Riftbound Frequently Asked Questions

Ruling: No, you cannot use Not So Fast to counter Thousand-Tailed Watcher's ability because the ability does not "choose" or target specific units. Not So Fast requires the enemy spell or ability to choose a friendly unit or gear, but Thousand-Tailed Watcher applies a blanket effect to all enemy units simultaneously without choosing them. Nuances: - You cannot counter the Watcher unit itself being played, as units resolve immediately and do not stay on the chain - While you cannot use Not So Fast, you can still react to the Watcher's "When you play me" trigger with other reaction-speed cards before the -3 Might penalty resolves - This ruling is consistent with similar global effect abilities like Brynhir Thundersong

Ruling: No. Not So Fast can only counter an enemy spell or ability that chooses a friendly unit or gear (one you control). When your opponent plays Heedless Resurrection, they choose a unit from their own trash, which is an enemy unit to you, not a friendly one. Nuances: - The spell must be both an enemy spell AND target your units/gear for Not So Fast to counter it. - If you play Heedless Resurrection yourself, it is not an enemy spell and therefore also cannot be countered by your own Not So Fast.

Ruling: No, you cannot use Not So Fast to counter another Not So Fast. Not So Fast targets spells and abilities, not units or gear, so it cannot be a legal target for another Not So Fast. Sequence: - Attacker attacks - Defender plays Janna (unit enters battlefield) - Janna's play effect triggers and targets attacker's unit - Attacker plays Not So Fast targeting Janna's play effect - Defender cannot play Not So Fast to counter the attacker's Not So Fast Nuances: - When Not So Fast counters a unit's play effect, the unit still enters the battlefield; only the ability is countered - When countering an ability with multiple effects (like Janna's heal and target), the entire ability is countered, not just one part

Ruling: Yes, you can use Not So Fast to target Overzealous Fan's ability because it targets a friendly unit. However, if you use Not So Fast, the opponent will never have the choice to kill Overzealous Fan. Sequence: - Not So Fast can only be used before Fan's trigger resolves - If Not So Fast is used, the ability is countered and the opponent never gets the choice to kill Fan - If the ability is allowed to resolve, the opponent can choose to kill Fan to move a unit, but there is no opportunity to use Not So Fast at that point Nuances: - You cannot wait to see if the opponent chooses to kill Fan before using Not So Fast - the window to use Not So Fast is before the trigger resolves

No, you cannot use the legend ability of **Pyke (Bloodharbor Ripper)** during a showdown. ### Ruling Activated abilities can only be activated during your turn when the game state is Open (the chain is empty), unless they possess the **[Action]** or **[Reaction]** keyword. Because the legend ability of Pyke lacks these keywords, it is not legally timed for use during a showdown, regardless of whether you are attacking or defending. ### Reasoning * **Ability Timing:** According to the rules for activated abilities, they must have a speed keyword—**[Action]** or **[Reaction]**—to be used during a showdown (Rule 347, Rule 813). * **Showdown State:** During a showdown, players are restricted to playing spells or activating abilities that are legally timed for that state. As documented in numerous precedents (e.g., RiftJudge FAQs #8584 and #9120 regarding Jax, and #2659 regarding Viktor), legend abilities without these specific keywords cannot be activated mid-showdown. * **Pyke's Ability:** The ability "[1], [T] : Return a friendly unit..." does not contain the **[Action]** or **[Reaction]** keyword. Consequently, it is subject to the general restriction that prevents its use during a showdown. Note: I could not fully verify this ruling against the retrieved rules.

