Browse Riftbound Rules Questions
Page 59 of 128 · 6,389 verified questions. Each links to the full ruling.
Does Fox-Fire kill everything with 4 might or lower individually, or any number of units whose combined might totals 4 or less?
Ruling: Fox-Fire kills any number of units whose combined might is 4 or less (e.g., a 2 might and a 2 might, or a 3 might and a 1 might). You must choose and declare targets when playing the spell, before opponents can react.
Does Tank affect spell damage, and what happens when a unit with Tank is played as a reaction to a spell targeting another unit?
Ruling: Tank only applies to combat damage and does not affect spell damage. When a unit with Tank is played as a reaction to a spell targeting another unit, the spell damage is not redirected or prevented.
Can a Hidden Zhonya's at one battlefield be flipped to save a unit during a showdown at a different battlefield?
Ruling: Yes, a Hidden Zhonya's can be flipped from one battlefield to save a unit at a different battlefield. When flipped, it immediately recalls to base, and since it doesn't target, it isn't restricted to the current battlefield.
When Ravenbloom Student triggers from multiple spells being played, what is the timing and sequence of spell resolution and the +1/+1 counter triggers?
Ruling: Ravenbloom Student gets its +1/+1 counter after each spell resolves. Each spell fully resolves before the triggered ability goes on the chain and resolves.
Can the attacker activate a reaction card after both the attacker and defender have passed focus in combat?
Ruling: No, you cannot play a reaction after both players pass focus. Once both players pass focus in succession, combat moves to the damage step where no one has priority.
Can a hidden Zonyah's be activated if a Bryndhir Thundersong was played on the turn by an opponent?
Ruling: You cannot activate Zonyah's after Bryndhir's effect resolves, but you can play it in response to Bryndhir's ability when it goes onto the chain.
When dazzling finds a unit, can it be played anywhere or only to your base/a battlefield you control?
Ruling: When dazzling finds a unit, it follows the same restrictions as playing any card - you can play it to your base or a battlefield you control unless the unit card itself specifies otherwise.
Does damage heal on units that were not involved in combat?
Ruling: Yes, damage is healed on every unit at the end of combat, even those not involved in the combat.
Can a player pass priority after playing a reaction, and if both players pass, play another reaction before the first reaction resolves?
Ruling: No. When you play a reaction you hold priority, but if you pass priority and your opponent also passes, both players have passed sequentially and the top item on the chain resolves.
Can you hold priority to chain a reaction after an action to prevent the action from being denied or countered?
Ruling: No, holding priority does not protect your action from being countered. Counter spells like Defy can target any spell on the chain, not just the most recent one.
How does the repeat mechanic work with targeting - do you have to target the same cards or can you choose different targets?
Ruling: When you use repeat, you can choose different targets for each repetition. For example, Piercing Light can KO multiple different units with 2 or less might across the battlefield and back row.
In a multiplayer game, if Player A controls a Battlefield and Player B moves their unit to start a showdown, can Player C use movement cards like Ride The Wind or Zenith's Blade to move their unit to that Showdown?
Ruling: Player C can cast the movement spell when priority passes to them, but the spell will fail to move the unit because a battlefield cannot have units from more than 2 players at it at any point.
If a single unit dies while you have 2 Zhonya's Hourglasses in play, do both activate or only one?
Ruling: Only one Zhonya's Hourglass will apply. Both replacement effects are available, but you can only replace the same death event once.
If I have no units on battlefield and my opponent has 1 unit (Ahri) and 1 Hidden Card, and I use a spell to deal damage to kill Ahri, does the Hidden Card get trashed or can my opponent reveal it as a reaction?
Ruling: The opponent can reveal the Hidden Card as a reaction on the same chain as the kill spell before it resolves, preventing the Hidden Card from being trashed.
What speed can Baited Hook be played at?
Ruling: Baited Hook is played at base speed because it does not have the Reaction keyword. Nuances: - In Riftbound, cards are literal with their timing - if a card doesn't have the "Reaction" keyword, it cannot be used as a reaction - The tap symbol (turn sideways icon) does not indicate reaction or action speed by itself - Hidden...
If I use Voidseeker on a unit and the opponent flashes it to their base, do I still draw a card?
Ruling: Yes, you still draw a card even if the unit is flashed to base in response to Voidseeker. Nuances: - The draw part of Voidseeker has no dependency on the damage part due to the period separator between the two effects - Even if there were a comma instead of a period, you would still be able to draw...
When conquering a battlefield at 7 points with Zaun Warren and an empty hand, can you choose the order of drawing from the conquer attempt and Zaun Warren's discard-then-draw effect?
