How does indestructible work in MTG?

Indestructible in Magic: The Gathering (MTG) is a keyword ability that prevents a permanent, typically a creature, from being destroyed by damage or effects that specifically say “destroy“. When a creature has indestructible, it cannot be killed by lethal damage and ignores the state-based action that checks for lethal damage, making it highly resilient on the battlefield.

Understanding Indestructible

What is Indestructible?

Indestructible is a powerful ability that makes a permanent nearly unkillable, but it does not prevent damage from being dealt to it. This means that an indestructible creature can still take damage and have its toughness reduced, but it will not be destroyed as a result of that damage.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Do indestructible creatures still take damage? Yes, indestructible creatures can still take damage, but this damage will not destroy them, and effects like lifelink will still apply.

2. Can you kill an indestructible creature by blocking? Indestructible creatures can be blocked, but lethal damage from combat will not destroy them; however, damage from sources with Infect or Wither will still place -1/-1 counters on them.

3. Does indestructible protect from board wipes? It depends on the effect of the board wipe; if it destroys or damages creatures, indestructible creatures would be unaffected, but if it exiles or gives -X/-X to creatures, they would be affected.

4. What IS Indestructible? Indestructible is a keyword ability that prevents a permanent from being destroyed by damage or effects that say “destroy“.

5. Does Deathtouch beat indestructible? No, indestructible creatures also ignore deathtouch, as they cannot be destroyed by any means, including deathtouch.

6. What destroys indestructible? Nothing can destroy an indestructible permanent through conventional means like damage or “destroy” effects, but it can be affected by other means such as exiling or sacrificing.

7. Does Hexproof stop Deathtouch? No, hexproof does not prevent deathtouch because deathtouch does not target.

8. Does Deathtouch affect indestructible creatures? No, indestructible creatures are immune to deathtouch because they cannot be destroyed.

9. Can indestructible creatures block Deathtouch? Yes, indestructible creatures can block creatures with deathtouch without being destroyed.

10. Does indestructible work on Planeswalkers? Planeswalkers with indestructible will still have loyalty counters removed as they take damage, and if they have no loyalty counters, they will be put into their owner’s graveyard.

11. Does first strike beat Deathtouch? A creature with first strike can potentially kill a deathtouch creature before it deals damage, preventing the deathtouch effect from applying.

12. Does sacrifice go through indestructible? Yes, indestructible does not prevent a permanent from being sacrificed, as sacrificing does not destroy the permanent in the traditional sense.

13. Does Deathtouch bypass indestructible MTG? No, indestructible creatures are immune to deathtouch because they cannot be destroyed by any means.

14. Is Hexproof or indestructible better? Both are powerful effects, but they have different vulnerabilities; indestructible falls prey to exiling and sacrificing, while hexproof is vulnerable to non-targeting destroy effects.

15. Does trample go through indestructible? Yes, trample can still assign excess damage to the player if the blocking creature is indestructible, as trample only requires assigning lethal damage to the blocker, not destroying it.