Ruling: You cannot use Repeat after Hard Bargain has been put on the chain. You must decide when initially playing Hard Bargain whether to pay the additional cost for Repeat. Sequence: - When playing Hard Bargain, decide whether to pay for Repeat - If you choose Repeat, you can target the initial spell (forcing higher cost to avoid cancellation) - You cannot add Repeat retroactively after the spell is on the chain Nuances: - If you Repeat Hard Bargain targeting the first spell, the opponent would need to pay more to avoid cancellation, but if they have a backup spell, the Repeat may not help

Ruling: No, Repulse cannot be used to counter Atakhan's "When I attack" ability. Atakhan's ability does not choose a unit; it forces the defending player to kill one of their units, which means it does not meet Repulse's requirement to counter an ability that "chooses" a unit. Nuances: - Repulse specifically requires countering an ability that chooses a unit - Atakhan's ability targets the player and makes them perform an action, rather than choosing the unit itself - The distinction is between an ability that chooses a unit versus an ability that forces a player to make a choice

Ruling: You can react to Temporary's triggered ability with Retreat. You cannot use reactions during phases (including Awaken phase) unless something is on the chain. Nuances: - Reactions require a trigger that starts a chain; phases alone do not provide this trigger - The Temporary effect happens during the Beginning phase, not Awaken phase

Ruling: Yes, you can use Retreat on a recruit token and channel 1 rune from it. The token does go to your hand but ceases to exist immediately after moving there. Sequence: - The recruit token moves to your hand - The token ceases to exist immediately after entering the hand zone - You channel 1 rune as normal from the Retreat effect Nuances: - The token going to hand (before ceasing to exist) matters for effects that trigger when permanents move to specific zones - The token is not banished; it simply ceases to exist - This distinction is relevant for potential future "when you banish" effects

Ruling: You can use Retreat on a recruit token, but the recruit will dissolve and go to the recruit pile. Nuances: - Tokens cannot exist in hand, the deck, the trash, or anywhere else that's not the board

Ruling: You can play Retreat as a reaction to Cull before Cull resolves, but not while Cull is resolving. Sequence: - If you only have one unit, you can Retreat it in response to Cull, leaving no units to kill - If you have more than one unit, something will die even if you Retreat one unit Nuances: - The timing matters: Retreat must be played as a reaction before Cull resolves, not during its resolution

Ruling: No, you cannot use Retreat to save a unit in response to its deathknell trigger. By the time the deathknell trigger is placed on the chain, the unit has already been moved to the trash during cleanup, so Retreat cannot target it. Sequence: - Unit receives lethal damage - Deathknell triggers (pending) - During cleanup, units with lethal damage are moved to trash - Deathknell effect finalizes and goes on the chain - At this point, you can react to the deathknell trigger with other reactions, but the unit is already in the trash and cannot be targeted by Retreat Nuances: - You can always react to deathknells on the chain with other reaction-speed effects that don't target the dead unit - Hidden cards work differently in combat showdowns: during a combat showdown, control of a battlefield cannot be lost while contested status is applied, so hidden cards remain available to react to deathknells. Outside of combat showdowns, control is lost immediately when your last unit dies, causing hidden cards to be trashed before you can use them - Replacement effects like Hourglass (Zhonyas) can save a unit from dying if already active before the unit would be trashed, which prevents the deathknell from finalizing. However, activating Hourglass in response to the deathknell trigger is too late to save the unit

To determine if you can use **Ride the Wind** on an ally's unit, we must look at the game's definition of "friendly." According to **Rule 740.1**, "Two Game Objects are **friendly** if they share a controller, or if one’s controller is teammates with the other’s." Since **Ride the Wind** specifically targets a "friendly unit" and you are teammates with your ally, their units count as friendly to you. Therefore, **yes, you can use Ride the Wind to move and ready a unit controlled by your teammate.** Keep in mind that this is subject to standard multiplayer restrictions—for example, you cannot use this to move their units if you are in a 1v1 game, as you would not have a teammate. Additionally, ensure the battlefield you are moving the unit to is a valid destination based on the game's movement and combat rules.

Ruling: Yes, you can use Ride the Wind to move a non-ganking unit from one Battlefield to another Battlefield because this is not a Standard Move. Nuances: - Targeting for Ride the Wind (and spells in general) occurs on cast, not on resolution.