Ruling: You cannot choose the order. Scoring the point (or drawing a card when at 7 points) happens as part of the conquer effect itself and does not use the chain. Zaun Warren's trigger only goes on the chain after the conquer is complete.
Can Ancient Henge's energy-to-power conversion reaction be used during Bullet Time's resolution to pay for Bullet Time's variable cost, or must it be tapped in advance?
Ruling: Ancient Henge can be used during Bullet Time's resolution to pay for the variable cost. You do not need to tap it in advance or declare how much energy you want to convert before resolution.
Can you react with hidden cards or reactions when a triggered ability occurs?
Ruling: You can react to triggered abilities. Nuances: - This applies even if you have hidden cards or reactions available
Can you react to your opponent's damage assignment during the combat damage step of a showdown by playing a discipline to give your unit +2 might?
Ruling: No, you cannot play cards during the combat damage step in response to damage assignment. Nuances: - There are no triggers to react to during this period - Players cannot play actions during the combat damage step
Does Riftbound have an 'intervening if' rule, and does Dune Drake trigger on attack regardless of conditions?
Ruling: Riftbound does not have an "intervening if" rule. Dune Drake triggers on attack no matter what, functioning like a conditional ASSAULT 2.
Can I play Retreat in response to my own Retreat to get 2 exhausted runes?
Ruling: No, this does not work. When the first Retreat resolves (last on the stack), it cannot find the owner anymore, so you don't channel the 1 rune.
Does Maddened Marauder have to move a ready unit, since exhausting is a cost to pay for movement? Does the same apply to Stormbringer?
Ruling: Moving by an effect is not a standard move. Only the standard move requires you to exhaust the unit.
In a summoner skirmish, what are the rules on performing ABCD (Awaken, Begin, Channel, Draw) steps at the start of turn, including: 1) Does order matter? 2) Can you do steps in any order with hold battlefield triggers? 3) What happens if you forget to awaken a legend and realize mid-turn?
Ruling: You must perform ABCD steps in the correct order (Awaken, Begin, Channel, Draw). Holding battlefield triggers occur at the end of the Begin phase. If you skip a step and move to a later one, judges may not allow you to go back.
When Nine-Tailed Fox's ability triggers to give attacking 1 might units -1 might (minimum 1), and then Siphon Power gives those same units +1 might, what is their final might value?
Ruling: The units end up with 2 might. Minus might effects "snapshot" at the time of their resolution, so when Nine-Tailed Fox's trigger resolves against 1 might units, it gives them -0 might due to the "minimum of 1 might" condition. The effect doesn't retroactively update when Siphon Power later increases their might.
Does damage from Challenge (and similar non-combat abilities) persist until combat happens or the turn ends?
Ruling: Yes, damage from Challenge persists on units until combat resolves on any battlefield or the turn ends. The damaged unit does not need to participate in that combat to be healed.
When The Boss saves a buffed unit that has damage marked on it, does the unit retain its previously marked damage or is it healed?
Ruling: The Boss heals the unit when saving it, so it will have no damage marked after being saved. Sequence: - Buffed unit at 4 Might has 3 damage marked - Falling Star deals 3 damage (first instance) - The Boss saves the unit by spending the buff - Unit is healed to 0 damage - Unit now has 3...
If Ezreal kills Lucian with his defender trigger before Lucian's attacker trigger resolves, does Lucian still deal damage?
Ruling: No, Lucian does not deal damage. If Lucian dies to Ezreal's trigger before his own trigger resolves, the returned value would be Null and wouldn't do any damage.
Can you play the effect of a hidden card targeting the other battlefield?
Ruling: No, hidden cards cannot target units or make choices at a different battlefield than where they were hidden. All choices must be made at the battlefield where the card was hidden, if able.
Does Emperor's Divide work with Blade Dancer (Irelia's ability that triggers when you target or choose a unit)?
Ruling: Yes, Emperor's Divide works with Blade Dancer. The spell targets/chooses the units being moved, not just the battlefield and number.
Does Grand Stratagem give a snapshot buff at resolution, or does it passively buff units that enter the board after it resolves?
Ruling: Grand Stratagem gives its buff only to units present on the board when it resolves. Units that enter the board after resolution do not receive the buff.
When Gust is used in reaction to Discipline targeting a unit, does Gust resolve first and does the Discipline player still draw a card after their target is returned?
Ruling: When you react with Gust to an opponent's Discipline, Gust resolves first and returns the unit. The opponent still draws a card from Discipline even though the target unit is no longer present.
When recycling cards during mulligan or with effects like Dazzling Aurora, do you need to shuffle the recycled cards before placing them at the bottom of the deck?
