I have a 3 might unit in base. My opponent has two 3 might units at a battlefield.

I play Marching Orders, repeated, targeting each of my opponent's units, and my own unit twice.

Do both of the opponent's units die?

My thought process:

Damage doesn't instantly kill a unit. When cleanup occurs, it checks if anyone has a lethal amount of damage and if they do they die. Since cleanup occurs after resolution of a spell or ability, Marching Orders will have my 3 might unit inflict 3 damage and take damage, and then do that again. On cleanup, the game will see that my unit has 6 damage on it and it will die alongside the other two units.

Is this correct?

Question

I have a 3 might unit in base. My opponent has two 3 might units at a battlefield.

I play Marching Orders, repeated, targeting each of my opponent's units, and my own unit twice.

Do both of the opponent's units die?

My thought process:

Damage doesn't instantly kill a unit. When cleanup occurs, it checks if anyone has a lethal amount of damage and if they do they die. Since cleanup occurs after resolution of a spell or ability, Marching Orders will have my 3 might unit inflict 3 damage and take damage, and then do that again. On cleanup, the game will see that my unit has 6 damage on it and it will die alongside the other two units.

Is this correct?

Accepted Answer

### The Ruling
**Yes, all three units will die.** However, this does not happen because of a "cleanup" occurring between the two instances of *Marching Orders*. In *Riftbound*, cleanup does not occur between the resolutions of a single spell's repeated effects.

### Why it happens
1.  **Spell Resolution:** When you play *Marching Orders* with the *Repeat* cost paid, you are resolving a single spell that executes its instructions twice. According to **Rule 157.3**, while a spell is resolving, no other game effects (like cleanup) can occur.
2.  **Damage Assignment:** During the first resolution of the spell's effect, your 3 Might unit and the first enemy unit deal damage to each other simultaneously. Both units now have 3 damage marked on them.
3.  **Second Resolution:** The spell then executes its second instruction (the *Repeat*). Your 3 Might unit and the second enemy unit deal damage to each other. Your unit now has 6 damage marked on it, and the second enemy unit has 3 damage marked on it.
4.  **State-Based Kill:** Once the spell has finished resolving completely, the game checks the board state. Any unit with marked damage equal to or exceeding its Might is killed (**Rule 143.2.a**). Since all three units have damage equal to their Might, all three are killed simultaneously.

### Key Points on Timing
*   **Cleanup Timing:** Cleanup does not occur after every spell or ability resolution. It is a specific game phase/process that happens at set times (e.g., end of turn, combat cleanup).
*   **Simultaneity:** Because *Marching Orders* instructs the units to deal damage to each other, the damage is dealt simultaneously. Your unit does not "take damage" and then "do it again" in a way that allows it to survive; it accumulates damage until the spell finishes, at which point the game state is evaluated and all units with lethal damage are sent to the trash.