Ethersworn Shieldmage
Artifact Creature — Vedalken Wizard
Flash
When this creature enters, prevent all damage that would be dealt to artifact creatures this turn.
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- UW
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Alara Reborn
- Price
- $0.09
- EDHREC rank
- #22554
Ethersworn Shieldmage gives all your artifacts and artifact creatures hexproof until end of turn the moment it enters — a flash-speed counterspell for targeted removal stapled to a body. The cost is two mana and a 1/2 that does nothing else; worth it in any deck that cares about keeping its artifacts alive.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | not legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Ethersworn Shieldmage is a niche but legitimate include in artifact-heavy decks — it answers the one thing counterspells can't cover after your permanents have resolved. Pauper is the format where it sees the most competitive relevance, showing up in artifact-based sideboards as a flash blocker that also shuts off opposing removal spells mid-combat. In Legacy and Vintage, the card is legal but too slow and too situational to compete with the interaction density those formats demand. Modern is the same story — it's not banned, but it's never been the right answer when better options exist.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.09 bulk tier
At $0.09, Ethersworn Shieldmage is pure bulk — easy to acquire in quantity without a second thought. Bulk flash creatures with narrow applications don't appreciate, so treat it as a cheap role-player and nothing more.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.