Relic Barrier
Artifact
: Tap target artifact.
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- C
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Legends
- Price
- $10.13
- EDHREC rank
- #23387
Relic Barrier taps any artifact at instant speed for one colorless mana — a repeatable, low-investment way to shut down mana rocks, vehicles, or static-ability engines turn after turn. It's narrow but cheap enough that in the right shell it punches well above its mana cost.
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 | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Relic Barrier is legal in Commander, Legacy, Modern, Vintage, and Oathbreaker, but it only sees real play in Commander, where the multiplayer table gives you enough artifact targets to justify the slot. In Legacy and Vintage the power level is too high and the effect too slow — one tap per turn doesn't disrupt combo decks that win on the stack. Modern has moved past the effect entirely; Relic Barrier simply can't keep pace with the format's speed. In Commander it earns its seat specifically in artifact-heavy metas where tapping down a Gilded Lotus or a Crawlspace on someone's end step is a genuine tempo swing.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Budget Alternatives
Cheaper options that do most of the same work
Relic Barrier's closest budget analog is Icy Manipulator, which hits any permanent type rather than just artifacts — more flexibility at a comparable or lower price point, though it costs one more to activate. If you need the artifact restriction specifically (for tribal synergies or thematic reasons), Relic Barrier is the card; otherwise Icy Manipulator is the upgrade.
Price Context
Current price
$10.13 mid tier
At $10.13, Relic Barrier sits in mid-tier territory — notable for an effect this narrow, driven almost entirely by collector demand for the original printing rather than competitive necessity. The price doesn't reflect raw power, so if budget is a concern, functional alternatives exist for far less.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.