The player you target doesn’t have to be the controller of the source that dealt damage to you.

If several sources deal damage to you simultaneously (for example, several attacking creatures), this ability triggers once for each source.

If the damage reduces you to 0 or less life, you lose the game before Circle of Affliction’s ability has a chance to give you life.

Each time a source deals damage to you, you may pay . You can’t pay more than , even if more than 1 damage was dealt.