Ruling: Yes, you can use Ride the Wind (or any spell/ability that moves units) to move directly from one battlefield to another battlefield. Nuances: - The restriction on battlefield-to-battlefield movement only applies to standard moves, not to movement from card effects - Invalid move locations include another player's base, or your own base if the unit is at a location like Vilemaw - Units without ganking cannot standard move between battlefields, but can be moved between battlefields by spell/ability effects

Ruling: Yes, you can use Ride the Wind to move a unit to an open battlefield to conquer even without Ganking. Nuances: - The restriction on moving between battlefields only applies to the standard move action inherent to units - Other forms of movement (like Ride the Wind) are only restricted by what's written on the card itself

Ruling: Yes, Ride the Wind can move a unit from one battlefield to another. The restriction on not moving between battlefields only applies to standard move actions, not to other move effects. Nuances: - Standard move specifically cannot move between battlefields - Other move actions have their limitations specified by the move effect itself - Since Ride the Wind has no restriction specified, it can move to anywhere

Ruling: Yes, Sett's Legend Power can protect a unit from Cull the Weak as long as the unit has a Buff and you can pay the power plus exhaust costs. Sett triggers when a unit would die, regardless of whether it's from an attack or event spell. Sequence: - Cull the Weak attempts to kill a buffed unit - Sett's power triggers ("when they would die") - If the unit is already in base, you skip the recall portion of Sett's effect - The unit survives Nuances: - The unit must have a Buff for Sett's power to work - You must be able to pay the power and exhaust costs - If the unit is already in base, only the survival effect applies (recall is skipped)

No, you cannot use **Shadow's Call** if you have no friendly units. According to Rule 355.10, a game object mentioned in the text of a spell is a target unless it falls under specific exceptions. **Shadow's Call** instructs you to "Choose a friendly unit." Because this choice is not part of a cost, a trigger condition, or a replacement effect, and it is not programmatically selected (you are choosing a specific unit), the friendly unit is a target of the spell. Since the spell requires you to choose a target to play it, you must have at least one legal target (a friendly unit without [Temporary]) available on the board to play **Shadow's Call**.

Yes, you can use Singularity in that situation. According to the RiftJudge FAQs (specifically FAQ #7105, #2714, and #3483), "up to two units" means you can choose to target 0, 1, or 2 units. Because the card allows you to target "up to two," you are not required to have two targets available to play the spell, nor are you required to target your own units if you do not wish to. If you choose to target only the opponent's single unit, that unit will take 6 damage. You are not forced to target your own units to reach the maximum of two targets.

No, you cannot use **Sprite Call** in that situation. According to **RiftJudge FAQ #3336** and **RiftJudge FAQ #2274**, you can only play units to your base or to a battlefield that you currently control. If an opponent moves into an uncontested battlefield (or one where you have no units), you do not control it. Because you have no units at that battlefield to establish control, it is not a valid location for you to play a unit, even during a showdown. As established by **Rule 3310**, while you can play units to an occupied battlefield during a showdown if an effect allows it, this requires you to already have a defending unit there to maintain control of that battlefield.

Ruling: You cannot use Sun Disc to give Legion to Flame Chompers in this scenario. There is no window to activate Sun Disc before Chompers finishes resolving. Sequence: - Chemtech Enforcer is played and Flame Chompers is discarded - Flame Chompers begins resolving - No window exists to activate Sun Disc during this resolution - Chompers enters play without Legion

Ruling: No, you cannot tap Sun Disk while Promising Future is resolving because Sun Disk doesn't have Reaction, which means it cannot be used while a chain is open or while anything is resolving. Sequence: (for a legal way to give Rush to a unit from Promising Future) - Have Sun Disk already in play from a previous turn - Play a unit that grants Legion (e.g., a 2-cost unit) - Tap Sun Disk while you have Legion - Play Promising Future - The next unit from Promising Future will come in readied Nuances: - Sun Disk can only be used when no chain is open and nothing is resolving - You need to activate Sun Disk before playing Promising Future, not during its resolution

