Center Soul
Instant
Target creature you control gains protection from the color of your choice until end of turn.
Rebound (If you cast this spell from your hand, exile it as it resolves. At the beginning of your next upkeep, you may cast this card from exile without paying its mana cost.)
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- W
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Dragons of Tarkir
- Price
- $0.09
- EDHREC rank
- #16377
Center Soul grants protection from a chosen color until end of turn, then rebounds to do it again next upkeep — two shields for one mana is the whole pitch. Lyse Hext decks run it because protecting a key creature twice at instant speed is exactly the kind of cheap, repeatable insurance a tempo-forward white strategy wants.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Center Soul is a narrow but cheap trick — one mana to dodge a removal spell is fine, but the rebounded protection rarely matters at a four-player table where threats multiply faster than you can shield them. Pauper is where it has the most competitive traction, since cheap protection spells that rebuy themselves are legitimately powerful in a format where every mana counts and Auras need to survive. In Modern and Legacy the competition from Slip Out the Back, Sejiri Shelter, and Teferi's Protection pushes Center Soul out of contention entirely. Pioneer sits in the same boat — adequate but outclassed.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.09 bulk tier
At $0.09, Center Soul is deep bulk — you're paying for cardboard, not scarcity. That price is stable by default; bulk commons don't move unless a format-defining deck adopts them, and nothing currently puts Center Soul in that position.
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Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.