Riftbound Frequently Asked Questions

Ruling: The opponent's move triggers a non-combat showdown first. During this showdown, playing Ride the Wind to move your unit in would normally start combat, but it stages instead. After completing all steps of the initial showdown (without establishing control since opposing units are present), a combat showdown begins with the opponent as the attacker. Sequence: - Opponent moves unit in, applying contested and triggering a showdown - During the showdown, you play Ride the Wind and move your unit in - The move would normally start combat, but it stages because a showdown is already occurring - Complete all steps of the initial showdown, but control cannot be established since opposing units are present - Begin combat showdown with the opponent as the attacker (since they applied contested to the battlefield) Nuances: - Recalling attackers is part of special cleanup that only happens in combat showdowns, not in other showdown types - If the attacker were stunned (e.g., by Facebreaker), they would be sent back to base and the defender would conquer the point

Ruling: You can legally play Zenith Blade to move Leona to the battlefield during the open showdown. Zenith Blade will stun, but Leona herself will not stun an enemy because she will be the defender when combat begins (not the attacker). Sequence: - Opponent moves a unit to empty battlefield, creating an open showdown - You play Zenith Blade with focus, moving Leona to the battlefield - The open showdown must finish (both players pass without starting a chain) - After the open showdown closes, a staged combat showdown begins - When combat begins, attacker/defender roles are assigned: the opponent is the attacker (they applied contested status first), and you are the defender - Attack and defend triggers (like Leona's stun or Yasuo's defend trigger) go on the chain when units gain their designation for the first time, which happens when combat begins Nuances: - An open showdown cannot transition into a combat showdown; the open showdown must resolve first, then a staged combat begins - The attacker is whoever applied contested status to the battlefield first (the opponent who moved in initially) - This play pattern is called a "surprise defence"

Ruling: The Assault unit dies to the removal spell. Assault only applies during combat showdowns, not when moving to an open battlefield, so the unit does not heal the damage before the showdown completes. Sequence: - Assault unit moves to open battlefield (initiating a non-combat showdown) - Removal spell is cast on the Assault unit - Assault unit takes damage and dies - Unit dies before scoring a point Nuances: - Assault only triggers during combat showdowns (when opposing units are present) - If a defender is moved in mid-showdown (e.g., with Zenith Blade), the original showdown completes first as a non-combat showdown, then a new combat showdown begins - During the original non-combat showdown, units present are not yet considered attackers/defenders

Ruling: Yes, you will get focus again after Fight or Flight resolves. A showdown will keep going even without units present. Sequence: - Opponent moves into uncontested battlefield for 6th point - You receive focus and play Fight or Flight - Opponent's unit moves back to base - You receive focus again and can play Find Your Center

Ruling: Yes, cleanup occurs at the end of each combat, healing all units. Therefore, damage from the first combat would be healed before the second combat begins, potentially preventing lethal damage. Sequence: - First character moves and attacks the battlefield - Damage is assigned - Cleanup occurs, healing all units - Second character moves and attacks - Damage is assigned to now-healed units Nuances: - Multiple units can be moved simultaneously to the same destination to deal combined damage in a single combat (avoiding the cleanup between attacks) - Units can be moved simultaneously even from different locations as long as their destination is the same - This simultaneous movement rule applies to standard moves; moves via card effects only follow the restrictions stated on the effect itself

Ruling: No, once Rebuke is on the chain, only reactions can be used. Actions can only be played after the chain resolves completely. Sequence: - Rebuke is played and goes on the chain - Only reactions can be played while the chain exists - The chain resolves completely - Actions can be played again, but the unit targeted by Rebuke is already gone Nuances: - Even after the chain resolves, Challenge cannot target the unit because Rebuke's effect has already removed it

