A brief refresher, as even experienced players tend to have issues with Protection: "Protection from X" means "this card can't be damaged, enchanted, blocked, or targeted by anything that is X." This means a Silver Knight can eternally block a Goblin Goon and can't be hit by Lightning Helix.

When in doubt, use the "DEBT" acronym to remember how protection operates: Damaged, Enchanted, Blocked, and Targeted.

It follows, then, that protection from everything is profoundly powerful, as it means "this card can't be blocked, targeted, enchanted, or damaged by anything." A Creature with protection from everything can't be blocked, can't be targeted by Lightning Bolt or Slice from the Shadows, and can't be locked down by a Pacifism or Icy Manipulator.

Protection only applies on the battlefield, so any card with protection from everything can be countered with Counterspell or removed from the hand entirely by Thoughtseize. There are other ways to get around protection, but they usually entail more niche cards like Everlasting Torment or Rain of Gore.

There are only seven cards with protection from everything printed on them, and The Stasis Coffin is the only real loser among them, as it broadcasts its function ahead of time and requires you to leave mana up.

Honorable Mentions

Iridescent Angel

The first card printed with protection from every color, Iridescent Angel was an exciting innovation on Serra Angel. She saw consistent play as a reanimation target 25 years ago and served as a top-end for control decks who didn't mind tapping seven mana for an extremely resilient threat. Even today, she shows up in Premodern Reanimator decks.

Outside of that, though, Iridescent Angel looks more fragile than she did a quarter-century ago. The rise of the Eldrazi in colorless cards like Kozilek's Command and the prominence of sacrifice effects in cards like Accursed Marauder mean she's not immune to removal the same way she was when first printed. Still, for those of a nostalgic bent, the original untouchable Angel is worth a look.

True-Name Nemesis

First printed in Commander 2013, True-Name Nemesis does not technically have protection from everything, instead granting itself protection from a player of your choice. Originally designed for multiplayer formats, it would leave you vulnerable to other opponents.

Against a single opponent, the Nemesis becomes a clock that they can't interact with. This makes True-Name Nemesis a Legacy stalwart and a staple in Cube, where it makes Invisible Stalker look like a Fugitive Wizard.

Final Fantasy's Absolute Virtue gives you protection from all opponents. Their Creatures bounce off you, their spells can't touch you, and their Curses fall off you.

Emrakul, The World Anew

Likewise, Emrakul, The World Anew has had a variety of off-kilter and effective Protection abilities.

Her earliest form, Emrakul, the Aeons Torn, had "protection from spells that are one or more colors," which covers almost every spell since 1993. Her Eldritch Moon form, Emrakul, the Promised End, has the less impressive "protection from Instants," which means she could still be trapped under a Pacifism or sent packing with Fell.

The recent Emrakul, the World Anew has possibly the quirkiest form of protection we've ever seen: protection from spells and from permanents that were cast this turn. This means that Emrakul can't be hit with Erode, On Thin Ice, Blasphemous Act, or Banisher Priest, and basically is only vulnerable to sacrifice effects.

Emrakul, the World Anew can still be blocked and killed by an opponent's Creatures as long as it wasn't cast this turn.

The Top Cards in Magic with Protection from Everything:

6. Perch Protection

Twice the mana and half the pricetag, Perch Protection may seem like a reasonable substitute. But leaving open instead of is a different proposition and giving an opponent a free Time Walk to make it Teferi's Protection basically renders the card unplayable.

Really, Perch Protection should be seen as a souped-up Lingering Souls with the option to become a panic button if necessary. If you're interested in the Bird tokens, it's a reasonable rate to produce Flying bodies, but if you're interested in the protection from everything side, you'd be much better off with Teferi in your corner.

5. Vexilus Praetor

From the grim darkness of the distant future, Warhammer 40K's Vexilus Praetor can flash in to protect your Commander from anything. Warhammer compatriot Celestine, the Living Saint lets you reanimate the Praetor if it's dealt with, forming a soft lock.

Sonic the Hedgehog benefits from the Praetor and helps you power it up, and various Warrior decks led by Zurgo, Thunder's Decree also appreciate the boost.

Of course, if an opponent deals with your 3/4 Creature, your Commander is out of luck, so be careful attacking into open mana.

