Fend Off
Instant
Prevent all combat damage that would be dealt by target creature this turn.
Cycling 
(, Discard this card: Draw a card.)
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- W
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Urza's Destiny
- Price
- $0.16
- EDHREC rank
- #27069
Fend Off taps a target creature and prevents it from untapping next turn — a two-mana instant that removes an attacker or blocker from the board for a full round. At that rate it's a fine tempo play in limited formats, but in Commander it rarely makes the cut over removal that actually answers the threat.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | not legal |
| pioneer | not legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Fend Off is a niche include — it can stop a commander attack or lock down a problematic creature for a turn, but three-player threat density means one stalled creature rarely changes the game enough to justify the slot. Pauper is the format where Fend Off gets real consideration, since tap effects carry more weight in lower-power environments and the common card pool limits options. Legacy and Vintage have it legal but would never run it; the power ceiling in both formats makes a tap effect irrelevant. The card's floor is consistent across constructed formats where it's legal: fine in a pinch, not worth a slot.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.16 bulk tier
At $0.16, Fend Off sits firmly in bulk territory and will stay there — tap effects at two mana don't drive demand in any format where it's legal. Grab a copy if the effect fits your deck, but don't expect the price to move.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.