What do a Nokia phone, a diamond and a Darksteel Colossus have in common? They all are (or ‘have’) indestructible.

Indestructible is a returning keyword in M15. Indestructible makes it so that a creature can not be destroyed. This means, the creature can not be killed by damage or by any effect that says “destroy”.

There are a few ways to get rid of an indestructible creature. The first way to remove one is through an exile effect. Exiling is not destroying a creature, so it will get around indestructible. Another way to to remove an indestructible creature is through use of an effect that reduces its toughness to 0 or less. This means effects like Bile Blight or -1/-1 counters. Both of these methods are ways to assure yourself that the opponent’s creature will be vanquished, even if indestructible.

Remember that damage doesn’t reduce toughness, so dealing 2 damage to Sliver Hivelord and THEN giving it -3/-3 with Bile Blight isn’t going to do anything special. It will simply be a 2/2 creature with 2 damage marked on it, which won’t destroy it because it’s indestructible.

Remember that “indestructible” was redefined as a keyword ability last year, similar to flying or lifelink. This is a (minor) functional change because it means a creature that gains indestructible can also lose indestructible. So now, whether a creature has “Indestructible” printed on it or it gained indestructible from something like Ephemeral Shield, removing all abilities from that creature gives the same end result. For example, if you cast Turn to Frog on Sliver Hivelord, then block it with a 2/2, it will die because it loses its printed ability that makes slivers indestructible when Turn to Frog resolves (so none of the slivers will be indestructible). If your opponent casts Ephemeral Shield on a Preeminent Captain, then you cast Turn to Frog and block it with a 2/2, it will die because it loses the indestructible it gained from Ephemeral Shield when Turn to Frog resolves.

Today’s Rules Tip written by James Arriola