What happens when a creature has protection from black, like Wall of Light, and someone casts a black board wipe like Damnation? Does the protection from black prevent the destruction of the creature? Spoiler alert: it does not, your precious wall will be destroyed. Unfortunately protection from a color doesn’t prevent board wipes (most of the time).
Protection Defintion
Protection from is frequently thought to cause total immunity against permanents and effects of the specified color. This is incorrect, protection has limitations to what it can do. To easily remember what protection does prevent you can use the D.E.B.T. acronym.
D.E.B.T. stands for:
- Damage – all damage to the creature from sources of the specified color is prevented.
- Enchanted/equipped – no permanents with the specified color can be attached to the creature.
- Blocked – creatures with the specified color cannot block the creature.
- Targeted – the creature cannot be targeted by spells that have the specified color.
When protection from a color doesn’t prevent board wipes.
Because the keyword Destroy is not in the D.E.B.T. list, cards like Damnation or Wrath of God are not bothered by protection. The same is true for sweepers that return all permanents to their owner’s hand like Cyclonic Rift‘s overload or cards that give creatures -x/-x like Toxic Deluge.
When protection from a color does prevent board wipes.
So are there examples of board wipes that are prevented by color protection? Yes there are, as protection still prevents any damage being dealt. Board wipes like Blasphemous Act and Star of Extinction will not deal damage to creatures with protection from red.
