Browse Riftbound Rules Questions
Page 27 of 128 · 6,389 verified questions. Each links to the full ruling.
If you move a unit you control out of a battlefield and move a different unit you control into it, does that conquer the battlefield again even if you already hold it that turn?
Ruling: No, you cannot score each battlefield more than once per turn. Moving a different unit into a battlefield you already control does not allow you to conquer it again.
Can you react to Harnessed Dragon's ability, or more generally, can you react to any 'when you play' ability?
Ruling: Yes, you can react to Harnessed Dragon's ability and other 'when you play' abilities. Everything that enters the chain and is not a permanent itself is reactable.
How is Might calculated when Smokescreen (-4 Might, minimum 1) and Cleave (Assault +3) are played in a chain, with Smokescreen played first as a reaction and Cleave played second?
Ruling: Effects resolve in the order they were played on the chain. When Smokescreen resolves first, it reduces the 3 Might unit to 1 Might (applying -4 with minimum 1). Then Cleave resolves, adding Assault +3, resulting in a final 4 Might.
If I use Ride the Wind to move a unit to an empty battlefield I own on my opponent's turn, do I get a conquer point?
Ruling: Yes, you get a conquer point when you use Ride the Wind to move a unit to an empty battlefield you own on your opponent's turn.
When a player has three 1-might token units at Trifarian War Camp (giving +1 might), and the opponent plays Watcher (giving -3 might), then the player plays Grand Strategem (+5 might), what is the final might of each unit?
Ruling: The units would be 6 might each. Sequence: - Units start at 1 might base - Trifarian War Camp gives +1 (units are at 2 might) - Watcher reduces them to 1 might and snapshots to give -1 until end of turn - Grand Strategem adds +5 might - Final calculation: 1 (current) + 5 (Grand Strategem) = 6...
When Switcheroo swaps the might of Mundo (who has 16 might from 6 base + 10 cards in trash) with Student (who has 2 base might), what are the final might values after Switcheroo resolves and goes to trash?
Ruling: After Switcheroo resolves, Mundo will have 3 might and Student will have 17 might. Mundo's passive ability continues to apply, but the -14 might reduction from the swap also continues to apply until end of turn.
Can you respond to Dazzling Aurora before it triggers if the opponent plays it and immediately ends their turn?
Ruling: You cannot respond to Dazzling Aurora before it triggers if the opponent plays it and ends their turn. Aurora resolves immediately as a permanent, and when the turn ends, the trigger is immediately added to the chain.
Can I play unit cards directly from hand to a battlefield I already control?
Ruling: Yes, you can play units directly from hand to any battlefield you control. Nuances: - This applies immediately after conquering a battlefield (playing a unit to an open battlefield and scoring a point) - This also applies on subsequent turns if you still control the battlefield and your opponent hasn't attacked it
For Ride the Wind, is choosing the unit and location part of finalizing the ability, or do you just choose a unit?
Ruling: You choose both the unit and its destination when you put Ride the Wind on the chain. Sequence: - Choose the unit - Choose the destination - Put the ability on the chain
What happens when a card requires you to discard but you have no cards in hand?
Ruling: When a card instructs you to discard but you have no cards in hand, you do as much as you can and then continue with the rest of the effect.
If I take control of an opponent's Deathknell creature (like Ferrous Forerunner) using Hostile Takeover or Possession, then kill it (like with Cull the Weak), do I get the Deathknell trigger before it goes back to the opponent's trash?
Ruling: Yes, you get the Deathknell trigger. Deathknell triggers capture all information about the creature right before it's killed, including its current controller.
Can Hidden Blade kill Ruin Runner?
Ruling: No, you cannot use Hidden Blade on an opponent's Ruin Runner because Hidden Blade requires choosing/targeting a unit, and Ruin Runner cannot be chosen by opponent's spells and skills.
How does lethal damage assignment work with deathtouch effects like Imperial Decree - does 1 damage count as lethal, or must you still assign damage equal to the unit's full might?
Ruling: You must still assign damage equal to a unit's full might value, even when effects like Imperial Decree (deathtouch) are active. Lethal damage is defined as damage equal to the unit's might, regardless of damage-dealing keywords.
If you hide a card like Sprite Call that makes a unit at a battlefield, and all your units at that battlefield are killed before you play the hidden card, do you lose control of the battlefield immediately and what happens to the hidden card?
Ruling: When you lose control of a battlefield (by having no units there), any card hidden to that battlefield goes to the trash. You lose control immediately when your last unit dies, unless the battlefield is Contested (which only happens during showdowns).
Do multiple instances of Deflect stack, requiring an opponent to use multiple power to target a character?
Ruling: Yes, multiple sources of Deflect do stack, requiring the opponent to spend additional power for each instance to target that character.
Can Mystic Reversal be used to take control of an opponent's spell when you have no valid targets, essentially nullifying it?
Ruling: You can cast Mystic Reversal even when you have no additional valid targets. When you take control of the spell, you don't have to make new target choices - you can leave the original targets. If those targets are now illegal for you, the spell resolves with illegal targets and has no effect.
