Defender in MTG: Rules, History, and FAQ

Last updated on January 31, 2026

Sylvan Caryatid | Illustration by Chase Stone

You’re likely looking for ways to attack your opponent ruthlessly and with no quarter when building a deck. But have you ever thought about not attacking? Weird, right?

Some cards are like that. They have restrictions placed on them in their text that prevent them from attacking, but still allow them to defend you or use their abilities. That’s what we call the defender mechanic, and that’s what today is all about.

So, let’s take a look at it!

How Does Defender Work?

Pramikon, Sky Rampart | Illustration by Richard Wright

Put simply, defender is a static keyword ability that says that the creature with defender can’t attack. The creature in question can still block or use its abilities, but it can’t go on the offensive.

The History of Defender in MTG

Defender was first introduced as an evergreen keyword when Champions of Kamigawa released in October 2004, summarizing the mechanic that had been around since Alpha. While the keyword was introduced here, it was only retroactively applied to all walls since they all have the “walls cannot attack” rules text.

The first cards with defender actually in their text were printed when Betrayers of Kamigawa came around in February 2005. These cards were Opal-Eye, Konda's Yojimbo, Kaijin of the Vanishing Touch, and Traproot Kami.

There are now tons of cards printed with defender in their text, whether they actually have the ability or just interact with it. There are more than 350 cards that have the mechanic including the walls that were given defender when the keyword was created. It’s reprinted in most, if not all, sets since its conception.

Can a Creature with Defender Attack?

No, defender specifically says that the defender creature can’t attack.

What Cards Let You Attack with Defenders?

There's a subset of cards with effects that let you attack with defenders, usually templated as “X can attack as though it didn't have defender.” It's a common line used on defensive filler creatures in Limited, like Platypus-Bear, but let's look at the effects that give this freedom to your defenders more universally:

• Animate Wall
• Arcades, the Strategist
• Assault Formation
• Felothar the Steadfast
• High Alert
• Rolling Stones
• The Pride of Hull Clade
• Wakestone Gargoyle
• Walking Bulwark
• Warmonger's Chariot

Also note that removing abilities from a creature gets rid of defender, so an effect like Dress Down or a bestowed Trickster's Elk would allow a defender to attack.

Is Wall the Same as Defender?

No, while all walls have defender since the cards were errata’d to have the keyword, “wall” is a creature type so it’s not technically the same as defender. All walls have defender, but wall refers to a creature type, not the keyword.

Do Walls Have Defender?

Yes, defender is a keyword summarizing text that was already on walls, so they’ve always had the defender effect even before the keyword was added to the game.

How Does Defense/Toughness Work on a Defender?

Escarpment Fortress | Illustration by Vaigintas Pakenis

The number to the right of the “/” in the lower-right is a creature's toughness and represents how much damage that creature can take before it dies (if it hits 0 or less). Defender creatures often have high toughness to absorb attacks; the best part is that at the end of the turn, the damage goes away for the start of the next turn.

Is There a Way to Give Creatures Defender?

Yes, a few cards give defender to creatures. Take Guard Duty for example, this grants defender to a creature as half of a Pacifism. One of the only ways to give it to several of your creatures is Dormant Sliver.

Can a Defender Fight?

Yes, defenders can’t attack, but that’s not going to stop them from throwing hands, bricks, or ice. Fighting has nothing to do with the combat phase or combat rules at all. Defender only prevents the creature from being declared as an attacker, which doesn’t happen with fight effects like Ancient Animus, Pit Fight, and Longstalk Brawl.

Can a Defender Block Flying Creatures?

A defender can only block flying creatures if it has flying or reach or any other text stating that it can. One of the underrated ways to use defender is on offense. You can win with fliers while Sky Tether essentially becomes a 1-mana Pacifism.

Do Defender Creatures Have to Block?

No, defender doesn’t force you to block with the creature that has it. You can opt not to block with defender creatures the same as any other.

If I Give Power to a 0-Power Defender, Can It Attack?

No, regardless of power, a creature with defender cannot attack. That power is useful if you can declare it as a blocker.

Can Defenders Crew, Saddle, or Station?

Yes, defenders can still crew, saddle, or station and use their abilities since those don’t count as being declared as an attacker. Just remember that tapped creatures can't block.

Many defenders have 0 power, so they likely won't be able to crew a vehicle by themselves. That said, they can always be tapped in addition to other creatures with the appropriate crew values.

Can You Ninjutsu a Creature with Defender?

Yes, in the event that you manage to get a defender to attack, then you can absolutely use them to ninjutsu something in.

Can You Goad a Creature With Defender?

Yes, as long as the defender creature is a legal target of the goad spell, there's nothing stopping you from goading it. That said, the defender restriction still prevents it from attacking. The defender is conflicted between two stipulations: Defender says it can't attack, and goad says it must attack someone other than you if able. That “if able” is a big deal; in Magic, restrictions trump obligations, so defender essentially overrides goad, and the goaded defender will simply not attack during combat. Hey, this might still matter for something like Bothersome Quasit, who knows?

Notable Defender Cards

The Pride of Hull Clade is a legendary croco-turtle-elk that converts the toughness across your creatures into massive cost reduction. After that the activated ability can start weaponizing your defenders, and shares similar space with a few defender commanders that turn toughness into your offense like Felothar the Steadfast, Doran, the Siege Tower, or Arcades, the Strategist.

Overgrown Battlement is a real workhorse for defender decks, taps for absurd amounts of mana once you've got your walls in place, and can produce infinite combos with the right combination of untap effects. You see Thermo-Alchemist in storm decks since its strength comes from its ability rather than its stats.

Pramikon, Sky Rampart has table-warping impact that is more powerful than goad. Fire Navy Trebuchet is one of a class of defenders that launch one-time use creatures to attack.

Toughness matters. In the same year WotC printed two cards with 20 toughness, (Ancient Adamantoise and Dawnsire, Sunstar Dreadnought), The Walls of Ba Sing Se stand up with the greatest toughness on a card outside of an Un-set.

In Defense of Defender

Arcades, the Strategist | Illustration by Even Amundsen

Defender is a bit silly as a mechanic, but nowhere near a bad one. Sure, it’s not popularly used outside of formats with high creative freedom like Commander or hard restrictions like Pauper, but it has a huge design space thanks to how much it limits a card.

I hope defender never rotates out of being evergreen. It has a very specific place in Magic’s design space and the game wouldn’t feel the same without it.

So now it's your turn. Do you have any favorite defender cards? Maybe you play Pramikon or Arcades in Commander and want to share a story? Or you might have more questions about the mechanic in general. Whatever the case, the comment section along with Draftsim’s Discord are open for you to discuss.

I had fun with this today so stay safe, and I’ll see you all next time!