Palace Guard
Creature — Human Soldier
This creature can block any number of creatures.
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- W
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Magic 2010
- Price
- $0.16
- EDHREC rank
- #17476
Palace Guard blocks any number of creatures, making it a legitimate speed bump against go-wide aggro — but a 1/3 body for three mana that does nothing on offense is a tough sell in most formats. It earns a slot only in dedicated white lifegain or soldier strategies that specifically need a defensive anchor.
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, Palace Guard is a niche defensive piece — it shines in multiplayer pods where one opponent is running a token swarm and you need a single blocker to hold the fort without trading one-for-one repeatedly. Outside of that specific role, three mana for a 1/3 with no offensive presence is below rate for the format. In Pauper, the calculus is slightly better given the lower power ceiling, but dedicated defensive white commons with more upside still compete hard for the same slot. Legacy and Vintage are non-starters — Palace Guard has no business in those formats. Oathbreaker mirrors the Commander read: playable only if your meta demands it.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.16 bulk tier
At $0.16, Palace Guard is deep bulk — you're not paying for power, you're paying for cardboard. There's no price pressure driving it up, and nothing about its role suggests that changes.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.