Browse Riftbound Rules Questions
Page 133 of 158 · 7,873 verified questions. Each links to the full ruling.
What if Nidalee dies but another friendly unit remains, do I still get to draw if I win combat?
**No.** Nidalee's ability says "When **I** win a combat" and defines winning as "I remain after combat." She has to be the one who survives — another friendly unit sticking around doesn't satisfy her trigger.
If I move into a showdown with Diana Lunari and my opponent uses Gust, can I still use her ability?
**Yes.** Diana's "When a showdown begins here" trigger is already on the chain by the time your opponent can Gust her, and triggered abilities resolve independently of their source — so she doesn't need to stay on the battlefield.
Can I describe the card when using ability of Felline Cat?
Yes — you can describe the spell instead of saying its exact name, as long as your description uniquely identifies it. Per Rule 761, naming a card works two ways: stating the exact name, or identifying a combination of traits that pin down that card (e.g. "the 6-Might Kai'Sa" or "the 3-energy spell that draws two"). For Fallen Feline, that...
With Irresistible Faefolk, who is the attacker?
**You are the attacker** — you applied "Contested" to the battlefield first when you moved Faefolk there, so you keep the Attacker designation even though your ability pulled the enemy unit in (Rule 459.2.b.1).
Do I need to pay the deflect cost of a spell I'm controlling with Rebuttal?
**No.** Deflect is a cost paid when a spell is *played* (finalized), and Rebuttal doesn't play the spell — it just changes control of an already-finalized chain item. The original controller already paid any Deflect costs at that time.
What is the exact ruling for Falling Star damage heal after combat?
Yes — damage from **Falling Star** is fully healed after any Combat ends, and again at end of turn. When a **Combat** Showdown (attacker vs. defender units) reaches its Resolution Step, the Combat Cleanup heals **all units in play** — every battlefield and Base, whether or not they fought (Rule 461.1.a.1; FAQ #4324). So a unit hit by Falling Star...
If my Teemo Strategist ability triggers and I can only choose a unit with Deflect, can I choose not to use the ability?
**Yes — you can get out of it, but not by skipping the trigger itself.** Teemo's defend trigger is mandatory (no "may"), so it goes on the Chain as a Pending Item and you must choose a legal target if one exists (Rule 402.4). However, choosing the Deflect unit incurs Deflect as a Mandatory Additional Cost — and at the...
My units have damage marked on them by a Below Breath. Opponent plays Elder Dragon, I use Starcross in reaction to the Elder Dragon trigger, does my units with damage on them still die immediately before Starcross resolves?
**Yes — your damaged units die immediately when Elder Dragon enters, before Star-Crossed can even save them.** Elder Dragon's passive becomes active the instant it enters the battlefield, making any of your units with even 1 damage marked by that player lethal. That queues a cleanup as an outstanding task, and under HOT FEPR (Rule 334) outstanding tasks are handled...
If opponent has Dazzling Aurora, and I have Brynhir with a hidden Temporal Breach, can I play Breach and replay Brynhir as a reaction to stop him from playing the unit on the Aurora trigger?
**Yes — but only if Brynhir is at the battlefield where Temporal Breach was hidden.** Here's the sequence: When Aurora's end-of-turn trigger goes on the chain, you play Temporal Breach from Hidden as a Reaction (it costs 0 and has Reaction while facedown). Temporal Breach banishes Brynhir, then you play her back to that same location, ignoring cost. Her "When...
How many energy do I have to use to play Shock Blast while I have an empowered Applied Researcher at my base? Shock Blast is a card that says "This costs [2] less if you control something empowered."
**You pay Shock Blast's printed energy cost minus 3 (its own −2 plus Applied Researchers' −1), to a minimum of 0 — and Applied Researchers also removes 1 power of any domain from the cost.**
Can I keep focus in a showdown and play a reaction immediately after playing my action spell?
**Yes** — after you play an Action spell, you keep priority and can immediately add a Reaction (or several) on top before passing.
A tentacle with 1 might is defending on Forbidding Waste and a sprite with 3 might is attacking. If a Switcheroo is used, what are the mights of the units after?
**Tentacle ends at 3 Might; the Sprite ends at -1 (treated as 0 for all game purposes).** Forbidding Waste's -2 applies because the Tentacle is defending alone, so its current Might is actually -1 (not 0) when Switcheroo calculates the swap — negative values are used in the math (FAQ #4763). Switcheroo reverses -1 and 3, giving the Tentacle a...
If my opponent is tapped out but has runes available for power, and conquers with a unit equipped with Last Rites, he has 11 cards in trash and chooses Rhasa from trash to summon from Last Rites conquer, if I use Disposal Order on 3 cards not choosing Rhasa and my opponent has no energy to play him because the trash now has 7 cards, what happens to Rhasa?