Who gets to order triggers when you have multiple on defend triggers?
Ruling: Each player orders their own triggers. When defending, the attacking player orders their triggers first, then other non-defending players in turn order, then the defending player orders their triggers last.
What happens when a 4 might unit is sent to a battlefield with a stunned 5 might unit on it?
Ruling: The 4 might unit assigns 4 damage to the stunned 5 might unit. At the end of combat, both attackers and defenders remain, so attackers are Recalled.
When you have 2 Vi's on the board, do you need to choose which Vi gains each +1 or do they both benefit from a +1 per card when recycling?
Ruling: Only one Vi gains the +1 when you recycle a card. You choose which Vi activates the ability. Sequence: - Choose which Vi activates the ability - Recycle 1 card - The chosen Vi gets +1
Does Unyielding Spirit prevent damage from Challenge?
Ruling: No, Challenge is not prevented by Unyielding Spirit. Nuances: - Challenge damage goes through despite Unyielding Spirit's protection
Can an opponent target Teemo, Scout with a reaction spell/ability after Teemo is revealed from hidden but before the chain resolves?
Ruling: Yes, opponents can cast reaction spells targeting Teemo, Scout after he is revealed from hidden. When Teemo unhides as a reaction, it starts a chain, and opponents can respond with their own reactions (but not actions).
If First Mate is played and the only other unit on the board is an enemy unit, does it ready the enemy unit?
Ruling: Yes, First Mate will ready the enemy unit. Nuances: - Triggers always enter unless there's no valid target - If a valid target exists, it must be chosen to add the effect to the chain - You cannot ignore a valid target even if it's an enemy unit
Does Mask of Foresight trigger if a unit ends up attacking alone mid-showdown (e.g., when starting with 2 attackers but one dies before damage)?
Ruling: Mask of Foresight only triggers when a unit gains the Attacker or Defender designation while alone. If a unit already has the designation from when the showdown started with multiple units, Mask will not trigger even if other units die and it ends up alone.
When a unit with a move trigger (like Wandering Merchant) moves to a contested battlefield, can you play a spell drawn from that trigger before showdown/combat begins and before the defender's abilities (like Stalwart Poro's shield) activate?
Ruling: No, there is no opportunity to play a spell drawn from the move trigger before showdown begins and the defender gets their shield. Once the move trigger resolves and the chain is empty (with no additional triggers), showdown begins immediately without priority passing.
If someone plays Ride the Wind on Overzealous Fan after strike/defend phase starts, does Overzealous Fan trigger its 'When I Defend' ability?
Ruling: Yes, Overzealous Fan will trigger its "When I Defend" ability. "When I Defend" triggers happen whenever a unit enters combat/the battlefield during combat, not just at the beginning of combat.
If a unit at Trifarian Warcamp is reduced to a minimum of one through Smokescreen or Stupify, does it stay at one or does it always have +1?
Ruling: The unit stays at one might while at the battlefield. Once it moves off the camp, it will go to 0 might.
Is a recall (such as from Zhonya's effect bringing a unit back to base) considered a move?
Ruling: Recalls are not moves. This is explicitly stated on recall cards. Nuances: - A "corrective recall" is a special case where something would be in an illegal location, so it gets recalled to base instead. This rarely happens and requires an effect that forces a unit to be somewhere illegal. - Standard recalls and corrective recalls are both not...
Can Miss Fortune Captain move to a battlefield, ready an exhausted unit on a different battlefield with her ability, and have that unit also move to join the combat before it starts?
Ruling: Only Miss Fortune Captain moves to the contested battlefield. The unit on the other battlefield gets readied by her ability, but cannot move to join the combat because the showdown starts immediately after MF contests the battlefield.
If I conquer a battlefield and gain a point, my opponent takes control of it during my turn, and then I re-conquer it on the same turn, do I score another point?
Ruling: No, you do not gain another point. You can only score each battlefield once per turn, even if you lose and regain control of it during the same turn.
When Blastcone Fae is played from hidden, can its -2 might ability target units at an opponent's base, or is it restricted to the battlefield where it was hidden?
Ruling: When Blastcone Fae is played from hidden, its ability is restricted to targeting units at the battlefield where it was hidden. When played normally (paying full cost), it can target units anywhere.
If Tasty dies outside of a Showdown and it's your only unit, can you still reveal/activate Zhonya's in response to Tasty's Deathknell trigger?
Ruling: No, you cannot reveal Zhonya's after Tasty dies if it was your only unit on the battlefield outside of Showdown. The hidden card is removed during cleanup before players get priority.
When an opponent plays an action that increases a unit's might by 7 and you play Smokescreen in response (which reduces might by up to 4 to a minimum of 1), how do these effects interact?
Ruling: Smokescreen resolves first and creates a fixed reduction (up to -4, but cannot reduce below 1 at resolution). Then the +7 resolves and is added to the current might. The final result depends on the unit's starting might.