Ruling: No, you cannot ready the Gold gear token created by Plundering Poro with Veiled Temple's ability during the same conquer event. Sequence: - Plundering Poro conquers Veiled Temple - Both abilities trigger simultaneously - When placing Veiled Temple's ability on the chain, you must choose a target gear to ready - The Gold token does not exist yet because Plundering Poro's ability has not resolved - Since no valid target exists, Veiled Temple's ability cannot target the Gold token - Plundering Poro's ability resolves afterward, creating the Gold token exhausted Nuances: - Targets must be chosen when an ability is placed on the chain, not when it resolves - You cannot sequence the triggers to work around this limitation because target selection happens before either ability resolves - If you have other friendly gear in play, you can target those with Veiled Temple's ability instead

Ruling: Yes, you can use Vi multiple times in a single turn, but each activation must resolve individually. Nuances: - In practice, most players will allow you to declare a total amount and resolve all activations at once for convenience.

Ruling: Yes, you can use Void Seeker on a unit that moves into an open battlefield. Moving into an open battlefield starts a showdown (but not a combat), and once that showdown starts and you get focus, you can cast Void Seeker. Sequence: - Opponent moves to empty battlefield - Opponent has focus and priority, meaning they can cast action or reaction spells - If opponent passes focus and priority - You can now play action spells to start a chain Nuances: - Moving into an open battlefield starts a showdown but does not start a combat - Action spells (not just reactions) can be played during an open showdown if you have focus

Ruling: Yes, you can exhaust Voli when you play a mighty creature off of Dazzling Aurora, even during the end step. Voli's ability is a triggered ability, not an activated ability. Nuances: - Triggered abilities can be distinguished from activated abilities by the absence of a ":" symbol indicating costs - Voli's ability can also trigger on your opponent's turn if you manage to get a mighty creature off then

Ruling: Yes, you can use Windwall to counter an opponent's spell played via Promising Future when you control the Promising Future. Sequence: - When you play Promising Future, both players put their chosen spells on the chain as pending items (opponent's spell first, then your Windwall) - When Promising Future resolves, the spells finalize in the order they were put on the chain - The opponent's spell finalizes first, becoming a finalized chain item - Your Windwall finalizes second and can target the opponent's now-finalized spell - Windwall resolves first (being higher on the chain) and counters the opponent's spell Nuances: - If the opponent controls Promising Future and you choose Windwall, the interaction becomes very complicated due to reverse ordering - Targeting pending chain items is not explicitly covered in the rules, but would generally be ineffective since items resolve from top to bottom of the chain

Yes, you can use Yasuo, Unforgiven's ability on a teammate's unit in a 2v2 match. According to RiftJudge FAQ #371, "friendly" includes your teammate, meaning Yasuo can move a teammate's unit. However, there are important restrictions regarding how this works in 2v2: * **Moving to Base:** When moving a teammate's unit to a base, it must go to the unit owner's base, not your own base (RiftJudge FAQ #371). * **Restriction:** While you can target your partner's units with the ability to move them, you cannot move your partner's units "to and from your base" (RiftJudge FAQ #5355). In summary, you can use the ability to move your teammate's units, provided you adhere to the specific zone restrictions for 2v2 games.