**Rhasa is not played — it stays in the trash (or returns to it).** Your Disposal Order resolves first, dropping the trash to 8. When the Last Rites trigger resolves and your opponent plays Rhasa, Rhasa leaves the trash (7 cards left) and its cost is calculated *then*: 10 − 7 = **3 Energy + 1 Chaos Power**. Since they're...
For an empowered Applied Researcher, does her discount apply to flow costs? I want to play Dredge Up, do I pay 1 or 2?
**Yes — you pay 1 Energy, not 2.** Applied Researchers' Empowered ability ("Your spells cost [1] [A] less, to a minimum of [1]") is a discount on the **total cost** of your spells. Flow replaces Dredge Up's base cost with its Flow cost of [2] during finalization (Rule 829.1.c.1), and total-cost discounts are then applied to that result (Rule 356.4).
Teemo Strategist triggers versus Irellia Fervent?
**Yes — Teemo's "When I defend" trigger fires and is mandatory when Irelia moves in, but it comes with a cost and doesn't buff her.**
Does Red RekSai's Accelerate effect apply to any tokens units being created, or does the spell card creating them need to be played from trash? I.e. Death Mark with Flow?
**Yes.** Rek'Sai, Breacher grants [Accelerate] to any friendly unit played from anywhere other than your hand — and that includes the Shadow Clone token Death Mark creates, whether you play Death Mark from hand or from trash via Flow.
When playing Kennen, if I play my Chosen Champion, will it become Empowered?
**Yes** — playing your Chosen Champion from the Champion Zone triggers **Heart of the Tempest**'s ability and Empowers the Legend (Kennen's Champion Legend).
If a Stellacorn that has had two disciplines cast on it and Glowstone triggers at the end of turn, dealing 5 damage to everything, does Stellacorn die or live?
**Stellacorn lives.** Two Disciplines give it +4 Might this turn, putting it at 7 Might (3 base + 4). Glowstone's end-of-turn trigger deals only 5 damage to units you control, which is below Stellacorn's 7 Might — so it isn't lethal (Rule 142.4). The trigger resolves during the Ending Step while the "this turn" buffs are still active, and even...
Can I gust Yellow LeBlanc when she attacks my unit?
No — once LeBlanc, Fragmented (yellow/Order) attacks, she's a legal target for nothing at 3 Might or less. Her base Might is 3 and her printed `[Assault]` is Assault 1 (Rule 807.1.b.3), so the moment she gains Attacker designation she's at 4 Might — above Gust's "3 Might or less" threshold. Assault is a passive, not a trigger, so there's...
Does the Svelsongur work on Udyr abilities when I spent his buff to deal 2 damage on a unit at a battlefield which results as a 4 damage instead of 2?
**No — you'll still deal 2, not 4.** Svellsongur gives Udyr a second copy of his printed ability, so he now has two separate instances of "Spend my buff: … Deal 2…". But spending the buff is the *cost* of that ability (cost: effect, FAQ #5276, #5122). There's only one buff on Udyr (Rule 702.3 — a unit can only...
When I attack with a shadow clone and banish a Unit I get 4 Assault. When I play Ride the Wind and banish another Unit, does he have Assault 8?
**Yes — Assault 4 + Assault 4 = Assault 8.** Each time the Shadow Clone attacks, its "When I attack" trigger fires and grants a fresh **Assault 4** for the turn. Those are two separate grants from two separate combats, and per Rule 807.2 Assault values from multiple sources sum. After the first combat resolves, Ride the Wind moves the...
If my opponent uses Hidden Blade on my unit and I react with a Hidden Temporal Breach do I still draw 2 cards?
**No — the opponent (Hidden Blade's controller) does not draw 2 cards.** Here's why: your hidden Temporal Breach resolves first. It banishes your unit, then plays it back to the same location — but per Rule 124, a card that changes zones to a non-board zone becomes a **new object**. So when Hidden Blade resolves, its original target is no...
I rebuke a unit at one battlefield, he reacts and moves that unit to another battlefield. Rebuke resolves because he moved to a battlefield or is a mistargeted?
**Not a mistarget — Rebuke resolves and returns the unit to hand.** Rebuke targets "a unit at a battlefield." Moving that unit to a *different* battlefield doesn't stop it from being "a unit at a battlefield," so it still meets the targeting restriction when Rebuke resolves. The target relationship persists as long as the unit remains on the board —...
Can I get the play effect of something that has an additional cost when it was played with Temporal Breach?
**Yes — the Play Effect still triggers, but the additional cost is still on you.** Temporal Breach plays the unit back normally, so "When you play me…" triggers as usual once it enters the board — Play Effects are separate from costs (FAQ #2608). What "ignoring its cost" does is zero out the base Energy/Power cost (Rule 356.1.b.1) — it...