Ruling: Yes, when 2 or more cards are recycled simultaneously (whether during mulligan or from card effects), they must be placed at the bottom of the deck in a random order, which requires shuffling them.
Does Darius (5c Red 5 Might) count himself as the second card played, and can he become ready again if exhausted when a second card is played?
Ruling: Darius can count himself as the second card played. If Darius is exhausted at a battlefield and a second card is played that turn, he will become ready.
Can you respond to an opponent playing a unit with a reaction spell?
Ruling: You cannot respond to an opponent playing a unit. Units leave the chain directly without a round of priority, unlike spells which linger on the chain.
Does a unit heal damage when moving to an empty battlefield?
Ruling: Units do not heal when moving to an empty battlefield. Going to an empty battlefield is a showdown but not combat, and units only heal after combat or at the end of the turn.
What happens when a player kills the controller's only unit at a Contested Battlefield during staged Combat (while the controller still has a Hidden card there), and when can the Hidden card be played?
Ruling: This is currently a hole in the rules. When the unit is killed, Combat stops being staged (since units from two opposing players are no longer present), but the Contested status remains with no mechanism to remove it. The battlefield becomes stuck in a state where it's controlled by one player, contested by another, but neither a Showdown nor...
Does Fox-Fire targeting a group of units change how Deflect costs are paid?
Ruling: Fox-Fire targeting a group of units does not change how Deflect works. You must pay Deflect costs for each targeted unit that has Deflect.
If a hidden card at a battlefield is flipped and used to defend in the same showdown, will its trigger activate twice?
Ruling: No, the trigger will not activate twice in the same showdown.
If you hold a battlefield at the start of turn, then leave it and move back to conquer it again in the same turn, do you trigger the battlefield's conquest effects again?
Ruling: You cannot conquer a battlefield if you have already held it that turn. Once you've scored a battlefield by holding it, moving back to it later in the same turn does not trigger conquest effects.
If I use Ride the Wind during a showdown to move to another battlefield, what happens to the first showdown and can I get points from both?
Ruling: You need to let showdowns complete to get their point. If you use Ride the Wind during a showdown as an action, that showdown still continues and must conclude normally with combat damage assigned by units at that battlefield.
Can Vi's ability be activated multiple times per turn as long as you can recycle, and what are the timing restrictions?
Ruling: Vi's ability can be activated any number of times in a turn as long as you can recycle, since there are no restrictions on the card limiting frequency. However, since it's not an action or reaction, you cannot activate it on your opponent's turn, and your opponent can respond to you activating Vi.
Can you float runes (mana) in Riftbound, specifically: exhaust a rune to float mana, play a Seal to recycle the exhausted rune, then use the floated mana for something else?
Ruling: Yes, you can float runes in Riftbound. You can exhaust a rune to float mana, play a Seal to recycle that exhausted rune, and then use the floated mana to play something else.
Can a player use Mystic Reversal to target a spell that was taken by an opponent's Mystic Reversal, and when can they respond?
Ruling: A player can use Mystic Reversal at two different points: either to take control of the opposing Mystic Reversal itself (which would target their own spell and let them make choices for it again), or after the opposing Mystic Reversal resolves to take control back of their original spell.
When you take an open battleground, what does this trigger and what cards can be played?
Ruling: Taking an open battleground triggers a showdown. During a showdown, you can play cards and activate abilities that have Action or Reaction printed on them.
Can I play Deathbloom Predator to an opponent's battlefield and simultaneously play a friendly unit with Ganking to attack together?
Ruling: No, you cannot move multiple units simultaneously when playing them from hand. You can only move one unit at a time when playing cards.
When does Mask of Foresight's ability trigger, and does it trigger again if a unit becomes alone later in combat?
Ruling: Mask of Foresight triggers when a unit is first marked as attacker/defender and is alone at that time. It does not trigger again if a unit becomes alone later during combat.
Can Zhonya's Hourglass save a unit on a different battlefield than the one it's hidden at?
Ruling: Yes, Zhonya's Hourglass can save a unit on any battlefield regardless of where it is played from, because it is played to base (not to a battlefield) and does not target, so there are no battlefield restrictions on its effect.
When combat resolves at one battlefield, does damage get removed from units at other battlefields that were not involved in the combat?
Ruling: Yes, when combat fully resolves, all marked damage is cleared from all units at all locations, including units at battlefields that were not involved in the combat.
When is a lane captured during combat - before or after the opponent gets to respond when focus is passed to them?
Ruling: A lane is captured after damage assignment, which occurs only after both players have passed priority consecutively without playing cards. Units must survive through all chains (including any chains the opponent initiates after receiving focus) before the lane is captured.