Browse Riftbound Rules Questions
Page 157 of 158 · 7,873 verified questions. Each links to the full ruling.
Can seals be used to pay for deflect costs?
Ruling: Yes, seals can pay for deflect costs. Deflect adds onto the power cost, which seals can pay for. Nuances: - Seals can pay for any power cost that corresponds with the domain of the seal - For Hidden powers specifically, a power of any domain can pay the cost
Can Kai'Sa legend ability be used to pay deflect costs?
Ruling: Yes, Kai'Sa legend ability can be used to pay deflect costs. Deflect cost is a mandatory additional cost that becomes part of the spell's total cost, and Kai'Sa can pay any part of a spell's cost whether it's the printed cost or an additional cost.
If an opponent uses Gust in response to Traveling Merchant's move trigger, can they discard the Merchant, and does the Merchant's effect still activate?
Ruling: Yes, an opponent can use Gust in reaction to the Merchant's move trigger to discard it. The Merchant's effect (discard 1, draw 1) still activates and resolves even if the Merchant is removed from play, because the effect is already on the chain once the move trigger occurs.
For the purposes of layers, is doubling a unit's might counted as assignment or arithmetic?
Ruling: Doubling a unit's might is counted as arithmetic, not assignment. Nuances: - Assignment would require language like "a unit's might becomes double its current might" using words like "becomes" or "is" - Without "becomes" or "is", doubling should be treated as arithmetic (essentially "give a unit +X Might where X is its current might") - When both a doubling...
When an opponent plays Hidden Blade targeting Qiyana who has Deflect, and the defender plays Defy to counter it, does the opponent still need to pay the Deflect cost?
Ruling: The opponent pays the Deflect cost when Hidden Blade goes on the chain, before Defy can be played to counter it.
Can a player cast Defiant Dance when their opponent has Ruin Runner (which prevents targeting), if they have two of their own units to target?
Ruling: You must select valid targets for Defiant Dance. If you cannot select an opposing unit due to Ruin Runner and have no other valid targets, you cannot play Defiant Dance. However, if you have two of your own units, you can target both of them instead.
Can you use Arena Bar to put a buff token on a unit that conquered Monastery of Hirana in order to trigger the draw effect?
Ruling: No, you cannot use Arena Bar during a Showdown to put a buff token on a unit conquering Monastery of Hirana because Arena Bar does not have the Reaction or Action keyword, so it cannot be played during a Showdown.
Does Assault trigger go on the chain, allowing the opponent to respond with Gust before the might is added, or does the might apply immediately when the unit becomes an attacker?
Ruling: Assault is a passive ability that applies immediately and continuously while a unit is an attacker. The opponent cannot respond with Gust to remove the Assault bonus if the unit is already attacking.
Can you loop Super Mega Death Rocket's triggered ability by discarding additional copies after the first one resolves when you conquer?
Ruling: You cannot loop Super Mega Death Rocket because you only conquered once, so the trigger only happens once. If you do not put all your SMDRs on the chain when the trigger initially happens, you cannot trigger them again until another conquer occurs.
Does equipment being attached to a unit transfer its effect text to that unit? (Specifically, does Trinity Force attached to a unit with Skyfall of Areion trigger on both conquer and hold?)
Ruling: Yes, equipment transfers its effect text to the unit it's attached to. Therefore, Trinity Force attached to a unit with Skyfall of Areion would trigger on both conquer and hold.
Can you tap a rune to add energy to your pool at the start of turn, recycle that same tapped rune for power cost, and still use the floated energy from that rune later in the turn?
Ruling: Yes, you can exert a rune to add energy to your pool, then recycle that same tapped rune to generate power for another card, and still use the floated energy later in the turn. The rune pool persists throughout your turn and only empties after you draw for turn and at end of turn.
Can I use a reaction during my opponent's phase change (specifically during their End phase)?
Ruling: You cannot use a reaction during a phase change on your opponent's turn. Phase changes do not give priority and are not valid triggers for reactions.
In 2v2, if my team is at 9 points and I control 2 battlefields at the start of my turn, do I immediately win by holding both to reach 11 points?
Ruling: Yes, you immediately win. You gain 1 point for holding each battlefield (going from 9 to 10 to 11), and the restrictions on scoring the final point only apply to conquering, not holding.
When Imperial Decree is in play and a 3 might unit attacks three 1 might token units at a battlefield, does the attacking unit die before killing all three defenders?
Ruling: All units die simultaneously. The 3 might attacker kills all three 1 might defenders, and the attacker also dies because Imperial Decree triggers three times (once for each point of battle damage taken).
How does immediate resolution work for Units and Gear, and what happens when a Unit is played as a reaction in a chain?
Ruling: Units and Gear resolve immediately when played - they cannot linger on the chain. As soon as all choices are made and costs are paid, they immediately resolve and enter play. After a permanent resolves, the player who controls the next item on the chain gains priority.
In a combat that ends in a tie, what happens to the units and who controls the battlefield?
Ruling: When combat ends in a tie with both players still having units at the battlefield, only the attacker's units are recalled back to their base. The defender's units remain at the battlefield.
