What it does
Fading represents a built-in timer on permanents. A creature or permanent with Fading enters with a set number of fade counters. During your upkeep, you remove one fade counter—but if you can't (because there are none left), you sacrifice the permanent. So a creature with Fading 3 gives you three upkeeps of use before it dies on the fourth.
The nuance people get wrong: Fading checks happen on your upkeep, and you sacrifice when you can't remove a counter, not when it hits zero. That means a Fading 3 creature actually survives through three of your upkeeps, dying on the upkeep where it has no counters to remove. Also, this is removal you can't easily prevent—it's a sacrifice, not "destroy."
In Commander, Fading is rare and mostly seen on older cards offering powerful effects with a guaranteed expiration. Use proliferate or counter-doubling to extend their lifespan, since adding fade counters delays the sacrifice.
Iconic cards with Fading
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