How to get rid of enchantments in MTG

Looking to get rid of enchantments in MTG? Enchantments are one of the main permanent types in Magic: The Gathering.

They come in many forms such as Auras, Curses, Sagas, and more. Many powerful enchantment cards see widespread play in every format, from Standard up to Vintage. Since enchantments are so common in Magic, it is important to know how to get rid of enchantments. There are many ways to do so, and this guide will walk you through all the possibilities. If you want to expand your selection, check out the best MTG Commander Precons. We’ve also got a list of the best Wilds of Eldraine Commanders in MTG.

Targeted Removal in MTG

The easiest and most well-known way to remove enchantments is with cards that specifically destroy or exile enchantments. They have been around just as long as enchantments have. In general, you do not want to spend over two mana to use an effect like this since any more than that is generally too expensive to play. There are so many enchantment removal cards available in Magic that every format has good two-mana options unless they are doing something besides destroying an enchantment you shouldn’t be dipping below ones that cost two or fewer mana.

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Commander’s Best Removal

While you do not want to dip into cards with too high a mana cost, there are some that cost three mana that are quite useful in the Commander format. Krosan Grip is the prime example. It can destroy an enchantment but has split second, meaning that any other spell or abilities can not respond to it so long as it is on the stack (unless they are mana abilities).

Since enchantments are permanent, any card that can destroy permanents can also remove enchantments. If you have the option of playing these over ones that specifically target enchantments they are almost always better. This is because they are less likely to be a dead card in your hand as they can deal with problem artifacts, creatures, and planeswalkers on top of enchantments.

Cheap spells that target any permanent are fairly rare and usually come with a cost, such as discarding a card or sacrificing a creature. Luckily, some decks want to be doing this anyway so this downside is more of a benefit. 

How to deal with Hexproof Enchantments in MTG

There are cases where an enchantment can have hexproof or shroud, which prevents them from being able to be targeted. There are not many enchantments that have hexproof themselves, but there are plenty of ways that can give protection to enchantments. This shuts down traditional removal methods from being used on them. However, there are other ways to get rid of enchantments with protection. 

The way to get around this is by forcing your opponent to sacrifice an enchantment. If they only have one enchantment, it forces them to send it to the graveyard. The downside with these effects is that if they have multiple enchantments they can choose which one they get rid of so they can sacrifice the one that is doing the least amount of work. 

If there is a creature enchanted with an Aura, you can get rid of the Aura by getting rid of the creature. This can be done with removal on the creature or by sacrificing it (depending on which creature is enchanted). 

What colors can remove enchantments in MTG

Some colors are better than others at removing enchantments. To keep the color wheel balanced, some colors are not given access to certain types of removal to have pros and cons for every color. 

The two colors with the most unconditional enchantment removal are white and green. These both have no shortages of strong removal options at instant and sorcery speed that can take care of any problem enchantment. 

Black can remove enchantments, generally by making your opponent sacrifice them. There is a very small number of cards that can directly remove enchantments. All of them cost too much mana to see play except for Feed The Swarm, which can also remove a creature at the cost of losing life equal to the mana value of the permanent you removed. 

Blue has no way to permanently remove enchantments. However, they can temporarily give them no abilities or return them back to the hand. Blue’s way of removing enchantments is on the stack with counterspells to make sure they never hit the battlefield in the first place. Blue can also put permanents back into the library. It usually only puts them on the top of the library. Blue’s method of enchantment removal is keeping them off the battlefield and making your opponent sacrifice tempo if they want to cast it again. 

Red has close to no way to deal with enchantments. It does not have access to any specific enchantment removals. The only way to remove them is with a card like Chaos Warp or Chaotic Transformation that shuffles away a target permanent and replaces them. In fact, red is so bad at removing enchantments that most cards explicitly exclude enchantments as a part of what they can remove. If you are in Mono-Red, you have to utilize colorless options for enchantment removal if you want to keep them off the battlefield.

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Red’s Enchantment Removal Legality

The only cards that can remove enchantments in Mono-Red are Chaos Warp, Wild Magic Surge, and Chaotic Transformation. These are not legal in any format except for Legacy, Vintage, and Commander. These are all two-for-one spells and too slow to see play in them outside of Commander.

With that, you now know all the ways you can get rid of enchantments. Enchantments are among the strongest permanent types in all of Magic and they see play in every format. It is important to have answers to them in all your decks, especially in the sideboard since you never know when it will come up. An enchantment like Blood Moon can prevent your deck from functioning. So you always want to come prepared with ways to get rid of enchantments. In Commander, enchantments are the cornerstone of Stax decks. If you want to be able to play the game, having removal for them is vital. Our best MTG Commander Decks will give you a headstart. And if you’re new to the game mode, here’s how to play Commander in MTG.

Get rid of enchantments MTG FAQs

Is enchantment a permanent in MTG?

Yes, an enchantment is a permanent.

How to use enchantments in MTG?

Just like any other spell, pay their mana cost to use them.