If an effect prevents playing "action" cards, can Promising Future's effect still allow playing any card type, or only reactions and units?
Ruling: When a spell or effect instructs you to play a card, you can play any card regardless of timing restrictions or other limitations. Timing restrictions only apply when playing cards as discretionary actions on your own.
Can you play Challenge (an action speed spell) in reaction to Sky Splitter after attacking with Miss Fortune?
Ruling: You cannot play Challenge in reaction to Sky Splitter because Challenge is an action speed spell, not a reaction. You can only play reactions when the Chain is populated.
When one player moves a unit to an empty battlefield, then the opponent uses a spell to move their unit to the same battlefield, who is the attacker and what happens with showdowns?
Ruling: The player who first caused the battlefield to be contested is the attacker, and the opponent who moved in second is the defender. Two showdowns occur in sequence.
If my opponent moves my unit to their battlefield causing a showdown, and I use Ride the Wind to move it back to my empty battlefield during that showdown, do I score a point for conquering that battlefield even though it's my opponent's turn?
Ruling: Yes, you will score a point for conquering the battlefield, but not immediately. Sequence: - After your unit is moved to the opponent's battlefield, a showdown starts there first - That showdown continues even after you move your unit away with Ride the Wind - After that showdown finishes (both players pass focus in a row without playing an...
If you kill your own Phoenix using Hidden Blade, can Phoenix trigger its ability to return from the trash since it was killed by a spell?
Ruling: Yes, Phoenix can trigger and return from the trash when killed by Hidden Blade. The kill effect moves Phoenix to the trash as part of Hidden Blade's resolution, so Phoenix is in the trash when the spell finishes resolving and can trigger its ability.
Does Orange MF ready something only when standard moved, or also when moved by a card effect like Ride The Wind for the first time in a turn?
Ruling: Orange MF readies something regardless of how she is moved, whether by standard movement or card effects like Ride The Wind.
When a unit with Deathnell dies, does it still trigger Deathnell before being revived by Zhonya?
Ruling: No, Deathnell does not trigger when Zhonya revives a unit. Zhonya replaces the kill effect, so the unit never dies or goes to the trash.
If a unit attacks twice using Ride the Wind, moving from one battlefield with Ahri units to another battlefield also with Ahri units, does the unit get -1 Might from Ahri's ability twice (stacking to -2 total)?
Ruling: Yes, the unit would receive the Ahri Might reduction again for the second attack, resulting in a cumulative -2 Might.
How do Seals work in Riftbound, particularly regarding what costs they pay and how they interact with runes?
Ruling: Seals enter play ready and can be exhausted to pay for Power costs (the colored domain symbols below the energy cost) instead of recycling runes. They do NOT pay for Energy costs (the number in the top left circle), which still requires exhausting runes.
Does Defy apply to spells with discounted costs (such as from Eager Apprentice)?
Ruling: No, Defy does not apply to spells with discounted costs. Defy reads the printed cost of the spell, not the modified cost.
In a showdown, is damage checked against might after each spell resolves, or only after the entire chain resolves?
Ruling: Damage is checked against might after each item in the chain resolves during a showdown, not after the entire chain completes.
When Heimerdinger is on board with multiple artifacts (Iron Ballista and Energy Conduit), can he activate all of their abilities when he exhausts, or only one?
Ruling: Heimerdinger can only activate one artifact ability when he exhausts, not all of them simultaneously. Nuances: - Even though Heimerdinger's text says he has "all" the abilities, he must choose which single ability to use when exhausting - The abilities are separate lines/effects, not one combined effect
Does Wielder of Water constantly have +2 power while it is alone on the battlefield?
Ruling: Wielder of Water only gets +2 power when it is in a combat showdown attacking or defending alone, not simply when it is alone on the battlefield.
Can you choose to put all your damage on one of two units and deliberately not kill the second (to force a specific response like Zhonya's)?
Ruling: You cannot overkill a unit if there are still more units to assign damage to. Once you have distributed enough damage for lethal on one unit, you must move on to the next unit.
If all of a player's units are removed from a battlefield during a showdown, does that player still receive focus and priority, and do they still control the battlefield?
Ruling: Yes to both. Even if all units are removed during a showdown, the player still receives focus and priority, and they retain control of the battlefield.
Does Thousand-Tailed Watcher's -3 might effect persist as a perpetual debuff throughout the turn, or does it only apply once when it resolves?
Ruling: Thousand-Tailed Watcher's -3 might effect is not perpetual. It applies once when the ability resolves, reducing all face-up units to a minimum of 1 might, then the effect is complete. Any subsequent might changes start from the new value.
Are battlefields revealed simultaneously after being chosen?
Ruling: Yes, battlefields are revealed simultaneously. Both players select their battlefields and place them face down in the middle, then flip them together.
If you play Stacked Deck during a showdown while defending and reveal Nocturne, can you play him to the contested battlefield or does he have to go to your base?
Ruling: You can play Nocturne to the battlefield you're defending, as long as you control it, which you almost always do when defending.