Manaward is a magic spell in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. It is the second spell provided by 
Barrier Materia. It grants the 
Manaward effect, which halves magic damage taken for its duration.
Though 
Shell also exists, it has a different function, wherein Shell simply improves the user's 
Magic Defense while Manaward halves the incoming damage. The two effects are also multiplicative of each other.
Manaward is also used by Moss-Grown Adamantoise.
Use[]
Manaward costs 14 MP to cast. It grants a protective status that halves magic damage for its duration. This can be combined with other means of resisting magic damage. The spell is fairly expensive, but can be vital against magic attacks that may otherwise kill party members, especially since 
Reflect is reserved for enemies.
Manaward is outclassed by Manawall, which also applies the 
Barrier effect. Manawall, however, is much more expensive to cast, meaning players may prefer to simply cast Manaward if they only need to protect against magic damage. Shell also has a similar role to Manaward, and is cheaper to cast; in some cases, players may wish to cast both.
Manaward can be used effectively when barrier materia is paired with 
Magnify Materia. This allows the user to apply the status to all party members at once, often a perfect use case for magnify materia.
Manaward can be helpful with parties including Barret. His Lifesaver ability diverts damage intended for other party members onto himself, but reducing their damage taken means he will also take reduced damage from them.