Beginner Series
How Combat Works
The combat phase gets one line in most turn-structure overviews, but it's where most beginner mistakes happen. Declaring attackers and blockers, who assigns damage to whom, and how first strike, deathtouch, and trample change the math.
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The basics
Attacking is optional, one creature at a time. The active player chooses which untapped, non-summoning-sick creatures they control attack, and who or what they attack (a player, or a planeswalker/battle they control). Blocking is optional too, and it belongs to the defending player: for each attacker, they decide whether any of their untapped creatures block it.
One combat, from attackers to damage
Two attackers, one blocker: the same combat damage step sends damage to two different places.
An unblocked attacker deals its combat damage straight to whatever it's attacking. A blocked attacker deals its damage to its blocker(s) instead. The defending player takes none of it, unless something (like trample) says otherwise. That last part is where most of the interesting rules live.
The bigger creature always wins combat.
Power and toughness matter, but deathtouch overrides them completely: any nonzero damage from a deathtouch source is treated as lethal. A 1/1 with deathtouch trades with anything. Combat math is about keywords as much as stats.
The official rule
Combat is section 5 of the Comprehensive Rules, steps 508–510. The keyword abilities that change how damage gets assigned are defined separately, in rule 702.
Comprehensive Rules · Rule 509.1a
"The defending player checks each creature they control to see whether it's affected by any restrictions... Then the defending player declares blockers by choosing, for each of those creatures, whether it blocks. A creature that's attacking can be blocked by more than one creature."
Comprehensive Rules · Rule 510.1c
"A blocked creature that has no creatures blocking it as the combat damage step begins assigns no combat damage, unless it has trample... A blocking creature assigns its combat damage... it can't assign combat damage to a creature that's blocking it unless, when combat damage assignments are complete, each creature that precedes that blocking creature in its order is assigned lethal damage."
Comprehensive Rules · Rule 702.7b
"If at least one attacking or blocking creature has first strike or double strike as the combat damage step begins, the only creatures that assign combat damage in that step are those with first strike or double strike. After that step, instead of proceeding to the end of combat step, the phase gets a second combat damage step..."
Comprehensive Rules · Rule 702.2c
"Any nonzero amount of combat damage assigned to a creature by a source with deathtouch is considered to be lethal damage for the purposes of determining if excess damage is being dealt, unless that source has both deathtouch and infect."
Comprehensive Rules · Rule 702.19b
"The controller of an attacking creature with trample first assigns damage to the creature(s) blocking it. Once all those blocking creatures are assigned lethal damage, the attacking creature's controller assigns the rest of its combat damage to the player or planeswalker it's attacking."
Examples
Two creatures blocking one attacker
A 5/5 blocked by a 2/2 and a 1/3. The attacker chooses the order, and must assign lethal damage to the first before any reaches the second.
Multi-block: two creatures gang up on one attacker
You attack with a 5/5. Your opponent blocks with a 2/2 and a 1/3, so both are now blocking the same attacker.
Before damage, you (the attacking player) announce a damage assignment order for the two blockers: say, the 2/2 first, then the 1/3.
You must assign lethal damage (2) to the 2/2 before you're allowed to assign any of your remaining 3 damage to the 1/3.
The 2/2 and 1/3 both deal their combat damage back to your 5/5 at the same time (2 + 1 = 3 total), not enough to kill it.
Double strike: two damage steps, not one
A 1/1 with double strike, blocked by a 1/1. The first-strike step kills the blocker before it ever deals damage.
First strike skips a step of damage entirely
Your 2/2 first strike creature blocks an opponent's 2/2 with no keywords.
Because a first-strike creature is involved, combat gets a first-strike damage step before the regular one.
Your creature deals its 2 damage now. The opponent's 2/2 dies as a state-based action before it ever assigns damage back.
The regular combat damage step still happens, but there's nothing left on the other side to deal it.
Deathtouch: any damage at all is lethal
A 9/9 blocked by a 1/1 with deathtouch. One point of damage is enough, so both creatures die.
Trample: the excess carries through
A 6/6 with trample blocked by a 2/2. Two damage is all the blocker needs; the other four reach the player.
Deathtouch + trample, together
Your 5/5 with deathtouch and trample attacks. It's blocked by a 3/3.
Deathtouch means any nonzero damage to the blocker counts as lethal, so you only need to assign 1 damage to the 3/3, not 3.
The remaining 4 damage tramples over to the defending player, since the blocker has already been assigned lethal damage.
Without deathtouch, you'd have needed to assign all 3 damage to kill the blocker, leaving only 2 to trample over.
How to take advantage of it
Combat math is the single most common place new players lose value they didn't need to lose.
Order your blockers to minimize losses. When you control the damage assignment order (as the attacker) or choose how many creatures to commit (as the blocker), think about what you can afford to lose. Don't throw a creature into a block just because you can.
Respect small deathtouch creatures. A 1/1 with deathtouch is a real threat to your 6/6. Attacking or blocking into it trades your bomb for their one-drop unless you have a way around it (fight it with something expendable first, or just don't attack).
First strike wins damage races. All else equal, a first strike creature beats an equivalent non-first-strike creature in combat every time, because it deals its damage first and the other creature might not survive to deal any back.
Trample punishes chump blocking. If your board is full of big trampling threats, small chump blockers stop being a real answer. Factor that in before assuming a token or two will hold the ground.
Should I block this attacker?
1. Does the attacker have deathtouch or lethal power?
2. Do I win or trade favorably if I block?
Cards & commanders that spotlight combat
A few cards that exist specifically to bend the rules above in your favor.
First strike, deathtouch, and trample enablers
Basilisk Collar ↗
Cheap deathtouch (plus lifelink) equipment. Even a 1/1 wearing it threatens to trade with anything that blocks or attacks it.
Loxodon Warhammer ↗
Trample and lifelink for three mana. Turns a ground stall into a clock, since chump blocking stops working.
True Conviction ↗
Gives your whole team first strike, trample, and lifelink at once, the cleanest single card demonstration of all three keywords stacking together.
Commander built around combat damage
Commander Spotlight
Xenagos, God of Revels ↗
Gives a creature haste and doubles its power for the turn, and if it isn't your turn, that creature also gains double strike. A direct lesson in why the first-strike damage step matters: double strike means that same power total gets dealt twice.
Every combat, logged automatically.
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