How to Track Life and Commander Damage in Commander

Quick answer: In Commander each player starts at 40 life. You also lose if one commander deals you 21 or more combat damage over the whole game, or if you get 10 poison counters. Track life and each commander’s combat total separately. Update the totals as combat damage is dealt, and say the new numbers out loud. Track damage by commander card, regardless of who owns or controls it.

That habit matters more than which tool you use. Paper, dice, an app, or a dial all work if the table can see the totals and nobody is reconstructing three combat steps from memory.

The numbers you must track

Starting life: 40

Comprehensive Rules 103.4c (and the matching life rule 119.1c): in a Commander game, each player’s starting life total is 40. Most 60-card constructed formats start at 20. If your table is switching from Standard or Arena Brawl into paper Commander, set 40 before the first shuffle—not after someone asks.

Commander damage: 21 combat damage from the same commander

Keep a lifetime combat-damage total for each commander. Reaching 21 from any one commander makes you lose. That matches rules 903.10a, 104.3j, and state-based action 704.6c.

Keep these edges straight:

• Combat damage only. Damage from a commander’s activated or triggered abilities still affects life the usual way. It does not add to the 21 tally.
• Per commander, not combined. Ten from one commander and eleven from another is not a loss under this rule.
• It accumulates all game. Returning the commander to the command zone does not reset the tally. Wizards’ Commander format page states the commander is tracked across zone changes for this purpose, including when control changes.
• Life and infect. Usually, commander combat damage lowers life. With infect, add poison counters instead; the combat damage still counts toward 21 (120.3a–b, 702.90b, 903.10a).
• Partners are separate. Rule 702.124d: when you determine the 21 threshold, consider damage from each of two partner commanders separately. You need two columns for that pair.

Poison: still 10

Rules 104.3d and 704.5c: a player with ten or more poison counters loses. Commander does not raise that number. Two-Headed Giant teams use a different poison threshold (704.6b); that is a different variant, not normal free-for-all Commander.

Commander tax: next cast starts at

Rule 903.8: casting your commander from the command zone costs an additional {2} for each previous time you cast it from there that game. On a tracker, start the next-cast tax at {0}; after each command-zone cast, add {2}. Track casts from the command zone, not every time the card changed zones for other reasons.

You will not need every extra counter every game. When energy, experience, the Monarch, or similar show up, give them their own marker so they do not overwrite life or the 21 tallies.

A table routine that prevents arguments

Use this order. Tools come second.

1. Before the game. Everyone sets life to 40. Each player opens a commander-damage line for each commander that might hit them (extra lines for partners). Track damage by commander card, regardless of who owns or controls it. Agree who is watching poison if an infect or toxic deck is at the table.
2. Announce combat sources. After blockers, say who is dealing what: “Korvold hits you for 9.”
3. Update the right totals at once. Usually subtract from life and add to that commander’s combat total. With infect, add poison instead of lowering life, and still add the combat damage to the 21 tally. Do not save the 21 math for “later.”
4. Call danger zones. As a tracking habit—not a rules threshold—say it once when someone sits at 15+ from one commander, or 7+ poison. The table plans better and catches errors earlier.
5. Track next-cast tax. Start the next-cast tax at {0}. After each cast from the command zone, increase it by {2}. Track each partner separately.

Announce changes while everyone can check them.

Who tracks whose damage?

Tables disagree. Some players want each commander’s controller to announce and track what that commander has dealt. Others track only the damage they have taken. Either system works if one person owns each running total, the number is visible, and updates happen on the spot. The failure mode is everyone assuming someone else wrote it down.

Common mistakes (and how to fix them)

Updating later. Updating later can lead to disputes. Fix: update the totals as combat damage is dealt (combat damage does not use the stack—510.2).

One shared “commander damage” pool. Ten from Atraxa and eleven from someone else do not add to 21. Fix: label columns with commander names, not only player names when partners or stolen commanders show up.

Forgetting infect vs normal combat. Players always subtract life, or they forget the 21 tally when infect replaces life loss. Fix: usually lower life; with infect, add poison instead and still count the combat damage toward 21.

Hidden totals. If only you can read your life, opponents cannot plan and cannot catch a misclick. Fix: face the number toward the table, or keep a shared paper/app in the middle.

Mixing poison into the life dial. Poison is its own loss condition. Fix: separate boxes, dice, or app fields. Our printable sheet below has a 1–10 poison row for that reason.

Assuming the 21 resets when the commander leaves or changes control. It does not. Fix: leave the tally alone when the card blinks, dies, returns to the command zone, or changes controller.

Poison counters: a short tracking subsection

Track poison separately. Proliferate can add another poison counter to a player who already has one; it does not create the first poison counter by itself (701.34a).