Can opponent Rengar ambush as a reaction to a spell play on my turn?
**Yes.** Ambush grants [Reaction] while playing to a battlefield where you control units, and Reaction can be played during a Closed State on any player's turn — so your opponent can Ambush Rengar in response to your spell on your turn (Rule 813.1.c.1, Rule 822.1.b).
Can Ambush enter in Rockfall Path?
**No.** Rockfall Path's "Units can't be played here" restriction overrides Ambush's permission, so the play is illegal and gets rewound (FAQ #9325, #6500).
How does Gangplank Naval work?
**Gangplank, Naval** has two pieces: an **Empower** activated ability, and a **replacement effect** he gains once Empowered. - **Empower:** Pay [C][C] (two Body runes) to Empower him. Can only be used once — you can't activate it while he's already Empowered (Rule 827.1.c.1). The Empowered status itself lasts until he leaves the board or is Disempowered. - **Empowered ability:** While...
If I have Darius Trifarian on field and I play Heedless Resurrection as my first card of the turn, would the card played by Heedless Resurrection count towards Darius' ability?
Yes — the unit played by Heedless Resurrection counts as the second card played, so Darius triggers. Sequence: Heedless Resurrection resolves as card 1, then plays a unit from your trash during its resolution. That unit goes on the chain and resolves — once it does, the act of playing it is complete, and Darius (still on the board) sees...
If Kayle is fully empowered and has Svelsonger, does she gain extra Deflect and extra Might? I.e. +6 Might and +3 Deflect for each Svelsonger?
**Yes — each Svellsongur gives Kayle a full second copy of her own text, so a fully Empowered Kayle (3×) gets +6 Might and Deflect 3 from herself, plus another +6 Might and Deflect 3 for each Svellsongur attached.**
In showdowns, do you just keep passing priority until both players have no more actions to play, or is it just one action per player?
Both players keep acting — a Showdown doesn't end after one action each. It only closes when all players pass Focus in sequence without playing anything (Rule 347.2).
For use Call to Glory with the additional cost of the buff, do I need to have the runes of cost ready or not?
**No — if you pay the buff cost, you don't need any runes.** Call to Glory's additional cost is "spend a buff; if you do, ignore this spell's cost" — so its 3 Energy cost is set to zero and you pay nothing else. The buff and the base cost are calculated and paid together: either 3 Energy, or 1...
Does Thousand Tailed Watcher affect Ruin Runner?
Yes — Ruin Runner gets -3 Might when Thousand-Tailed Watcher is played. The Watcher's trigger doesn't "choose" or target units; it applies a global reduction to all enemy units, so Ruin Runner's "can't be chosen" protection doesn't apply (Rule 757). Its Might drops from 5 to 2 (minimum 1 clause). The effect snapshots the board at resolution, so units played...
I play Promising Future, I play Elder Dragon from Promising Future, opp plays Harness Dragon from Promising Future, what is the result?
**Both dragons die — it's a trade.** Promising Future plays cards "starting with the next player," so in 1v1 your opponent's **Harnessed Dragon** is finalized first, then your **Elder Dragon**. Both "When you play me" triggers go on the chain in that order, so Elder Dragon's trigger resolves first (LIFO): it deals 1 to Harnessed Dragon at its location, and...
If multiple units have Tank does the attacker decide the order of damage?
Yes — the attacker chooses which Tank takes damage first. When multiple units with **Tank** are on the same side in combat, they share the same damage-assignment priority, so the assigning player (the attacker, who assigns first) may pick any order among them. Units without Tank can't be assigned damage until every Tank has lethal damage assigned (Rules 815.1.c.2, 460.2.c.6).
In a 3 player game how many runes does player 2 channel?
**Player 2 channels 2 runes** — the standard Channel Phase amount. The "extra rune" bonus in FFA3 (Skirmish) goes only to the player going *last* (Player 3), not to the middle player (Rule 487.7).
Do Shady Spectacles copy on play effects?
**No — the "on play" effect will not trigger, even though its text is copied.** Shady Spectacles does copy the chosen unit's printed rules text, so the equipped unit will "have" the "When you play me" ability (Rule 477.1.b.1.a). But a Play Effect only triggers when the permanent **with that ability** is played to the board (Rule 383.4.a.2). The copy...
A rules question regarding Bard Mercurial: Can I exhaust Legend cards even if they don't have an explicit exhaust ability? If yes, do the passive effects of Legend cards like Ahri or Leona still remain active while they are exhausted?
**Yes** — Bard, Mercurial lets you exhaust your Legend as an additional cost to play him, even if that Legend has no exhaust ability of its own, and the Legend's abilities (passive or triggered) stay fully active while exhausted.
