Enchantment, BBBB (4) As Lich comes into play, your life total becomes 0. You don't lose the game for having 0 or less life. If you would gain life, draw that many cards instead. Whenever you're dealt damage, sacrifice that many permanents. When Lich leaves play, you lose the game.1
Illus. Daniel Gelon
You can lose life and take damage, and thereby have a negative life total, while Lich is in play. [D'Angelo 2001/08/31]
You cannot pay life, just like any player at less than one life cannot pay life. You can pay zero life if you want. [D'Angelo 1998/02/03]
You cannot play this on an opponent. [PPG Page 221]
The phrase "When Lich leaves play, you lose the game" is an absolute statement. Casting a Healing Salve or using some other life gain after the destruction (or other means of leaving play) will not save you. [WotC Rules Team 1994/01/29] Note that you will normally lose when Lich leaves play as a State-Based Effect before you can take any actions because your life total is normally zero or less while you control Lich. If you have a positive life total or are otherwise prevented from losing due to a zero life total, this triggered ability will cause you to lose the game anyway. [D'Angelo 2000/09/09]
If you have multiple Lich cards in play, you must sacrifice a permanent for each damage done to you for each Lich. This is because the sacrifice is a triggered ability (see Rule 404). But you only draw one card for each life gained regardless of how many Liches you have. This is because the draw is a replacement effect (see Rule 419) and not a triggered one. [WotC Rules Team 1996/12/03] You lose if any one of the Liches leaves play.
If you take more than one damage at a time, sacrifice the permanents for that damage simultaneously. [WotC Rules Team 1995/06/15] This allows you to sacrifice both a creature and any enchantment that is on it all at once.
If an opponent steals control of Lich, their life total does not change. The life total changes for a player only when it comes into play under that player's control. [DeLaney 2000/08/19]
If an opponent steals control of Lich and no other effect prevents you from losing with a life total of zero, you will lose the game due to a zero life total as a State-Based Effect before you can take any actions. The last sentence doesn't apply in this case since the Lich didn't leave play. [DeLaney 2000/08/19]
If you are at somehow at negative life points when Lich comes into play, it will try to raise your life total to 0 by making you gain enough life to do so. This life gain, however, will be replaced by you drawing that many cards instead. [DeLaney 2001/09/21]
Extended tournaments (see Rule 803) have always banned this card.
Unlimited Edition
(Rare)