Who has priority to play an action spell at the beginning of combat/showdown?

Ruling: The attacker gains Focus at the start of a showdown and becomes the active player, allowing them to play an Action or Reaction first, regardless of who was the active player before the showdown.

Sequence:

• Attacker gains Focus at the start of showdown
• Attacker may play an Action or Reaction
• If attacker chooses not to play anything, or plays something and the chain fully resolves, Focus passes to the next relevant player
• If attacker passes priority and defender plays a spell, priority goes back to the attacker who can then play a reaction

Nuances:

• This is a change from old rules where the defender had priority
• Focus is different from priority: Focus allows playing actions outside of open play states (like during showdowns), while priority determines who can play the next reaction in a chain
• When the last effect on a chain resolves during a showdown, focus and priority go to the next player (except for the initial chain when it always goes to the attacker first)
• If you play a reaction as defender and it resolves, you do not retain priority to start a new chain with an Action