Spectra Ward is an interesting Aura Enchantment card from the Magic 2015 Core Set. It costs 3WW to cast to give the enchanted creature +2/+2 and protection from all colors. It also notes that this effect does not remove Auras already attached to that creature. This is relevant considering that otherwise the auras would “fall off.”
Typically, five mana is a rather high casting cost for an Enchant Creature card. However, protection from all colors does make the enchanted creature unable to be blocked by anything but colorless artifact creatures. Also, +2/+2 isn’t a bad boost. In a world where mana-efficient auras like Ethereal Armor and Aqueous Form see lots of play, especially in Commander, this is far above the curve. But it’s that clause about not affecting existing auras that’s so important, and this is why it sees play in Commander.
Bruna, Light of Alabaster adopted Spectra Ward almost as soon as the Enchantment was spoiled. Despite already having plenty of ways to give Bruna protection from opponent’s spells and the ability to be unblockable, redundancy is actually a good thing in Commander. One extremely important thing to note is that Spectra Ward does interfere with being able to place any more Auras onto her, even around Bruna’s rather unique ability.
Bruna’s ability to attach Auras from your hand, graveyard or battlefield to herself ignores many things, such as having shroud which ordinarily prevents a card from being targeted by anything. However, protection makes any card of any color ineligible to be attached to her in anyway. So, the only cards that can be attached to her after that would have to be colorless. Fortunately, there is one that sees a lot of play alongside Bruna in Eldrazi Conscription. Besides that convenient exception, it’s important to be careful when you place Spectra Ward on Bruna, since no other colored Auras will be able to attach to her after that.
Other Commanders that have made use of Spectra Ward include Aura-happy Legendary Creatures such as Krond the Dawn-Clad, Uril the Miststalker, Anax and Cymede, Daxos of Meletis, Sigarda, Host of Herons, Geist of Saint Traft and others. Narset, Enlightened Master has also used Spectra Ward as a way to protect herself, since her win conditions revolve around playing powerful non-creature spells that don’t necessarily have to be Auras.
While you have to time your plays correctly for Spectra Ward to be most useful, this five-mana Aura can be the final piece that you need for your Commander to deal a lethal blow. Outside of Commander, though, it’s just a bit too high on the mana curve to be effective.