Can Retreat (a reaction card) be played in response to an opponent ending their turn, before End of Turn effects resolve?
Ruling: No, Retreat cannot be played when an opponent ends their turn. Priority does not pass as phases and turns end unless something creates a chain.
Can you generate power during the resolution of Bullet Time (after it has been cast and priority has passed), or do you need to generate power before passing priority?
Ruling: You can generate power during the resolution of Bullet Time using Reaction: Add abilities, even though you don't have priority during resolution. This is explicitly allowed by the rules for any spell or ability resolution that requires resources to be paid.
Can you discard cards directly from hand to empty your hand, or does discarding have to be from an ability or spell?
Ruling: You cannot voluntarily discard cards from your hand. Discarding must be done through an ability or as a cost for something.
Why would Teemo's Legend ability move a unit from champion zone to hand, and can champions be targeted/hidden while in the champion zone?
Ruling: As of version 1.1, you can hide directly from the champion zone. Teemo's ability to move from champion zone to hand exists primarily to obscure whether you're hiding Teemo specifically, making it less obvious which card you're hiding from your hand.
If both battlefields are empty and my opponent moves into battlefield A, can I play Ride the Wind to move one of my characters from base to battlefield B (instead of targeting the showdown battlefield)? What happens next?
Ruling: You can play Ride the Wind to move a character to a different battlefield than the showdown battlefield. The first showdown will resolve, then the second showdown will begin.
Can you kill Sona or Renata after they use their abilities to prevent the abilities from resolving?
Ruling: No, you cannot prevent their abilities from resolving by killing them after activation. Once Sona's triggered ability or Renata's activated abilities are on the chain/stack, removing the unit from the battlefield does not stop them from resolving.
Can an opponent play a reaction during my turn when I play a unit with no triggers (Wizened Elder) and then buff it with Lee Sin's legend ability?
Ruling: The opponent can react to Lee Sin's activated ability, but cannot react to playing Wizened Elder since it has no triggers.
If a legend has two tap abilities (e.g., Ornn with Forge of the Fluft), can both abilities be used when tapping the legend once, or must you choose one?
Ruling: You cannot use both abilities with a single tap. Each tap ability requires its own separate exhaust cost, so you must choose which one to use.
Can Hidden Blade target a unit on another battlefield?
Ruling: Hidden Blade can target a unit on another battlefield if played from hand, but if played from hidden, it must target a unit on that battlefield.
When is the correct time to activate Fortified Position during a showdown?
Ruling: Fortified Position activates during the Initial Chain, which happens before the main showdown phase. "When you Defend" is an Initial Chain trigger that resolves before players can use Actions.
During a showdown, after playing an action card to boost might, opponent plays a reaction to reduce might, can I play another action card to boost might again, and what state am I in?
Ruling: Yes, you can play another action card after the opponent's reaction resolves. You remain in showdown open state. Sequence: - Player with focus and priority starts a chain with an action or reaction card - Players can play reactions on top of this - When the chain fully resolves, focus and priority passes to the other player - That...
If I conquer one battlefield and move to another to win, but my opponent uses Ride the Wind during my showdown to move to the battlefield I just conquered, do they win before I do?
Ruling: No, your opponent does not win before you. When you move to a battlefield and start a showdown, if your opponent uses Ride the Wind to move to another battlefield during that showdown, their showdown is "staged" and cannot begin until your current showdown ends. Since you win the game when your showdown resolves (assuming you win it), their...
If Watcher dies and then a hidden unit is revealed later in the same turn at the same battlefield, is the hidden unit debuffed by Watcher's effect?
Ruling: Watcher only reduces the might of units currently on the board when it is played. The debuff does not persist after Watcher dies, and does not apply to units that enter or are revealed after Watcher is gone.
Does the owner of a unit getting Hidden Bladed still draw 2 if they recall the unit to hand (not using Sett's legend ability)?
Ruling: You do not draw 2 cards if the unit is recalled to hand before Hidden Blade resolves. When Hidden Blade resolves, it looks at the battlefield but cannot find the target anymore, so it is unable to determine who was its controller and therefore you do not draw.
If Yasuo Remorseful enters the battlefield for a showdown and activates its effect, but is killed in reaction, does he still deal the ability damage?
Ruling: Yasuo Remorseful will not deal any damage if killed in reaction to his ability triggering, because he is no longer on the battlefield when the ability resolves.
Can a hidden Foxfire on Battlefield A be played as a reaction to target units moving to Battlefield B?
Ruling: You cannot play Foxfire as a reaction to a move, and even if you could play it, hidden cards can only target units at the battlefield they are hidden at.
If I play Stand United during a showdown with units that are already buffed (e.g., from Lee Sin's legend ability), do they get additional might from Stand United's effect?
Ruling: Stand United grants a buff to one friendly unit and creates a board-wide passive effect that makes all buffs (including existing ones) give +1 additional might this turn. A unit that already has a buff cannot receive a second buff, but it will benefit from the passive effect.
Does Darius's trigger work if he is played as the 3rd card in a turn, or does he have to be the 1st or 2nd card played?