Ruling: The opponent will not score a point in the initial showdown because they need to be the only player controlling units at the battlefield to gain control and score. When both players pass focus, the showdown closes and combat begins. Sequence: - Opponent moves to battlefield - You play Ride the Wind in response, moving your character to that battlefield - After your unit moves, opponent gains focus and the showdown continues normally until both players pass focus - The showdown closes and combat begins - The combat showdown phase occurs (the first phase of combat) with any attack or defend triggers - After the initial chain resolves, the attacker (opponent) gets focus first - Normal combat proceeds - If you win the combat, you gain control of the battlefield, conquer it, and score a point Nuances: - Battlefields can only be scored once per turn per player, but both players can score the same battlefield in the same turn - The initial showdown is not a combat, but the showdown during combat is part of the combat phase

Ruling: No, the legend passive does not trigger. The spell must resolve for Lux's passive effect to occur. Nuances: - Countering a spell prevents it from resolving, which means legend passives that trigger on playing spells of certain types do not activate

Ruling: You can trigger Fight or Flight to move your Traveling Merchant to your base, which will trigger its "When I move" ability to discard and draw. However, Challenge will still resolve and the units will deal damage to each other even though the Merchant is now at the base, because Challenge does not require targets to be at a specific location. Sequence: - Opponent plays Challenge, targeting their unit and your Traveling Merchant - You react with Fight or Flight from hidden, moving Traveling Merchant to your base - Traveling Merchant's "When I move" ability triggers and resolves (discard 1, draw 1) - Challenge resolves: both units deal damage to each other equal to their Mights Nuances: - A spell played from Hidden gains Reaction and can be played during a reaction window - A spell played from Hidden must choose targets from the battlefield where it was hidden - A target only becomes illegal if it no longer meets the targeting requirements of the spell - Since Challenge only requires "a friendly unit and an enemy unit" without specifying location, the Merchant remains a legal target even after moving to the base

Ruling: Yes, Gust resolves first on the chain, returns the unit to hand, and causes Cleave/Whiteflame Protector to whiff and resolve to no effect. Sequence: - Opponent plays Cleave or Whiteflame Protector targeting a 2 might unit - You react with Gust targeting the same unit - Gust resolves first (last in, first out) - Unit returns to hand - Cleave/Whiteflame Protector resolves but has no legal target, so whiffs Nuances: - All effects in Riftbound recheck legality at resolution - The inverse is also true: if you Gust first to start a chain and opponent pumps the unit out of Gust's range, your Gust will whiff

Ruling: Yes, you can play Gust in response to move your unit back to your hand. If you have no units remaining in play after Gust resolves, your opponent must still sacrifice one of their own units to fulfill Cull the Weak's requirement. Sequence: - Opponent plays Cull the Weak - You respond with Gust, returning your only unit to hand - Gust resolves first - Cull the Weak resolves, but you have no units - Opponent must sacrifice one of their own units

Ruling: Yes, you conquer the battlefield and score a point when the Recruit moves to Dreaming Tree. Sequence: - Opponent plays Dragon's Breath targeting the Recruit to move it to Dreaming Tree - You respond with Hidden Blade targeting your Soaring Scout (on the chain) - Hidden Blade resolves, removing Soaring Scout from Dreaming Tree - Dragon's Breath resolves, moving Recruit to Dreaming Tree - You conquer the battlefield and score a point

Ruling: The unit does not die. When a spell resolves, the legality of targets is checked again, and since the unit is no longer a legal target (not on the battlefield), it is not affected by the spell. Sequence: - Opponent plays Falling Comet targeting your unit on the battlefield - You use Flash to move your unit away from the battlefield - On resolution, target legality is rechecked - The unit is no longer a legal target and is not affected

Ruling: Yes, the opponent still draws the card from The Dreaming Tree even though the spell did not resolve. Nuances: - The Dreaming Tree triggers when a unit is chosen as a target, not when the spell successfully resolves - Defy counters the spell but doesn't prevent the targeting from having occurred

Ruling: No, they cannot change targets. The target is chosen and locked in when Hextech Ray is finalized to the chain, before the opponent has a chance to respond. Sequence: - Player plays Hextech Ray and chooses target when finalizing it to the chain - Target is now locked in - Opponent can now respond (e.g., by playing a unit from hidden) - Hextech Ray resolves with original target Nuances: - The unit being played from hidden must not have been hidden on the same turn (summoning sickness applies)

Ruling: No, you do not draw 2 cards. If the target unit is no longer a legal target on the battlefield when Hidden Blade resolves, the effect cannot find "its controller" and therefore no cards are drawn. Nuances: - If a unit is moved to your base (still on the board) after being targeted by Hidden Blade, you would still draw 2 cards because the unit is still a legal target and its controller can be identified - A spell or ability that moves something to a different zone as a cost or effect can "look back" at its characteristics before it changes zones, which is why Retreat itself can still channel a rune even though the unit goes to hand - The key difference is that Retreat says "owner" (not "controller") and Retreat itself is doing the move, allowing it to look back in time - If a unit leaves the board through other means (like a replacement effect), the information may not be accessible

Ruling: No, the token will not be moved to the battlefield. When Gust returns the Drummer to hand before the trigger resolves, "here" becomes undefined, so the ability cannot execute the instruction that references "here". Sequence: - Noxian Drummer moves to the battlefield - Drummer's "when" trigger goes on the chain - Opponent can play reaction spells in response (like Gust) - If Gust returns Drummer to hand, the trigger still resolves but "here" is undefined - The ability fails to move the token because it cannot determine where "here" is Nuances: - All referents in an ability's instructions need to be defined for the ability to execute - Legality is checked both at finalize and at resolution in Riftbound - This principle applies to other cards as well (e.g., if you Gust a unit in response to Hidden Blade targeting it, the Hidden Blade player won't draw because "its controller" is undefined)

Ruling: You can react with Wages of Pain after Piercing Light is played and targets are chosen. Piercing Light will still deal 2 damage to the other unit even if the first target is killed by Wages of Pain before Piercing Light resolves. Sequence: - Opponent plays Piercing Light and declares both targets - You can respond by playing Wages of Pain to kill the first targeted unit - Wages of Pain resolves first, killing the targeted unit - Piercing Light resolves, dealing 2 damage to the second unit (the first damage instance has no valid target) Nuances: - Once Piercing Light is on the chain and choices are made, those choices are locked in - All damage from Piercing Light is dealt while the spell is resolving; there is no moment between damage instances to respond - Wages of Pain can only target a unit at the battlefield where it was hidden

Ruling: If you react to Possession by moving the targeted unit from a battlefield to your base, the target becomes invalid and Possession does not resolve. Sequence: - Opponent plays Possession, paying 8 energy and 3 purple power immediately - Opponent must choose and target an enemy unit at a battlefield when playing the card - You can then react, knowing which unit was chosen - If you move the targeted unit to base with a reaction spell, the target becomes invalid - Possession fails to resolve because the unit is no longer at a battlefield Nuances: - The targeting restriction "at a battlefield" applies both when choosing the target and when the spell resolves - If the unit moved to a different battlefield instead of base, it would still be a valid target because it remains at a battlefield - You must pay all costs (8 energy and 3 purple power) at the moment of playing Possession, not separately

Ruling: No, Salvage cannot target Vanguard Armory in this situation. Sequence: - Promising Future puts all items on as pending first - Promising Future resolves - The permanents finalize in the cleanup immediately after Promising Future resolves - The permanents exit the chain and get "played" immediately after being finalized Nuances: - Permanents do not finalize immediately; they exit the chain and get played immediately after being finalized

Ruling: Yes, the opponent still draws from The Dreaming Tree even if Defy counters the Retreat. Sequence: - Opponent targets their unit at The Dreaming Tree with Retreat - The Dreaming Tree's draw effect triggers immediately and goes on the chain - Defy can then counter Retreat's effect - The Dreaming Tree's draw still resolves regardless

Ruling: Yes, you can play Defy on Smoke Screen after Discipline resolves. After Discipline resolves, each player needs to pass priority again before Smoke Screen resolves, giving you the opportunity to play Defy. Sequence: - Opponent plays Smoke Screen - You respond with Discipline (bringing resources to 5 vs 5) - Discipline resolves - Priority passes again before Smoke Screen resolves - You can now play Defy to counter Smoke Screen

Ruling: Yes, this interaction works. When Hidden Blade kills Phoenix, the Phoenix is in the trash when its "when you kill with a spell" triggered ability happens, allowing you to pay to return it from trash to base before Unchecked Power resolves. Sequence: - Hidden Blade kills Phoenix as part of its effect - Phoenix is now in the trash when the "when" trigger occurs (since "when" happens after) - Phoenix's triggered ability allows you to pay to return it from trash to base - This all happens before Unchecked Power resolves Nuances: - This uses the same logic as Viktor Leader not seeing himself die - by the time the trigger would happen, the unit is in a different zone - Triggered abilities don't need speed tags; they happen when they say they happen

Ruling: Yes, the Watcher will die. The unit has a 4 damage marker on it, and when the opponent's Thousand Tail Watcher enters and reduces all units' might by 3, your Watcher becomes 4 might (7-3). Since it has 4 damage marked on it and now has 4 might, it dies because damage equals might. Sequence: - Void Seeker deals 4 damage to Thousand Tail Watcher (7 might), placing a 4 damage marker on it - Opponent plays their Thousand Tail Watcher, which gives -3 might to all units - Your Watcher is now 4 might with 4 damage marked - The unit dies when damage marked equals or exceeds its current might Nuances: - Damage markers do not reduce might; they are tracked separately - A unit dies when damage marked equals or exceeds its might - This same principle applies to other combinations (e.g., damaging Watcher with Hextech Ray then using Smoke Screen to reduce might)

Ruling: Yes, you can react to the triggered ability when it is placed on the chain, before your opponent makes the decision about the "may" effect. Sequence: - The card is played and the trigger condition is met - The triggered ability is placed on the chain (this is when you get priority to react) - If no reactions are played, the ability resolves and the opponent makes their decision about the "may" effect Nuances: - All triggers in this game are mandatory - the ability always triggers regardless of whether the "may" effect will be used - The "may" section denotes decisions made on resolution, not whether the ability triggers - Once the opponent has already made the decision for the "may" section, the ability is already resolving and there's no window to react

Ruling: If the opponent removes the targeted friendly unit (e.g., with Gust) in response to Baited Hook, you still look at the top cards of your main deck and recycle them, but you do not get a unit off the hook. Sequence: - Activate Baited Hook and declare a target unit to kill - Opponent can react at reaction speed to remove that unit - You can react to their reaction - On resolution, if the target is gone, you still reveal/look at cards but do not get a unit Nuances: - You must declare a target when activating Baited Hook - Very few cards have reaction speed and can kill/bounce a unit, so this interaction is relatively rare

Ruling: You cannot react to a permanent (unit/gear/add ability) being played. When a permanent is placed on the chain and finalizes, it automatically resolves immediately before any player can react to it. Therefore, Shen would already be on the battlefield with the +1 Might from Trifarian War Camp before Gust could be played, making Shen an invalid target for Gust. Sequence: - Shen is played as a reaction and goes onto the chain - Shen finalizes (almost always immediately after going onto the chain as pending) - Shen automatically resolves and enters the battlefield - Trifarian War Camp's +1 Might applies to Shen - Only now can opponents react with spells - Gust cannot target Shen because he now has 4 Might Nuances: - Action and reaction speeds don't change the type of card, just when it can be played - Once a unit is on the chain, it behaves the same way regardless of what speed it was played at - When You Play Me (WYPM) triggered abilities do go onto the chain normally after the unit resolves and can be reacted to - You cannot finalize a card while another is resolving

Ruling: No, you cannot save Watcher this way. The first chain (with Hidden Blade) will resolve completely before the second chain (with Fight or Flight) begins, so Hidden Blade will kill Watcher before you can move it. Sequence: - Chain 1 resolves: Hidden Blade kills Watcher - Chain 2 begins: Fight or Flight attempts to move Watcher, but Watcher is already dead

Ruling: No, Foxfire does not have to recycle. Paying costs and choosing a target happens when the card is played, so Deflect gained after targeting is irrelevant. Sequence: - Opponent plays Foxfire and targets Fiora (4 might, no Deflect) - You respond with Discipline, increasing Fiora to 6 might (gaining Deflect) - Foxfire resolves and affects Fiora normally because the target was already chosen

Ruling: Yes, you score a Conquer point. You can score Conquer during an opponent's turn as long as you haven't already scored that battlefield this turn. Sequence: - Opponent plays Blitzcrank and targets your lone unit at a battlefield you control - Blitzcrank's ability resolves, moving your unit away - You lose control of the battlefield (it becomes Uncontrolled during Cleanup) - Showdown begins - During Showdown, you play Ride the Wind to move your unit back to the original battlefield - You gain control and score a Conquer point Nuances: - Conquer can be scored once per battlefield per turn, even during an enemy's turn - The battlefield becomes Uncontrolled after Cleanup when it has no units and is not Contested

Ruling: Yes, Sett can save the unit when temporary triggers at the start of the Beginning Phase. The temporary keyword remains on the unit after being saved and will trigger again on subsequent turns. Sequence: - At start of Awakening Phase, Sett becomes ready - At start of Beginning Phase, temporary triggers and would kill the unit - Sett's replacement effect can save the unit by healing and recalling it exhausted - The unit survives but keeps the temporary keyword - On the next turn's Beginning Phase, temporary triggers again, requiring another save Nuances: - Temporary only triggers once per Beginning Phase at that timing point, so you cannot save it multiple times in the same phase - Sett is a replacement effect, not a resurrection, so the unit remains the same game object and keeps all effects (including temporary and other buffs like Call to Glory) - Effects that last "this turn" (like Call to Glory) still expire at end of turn as normal, but are not removed by Sett's save - You must save the unit every turn that temporary triggers

Ruling: Yes, an opponent can use Gust in reaction to the Merchant's move trigger to discard it. The Merchant's effect (discard 1, draw 1) still activates and resolves even if the Merchant is removed from play, because the effect is already on the chain once the move trigger occurs. Sequence: - Traveling Merchant moves, triggering its effect - The effect goes on the chain - Opponent can use Gust in response to remove the Merchant - The Merchant's effect still resolves (discard 1, draw 1) Nuances: - The Merchant's effect is not conditional on the Merchant remaining in play - Once the move trigger occurs, the effect is locked in on the chain regardless of what happens to the Merchant afterward

Ruling: Yes, once combat has started, it continues until completion and someone wins. If the defender has no units remaining, the attacker wins the combat. Nuances: - This applies to any effect that removes defending units after combat has begun (Reavers Row, Fight or Flight, etc.) - The combat is still considered to have occurred and been won for the purposes of triggered abilities like Draven's Legend draw effect

Ruling: The opponent's unit does not die. It successfully moves to the other battlefield and is no longer present at the original combat location. Sequence: - Defender uses a reaction to buff their unit during combat - Attacker plays Ride of the Wind as an action in response, moving their unit to another battlefield - The original combat resolves with the attacker's unit no longer present (defender holds the battlefield) - After the first showdown fully ends, a new showdown starts at the battlefield where the unit moved - Both players can play actions/reactions at this new showdown - The new showdown proceeds through all normal steps, potentially resulting in conquest Nuances: - Actions can be played after reactions as part of the chain during combat - The unit doesn't die because it's no longer at the battlefield where combat is happening - You cannot have two showdowns occurring simultaneously; the second showdown waits for the first to complete - Even if the destination battlefield was empty, a new open showdown starts there after the first combat ends

Ruling: Yes, the buffed unit returns to base via Sett Legend's replacement effect and you still draw 2 from Hidden Blade. The Bouncer then fizzles because it cannot find its target. Sequence: - Hidden Blade resolves first (last on chain), killing the unit and drawing 2 cards - Sett Legend triggers as a replacement effect of the death, spending the buff to recall the unit to base instead of it going to trash - Pass priority - Zaunite Bouncer resolves but cannot find the unit (no longer at battlefield), so nothing happens Nuances: - Hidden Blade fully resolves and draws 2 because Sett Legend is a replacement effect of the death, not a prevention of Hidden Blade's resolution - The unit must actually die for Sett Legend to trigger; you cannot use Sett Legend alone to save a unit from being bounced - When facing a bounce effect, you can choose to either let the unit get bounced (Hidden Blade fizzles) or use Sett Legend to recycle 1 rune, return unit to base, and draw 2

Ruling: The effect resolves, but with no effect because the target is now illegal. Sequence: - Opponent plays spell/ability targeting a unit at battlefront - You react by moving your unit to your base - When the chain begins to resolve, there is a check if the effect/target is still valid - Since the target is no longer at the battlefront, it is illegal and the effect has no effect

Ruling: To score the final point through conquer, you must have scored all other battlefields that turn. Since the opponent did not score any other battlefield on that turn (it was the active player's turn), they would draw a card from the conquer instead of winning. Sequence: - Players choose cards from Promising Future - Cards are put onto the chain starting with the next player's card - Chain resolves (non-permanents resolve in reverse order) - Singularity would kill Darius before showdown starts - Showdown cannot start while there is still a chain - Even if the opponent moved Darius to the battlefield, they cannot score the final point Nuances: - The opponent cannot immediately conquer as soon as they move a unit to the battlefield if there is still a chain resolving - Promising Future puts cards on the chain starting with the next player, so the active player's card would resolve last (after opponent's card)

Ruling: Yes, you can play Gust on the Merchant in response to its 'When I move' trigger before it gains +3 attack from Cleave. Combat cannot begin (and roles cannot be assigned) while items are on the chain. Sequence: - Opponent plays Cleave on Merchant (Merchant gains +3 when it attacks) - Opponent moves Merchant into your battlefield - Merchant's 'When I move' trigger goes on chain - You can respond with Gust to return Merchant to hand - Chain resolves before combat begins Nuances: - 'When I attack' triggers work differently - they only trigger when a unit becomes an attacker (after combat begins and roles are assigned) - The standard move itself is not denied; combat simply cannot start until the chain is fully resolved

Ruling: The token has 5 might with 3 damage marked on it. Damage does not reduce might/strength in Riftbound. Sequence: - Token starts with 3 might - Discipline adds +2 might (now 5 might total) - Hextech Ray deals 3 damage (marked on the token) - Token has 5 might with 3 damage marked Nuances: - There is no HP in Riftbound; units track damage separately from might - A unit dies when damage marked on it equals or exceeds its might - Damage does not reduce a unit's might value

Ruling: No, Ahri's ability will not trigger a second time. The unit will only have -1 Might total. Attack triggers can only be fulfilled once per combat per unit, even if that unit leaves and re-enters the battlefield during the same combat. Sequence: - Enemy unit attacks the battlefield, gaining the Attacker designation - Ahri's ability triggers and resolves, giving the unit -1 Might - Janna bounces the unit to base, removing the Attacker designation - Ride the Wind moves the unit back to the battlefield - The unit gains the Attacker designation again, but Ahri's ability does not trigger because it already fulfilled once for this unit during this combat Nuances: - This restriction applies because the same Showdown/combat is still ongoing. If the combat ended and a new combat was initiated at that battlefield later in the turn, Ahri would be able to trigger again for that new combat. - Abilities that trigger when a unit gains the Attacker designation are classified as Attack Triggers and are limited to once per combat per unit, regardless of how many times they gain and lose the Attacker designation.

Ruling: Yes, you can score 2 points this way. Draven Audacious's ability triggers and scores before Conqueror scoring occurs, so you will reach 7 points and draw one card. Sequence: - During combat resolution, the combat special cleanup happens first - "Winning a combat" triggers (including Draven Audacious's ability) occur during this special cleanup - Draven Audacious scores 1 point (bringing you to 7) - Conqueror triggers and scores after the special cleanup - Conqueror scores 1 point (bringing you to 8) and you draw one card from reaching 7 Nuances: - This ruling was confirmed in a referee FAQ (not the official FAQ) after the thread discussion - The timing is based on core rules where combat special cleanup happens before conquer triggers during the resolution step

Ruling: You can play Ride the Wind to move a character to a different battlefield than the showdown battlefield. The first showdown will resolve, then the second showdown will begin. Sequence: - Opponent moves to battlefield A, creating a showdown - You play Ride the Wind and move a character to battlefield B - First showdown resolves - Second showdown begins Nuances: - Nothing in the rules requires you to target the showdown battlefield with Ride the Wind

Ruling: The active player wins immediately upon capturing the second battlefield and reaching 8 points. Nuances: - Even though the opponent controlled both battlefields at the start of the turn, capturing the second battlefield grants the 8th point and triggers the win condition immediately, without giving the opponent a card draw or another turn.

Ruling: Yes, if both players choose the same battlefield, the effect triggers twice. For example, with Obelisk of Power, the first player gets 4 runes and the second player gets 5 runes. Nuances: - This only applies in 1v1 games, not in multiplayer scenarios with two opponents.

Ruling: If both players pass on actions/reactions during a Showdown, combat proceeds directly to the damage step. You cannot play a spell at reaction speed after both players have passed. Sequence: - Attacker declares action or passes - Defender declares action or passes - If both pass, proceed immediately to damage distribution - No additional opportunity to play spells at reaction speed

Ruling: Yes, if both players have The Arena's Greatest as their Battleforged in play, you get 2 points to start.

Ruling: No. If both players pass sequentially on an empty chain, combat immediately progresses to combat damage with no opportunity to play additional cards. Sequence: - Player 1 passes their action - Player 2 passes their action - Combat immediately progresses to combat damage - No opportunity to play reactions or other cards

Ruling: No, if both players in a 1v1 choose the same named battlefield, both players continue play with those battlefields. There is no rule requiring players to change duplicate locations. Nuances: - The confusion may stem from the 2v2 format rule, where you and your ally cannot use the same battlefield - Players also must have three different battlefields in their battlefield deck (not duplicates within one player's deck) - In casual play, a player may voluntarily switch for variety, but they are not obligated to do so

Ruling: The combat showdown at Battlefield A completes first (likely with no units present, so no conquer). Then a second showdown begins at Battlefield B. If a player conquers Battlefield A during the first showdown, they can still use Ride the Wind during the non-combat showdown at Battlefield B to move there and create a combat showdown where they become the defender. Sequence: - Player A enters Battlefield A occupied by Player B - Player B uses Ride the Wind to move to Battlefield B - Player A uses Ride the Wind to move to Battlefield B - Combat showdown at Battlefield A resolves (most likely with no units present, so no conquer) - Cleanup occurs at Battlefield A (for healing) - Non-combat showdown begins at Battlefield B - If Player A uses Ride the Wind during this non-combat showdown, they move to Battlefield B - This creates a combat showdown at Battlefield B where Player A is the defender Nuances: - There is a window before the second combat begins where no units are attackers or defenders - The showdown at Battlefield A must completely finish (including cleanup) before the showdown at Battlefield B begins

Ruling: Damage dealt to a unit before combat persists on that unit. Damage doesn't heal until the end of a showdown (combat) or the end of the turn. Sequence: - Damage is dealt to a unit pre-combat - The damage remains on the unit when moving into combat - When any showdown ends, all locations heal (not just the one that was fought over) - Damage also heals at end of turn Nuances: - Any showdown ending will heal all locations, not just the battlefield where the showdown occurred - Non-combat showdowns exist and also trigger healing when they end - Contesting an open battlefield starts a showdown