Protective Bubble MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Common
Type	Enchantment — Aura
Abilities	Enchant
Released	2007-10-12
Set symbol
Set name	Lorwyn
Set code	LRW
Number	80
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Steve Ellis

Key Takeaways

Protective Bubble grants unblockability, ensuring key creatures are unfazed by opponents’ defenses.
Enchantment synergy and combo potential with Protective Bubble can pivot game strategies.
Global effects or board wipes are effective strategies against Protective Bubble’s protection.

Text of card

Enchant creature Enchanted creature is unblockable and has shroud. (It can't be the target of spells or abilities.)

Skilled merrow rudders ensure their charges arrive on time and without incident.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Protective Bubble’s ability to make a creature unblockable ensures that your key creatures consistently deal damage, contribute to board presence, and potentially draw out opponent’s resources while protecting your own valuable assets.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly accelerating resources like a ramp card, Protective Bubble allows for long-term planning by keeping your pivotal creatures in play longer, effectively safeguarding the investments you’ve made into developing your board.

Instant Speed: Protective Bubble, being an enchantment, is played at sorcery speed, but its lasting effect works as a persistent shield. This ensures that any time you pass the turn, your creature remains a steadfast force, unaffected by your opponent’s single-target removals.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: One detraction of the Protective Bubble card is that you must discard another card to utilize its merits. This condition presents a strategic hurdle particularly when your hand is already running thin, forcing tough decisions on which resources to sacrifice.

Specific Mana Cost: Streamlining a deck around the Protective Bubble can be demanding due to its specific mana requirements. This cost necessitates precise mana base planning to ensure consistent playability, potentially complicating deck building for some players.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Another aspect that might weigh down on players considering Protective Bubble is its mana value. When compared to other options available in the format, the mana investment might seem steep for the effect received, leading players to evaluate alternative cards that offer similar benefits with less resource commitment.

Reasons to Include Protective Bubble in Your Collection

Versatility: Protective Bubble can seamlessly adapt to multiple deck types. It offers creature protection and unblockability, which are valuable in control, voltron, and evasion-centric builds. Additionally, being an enchantment, Protective Bubble can interact positively with decks that capitalize on enchantment synergies.

Combo Potential: This enchantment pairs well with creatures that have powerful triggered effects or commanders who need to connect with opponents to activate abilities. When combined with cards that care about enchantments or artifacts (in case it’s transformed into an artifact), Protective Bubble unlocks new layers of strategy and interaction.

Meta-Relevance: In environments where removal spells are ever-present, Protective Bubble stands out by safeguarding key creatures. Whether you are facing down wrath effects or targeted removal, Protective Bubble ensures your most essential creatures remain a constant threat to your opponents.

How to beat

Protective Bubble is a unique enchantment in Magic: The Gathering that grants a creature you control both shroud and the ability to be unblockable. Often it turns a single creature into a formidable challenge for opponents, disrupting common methods of creature interaction. The key to overcoming a card like Protective Bubble is to rely on global effects or board wipes that do not target individual creatures, such as Supreme Verdict or Wrath of God, which can circumvent shroud and affect all creatures on the board indiscriminately.

Alternatively, focusing on winning through alternative conditions like milling your opponent’s library or achieving a combo win can ignore the enchanted creature’s protective layer. It’s also beneficial to apply pressure by controlling the board state, forcing your opponent to stay defensive and preventing them from capitalizing on the protective aspect of their enchanted creature. Cards such as Leyline of the Void can help manage graveyard strategies that might play a part in supporting the shroud and unblockable capabilities provided by Protective Bubble.

By considering different strategies that don’t involve direct targeting and by utilizing global effects, players can effectively navigate around the defenses set up by the Protective Bubble, ensuring that no single enchantment can turn the tide of a match single-handedly.

Cards like Protective Bubble

Protective Bubble stands out as a unique aura in Magic: The Gathering, providing creatures with not just unblockable status, but also shroud, a powerful form of protection. Much akin to this card is Whispersilk Cloak, which also gives a creature unblockable alongside shroud. Despite the similarities, Protective Bubble shines due to its lower cost and the ability to target creatures already on the battlefield.

Analogous in function is Robe of Mirrors, permitting players to grant shroud to a creature, but without the unblockable trait. This makes it slightly less versatile. Moreover, Alexi’s Cloak offers flash and shroud; however, it misses out on the key unblockable feature that makes Protective Bubble so potent, especially when it comes to sneaking past enemy defenses.

In summary, Protective Bubble serves as a stellar choice for defending prized creatures and ensuring they land attacks without interference. It fits into strategies where undeterred attacks are paramount, showcasing its edge over similar enchantments within Magic: The Gathering, by combining two invaluable abilities for a single creature.

Cards similar to Protective Bubble by color, type and mana cost

Collective Restraint - MTG Card versions

Delusions of Mediocrity - MTG Card versions

Thassa, Deep-Dwelling - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Protective Bubble MTG card by a specific set like Lorwyn, 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 Protective Bubble and other MTG cards: