Browse Riftbound Rules Questions
Page 19 of 128 · 6,389 verified questions. Each links to the full ruling.
When Watcher reduces a 1 might unit's might, does the snapshot prevent future buffs from increasing it above 1?
Ruling: When Watcher's effect is applied to a 1 might unit, it snapshots at -0 (not -2) because the effect has a restriction that might cannot be reduced below 1. Future buffs like Discipline will add to the base might normally, so a 1 might unit would become 3 might (1 + 2 - 0 = 3).
When Promising Future is played and the opponent plays Blitzcrank (moving a unit to a battlefield), does the showdown start immediately or do the Promising Future cards resolve first? Also, can a unit from Promising Future be played to that battlefield?
Ruling: Promising Future must fully resolve before any showdown starts. You cannot play units to battlefields you don't control (and you don't control a battlefield you're attacking).
Does Warwick's 'When I Attack' ability interact with Cannon Barrage during combat?
Ruling: Yes, Cannon Barrage can be played in response to Warwick's ability on the Initial Chain. Cannon Barrage will resolve first, dealing damage to units, and then Warwick will see the damaged units and kill them.
Can a unit move from battlefield to battlefield using Charm without ganking?
Ruling: Yes, you can move a unit from battlefield to battlefield using Charm without ganking. Movement caused by spells or effects does not have the limitations of Standard Move.
Can you react to a hidden card being played?
Ruling: You cannot react to a card being hidden, but you can normally react to a card played from hidden. A hidden card being played is treated like any other card being played.
If you play a unit to an opponent-controlled battlefield during a showdown on your opponent's turn, do you trigger a new showdown, who is the attacker, and can you score a point?
Ruling: Yes, you trigger a new showdown, you are the attacker, and you can score a point. Sequence: - The current showdown is not interrupted and resolves as usual - When the current showdown is over and you're back in a neutral open state, the next "waiting" showdown begins
If I have a unit controlling a battlefield and my opponent attacks it, can I Ride the Wind it to base (leaving no units there) and then Ride the Wind it back onto the battlefield to score it?
Ruling: No, under current rules you cannot score in this situation. You do not lose control of the battlefield until combat ends, so when you Ride the Wind your unit back to the battlefield, you are still the defender and still control that battlefield, which means you cannot score.
When you move a unit on your turn, does it happen immediately without creating a chain, preventing opponents from responding with Reaction spells before the move resolves?
Ruling: Normal movement resolves immediately and does not create a chain, so opponents cannot respond with Reaction spells before the move completes.
Can you play a card with 'up to 2 units' targeting and choose 0 units?
Ruling: Yes, you can play a card that says "up to 2 units" and choose to target 0 units. Nuances: - "Up to 2 units" means 0-2 units, not 1-2 units
Does damage dealt to a unit reduce its might value during a showdown?
Ruling: Damage does not change a unit's might value. Damage only causes units to die when they accumulate enough of it.
In a 3-player game, if Anivia attacks a battlefield with a hidden Hidden Blade, can you activate Hidden Blade in response to kill Anivia before her attack ability resolves, and would that prevent her ability from affecting your units?
Ruling: You can activate Hidden Blade as a reaction to Anivia's "when I attack" ability and kill her before it resolves. If Anivia dies before her ability resolves, the ability will not affect your units.
If you control an Immortal Phoenix in play, have one in your trash, and one in your hand, then play Get Excited (discarding the Phoenix in hand and killing your own Phoenix on board), how many Phoenix triggers do you get?
Ruling: You get all 3 Phoenix triggers - the one already in trash, the one discarded from hand, and the one killed from the field.
Does Viktor trigger his ability when he is the target of Retreat (returning him to hand)?
Ruling: Viktor does not trigger when Retreat is played on him. Viktor only triggers when a spell is fully resolved and only if he is still on the board when that resolution happens. Since Retreat returns him to hand before the spell resolves, he is no longer on the board to trigger.
When do 'When I move/attack/defend' triggers resolve, and what happens if a unit like Yasuo is killed after triggering 'When I attack' but before combat damage?
Ruling: 'When I move' triggers resolve on their own chain before the showdown begins. Once that chain resolves, the showdown starts and 'When I attack' and 'When I defend' triggers go on a new chain together. Yasuo's 'When I attack' ability triggers and resolves as soon as he becomes an attacker, dealing damage before he can be killed by non-reaction...
If I have 2 or more Vi Destructive in play and I recycle 1 card from trash, do all of them get +1 or does it only work for 1 at a time?
Ruling: Only one Vi Destructive gets +1 when you recycle 1 card from trash. You activate the ability of one specific Vi and pay its cost, so only that Vi's ability resolves.
If Deadbloom is played targeting an occupied battlefield, and the opponent responds with Gust to empty it before Deadbloom resolves, does Deadbloom still enter the battlefield?
Ruling: This scenario cannot happen. Units do not linger on the chain like spells do - they enter the chain but leave immediately as part of the play process, before opponents can respond.
If I attack with a 1 might unit that has a buff on it against Ahri Legend's battlefield, then spend the buff using Call to Glory, what will my unit's final might be?
Ruling: The unit will end up at 3 might. Sequence: - The unit enters combat at 2 might (1 base + 1 buff) - Ahri Legend's ability triggers and resolves, reducing might by 1 (now at 1 might, with the -1 reduction "snapshotted") - Call to Glory is used, removing the buff (-1) and adding +3 - The unit goes...
In a 2v2 game, can allied players' Units share battlefields?
Ruling: No, allied players' Units cannot share battlefields. Control is not shared between allies, and units are prohibited from moving to an ally's battlefield.
Can spells without Action or Reaction typing be played as Reactions (e.g., during a Showdown)?
Ruling: Spells that don't specify they are Actions or Reactions cannot be used as if they were Actions or Reactions. They can only be played during your turn in an open and neutral state.
In Riftbound, when two units are on one battlefield and a reaction is activated, can players continue to play actions/reactions before combat damage is dealt, or does damage happen immediately?
Ruling: Players can continue to play reactions (but not actions) during a chain until both players pass priority in succession. Only then does the game move to the combat damage step where units deal damage.
Can a unit with Ganking move before a showdown occurs to avoid it?
Ruling: No, you can only move your units during your turn, outside a showdown, while nothing else is resolving. Nuances: - This applies even if the unit has Ganking - You cannot move a unit to avoid a showdown that is about to occur during an opponent's conquest attempt
If I Charm an opponent's unit to an open battlefield, does the opponent score a point? Does it matter if they scored on that battlefield last turn?
Ruling: Yes, the opponent will score when you Charm their unit to an open battlefield. It does not matter if they scored on that battlefield last turn.
Do gears (like Ballista) start a chain when played, and do their activated abilities start a chain?
Ruling: Playing a gear card does start a chain, but if it's a permanent, no player receives priority before it resolves. Activated abilities of gears also start a chain.
To score the 8th point and win, do you need to conquer both battlefields in one turn or hold one on your next turn, or do you need to hold both at the start of your turn?
Ruling: To win via your 8th point by conquering, you must conquer all battlefields on the same turn. However, you can also win by holding a battlefield at the start of your turn, which counts as scoring on your turn and has no restriction.
Can a stunned unit deal damage with the spell Challenge?
Ruling: Yes, a stunned unit can deal damage with the spell Challenge. Stun only affects the ability to deal combat damage and nothing else.
In a Jinx mirror match, if I have 1 card in hand and trigger Jinx's legend ability to draw at the start of my beginning phase, can my opponent react with Gust on my unit before I score for holding?
Ruling: Yes, your opponent can react with Gust before you score for holding. Jinx's legend ability enters the chain every turn, giving your opponent priority to play reactions before the hold scoring condition is checked.
Can a Champion Unit move from the Champion Zone to a battlefield, and how does it work?
Ruling: Champion Units start in the Champion Zone, which functions like an extension of your hand - they cannot use abilities from there and must be played first. When you play a Champion Unit (like Ahri), you pay its summoning cost and it enters exhausted in either your base or a battlefield you already control, exactly as if playing from...
Does Ahri Nine-Tailed Fox's ability give -1 Might to all attacking units or just one unit?
Ruling: Ahri Nine-Tailed Fox's ability triggers separately for each enemy unit that attacks a battlefield she controls, giving each attacking unit -1 Might (to a minimum of 1 Might).
If 2 Zhonyas are placed on a unit, do they proc one by one or at the same time when the unit would die?
Ruling: When a unit with two Zhonyas would die, you choose the order of the replacement effects. The first Zhonyas saves the unit and is destroyed, while the second Zhonyas does not trigger and remains on the unit.
When Traveling Merchant is charmed, does the owner discard and draw?
Ruling: Yes, when Traveling Merchant is charmed, the owner still discards and draws. Nuances: - The owner of Traveling Merchant performs the discard and draw effect even when the unit is controlled by an opponent through charm effects.
If Azir is exhausted, can you still pay 1 power to trigger his action ability?
Ruling: Yes, you can use Azir's action ability even when he is exhausted because the ability does not require exhausting him as part of the cost.
Can you score the last point to win the game with an ability from a card, or can you only win by drawing cards?
Ruling: You can score the last point with card abilities like Ahri. The only restriction for scoring the last point is that it cannot come from conquering.
When a card has a Might requirement for targeting (like "target 3 Might or lower"), does it check the printed Might value or the current modified Might value?
Ruling: Cards with Might requirements check the current Might value, not the printed value. You can decrease an opponent's card's Might (e.g., with Smoke Screen) and then target it with cards that have Might restrictions (e.g., Gust targeting 3 Might or lower).
When Zhonya's Hourglass recalls a unit that has already moved/attacked, does it return to base ready or exhausted?
Ruling: When a unit is recalled by Zhonya's Hourglass, it returns to base in the same exhausted state it was in when recalled. The unit is not dying and re-entering play; it is simply being moved back to base.
Do units with 0 might die when they take damage?
Ruling: Units with 0 might do not automatically die. They only die when they take damage, and the minimum lethal damage is always at least 1 point, even for a 0 might unit.
Does Cull prevent Unyielding?
Ruling: No, Cull does not prevent Unyielding because Cull is not damage.
Can you hold a battlefield with Monastery, move all units off, then conquer it again in the same turn to trigger Monastery's draw effect?
Ruling: No, you cannot conquer a battlefield you held that turn. Both holding and conquering are types of scoring, and you can only score each battlefield once per turn.
If you have 6 points at the beginning of your turn and conquer 2 battlefields, do you win with 8 points, or do you need to be at 7 points before conquering 2 battlefields to win?
Ruling: If you have 6 points at the beginning of your turn and conquer 2 battlefields, you score 2 points and win with 8 points total. You do not need to be at 7 points first.
Does the first player draw a card on their first turn?
Ruling: In 1v1 games, the first player draws a card on their first turn. In multiplayer games (more than 2 players), the first player does not draw a card on their first turn.
Can a hidden card remain on an empty battlefield, and if so, can it trigger when a unit enters?
Ruling: Hidden cards cannot remain on an empty battlefield. When you lose control of a battlefield (it becomes empty), any hidden cards are removed at the next cleanup.
Can Defy counter Siphon, given that Siphon costs 2 energy and 1 power?
Ruling: Yes, Defy can counter Siphon. Siphon costs 2 energy and 1 power, which meets Defy's requirement of no more than 4 energy and 1 power.
Can a defending player conquer a battlefield during combat on the attacking player's turn?
Ruling: Yes, a defender can conquer a battlefield if they are the only player with units remaining there and they did not control that battlefield before combat or score it earlier that turn.
Can you flip a hidden unit in response to a Sprite with Temporary dying at the beginning of your turn to maintain battlefield presence for scoring?
Ruling: Yes, you can flip a hidden unit in response to the Temporary trigger to maintain a unit on the battlefield for scoring purposes.
When a unit's might is reduced by multiple effects, can it die if the marked damage equals or exceeds its current might after each reduction?
Ruling: A unit dies when marked damage equals or exceeds its current might. This applies regardless of whether damage was dealt first and then might was reduced, or if might was reduced and then damage was dealt.
Does Viktor's legend ability of playing a recruit unit token count as playing a unit and trigger cards like Gemcraaft Seer?
Ruling: Playing a recruit unit token counts as playing a unit and will trigger abilities like Gemcraaft Seer, but it is not considered playing a card.
Can you exhaust Miss Fortune's Legend card as an action at no cost, and is her Champion card's 'Friendly units may be played to open battlefields' passive always active when she's faceup on the field?
Ruling: Miss Fortune's Legend card can be exhausted for free, but only on your turn in an open gamestate (when you could play a unit or perform a standard move). Her Champion card's passive allowing friendly units to be played to open battlefields is active as long as she is anywhere on the board (any battlefield or base), but not...
When a unit receives multiple -might modifiers that snapshot at resolution, and then receives a +might buff, does it remember the original -might total or does it calculate from the current might value?
Ruling: When you use a buff like Discipline after -might effects resolve, the unit calculates from its current might value. It does not remember what the total -might "should have been" - only what was actually applied at resolution based on the restrictions at that time.
When Quickdraw is used to play equipment at reaction speed and the target creature is removed in response, does the equipment fizzle or stay on the board?
Ruling: The equipment stays on the board. Riftbound does not have fizzling. Sequence: - Quickdraw allows equipment to be played at reaction speed - The attach part of Quickdraw is a triggered ability - If the target is no longer valid when that trigger resolves, the ability whiffs (resolves to 0 effect) - The gear simply stays in base
Does a controlled battlefield count as a base, specifically for effects like Yasuo's legend skill that move units between locations?
Ruling: A controlled battlefield does not count as a base. You can play units to controlled battlefields, but it remains a battlefield and does not count as your base for effects which specifically reference the base.
Do Shield values stack (e.g., Shield 1 + Shield 2), and do multiple instances of Assault abilities like Cleave stack?
Ruling: Shield values are summed together on a unit. Multiple instances of Assault abilities like Cleave also stack (double Cleave is equivalent to Assault 6).