• Mark poison in a dedicated row or die. Do not overwrite life.
• As a tracking habit—not a rules threshold—call it when someone hits 7+. At 10 they lose under 104.3d.
• Infect usually replaces life loss with poison; toxic adds a set number of poison counters in addition to the damage’s other results—it is not the same as infect (120.3g, 702.164). Neither changes the official 10-poison loss threshold in Commander. House rules that raise poison to 15 or 20 are table agreements, not the Comprehensive Rules default.

Damage results at a glance (no other relevant effects):

What happened	Life	Poison	That commander’s 21 tally
Ordinary commander deals 3 combat damage	−3	0	+3
Infect commander deals 3 combat damage (no toxic)	0	+3	+3
Toxic 1 commander deals 3 combat damage (no infect)	−3	+1	+3
Non-infect commander ability deals 3 noncombat damage	−3	0	0

If you want a paper layout that already separates life, per-commander combat, and poison, print the free sheet linked at the end of this guide.

Pick a tool after the routine is clear

Paper, dice, apps, and dials can all run the routine above. Tradeoffs in one line:

Method	Strength	Weak spot
Pen and paper / printable grid	History you can audit; cheap	Slower; handwriting must stay readable
Dice / spindowns	Fast, tactile	Easy to bump; a normal spindown tops out at 20
Phone or tablet apps	Built-in commander grids, partners, poison	Battery, lock screen, mis-taps
Physical dial counters	Visible, no battery, holds a set number	Usually one displayed value per counter—you still need extras for each 21 tally or for poison

For a deeper look at paper, spindowns, life pads, and dials—without assuming a phone on the table—see How to Track Commander Life Without a Phone.

If you prefer a mechanical dial for the life total itself, STORKY’s 2-dial counter reads 00–99 (about $9.99 on Amazon). That range covers a 40-life start. It shows one displayed value per counter, so keep commander-damage columns and poison on paper, dice, or a second tracker. The 3-dial version reads 000–999 (about $13.99) when totals climb past 99. Paper and apps remain valid; the dial is optional convenience, not a rule requirement.

Free printable: 4-player life + commander-damage grid

Download the one-page US Letter sheet: Commander Life & Damage Tracker (PDF).

It includes, for each of four players:

• Life box (start 40) plus a change line
• Six commander-damage tracks labeled by commander name (enough for three opponents with partners in many pods)
• Poison checkboxes 1–10
• Next-cast tax row starting at {0}, plus a second tax row for a partner

The sheet has six damage tracks per player. Use another sheet if you need more. Keep each commander’s total separate. That includes your own commander if someone else controls it.

Print black and white. Fill names before game one.

FAQ

How much commander damage makes you lose?

21 or more combat damage from the same commander over the whole game (903.10a). It does not have to be one hit.

Does ability damage from a commander count toward 21?

No. Only combat damage counts toward that total. Ability damage still affects life the usual way (or poison, if the source has infect).

Does infect commander combat still count toward 21?

Yes. Usually that combat damage adds poison instead of lowering life (120.3b, 702.90b). It still counts as combat damage from that commander toward 21 (903.10a).

Do partner commanders share one 21 total?

No. Track each partner separately (702.124d).

Is poison 10 or 20 in Commander?

10 under the Comprehensive Rules (104.3d). Higher numbers are house rules unless you are playing a variant like Two-Headed Giant that states otherwise.

What is commander tax?

Start the next-cast tax at {0}. After each command-zone cast, add {2} to that next-cast tax (903.8). Track each partner separately.

Can I ignore physical trackers and only use an app?

Yes, if the table can see the numbers and you still update on time. Apps fail when the phone locks or someone fat-fingers a total—keep a paper backup if that has bitten your group before.

Key takeaways

1. Start at 40. Lose at 21 combat damage from one commander, or 10 poison.
2. Track damage by commander card, regardless of who owns or controls it; partners get their own lines.
3. Update life (or poison, with infect) and the 21 tally together, as combat damage is dealt.
4. Say dangerous totals out loud.
5. Choose any tool that stays visible.

Next: How to Track Commander Life Without a Phone — paper, dice, spindowns, pads, and dials compared.

References

1. Magic: The Gathering Comprehensive Rules, effective November 6, 2026 — Wizards of the Coast. Rules 103.4c, 119.1c, 104.3d, 104.3j, 120.3a–b, 120.3g, 510.2, 701.34a, 702.90b, 702.124d, 702.164, 704.5c, 704.6c, 903.8, 903.10a. PDF: https://media.wizards.com/2026/downloads/MagicCompRules%2020261106.pdf
2. MTG Commander Format — Wizards of the Coast. Starting life 40; commander damage tracked across zone changes / control. https://magic.wizards.com/en/formats/commander
3. STORKY product specs (2-dial 00–99 ~$9.99; 3-dial 000–999 ~$13.99; one displayed value per counter) — internal product notes from Amazon listing checks, 2026-11-04. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FP1PQG7L