Keep Safe
Instant
Counter target spell that targets a permanent you control.
Draw a card.
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- U
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths
- Price
- $0.15
- EDHREC rank
- #5973
Keep Safe counters a spell targeting one of your permanents and replaces itself — that combination on a one-mana blue instant is the whole argument. Outside of Lyse Hext decks where the cantrip feeds a specific engine, it's a narrow piece of countermagic that only matters when an opponent is actively pointing removal at you.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
The Watcher in the Water
The Watcher in the Water needs to survive long enough to accumulate tentacle tokens, and Keep Safe provides cheap reactive protection while keeping your hand from running dry.
Charix, the Raging Isle
Charix, the Raging Isle is a single-target removal magnet that wins through combat, so Keep Safe plugs in as budget countermagic that costs almost nothing and at least replaces itself when an opponent tries to answer the crab.
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, Keep Safe occupies a narrow slot — it only counters spells targeting your own permanents, which means it's dead against board wipes, non-targeting removal, and anything aimed at opponents. The cantrip makes that restriction livable, especially in decks like Lyse Hext that have a mechanical reason to cast cheap instants. In Pauper it competes with Spellstutter Sprite and other cheap interaction that trades less conditional protection for broader coverage. In Legacy, Modern, and Pioneer, the bar for reactive blue spells is high enough that Keep Safe rarely earns a slot outside of very specific protection packages. It's legal across every major format but realistically sees meaningful play in only a small slice of Commander builds.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.15 bulk tier
At $0.15, Keep Safe is bulk — a throwaway pickup you grab by the playset without thinking. Bulk cantrip interaction doesn't tend to spike unless a commander breaks out and drives sudden demand, so don't expect movement.
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Sources
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.