Angelic Intervention

Protection is one of the oldest and most misunderstood keywords in the game, and this instant weaponizes all four of its clauses at once: the target can't be blocked, can't be targeted, can't be damaged, and shrugs off enchantments or equipment carrying the chosen quality. That makes it a combat trick that reads more like a spot-answer to whatever the opponent has committed to. Point it at a lone attacker to slip damage past a full board; cast it in response to a removal spell to strand the mana; declare protection from a blocker's color to force it through. The choice of color (or colorless, folding in artifacts and Eldrazi) is made on resolution, so the card gets to see the threat before it commits, which is what separates a reactive spell like this from a fixed grant such as Mizzium Skin. The +1/+1 counter is the quiet piece that keeps it relevant when the protection clause is redundant: even against a color you don't need to dodge, you're growing your creature permanently rather than casting a spell that does nothing. It's a small rate, but a counter persists past end of turn while the protection expires, which nudges the card toward creatures you plan to keep. Aimed at a planeswalker, the protection still applies, turning a single loyalty-heavy threat into something an opponent's targeted removal and colored damage simply cannot reach for a turn.