Ruling: No, Yasuo's legend ability cannot be used during combat because it has base speed (no action or reaction keyword). However, you could achieve a similar effect with a spell like "Ride the Wind" that can be used during combat. Nuances: - Base speed abilities (without action or reaction keywords) cannot be used during combat - Spells or abilities with appropriate timing (like Ride the Wind) can be used to recall a unit during combat

Ruling: You can use Zhonya's to save the unit, but since the unit was not killed, you cannot get anything from Baited Hook's effect (the same applies to Sett's legend ability). Sequence: - Baited Hook targets and would kill a unit - Zhonya's Hourglass is used to save the unit - You still look at the top 5 cards - Since the unit was not killed, you cannot retrieve anything with Baited Hook's effect Nuances: - Baited Hook uses the wording "the killed unit" to determine what you can get, so the unit must actually be killed for the full effect to resolve

Ruling: No. You cannot generate power from both abilities using a single Gold gear token. You must choose to activate either the token's ability or Malzahar's ability, but not both. Sequence: - Both the Gold gear token's ability and Malzahar's ability require killing the token as part of their activation cost - When you activate either ability, all costs (including killing the token) must be paid immediately - Once the token is killed to pay for one ability's cost, it moves to the trash and is no longer available to pay for the other ability Nuances: - You can use Malzahar to kill an already-exhausted Gold token, but only if it was exhausted by something other than its own ability - The Gold token's ability text explicitly states "Kill this" as part of the cost, not as an effect

Ruling: Yes, you can use reactions to respond to other reactions. In the scenario described, Deny can counter Hidden Blade.

Ruling: Reactions can be played during any priority window. You can play a Reaction card as your first move during the Action phase (once you reach a neutral open state after Awakening, Beginning, Channel, and Draw phases), even without reacting to anything. Sequence: - Wait until you complete Awakening, Beginning, Channel, and Draw phases - Once you reach the Action phase in a neutral open state, you have priority - You can then play a Reaction card as an action Nuances: - Reactions can only react to spells or abilities/effects, not to phase changes, movement, or units without effects being played - Players get priority when something is on the chain (controller first, then others when they pass) - Players also have priority when they have Focus during a showdown - Players have priority during any neutral open state on their turn (nothing on the chain and not in a showdown) - If an ability triggers during phase changes (like a Beginning phase trigger), you would get a priority window then because something is on the chain

Yes, you can use seals to pay for Deflect costs. According to the official FAQ and **Rule 735.1.c.1**: * **Deflect** adds a mandatory additional cost to the Power cost of a spell or ability. * The Power used to pay a Deflect cost can be of **any Domain** (it does not need to match the color of the spell or the target). * Since seals generate Power, they can be exhausted to satisfy this additional cost. **Important Nuances:** * **Power vs. Energy:** Seals only generate **Power**, not Energy. You cannot use a seal to pay for the numerical Energy cost of a card, only the Power requirements (including those added by Deflect). * **Triggered Abilities:** If a triggered ability (like a "When I'm played..." effect) targets a unit with Deflect, you can choose to refuse to pay the cost. If you do, the ability simply fails to finalize and is removed from the chain (Rule 392.2).

Ruling: No, you cannot react to an opponent tapping runes for mana. Reactions that add mana cannot be responded to. Nuances: - Tapping runes to generate mana is not an action that can be responded to with reactions

Ruling: Yes, you can use Gust or any other spell at Battlefield A during a showdown at Battlefield B. Targeting restrictions only apply to Hidden cards. Nuances: - If a card like Hidden Blade was Hidden at battlefield B during a showdown at battlefield B, it cannot target battlefield A when reacted - The targeting restriction applies specifically to Hidden cards only

Ruling: Yes, you can use Fight or Flight as a reaction when an opponent's unit moves into Reaver's Row, and then use Reaver's Row's ability to move your own unit to base contact. Sequence: - Resolve Fight or Flight first - Then resolve Reaver's Row's ability

No, you cannot use a reaction card during your opponent's Draw Step. According to **RiftJudge FAQ #2886** and **RiftJudge FAQ #2021**, you do not receive priority during phase changes or steps like the Draw Step. You only receive priority to play cards or activate abilities when your opponent performs an action that creates a chain (such as playing a spell or unit) or during a showdown. In summary: * **Phase changes and steps** (like the Draw Step) do not provide a window for you to play reactions. * You can only play reactions on your opponent's turn if there is an active chain or if you are in a showdown and have focus.

