Officiële regels

Blader door alle secties van de Core en Tournament Rules — elke § heeft een deelbare link.

Core Rules PDF (officieel) (1968 secties)

§ 000 Golden and Silver Rules (21)

§ 001 Golden Rule…
§ 002 Card text supersedes rules text. Whenever a card fundamentally contradicts the rules, the card's indication is what is true.…
§ 050 Silver Rule…
§ 051 Card text uses different terminology than rules. Card text should be interpreted according to these rules, not as though it were text within…
§ 052 Card, when written in card effects, is shorthand for "Main Deck card." Runes, legends, and battleﬁelds are not considered cards when executi…
§ 053 Cards refer to themselves in the ﬁrst person.…
§ 053.1 * Units and legends say "I," "me," etc.…
§ 053.2 * Gear and spells say "this."…
§ 053.3 * Battleﬁelds say "here."…
§ 053.4 * Cards may refer to themselves by their name for clarity. This is shorthand for the above terms.…
§ 054 “Can’t beats Can”…
§ 054.1 Cards that forbid actions or effects, as a broad method of determination, supersede cards that allow or permit that same action or effect.…
§ 054.2 If a card speciﬁes that an action can “only” be performed under certain circumstances, it cannot be performed under any other circumstances.…
§ 055 When executing card text, do as much as you can, ignoring impossible instructions.…
§ 055.1 If all of a card’s instructions are impossible, it is still played and resolved, but nothing happens.…
§ 056 Cards a player owns may never be placed into a non-Board zone belonging to another player.…
§ 056.1 Non-Board zones corresponding to a player include Main Deck, Rune Deck, Trash, Hand, Chosen Champion zone, and Banishment.…
§ 056.2 If a card would enter such a zone, it goes to its owner’s corresponding zone instead.…
§ 1 " A player controls a card that says "Units you play cost [A] less." That player plays Clockwork Keeper and chooses to pay the optional addi…
§ 2 If they had 1 card in hand, they would discard it and draw 2.…
§ 3 Immediately apply the effect that Depends on the ﬁrst effect next. Example: A unit with 4[M] is under the effects of a passive ability that …

§ 100 Game Concepts (471)

§ 101 Deck Construction…
§ 102 Riftbound is a Trading Card Game where a player must provide their own cards to play against other players.…
§ 103 To play Riftbound, a player must have a Main Deck, a Rune Deck, a Champion Legend, and a number of Battleﬁelds determined by the Mode of Pla…
§ 103.1 1 Champion Legend…
§ 103.1.a This is placed in the Legend Zone at the start of the game.…
§ 103.1.b This will dictate the Domain Identity of the deck.…
§ 103.2 A Main Deck of at least 40 cards: A Chosen Champion Unit, as well as Units, Gear, and Spells…
§ 103.2.a Chosen Champion…
§ 103.2.b Your Main Deck can include up to 3 copies of the same named card.…
§ 103.2.c Subject to Domain Identity.…
§ 103.2.d Your deck may only contain 3 total Signature cards that have the same Champion tag as your Champion Legend.…
§ 103.2.e Subject to card legality of the Format being played.…
§ 103.3 Rune Deck…
§ 103.3.a 12 Rune Cards…
§ 103.3.b Must be shufﬂed and kept separate from the Main Deck.…
§ 103.4 Battleﬁelds…
§ 103.4.a The number will be dictated by your Mode of Play.…
§ 103.4.b Subject to Domain Identity if applicable.…
§ 103.4.c Cannot include more than one of a Battleﬁeld of the same name when there are more than one required for the deck.…
§ 104 Setup…
§ 105 Spaces…
§ 106 The Play Area is a collection of logical Zones that are deﬁned by their behaviors and relationships to Players. These Zones are grouped into…
§ 107 The Board…
§ 107.1 Bases…
§ 107.1.a Each player has their own Base.…
§ 107.1.b Each Base is a Location. See rule 197. Locations for more information.…
§ 107.1.c Permanents and Runes controlled by a player reside in that player's Base.…
§ 107.1.d Permanents and Runes in Bases are Public Information.…
§ 107.2 Battleﬁeld Zone…
§ 107.2.a The Battleﬁeld Zone houses multiple Battleﬁelds.…
§ 107.2.b Each Battleﬁeld is individually a Location. See rule 197. Locations for more information.…
§ 107.2.c Battleﬁelds and permanents at Battleﬁelds are Public Information.…
§ 107.3 Facedown Zones…
§ 107.3.a Each Battleﬁeld is associated with a sub-zone called a Facedown Zone, a single logical space that a card can be put facedown in through vari…
§ 107.3.b Each Facedown Zone has a maximum occupancy of one card.…
§ 107.3.c Cards can only be placed in or occupy the Facedown Zone if the controller of the card also controls the associated Battleﬁeld.…
§ 107.3.d If a player loses Control of a Battleﬁeld, any cards in the Facedown Zone associated with that Battleﬁeld are removed during the next Cleanu…
§ 107.3.e Facedown Zones are not locations.…
§ 107.3.f Facedown Zones are Public Zones, though facedown cards located there are Private.…
§ 107.4 Legend Zone…
§ 107.4.a The space for each player's Champion Legend.…
§ 107.4.b This is not a location.…
§ 107.4.c The Champion Legend here is a Game Object. See rule 119. Game Objects for more information.…
§ 107.4.d The Champion Legend cannot be removed, moved, or displaced from this zone.…
§ 108 Non-Board Zones…
§ 108.1 The Chain…
§ 108.1.a Cards and abilities are placed here as part of the process of being played. See rule 327. Chains for more information.…
§ 108.1.b Cards and abilities on the Chain are Public Information.…
§ 108.2 Trashes…
§ 108.2.a Each player has their own Trash.…
§ 108.2.b This space is where cards are placed when they are killed or discarded, when they ﬁnish being executed as spells, when they are moved to the…
§ 108.2.c Cards in each player’s Trash are unordered. Their sequence does not matter, and they may be reorganized.…
§ 108.2.d Cards in a player's Trash are Public Information. See rule 128. Privacy for more information.…
§ 108.3 Champion Zones…
§ 108.3.a Each player has their own Champion Zone.…
§ 108.3.b The space each player puts their Chosen Champion at the start of the game.…
§ 108.3.c The Chosen Champion cannot be returned to this zone by normal means.…
§ 108.3.d The Chosen Champion can be played from here as normal, following the rules of Playing a Card. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more informati…
§ 108.3.e Cards in a player’s Champion Zone are Public Information.…
§ 108.4 Main Deck Zones…
§ 108.4.a Each player has their own Main Deck Zone.…
§ 108.4.b The space for the player's Main Deck.…
§ 108.4.c Primarily houses the face-down Main Deck during gameplay.…
§ 108.4.d The order of cards in the Main Deck is Secret Information during the course of play. See rule 128. Privacy for more information.…
§ 108.5 Rune Deck Zones…
§ 108.5.a Each player has their own Rune Deck Zone.…
§ 108.5.b The space for the player's Rune Deck.…
§ 108.5.c Primarily houses the face-down runes during gameplay.…
§ 108.5.d The order of runes in the Rune Deck is Secret Information during the course of play. See rule 128. Privacy for more information.…
§ 108.6 Banishments…
§ 108.6.a Each player has their own Banishment.…
§ 108.6.b This space is where cards are placed when they are banished by a spell or effect.…
§ 108.6.c Represents cards that have been removed from play in a more difﬁcult-to-recover way, or a temporary space to hold cards while effects are be…
§ 108.6.d The cards in the banishment are unordered. Their sequence does not matter, and they may be reorganized.…
§ 108.6.e The cards in any player's Banishment are Public Information. See rule 128. Privacy for more information.…
§ 108.7 The Hand…
§ 108.7.a Each player has their own Hand.…
§ 108.7.b This is the location cards go when Drawn.…
§ 108.7.c The cards in a player's hand are Private Information.…
§ 108.7.d The cards in a player’s hand are Unordered. Their sequence does not matter and they may be reorganized.…
§ 108.7.e The number of cards in a player's hand is Public Information.…
§ 108.7.f The hand can be targeted as a zone, and cards there can be affected by spells and effects when speciﬁed.…
§ 109 All Game Objects in the collective Play Areas are Public Information.…
§ 109.1 Any player may view, or be provided with the details of the face-up information printed on the cards in the Play Area.…
§ 109.2 The State of all Game Objects in the Play Area is also Public Information. Examples: If a Unit is Buffed If a Gear is Exhausted Etc.…
§ 110 Setup Process…
§ 111 Each player separates their Champion Legend and places it in the Legend Zone.…
§ 112 Each player separates their Chosen Champion and places it in the Champion Zone.…
§ 113 Each player sets aside their Battleﬁelds.…
§ 113.1 Your Mode of Play will dictate how these are used and placed into the Battleﬁeld Zone. See rule 481. Modes of Play for more information.…
§ 114 Each player shufﬂes their Main and Rune Decks, separately, then places them into their respective Zones.…
§ 114.1 The Main Deck is placed in the Main Deck Zone.…
§ 114.2 The Rune Deck is placed in the Rune Deck Zone.…
§ 115 Determine Turn Order using any fair random method agreed on by all players.…
§ 115.1 Turn Order is established as a repeating set of the players.…
§ 115.1.a The Mode of Play will specify how to determine a First Player.…
§ 115.1.b If not otherwise speciﬁed, Seating then determines the sequence, play proceeding clockwise from the First Player.…
§ 115.1.c The Turn Order generates a looping queue of turns, starting with the First Player and repeating until the game ends.…
§ 115.2 See the selected Mode of Play for any adjustments to each player's ﬁrst turn. See rule 481. Modes of Play for more information.…
§ 116 Players each draw 4.…
§ 117 In turn order, players perform their Mulligan.…
§ 117.1 A player may choose up to two cards in their hand. They set those cards aside.…
§ 117.2 Then, that player draws as many cards as they set aside.…
§ 117.3 Finally, that player Recycles the cards that were set aside. See rule 416. Recycle for more information.…
§ 118 Begin play with the First Player taking their turn.…
§ 119 Game Objects…
§ 120 A Game Object is any game piece that can produce one or more Game Effects or grant prerequisites for players to take Game Actions.…
§ 121 A Game Object does not include nor preclude any inherent properties beyond the ability to produce, or act as the prerequisite for, Game Effe…
§ 122 A Game Object can be a literal object or a logical object.…
§ 123 Game Objects include, but are not limited to, the following: Main Deck cards in any zone Runes in any zone Legends Battleﬁelds Tokens in any…
§ 124 A Game Object that changes zones to or from a Non-Board Zone becomes a new object for the purposes of tracking that object.…
§ 124.1 Whenever a Game Object changes zones to or from a Non-Board Zone, all Temporary Modiﬁcations of all kinds cease to be tracked on it in all c…
§ 124.2 A Game Object can have any of the following statuses (non-exhaustive): Attached, Attacking, Buffed, Banished, Controlled, Defending, Empower…
§ 125 Cards…
§ 126 Riftbound games are composed of players playing the cards in their respective decks.…
§ 127 Ownership…
§ 127.1 For gameplay purposes, a card's Owner is the player who brought it into the game, either as their Champion Legend, one of their Battleﬁelds,…
§ 128 Privacy…
§ 128.1 A card will always exist in one of the many Zones described during Setup.…
§ 128.2 A card will have a different level of Privacy based on its state or where it resides at a given time.…
§ 128.2.a Unless speciﬁed otherwise by the state of the card, a card’s Privacy is the same as the zone it is located in.…
§ 128.3 Secret: This level of Privacy indicates that no player may read or look at the face of the card.…
§ 128.4 Private: This level of Privacy indicates that only the controller of a card on the board or the owner of a card in any other zone may read o…
§ 128.5 Public: This level of Privacy indicates that any player may read or look at the face of the card.…
§ 128.6 A player cannot be compelled to perform an action on cards whose privacy is secret or private if that action speciﬁes a type or quality of c…
§ 128.6.a If an effect would compel a player to perform an action on cards whose privacy is secret or private, and if that effect speciﬁes a type or q…
§ 129 Back Side…
§ 129.1 The back side of a card is the side with the Riftbound logo.…
§ 129.2 There is a unique pattern of back side for each of the three categories of card: Main Deck cards, Rune Deck cards, and Battleﬁelds and Champ…
§ 129.3 The back side of a card is presented to conceal information for Private and Secret information cards. For example, cards in the Main Deck an…
§ 129.4 The term facedown is used to describe the state during regular play of having a card's back side presented on the Board. A facedown card’s f…
§ 130 Front Side…
§ 130.1 The front side of a card is the opposite of its back.…
§ 130.2 This is also referred to as a front face.…
§ 130.3 This can be identiﬁed in situations where the back is not easily discernible by the presence of the Play Cost in the upper left corner of th…
§ 130.4 Cards, when played, are played with their front face presented.…
§ 130.5 The term face up is used to describe the state during regular play of having a card's front face presented…
§ 130.6 Cards are considered to be Public Information while in this state, even if obscured by other cards in a pile. Example: The Trash is Public I…
§ 131 Cost…
§ 131.1 Main Deck cards have a Cost, listed in the upper left corner of the front face of the card. See rule 165. Rune Pools for more information.…
§ 131.2 Energy Cost…
§ 131.2.a The numeral listed in the Cost element in the upper left corner of the card.…
§ 131.3 Power cost…
§ 131.3.a The symbols, listed vertically, in the Cost element in the upper left corner of the card.…
§ 131.3.b This section may not be present on every card.…
§ 132 Name…
§ 132.1 Each card has a name that identiﬁes it uniquely.…
§ 132.2 This is usually located in the middle of the card.…
§ 132.3 Cards that are printed in different languages but represent the same card are considered to have the same name for the purposes of deckbuild…
§ 132.4 Some cards have both a short name and a subtitle. For all purposes, including rules and deckbuilding, such a card’s name is “[Short Name], […
§ 133 Category…
§ 133.1 A card can have one or more Categories and Sub-Categories based on the properties of its front and back sides.…
§ 133.2 These Categories and Sub-Categories dictate the behaviors of the card during play.…
§ 133.3 Spells and other effects can refer to categories, sub-categories, supertypes, card types, tags, and other characteristics inclusively or exc…
§ 133.4 Main Deck Cards begin the game in the Main Deck or (in the case of a Chosen Champion) the Champion Zone.…
§ 133.4.a Permanents…
§ 133.4.b Spells…
§ 133.5 Rune Deck Cards begin the game in the Rune Deck.…
§ 133.5.a Runes…
§ 133.6 Other Cards are not part of either the Main or Rune Decks and begin the game in a zone determined by their type.…
§ 133.6.a Battleﬁelds…
§ 133.6.b Legends…
§ 133.7 Supertypes are Categories that may apply to game objects of multiple types. They are listed before a card’s type.…
§ 133.7.a Champion is a supertype that applies exclusively to units. It impacts the rules for deckbuilding. See rule 103.2.a. Chosen Champion for more…
§ 133.7.b Signature is a supertype that may apply to game objects of any card type. It impacts the rules for deckbuilding. See rule 103.2.d. for more …
§ 133.8 Tags are Categories that may apply to game objects of multiple types. They are listed after a card’s type.…
§ 133.8.a Tags have no innate rules meaning, but may be referenced by game rules and card effects.…
§ 133.8.b Tags used to link Legends, Champion Units, and Signature cards are known as Champion Tags.…
§ 134 Domain…
§ 134.1 Most cards belong to one or more of six Domains, identiﬁed by one or more symbols in the lower right corner.…
§ 134.2 Each Domain has an associated color, a unique symbol, and a shorthand used to represent that symbol in written text.…
§ 134.2.a Fury is associated with the color red and represented by a circular symbol with three projecting points. Its shorthand is [R].…
§ 134.2.b Calm is associated with the color green and represented by a symbol resembling a leaf. Its shorthand is [G].…
§ 134.2.c Mind is associated with the color blue and represented by a symbol resembling a sun and moon. Its shorthand is [B].…
§ 134.2.d Body is associated with the color orange and represented by a blocky diamond-shaped symbol. Its shorthand is [O].…
§ 134.2.e Chaos is associated with the color purple and represented by a hexagonal symbol with swirls emanating from its center. Its shorthand is [P].…
§ 134.2.f Order is associated with the color yellow and represented by an angular winged symbol. Its shorthand is [Y].…
§ 135 Rules Text…
§ 135.1 All cards have a section that describes how they affect the game. This section is known as the Rules Text of the card.…
§ 135.2 This section may contain:…
§ 135.2.a Abilities…
§ 135.2.b Instructions…
§ 135.2.c Keywords…
§ 135.2.d Reminder Text…
§ 135.2.e Symbols…
§ 135.3 Rules text can be blank.…
§ 135.4 A card’s printed Rules Text is Inactive while that card is Attached to another card. See rule 716. Attachment for more information. See rule…
§ 135.4.a The presence of text, rules, Keywords, and other effects can still be referenced and detected by other game effects, even while Rules Text i…
§ 135.4.b Any granted or appended Rules Text on a card is still Active even if that card is Attached to another card.…
§ 136 Effect Text…
§ 136.1 Some cards have a separate section of text below the Rules Text. This is referred to as the Effect Text.…
§ 136.2 Effect Text can contain additional Abilities.…
§ 136.2.a Effect Text can be blank.…
§ 136.2.b Effect Text is inactive unless the card with the Effect Text is Attached to another card. See rule 716. Attachment for more information. See…
§ 136.2.c The abilities in the Effect Text section of a card are appended to the Rules Text of the card to which the card with the Effect Text is Atta…
§ 136.2.d Effect Text may refer to “this” or to the name of the Attached game object that appended the Effect Text. Doing so refers to the Attached ga…
§ 137 Might Bonus…
§ 137.1 Some cards have a Might Bonus in their lower right corner, expressed as an operator plus an integer.…
§ 137.2 A card’s Might Bonus can be +0.…
§ 137.3 A card’s Might Bonus modulates the Might of the card to which the card that has the Might Bonus is Attached. See rule 716. Attachment for mo…
§ 137.3.a The Might Bonus is applied while Attached and stops applying as soon as the card with the Might Bonus is no longer Attached.…
§ 137.3.b If the card to which a card with a Might Bonus is Attached has no Might value, the Might Bonus is ignored.…
§ 138 Flavor Text…
§ 138.1 Flavor text is text that appears at the bottom of some cards to provide aesthetic enjoyment. It conveys no gameplay information. Example: Th…
§ 138.2 Flavor text is located at the bottom of the section provided for rules text, usually in a shaded bar. It appears in italics.…
§ 139 Illustration…
§ 139.1 Each card has an illustration. It conveys no gameplay information.…
§ 140 Units…
§ 141 Unit is:…
§ 141.1 A Game Object…
§ 141.1.a While on the Board:…
§ 141.1.b While in the Trash:…
§ 141.2 A Card Type…
§ 141.2.a This is a unique identiﬁer that some spells or abilities will use to restrict what they can choose or affect.…
§ 141.2.b The card type is relevant in all zones.…
§ 142 Damage is a marked value that is applied to Units.…
§ 142.1 Damage is not a Game Object.…
§ 142.2 Damage is a value tracked per-Unit.…
§ 142.3 Damage is marked on Units by players.…
§ 142.3.a The player responsible for the Deal action that caused the Damage to be marked is the player who marked that Damage.…
§ 142.3.b Game Effects may refer to that player’s Damage. This means the Damage marked by that player. Example: A unit reads in part “Your damage can’…
§ 142.4 Damage tracks how close a Unit is to being Killed. See rule 428. Kill for more information.…
§ 142.4.a Lethal Damage is the amount of marked Damage that will cause a unit to die in a cleanup.…
§ 142.4.b Lethal Damage for a Unit is a non-zero amount greater than or equal to that Unit’s Might. Example: A unit has 5 [M] and 3 damage marked on i…
§ 142.4.c Some effects may alter this amount. These effects will refer to the amount of damage needed to kill a unit. Example: Elder Dragon’s passive …
§ 142.5 Damage can be Healed. See rule 418. Heal for more information.…
§ 143 Units have multiple Intrinsic Properties unique to them:…
§ 143.1 Tag: A Unit has zero or more Tags representing one or more champions, regions, factions, or species it belongs to.…
§ 143.1.a These have no intrinsic rules or behaviors by themselves.…
§ 143.1.b Spells, abilities, and game actions can reference these types as part of their execution.…
§ 143.2 Might: The combat statistic of a Unit. Used to determine a Unit's contribution to Combat, as well as when it is Killed by damaging effects.…
§ 143.2.a If a Unit ever has nonzero damage marked on it equalling or exceeding its Might, it is Killed.…
§ 143.2.b If a unit's Might is ever less than 0, it is treated as 0 when referenced by spells and abilities, and when summing Might to be assigned as …
§ 143.3 Units can have damage marked on them.…
§ 143.3.a When spells, abilities, or other game effects deal damage, Units mark that damage on them temporarily. This can be tracked with coins, dice,…
§ 143.3.b Damage is Healed from Units at two speciﬁc times:…
§ 143.4 Units enter the Board exhausted.…
§ 143.4.a This can be altered by Accelerate or similar game effects. See rule 805. Accelerate for more information.…
§ 144 Units have the Inherent Ability to perform a Standard Move.…
§ 144.1 This action is limited in when it can be performed.…
§ 144.1.a This action can be done any time during a player's Main Phase.…
§ 144.1.b This action cannot be performed during a Closed State.…
§ 144.1.c This action cannot be performed during a Showdown or Combat.…
§ 144.2 Exhausting the Unit is the Cost for this action.…
§ 144.3 Players may perform multiple Units' standard move simultaneously. This is treated as one game action performed on multiple Units.…
§ 144.3.a When a Move like this is declared by a player, the units' Destination must be the same.…
§ 144.3.b When a Move like this is declared by a player, the Origins do not need to be the same.…
§ 144.3.c The Costs of Exhausting the Units are also paid Simultaneously.…
§ 144.4 The Destinations where Units can Move to with their Standard Move are restricted:…
§ 144.4.a Units may move from their Base to a Battleﬁeld.…
§ 144.4.b Units may move from a Battleﬁeld to their Base.…
§ 144.4.c Ganking is a unique ability that affects a Unit's Standard Move…
§ 145 Units may have Activated Abilities.…
§ 145.1 Activated Abilities are Game Effects that are written as Costs followed by a ":", and then succeeded by an effect. See rule 376. Activated A…
§ 145.2 The Activated Ability of Units may be executed at any time during the controlling player's Main Phase during an Open State, and not during a…
§ 145.2.a This follows the same process as playing a card. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information.…
§ 146 Units have a Location.…
§ 146.1 A Unit’s Location is the Base or Battleﬁeld it currently occupies. See rule 197. Locations for more information.…
§ 147 Gear…
§ 148 Gear are:…
§ 148.1 A Game Object…
§ 148.1.a While on the Board.…
§ 148.1.b While in the Trash…
§ 148.2 A Card Type…
§ 148.2.a This is a unique identiﬁer that some spells or abilities will use to restrict what they can choose or affect.…
§ 148.2.b The card type is relevant in all zones.…
§ 149 Gear have several Intrinsic Properties unique to them.…
§ 149.1 Gear enter play Ready.…
§ 149.2 Gear can only be played to a player's Base unless an effect speciﬁes otherwise.…
§ 149.3 If an unattached non-Unit Gear is at a Battleﬁeld for any reason during a cleanup, then it is recalled to its controller's Base as a correct…
§ 150 Gear can have the Equipment tag.…
§ 150.1 These Gear are referred to as Equipment.…
§ 150.2 Equipment have effect text and a Might bonus. See rule 136. Effect Text for more information on effect text. See rule 137. Might Bonus for m…
§ 150.3 Equipment can have the Equip or Quick-Draw keywords. See rule 818. Equip for more information on the Equip keyword. See rule 819. Quick-Draw…
§ 150.4 Equipment are still Gear and have the same intrinsic properties and rules that Gear do.…
§ 150.5 Equipment and whether a Gear has the Equipment tag is a characteristic of the Gear may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 151 Gear may have Activated Abilities.…
§ 151.1 Activated Abilities are Game Effects that are written as Costs followed by a ":", and then succeeded by an effect. See rule 376. Activated A…
§ 151.2 The Activated Ability of Gear may be executed at any time during the controlling player's Main Phase during an Open State, and not during a …
§ 151.2.a This follows the same process as playing a card. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information.…
§ 152 Gear have a Location.…
§ 152.1 A Gear’s Location is the Base or Battleﬁeld it currently occupies. See rule 197. Locations for more information.…
§ 152.2 Non-Unit Gear cannot normally become located at a Battleﬁeld unless by some special means. Example: Gear are played to Base unless an effect…
§ 153 Spells…
§ 154 Spell is a card type.…
§ 155 A spell can be played during an Open State outside of Showdowns on its controller's turn.…
§ 156 A spell is controlled by the player who played it.…
§ 157 A spell creates a game effect according to its instructions and is then placed in the Trash of the player who owns it.…
§ 158 When a spell is successfully played, a player executes the rules text of the spell. This is called Resolving the spell.…
§ 158.1 Spells have their rules text executed from top to bottom when they are Resolved.…
§ 158.2 If a later part of a spell applies a Replacement Effect that alters earlier parts of the spell, apply those replacement effects as appropria…
§ 158.3 While a spell or ability on the chain is Resolving, no other spells or abilities can be ﬁnalized on the chain or resolved, including trigger…
§ 158.3.a Finish resolving all effects of a spell before addressing any chain items or Tasks the spell may have added or made outstanding through exec…
§ 159 Certain Keywords on spells are not executable rules text, but instead intrinsic properties of the spell.…
§ 159.1 These determine inherent properties and behaviors of the spell before being played or while on the chain.…
§ 159.2 These keywords are:…
§ 159.2.a Action…
§ 159.2.b Reaction…
§ 160 Runes…
§ 161 Rune is a Card Type.…
§ 161.1 A Rune is not a Main Deck card.…
§ 161.1.a This means, despite remaining on the Board until Recycled or otherwise removed from the board, it is not a Permanent.…
§ 161.2 Runes are kept in the Rune Deck.…
§ 161.2.a Exactly 12 Rune cards chosen during Deck Construction. See rule 103.3. Rune Deck for more information.…
§ 161.2.b When a Rune is Recycled it is returned to the Rune Deck, not the Main Deck. See rule 416. Recycle for more information.…
§ 162 Runes produce the resources needed to pay costs.…
§ 163 Runes produce Energy and Power.…
§ 163.1 Energy is used to pay numeric Energy costs.…
§ 163.1.a Energy has no Domain.…
§ 163.1.b Energy has no type.…
§ 163.2 Power is used to pay Domain-associated Power Costs.…
§ 163.2.a Power has a Domain.…
§ 163.2.b Some Power is Universal and can be used to pay for costs of any Domain.…
§ 164 Basic Runes…
§ 164.1 There are six Basic Runes, each with a Domain corresponding to its name: Fury Rune Calm Rune Mind Rune Body Rune Chaos Rune Order Rune…
§ 164.2 A Basic Rune always has the following two Abilities:…
§ 164.2.a [E]: [Reaction] — Add [1].…
§ 164.2.b Recycle this: [Reaction] — Add [C].…
§ 165 Rune Pools…
§ 166 The Rune Pool is a conceptual collection of a player's available Energy and Power available to pay Costs.…
§ 166.1 When a card adds Energy or Power, it is added to the controlling player's Rune Pool.…
§ 166.2 Players must add Energy and Power to their Rune Pool in order to be able to spend it to play cards or pay for Abilities with costs.…
§ 166.3 Energy and Power do not have a physical marker or tracker, although players may wish to use a physical tracker if they are retaining unspent…
§ 167 Every player's Rune Pool empties at the start of each player's Main Phase and the end of each player's turn.…
§ 167.1 Any unspent Energy or Power are lost.…
§ 168 All Abilities that include the action "Add" are abilities that are adding Energy or Power to the Rune Pool. See rule 429. Add for more infor…
§ 169 Battleﬁelds…
§ 170 Battleﬁelds are Game Objects.…
§ 170.1 Battleﬁelds are Owned by a player.…
§ 170.2 Battleﬁelds are not shufﬂed into Decks at the start of a game.…
§ 170.2.a Battleﬁelds are not played during the course of regular play.…
§ 170.2.b Battleﬁelds are established at the start of a game and remain in place for the duration of regular play.…
§ 170.3 Battleﬁelds cannot be Killed during the course of regular play.…
§ 170.4 Battleﬁelds cannot be Moved.…
§ 170.5 Battleﬁelds are Locations.…
§ 170.5.a Battleﬁelds can be Origins of moves.…
§ 170.5.b Battleﬁelds can be Destinations of moves.…
§ 170.6 Any number of Units can be present at a Battleﬁeld.…
§ 170.7 Battleﬁelds can be targeted by spells or game effects.…
§ 170.8 Battleﬁelds can have Passive Abilities. See rule 363. Passive Abilities for more information.…
§ 170.9 Battleﬁelds can have Triggered Abilities. See rule 382. Triggered Abilities for more information.…
§ 170.10 Battleﬁelds can have Activated Abilities. See rule 376. Activated Abilities for more information.…
§ 170.11 Battleﬁelds can be referenced in different states in card text:…
§ 170.11.a Battleﬁelds can be “occupied.” This means they have a Unit present.…
§ 170.11.b Battleﬁelds can be “uncontrolled.” This means no player controls them.…
§ 170.11.c Battleﬁelds can be “open.” This means they are unoccupied and uncontrolled.…
§ 171 Battleﬁelds are not Permanents.…
§ 172 The number of Battleﬁelds on the Board is determined by the Mode of Play.…
§ 173 Legends…
§ 174 Legends are Game Objects.…
§ 174.1 Legends are Owned by a player.…
§ 174.2 Legends are not shufﬂed into Decks at the start of a game.…
§ 174.2.a Legends are not played during the course of regular play.…
§ 174.2.b Legends are established at the start of a game, and remain in place for the duration of regular play.…
§ 174.3 Legends cannot be Killed during the course of regular play.…
§ 174.4 Legends cannot be Moved.…
§ 174.5 Legends can be targeted by spells or game effects.…
§ 174.6 Legends can have Passive Abilities. See rule 363. Passive Abilities for more information.…
§ 174.7 Legends can have Triggered Abilities. See rule 382. Triggered Abilities for more information.…
§ 174.8 Legends can have Activated Abilities. See rule 376. Activated Abilities for more information.…
§ 175 Legends are not Permanents.…
§ 176 Legends may have one or more Domains.…
§ 176.1 The Champion Legend determines the Domain Identity of cards its owner can include. See rule 101. Deck Construction for more information.…
§ 177 Multiple Types…
§ 178 Game Objects can have multiple types.…
§ 178.1 A Game Object that is more than one type has the properties of all of their types, except where they are mutually exclusive.…
§ 178.1.a Regardless of a Game Objects’ other types, there are some properties that are true of Game Objects of certain types. These properties take p…
§ 178.2 A Game Object that is more than one type maintains all of the permissions of all types.…
§ 178.2.a If a Game Object is a Unit, it has the standard move inherent ability.…
§ 178.3 A Game Object that is more than one type can be affected by Game Effects that modify or interact with any of its types. Example: A unit that…
§ 179 Tokens…
§ 180 Tokens are Game Objects created by spells and abilities during play.…
§ 181 Tokens can be represented by anything. Printed tokens are included in Riftbound booster packs, but they are not required to play a token.…
§ 182 A token's controller is the controller of the spell or ability that created it, unless the token's type innately determines control or that …
§ 183 A token's owner is the player who controlled the effect that created it.…
§ 184 The effect that creates a token may specify the conditions or circumstances under which it enters the board. These stipulations may alter th…
§ 184.1 The effect may state that the token enters ready or exhausted, if that state is contrary to the default for the token's type.…
§ 184.2 The effect may restrict the location to which the token may be played.…
§ 184.3 The effect may grant temporary abilities or modiﬁcations to the token.…
§ 185 Tokens are not cards.…
§ 185.1 “Token” is an intrinsic category of Game Objects, in the same way “card” is.…
§ 185.1.a Token Game Objects cannot lose their token nature by any means.…
§ 185.1.b Card Game Objects cannot become tokens by any means.…
§ 185.2 Tokens have some properties in common with cards.…
§ 185.2.a Tokens can be played by their owner if their card type is played, following all the applicable steps for playing a card plus any restriction…
§ 185.2.b Token units have a Might.…
§ 185.2.c Tokens may have one or more tags.…
§ 185.2.d Tokens have a type. They follow all rules for their type unless otherwise speciﬁed. Example: A token unit is a unit. It enters exhausted, ca…
§ 185.2.e Tokens inherit the recycle destination of their type. Example: Token runes will be recycled to the Rune Deck. Token units, gear, and spells …
§ 185.3 Tokens differ from cards in some ways.…
§ 185.3.a Tokens do not have costs.…
§ 185.3.b Tokens do not have domains.…
§ 186 Tokens are Created on the board or the Chain and cannot exist elsewhere.…
§ 186.1 If a token is put into any Non-Board Zone besides the chain, it ceases to exist immediately after moving to its new zone.…
§ 187 The spell or ability that Creates a token speciﬁes some of its characteristics. It may have other characteristics, as listed below.…
§ 187.1 A 1 [M] Recruit token is a domainless unit token with 1 Might and the Recruit tag.…
§ 187.2 A 3 [M] Sprite token with Temporary is a domainless unit token with 3 Might, the Fae tag, and the Temporary keyword. See rule 816. Temporary…
§ 187.3 A 2 [M] Sand Soldier token is a domainless unit token with 2 Might and the Shurima tag.…
§ 187.4 A 3 [M] Mech token is a domainless unit token with 3 Might and the Mech tag.…
§ 187.5 A Gold gear token is a domainless gear token with “[Reaction][>] Kill this, [E]: [Add] [A].”…
§ 187.6 A 0 [M] Reﬂection token is a domainless unit token with 0 Might.…
§ 187.7 A 1 [M] Bird token is a domainless unit token with 1 Might, the Bird tag, and the Deﬂect keyword. See rule 809. Deﬂect for more information.…
§ 187.8 A Brush battleﬁeld token is a domainless battleﬁeld token with “Bird, Cat, Dog, Poro, and Ivern units here have +1 [M]” and “When you score …
§ 187.9 The Baron Pit battleﬁeld token is a domainless battleﬁeld token with “Units can move here from anywhere.”…
§ 187.10 A 1 [M] Tentacle token is a domainless unit token with 1 Might and the Bilgewater tag.…
§ 187.11 A 0 [M] Shadow Clone token is a domainless unit token with 0 Might and “When I attack, you may banish a unit from your trash. If you do, giv…
§ 188 Control…
§ 189 Control is the concept of a player having inﬂuence of a Game Object and applies differently to different card types.…
§ 190 Battleﬁelds…
§ 190.1 Control is established over Battleﬁelds through the course of play.…
§ 190.2 Control is a binary state for Battleﬁelds and an Identiﬁer for players.…
§ 190.2.a A Battleﬁeld is Controlled or Uncontrolled.…
§ 190.2.b A Battleﬁeld is Controlled by a speciﬁc player or Controlled by no one.…
§ 190.3 Control can be Contested through the course of play.…
§ 190.3.a Contested is a temporary status applied to the battleﬁeld when a Unit controlled by a Player who does not currently Control that Battleﬁeld …
§ 190.3.b Once a Showdown or Combat begins at a Battleﬁeld, it remains Contested until Control is established or re-established.…
§ 190.3.c The state of a Battleﬁeld being Contested is used to determine when Combat should occur and when a Non-Combat Showdown should occur.…
§ 190.3.d At this time Game Effects cannot reference this status.…
§ 190.4 Control is established by having Units at a Battleﬁeld at the end of a Showdown or Combat after applying the contested status.…
§ 190.4.a If a player controls Units at a Battleﬁeld, outside of Combat, they maintain Control of that Battleﬁeld for as long as they have Units at th…
§ 190.4.b While a Combat or Showdown is ongoing at a Battleﬁeld, Control of that Battleﬁeld cannot change until instructed by steps of the Combat or S…
§ 190.4.c If a player has no Units at a Battleﬁeld and the turn is in an Open state, they lose Control of that Battleﬁeld in the following cleanup unl…
§ 190.5 Control is a constant state.…
§ 190.6 Control of a Battleﬁeld determines Control of its Abilities.…
§ 190.6.a While a Battleﬁeld is Controlled, its Controller controls its Abilities unless that ability indicates another player does. The controlling p…
§ 190.6.b While a Battleﬁeld is Uncontrolled, its Abilities are also Uncontrolled unless that ability indicates a player controls it. If there is no s…
§ 190.6.c If an Ability of a Battleﬁeld indicates that a speciﬁc player makes a choice, that player is the Ability’s controller. They take responsibil…
§ 190.6.d “You” in a battleﬁeld’s abilities refers to the battleﬁeld’s Controller, as does the implied “you” in instructions that don’t specify a play…
§ 191 Everything Else…
§ 191.1 When a player Plays, Hides, or Creates a Card or other Game Object, they are established as that Game Object's Controller.…
§ 191.2 For Spells, they are the Spell's Controller.…
§ 191.2.a That player chooses targets.…
§ 191.2.b That player chooses modes.…
§ 191.2.c That player pays costs.…
§ 191.3 For Permanents and Runes, when they Enter the Board, that player is assigned as that Game Object's Controller.…
§ 191.3.a That player may make decisions about the Game Object's Inherent Abilities.…
§ 191.3.b That player may make decisions about the Game Object's Unique Abilities.…
§ 191.3.c That player may make decisions about any game effects or decisions necessary while the card is being played.…
§ 191.3.d That player may make decisions about any game effects created from "When you play me" effects of Permanents.…
§ 191.4 For Abilities, they are the Ability’s Controller.…
§ 191.4.a By default, the Controller of an Ability’s Source is the Controller of that Ability.…
§ 191.4.b Changes to Control of an Ability’s Source do not change Control of that Ability.…
§ 191.4.c That player chooses targets.…
§ 191.4.d That player chooses modes.…
§ 191.4.e That player pays costs.…
§ 192 When a game effect or rules text refers to the Controller of a speciﬁc object, it can be referring to either context interchangeably.…
§ 192.1 The method of assignment of control is different, but the status of Control is the same across all Game Objects.…
§ 193 Winning…
§ 194 Players win Riftbound games primarily through gaining points.…
§ 194.1 Players can gain points a number of ways:…
§ 194.1.a Holding a Battleﬁeld. See rule 467. Scoring for more information.…
§ 194.1.b Conquering a Battleﬁeld. See rule 467. Scoring for more information.…
§ 194.1.c Spells, Triggered Abilities and Activated Abilities that instruct them to gain one or more points.…
§ 194.1.d When an opponent Burns Out and picks that player to gain 1 point. See rule 431. Burn Out for more information.…
§ 194.2 A player wins the game if, in a cleanup, they have points greater than or equal to the Victory Score and more points than any other player. …
§ 194.2.a If more than one player has points greater than or equal to the Victory Score, whichever player has more points wins.…
§ 194.2.b If those players have the same number of points, play continues until one player has more points in a cleanup.…
§ 194.3 The Victory Score is 8 points by default.…
§ 194.3.a Some game modes or card effects may alter the Victory Score. See rule 481. Modes of Play for more information.…
§ 194.4 Players cannot have less than 0 points.…
§ 194.4.a If a player would lose 1 or more points while they have 0 points, nothing occurs.…
§ 194.4.b Any effects that trigger on a player losing points do not trigger.…
§ 195 A player also wins the game if an effect instructs them to do so, or if they are the only player remaining in the game.…
§ 195.1 If an effect instructs a player to lose the game, that player is immediately removed from the game. See rule 649. Conceding for more informa…
§ 196 When a player wins the game, the game ends.…
§ 197 Locations…
§ 198 Locations are the Game Objects and Zones where permanents and runes may be located.…
§ 198.1 Locations include the Battleﬁelds and the Bases.…
§ 198.2 A permanent’s Location is a characteristic of that permanent that may be referenced by Game Effects.…
§ 199 A Game Object that comprises a Location is also a Game Object at that location.…
§ 199.1 A Battleﬁeld is both a location and also a Game Object at that location.…

