Browse Riftbound Rules Questions
Page 128 of 128 · 6,389 verified questions. Each links to the full ruling.
When Flurry of Blades kills a unit during a resolving chain, does Immortal Phoenix's triggered ability immediately trigger and add itself to the resolving chain, or does it wait until the next Open State?
Ruling: Immortal Phoenix's triggered ability triggers immediately and is added to the chain after Flurry of Blades resolves. It does not wait for the next Open State.
Can you cast Void Seeker without a target unit on the battlefield to just draw 1 card?
Ruling: No, you cannot cast Void Seeker without a valid target. The spell requires all targets to be present when cast, and Void Seeker does not have an "up to" clause that would allow targeting 0 units.
Can you activate Sun Disc after casting a burn spell but before Immortal Phoenix revives from the graveyard?
Ruling: No, you cannot activate Sun Disc after casting the burn spell but before Phoenix revives. Sun Disc is not a reaction, so you must activate it before casting the spell.
Can I use Call to Glory between Cithria of Cloudfield's trigger and Pit Rookie's trigger when both are on the chain, spending the buff from one trigger before the other resolves?
Ruling: Yes, you can use Call to Glory between the two triggers. When Pit Rookie is played, both Cithria and Pit Rookie trigger simultaneously. As the active player, you order these triggers on the chain, then must pass priority to allow the first trigger to resolve. After Pit Rookie's trigger resolves (buffing Cithria), you regain priority as controller of the...
If Blastcone Fae is hidden and flipped at battlefield 1, can its ability target units at battlefield 2?
Ruling: No, when Blastcone Fae is flipped from hidden, its ability can only target units at the same battlefield where it was flipped.
If my opponent uses Gust against my 3 might unit, I use Discipline to save it, and then my opponent reacts with Shakedown that kills my unit before other spells resolve, do I still draw from Discipline?
Ruling: Yes, you still draw from Discipline even if the target unit is killed before Discipline resolves. All effects that reach the chain always resolve (unless countered), and you do as much as you can on resolution.
During an attack, if I play an action spell with focus, defender gets focus and plays nothing, do I get focus back?
Ruling: Yes, you get the focus back. Focus continues passing between players until all players pass focus in succession, at which point Showdown ends.
If you cast Noxian Guillotine on a 12 might unit and then cast Disintegrate on it, does Disintegrate draw you a card?
Ruling: No, you do not draw a card. Noxian Guillotine creates a delayed trigger that kills the unit when it takes damage, so the kill credit goes to Guillotine's delayed trigger, not to Disintegrate.
Can I cast Defy targeting a spell that costs more than 4 energy to get a spell cast trigger, either by targeting an invalid spell or by having Defy target itself?
Ruling: You cannot cast Defy targeting a spell that costs more than 4 energy, nor can you have Defy target itself. Defy requires a valid target with energy cost ≤4 and power cost ≤1 to be cast, and spells cannot target themselves.
Can Yasuo - Remorseful trigger his 6 damage ability twice in the same combat by using two Ride The Wind cards to leave and re-enter the battlefield?
Ruling: No, Yasuo's attacker trigger can only activate once per combat, even if he leaves and re-enters the battlefield multiple times during that same combat.
When Heimerdinger Inventor copies Malzahar's Exhaust ability, do you still need to kill a unit to use it?
Ruling: Yes, you still need to kill a unit or gear to use the Exhaust ability. The exhaust ability is directly duplicated with all costs, restrictions, and effects.
Does Ava Achiever trigger Teemo Strategist when you play a card with the Hidden keyword from your hand?
Ruling: Teemo Strategist will never trigger from Ava Achiever. Ava Achiever lets you play a card that has the Hidden keyword from your hand, but does not let you hide a card.
If you move to an occupied battlefield and your opponent uses Ride the Wind to move their unit to a different battlefield, do you score first before the showdown at the new battlefield, and does everything at the new battlefield go on hold until the original battlefield's showdown concludes?
Ruling: Yes, you score first at the original battlefield, then a showdown happens at the new battlefield (assuming no extra actions are used). Everything at the new battlefield goes on hold until the showdown at the original battlefield concludes.
Can players start multiple chains during a Showdown, or does passing once forfeit the ability to start new chains?
Ruling: Players can start multiple chains during a Showdown. Both players must pass in a row without playing spells or activating abilities for the Showdown to close.
When Yasuo and Merchant move to attack, what is the correct order of triggers and when can each player activate abilities?
Ruling: Merchant's on-move trigger resolves completely before the showdown begins (you cannot start combat with a chain). During the showdown's initial chain, the defender controls the order of all their triggered abilities, regardless of whether they trigger on attack or defend.
When a unit fails to conquer Vilemaw's Lair and is recalled to base, does the battlefield's 'Units can't move from here to base' restriction prevent the recall?
Ruling: Units that fail to conquer Vilemaw's Lair are recalled to base, not moved. Since "recalled" and "move" are different game terms, Vilemaw's Lair's restriction does not prevent the recall.
Can Fox Fire be played with 0 targets when it says 'any number'?
Ruling: Yes, Fox Fire can be played with 0 targets. "Any number" includes 0 as a valid choice. Nuances: - Cards that allow 0 targets are typically worded with "up to" but "any number" is functionally the same - Playing it with 0 targets can be useful for triggering effects like Ravenbloom Student - When adding up 0 targets' Mights,...
Does Salvage require a gear to be targeted in order to play it and draw a card?
Ruling: Originally, Salvage required a valid gear target to be played because the "may" choice happened at resolution, not when playing the spell. The card has since received errata changing the text to "You may kill up to one gear. Draw 1." which allows it to be played without a gear target.
Does Teemo's 'When You Play Me' effect go on the stack where there is a window to respond with cards like Gust?
Ruling: Yes, all 'When You Play Me' triggers go on the chain and can be reacted to. Nuances: - The game uses a 'chain' rather than a 'stack' for triggered effects - Players have priority to respond to these triggers with fast spells or other reactions
If Zhonya's is hidden on a battlefield and an enemy unit is moved to a different battlefield, can that Zhonya's be used to protect the unit?
Ruling: Yes, Zhonya's can protect a unit anywhere on the board when played from hidden, regardless of which battlefield it was hidden on.
When a token unit is bounced to its owner's hand, is it destroyed or can it be played for 0 cost on the next turn?
Ruling: When a token unit is bounced to its owner's hand, it briefly touches the hand and then ceases to exist. It cannot be played on the next turn.
Can you play Cruel Patron from a Hook reveal if you have no units to sacrifice for its additional cost?
Ruling: No, you cannot play Cruel Patron if you have no units to sacrifice. The additional cost must be paid.
Does a triggered ability fizzle if the source permanent is removed from the battlefield before the ability resolves?
Ruling: Triggered abilities do not fizzle in Riftbound when their source is removed. The ability still resolves, but may not produce a result if it references the source's current state or location.
What is the correct start of game procedure in BO3 competitive 1v1, including when to select/reveal Battlefields, roll dice, and choose starting player?
Ruling: The start of game procedure follows a specific sequence where Battlefields are chosen hidden before being revealed simultaneously, and player order is determined by a random process that decides who gets to choose whether to go first or second.
If I cast Shakedown targeting a recruit and my opponent uses Hidden Blade to kill their recruit in response, does my spell fizzle or resolve with no effect?
Ruling: Shakedown will not fizzle, but it will resolve with no effect. You cannot reference information about an illegal target on resolution, so the controller cannot be identified to offer the choice to draw cards.
If Bullet-time is played and the opponent responds with Defy, are the runes recycled for damage still paid, or only the 1 rune exhaust cost?
Ruling: When Bullet-time is played and countered by Defy, only the 1 rune exhaust cost is paid. The runes for recycling damage are not paid because recycling is not a condition to play the card.
If Azir Sovereign's attack trigger is on the chain and he gets removed or moved with Fate's Fortune before it resolves, do token units still move to the battlefield?
Ruling: If Azir is removed in response to his trigger, the trigger whiffs because "this battlefield" cannot be identified. If he is moved to another battlefield, the tokens move to his new battlefield. If he is moved to base, the trigger whiffs because he is not at a battlefield.
Does Ahri's legend ability affect only one attacking unit or all attacking units in a showdown?
Ruling: Ahri's legend ability triggers separately for each attacking enemy unit. If 5 units attack, all 5 units get -1.
Does Yellow Soraka's ability save a unit token with the Temporary keyword?
Ruling: Yes, Soraka's ability saves tokens with Temporary. Soraka replaces death, so tokens are healed, exhausted, and recalled instead of leaving the board.
Can Wind Wall and Defy target any spell on the chain, or only the spell they are reacting to?
Ruling: Wind Wall and Defy can target any spell on the chain, not just the most recent one they are reacting to.
When Master Yi's Legend passive gives +2 might to a unit with a -4 might modifier (from Smoke Screen), does the unit return to 1 might (minimum) or 0 might when Yi stops giving the bonus between combats?
Ruling: When combat ends and Master Yi stops giving the +2 might bonus, the unit goes to 0 might (base 4 - 4 from Smoke Screen = 0). When combat begins again and Yi's passive triggers, the unit becomes 2 might (4 + 2 - 4 = 2).
Does Riftbound have a concept of last known information? Specifically, if Yasuo Remorseful's attack trigger is on the stack and he is killed before it resolves, does his trigger deal damage based on his might when he died, when the ability triggered, or does it deal no damage?
Ruling: Riftbound does not have a concept of last known information. When a triggered ability resolves, "here" refers to the current location of the source unit at resolution time, not where it was when the ability triggered. If the source unit has left the battlefield, the ability cannot evaluate properly and deals no damage.
During a showdown, if player A has focus and plays an Action, does priority stay with A or pass to B? After the chain resolves, who gets focus? Also, when does Ravenbloom Student trigger and is it added to the chain, and does it still trigger if the spell is countered?
Ruling: When player A plays an Action during a showdown, they retain priority and can continue playing cards at reaction speed until they pass priority to player B. After the final effect on a chain resolves, focus passes to the next player (the player who did not own the last effect to resolve). Ravenbloom Student triggers after a spell fully...
If you Ride the Wind to leave a contested battlefield and then Ride the Wind back into the same showdown, do you score if you win?
Ruling: No, you do not score if you Ride the Wind out and back into the same combat. You only score by conquering when you gain control of a battlefield you did not control before the combat started.
If an opponent plays Void Seeker (dealing 4 damage) on my Thousand Tail Watcher, then plays their own Thousand Tail Watcher (giving -3 might to all units), does my Watcher die?
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.
Can I use Gust to return an opponent's 2 might creature to their hand after they play it and pass turn, if it has no on-play ability?
Ruling: No, if the unit doesn't have an on-play ability, there is no reaction window to use Gust after it's played.
When Switcheroo swaps the might of a buffed unit with an opponent's unit, does the buff stay on the original unit, and what happens to the might values?
Ruling: Switcheroo switches current might values between units, but buffs remain on their original units as physical objects. After the swap, the buffed unit retains its buff even though its might has changed.
If Zhonya's Hourglass procs after Watcher has been used on Deadbloom, does Deadbloom recall with 8 Might or 5 Might?
Ruling: Deadbloom recalls with 8 Might (retaining the buff from Watcher). Since Deadbloom never leaves the board when it recalls, any effects on it will remain.
For Baited Hook, does it use the current might or printed might of the killed unit?
Ruling: Baited Hook uses the current might of the unit as it was killed. Nuances: - This is the might value at the time the unit is killed by Baited Hook, not the printed/base might value on the card.