Ruling: You can use reaction spells in response to your own action spell before passing priority. Action spells can only be used to start a chain and cannot be used as reactions at any time. Sequence: - Play an action spell to start the chain - You may hold priority and play reaction spells in response to your own action - Once you pass priority, your opponent can respond - After the chain resolves, your opponent has priority to activate an action or reaction before you can respond Nuances: - Reactions can be played like actions when the chain is empty (you don't need to react to something) - Unit abilities with the reaction tag can be activated any time you could play a reaction, whereas normally unit abilities can only be activated during your turn outside of showdown

Ruling: Yes, you can play a Reaction spell in response to Snapvine's trigger to buff its might before the ability resolves. However, your opponent can also play Reactions in response. Sequence: - Snapvine is played - Trigger is created for its ability - You can play a Reaction in response (and so can your opponent) - The Reaction resolves first, then Snapvine's ability resolves Nuances: - Non-Reaction spells (like Primal Strength) cannot be played on the chain after the trigger - Reactions that reduce might (like Smokescreen) can lower the damage dealt by Snapvine

Whether you can use a reaction depends on how the Equipment is entering play or being attached. ### 1. Attaching via an "Equip" Ability **Yes, you can react.** According to **RiftJudge FAQ #9560** and **Rule 818.1**, **Equip** is an activated ability. Activating it places the ability on the chain, which creates a **Closed State** and allows players to respond with **[Reaction]** cards or abilities before the equipment successfully attaches. **The Sequence:** 1. **Activation:** The player activates the **Equip** ability on their gear, targeting a unit. 2. **Chain Starts:** The ability is placed on the chain. 3. **Priority:** State becomes **Closed**. Players may now play **[Reaction]** cards (e.g., removing the target unit). 4. **Resolution:** The chain resolves in LIFO (Last-In, First-Out) order. If you removed the target unit with your reaction, the Equip ability will fail to resolve. ### 2. Playing Equipment to the Battlefield **Generally, no.** According to **RiftJudge FAQ #5130** and **#7617**, when you simply play a piece of gear to the board (without using an Equip ability), it enters the chain and resolves immediately. Because it resolves instantly, there is no window for players to play a reaction. **Exception:** If the Equipment has a "When I'm played" triggered ability (such as the **Quick-Draw** keyword, which triggers an attachment effect when played), that triggered ability *does* use the chain. You can react to that specific triggered ability. *** *This is my interpretation based on the referenced RiftJudge FAQs and Rule 818.1. No official ruling exists for every card interaction, but this is the standard behavior for the game's mechanics.*

Ruling: You cannot react to a unit being played, but once Tibbers is in play, his trigger goes on the chain and you can react to that trigger, allowing you to increase a unit's might before the damage resolves. Sequence: - Tibbers is played and enters play - Tibbers' trigger goes on the chain - Players can now react to the trigger (e.g., increase a unit's might) - The trigger resolves and deals 3 damage to all units

Ruling: No, Signature Spells can only be included in your deck if your Legend matches. Having the Champion unit alone is not sufficient.

Ruling: If a card does not specify "battlefield" for a target, it can target units in base. Challenge can target an enemy unit in their base. Nuances: - This applies generally to all spells/effects that don't explicitly specify "battlefield" as a targeting restriction

Ruling: Once you reach the point of assigning combat damage, the showdown is closed and you cannot cast spells. However, you can cast spells like Incinerate during the showdown (before damage assignment) to mark damage on units. If a unit dies to a spell during the showdown, it is not present during the combat damage step to deal its might. Sequence: - Showdown opens and spells can be cast - Combat damage assignment occurs (showdown is now closed) - Damage is dealt simultaneously - Units with damage marked >= their might die Nuances: - Do not think of units as having HP; units have might, get damage marked on them, and die when non-zero damage >= might - A unit that takes damage from a spell like Incinerate still deals its full might value in combat (spells mark damage but don't reduce might unless specifically stated) - When assigning combat damage, you must assign lethal damage to a unit before moving on to assign damage to the next unit - All combat damage is dealt simultaneously

