Divine Presence MTG Card

Divine Presence ensures endurance by capping damage, beneficial for decks aiming for long-term control. Strategically useful despite specific mana costs, it necessitates planning and deck adaptation. Leverage alternative win conditions when facing Divine Presence’s damage mitigation on the battlefield.

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	3
Rarity	Rare
Type	Enchantment
Released	2000-10-02
Set symbol
Set name	Invasion
Set code	INV
Number	15
Frame	1997
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Ron Spears

Text of card

If a source would deal 4 damage or more to a creature or player, that source deals 3 damage to that creature or player instead.

"Serra's light isn't easily extinguished." —Reya Dawnbringer

Cards like Divine Presence

Divine Presence is an intriguing enchantment within Magic: The Gathering, bearing resemblance to a niche group of cards that manipulate damage. It’s somewhat similar to cards like Light of Sanction, which prevents damage to your creatures that would be dealt by sources you control. However, Divine Presence limits the damage to each creature or player to 3 damage at a time, regardless of the source. This broad applicability sets it apart, offering a more universal form of protection.

Echoing Divine Presence’s damage mitigation, we have Personal Sanctuary. This card narrows its focus by guarding the player from being dealt damage only during their turn. While it provides a strong shield during one’s turn, it lacks Divine Presence’s constant guard against large spikes of combat damage or harmful effects that can happen on opponents’ turns.

Ultimately, Divine Presence stakes its claim as a unique control tool in Magic: The Gathering, skillfully blunting the edge of high-damage spikes across the board. While each card offers a distinct approach to damage control, Divine Presence’s ability to cap damage consistently offers a strategic advantage that is hard to replicate.

Cards similar to Divine Presence by color, type and mana cost

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Card Pros

Card Advantage: Divine Presence offers an enduring edge by limiting damage, allowing you to maintain board presence and outlast opponents in prolonged exchanges.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly boosting your mana resources, Divine Presence conserves life totals, effectively granting you more time to deploy your mana and resources efficiently.

Instant Speed: While Divine Presence itself isn’t an instant, its continuous effect can be as strategically valuable as instant-speed interaction, mitigating threats as soon as they arise and even during opponents’ turns.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: While Divine Presence can be a powerful addition to your deck, it does come with the setback of making you discard a card. In situations where your hand is already depleted, this can lead to tough decisions about what to give up, potentially leaving you at a disadvantage.

Specific Mana Cost: Casting Divine Presence requires a specific combination of mana that includes white. This necessitates a commitment to white mana-producing lands or sources, which can restrict deck building options and make it challenging to include in multicolored decks not heavily focused on white.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Deploying Divine Presence onto the battlefield comes with a relatively high mana cost. For the same amount of mana, you might be able to access alternative cards or effects that provide more immediate impact or better board presence, making Divine Presence a less tempting choice for some strategies.

Reasons to Include Divine Presence in Your Collection

Versatility: The enchantment Divine Presence offers broad utility in decks that aim to prolong the game and establish control. It can be especially critical in formats where mitigating damage from powerful creatures is necessary for survival.

Combo Potential: In combination with cards that benefit from damage prevention or life gain, Divine Presence can become part of a fortifying combo that solidifies your board state against aggressive strategies.

Meta-Relevance: Given a meta with a bias towards fast, high-damage decks, Divine Presence can act as a perfect foil. Reducing the damage of heavy hitters, this card ensures you stay in the game long enough to execute your strategy.

How to beat

Divine Presence in Magic: The Gathering presents a unique challenge on the battlefield, as it caps damage dealt to creatures and players each turn. To navigate this enchantment, focusing on cards that remove enchantments directly can be key. Naturalize or Disenchant are prime examples of spells that can dismantle this type of obstacle, thereby restoring the natural damage flow of the game.

Another strategy involves increasing the number of damage instances. While Divine Presence limits damage per incident, it does not limit the number of times damage can be dealt. Cards that enable multiple pings or deal damage in small increments, such as those with the prowess or afflict abilities, become crucial in maintaining an offensive stance.

As always, adaptation is critical. When facing Divine Presence, it is essential to modify your deck or playstyle to include non-damage-based win conditions. Alternatives such as mill strategies, causing players to draw from an empty library, or using poison counters with infect creatures can circumvent the limitations imposed by Divine Presence and lead you to victory.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Divine Presence MTG card by a specific set like Invasion, 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 Divine Presence and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Divine Presence has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Premodern	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Predh	Legal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Divine Presence card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date	Text
2004-10-04	This is not preventing damage since it does not use the word “prevent”. It is a replacement.