If someone plays Counter Strike Jax sig spell and I have more might as the attacker, do I move back to base as the attacker or would the defender move back to base?
**You move back to base (via Recall) — the defending unit stays.** Counter Strike prevents all damage to the chosen unit in the Combat Damage Step, so even though your unit has more Might and dealt lethal damage, it was prevented and the defender survives. Since both you and the defender still have units at the battlefield after damage, the...
Can my Darius, Trifarian become active state if I first play a card first, then play Darius?
Yes. If Darius is your **second** card played this turn, he readies himself and gets +2 Might. A card is "played" when it fully resolves. Darius enters the board as part of his resolution, so he's already on the board when the "when you play your second card" trigger checks — he sees himself as that second card and triggers.
I play Riven onto a battlefield. With two different items, one is Svellsong and the other Cull. Can I target two different units with Riven's ability?
**Yes — you can target two different enemy units.** Svellsongur copies Riven's printed "When I attack" text onto itself, so when Riven attacks you get **two separate triggers**: Riven's own ability and the copy on Svellsongur. Each is an independent triggered ability with its own target chosen when it goes on the Chain, so you can pick a different enemy...
My opponent moves Ambessa Respected and Feared into my Nocturne, they choose it to kill and I flip Switcheroo in response, does the kill still go through?
**No — the kill doesn't go through.** Your hidden Switcheroo is playable here (Hidden cards gain Reaction when flipped, so you can respond during the Closed State, Rule 811.6), and it resolves *before* Ambessa's trigger. Switcheroo swaps the Might values, so when Ambessa's attack trigger resolves, "kill an enemy unit here with **less Might than me**" re-checks its target —...
Does Shuriken flip need to target a target from a battlefield to move? If there is no target on a battlefield, can it still move my unit?
Yes — the move works even with no enemy target available. Shuriken Flip says "Deal 2 to **up to one** enemy unit at a battlefield, **then move** a friendly unit." The damage part is optional and separate; choosing 0 targets for it doesn't stop the move instruction from resolving. You just pick your friendly unit and move it to any...
Does moving a unit begin a chain? Since a move does not open a chain, but units take the "standard move" action to move and exhaust themselves, and card actions open a chain.
No — moving a unit never starts a chain. The Standard Move is an **inherent ability** and a **discretionary action**, not an activated ability: the cost (exhausting the unit) doesn't put it on the chain, and the move resolves instantly with no reaction window (Rule 446.3.c).
When opponent enters showdown against my defending Fiora, Peerless, does her ability trigger before or after I cast Grim Resolve (I cast Grim Resolve when the opponent enters the battlefield)?
**No — Fiora's trigger resolves before you can cast Grim Resolve.** When your opponent's unit enters the battlefield, the Combat Showdown opens and Fiora gains the **Defender** designation immediately (Rule 464.2.c.3). Her "when I defend one on one" trigger goes on the Combat Chain at that exact moment, before any player can play anything (Rule 464.2.e). That closes the State,...
If I conquer with Kai'sa and my legend is Draven, the opponent has Scuttle Crab there. So will I draw 2 first or deathknell trigger first?
**No — the Deathknell resolves before any of your draws.** Sequence during the Combat Showdown (Rule 461.1–461.3, per FAQ #10347):
Does Falling Comet deal 6 damage at a battlefield if I play a spell reaction to move my unit out of that battle?
**No** — if you move the unit out of the battlefield in response, Falling Comet will not deal damage to it.
Are Sand Soldier tokens able to be targeted by Decree of Discord? How about Viktor Recruit tokens?
**No to both.** Decree of Discord only targets enemy **Order (C)** units, and neither Sand Soldier tokens nor Viktor Recruit tokens have a domain — tokens are domainless by default (Rule 185.3.b).
I have Applied Researchers Empowered. I want to play Frigid Touch Repeated. How much energy do I pay in all?
**You pay 3 Energy total.** Frigid Touch costs [2] Energy plus its [Repeat] [2] additional cost = 4 Energy. Applied Researchers' Empowered ability ("Your spells cost [1] [A] less, to a minimum of [1]") is a total-cost discount applied after the Repeat cost is added (Rules 356.2 and 356.4), so 4 − 1 = 3. The minimum of [1] isn't...
If I play Shuriken Flip do I have to choose target and battlefield for move before resolve?
Yes — every choice is locked in when you play Shuriken Flip, before it resolves. You choose the optional enemy target (up to one), the friendly unit to move, and that unit's destination all at once when the spell is finalized on the chain; the destination is picked then, not at resolution.
Can I play Shen 3 energy cost to a battlefield I'm attacking or only I control?
No — you can only play Shen to a location you control (your Base or a Battlefield you control), never to a Battlefield you're attacking.