Yes, a unit with **Ganking** can move to another battlefield after participating in a showdown, provided the unit is ready (unexhausted). According to **RiftJudge FAQ #1961**: > "Ruling: If a unit with Ganking is ready (unexhausted) after a showdown, you can use the Standard Move Action to move it to another battlefield during your turn. There does not need to be an enemy unit at the destination battlefield." ### Important context for this interaction: * **Showdowns do not exhaust units:** Participating in a showdown does not automatically exhaust your units, meaning they remain ready to perform a Standard Move after the showdown concludes, provided they weren't exhausted for another cost earlier in the turn. * **Timing:** You must perform this move during your Main Phase, while the game is in an **Open State** (there is no chain currently resolving, and no active showdown or combat ongoing at that specific location). * **Standard Move restriction:** You cannot move units using Ganking (or any Standard Move) while a showdown is currently in progress (Rule 143.1.c). You must wait until the showdown has concluded.

Ruling: Action spells can only start chains, they cannot be added to an existing chain. Once a chain is fully resolved (all spells on it resolve), a new chain can be started with an Action or Reaction spell. Sequence: - Player 1 moves a unit to battlefield, starting a showdown and gaining focus and priority - Player 1 casts an Action spell (like Cleave), starting a chain - Player 2 can respond with a Reaction spell (like Siphon Power) - Both players pass priority - Chain resolves in reverse order (Siphon Power, then Cleave) - Player 2 receives focus and priority and can start a new chain with an Action or Reaction spell - This process can repeat with unlimited chains until both players pass without doing anything Nuances: - If a player starts a chain with only a Reaction spell and passes priority, the opponent cannot respond with an Action spell - the chain ends immediately if they have no Reaction spell to play

Ruling: Yes, when an opponent moves to an empty battlefield, a showdown begins and you will get focus to play actions or reactions during that showdown before they score the point. Sequence: - Opponent moves to open battlefield - Showdown begins - Opponent either plays action/reaction or passes - You have a chance to play on top of their action/reaction, or if they pass it's your turn to play your action - You will also get focus when any chain they started fully resolves - Focus automatically passes after a chain resolves; the showdown only ends when both players pass focus instead of starting a chain Nuances: - Ride the Wind targets friendly units only, but you can use it to move your own unit to the battlefield, which will stage a new combat (you become defender, opponent becomes attacker) - Fight or Flight can move the enemy unit to their base and prevent them from scoring - Showdowns (non-combat) can occur at open battlefields, even though combat specifically does not

No, you cannot. According to **RiftJudge FAQ #8963**, you cannot play an **Action** spell in response to an opponent's **Action** spell during a showdown. ### Why this is the case: 1. **Open vs. Closed State:** An **Action** spell can only be played when the game is in an **Open State** (the chain is empty). 2. **Chain Formation:** When your opponent plays their **Action** spell, it is placed on the chain, and the game state immediately becomes **Closed**. 3. **Reaction Timing:** While the chain is **Closed**, only **Reaction** spells or abilities can be played. Because an **Action** spell requires an **Open State**, it cannot be played until the current chain has fully resolved and the state has returned to **Open**. ### The Sequence: * **Opponent plays an Action spell:** The spell starts a chain and the state becomes **Closed**. * **Your opportunity:** Because the state is now **Closed**, you can only play a **Reaction** spell. * **Resolution:** Once the chain resolves and becomes empty, the state returns to **Open**. * **Next Opportunity:** After the chain is empty and the state is **Open**, the player with focus may then play a new **Action** spell. *This interpretation is based on the provided FAQ #8963 and the general mechanics of chain interactions in Riftbound.*