Ruling: Darius only triggers when your second card of the turn is played. He must either be that second card himself, or already be on the board when the second card is played. Playing him as the 3rd, 4th, or later card will not trigger his ability.
When Flurry of Blades kills a unit during a resolving chain, does Immortal Phoenix's triggered ability immediately trigger and add itself to the resolving chain, or does it wait until the next Open State?
Ruling: Immortal Phoenix's triggered ability triggers immediately and is added to the chain after Flurry of Blades resolves. It does not wait for the next Open State.
Can you cast Void Seeker without a target unit on the battlefield to just draw 1 card?
Ruling: No, you cannot cast Void Seeker without a valid target. The spell requires all targets to be present when cast, and Void Seeker does not have an "up to" clause that would allow targeting 0 units.
Can you activate Sun Disc after casting a burn spell but before Immortal Phoenix revives from the graveyard?
Ruling: No, you cannot activate Sun Disc after casting the burn spell but before Phoenix revives. Sun Disc is not a reaction, so you must activate it before casting the spell.
Can I use Call to Glory between Cithria of Cloudfield's trigger and Pit Rookie's trigger when both are on the chain, spending the buff from one trigger before the other resolves?
Ruling: Yes, you can use Call to Glory between the two triggers. When Pit Rookie is played, both Cithria and Pit Rookie trigger simultaneously. As the active player, you order these triggers on the chain, then must pass priority to allow the first trigger to resolve. After Pit Rookie's trigger resolves (buffing Cithria), you regain priority as controller of the...
If Blastcone Fae is hidden and flipped at battlefield 1, can its ability target units at battlefield 2?
Ruling: No, when Blastcone Fae is flipped from hidden, its ability can only target units at the same battlefield where it was flipped.
If my opponent uses Gust against my 3 might unit, I use Discipline to save it, and then my opponent reacts with Shakedown that kills my unit before other spells resolve, do I still draw from Discipline?
Ruling: Yes, you still draw from Discipline even if the target unit is killed before Discipline resolves. All effects that reach the chain always resolve (unless countered), and you do as much as you can on resolution.
During an attack, if I play an action spell with focus, defender gets focus and plays nothing, do I get focus back?
Ruling: Yes, you get the focus back. Focus continues passing between players until all players pass focus in succession, at which point Showdown ends.
If you cast Noxian Guillotine on a 12 might unit and then cast Disintegrate on it, does Disintegrate draw you a card?
Ruling: No, you do not draw a card. Noxian Guillotine creates a delayed trigger that kills the unit when it takes damage, so the kill credit goes to Guillotine's delayed trigger, not to Disintegrate.
Can I cast Defy targeting a spell that costs more than 4 energy to get a spell cast trigger, either by targeting an invalid spell or by having Defy target itself?
Ruling: You cannot cast Defy targeting a spell that costs more than 4 energy, nor can you have Defy target itself. Defy requires a valid target with energy cost ≤4 and power cost ≤1 to be cast, and spells cannot target themselves.
Can Yasuo - Remorseful trigger his 6 damage ability twice in the same combat by using two Ride The Wind cards to leave and re-enter the battlefield?
Ruling: No, Yasuo's attacker trigger can only activate once per combat, even if he leaves and re-enters the battlefield multiple times during that same combat.
When Heimerdinger Inventor copies Malzahar's Exhaust ability, do you still need to kill a unit to use it?
Ruling: Yes, you still need to kill a unit or gear to use the Exhaust ability. The exhaust ability is directly duplicated with all costs, restrictions, and effects.
Does Ava Achiever trigger Teemo Strategist when you play a card with the Hidden keyword from your hand?
Ruling: Teemo Strategist will never trigger from Ava Achiever. Ava Achiever lets you play a card that has the Hidden keyword from your hand, but does not let you hide a card.
If you move to an occupied battlefield and your opponent uses Ride the Wind to move their unit to a different battlefield, do you score first before the showdown at the new battlefield, and does everything at the new battlefield go on hold until the original battlefield's showdown concludes?
Ruling: Yes, you score first at the original battlefield, then a showdown happens at the new battlefield (assuming no extra actions are used). Everything at the new battlefield goes on hold until the showdown at the original battlefield concludes.
Can players start multiple chains during a Showdown, or does passing once forfeit the ability to start new chains?
Ruling: Players can start multiple chains during a Showdown. Both players must pass in a row without playing spells or activating abilities for the Showdown to close.
When Yasuo and Merchant move to attack, what is the correct order of triggers and when can each player activate abilities?
Ruling: Merchant's on-move trigger resolves completely before the showdown begins (you cannot start combat with a chain). During the showdown's initial chain, the defender controls the order of all their triggered abilities, regardless of whether they trigger on attack or defend.
When a unit fails to conquer Vilemaw's Lair and is recalled to base, does the battlefield's 'Units can't move from here to base' restriction prevent the recall?
Ruling: Units that fail to conquer Vilemaw's Lair are recalled to base, not moved. Since "recalled" and "move" are different game terms, Vilemaw's Lair's restriction does not prevent the recall.