§ 200 Locations can be Destinations and Origins for movement. See rule 445. Movement for more information. (22)

§ 201 Costs…
§ 202 Some Game Effects will instruct players to pay resources, spend counters or XP, or perform game actions as a Cost in order to perform a link…
§ 203 Costs must be paid in order to get their linked Effect.…
§ 203.1 Paying a Cost requires a player to perform the appropriate game action: pay resources, spend counters or XP, kill units, etc.…
§ 203.2 The Cost is still considered paid even if the associated game action is replaced.…
§ 203.3 If the game action associated with a Cost is impossible for any reason such that a player cannot perform it, then they cannot pay the Cost a…
§ 204 Costs paid in this way might be:…
§ 204.1 Base Costs: These costs are the most fundamental costs that must be paid to ﬁnalize a spell or ability.…
§ 204.1.a On cards, the Base Cost is found in the upper left corner of the card.…
§ 204.1.b On activated abilities, the Base Cost is the resource or instruction written before the “:”.…
§ 204.2 Additional Costs: These Costs are in addition to the base cost of the spell or ability and will include “as an additional cost.”…
§ 204.2.a Additional Costs must be paid to ﬁnalize the spell or ability, in addition to the base cost.…
§ 204.3 Costs within Instructions: These Costs are part of the resolution of a spell or ability, and will take the form “[do X] to [do Y].”…
§ 204.3.a When Costs within Instructions appear as the ﬁrst part of the effect in triggered abilities, the cost is taken to be the base cost of the tr…
§ 204.3.b When Costs within Instructions appear in spells, activated abilities, or in later parts of triggered abilities, the cost must be paid to get…
§ 204.4 Applied Costs: These Costs are applied to one or more Game Actions, and typically take the form of a passive ability with a Cost within Inst…
§ 204.4.a The associated Game Action is the linked Effect for the Cost.…
§ 204.4.b Applied Costs are paid as the Game Action is performed. They do not use the chain and cannot be reacted to.…
§ 204.4.c If a player can’t pay or chooses not to pay the Applied Cost, they cannot perform the associated Game Action.…
§ 205 An instruction that requires a player to pay resources or spend counters or XP that does not also have a linked Effect, is not a Cost. Examp…
§ 206 Effects that need to determine a card’s cost for any purpose always use its printed or copied cost, even if that cost is increased, decrease…
§ 206.1 Effects that need to determine an ability’s cost for any purpose use its base cost, ignoring any alterations to that base cost unless otherw…

§ 300 Playing the Game (432)

§ 301 The Turn…
§ 302 Play continues cyclically until one player wins.…
§ 303 The phases of a turn are rigid, but the actions taken during those steps can be done in any order, unless otherwise speciﬁed.…
§ 303.1 Game Actions of any nature are performed one at a time and are executed completely.…
§ 303.2 Game Actions cannot be performed simultaneously for any reason.…
§ 303.2.a If one or more game actions, game effects, or Triggered Abilities are activated simultaneously, then Turn Order is referenced to organize th…
§ 304 The Turn Player is the player taking the current turn.…
§ 305 When there are no items on the Chain and the Turn Player cannot or chooses not to perform any Discretionary Actions, the current phase or st…
§ 306 The Turn Player changes when the current Turn Player reaches the End of all of the Phases of their Turn.…
§ 307 States of the Turn…
§ 308 At any given time, the turn is in either a Neutral State or a Showdown State.…
§ 308.1 If a Showdown or Combat is in progress, the turn is in a Showdown State.…
§ 308.1.a Only cards and abilities with the Action or Reaction keywords can be played or activated in a Showdown State.…
§ 308.2 If no Showdown or Combat is in progress, the turn is in a Neutral State.…
§ 309 At any given time, the turn is in either an Open State or a Closed State.…
§ 309.1 If a Chain exists, the turn is in a Closed State.…
§ 309.1.a Only cards and abilities with the Reaction keyword can be played or activated in a Closed State.…
§ 309.2 If no Chain exists, the turn is in an Open State.…
§ 310 These descriptions can be combined, such that the turn is always in one of these four states:…
§ 310.1 Neutral Open: There is no Showdown or Combat in progress and no Chain exists.…
§ 310.1.a By default, cards can be played and abilities activated only when a player has priority on their turn in a Neutral Open state.…
§ 310.2 Neutral Closed: There is no Showdown or Combat in progress and a Chain exists.…
§ 310.3 Showdown Open: A Showdown or Combat is in progress and no Chain exists.…
§ 310.4 Showdown Closed: A Showdown or Combat is in progress and a Chain exists.…
§ 311 Priority and Focus…
§ 312 At any given time, up to one player has Priority.…
§ 312.1 Priority is the singular exclusive right to take Discretionary Actions. See rule 410.1. Discretionary Actions for more information.…
§ 312.1.a The player with Priority can take appropriately timed Discretionary Actions.…
§ 312.1.b If no player has Priority, no player can take Discretionary Actions.…
§ 312.2 A player receives Priority at the following times:…
§ 312.2.a When the turn is in a Neutral Open State during their Main Phase.…
§ 312.2.b When the turn is in a Showdown State and they gain Focus.…
§ 312.2.c When the turn is in a Closed State, all pending chain items ﬁnish being ﬁnalized, and they control the next item on the Chain.…
§ 312.2.d When the turn is in a Closed State, they are the next Player in Turn Order, and the player with Priority passes.…
§ 312.3 When a player is granted Priority, it is either created if no player has it or taken from the player with Priority.…
§ 313 At any given time, up to one player has Focus.…
§ 313.1 Focus is the permission to take appropriately timed Discretionary Actions when the turn is in a Showdown Open State. See rule 307. States of…
§ 313.1.a The player with Focus must obey any additional restrictions on which Discretionary Actions may be performed. Example: A player with Focus ma…
§ 313.2 A player who gains Focus also gains Priority.…
§ 313.3 A player who passes Priority retains Focus.…
§ 313.4 A player may not make discretionary actions with Focus unless they also possess Priority.…
§ 313.5 If the turn is in a Neutral State, no player has Focus.…
§ 314 Phases of the Turn…
§ 315 Start of Turn…
§ 315.1 Awaken Phase…
§ 315.1.a The following Task becomes Outstanding:…
§ 315.1.b 1. The Turn Player readies all Game Objects they control that are able to be readied. See rule 415. Ready for more information.…
§ 315.2 Beginning Phase…
§ 315.2.a Beginning Step…
§ 315.2.b Scoring Step…
§ 315.3 Channel Phase…
§ 315.3.a The following Task becomes Outstanding:…
§ 315.3.b 1. The Turn Player channels 2 runes from their Rune Deck. See rule 430. Channel for more information.…
§ 315.4 Draw Phase…
§ 315.4.a The following Task becomes Outstanding:…
§ 315.4.b 1. The Turn Player draws 1.…
§ 316 Main Phase…
§ 316.1 When all steps of the Start of Turn have been completed, the Main Phase begins.…
§ 316.2 The following Tasks become Outstanding in the speciﬁed order:…
§ 316.3 1. Each player's Rune Pool empties. Any unspent Energy and Power are lost. See rule 165. Rune Pools for more information.…
§ 316.4 2. At the start of Main Phase game effects take place.…
§ 316.5 The Main Phase has no deﬁned structure.…
§ 316.5.a A player may take any number of Discretionary Actions they are able to perform during this phase. See rule 410.1. Discretionary Actions for …
§ 316.5.b This is denoted as a Neutral Open State, and only the Turn Player has the ability to play spells or activate abilities. See rule 307. States…
§ 316.6 As a result of a player taking Discretionary Actions, one or more structured phases may occur.…
§ 316.7 Combat…
§ 316.7.a A Combat occurs as a result of Units controlled by opposing players being present at the same Battleﬁeld.…
§ 316.7.b This could be the result of a Standard Move Intrinsic Ability, a Spell, or other Game Effect.…
§ 316.7.c The source effect does not change the structure or ﬂow of Combat once initiated.…
§ 316.7.d A Combat can only occur between two players. See rule 459. Combat for more information.…
§ 316.7.e Play proceeds following the steps of combat. See rule 463. The Steps of Combat for more information.…
§ 316.7.f Combat will also include a Showdown.…
§ 316.8 Showdowns…
§ 316.8.a A Showdown occurs when a Combat occurs.…
§ 316.8.b A Showdown is marked as Staged at a Battleﬁeld in the cleanup after the Contested status is applied to that Battleﬁeld.…
§ 316.8.c A Showdown is a structured Window of Opportunity where Players may play cards and activate abilities with Action or Reaction. See rule 341. …
§ 316.9 When a player has no more Discretionary Actions they wish to execute, they must indicate they are ending their turn.…
§ 316.9.a This ends the Main Phase.…
§ 316.9.b Play proceeds to the Ending Phase.…
§ 317 Ending Phase…
§ 317.1 Ending Step…
§ 317.1.a At the end of the turn Game Effects take place.…
§ 317.1.b Speciﬁc game effects and abilities will reference this timing and phase as necessary.…
§ 317.2 Expiration Step…
§ 317.2.a Invoke an Ending Special Cleanup. See rule 318. Cleanups for more information.…
§ 317.2.b Insert “3c. Heal all Units.”…
§ 317.2.c Insert “3d. All ‘this turn’ effects expire simultaneously.”…
§ 317.2.d Insert “3e. Each player’s Rune Pool empties. Any unspent Energy and Power are lost.”…
§ 317.2.e The following Task becomes Outstanding:…
§ 317.2.f 1. If any items underwent the FEPR process, return to the start of the Expiration Step…
§ 317.3 The next player with their Turn queued becomes the Turn Player.…
§ 318 Cleanups…
§ 319 A Cleanup will be made an Outstanding Task at the following times:…
§ 319.1 After the game transitions to or from an Open or Closed state…
§ 319.2 After the game transitions between Phases, unless speciﬁed otherwise…
§ 319.3 After a Pending Item is added to the Chain…
§ 319.4 After a Pending Item becomes a Finalized Item on the Chain…
§ 319.5 After a Chain Item is removed from the Chain for any reason…
§ 319.6 After any number of Game Objects enter or leave the Board…
§ 319.7 After the status of any number of Game Objects changes for any reason…
§ 319.8 After a Move is completed…
§ 320 While a Cleanup is occurring, Chain Items cannot be Finalized or Resolved.…
§ 320.1 New Pending Items can be added, but Finalized Items cannot be executed and Priority and Focus are not passed or awarded.…
§ 321 Similarly, while Chain Items are Resolving, a Cleanup cannot occur.…
§ 321.1 If an event occurs during the Resolution of a Chain Item that qualiﬁes for a Cleanup, that Cleanup will be made an Outstanding Task.…
§ 322 If an event occurs during a Cleanup that qualiﬁes for a Cleanup, another Cleanup will occur immediately after the ﬁrst completes, repeating …
§ 322.1 These new Cleanups are themselves Outstanding Tasks.…
§ 323 When a Cleanup occurs, the following Tasks become Outstanding in the order described:…
§ 323.1 1. If a player has points greater than or equal to the Victory Score, and more points than any opponent, that player wins.…
§ 323.2 2. Assign or Remove the Attacker or Defender designation from Units as needed if there is a Combat in progress…
§ 323.2.a If there are Units present at the Battleﬁeld the Combat is taking place at, but do not have a designation, they gain the same designation as…
§ 323.2.b If there are Units present at the Battleﬁeld the Combat is taking place at, but have the opposite designation of their controller, they lose…
§ 323.2.c If there are Units at locations other than the Battleﬁeld that the Combat is taking place at, but have either Attacker or Defender designati…
§ 323.3 3. Handle outstanding board state…
§ 323.4 3a. All Units that have Lethal Damage marked on them and that have Deathknell or other abilities that trigger on their own death will trigge…
§ 323.5 3b. All Units that have LethalDamage marked on themare killed and placed in their owners' Trash. See rule 142.4. For more information on let…
§ 323.6 4. Players lose control of any controlled Battleﬁelds without their Units occupying them if the turn is in an Open State and there is no Sho…
§ 323.7 5. Recall all Unattached non-Unit Gear and non-Unit Runes at Battleﬁelds, and all Permanents and Runes in Bases other than their controller’…
§ 323.8 6. Mark a Showdown as Staged at each Battleﬁeld that Contested was applied to.…
§ 323.8.a The Showdown remains Staged at that Battleﬁeld as long as it is Contested and has units present controlled by the player that applied Contes…
§ 323.9 7. Mark a Combat as Staged at each Battleﬁeld that Contested was applied to that have Units present controlled by opposing players.…
§ 323.9.a The Combat remains Staged at that Battleﬁeld as long as there are Units present from two opposing players there.…
§ 323.10 7a. If Units of two opposing players are no longer present at a Battleﬁeld that has a Combat Staged before it has opened, the Combat will ce…
§ 323.11 8. Remove Contested status from each Battleﬁeld without Units controlled by the player who applied Contested to that Battleﬁeld and without …
§ 323.11.a If as a result of the removal of Contested status there are Units located at an uncontested Battleﬁeld that their controller does not contro…
§ 323.12 9. If the current state is a Neutral Open State and one or more Showdowns are Staged at Battleﬁelds without a Combat staged, the Turn Player…
§ 323.13 10. If the current state is a Neutral Open State and one or more Combats are Staged at Battleﬁelds, the Turn Player chooses one of those Bat…
§ 323.14 10a. If the current state is Showdown Open State and Combat is Staged at a Battleﬁeld where there is a Non-Combat Showdown ongoing, that Sho…
§ 324 Special Cleanups are Cleanup steps invoked at speciﬁc times that have additional steps not present in a normal Cleanup.…
§ 324.1 When a Special Cleanup is invoked, the unique steps added will be inserted and deﬁned by the sub-section that invokes it. Example: When a Co…
§ 324.2 If events during a Special Cleanup require another Cleanup, a normal Cleanup is invoked, not another iteration of the Special Cleanup.…
§ 325 Chains and Showdowns…
§ 326 Players can act during the following Windows of Opportunity that occur during the course of regular play:…
§ 326.1 During a Chain…
§ 326.2 During a Showdown…
§ 327 Chains…
§ 328 The Chain is a Non-Board Zone that temporarily exists whenever a card is played or an ability is activated.…
§ 328.1 Cards, abilities, and tokens are placed here as part of the process of being played. See rule 349. The Process of Play for more information.…
§ 329 Cards, tokens, and abilities added to the chain are added as Pending Chain Items that become Finalized Chain Items.…
§ 329.1 Pending Items are on the Chain.…
§ 329.2 Chain Items are Pending until the “Check Legality” step of playing a card. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information.…
§ 329.3 When a Pending Chain Item is no longer Pending it is ﬁnalized and becomes a Finalized Chain Item.…
§ 330 The Chain exists as long as a Chain Item is on it.…
§ 330.1 Only one Chain can exist at a time.…
§ 330.2 If a card or token would begin to be played while a Chain already exists, it is placed on the existing Chain.…
§ 331 The State of the Turn is partially determined by whether or not the Chain currently exists.…
§ 331.1 The turn is said to be in a Closed State if a Chain exists.…
§ 331.1.a Cards of all Categories, by default, cannot be played during a Closed State.…
§ 331.1.b Card abilities, by default, cannot be played during a Closed State.…
§ 331.2 The turn is said to be in an Open State if no Chain exists.…
§ 332 Handling Tasks and Resolving Chain Items…
§ 333 A Task is one or more steps or processes that one or more Players must perform before continuing with any other actions.…
§ 333.1 Tasks include, but are not limited to: Cleanups, the actions performed during the Start of Turn Process, throughout Combat in its various st…
§ 334 Whenever a Player takes one or more actions that incur Tasks they should refer to the process of HOT FEPR: Handle Outstanding Tasks; then Fi…
§ 334.1 In the course of Handling Outstanding Tasks, Chain Items may be added to the Chain. They will remain there until the Tasks are complete.…
§ 334.2 When all Outstanding Tasks are completed, all pending Chain Items will subsequently be processed by the FEPR process.…
§ 334.2.a During the FEPR process, new Tasks may be incurred. Complete the current step of the process and then pause and complete the necessary Tasks…
§ 335 If there are no Outstanding Tasks, no pending Chain Items, no ongoing Showdown or Combat, and it is the Main Phase, the Turn Player receives…
§ 335.1 If there are no Outstanding Tasks, no pending Chain Items, and there is an ongoing Showdown, the player with Focus receives priority.…
§ 336 When there are no outstanding Tasks and there are pending Chain Items on the Chain, players should refer to the FEPR process to proceed.…
§ 336.1 In the sequence of resolving FEPR more Chain Items may become Pending Chain Items. These will be processed by the same FEPR process that pro…
§ 337 Step 1: Finalize…
§ 337.1 If there is at least one Chain Item Pending, the controller of the oldest Pending Chain Item must complete the steps of Playing that Pending…
§ 337.1.a Finalizing an item to the chain does not pass Priority.…
§ 337.1.b Chain Items are Finalized in the order they were appended to the Chain.…
§ 337.2 If, after ﬁnalizing the Chain Item, that item is a Unit, Gear, or an ability that Adds resources, it resolves immediately—Move to Step 4: Re…
§ 337.3 If, after ﬁnalizing the Chain Item, there are still Pending Chain Items, return to step 1. Finalize.…
§ 337.4 If, after ﬁnalizing the Chain Item, there are no more items on the chain to be Finalized, the controller of the next item on the chain gains…
§ 338 Step 2: Execute…
§ 338.1 The player with Priority may do any the following:…
§ 338.1.a Play a Card or Activated Ability that is legally timed.…
§ 338.1.b Pass Priority…
§ 339 Step 3: Pass…
§ 339.1 If all players have passed Priority in sequence without adding any items to the Chain, proceed to Step 4: Resolve.…
§ 339.2 Otherwise, the player with Priority passes Priority to the next Player in Turn Order. Return to Step 2: Execute.…
§ 340 Step 4: Resolve…
§ 340.1 The newest Finalized Chain Item resolves. Execute its game effects in their entirety. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information on re…
§ 340.2 If the Chain is empty, play proceeds in an Open State.…
§ 340.2.a If this occurs during a Showdown and the chain wasn’t initiated by a triggered ability or an ability that Adds resources, focus passes to th…
§ 340.3 If the Chain is not empty and there are one or more Pending Items, return to Step 1: Finalize.…
§ 340.4 If the Chain is not empty and there are no Pending Items, the controller of the newest item on the chain gains Priority. Return to Step 2: E…
§ 341 Showdowns…
§ 342 A Showdown is a Window of Opportunity in which Players have an Open State in which they may play Spells in an alternating fashion.…
§ 342.1 Each spell played this way creates a Chain as normal.…
§ 343 The State of the turn is partially determined by whether or not a Showdown or Combat is in progress.…
§ 343.1 The turn is said to be in a Showdown State if a Showdown or Combat is in progress.…
§ 343.1.a Cards of all Categories, by default, cannot be played during a Showdown State.…
§ 343.1.b Card abilities, by default, cannot be played during a Showdown State.…
§ 343.2 The turn is said to be in a Neutral State if no Showdown or Combat is in progress.…
§ 344 A Showdown begins when Control of a Battleﬁeld is Contested during a Cleanup and the turn is in a Neutral Open State.…
§ 344.1 If Control of a Battleﬁeld is Contested between two players, then a Showdown will be opened as the ﬁrst step of Combat. If a Showdown is alr…
§ 344.2 If Control of a Battleﬁeld is Contested, there aren’t units controlled by different players there, and the turn is in a Neutral Open State, …
§ 345 As a Showdown begins, the player who applied Contested status to the Battleﬁeld gains Focus.…
§ 346 When the last item on the chain resolves and the turn returns to an Open State during a Showdown, Focus passes, and the next Player gains bo…
§ 346.1 Focus will not pass in this way if the chain opened as a result of a triggered ability being added to the chain, nor if it opened as a resul…
§ 347 During a Showdown, the player with Focus may do one of the following:…
§ 347.1 Play a Card or Activated Ability that is legally timed.…
§ 347.1.a The card or activated ability will start a Chain as normal.…
§ 347.1.b When that Chain closes, Focus passes to the next Player in Turn Order.…
§ 347.2 Pass.…
§ 347.2.a If all Players have passed once in sequence, the Showdown ends.…
§ 347.2.b Otherwise, Focus passes to the next Player in Turn Order.…
§ 348 If all players pass Focus without playing a spell or activating an ability, then the Showdown Closes.…
§ 348.1 If it is a Combat Showdown, proceed with the remaining steps of Combat to resolve the phase. See rule 463. The Steps of Combat for more info…
§ 348.2 If it is a Non-Combat Showdown, do the following:…
§ 348.2.a If only one player’s Units remain at the Battleﬁeld, and if that player does not already Control the Battleﬁeld, that player establishes Con…
§ 349 Playing Cards…
§ 350 Playing a card is the act of a player utilizing their cards.…
§ 350.1 A card is Played when it has ﬁnished this process in its entirety.…
§ 350.2 Tokens are not cards, but can still be Played. See rule 179. Tokens for more information.…
§ 351 Cards have different behaviors when played.…
§ 351.1 Permanents become Game Objects when Played.…
§ 351.2 Spells create game effects that are executed, then the card is placed in the trash when Played.…
§ 352 Cards have different states during the process of being played.…
§ 352.1 When initially being played cards are Pending, as Pending Chain Items.…
§ 352.2 Near the end of the process cards will cease being Pending and become Finalized Chain Items.…
§ 353 The Process of Play…
§ 354 1. Move the card from its current zone to the Chain.…
§ 354.1 This Closes the State. See rule 307. States of the Turn for more information.…
§ 354.2 This item becomes Pending, awaiting the ﬁnalization process (steps 2 - 5)…
§ 354.3 If another Card Effect or ability is currently resolving, continue resolving it before proceeding with any further steps of this process.…
§ 354.4 If there are Tasks outstanding or currently being handled, ﬁnish those Tasks before continuing this process. See rule 332. for more informat…
§ 355 2. Make relevant choices.…
§ 355.1 If the card has an effect that speciﬁes a choice "As I am played," those choices are made now.…
§ 355.1.a This includes the choice of whether or not to pay an Optional Additional Cost.…
§ 355.2 For Units, choose a valid Location where that Unit will enter upon being Played.…
§ 355.2.a By default, Valid locations include the controller’s Base or a Battleﬁeld the controller controls.…
§ 355.2.b Some Game Effects may grant players permission to play Units to locations that are not normally Valid. Such locations become Valid for the p…
§ 355.3 For Spells and Abilities with a bulleted list of modes to choose from, make the appropriate choices now.…
§ 355.4 For Spells and Abilities that Move one or more Units, choose a valid Location as the Move Destination for each Move that will be performed.…
§ 355.4.a A valid Location for a Move Effect is one other than the Units’ current Location where they are allowed to be present.…
§ 355.5 If a card requires you to speciﬁcally choose one or more Game Objects, that choice is made now.…
§ 355.5.a This does not include cards that affect one or more Game Objects based on criteria. Example: "Stun a unit at a battleﬁeld" is a Choice. Exam…
§ 355.5.b This does not include making choices for Triggered Abilities of permanents, or Delayed or Reﬂexive Triggers generated by the item being ﬁnal…
§ 355.6 Targeting…
§ 355.7 When a card Chooses one or more speciﬁc Game Objects to affect, it is Targeted unless indicated otherwise by the rules in this section.…