4. Teferi's Protection

A Game Changer in Commander, Teferi's Protection is the pinnacle of protection spells, saving you from death, protecting your permanents, and, in some cases, giving you enough breathing room for a pit stop or beverage refill.

No matter how your opponent is trying to take you out, whether it's through combat damage, poison counters, Tendrils of Agony, or Archive Trap, Teferi's Protection pulls you out of the fire and keeps you safe through to your next turn.

It can also function as a counterspell, turning aside your opponent's Peer into the Abyss or neutralizing a Torment of Hailfire. Its cost matches its power, and it is on the Commander Game Changers list, but if you have the cash and a GC slot, Teferi's Protection solves almost every problem you can anticipate.

3. Hexdrinker

Magic has come a long way since Jungle Lion.

If you play Hexdrinker on turn one, level it up twice on turn two, and thrice on turn four, you can finish leveling it up on turn four, at which point you have a mini-Progenitus. That's assuming your opponent doesn't snipe the Hexdrinker between level up activations with a Fatal Push.

You can also drop Hexdrinker on a later turn and immediately level it up to at least the "protection from Instants" level, which will protect it from Erode, Doom Blade, Lightning Bolt, and Fatal Push.

Hexdrinker may cost total mana to summon and fully level it up, but you can split that up over several turns, albeit only at Sorcery speed. Even if you don't power up the Snake as fast as possible, it's a great way to maximize your mana efficiency, as any spare generic mana you can produce during your turn can be used to level up.

2. Progenitus

Originally printed in Conflux, Progenitus is currently Standard-legal, thanks to Foundations, a set that was surprisingly generous to Hydras. Unlike Mossborn Hydra, Progenitus is almost impossible to cast but has unsurprisingly been a primo cheat target for twenty years.

While Progenitus can't be reanimated via traditional means and is usually too mana-intensive to cast from the hand; there are other methods to land the Hydra Avatar early. Oath of Druids, Natural Order, Omniscience, and Dream Halls all can put Progenitus into play for a discount, at which point your opponent has two turns to draw an answer, and effective answers to Progenitus are few and far between.

1. The One Ring

A contentious and coveted card, as befits its status in Tolkien's saga, The One Ring is part Teferi's Protection, part Phyrexian Arena. It's indestructible and extremely impactful for four mana, compared to something like The Endstone.

Granting yourself protection from everything is a huge reason to play the card, especially if you can bounce and recur it multiple times, but the ability to draw cards (even if the life loss mounts each time you do) pushes The One Ring up to one of the best Artifacts printed in Magic's history.

Banned in Modern and a Game Changer with a bullet, The One Ring puts a target on your head when you cast it. The card advantage it offers in addition to the ability to protect you for a full turn cycle -- and the outsized awareness of the Ring, thanks to Post Malone and Dan Frazier -- will make you enemies. Still, power is power, as Isildur learned, and it's worth picking up the Ring.

Wrapping Up

Protection doesn't defend against everything, of course. Board wipes like Wrath of God and Damnation, as they're not targeted or damage-based, will wipe out a Progenitus, and anything tagged "damage can't be prevented" like Volcanic Fallout can kill smaller Knights and even Kor Firewalker.

Protection from everything is rare text in Magic, as it leads to noninteractive games. If someone lands an early Progenitus, that's a two-turn clock, and very few effects outside of sacrifice effects or board wipes will stop that clock.

The heavy hitters like Progenitus or Hexdrinker are very resilient outside of wrath or sacrifice effects, so I always pack sacrifice effects, like Accursed Marauder, To The Slaughter, or Grave Pact. Flare of Malice or Soul Shatter are especially effective, as they can deal with Progenitus or Emrakuls alike.

Wizards of the Coast has moved away from "Protection from X" in favor of "Hexproof from X," much as they've moved away from Regeneration to Indestructible. It's the difference between Mother of Runes and Skrelv, Defector Mite, and shows up in cards like Breaker of Creation and General Ferrous Rokiric. But the fact that Progenitus is legal in Standard and The One Ring is returning as a non-Standard-legal reprint in The Hobbit demonstrates that protection from everything, like every Creature that bears it, isn't going anywhere.