionCEI 211993NormalBlackDan Frazier
51993-12-10Collectors' EditionCED 211993NormalBlackDan Frazier
61994-04-01Foreign Black BorderFBB 201993NormalBlackDan Frazier
71994-04-01Revised Edition3ED 201993NormalWhiteDan Frazier
81994-06-21Summer Magic / EdgarSUM 201993NormalWhiteDan Frazier
91995-04-01Fourth Edition Foreign Black Border4BB 271993NormalBlackDan Frazier
101995-04-01Fourth Edition4ED 271993NormalWhiteDan Frazier
112022-11-2830th Anniversary Edition30A 202015NormalBlackDan Frazier
122022-11-2830th Anniversary Edition30A 3171997NormalBlackDan Frazier

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Green Ward has restrictions

FormatLegality
OldschoolLegal
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PremodernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal