Browse Riftbound Rules Questions
Page 115 of 128 · 6,389 verified questions. Each links to the full ruling.
Does Repeat cause Ravenbloom Student to trigger twice?
Ruling: No, Repeat does not cause Ravenbloom Student to trigger twice because it is still only one spell being cast.
When Warwick equipped with Recurve Bow attacks, do both abilities trigger during the attacker definition window, and in what order do they resolve?
Ruling: Both Recurve Bow and Warwick trigger simultaneously during the attacker definition window. Warwick's ability always triggers regardless of whether damaged units are present, then checks for damaged units on resolution.
Does Rally the Troops buff only the next friendly unit played this turn, or all friendly units played this turn?
Ruling: Rally the Troops buffs all friendly units played this turn. Each time a friendly unit is played, a delayed trigger goes on the chain to buff it.
Do legends with exhaust abilities still trigger their triggered abilities while exhausted?
Ruling: Yes, triggered abilities on legends will still trigger even if the legend is exhausted. The exhausted state only prevents you from activating abilities that require exhausting as a cost.
Does a showdown end immediately when all attacking units are removed from the battlefield, or does it continue until both players pass without starting a chain?
Ruling: Showdowns only end when both players pass focus without starting a chain. It does not matter if no units are currently attacking.
If Sett (Brawler) has received 4 damage and uses her ability to remove the buff and get +4 attack, does the unit die?
Ruling: Yes, Sett would die. When you activate the ability, removing the buff is a cost paid to add the ability to the chain, which means Sett loses the health buff before the ability resolves.
Does Vex's Defy ability check the original printed cost or the modified cost of a card like Hextech Ray that has been reduced?
Ruling: Defy only checks the printed cost of a card, not any modified cost. Any effect that refers to a card's cost checks the printed cost.
When Heimerdinger copies a Gold Gear Token's exhaust ability, does he kill himself from the 'Kill this' cost, or does he only copy the 'add power resource' effect?
Ruling: Heimerdinger kills himself when copying the Gold Gear Token's exhaust ability because he copies the costs of exhaust abilities as well as their effects.
When a unit's Might is reduced below 0 (e.g., to -3), does it stay at negative Might for future calculations, or does it snapshot at 0?
Ruling: Units can have negative Might values for calculation purposes. However, whenever the game checks "what Might are you" (such as during combat), any negative Might is treated as 0.
When using Baited Hook to kill a unit, what might values are eligible for the unit you can play from your hand?
Ruling: When you use Baited Hook to kill a unit, you can play a unit with might up to one more than the killed unit's might. For example, if you kill a 5 might unit, you can play any unit with 6 or less might.
If Quiana is equipped with Hexdrinker, does she have Deflect 1 or Deflect 2?
Ruling: Quiana equipped with Hexdrinker will have Deflect 2. Nuances: - Deflect values stack when multiple sources grant the keyword ability
Does Vex's ability make opponents pay 1 energy + 1 power when they play a hidden card during combat?
Ruling: Yes, Vex's ability applies to hidden cards. Hidden sets the cost to 0 first, then Vex's cost increase is applied afterward, resulting in a total cost of 1 energy + 1 power.
If Here to Help (from Hidden) plays Fizz, can Fizz play a spell at reaction speed? Can Fizz play cards like Invert Timelines in this scenario?
Ruling: Yes, Fizz can play spells at reaction speed when played by Here to Help, including cards like Invert Timelines. You still have to pay the power costs for any cards played.
How does Eager Apprentice's cost reduction interact with Repeat on spells?
Ruling: Eager Apprentice reduces the total cost of a spell only once, even when that spell is repeated. The cost reduction applies to the combined cost (base + repeat additional cost).
After a reaction spell resolves on the chain, can a player play another reaction immediately, or must the entire chain resolve first?
Ruling: Players can play reactions as the chain resolves. After each spell resolves, the player who controls the next item on the chain gets priority first, then the other player gets priority.
Does attempting to equip start a chain and allow the opponent to play a reaction before the equipment resolves?
Ruling: Yes, equipping is a normal activated ability that starts a chain and allows opponents to play reactions. Sequence: - Player activates the equip ability - Chain starts, priority passes - Opponent can respond with reactions (such as kill spells) - If opponent kills the unit being equipped, the equipment will not resolve on that unit
Can Flash be legally activated if the only unit a player has is at Vilemaw's Lair, and what happens when it resolves?
Ruling: Flash can be legally activated even if the only unit is at Vilemaw's Lair. The card resolves but has no effect because units at Vilemaw's Lair cannot be moved to base in any way.
Can an opponent react with hidden cards (cards from hand) when Brynhir's ability resolves, and does this create a chain reaction?
Ruling: Yes, Brynhir is a triggered ability that gives the opponent an opportunity to react before it goes into effect as it resolves. However, once Brynhir fully resolves, the opponent cannot use any actions/reactions from their hand.
When Sett enters the field with one buff (making him Mighty) and you spend that buff to activate his ability granting +4/+4, does he lose and regain Mighty status, allowing yellow Fiora to ready him?
Ruling: Sett will lose Mighty status when you pay the cost to activate his ability, then regain Mighty status when the ability resolves.
Can Vi use her recycle ability multiple times in the same turn to gain +1 might each time?
Ruling: Yes, Vi can use her recycle ability multiple times in the same turn as long as she can pay the cost (recycling a card from the discard pile). Each activation grants +1 might.
Does Baited Hook look at the printed might of a unit, or its current might at the time of death?
Ruling: Baited Hook looks at the current might of the unit it kills (including any buffs or modifications), but looks at the base/printed might of the unit it fetches from your deck.
When using Switcheroo to swap might between two units, if one unit has equipment attached, does the equipment bonus still apply after the swap?
Ruling: Switcheroo applies a fixed might modifier to each unit that accounts for all current bonuses (including equipment) at the time of casting. Equipment bonuses continue to apply after the swap, but Switcheroo's modifier is calculated to achieve the swapped totals.
Can you use Here to Help to play Deadbloom Predator to an opponent's battlefield on their turn?
Ruling: No, you cannot. Here to Help restricts you to playing a unit only to a battlefield you control, and this restriction overrides Deadbloom Predator's additional placement options.
Does Heimerdinger copy Renata's battlefield restriction, and can he use her ability from base?
Ruling: Heimerdinger copies Renata's exhaust ability but not her passive battlefield restriction, so he can use her ability from base. He must still pay the full cost (recycle 4 blue, tap 4, and tap himself).
If I have two Irelia Graceful on the board and target them both with a single spell (such as one with repeat), does the spell cost get reduced by 2?
Ruling: Yes, if you have two Irelia Graceful units and a single spell targets both of them, the spell's cost is reduced by 2 total (1 for each Irelia targeted).
Can a unit have multiple buffs applied to it at the same time?
Ruling: A unit can only have one buff at a time unless a card specifically states otherwise. Nuances: - You can still attempt to buff an already buffed unit, but the action will have no effect
Does Ezreal - Prodigy's cost reduction apply to Irelia - Legend's optional power payment to ready a unit?
Ruling: No, Ezreal - Prodigy does not reduce Irelia - Legend's power payment. Additional costs only refer to effects that specifically use the term "additional cost" in their text.
Does Deflect trigger when a unit with Deflect is damaged by Stormbringer (which doesn't specifically target that unit)?
Ruling: Deflect does not trigger from Stormbringer damage because Stormbringer does not target enemy units. Nuances: - Stormbringer only targets a friendly unit and a battlefield, not enemy units directly - Deflect requires the unit to be targeted to trigger its effect
Can Akshan Spiritforged target and detach a gear equipment that is already attached to another unit?
Ruling: Yes, Akshan can target an equipment that is already attached to another unit, and that equipment will move to Akshan.
If an opponent Defys a spell with Repeat, can you still pay the Repeat cost to cast it again?
Ruling: No, you cannot pay the Repeat cost after a spell is Defied. Repeat is an additional cost that must be paid before the spell is finalized onto the chain.
Can you play a Hidden card in response to a Temporary keyword trigger (specifically, can you flip Teemo in response to a Sprite with Temporary dying)?
Ruling: Yes, you can play a Hidden card in response to a Temporary keyword trigger because playing a Hidden card is at Reaction speed, and Reactions can be played whenever there is a chain.
In a 3-player game, if a player has 6 points and holds 2 of the 3 battlefields at the start of their turn, do they win immediately with 8 points, or do they only score 7 points and need to conquer the third battlefield?
Ruling: The player scores 2 points (one for each battlefield held) and wins immediately with 8 points. Nuances: - Holding always scores points at the start of your turn, regardless of how many battlefields exist in the game
If my opponent has 2 units and I attack with one unit, and they use Imperial Decree, can I still kill both of their units if I have enough Might, or does my unit die instantly?
Ruling: Imperial Decree does not activate until the dealing damage step. Damage is assigned (attacker first, then defender) and then all damage is dealt simultaneously, at which point Imperial Decree triggers.
If a unit with attached gear (e.g., Traveling Merchant with Cull, making it 3 Might) has Switcheroo played on it against a 4 Might unit, does the gear's +1 Might bonus persist after the swap to make the Merchant 5 Might total?
Ruling: No, the Merchant ends at 4 Might, not 5. Switcheroo calculates the appropriate bonus/penalty based on the units' total Might at the time it's applied, creating a snapshot. The gear's +1 bonus is already factored into that calculation and doesn't reapply on top of Switcheroo's effect.
Does Purple Ezreal's cost reduction ability affect Bullet Time's Universal Power cost?
Ruling: No, Purple Ezreal does not make Bullet Time cheaper. Bullet Time's Universal Power cost is paid on resolution, not as an additional cost when playing the card, so Ezreal's ability does not apply.
For cards like Void Seeker and Stupefy, do you still draw a card if the opponent retreats the targeted unit?
Ruling: Yes, you still draw the card. The spell resolves even if some or all of its targets become illegal.
If a Repeat spell like Rocket Barrage targets two units (one non-recruit and Viktor second), does Viktor's ability trigger to generate a token when the first unit dies, since the targets are resolved in order?
Ruling: No, Viktor does not get a token from Rocket Barrage because damage spells deal damage to both targets during resolution, but units only die during cleanup, meaning both units die simultaneously. However, if a hypothetical Repeat spell said "kill a unit" (not deal damage), then the kills would happen sequentially and Viktor would get a token if the other...
If Draven has +5 might from his passive (making him 8 total might), can Baited Hook (which reveals units with 2-3 might) reveal and play him from the deck?
Ruling: Yes, Baited Hook can reveal and play Draven because it looks at the original might of units in the deck (3 might), where Draven's passive is not active. His passive only applies when he is on the board.
Can I use Cleave to boost my attacking unit after my opponent uses Smoke Screen in response to my battlefield move?
Ruling: You cannot use Cleave as a reaction to Smoke Screen because Cleave is an action, not a reaction. However, after Smoke Screen resolves, you regain focus and can then play Cleave to boost your unit.
Can you repeatedly re-equip the same equipment to multiple units attacking one at a time, and does the equipment become exhausted?
Ruling: You can repeatedly equip the same equipment to different units as long as you pay the equip cost and the equipment is not currently attached. Equipment does not exhaust when the equipped unit dies and does not need to be ready to equip.
Does Experimental Hexplate count as a mech when unequipped in your base, or only when attached to a unit?
Ruling: Experimental Hexplate only counts as a mech when it is attached to a unit, not when it is unequipped in your base.
At what score does Chem-Baroness Renata's second ability (giving golds the ability to tap for energy) become active in a game to 8 points?
Ruling: Chem-Baroness Renata's second ability becomes active when you have 5 or more points in a game to 8 points.
If an opponent's Merchant in base has Cleave played on it, then moves into a battlefield I control, can I play Gust on the Merchant during the 'When I move' trigger to return it to hand before it gets +3 attack?
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.
Does Ravenbloom Student trigger when you play a spell, or does the spell need to resolve first?
Ruling: In Riftbound, a card is not considered "played" until it resolves. If a spell is countered or otherwise prevented from resolving, it was not played and does not trigger abilities that trigger on playing cards.
If Green Jax gives all gear Quickdraw, and I play Svellsongur as a reaction during combat, will Svellsongur copy White Flame Protector's on-play ability to give +8 to a unit?
Ruling: No, Svellsongur gives units a copy of their own abilities, not abilities from other units. White Flame Protector will have two copies of its own "when you play me" ability, but nothing will trigger them since the unit is already in play.
If I steal an equipment with Akshan and attach it to him, can I use Lucian's Weapon Master to move it to Lucian for free? Can my opponent pay to equip it back to their unit?
Ruling: When you control stolen equipment (attached to Akshan), you can use it as if you played it, including using Lucian's Weapon Master to move it for free. Your opponent cannot use its abilities while you control it.
If Ahri legend has already triggered when an enemy unit attacks, does it trigger again when Rengar is played and enters attacking during the same combat?
Ruling: Yes, Ahri legend triggers again when Rengar enters play attacking. Ahri's legend triggers the first time each unit is assigned as an attacker that combat.
When conquering Zaun Warrens with no cards in hand, do you still get to draw a card if you cannot discard?
Ruling: Yes, you still draw a card even if you have no cards to discard. The discard and draw effects are independent of each other.
Can you cast Defy with no valid targets?
Ruling: No, you cannot cast Defy with no valid targets. The spell fails the legality check before it can be added to the chain.
When Dragon's Rage moves a unit into a battlefield to destroy an enemy unit, does the attacking unit get healed afterward, and can you move another unit in after the first unit destroys the defender?
Ruling: Dragon's Rage does not trigger healing because it is not a combat. The unit moved by Dragon's Rage will not be healed after destroying the enemy unit.