§ 355.8 In order to put a spell or ability on the chain, valid choices must be made for all targets.…
§ 355.9 A target is a valid choice if it meets all of the following requirements:…
§ 355.9.a It is a permanent or rune on the board, a spell or ability on the chain, a player or zone, or speciﬁed explicitly or implicitly as being in …
§ 355.9.b It meets all targeting restrictions. e.g., A unit is a valid target for a spell that refers to a “unit at a battleﬁeld,” “enemy unit,” “unit…
§ 355.9.c It is not the spell or ability itself. e.g., A spell that says “Counter a spell” cannot target itself. e.g., An ability of a permanent can t…
§ 355.10 A game object, player, or zone mentioned in the text of a spell, activated ability, or triggered ability is a target UNLESS any of the follo…
§ 355.10.a It is in a zone whose information status is not Public. e.g., “Ready a legend” targets a legend, because the Legend Zone is Public. e.g., “R…
§ 355.10.b It is included only as part of a targeting restriction for another choice or only as a restriction or permission for a game action. e.g., “K…
§ 355.10.c It is included only as part of a cost, trigger condition, or replacement effect. e.g., “As an additional cost to play me, kill a friendly un…
§ 355.10.d It is programmatically selected based on its characteristics rather than chosen by the spell or ability’s controller. e.g., “Kill all units …
§ 355.10.e It is part of a set of objects chosen in whole or in part by other players. e.g., “Each player kills a unit they control” does not target. E…
§ 355.10.f It is identiﬁed in an instruction that a player “must” complete. e.g., “You must recycle one of your runes” doesn’t target anything. You cho…
§ 355.11 Some cards identify a group of Targets with Targeting Requirements that must be met by the group as a whole.…
§ 355.11.a As they’re ﬁnalized on the chain, such cards can choose any group of valid targets that collectively fulﬁll the targeting restriction.…
§ 355.11.b If the group of targets no longer collectively fulﬁll the targeting restriction as the spell or ability resolves, that spell or ability’s co…
§ 355.12 If a spell speciﬁes that a player may perform a Game Action on some number of Game Objects, then all choices are considered targeted and cho…
§ 355.13 If a card speciﬁes that a player chooses “any number” or “up to” some number of Game Objects to be affected, they may choose any number of a…
§ 355.14 Splitting…
§ 355.14.a If a card speciﬁes that an amount of damage may be split among some number of Units, then each Unit chosen is Targeted.…
§ 355.14.b The Targets are chosen when the spell or ability is ﬁnalized on the chain.…
§ 355.14.c A number of Targets can only be chosen up to, and not exceeding, the initial amount of damage available when the spell is played. Example: A…
§ 355.14.d Each Target is valid, and contributes to Targeting Effects individually.…
§ 355.14.e The choice of how much damage is divided across the split is not decided until the resolution of the spell or ability.…
§ 355.14.f Each Target must receive a valid amount of damage.…
§ 355.14.g Valid damage is a positive integer amount, greater than or equal to 1 damage. See rule 417. Deal for more information.…
§ 355.14.h If, at resolution of the spell or effect, there are more Targets than available damage to divide, then the player who controls the effect de…
§ 355.14.i Any costs that were paid, or effects that were triggered as a result of those Game Objects being chosen as Targets remain in effect, paid, o…
§ 355.15 These choices cannot be changed after this step unless instructed to by a spell or ability. See rule 750. Making New Choices for more inform…
§ 355.16 A player may not make choices during this step that will deterministically result in illegal choices or actions later in this process unless…
§ 355.17 If a spell or ability requires one or more players to make choices that are not outlined in this section, they are made on resolution.…
§ 356 3. Determine Total Cost.…
§ 356.1 Apply base cost modiﬁcations in any order.…
§ 356.1.a If an ability or instruction allows you to play a card “for [Cost]”, replace the card’s Base Costs with [Cost].…
§ 356.1.b If an ability or instruction allows you to "ignore" one or more of a card's costs, set the appropriate Base Cost(s) of the card to zero.…
§ 356.1.c Effects that refer to the Base Cost of the card refer to the Printed or Copied Base Cost of said card, and not the modiﬁed Base Cost that is…
§ 356.2 Apply additional costs in any order.…
§ 356.2.a Mandatory Additional Costs…
§ 356.2.b Optional Additional Costs…
§ 356.3 Apply cost increases.…
§ 356.4 Apply discounts.…
§ 356.4.a Discounts may be applied by the card being played or by any other card or effect.…
§ 356.4.b Discounts may say that cards "cost [amount] less" or that one or more of their costs are "reduced by [amount]."…
§ 356.4.c Discounts that only apply to a component of the cost will be applied when that component is added to the cost of the spell and before any ot…
§ 356.4.d Discounts that apply to the total cost of a spell and not any one component of the cost must be applied after any discount that applies only…
§ 356.4.e If a discount applies a minimum cost, that minimum applies only to that discount. Example: Eager Apprentice says "While I'm at a battleﬁeld,…
§ 356.4.f Discounts can reduce additional costs, including to 0.…
§ 356.5 Apply modiﬁcations to the total cost in any order.…
§ 356.5.a If an effect allows a player to play a card ignoring “any and all costs,” set the total cost to [0], including any non-standard costs.…
§ 356.6 Energy and Power costs can't be reduced below 0.…
§ 356.7 Costs may be Energy costs, Power costs, or non-standard costs. Example: A card reads "As an additional cost to play me, kill a friendly unit…
§ 357 4. Pay the card's costs.…
§ 357.1 In total, pay the combined Energy cost (if any) and Power cost (if any).…
§ 357.1.a During this step, the card's controller can use activated abilities with the Reaction tag that Add resources to add Energy and Power to pay …
§ 357.2 In addition, pay any non-standard Cost summed in step 3 in any order. Example: A card reads in part “As an additional cost to play me, kill …
§ 357.2.a Costs that are replaced with other events by replacement effects are still considered paid. Example: A player plays Cruel Patron, which says…
§ 357.3 A player may not pay costs during this step that will deterministically result in illegal choices or actions later in this process unless th…
§ 358 5. Check legality.…
§ 358.1 Check that all chosen targets are legal.…
§ 358.2 Check that all costs were paid.…
§ 358.3 Check that the outcome of the effect of this card being played would not create an illegal state. Example: Check that a spell's execution do…
§ 358.3.a If a Game Effect prevents the performance of a game action, that effect doesn’t prevent cards and abilities that instruct a player to perfor…
§ 358.4 Check that the card has the appropriate permissions to be played at this timing. Example: If the state is Showdown Closed and the card was t…
§ 358.5 If any of the above checks fail, the actions taken in this process are undone and the action is cancelled.…
§ 359 6. Finish ﬁnalizing this card and proceed with the card's category of Play.…
§ 359.1 This card is no longer Pending.…
§ 359.2 A Permanent leaves the Chain and becomes a Game Object.…
§ 359.2.a Any passive abilities become active.…
§ 359.2.b Execute all rules text on the card, from top to bottom.…
§ 359.2.c If it is a Unit, it enters the Board exhausted at the Location that was chosen.…
§ 359.2.d If it is a Non-Unit Gear, it enters the Board Ready at the player's Base.…
§ 359.3 A Spell lingers on the Chain.…
§ 359.3.a This card becomes a Finalized Chain Item.…
§ 359.3.b If there are other Pending Items on the Chain, then the controller of those Pending Items completes Steps 2 through 5 of Playing Cards for t…
§ 359.3.c Other players have an opportunity to play Reactions before the resolution of spells. See rule 327. Chains for more information.…
§ 359.3.d Otherwise, execute the game effect of the spell, from top to bottom of the rules text of the card and then place the card in the Trash of th…
§ 359.3.e Handling illegal and impossible instructions…
§ 359.3.f Referents…
§ 360 Abilities…
§ 361 An Ability is the structured rules and capabilities of Game Objects or Spells.…
§ 361.1 An Ability has multiple structures. Passive Abilities Replacement Effects Activated Abilities Triggered Abilities Delayed Abilities…
§ 362 A card can have more than one Ability and more than one type of Ability.…
§ 363 Passive Abilities…
§ 364 Conditions, rules, constraints, or statements that affect the course of regular play.…
§ 364.1 These abilities have a wide variety of formats to recognize. Example: "I get +1 [M] while you have 2 or more cards in your hand." Example: "…
§ 364.2 They can be recognized by being statements of fact.…
§ 364.3 Passive Abilities can be conditional.…
§ 364.3.a Conditional Passive Abilities can be recognized by the occurrence of "if" or "while" as part of the statement of the ability. Example: "Whil…
§ 365 Presence on Permanents…
§ 365.1 Passive Abilities of Permanents are typically only active while on the Board.…
§ 366 Presence on Card outside of the Board…
§ 366.1 Passive Abilities of cards in zones that are outside of the Board will self-describe their context. Example: The passive ability "Play me on…
§ 366.2 Passive Abilities can alter the costs of cards as they are played.…
§ 366.2.a These apply at all times in any zone from which the card with the ability can be played.…
§ 367 Replacement Effects…
§ 368 An ability that alters the application of another game effect or game rule.…
§ 368.1 Passive Abilities can be Replacement Effects.…
§ 369 Replacement Effects intercede during the execution of a Game Effect and alter its execution.…
§ 369.1 A Replacement Effect can usually be identiﬁed by the presence of the terms “as,” “would,” or "instead." Example: Zhonya's Hourglass reads "T…
§ 369.2 Some Game Actions are themselves Replacement Effects. Example: Burning Out is a replacement effect. Example: Preventing Damage is a replacem…
§ 369.3 Replacement Effects that apply to a unit as it enters the Board can be identiﬁed by describing how the unit enters, or by describing a game …
§ 370 A Replacement Effect can alter the typical ﬂow of play, including other cards' executions.…
§ 370.1 Replacement Effects apply to any event or instruction that qualiﬁes for their application. A Replacement Effect will specify the circumstanc…
§ 370.1.a An event is the singular moment that results from a Game Action being performed or from a Game Object changing state. Example: The moment th…
§ 370.1.b When a Replacement Effect applies, it replaces the qualifying event with one or more Game Actions or events, or the qualifying instruction w…
§ 370.1.c Replacement Effects are applied before any qualifying event has actually occurred.…
§ 370.2 A Replacement Effect can only be applied once to an event, or to any Game Actions or events that replace that event. Example: A player plays…
§ 370.3 If a Game Object has a Replacement Effect that is active in a speciﬁc zone, it is evaluated and subsequently applied if it enters that zone …
§ 370.4 A Game Object can apply its Replacement Effects to any qualifying events that occur simultaneously with it leaving the zone that its Replace…
§ 371 Some Replacement Effects will begin with “once each turn,” or “N times each turn.”…
§ 371.1 These Replacement Effects may only be applied to the speciﬁed number of events each turn. Once they have been applied to that many events, t…
§ 371.2 If the Replacement Effect says a player “may” apply the Replacement Effect, the player has the choice of whether or not to apply it.…
§ 371.2.a When an event the Replacement Effect could apply to occurs, the player who controls the Replacement Effect may choose to apply it to the eve…
§ 371.2.b If they do not, it has not been applied this turn. Example: Zilean, Time mage reads “Once each turn, if you would play a token unit while I'…
§ 372 If more than one Replacement Effect applies to the same event being executed, then the controller of the object being acted on determines th…
§ 372.1 If it is a player being acted on, that player decides the order the Replacement Effects will apply.…
§ 372.2 If the affected object is an Uncontrolled Battleﬁeld then the Current Turn Player decides the order the Replacement Effects will apply.…
§ 373 If more than one event occurs simultaneously that Replacement Effects could apply to, each event is treated separately and individually for …
§ 373.1 Although these events are simultaneous, the applied Replacement Effects are ordered. If multiple applied Replacement Effects with different …
§ 373.1.a When executing Replacement Effects, the Game Actions that comprise their instructions are performed before any simultaneous unmodiﬁed events…
§ 373.2 When applying Replacement Effects to events that occur simultaneously, each Replacement Effect may only be applied in one sequence, to any n…
§ 373.2.a A sequence of Replacement Effects is an uninterrupted series of applications to a set of simultaneous events.…
§ 374 A Replacement Effect’s controller is the player that controls the source of the Replacement Effect.…
§ 375 If an event that a Replacement Effect applies to would be modiﬁed by the Game Effect that generated that event, or the results of that event…
§ 376 Activated Abilities…
§ 377 Activated Abilities are repeatable effects with a cost. They follow a process of going onto the chain and resolving, similar to Playing a Ca…
§ 377.1 Activated Abilities are recognized by the presence of a ":" in the text of the card, preceded by a cost and succeeded by an effect. Example:…
§ 377.2 Card text will refer to activating Activated Abilities with the word “use” or “play.”…
§ 377.2.a If “using” or “playing” an Activated Ability is part of a trigger condition, that condition is fulﬁlled when the Activated Ability resolves.…
§ 377.2.b If an Activated Ability has a condition on “using” or “playing” it, that condition must be true in order to activate the ability in question…
§ 377.3 Activated Abilities use the chain.…
§ 377.3.a Declare activation of the Ability.…
§ 377.3.b Proceed with executing the Chain.…
§ 378 The controlling player chooses when and whether to activate an Activated Ability.…
§ 379 Activated abilities are present on Game Objects and some Spells.…
§ 380 Can primarily be activated while on the Board.…
§ 381 All Activated Abilities can only be activated on the Controlling Player's Turn and during an Open State.…
§ 382 Triggered Abilities…
§ 383 Triggered Abilities are repeatable effects that happen when a Condition is met.…
§ 383.1 Triggered Abilities can usually be recognized by the word "when" followed by a game action or event; the word "at" followed by a point in ti…
§ 383.1.a The phrases that identify triggered abilities do not always appear at the beginning of sentences or abilities.…
§ 383.1.b If an ability triggers “the [Nth] time” something happens and that trigger condition is met multiple times simultaneously, the ability’s con…
§ 383.2 Triggered Abilities have a Condition and an Effect.…
§ 383.2.a The Condition is the clause with When, At, or the Nth Time.…
§ 383.2.b The Effect is the Instructions that are not part of the Condition.…
§ 383.2.c The Condition of a Trigger is evaluated after a potentially inciting event has been processed.…
§ 383.3 When a Condition is met, a Triggered Ability behaves like an Activated Ability and is placed on the Chain.…
§ 383.3.a If a Triggered Ability says “you may”or “they may” as the ﬁrst part of its Effect, the controller of its source will choose whether or not t…
§ 383.3.b If a Triggered Ability contains a cost within instructions at the beginning of the effect or immediately following the “you may” or “they ma…
§ 383.3.c Triggered Abilities can be put on the Chain during Closed States or Open States on any player's turn.…
§ 383.3.d If more than one Triggered Ability is Triggered simultaneously, then the player that controls the Abilities selects the order to place them …
§ 383.3.e Some Triggered Abilities will trigger “once each turn,” or “N times each turn.”…
§ 383.4 Some Conditions are commonly used and structured in a way that explicitly deﬁnes their use and other properties of the Effect that is associ…
§ 383.4.a Play Effects are Triggered Abilities whose Condition includes the Permanent that has the Play Effect being played to the board.…
§ 383.4.b Targeting Effects are Triggered Abilities whose Condition includes a Game Object becoming targeted.…
§ 383.4.c Conquer Effects are Triggered Abilities whose Condition includes a Unit participating in, and successfully Conquering a Battleﬁeld.…
§ 383.4.d Hold Effects are Triggered Abilities whose Condition includes a Unit being present at a Battleﬁeld during the Beginning phase when a player …
§ 383.4.e Attack Triggers are Triggered Abilities that trigger when a Unit or Player gains the Attacker designation for the ﬁrst time during a combat.…
§ 383.4.f Defend Triggers are Triggered Abilities that trigger when a Unit or Player gains the Defender designation for the ﬁrst time during a combat.…
§ 383.4.g Some effects may instruct a player to “activate” one of these named triggered abilities.…
§ 384 Presence on Permanents…
§ 384.1 Typically active while on the Board.…
§ 384.2 Triggered Abilities of Permanents are only able to have their Conditions evaluated while on the Board.…
§ 385 Presence on Cards outside of the Board…
§ 385.1 Triggered Abilities on cards outside of the Board rely on the Information Level of the zone they are in.…
§ 385.2 Triggered Abilities outside of the Board will self-describe their context. Example: The triggered ability "When you conquer, you may discard…
§ 386 Reﬂexive Triggers…
§ 387 Reﬂexive Triggers are a type of Triggered Ability that create one or more Chain Items when their condition is met.…
§ 387.1 Reﬂexive Triggers can be recognized by the phrase “Do this:” or “Do one of the following:”.…
§ 387.1.a “Do this” can be followed by “N times.” The Reﬂexive Trigger will thus be added to the chain N times when its condition is met.…
§ 387.1.b “Do one of the following” can instead be “Do X of the following” or “Do the following”. The effect will specify which of the related Reﬂexiv…
§ 387.2 Reﬂexive Triggers will be preceded by their conditions, if any. If no condition is present in the ability then the Reﬂexive Trigger will alw…
§ 387.3 If present, the Condition of a Reﬂexive Trigger will follow the same format as a Triggered Ability.…
§ 388 Reﬂexive Triggers use the Chain.…
§ 388.1 A new ability is created and added to the chain as a Pending Item. See rule 398. Playing or Activating Abilities for more information.…
§ 388.2 If a Reﬂexive Trigger creates more than one Pending Item it creates them all in order, but does not go beyond the ﬁrst step of adding them t…
§ 389 Delayed Abilities…
§ 390 Delayed Abilities are a type of Ability that speciﬁes a window of applicability during which they are active.…
§ 390.1 Delayed Abilities can be any other type of Ability, and contain all of the properties of that type in addition to the properties of Delayed …
§ 390.2 Delayed Triggers are Triggered Abilities that can be recognized by describing a speciﬁc time of the turn, or by structuring a Triggered Abil…
§ 390.3 Delayed Replacements are Replacement Effects that can be recognized by specifying the effect they are replacing at a speciﬁc time, or “the […
§ 390.3.a Some Delayed Replacements take the form “then recycle it,” or “then banish it,” in reference to chain items being played by linked abilities…
§ 390.4 Delayed Passive Abilities are Passive Abilities that are applicable only during a speciﬁed window of time. The time that the Delayed Passive…
§ 390.5 Delayed Linked Abilities are Linked Abilities that are generated by another Ability and reference that Ability or Game Objects it affects in…
§ 390.5.a If that Ability affects a Game Object, the Delayed Linked Ability’s window will be as long as that Game Object is in an appropriate zone.…
§ 390.5.b If the Delayed Linked Ability references the source of the abilities, its window will be as long as the source is in an appropriate zone.…
§ 390.5.c The appropriate zones for these Delayed Linked Abilities will be determined implicitly by the Linked Ability that generated them.…
§ 391 Delayed Abilities will resolve or be active just like the ability they augment, but only during the speciﬁed time in the effect that created…
§ 392 Delayed Abilities are not associated with Units or Gear; they are created by other Abilities or Spells. As such they are executed when their…
§ 393 Linked Abilities…
§ 394 Linked Abilities are a set of Abilities with one or more of the component Abilities referencing the other Abilities in the set.…
§ 394.1 Component Abilities can reference other Abilities in the set by means of referencing those Abilities directly or by referencing Game Objects…
§ 395 In order for a set of Abilities to be Linked, they must be present in the printed Effect or Rules Text of the same Game Object, or be grante…
§ 396 Linked Abilities can contain component Abilities of any type.…
§ 397 A component Linked Ability that references a Game Object affected by another Ability in the set may only interact with Game Objects affected…
§ 398 Playing or Activating Abilities…
§ 399 Playing or activating Abilities follows the same steps of playing cards.…

§ 400 Abilities when added to the Chain become Pending Items until they complete the steps of Playing. (606)

§ 400.1 When an Ability ﬁnishes the steps of playing it becomes a Finalized Chain Item just like a Spell.…
§ 400.2 When an Ability with the [Add] action is ﬁnalized it resolves immediately, like a Unit or Gear.…
§ 401 1. Activate or trigger the Ability…
§ 401.1 Add a Pending Item to the chain representing the Ability that is either being Activated or Triggered. Notably, although this Chain Item will…
§ 401.2 If there is currently a game effect being resolved, continue resolving the game effect instead of continuing the following steps.…
§ 402 2. Make relevant choices…
§ 402.1 If the ﬁrst part of a Triggered Ability’s effect is “you may,” or “they may,” its controller decides whether or not to perform the Triggered…
§ 402.1.a If they choose not to perform the Triggered Ability now, it is removed from the chain.…
§ 402.2 Make all choices required for this ability, such as targets, modes, or other relevant decisions. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more inform…
§ 402.3 If legal options are not available for an Activated Ability, it is not legal to activate it.…
§ 402.4 If there are not enough options to make legal choices for a Triggered Ability that has been put on the chain, remove it from the Chain now. …
§ 402.4.a This is not an Ability being countered.…
§ 402.4.b If there are legal options to choose, the ability’s controller must choose them. They may not decline this stage of playing a Trigger.…
§ 403 3. Determine Total Cost…
§ 403.1 Determine the base cost of the Ability.…
§ 403.1.a Activated Abilities will have a cost listed before the “:” in their text.…
§ 403.1.b Triggered Abilities will typically not have a base cost associated with them when placed on the chain due to their conditions.…
§ 403.2 Apply cost increases and decreases as a result of choices made in the prior step. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information.…
§ 403.3 Apply any other cost increases or decreases as necessary. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information.…
§ 404 4. Pay Costs…
§ 404.1 Pay costs as determined in the prior step. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information.…
§ 404.2 At this stage, players may decline to pay for Triggered Abilities that have incurred a cost. If they do, the ability will cease being a Pend…
§ 404.2.a This is not an Ability being countered.…
§ 405 5. Check Legality…
§ 405.1 Ensure that the Ability’s targets are still legal.…
§ 405.2 Ensure that the Ability’s effect would not create an illegal state. If it would, resolve in the same way you would resolve a Card that creat…
§ 406 6. Proceed with Play…
§ 406.1 This Ability is no longer Pending.…
§ 406.2 This Ability becomes a Finalized Chain Item.…
§ 406.3 If there are other Pending Chain Items on the Chain, their controllers perform the remaining steps of playing now.…
§ 406.4 Other players have an opportunity to play Reactions before the resolution of spells and abilities. See rule 327. Chains for more information…
§ 406.5 Otherwise, execute the Ability just like a Spell, then clear the Chain Item from the Chain.…
§ 407 Game Actions…
§ 408 Game Actions are actions players may perform at any given time during the game.…
§ 409 A player, unless otherwise speciﬁed or prompted, may only perform actions on their turn.…
§ 410 There are two types of Game Actions:…
§ 410.1 Discretionary Actions…
§ 410.1.a A Discretionary Action is a Game Action that may be performed at any time during a player's turn during a Neutral Open State. See rule 307. …
§ 410.1.b A player may take any number of Discretionary Actions available to them during their turn.…
§ 410.2 Limited Actions…
§ 410.2.a A Limited Action is a game action that a spell, ability, or circumstance of the turn's progression causes the player to perform. A player ca…
§ 410.2.b These actions can only be taken when a player is instructed to do so as the execution of an effect or during their speciﬁed occasion during …
§ 411 Responsibility…
§ 411.1 Game Actions may be the responsibility of up to one player. The player that performs the Game Action is responsible for it. Example: Cull th…
§ 411.2 In the case where a Game Action is performed by procedures of the game and not by any player, that Game Action is not the responsibility of …
§ 411.3 Certain rules assign responsibility to players for Game Actions that they are not normally responsible for.…
§ 411.4 If an ability triggers when “you” do something, it triggers when a Game Action that you are responsible for occurs. Example: A gear reads “W…
§ 411.5 Note that certain Game Actions, speciﬁcally Kill, can be attributed to spells and abilities. This attribution is not the same as the respons…
§ 411.5.a Spells and abilities have attribution for game actions, while players have responsibility.…
§ 411.6 Some Game Effects may check if a player has performed a Game Action “with” a Game Object. In order to do so, the Game Action must be attribu…
§ 411.6.a Abilities granted via the effect text of a Game Object to another Game Object count for both Game Objects for this purpose.…
§ 412 Types of Actions…
§ 413 Draw…
§ 413.1 Drawing a card takes a single card from a zone and adds it to the player's Hand.…
§ 413.1.a Unless speciﬁed otherwise, drawing takes cards from the top of the Main Deck.…
§ 413.2 This is a Limited Action.…
§ 413.2.a Each player draws 1 during the Draw Phase on their turn.…
§ 413.2.b The player may draw cards when instructed to do so by other game effects.…
§ 413.3 This action, when instructed, is formatted as "Draw X."…
§ 413.4 If a player attempts to draw more cards than are available in their Main Deck, they do the following:…
§ 413.4.a Draw as many as possible.…
§ 413.4.b Perform a Burn Out. See rule 431. Burn Out for more information.…
§ 413.4.c Draw the remaining cards needed to complete the Draw action.…
§ 414 Exhaust…
§ 414.1 Exhausting is an action that marks a non-spell Game Object on the board as "spent."…
§ 414.1.a To mark it, rotate the card 90 degrees opposite of Readying, so that the orientation of the card is lengthwise in front of you.…
§ 414.1.b A Game Object that is already Exhausted cannot be Exhausted again.…
§ 414.1.c If a Game Object is instructed to be Exhausted while it is already Exhausted, nothing additional happens.…
§ 414.2 "Exhausted" is a state for Game Objects on the board that other game effects and rules can reference.…
§ 414.3 This is a Limited Action.…
§ 414.3.a Most Exhaust actions will be costs for Activated Abilities or Discretionary Actions. Example: A unit's Standard Move exhausts the unit as a …
§ 414.4 When Exhausting is listed as a Cost, then the Action must be able to be completed for the cost to be paid. Example: A spell says "As an addi…
§ 414.5 In abilities, the Exhaust symbol represents the cost "Exhaust this" or "Exhaust me." It resembles a card turning sideways.…
§ 415 Ready…
§ 415.1 Readying is an action that marks a non-spell Game Object on the board as available for action.…
§ 415.1.a To mark it, rotate the card 90 degrees opposite of Exhausting, so that it is vertically oriented in front of you.…
§ 415.1.b A Unit that is already Ready cannot be Readied again.…
§ 415.1.c If a Unit is instructed to be Readied while it is already Ready, nothing additional happens.…
§ 415.2 "Ready" is a state for Game Objects on the board that other game effects and rules can reference.…
§ 415.3 This is a Limited Action.…
§ 415.3.a A player Readies all non-spell Game Objects they Control during the Awakening Phase on their turn.…
§ 415.3.b Players may also Ready Game Objects on the board when effects or spells instruct them to do so.…
§ 416 Recycle…
§ 416.1 Recycling cards is the action in which a player takes one or more cards from a speciﬁc zone and then puts it on the bottom of the correspond…
§ 416.1.a Main Deck cards are Recycled to the Main Deck.…
§ 416.1.b Runes are Recycled to the Rune Deck.…
§ 416.1.c Each player Recycles cards to their own Main Deck and Rune Deck, regardless of which player is instructed to perform the Recycle action.…
§ 416.2 This is a Limited Action.…
§ 416.2.a The player must Recycle cards from the speciﬁed zones when instructed to do so by game effects or costs.…
§ 416.3 When Recycling is listed as a Cost, the action must be able to be completed for the cost to be paid. Example: Vi, Destructive has the abilit…
§ 416.4 When Recycling is part of an effect, a player must Recycle as many cards as possible from the speciﬁed zone or zones.…
§ 416.5 If 2 or more cards are Recycled to the Main Deck simultaneously, they are placed on the bottom of that deck in a random order. Example: Garb…
§ 416.5.a If 2 or more cards are Recycled to the Rune Deck simultaneously, they are placed on the bottom of that deck in the order of their owner's ch…
§ 416.6 This action, when instructed, is sometimes formatted as "Recycle X from [Zone]." That means to take X cards of the instructed player's choic…
§ 417 Deal…
§ 417.1 Spells, Units, Abilities, and other game effects may Deal Damage to units.…
§ 417.1.a Assigning Damage during the Combat Damage Step is not Dealing Damage, but will cause Damage to be Dealt when assignment is complete.…
§ 417.1.b To Deal Damage to Units, mark the speciﬁed amount of Damage on the Unit.…
§ 417.1.c Damage is marked on each unit separately.…
§ 417.1.d Damage can be Dealt to more than one Unit at the same time.…
§ 417.1.e Valid Damage is a positive integer amount, greater than or equal to 1 Damage.…
§ 417.2 Only Damage can be Dealt.…
§ 417.3 Dealing Damage is a Limited Action.…
§ 417.3.a Assigning Damage causes Damage to be dealt outside of being directed to Deal Damage. See rule 459. Combat for more information.…
§ 417.4 Dealing can have the intrinsic property of Bonus Damage.…
§ 417.5 Bonus Damage is a property granted to the action of Dealing and alters the amount of Damage distributed by this action. See rule 712. Bonus …
§ 417.6 Deal actions can originate from one or more sources.…
§ 417.6.a If a game effect does not specify a source, the game effect describing the Deal action is the source. Example: Void Seeker is a spell that r…
§ 417.6.b If a game effect does specify a source, then that source is what is considered the origin of the Damage for this Deal action.…
§ 417.6.c Damage Dealt as a result of being assigned during Combat has the Units as its source.…
§ 417.7 Deal actions can distribute Damage as part of combat actions or non-combat actions.…
§ 418 Heal…
§ 418.1 Damage being cleared from Units is Healing.…
§ 418.1.a If Damage is cleared for any reason it is considered Healing.…
§ 418.2 More than one Unit can be Healed at the same time.…
§ 418.3 Healing is a Limited Action.…
§ 418.3.a Players may only Heal units when game effects instruct them to, or at speciﬁc points in the turn.…
§ 419 Play…
§ 419.1 A player Plays cards by placing them on the chain and queuing them to be ﬁnalized. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information on playi…
§ 419.1.a By default, a player can only Play cards from their hand or their Chosen Champion zone.…
§ 419.2 This is a Discretionary Action.…
§ 419.2.a As long as a player has the resources to pay the costs associated with the card and legal choices to make for their cards, they may Play car…
§ 419.3 Game effects may result in cards being played as part of their resolution.…
§ 419.3.a This treats Play as a Limited Action.…
§ 419.3.b Treat all steps of Play as normal, except as noted by the game effect creating this Limited Play Effect.…
§ 419.3.c If there are no eligible cards to Play when instructed to Play in this manner, then nothing happens and resolution continues.…
§ 419.4 Some Abilities trigger when cards are played or otherwise check whether cards have been played.…
§ 419.4.a Any such triggered abilities trigger when the act of playing the card has been completed by the resolution of the card.…
§ 419.4.b Non-triggered abilities that check cards being played do so by means of referencing whether said cards have been Finalized. Example: A playe…
§ 420 Move…
§ 420.1 Moving is the act of a Game Object moving between two Locations on The Board. See rule 445. Movement for more information on movement.…
§ 420.2 Moving is a Limited Action.…
§ 420.2.a Players may only move Game Objects when instructed to do so by Game Effects or costs.…
§ 420.2.b The Standard Move inherent to Units may also cause Movement. See rule 144. for more information on the Standard Move.…
§ 420.3 The Standard Move inherent to Units is a Discretionary Action.…
§ 420.3.a The Cost is Exhausting one or more Units.…
§ 420.3.b The Effect is Moving those Units.…
§ 421 Hide…
§ 421.1 Hiding a card is the act of placing a card facedown at a Battleﬁeld you control.…
§ 421.2 Hiding is a Discretionary Action.…
§ 421.2.a The Hidden keyword allows a player to pay a cost to Hide a card any time they have a Hidden card in their hand or Champion Zone and meet the…
§ 421.3 Cards that are facedown at Battleﬁelds have their gameplay properties and permissions deﬁned by the effect that put them there. Example: Car…
§ 421.4 If a facedown card would change zones or if the game ends, its owner reveals it to all players. See rule 128. Privacy for more information.…
§ 422 Discard…
§ 422.1 Discarding a card is moving it from a player's hand directly into their trash without activating or executing its normal rules text.…
§ 422.1.a The player who is performing the action chooses which cards to send to their Trash, and may use Private Information to do so.…
§ 422.1.b “When I am discarded” abilities or other Triggered Abilities that trigger on discarding are executed after discarding has occurred.…
§ 422.2 Discarding is a Limited Action.…
§ 422.2.a A player must Discard cards when instructed to do so by game effects or costs.…
§ 422.3 When Discarding is listed as a Cost, then the Action must be able to be completed for the cost to be paid. Example: A card has the ability "…
§ 422.4 When Discarding is part of an effect, then a player must Discard as many cards as possible from their hand. If instructed to discard more ca…
§ 422.5 This action is formatted as "Discard X."…
§ 423 Stun…
§ 423.1 Stunning is the act of selecting one or more Units on the Board and rendering them Stunned.…
§ 423.1.a Stunned is a binary state. A Unit is Stunned or it isn't.…
§ 423.1.b A Stunned Unit does not contribute its might to damage in the combat damage step. See rule 465. The Combat Damage Step for more information.…
§ 423.1.c A Stunned Unit must still have damage applied to it equal to, or greater than, its full might value to be killed.…
§ 423.2 Stunning is a Limited Action.…
§ 423.2.a Players may only Stun Units when directed to by Game Effects.…
§ 424 Reveal…
§ 424.1 Revealing is the act of presenting a card to all players from a zone that one or more players do not have access to the information of.…
§ 424.1.a Revealed is a temporary state and is not a zone.…
§ 424.1.b Unless otherwise described, Revealed cards do nothing else beyond become temporarily known information to all players.…
§ 424.2 Revealing is a Limited Action.…
§ 424.2.a Players may only Reveal cards from Private or Secret zones when instructed to do so by Game Effects.…
§ 424.2.b During the course of a game of Riftbound, a player may choose to show Private information to one or more other players. This does not count …
§ 424.3 This action is formatted as "Reveal cards from [zone]." or “Reveal [Zone].” Example: "Reveal 2 cards from the top of your Main Deck" would b…
§ 424.3.a When the zone is instructed to be Revealed without indicating a number of cards, that refers to “All cards currently in the speciﬁed zone.” …
§ 424.4 Game Effects can manipulate or modify the cards Revealed while they are Revealed…
§ 424.4.a While cards are Revealed, those cards can be further manipulated, or accessed. They can even have their destination modiﬁed for when the Rev…
§ 425 Counter…
§ 425.1 Countering is the act of negating the execution, activation, or otherwise playing of a card or ability by a player.…
§ 425.1.a A card or ability that is Countered does nothing and is cleared from the chain.…
§ 425.1.b A card that is Countered is not considered to have been played for abilities that trigger on cards being played.…
§ 425.1.c Countering does not refund any costs paid to play a card, activate an ability, or trigger an ability.…
§ 425.2 Countering is a Limited Action.…
§ 425.2.a Players may only Counter cards and abilities when directed to by Game Effects.…
§ 425.3 This action is formatted as "Counter [a card or ability on the chain]."…
§ 426 Buff…
§ 426.1 Bufﬁng is the action of placing a Buff counter on a Unit. See rule 701. Buffs for more information.…
§ 426.1.a A Buff is also an object.…
§ 426.1.b To Buff a unit, place a Buff Counter on it if it does not have one already…
§ 426.1.c Units with Buff Counters can still be chosen for actions that Buff units, but will not be Buffed as part of the execution. Example: A spell …
§ 426.2 Bufﬁng is a Limited Action.…
§ 426.2.a Players may only Buff units when Game Effects direct them to do so.…
§ 426.3 This action is formatted as "Buff [one or more units]." e.g., "Buff a unit." e.g., "Buff a friendly unit." e.g., "Buff two friendly units at…
§ 427 Banish…
§ 427.1 Banishing is the action of placing a card from any other zone into Banishment. See 108.6. Banishment for more information.…
§ 427.2 When a card is Banished it is placed directly into the Banishment zone from its origin.…
§ 427.2.a Banish is not a subset of Kill.…
§ 427.2.b Banish is not a subset of Discard.…
§ 427.3 Cards and effects can refer to cards that were banished by the same object.…
§ 427.3.a Separate instances of an object or effect banishing cards do not reference other banished cards by objects of the same name or effects origi…
§ 427.4 Banishing is a Limited Action.…
§ 427.4.a Players may only Banish cards or permanents when Game Effects direct them to do so.…
§ 427.5 This action is formatted as "Banish [one or more permanents or cards]." e.g., "Banish a card from your hand." e.g., "Banish 2 cards from you…
§ 428 Kill…
§ 428.1 Killing is the action of a Permanent going to the trash from the board.…
§ 428.1.a This can be Active or Passive.…
§ 428.2 When a permanent is killed it is placed directly in the trash from its place of origin.…
§ 428.2.a It is only considered Killed if its origin was any zone on the board.…
§ 428.2.b This is not a subset of Move.…
§ 428.3 Killing is a Limited Action.…
§ 428.3.a Players may only Kill units when Game Effects direct them to do so.…
§ 428.4 Killing can also be the result of resolving a Cleanup.…
§ 428.5 Killing can be attributed to one or more Game Objects.…
§ 428.5.a The Killed Unit or Gear is said to be Killed by that Game Object.…
§ 428.5.b A spell or ability that contains a Kill instruction is responsible for Killing the Unit or Gear.…
§ 428.5.c When one or more Units is killed due to a Cleanup, that kill action is attributed to the spell or ability that resolved immediately prior to…
§ 428.5.d Abilities originating from Game Objects that are attributed Kill Actions are attributed in addition to the Game Object that created them. Ex…
§ 428.6 This action is formatted as "Kill [one or more permanents]." e.g., "Kill an enemy unit." e.g., "Kill this, [2]: Draw 1." e.g., "Kill all gea…
§ 429 Add…
§ 429.1 Adding is the action of putting resources into a player's Rune Pool.…
§ 429.2 Triggered and activated abilities that Add resources resolve as soon as they are ﬁnalized.…
§ 429.2.a Priority and Focus will not pass from Add abilities being ﬁnalized or resolving, and will resolve before any other outstanding items on the …
§ 429.2.b Spells that Add resources will linger on the chain as normal when they are ﬁnalized.…
§ 429.3 Activated abilities that Add resources and have the Reaction tag can be activated at any time that spells or abilities require resources be …
§ 429.3.a When an Add ability is activated in this way, it immediately ﬁnalizes and resolves, even during the resolution of spells and abilities.…
§ 429.4 Adding is a Limited Action.…
§ 429.4.a Players may only Add resources when Game Effects direct them to do so.…
§ 429.5 This action is formatted as "Add [one or more resources]." e.g., "Add [2]." means "Add 2 Energy." e.g., "[E]: Add [Y]." means "Add 1 Power o…
§ 430 Channel…
§ 430.1 Channeling is the action of taking one or more Runes from the top of a player's Rune Deck and putting them on the board.…
§ 430.2 The Game Effect that instructs a player to channel 1 or more runes may specify the conditions or circumstances under which those runes enter…
§ 430.2.a By default, runes are channeled readied.…
§ 430.3 If there aren’t sufﬁcient runes in the Rune Deck, channel as many as possible.…
§ 430.4 Channeling is a Limited Action.…
§ 430.4.a A player Channels two Runes during the Channel Phase on their turn.…
§ 430.4.b Players may also Channel runes when Game Effects direct them to do so.…
§ 430.5 This action is formatted as "Channel X rune(s)," optionally followed by conditions or stipulations. e.g., "Channel 1 rune." e.g., "When you …
§ 431 Burn Out…
§ 431.1 Burning Out is an action a player must perform if they attempt to move one or more cards from their Main Deck to any other zone in excess of…
§ 431.1.a If a player must Draw cards in excess to the number of cards in their Main Deck, they will Draw as many as possible, perform this action, th…
§ 431.1.b If a player must put one or more cards from their Main Deck in any other zone, such as the Trash, in excess of the number of cards in their …
§ 431.1.c If an instruction directs a player to look at or reveal cards in excess to the number of cards in a player’s Main Deck, that player looks at…
§ 431.2 To Burn Out, a player does the following in sequence:…
§ 431.2.a Performs as much of the prescribed action as possible.…
§ 431.2.b Recycles their trash into their Main Deck. Reminder: When multiple cards are Recycled to the Main Deck at the same time, those cards must be…
§ 431.2.c Chooses an opponent to gain 1 point.…
§ 431.2.d Completes the remainder of the action that caused them to burn out. Example: A player attempts to draw 1 during their Draw Phase while their…
§ 431.3 A player's Main Deck may remain empty as they Burn Out, usually because their trash is also empty. When they attempt to perform the original…
§ 431.3.a Unless some effect intervenes, this will result in them burning out repeatedly, giving 1 point to an opponent each time, until an opponent p…
§ 431.3.b Points gained after the ﬁrst Burn Out being processed in sequence cannot be replaced or prevented by any means.…
§ 431.3.c Points gained after the ﬁrst Burn Out being processed in sequence that cause a player to reach or surpass the Victory Score for their game m…
§ 431.4 Burning Out is a Limited Action.…
§ 431.4.a Players may only burn out when Game Effects direct them to do so.…
§ 431.5 Burning Out is a Replacement Effect. See rule 367. Replacement Effects for more information.…
§ 432 Double…
§ 432.1 Doubling is the act of increasing a numeric attribute by an amount equal to that attribute’s current value.…
§ 432.1.a This creates an effect that modulates that attribute by that speciﬁc amount for the duration speciﬁed by the Game Effect that instructed the…
§ 432.2 Doubling is a Limited Action.…
§ 432.2.a Players may only Double when Game Effects direct them to do so.…
§ 433 Swap…
§ 433.1 Swapping is the act of increasing one numeric value and decreasing another numeric value on some number of Game Objects such that their valu…
§ 433.1.a Swapping creates two different effects that apply to each attribute. One that Increases one value and one that Decreases the other. These ef…
§ 433.1.b To accomplish this, determine the difference between these values and then apply an Increase for that amount to the lower value of the two a…
§ 433.1.c If both attributes are the same numeric value, Swapping has no effect.…
§ 433.2 Swapping is a Limited Action.…
§ 433.2.a Players may only swap when Game Effects direct them to do so.…
§ 434 Attach…
§ 434.1 Attaching is the act of linking two cards on the board together to combine their effects in some way. This causes one or more cards to becom…
§ 434.1.a Attaching affects two cards at once.…
§ 434.1.b This is represented by physically laying the Top-Most card on top of the other or others such that all Effect Texts and Might Bonuses are sh…
§ 434.1.c The Top-Most card has all Effect Text of all cards Attached to it appended to its Rules Text.…
§ 434.1.d The Top-Most Card has its Might modulated by the Might Bonus of all cards Attached to it.…
§ 434.1.e Attaching one or more cards will cause those cards’ printed Rules Text to become Inactive for as long as they remain Attached. See rule 716.…
§ 434.1.f Attaching a card to a new Top-Most Card will cause it to Detach from the card to which it is currently Attached.…
§ 434.1.g Attaching a card to its current Top-Most Card will not have any effect.…
§ 434.1.h If a Game Effect instructs a player to Attach a card to its current Top-Most Card, nothing additional happens.…
§ 434.2 Attaching is a Limited Action.…
§ 434.2.a Players may only Attach cards when directed to by Game Effects.…
§ 434.3 Attaching cards does not inherently choose or specify a target. However, Game Effects that Attach cards may do so.…
§ 434.4 When a card Attaches to a card, its location becomes the same as the new Top-Most Card.…
§ 434.4.a This is not a Move.…
§ 434.5 Attaching a card to another card does not modify either card’s state except in making those cards Attached and the Top-Most Card, and causin…
§ 435 Detach…
§ 435.1 Detaching is the act of unlinking two cards that are currently linked through the act of Attaching. This causes one to cease being Attached,…
§ 435.1.a Detaching affects only cards that are currently Attached to another card.…
§ 435.1.b When one or more cards become Detached, they cease to be in the Attached state.…
§ 435.1.c The card being Detached has its Effect Text become Inactive and its Rules Text cease being Inactive.…
§ 435.1.d The Top-Most Card ceases to have the Effect Text of the card being Detached appended to its Rules Text.…
§ 435.1.e The Top-Most Card ceases to have its Might modulated by the Might Bonus of the card being Detached.…
§ 435.2 Detaching is a Limited Action.…
§ 435.2.a Players may only Detach cards when directed to by Game Effects.…
§ 435.3 Detaching cards does not inherently choose, or specify a target. However, Game Effects that Detach cards may.…
§ 435.4 When a card Detaches from a Top-Most Card, its location is the same as the Top-Most Card from which it Detached.…
§ 435.4.a If the Detached card was a Gear and this causes it to become present at a Battleﬁeld, it will be Recalled during the next Cleanup. See rule …
§ 435.4.b If the Attached card was Detached because the Top-Most Card changed zones from a board zone to a non-board zone, then the location that the …
§ 436 Predict…
§ 436.1 Predicting a card is the act of looking at a single card from the top of the Main Deck and choosing whether or not to Recycle it.…
§ 436.1.a When more than one card is Predicted, the Predicting player looks at that many cards and Recycles any number of them before putting the rest…
§ 436.2 Predicting is a Limited Action.…
§ 436.2.a Players may only Predict cards when instructed to do so by game effects.…
§ 436.3 This action, when instructed, is formatted as "Predict X."…
§ 436.3.a If omitted, X is presumed to be 1.…
§ 436.4 If a player attempts to Predict more cards than are available in their Main Deck, they will Predict as many as possible instead.…
§ 436.4.a The Player will not perform a Burn Out as a result of Predicting with too few cards in their deck.…
§ 437 Prevent…
§ 437.1 Preventing damage is the act of reducing the Damage a set of game objects would take.…
§ 437.1.a Prevent is an action that interacts with Damage.…
§ 437.1.b Prevent appears in statements that deﬁne an amount of damage and the source of the damage it will affect, as well as the timespan it will be…
§ 437.2 When damage is Prevented, it is replaced with an event where it deals that much damage reduced by the Prevent Value tracked on the Unit spec…
§ 437.2.a The damage being dealt as a result of Preventing can never be less than 0, but can be 0. This is equivalent to not dealing damage.…
§ 437.3 When damage is dealt this way, reduce the Prevent Value being tracked on the Unit affected by the Prevent action by the prevented amount.…
§ 437.3.a If the Prevent Value is 0 or less, then Prevent is no longer being tracked on the Unit in question, and the effect expires.…
§ 437.3.b The reduced value is the newly tracked Prevent Value.…
§ 437.3.c If the Prevent Value is “All” then it remains “All.”…
§ 437.4 Damage dealt to a Unit that has that all of that damage Prevented is not considered to have been dealt to it at all.…
§ 437.5 Damage can still be assigned to Units in combat that are affected by Prevent. The damage dealt as a result of that assignment will be affect…
§ 437.5.a Damage can be assigned to a Unit up to a value that would be Lethal considering the Prevent Value of all Prevent Actions on a Unit, followin…
§ 437.5.b No amount of damage is ever considered lethal if the Prevent Value is “All.”…
§ 437.6 Prevent is a Limited Action.…
§ 437.6.a Players may only Prevent Damage when directed to by Game Effects.…
§ 437.7 Prevent is a Delayed Replacement Effect. See rule 367. Replacement Effects for more information. See rule 389. Delayed Abilities for more in…
§ 438 Replace…
§ 438.1 Replacing is the act of Creating a token in the place of another card or token without playing it while inheriting all effects or statuses o…
§ 438.1.a The replacing token is treated as the same Game Object as the card or token it replaced for the purposes of Game Effects that target or refe…
§ 438.2 Replacing is a Limited Action.…
§ 438.2.a The player may Replace cards and tokens when instructed to do so by other game effects.…
§ 438.3 This action, when instructed, is formatted as "Replace [X] with [Y]."…
§ 438.3.a The [X] is the target to be Replaced.…
§ 438.3.b The [Y] is the object that will Replace the target.…
§ 438.4 Replacing is not a subset of Banishing.…
§ 438.5 The card or token that is Replaced is placed in Banishment.…
§ 438.5.a While it resides in Banishment, it is considered to have been Replaced and not Banished.…
§ 438.6 If a token is Replaced it will stop existing once it begins its occupancy in Banishment.…
§ 438.6.a This does not invalidate the token created, or the act of Replacement.…
§ 438.7 Tokens that have been Created through a Replace action can be instructed to be “Swapped back.” This may also appear as “replace [the token] …
§ 438.7.a Swapping Back is an extension of the Replace action.…
§ 438.7.b To Swap Back, the token stops existing and the original card is returned to the space that the token just occupied, inheriting all current e…
§ 438.7.c If there is nothing in Banishment to swap back to then this object can never swap back.…
§ 439 Create…
§ 439.1 Creating is the act of producing a Game Object that previously did not exist in the game.…
§ 439.2 Effects that Create one or more Game Objects will direct where those Game Objects must go - the Game Objects are Created directly to the zon…
§ 439.2.a Prior to being Created, these Game Objects did not exist outside of the zone they were Created to. After being Created, they may change zone…
§ 439.2.b If a zone is not speciﬁed by the effect, the Game Object will be created to the appropriate zone for its type.…
§ 439.2.c The zone a Game Object is created to can be speciﬁed implicitly by the Game Action being performed. Example: “Play a 1 [M] Recruit token” sp…
§ 439.3 An effect that Creates a Game Object will specify the state and nature of the Game Object created.…
§ 439.3.a If the Game Object is a token, it will follow the normal rules for tokens. See rule 179. Tokens for more information.…
§ 439.4 Unless speciﬁed otherwise by the Game Effect that Creates a Game Object, any such Game Object is owned by the player who Created it. Control…
§ 439.4.a A Created permanent, rune, legend, or spell is controlled by its owner as it is Created.…
§ 439.4.b A Created battleﬁeld is uncontrolled as it is Created.…
§ 439.5 This action, when instructed, is usually formatted as "Create [X] at [Y]" or “Add [X] to [Y].”…
§ 439.6 Creating is a Limited Action.…
§ 439.6.a Players may only Create Game Objects when directed to by Game Effects.…
§ 440 Burn…
§ 440.1 Burning is the act of moving cards from the top of a player’s Main Deck to their trash.…
§ 440.1.a “When you burn” abilities or other Triggered Abilities that trigger on burning are executed after burning has occurred.…
§ 440.2 This action is formatted as "Burn X."…
§ 440.2.a X is the number of cards to be Burned.…
§ 440.3 Burning is a Limited Action.…
§ 440.3.a A player must Burn cards when instructed to do so by game effects or costs.…
§ 440.4 When Burning is part of an effect, then a player must Burn as many cards as possible. If instructed to burn more cards than they have in the…
§ 441 Empower…
§ 441.1 Empowering is the act of rendering one or more Game Objects Empowered.…
§ 441.1.a Empowered is a binary state. A Game Object is Empowered or it isn’t.…
§ 441.1.b An Empowered Game Object can not be Empowered.…
§ 441.1.c If a Game Object is instructed to be Empowered when it is already Empowered, nothing additional happens.…
§ 441.2 “Empowered” is a state for Game Objects on the board that other game effects and abilities can reference.…
§ 441.2.a When a Game Object becomes Empowered as a result of the Empower game action, that is an event that can similarly be referenced by game effec…
§ 441.3 Empowering is a Limited Action.…
§ 441.3.a Players may only Empower Game Objects when directed to by Game Effects.…
§ 442 Disempower…
§ 442.1 Disempowering is the act of removing the Empowered status from one or more Game Objects.…
§ 442.1.a Disempowering affects only cards that are currently Empowered.…
§ 442.2 Disempowering is a Limited Action.…
§ 442.2.a Players may only Disempower Game Objects when directed to by Game Effects.…
§ 443 Skip…
§ 443.1 Skipping an event is the act of replacing that event with nothing.…
§ 443.1.a Skip is an action that interacts with events and procedures of the turn. Example: A card reads in part “Choose an enemy unit. Skip the next …
§ 443.1.b Skip actions are usually formatted as “Skip [event or procedure of the turn].”…
§ 443.2 When an event or procedure of the turn is Skipped, it is replaced with nothing. Play proceeds accordingly.…
§ 443.2.a Anything that triggers on the occurrence of the event or procedure of the turn does not trigger.…
§ 443.3 Skip is a Limited Action.…
§ 443.3.a Players may only Skip events or procedures of the turn when directed to by Game Effects.…
§ 443.4 Skip is a Replacement Effect. See rule 367. Replacement Effects for more information.…
§ 444 Pay…
§ 444.1 Paying a resource is the act of removing that resource from your Rune Pool.…
§ 444.1.a Pay is an action that interacts with Energy and Power.…
§ 444.2 When a player is instructed to Pay a resource, that player may remove that resource from their Rune Pool if it exists there. If they choose …
§ 444.2.a If the instruction to Pay resources is part of paying costs for a card or ability, choosing not to pay those resources will cause the act of…
§ 444.2.b If the instruction to Pay resources is part of paying any other cost, choosing not to pay those resources will prevent the execution of the …
§ 444.2.c Players may activate abilities that Add resources with the Reaction keyword at any time that they are instructed to Pay resources. Those abi…
§ 444.3 Pay is a Limited Action.…
§ 444.3.a Players may only Pay resources when directed to by Game Effects.…
§ 445 Movement…
§ 446 Moving is a Limited Action.…
§ 446.1 A Permanent changing its position from any space on the Board to another space on the Board is a Move, unless it is caused by a corrective R…
§ 446.2 A card changing game zones does not in itself constitute a Move.…
§ 446.3 Moving is instantaneous.…
§ 446.3.a There is no state for Permanents between locations.…
§ 446.3.b Permanents are either at their Origin before Moving or their Destination after Moving.…
§ 446.3.c Moving does not use the Chain, nor is it able to be Reacted to.…
§ 447 Moving is deﬁned by the Origin and Destination of the Permanent that is changing locations.…
§ 447.1 The Origin is where the Permanent is starting from.…
§ 447.2 The Destination is where the Permanent is going to.…
§ 447.2.a In Modes of Play with more than two players, Battleﬁelds with Staged Combats or Combats in Progress are Invalid Destinations for Moves of al…
§ 447.2.b In Modes of Play with teammates, Battleﬁelds occupied by a player’s teammates are Invalid Destinations for Moves of all kinds (Standard Move…
§ 447.2.c If an action would require a Move that would cause a Unit to become present in a Location where it cannot move for any reason, such as a Bat…
§ 448 Players may choose to move their Units with the Standard Move. See rule 144. for more information on the Standard Move.…
§ 449 Spells, Abilities, or other effects may cause a Move to occur.…
§ 449.1 The source of the Move will provide details on any restrictions on legality for Destination.…
§ 449.2 Units cannot Move to a Battleﬁeld that already has units from 2 other players present by any means.…
§ 450 The Destination becomes Contested if it is an Uncontested Battleﬁeld not controlled by the controller of the Unit or Units that moved.…
§ 451 Units may cause a Non-Combat Showdown when they Move. See rule 341. Showdowns for more information.…
§ 452 Units may cause Combat when they Move. See rule 459. Combat for more information.…
§ 453 When a Move action is complete, perform a Cleanup.…
§ 454 Recalls…
§ 455 A Recall is when a Permanent is relocated from anywhere to its Base without it being a Move.…
§ 456 Recalls are not Moves.…
§ 456.1 They do not cause Triggered Abilities to trigger that are triggered by Move actions.…
§ 456.2 A Recall causes a Permanent to change locations.…
§ 456.3 A Recall cannot be prevented by actions and Game Effects that restrict or block Movement.…
§ 457 Gear can be Recalled.…
§ 457.1 When an un-attached non-Unit Gear is created or played at a battleﬁeld, or is at a battleﬁeld for any other reason, it is Recalled to its co…
§ 458 Recalls do not affect the state of the Permanent being recalled.…
§ 458.1 Unless otherwise stated by the source of the Recall, Damage and statuses of a permanent will all remain unaffected by a Recall.…
§ 459 Combat…
§ 460 A Combat occurs when a Cleanup occurs, there are no items on the Chain, there is a staged Combat at a Battleﬁeld, and no Showdown or Combat …
§ 460.1 If there is an ongoing Showdown at the Battleﬁeld where the Combat is staged, that Showdown will become a Combat Showdown and a Combat will …
§ 461 Combat is considered Staged if there are units controlled by two opposing players at a Battleﬁeld but the Steps of Combat have not been init…
§ 461.1 If more than one Battleﬁeld has Units controlled by opposing players at it at the same time, the Turn Player decides which Combat to resolve…
§ 461.2 If Staged Combats stop being Staged before the Steps of Combat are initiated, they are not resolved or executed.…
§ 461.3 If a Combat and Showdown are staged at the same Battleﬁeld and the turn player initiates the Showdown, it will open as a Combat Showdown.…
§ 462 Combat can only occur between Units controlled by exactly two players.…
§ 462.1 In Modes of Play with more than two players, Battleﬁelds with Staged Combats or Combats in Progress are Invalid Destinations for Moves of al…
§ 462.2 In Modes of Play with more than two players, Battleﬁelds with Staged Combats or Combats in Progress are Invalid to be chosen as a location t…
§ 462.2.a If an effect would require a Unit be played to a Battleﬁeld with a Staged Combat or a Combat in Progress, where the controller of the played…
§ 462.2.b Any subsequent reference to "here" in the corresponding effect is reassigned to the Controller's Base, where the Unit was played. Any furthe…
§ 462.3 All choices that would result in a Combat occurring between more than two players simultaneously are invalid and ineligible to be completed.…
§ 463 The Steps of Combat…
§ 464 Step 1: The Combat Showdown Step…
§ 464.1 Combat will open in one of two ways: when a Combat and Showdown are staged at the same Battleﬁeld and the turn player initiates the Showdown…
§ 464.2 When Combat opens, it either opens with a Combat Showdown, or the current Showdown becomes a Combat Showdown.…
§ 464.2.a The following Tasks become Outstanding, in the order described:…
§ 464.2.b 1. Start of combat or showdown effects happen now.…
§ 464.2.c 2. Establish who is Attacker and who is Defender.…
§ 464.2.d 3. The Attacker gains Focus.…
§ 464.2.e 4. Add items to the Combat Chain if establishing Attacker and Defender has caused Triggered Abilities to become Pending.…
§ 464.2.f The State Closes if a Combat Chain was created.…
§ 464.2.g Players proceed with any play on the Chain as normal.…
§ 465 Step 2: The Combat Damage Step…
§ 465.1 If both Attacking and Defending units remain at this battleﬁeld, the following Tasks become Outstanding, in the speciﬁed order:…
§ 465.2 1. When the Showdown closes, Attackers and Defenders resolve Combat Damage at the Battleﬁeld that was attacked, using their current Might.…
§ 465.2.a Sum the Might of all Attacking Units.…
§ 465.2.b Sum the Might of all Defending Units.…
§ 465.2.c Starting with the Attacker, each player assigns an amount of damage equal to their summed Might among the other's Units.…
§ 465.2.d Deal Damage to each unit equal to the amount assigned to it.…
§ 465.3 2. Skip the FEPR process and cancel any outstanding tasks. Proceed to the Resolution Step.…
§ 466 Step 3: The Resolution Step…
§ 466.1 1. Perform a Combat Cleanup.…
§ 466.1.a Invoke a Combat Special Cleanup.…
§ 466.2 The following Task becomes Outstanding: Reminder: Resolve any items on the chain from dealing combat damage and the Combat Cleanup and assoc…
§ 466.3 1. Determine Combat Result…
§ 466.3.a A Player has won a combat if they received either the attacker or defender designation and are the only Player that has units remaining at t…
§ 466.3.b A Player has lost a combat if they received either the attacker or defender designation and are the only Player that does not have any units…
§ 466.3.c Units at this battleﬁeld inherit the same combat result as their controllers…
§ 466.3.d There is “No Result” if units were recalled during step 3d of the Combat Cleanup, if both Players have units present during this task, or if…
§ 466.4 The following Task becomes Outstanding: Reminder: Resolve any items on the chain from determining combat result and associated FEPR before p…
§ 466.5 1. If no Showdown or Combat is staged at this location, the player with Units remaining here Establishes Control if they didn’t already cont…
§ 466.5.a Clear the Contested Status.…
§ 466.5.b If there are no Units remaining here controlled by any player, the Battleﬁeld becomes Uncontrolled.…
§ 466.5.c Remove all Hidden cards from this Battleﬁeld that do not share a controller with the Battleﬁeld.…
§ 466.5.d Establishing Control results in a Conquer if that player has not yet scored this Battleﬁeld this turn. See rule 188. Control for more inform…
§ 466.5.e This does not have to be the player that applied Contested to the Battleﬁeld.…
§ 466.6 The following Task becomes Outstanding: Reminder: Resolve any items on the chain from establishing control and associated FEPR before perfor…
§ 466.7 1. Combat ends.…
§ 466.7.a Remove Attacker and Defender Designation from all Units and Players.…
§ 466.7.b At the end of Combat or Combat ends effects take place.…
§ 466.7.c All “this combat” effects expire simultaneously.…
§ 467 Scoring…
§ 468 Scoring is the act of a Player gaining a point through the process of seizing or maintaining control over Battleﬁelds.…
§ 468.1 Every instance of Scoring is also an instance of Gaining points…
§ 469 A player Scores in one of two ways:…
§ 469.1 Conquer: A player gains Control of a Battleﬁeld they did not yet Score this turn.…
§ 469.1.a In Modes of Play with teammates, Battleﬁelds under the Control of a teammate during the scoring step of the Beginning Phase of a player’s tu…
§ 469.1.b A player will gain control of a Battleﬁeld after establishing Control.…
§ 469.2 Hold: A player maintains Control of a Battleﬁeld they did not yet Score this turn during their Beginning Phase.…
§ 470 A player may only Score, from either method, once per Battleﬁeld per turn.…
§ 471 When a player Scores, two things occur:…
§ 471.1 The player Gains up to one Point, depending on their current score.…
§ 471.1.a The Final Point has additional restrictions.…
§ 471.1.b When a player tries to Gain a Point through a Conquer, and their current Point Total is 1 point from the Victory Score of the Mode of Play o…
§ 471.2 Trigger Score abilities at the Battleﬁeld that Scored.…
§ 471.2.a Conquer abilities trigger at a Battleﬁeld that was Conquered.…
§ 471.2.b Hold abilities trigger at a Battleﬁeld that was Held.…
§ 471.2.c These will only trigger when the Battleﬁeld is Scored; I.E. These cannot be triggered more than once per turn for a player.…
§ 472 When a cleanup occurs and a player has accrued Points greater than or equal to the Victory Score for their Mode of Play, and if they have mo…
§ 473 Layers…
§ 474 Layers are the mechanism in which Game Effects alter the Traits, Intrinsic Abilities, or other properties of Game Objects.…
§ 475 Layers are an organizational structure.…
§ 475.1 Layers only serve to structure the application and order that Game Effects apply to Game Objects to maintain consistency.…
§ 476 The layers are applied repeatedly until all effects operating on objects have been applied once and no changes have been processed.…
§ 476.1 Layers are applied in sequence. Each effect in them is applied as soon as able, and only a single time across all sequences.…
§ 476.2 When a sequence of applications completes, recur the process, and evaluate each layer again applying any effects that may now be applicable.…
§ 476.3 The removal or disqualiﬁcation of an effect is separate from the application of the effect, but still can only be applied once. Example: Fio…
§ 477 Layers are applied in the following order:…
§ 477.1 1. Trait-Altering Effects…
§ 477.1.a This layer deals with effects that grant, remove, or replace inherent traits of Game Objects. Name Super Type Type Tags Controller Cost Doma…
§ 477.1.b Copy effects are applied in this layer.…
§ 477.1.c Effects for this layer can be identiﬁed by the phrase "become(s)", "give," "is," or "are" in the text. Example: A permanent has the ability …
§ 477.2 2. Ability-Altering Effects…
§ 477.2.a This layer deals with non-Copy effects that grant, remove, or replace the abilities or rules text of Game Objects. Keywords Passive Abilitie…
§ 477.2.b Effects for this layer can be identiﬁed by the phrase "become(s)," "give," "lose(s)," "have," "has," "is," or "are" in the text. Example: A …
§ 477.2.c Abilities of Effect Text of Attached cards are appended in this layer.…
§ 477.3 3. Arithmetic…
§ 477.3.a This layer deals with the mathematics of increasing and decreasing the numeric values of the traits of Game Objects. Might Energy Cost Power…
§ 477.3.b When an arithmetic effect from a source that is not a passive ability has a limitation that applies, it is limited at the time of its applic…
§ 477.3.c Players cannot increase a numeric attribute by a negative amount. If an effect would instruct a player to do so, they increase it by 0 inste…
§ 477.3.d Might Bonuses of Attached cards are applied in this layer.…
§ 477.3.e This layer applies arithmetic in the following way.…
§ 478 If more than one effect applies to the same Game Object in the Same Layer, or to each other in the same layer, then both effects will apply …
§ 478.1 A Dependency is established if:…
§ 478.1.a Applying one of the effects alters the existence of the other; or…
§ 478.1.b Applying one of the effects alters the number of objects the other effect can inﬂuence; or…
§ 478.1.c Applying one of the effects alters the outcome when applying the other.…
§ 479 To determine which effect Depends on another, determine which of the prior criteria applies, and then also which effect’s evaluation is alte…
§ 479.1 If both effects are altered by the application of the other, no Dependency can be established. Example: A unit with 4 [M] is under the effec…
§ 479.2 To resolve a dependency, the effects within the same layer that created the dependency must be applied such that:…
§ 480 If more than one effect applies in the same layer but no dependency is established, then Timestamp order is applied to the effects within th…
§ 480.1 When an effect begins applying, it establishes a time for which it is compared against other Game Effects for purposes of resolving Layered …
§ 480.1.a Timestamps are not rote values.…
§ 480.1.b Timestamps are relative comparisons between effects and when they began applying to the game.…
§ 480.1.c Timestamps are not referenced by Game Effects in any way. They are only used to ﬁnalize layered effects.…
§ 480.2 When Rules Text becomes Inactive for any reason, it loses its Timestamp. When it ceases to be Inactive, a new Timestamp is established.…
§ 480.3 Effects are applied such that the earliest Timestamp within each Layer and Sublayer applies ﬁrst, followed by other Effects in that Layer an…
§ 481 Modes of Play…
§ 482 There are multiple methods of playing Riftbound.…
§ 483 A Mode of Play must deﬁne several variables for the game.…
§ 483.1 Number of Players: How many people are playing the game.…
§ 483.2 Formation of Players: How the players are organized while playing.…
§ 483.2.a This deﬁnes if a player is alone or on a team.…
§ 483.2.b This deﬁnes the number of opponents.…
§ 483.3 Victory Score: The point total a player or team must reach to win.…
§ 483.3.a Victory Scores can be any positive number.…
§ 483.4 Battleﬁeld Count: Determines how many Battleﬁelds are in play, contributed by players, during play.…
§ 483.4.a This may inﬂuence deck building requirements in competitive settings.…
§ 483.4.b This may involve utilizing less Battleﬁelds than there are players.…
§ 483.5 Setup: Any changes to initial setup required for this mode.…
§ 483.6 Format: Conditions to win or additional rules added over play.…
§ 483.7 First Turn Process: Adjustments to each player's ﬁrst turn.…
§ 483.8 Unique Rules…
§ 483.8.a If any, they will be appended here.…
§ 484 Sanctioned Modes…
§ 485 1v1 (Duel)…
§ 485.1 2 Players…
§ 485.2 1v1…
§ 485.3 Victory Score: 8…
§ 485.4 Battleﬁeld Count: 2…
§ 485.4.a Each player provides three (3) Battleﬁelds, included in their deck during deck building. Only…
§ 485.5 Setup: Each player randomly selects one (1) of their three (3) Battleﬁelds. The other two are removed and will not be used for this game. Th…
§ 485.6 Format: Best of 1. The ﬁrst player to reach the Victory Score in Points wins the Match.…
§ 485.7 First Turn Process: The player going second channels an extra Rune from their Rune Deck during their ﬁrst Channel Phase of the game.…
§ 486 1v1 (Match)…
§ 486.1 2 Players…
§ 486.2 1v1…
§ 486.3 Victory Score: 8…
§ 486.4 Battleﬁeld Count: 2…
§ 486.4.a Each player provides three (3) Battleﬁelds, included in their deck during deck building. Only…
§ 486.5 Setup: Each player selects one (1) of their three (3) Battleﬁelds. The other two are set aside and will not be used for this round of play. …
§ 486.5.a If no player won a game, the battleﬁelds presented for that game may be reused in a subsequent game.…
§ 486.6 Format: Best of 3. The ﬁrst player to reach the Victory Score in Points wins the game. The winner of that game earns One Game Win. Players t…
§ 486.6.a This format may be played as best of 5. In such a case, during games 4 and 5 of the match players may present a battleﬁeld that has been rem…
§ 486.7 First Turn Process: The player going second channels an extra Rune from their Rune Deck during their ﬁrst Channel Phase of the game.…
§ 487 FFA3 (Skirmish)…
§ 487.1 3 Players…
§ 487.2 FFA…
§ 487.3 Victory Score: 8…
§ 487.4 Battleﬁeld Count: 3…
§ 487.4.a Each player provides three (3) Battleﬁelds, included in their deck during deck building. Only 1 will be used, chosen during setup.…
§ 487.5 Setup: Each player randomly selects one (1) of their three (3) Battleﬁelds. The other two are discarded and will not be used for this game. …
§ 487.6 Format: Best of 1. The ﬁrst player to reach the Victory Score in Points wins the Match.…
§ 487.7 First Turn Process: The player going ﬁrst does not draw a card during their ﬁrst Draw Phase of the game. The player going last channels an e…
§ 488 FFA4 (War)…
§ 488.1 4 Players…
§ 488.2 FFA…
§ 488.3 Victory Score: 8…
§ 488.4 Battleﬁeld Count: 3…
§ 488.4.a Each player provides three (3) Battleﬁelds, included in their deck during deck building.…
§ 488.4.b The player who is taking the ﬁrst turn removes their Battleﬁelds. They will not be used.…
§ 488.5 Setup: Each player who is not going ﬁrst randomly selects one (1) of their three (3) Battleﬁelds. The other two are removed and will not be …
§ 488.6 Format: Best of 1. The ﬁrst player to reach the Victory Score in Points wins the Match.…
§ 488.7 First Turn Process: The player going ﬁrst does not draw a card during their ﬁrst Draw Phase of the game. The player going last channels an e…
§ 489 2v2 (Magma Chamber)…
§ 489.1 4 Players…
§ 489.2 2v2…
§ 489.3 Victory Score: 11…
§ 489.4 Battleﬁeld Count: 3…
§ 489.4.a Each player provides three (3) Battleﬁelds, included in their deck during deck building.…
§ 489.5 Setup:…
§ 489.5.a Each player who is not going ﬁrst randomly selects one (1) of their three (3) Battleﬁelds. The other two are removed and will not be used fo…
§ 489.5.b The player who is taking the ﬁrst turn removes their Battleﬁelds. They will not be used.…
§ 489.5.c Turn order alternates teams.…
§ 489.6 Format: Best of 1. The ﬁrst team to reach the Victory Score in Points wins the Match.…
§ 489.6.a Teammates win or lose together.…
§ 489.7 First Turn Process: The player going ﬁrst does not draw a card during their ﬁrst Draw Phase of the game. The player going last channels an e…
§ 489.8 Unique Rules…
§ 489.8.a Players may play spells or activate abilities during their Teammate's Turn. In order to do so, their Teammate will invite them to play a spe…
§ 489.8.b Battleﬁelds controlled during the Beginning Phase of a player's turn by that player's teammate are disqualiﬁed from being scored by that Tea…
§ 489.8.c Control is not shared.…
§ 489.8.d Points are shared by a team.…
§ 489.8.e Friendly describes controlled Game Objects by a player or their Teammate. Example: "When you play me, ready a friendly unit" could target a …
§ 489.8.f Hands are Private Information. Players may show their Private Information to one or more players at any time during play, including their te…
§ 489.8.g The Final Point has an adjustment to the criteria when scoring.…
§ 489.8.h Teammates may not utilize the same Champion Legend.…
§ 489.8.i Teammates may not utilize the same Battleﬁelds.…

§ 600 (19)

§ 649 Conceding…
§ 650 A player may concede at any time.…
§ 651 When a player concedes, they are removed from the game in progress.…
§ 651.1 If only one other player is remaining after a player has conceded, the player remaining Wins.…
§ 651.2 If more than one player remains after a concession, follow the steps for the Removal of a Player.…
§ 651.3 Removal of a player involves them no longer being able to make choices or otherwise inﬂuence the game.…
§ 651.4 If the player has Teammates due to the Mode of Play, that player’s Teammates also lose and are removed from the game.…
§ 652 If the game continues, follow these steps for Removal of a Player.…
§ 652.1 Banish all permanents, runes, and facedown cards they currently control and all permanents, runes, and facedown cards they own.…
§ 652.2 Remove the Battleﬁeld they contributed to the game if it is in use.…
§ 652.2.a If it was in use, Replace it with a token battleﬁeld with no abilities.…
§ 652.2.b Any units or hidden cards there do not move and are otherwise unaffected by this process. See rule 438. Replace for more information.…
§ 652.2.c If the removed battleﬁeld was applying any continuous effects, those continuous effects immediately cease, which may cause changes in the ch…
§ 652.3 Remove all cards they own from the game.…
§ 652.4 Counter all spells and abilities of all types controlled by the player that has conceded.…
§ 652.5 Proceed with the game.…
§ 652.5.a Turn…
§ 652.5.b Focus…
§ 652.5.c Priority…

§ 700 Additional Rules (150)

§ 701 Buffs…
§ 702 Buffs are counters placed on Units.…
§ 702.1 Buffs can be tracked with a buff reminder card from a Riftbound booster pack or with any spare object in your surroundings.…
§ 702.2 Buffs can be added or spent.…
§ 702.2.a To Buff a Unit, a player chooses a Unit and then places a buff on it. That Unit is Buffed for as long as the buff remains on it.…
§ 702.2.b Spending a Buff removes a single Buff counter from a Unit.…
§ 702.3 There can only be one Buff on a Unit at a time.…
§ 702.3.a If a Buff is added, or instructed to be added, on a Unit that already has a Buff, it is not placed instead.…
§ 703 Each Buff individually contributes +1 Might to a Unit.…
§ 704 Buffs are Game Objects and may be referenced, counted, or affected by other effects as speciﬁed.…
§ 704.1 Buffs are counters, and thus are not targeted by spells and abilities. See rule 741. Counters for more information.…
§ 705 If a Unit leaves play, remove all Buffs from it.…
§ 705.1 Champions do not retain Buffs in the Champion Zone, even if they return there somehow.…
§ 706 Mighty…
§ 707 Mighty is a description that applies to some units. Other game effects can check whether a unit is Mighty.…
§ 708 A Unit "is Mighty" as long as its Might is 5 or greater.…
§ 709 A Unit "becomes Mighty" at the moment its Might changes from being less than 5 to being 5 or greater. Example: A Unit with Might 4 that gets…
§ 710 Units on the board are evaluated according to their current Might. Example: A unit with a base Might of 3 is targeted by a spell that reads …
§ 711 Units in Non-Board Zones are evaluated according to their printed Might. Example: A unit in the trash is Mighty if its printed Might is 5 or…
§ 712 Bonus Damage…
§ 713 Bonus Damage is an intrinsic property that can be granted to Deal actions that inﬂuence the amount of Damage that the action is distributing…
§ 714 If more than one instance of Bonus Damage is applied or granted to a Deal action, all instances are summed and applied once.…
§ 714.1 Bonus Damage can only be a positive value, and can only increase the amount of Damage being distributed.…
§ 714.2 If, for any reason, Bonus Damage would be a negative number, then no Bonus Damage is applied to the action.…
§ 715 Bonus Damage applies to the total damage Dealt by one instance of the action.…
§ 715.1 If the Deal action has a single target, the amount of Damage to that target will be increased by the Bonus Damage granted to it.…
§ 715.2 If the Deal action has multiple targets, the amount of Damage dealt to each target is increased by Bonus Damage individually and separately.…
§ 715.3 If the Deal action Splits damage, then the Bonus Damage applies to the amount of Damage that will be Split. This can alter the number of tar…
§ 715.4 If no damage was Dealt, then Bonus Damage will not apply. Example: Teemo, Strategist is a unit that reads in part “When I defend, choose an …
§ 715.4.a If Damage is replaced or reduced by any means, the replacing or reducing action will include the Bonus Damage in the total damage when deter…
§ 716 Attachment…
§ 717 Attaching is a limited action that causes cards to become linked to each other to combine their effects in some way. This causes one card to…
§ 718 Attached is the state of a card being linked to another card in this way.…
§ 718.1 A card remains in this state until Detached.…
§ 718.2 While in this state, the card’s printed Rules Text is Inactive. See rule 720. Inactive for more information.…
§ 718.3 While in this state, Abilities in the card’s Effect Text are appended to the Rules Text of the Top-Most Card.…
§ 718.4 While in this state, the card’s Might Bonus modulates the Top-Most Card’s Might by the value listed.…
§ 718.5 Attached cards still have all properties of being a card on the board while in this state.…
§ 718.5.a Attached cards still have all Types and Tags while Attached.…
§ 718.5.b Attached cards still can be chosen or targeted by game effects while Attached.…
§ 718.5.c Attached cards cannot be moved separately from the Top-Most Card they are Attached to.…
§ 718.5.d A card may be Attached only to a single Top-Most card at a time.…
§ 718.5.e Attached cards may have different Controllers from their Top-Most card.…
§ 718.5.f Changes in Control of the Top-Most card do not impact Control of Attached cards and vice versa.…
§ 718.5.g An Attached card still appends the abilities in its Effect Text to the Rules Text of the Top-Most card and modulates the Top-Most Card’s Mig…
§ 719 A Top-Most Card is a card that has one or more cards linked to it through the process of Attaching.…
§ 719.1 The Effect Text of all cards Attached to this card are appended to the Rules Text of this card for as long as they remain Attached.…
§ 719.2 This card ceases being a Top-Most Card when there are no longer any cards Attached to it.…
§ 719.3 A Top-Most Card and all cards Attached to it are at the same location.…
§ 719.3.a When the Top-Most Card changes locations, all Attached cards change locations with it.…
§ 719.4 The Exhausted and Ready state of the Top-Most card does not affect nor change the status of the Attached cards and vice versa.…
§ 719.4.a This is true of all statuses aside from location, Attached, and Top-Most. Example: If the top-most card becomes stunned, it does not affect …
§ 719.5 When a Top-Most Card changes zones from a board zone to a non-board zone, all Attached cards Detach from it, remaining in their current zone…
§ 719.5.a The player that controls the Top-Most Card that changed zones decides the order these cards Detach in, and thus the order of any relevant ef…
§ 720 Inactive…
§ 721 Card text can occasionally be assigned to be ignored, disregarded, or otherwise rendered as not applicable during the course of play. This s…
§ 721.1 Text marked this way is not applied at all while in this state.…
§ 721.2 Inactive Abilities do not trigger, do not apply, and cannot be activated. Inactive instructions are not processed.…
§ 722 Inactive text is still present on cards.…
§ 722.1 Cards with Inactive text still have keywords for the sake of Game Effects that want to reference or see if a card has a keyword.…
§ 722.2 Game Effects that parse or interpret text to determine target eligibility may still parse Inactive text for the sake of eligibility. Example…
§ 723 Rules Text is never Inactive by default.…
§ 724 Effect Text is Inactive unless the card with the Effect Text is Attached.…
§ 725 Inactive text can partially cease to be Inactive under speciﬁc circumstances and exceptions.…
§ 725.1 If an Attached card has a Passive or Replacement ability that applies during the process of Attaching or a Triggered ability that triggers o…
§ 725.2 If an Attached card has a Passive or Replacement ability that applies during the process of Detaching or a Triggered ability that triggers o…
§ 725.3 If an Attached card has an Equip ability, the Weaponmaster keyword can reference that Equip ability and any abilities that passively modify …
§ 725.4 If a Dependent Ability is a Triggered Ability whose condition occurs at the same time as the Dependent Keyword’s condition being fulﬁlled, t…
§ 726 Dependent Keywords…
§ 727 Keywords can be Dependent Keywords…
§ 727.1 A Dependent Keyword is comprised of both a Condition that it is short for, and an ability of some format immediately after the Keyword itsel…
§ 727.1.a A Dependent Keyword will always be functionally short for a Condition.…
§ 727.1.b The Dependent Ability associated with the Dependent Keyword is Inactive on the card with the Dependent Keyword until the Condition is met, w…
§ 727.1.c The Dependent Abilities of Dependent Keywords can be of any type…
§ 728 XP…
§ 729 XP is a resource that is accrued, spent, or otherwise modiﬁed by Players through the course of play.…
§ 729.1 The amount of XP that a player has should be marked clearly.…
§ 729.1.a XP is a value that can be tracked by counters, dice, cards, or any method that clearly displays the speciﬁc value of XP that is currently on…
§ 729.2 The amount of XP a Player has is Public Information.…
§ 730 XP can be Gained and Spent.…
§ 730.1 To Gain XP, increase the value of XP marked on the Player gaining it.…
§ 730.2 To Spend XP, reduce the value of XP marked on the Player spending it.…
§ 731 XP is not a Game Object.…
§ 731.1 XP cannot be targeted, readied, or exhausted.…
§ 732 XP is not shared between Allies in Game Modes with Teammates.…
§ 733 There is no limit to an amount of XP a player can accrue.…
§ 734 Additional Turns…
§ 735 Certain Game Effects will instruct a player to “take a turn after this.” These effects create a temporary Additional Turn owned by that play…
§ 736 Turn order is established when the game begins as a repeating set of players. This populates a looping queue of turns that each player will …
§ 737 When an Additional Turn is inserted into this queue, it does not change the Turn Order of the game. The owner of the Additional Turn just ha…
§ 738 If multiple Additional Turns are queued, they are added to the queue in the order the Game Effects that generated them occurred. Example: Th…
§ 739 Special Terms…
§ 740 Card text and this rules document use certain terms in speciﬁc ways that are different from their common usage.…
§ 740.1 Some card text refers to Game Objects in particular ways:…
§ 740.1.a Two Game Objects are friendly if they share a controller, or if one’s controller is teammates with the other’s.…
§ 740.1.b Two Game Objects are enemies if one’s controller is an opponent of the other’s.…
§ 740.2 Some card text refers to Units in particular ways:…
§ 740.2.a A unit is alone when there are no other friendly units at the same location.…
§ 740.2.b A unit is one on one when it and the enemy unit at the same location are both alone.…
§ 740.2.c A unit is in combat if it is occupying a battleﬁeld where combat is ongoing and has a combat designation.…
§ 740.3 Some card text refers to speciﬁc terminology:…
§ 740.3.a A tie occurs when there are units controlled by different players located at a battleﬁeld where combat is taking place during the step 3d of…
§ 740.4 Some terms in this document are used in particular ways:…
§ 740.4.a Costs within instructions are instructions that take a particular form (“[do X] to [do Y]”). [Do X] is the cost associated with the instruct…
§ 741 Counters…
§ 742 Counters are Game Objects generated by and given to other Game Objects on the board during play.…
§ 743 Counters serve to track semi-permanent effects on Game Objects.…
§ 744 Counters can have game effects themselves, or serve as the prerequisite for game effects.…
§ 745 Counters can be spent by game effects.…
§ 745.1 In order to do so, that player must remove that many counters of the speciﬁed type from the speciﬁed Game Objects.…
§ 745.1.a If no type of counter is speciﬁed, any counter can be removed this way.…
§ 745.1.b If no type of Game Object is speciﬁed, then counters can be removed from any Game Objects with the speciﬁed counter.…
§ 745.2 In order to spend a Counter, the spending player must control the Game Object the Counter is placed on.…
§ 746 Some effects may move a Counter between two Game Objects. The Counter is either on the ﬁrst Game Object or the second. There is no state for…
§ 747 Counters that leave a Game Object without being placed on another game object cease to exist.…
§ 748 Game Objects that change zones to a non-board zone lose all of their Counters. See rule 124. for more information on temporary modiﬁcations.…
§ 749 Counters do not have a controller.…
§ 750 Making New Choices…
§ 751 Some Game Effects will instruct a player to make new choices for a ﬁnalized item on the chain.…
§ 751.1 Making new choices in this way requires a player to choose Game Objects, players, zones, or modes that were previously not being chosen by t…
§ 752 This refers to the choices normally made during ﬁnalization, with some exclusions. See rule 355. Make Relevant Choices for more information.…
§ 752.1 The relevant choices that can be remade for these Game Effects are locations to be played to, modes, destinations, and targets.…
§ 752.2 This does not refer to any choices made “as you play this” or “as I am played,” or any choices made for Optional Additional Costs.…
§ 753 When making new choices in this way, a player can choose any subset of the possible choices to remake, so long as doing so doesn’t lead to a…
§ 753.1 A player may not make new choices this way that would be illegal or that would lead to an illegal state, even if there are no other options.…
§ 753.2 A player may not choose to make new choices for a spell or ability if there aren’t legal choices that they could make in this way.…
§ 754 If, as a result of new choices, the spell or ability targets a Game Object it previously did not target, any Targeting Effects of that Game …
§ 755 Any costs “to play” the spell or ability that are incurred as a result of new choices made in this way are ignored.…
§ 755.1 The spell or ability is already played and its costs paid. Any further costs incurred have no effect on the ﬁnalized chain item.…
§ 756 Untargetability…
§ 757 Some Game Effects declare that a Game Object can’t be chosen by a certain set of spells and abilities. Those effects designate the Game Obje…
§ 757.1 These passive abilities will usually take the form “[Game Object] can’t be chosen by [Category] spells and abilities.” Example: Ruin Runner’…
§ 758 Untargetable Game Objects are not legal targets for the indicated spells and abilities. See rule 355.6. Targeting for more information.…
§ 758.1 If a Game Object becomes untargetable for a spell or ability after becoming its target and before it resolves, the spell or ability will mis…
§ 758.2 If the spell or ability changes for any reason such that it will no longer fall under the category of spells or abilities for which a Game O…
§ 758.2.a This will also occur if the Game Object is no longer among the set of objects that are made untargetable by a Game Effect. Example: Alpha Wi…
§ 759 Naming Cards, Types, and Tags…
§ 760 Some Game Effects may instruct a player to name or guess a card, type, or tag.…
§ 761 The act of naming a card in this way may be accomplished in one of two ways:…
§ 761.1 1. Stating the exact name of the card. Example: “Kai’Sa, Evolutionary” identiﬁes the card Kai’Sa, Evolutionary.…
§ 761.2 2. Identifying a combination of traits and characteristics that can identify that card uniquely. Example: “The blue Kai’Sa,” “the 6 [M] Kai’…
§ 762 When instructed to name a card, a player must name a card that is legal in the Format being played.…
§ 762.1 They cannot name a card that doesn’t exist.…
§ 762.2 A player cannot choose the name of a token when instructed to name a card.…
§ 763 When instructed to name a tag, a player cannot choose to name a tag that does not exist on cards or tokens in Riftbound.…
§ 763.1 The following tags exist in Riftbound: Ahri, Akali, Akshan, Ambessa, Anivia, Annie, Aphelios, Ashe, Azir, Bandle City, Bard, Bilgewater, Bir…
§ 764 Ignoring Effects…
§ 765 Some Game Effects may instruct players to ignore abilities while performing a game action or procedure.…
§ 766 Any abilities ignored in this way are treated as inactive for the purposes of the game action or procedure. Example: A spell reads “Ignore D…
§ 767 Ignored abilities are only treated as inactive for the speciﬁc game action or procedure described, and only by the players directed by the a…

§ 800 Keywords (240)

§ 801 A Keyword is a speciﬁc term that appears on Cards that acts as a shorthand for a speciﬁc game effect, or ability of any variety.…
§ 801.1 A Keyword can be an ability.…
§ 801.2 Keywords can be identiﬁed by having a colored highlight behind them.…
§ 801.2.a The color of the highlight has no effect on gameplay.…
§ 801.3 Keywords can be referenced or speciﬁed by other Game Effects.…
§ 801.3.a Other effects may grant Keywords.…
§ 801.3.b Other effects may remove Keywords.…
§ 802 A card can have any number of Keywords.…
§ 803 Similar to other rules text, execute any effects of Keywords in the order listed when reading the card from top to bottom of the rules text.…
§ 804 Keyword Glossary…
§ 805 Accelerate…
§ 805.1 Accelerate is a Unit ability.…
§ 805.1.a Accelerate is functionally short for "As you play me, you may pay [1][C] as an additional cost. If you do, I enter ready."…
§ 805.2 Accelerate is an Optional Additional Cost to be paid as a player plays the unit with the ability.…
§ 805.2.a Accelerate costs cannot be paid while the unit is on the board, only as part of the steps of playing a card.…
§ 805.2.b Paying the cost generates a delayed Replacement Effect. Even if the unit loses the accelerate keyword during the ﬁnalization process, as lon…
§ 805.3 Accelerate has no function while on the board.…
§ 805.4 Multiple instances of Accelerate are redundant.…
§ 805.5 Accelerate, and whether or not a unit has Accelerate, is a characteristic of the Unit and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects…
§ 805.6 Accelerate generates a delayed replacement effect that replaces a unit entering the board exhausted with it entering ready. It does not ente…
§ 805.6.a Accelerate will not interact with, or trigger, abilities that are affected by units becoming ready.…
§ 806 Action…
§ 806.1 Action is a Permissive keyword.…
§ 806.1.a It is present on Cards, Rune Abilities, Legend Abilities or Permanent Abilities.…
§ 806.1.b Action grants the corresponding card or effect permission to be played or activated during Showdowns, even when it is not the Controlling pl…
§ 806.1.c Action is functionally short for the following:…
§ 806.1.d Action is formatted as “[Action]” on spells, or “[Action][>]” on abilities.…
§ 806.2 The card or effect with this keyword is not restricted to showdowns. This permission is inclusive of all other timings and options available…
§ 806.3 Action does not alter the function of any instruction of the corresponding card or effect it is on. It is only permission. Example: Playing …
§ 806.4 Some passive abilities may grant a card or ability Action under certain conditions. The card or ability does not have the Action keyword unl…
§ 806.4.a Those conditions might only be fulﬁlled while the card or ability is on the chain. In such a case, it can still be played or activated at th…
§ 806.4.b If the chain item does not fulﬁll the conditions by the time step 5: check legality has been reached, the actions taken while playing it are…
§ 806.5 Action is a referenceable characteristic.…
§ 806.5.a Whether or not a Game Object has Action is a characteristic of that Game Object and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 806.5.b Whether or not a Spell has Action is a characteristic of that Spell and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 806.5.c Whether or not an Ability has Action is a characteristic of that Ability and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 807 Assault…
§ 807.1 Assault is a Passive Ability keyword.…
§ 807.1.a It is present on Units.…
§ 807.1.b Assault is formatted as "Assault [X]".…
§ 807.1.c It is functionally short for "While I am an attacker, I have +X [M]."…
§ 807.1.d Being an attacker means the Unit has gained the Attacker designation during Combat. See rule 459. Combat for more information.…
§ 807.2 If a Unit has Assault or has been granted Assault and is granted Assault by an additional source, the Assault Value of all granted Assault k…
§ 807.3 Assault, and whether or not a unit has Assault, is a characteristic of the Unit and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 808 Deathknell…
§ 808.1 Deathknell is a Triggered Ability keyword.…
§ 808.1.a It is present on Permanents.…
§ 808.1.b It is formatted as "[Deathknell][>] [Effect]".…
§ 808.1.c It is functionally short for "When I die, [Effect]."…
§ 808.1.d The Trigger for this and similar effects that trigger on their source’s death is the Permanent being Killed and sent to the Trash.…
§ 808.2 Each instance of Deathknell a Permanent may have will trigger separately.…
§ 808.2.a The controller will choose the order to add these Triggers to the chain.…
§ 808.3 Deathknell, and whether or not a permanent has Deathknell, is a characteristic of the permanent and may be checked or referenced by other Ga…
§ 809 Deﬂect…
§ 809.1 Deﬂect is a Passive Ability keyword.…
§ 809.1.a It is normally present on Permanents.…
§ 809.1.b It is formatted as "Deﬂect [X]".…
§ 809.1.c It is functionally short for "Spells and abilities an opponent controls that target [me/this] cost an amount of Power equal to [Deﬂect Value…
§ 809.1.d It is an effect that imposes a Mandatory Additional Cost on Spells and Abilities that choose the Game Object that has this ability. See rule…
§ 809.2 If a Game Object has Deﬂect, or has been granted Deﬂect, and is granted Deﬂect by an additional source, the Deﬂect Value of all granted Deﬂe…
§ 809.3 Deﬂect, and whether or not a Game Object has Deﬂect, is a characteristic of the permanent and may be checked or referenced by other Game Eff…
§ 810 Ganking…
§ 810.1 Ganking is a Passive Ability keyword.…
§ 810.1.a It is present on Units.…
§ 810.1.b It is functionally short for "I may move to a battleﬁeld from another battleﬁeld with a standard move."…
§ 810.1.c It is a passive ability that adds permissions to the Unit's Standard Move.…
§ 810.2 Multiple instances of Ganking are redundant.…
§ 810.3 Ganking, and whether or not a unit has Ganking, is a characteristic of the Unit and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 811 Hidden…
§ 811.1 Hidden is a keyword that acts as a prerequisite to perform the Hide Discretionary Action.…
§ 811.1.a It is present on Spells, Units, and Gear.…
§ 811.1.b It is functionally short for "While this card is in your hand or in your Champion Zone on your turn during an Open State, you may pay [A] to…
§ 811.1.c It allows the player to take the Discretionary Action Hide.…
§ 811.1.d Some choices made while playing a card from Hidden are restricted to the battleﬁeld where it was hidden. A card cannot be played from Hidden…
§ 811.2 Abilities and instructions of hidden cards other than the choices listed above function as normal. Example: Stand United is a spell that has…
§ 811.3 Instead of being hidden, a card with Hidden may be played for its cost as normal, at its normal timing with no restrictions on targeting.…
§ 811.4 Multiple instances of Hidden are redundant.…
§ 811.5 Hidden, and whether or not a card has Hidden, is a characteristic of the card and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 811.5.a This is independent of the state of being facedown.…
§ 811.6 A card that is Hidden gains Reaction while facedown or played from facedown, and may be played any time a card with Reaction may be played a…
§ 811.6.a The property is granted to the card in its facedown state, and is not publicly known.…
§ 812 Legion…
§ 812.1 Legion is a Dependent Keyword.…
§ 812.1.a It is formatted as "[Legion][>] [Text]".…
§ 812.1.b Starting from the Keyword to the end of the clause, the entire statement is the Legion Ability.…
§ 812.1.c As long as a card different than the one with the Legion ability has been Finalized by you on the same turn then the Dependent Ability is Ac…
§ 812.2 All instances of Legion on cards a player controls are satisﬁed by that player playing a single card. Example: One card has three different …
§ 812.3 Legion, and whether or not a card has Legion, is a characteristic of the card and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 813 Reaction…
§ 813.1 Reaction is a Permissive keyword.…
§ 813.1.a It can be present on Cards, Rune Abilities, Legend Abilities and Permanent Abilities.…
§ 813.1.b Reaction grants the corresponding card or effect all abilities and permissions of Action.…
§ 813.1.c Reaction, additionally, is functionally short for the following:…
§ 813.1.d Reaction is formatted as “[Reaction]” on cards, or “[Reaction][>]” on abilities.…
§ 813.2 The corresponding card or effect with this keyword is not restricted to Closed States or Showdowns. This permission is inclusive of all othe…
§ 813.3 Reaction does not alter the function of any instruction of the Card, Rune, or Effect it is on. It is only Permission.…
§ 813.3.a Playing Units with Reaction still has the inherent restrictions of playing Units without Reaction. It can only be played to the controlling …
§ 813.4 Some passive abilities may grant a card or ability Reaction under certain conditions. The card or ability does not have the Reaction keyword…
§ 813.4.a Those conditions might only be fulﬁlled while the card or ability is on the chain. In such a case, it can still be played or activated at th…
§ 813.4.b If the chain item does not fulﬁll the conditions by the time step 5: check legality has been reached, the actions taken while playing it are…
§ 813.5 Reaction is a referencable characteristic.…
§ 813.5.a Whether or not a Game Object has Reaction is a characteristic of that Game Object and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 813.5.b Whether or not a Spell has Reaction is a characteristic of that Spell and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 813.5.c Whether or not an Ability has Reaction is a characteristic of that Ability and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 814 Shield…
§ 814.1 Shield is a Passive Ability keyword.…
§ 814.1.a It is present on Units.…
§ 814.1.b Shield is formatted as "Shield [X]".…
§ 814.1.c It is functionally short for "While I am a defender, I have +X [M]."…
§ 814.1.d Being a defender means the Unit has gained the Defender designation during Combat. See rule 459. Combat for more information.…
§ 814.2 If a Unit has Shield, or has been granted Shield, and is granted Shield by an additional source, the Shield Value of all granted Shield keyw…
§ 814.3 Shield, and whether or not a unit has Shield, is a characteristic of the Unit and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 815 Tank…
§ 815.1 Tank is a Passive Ability keyword.…
§ 815.1.a It is present on Units.…
§ 815.1.b It is functionally short for "I must be assigned lethal damage before any other unit with the same controller as me that does not have [Tank…
§ 815.1.c It alters how players can elect to assign combat damage during combat.…
§ 815.2 Multiple instances of Tank are redundant.…
§ 815.3 Tank, and whether or not a unit has Tank, is a characteristic of the Unit and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 816 Temporary…
§ 816.1 Temporary is a Triggered Ability keyword.…
§ 816.1.a It is present on Permanents.…
§ 816.1.b It is functionally short for "At the start of this permanent's controller's Beginning Phase, before scoring, kill this."…
§ 816.1.c The Trigger Condition is the controller of the permanent's Beginning Phase starting.…
§ 816.2 Multiple instances of Temporary are redundant.…
§ 816.2.a Regardless of how many instances there are, the ability will only trigger once.…
§ 816.3 Temporary, and whether or not a permanent has Temporary, is a characteristic of the permanent and may be checked or referenced by other Game…
§ 817 Vision…
§ 817.1 Vision is a Triggered Ability keyword.…
§ 817.1.a It is present on Permanents.…
§ 817.1.b It is functionally short for "When this is played, predict.”…
§ 817.1.c The trigger is the permanent entering the Board.…
§ 817.2 Multiple instances of Vision trigger separately.…
§ 817.2.a The player may choose to recycle or not recycle for each instance of Vision separately.…
§ 817.2.b If the player does not recycle the top card and nothing else happens in between the triggers resolving, each instance of Vision will see the…
§ 817.3 Vision, and whether or not a permanent has Vision, is a characteristic of the permanent and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effec…
§ 818 Equip…
§ 818.1 Equip is an Activated Ability keyword.…
§ 818.1.a Equip is present on Gear with the tag Equipment.…
§ 818.1.b Equip has a cost to activate and Attaches the card with Equip to a chosen Unit when the cost is paid.…
§ 818.1.c Equip is formatted as “Equip [Cost]”…
§ 818.2 When the Attach action completes from this keyword, the Unit that was chosen is considered to have been Equipped by the Gear with this abili…
§ 818.2.a This is an event other Game Effects and Triggered Abilities can reference.…
§ 818.3 Equipped is the state of a Top-Most Card being Attached by one or more cards that are Equipment.…
§ 818.3.a The state of being Equipped is synchronous with that of the Attached state of the Equipment.…
§ 818.3.b A Top-Most Card is Equipped as long as one or more of its Attached cards are Equipment.…
§ 818.3.c The state of being Equipped corresponds to a Top-Most card having a card with Equip that is Attached to it.…
§ 818.4 Multiple instances of Equip are equivalent to multiple Activated Abilities and can each be activated separately by paying the corresponding …
§ 818.5 Equip, and whether or not a Gear has Equip, is a characteristic of the Gear and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 818.5.a Whether or not a Gear has Equip may be referenced even if the Rules Text of the Gear is Inactive. See rule 716. Attachment for more informat…
§ 819 Quick-Draw…
§ 819.1 Quick-Draw is a Triggered Ability keyword. It is also a Permissive keyword.…
§ 819.1.a Quick-Draw is present on Gear with Equip abilities.…
§ 819.1.b Cards with Quick-Draw have Reaction inherently.…
§ 819.1.c Quick-Draw allows cards to be played and Attached using Reaction timing.…
§ 819.1.d Quick-Draw is functionally short for “[Reaction]” and “When you play this, attach it to a Unit you control.” See rule 716. Attachment for mo…
§ 819.2 Multiple instances of Quick-Draw do not trigger separately and have no effect beyond the ﬁrst.…
§ 819.3 Quick-Draw, and whether or not a gear has Quick-Draw, is a characteristic of the Gear and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects…
§ 820 Repeat…
§ 820.1 Repeat is an Optional Additional Cost keyword.…
§ 820.1.a Repeat is present on Spells and Abilities.…
§ 820.1.b Repeat is an optional cost that a player may pay to execute the effect of their spells and abilities a second time.…
§ 820.1.c Repeat is formatted as “Repeat [Cost]”…
§ 820.1.d Repeat is functionally short for “You may pay [Cost] as an additional cost as you play this. If you do, execute the instructions of this cha…
§ 820.2 When a spell or ability’s effect is performed an additional time with Repeat, choices must be made at the usual time during the Make Relevan…
§ 820.2.a Choices made for the additional execution do not have to be the same as the choices made for the initial execution. Example: Rocket Barrage …
§ 820.3 Multiple instances of Repeat can be paid for separately. The spell or ability’s instructions will be executed an additional time on resoluti…
§ 820.3.a Regardless of the number of times a spell or ability's instructions are executed with this keyword, it is only Played once.…
§ 820.4 Repeat, and whether or not a spell or ability has Repeat, is a characteristic of the spell or ability and may be checked or referenced by ot…
§ 821 Weaponmaster…
§ 821.1 Weaponmaster is a Triggered Ability keyword.…
§ 821.1.a Weaponmaster is present on Units.…
§ 821.1.b Weaponmaster is a Play Effect that chooses an Equipment you control and allows you to pay its Equip cost at a discount, regardless of the us…
§ 821.1.c Weaponmaster is functionally short for: “When you play me, you may choose a Card you control with the Equipment tag. Necessary portions of i…
§ 821.1.d If you choose the same target with multiple instances of Weaponmaster, each will resolve separately.…
§ 821.2 Weaponmaster has no function while on the board.…
§ 821.3 Weaponmaster, and whether or not a unit has Weaponmaster, is a characteristic of the Unit and may be checked or referenced by other Game Eff…
§ 822 Ambush…
§ 822.1 Ambush is a Passive Ability keyword.…
§ 822.1.a It is normally present on Units.…
§ 822.1.b It is functionally short for "I may be played to a battleﬁeld where you control Units" and “I have [Reaction] as long as I’m being played to…
§ 822.1.c It is a passive ability that adds options to locations that are valid for a Unit to be played to during the Make Relevant Choices step of Pl…
§ 822.1.d Ambush can also appear as a verb on a card. In such a case, the verb is taken to mean “play with the permissions of the Ambush keyword.” Exa…
§ 822.2 Multiple instances of Ambush are redundant.…
§ 822.3 If there are no units at the location chosen before Finalization completes for any reason, then it is no longer a valid location by Ambush’s…
§ 822.3.a Other effects and permissions may still enable this Unit to be able to be played to the selected location, but Ambush’s permission will not …
§ 822.4 Ambush, and whether or not a unit has Ambush, is a characteristic of the Unit and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 823 Hunt…
§ 823.1 Hunt is a Triggered Ability keyword.…
§ 823.1.a Hunt is present on Units.…
§ 823.1.b Hunt is both a Conquer and a Hold effect.…
§ 823.1.c Hunt is formatted as “Hunt X”…
§ 823.2 If a Unit has Hunt, or has been granted Hunt, and is granted Hunt by an additional source, the Hunt Value of all granted Hunt keywords is su…
§ 823.3 Hunt, and whether or not a unit has Hunt, is a characteristic of the Unit and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 824 Level…
§ 824.1 Level is a Dependent Keyword.…
§ 824.1.a It is formatted as "[Level [N][>] [Text]".…
§ 824.1.b Starting from the Keyword to the end of the clause, the entire statement is the Level Ability.…
§ 824.1.c As long as the controlling player has [N] XP, then the Dependent Ability will be be Active on the card with Level…
§ 824.1.d The Dependent Ability will be Inactive as soon as the controlling player has less than [N] XP.…
§ 824.2 Level, and whether or not a card has Level is a characteristic of the card and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 825 Unique…
§ 825.1 Unique is a Deck Constraint Permission.…
§ 825.2 It is normally present on main deck cards.…
§ 825.3 Unique is not functionally short for any rules text, and instead provides a restriction to players during Deck Construction.…
§ 825.3.a A deck can contain only one card of a given name if the card has Unique…
§ 825.3.b If a card is a Signature card and is also Unique, then that deck can contain any combination of three Signature cards, but still only one of…
§ 825.4 Cards with Unique have no additional effects during gameplay.…
§ 825.5 Unique, and whether or not a Card has Unique, is a characteristic of the Unit and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 826 Backline…
§ 826.1 Backline is a Passive Ability keyword.…
§ 826.2 It is present on Units.…
§ 826.3 It is functionally short for “I must be assigned lethal damage after any other unit with the same controller as me that does not have [Backl…
§ 826.4 It alters how players can elect to assign combat damage during combat.…
§ 826.4.a Players must still assign lethal damage to a unit before moving to the next when assigning their damage.…
§ 826.4.b If more than one unit with Backline is present with the same controller in Combat, damage may be assigned to any of them. Units with Backlin…
§ 826.5 Multiple Instances of Backline are redundant.…
§ 826.6 Backline, and whether or not a unit has Backline, is a characteristic of the Unit and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…
§ 827 Empower…
§ 827.1 Empower is an Activated Ability keyword.…
§ 827.1.a Empower is normally present on permanents and legends.…
§ 827.1.b Empower has a cost to activate and Empowers the source of the ability when the cost is paid. See rule 441. Empower (Game Action) for more in…
§ 827.1.c Empower is formatted as “Empower [Cost]”…
§ 827.2 When the Empower action completes from this keyword, the source permanent or legend becomes Empowered.…
§ 827.2.a This is an event other Game Effects and Triggered Abilities can reference.…
§ 827.3 Multiple instances of Empower are equivalent to multiple activated abilities and can each be activated separately by paying the correspondin…
§ 827.4 Empower and whether a permanent or legend has Empower are a characteristic of those Game Objects and may be checked or referenced by other G…
§ 828 Empowered…
§ 828.1 Empowered is a Dependent Keyword.…
§ 828.1.a It is formatted as “[Empowered][>] [Text].”…
§ 828.1.b Starting from the keyword to the end of the clause, the entire statement is the Empowered Ability.…
§ 828.1.c As long as the Game Object has the Empowered status, then the Dependent Ability will be active.…
§ 828.1.d If the Dependent Ability is a Triggered Ability whose condition is “When I become Empowered,” or a permutation thereof, it will be active an…
§ 828.2 Empowered and whether or not a card has an Empowered Ability is a characteristic of the card that may be checked or referenced by other Game…
§ 829 Flow…
§ 829.1 Flow is a passive ability keyword.…
§ 829.1.a Flow is present on Spells.…
§ 829.1.b It is functionally short for “You may play this from your trash for its ﬂow cost. Then banish it.”…
§ 829.1.c Flow is formatted as “Flow [Cost]”…
§ 829.2 Flow, and whether or not a spell has Flow, is a characteristic of the Spell and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.…

2026 Regional Championship Info (1 secties)

§ 2000 (1)

§ 2026 Regional Championship Info 2026 Regional Championship Info Details on 3 Championships hitting the calendar this year Organized Play 2026-08-…

Tournament Rules PDF (officieel) (653 secties)

§ 000 Golden Rule (2)

§ 001 The tournament rules exist to ensure anyone who attends a Riftbound organized play event has a fun, equitable, fair, safe and consistent exp…
§ 1 plays against seed 2, seed 3 plays against seed 4, etc.…

§ 100 Introduction (12)

§ 101 Purpose: This document provides the frameworks and structures for Riftbound competitions by deﬁning rules, responsibilities and procedures t…
§ 102 Consistency: All Riftbound competitions must be run consistently regardless of their organizer or location to ensure equal treatment of play…
§ 103 Responsibility:…
§ 103.1 Attendees: All competitors AND all competition officials are expected to be responsible for following the rules as written and in the spirit…
§ 103.2 Spectators: Spectators have their own set of responsibilities and expectations. See 204.8 for more information on spectators.…
§ 103.3 Penalties: Individuals who violate the frameworks and structures in this document are subject to penalties at the appropriate Organized Play…
§ 104 Precedence:…
§ 104.1 vs. Core Rules: In some cases, information in this document may contradict, or provide information not contained in, the Riftbound Core Rule…
§ 104.2 vs. Official Local Language Translations: The English language version of this document will supersede any translation.…
§ 104.3 vs. Speciﬁc Event Addenda: In some cases, information in this document may be contradicted by alternate or additional policies or procedures…
§ 105 Alteration: Riot Games or its official Riftbound partners reserve the right to alter this document, or any subsequent competition-speciﬁc ad…
§ 128 Privacy for information types.…

§ 200 Deﬁnitions (76)

§ 201 Competition Types: Riftbound competitions come in three types.…
§ 201.1 Premier: A competition that is run by Riot Games or an official competition organizer and has a unique name and features.…
§ 201.2 Qualiﬁer: Any competition where rewards include access or advantages for premier events. (Premier events can themselves be qualiﬁers.)…
§ 201.3 Local: Any competition that is neither premier nor qualiﬁer.…
§ 202 Tournament Modes:…
§ 202.1 Competition Formats:…
§ 202.1.a Limited: A limited competition is one where all product needed for play is provided during the competition.…
§ 202.1.b Constructed: A constructed competition is one where players compete using decks they prepare beforehand.…
§ 202.1.c See 600. for more information on Competition Formats.…
§ 202.2 Round Structures:…
§ 202.2.a Swiss: A competition or component of a competition where players are paired each round against players they haven’t already played in the co…
§ 202.2.b Playoff: A competition or component of a competition where players are initially paired based on their standing and are subsequently elimina…
§ 202.3 Multiple: Some competitions may consist of multiple formats and/or structures within the same competition.…
§ 203 Units of Play:…
§ 203.1 Game: A Riftbound game is deﬁned in the Core Rules.…
§ 203.2 Match: A Riftbound match is deﬁned in the Core Rules.…
§ 204 Competition Roles: Every attendee at a competition has at least one of the following roles.…
§ 204.1 Official roles: Roles 3-6 are considered competition officials for the purpose of this document.…
§ 204.1.a Multiple: Any individual can act in any combination of official roles.…
§ 204.2 Judge roles: Roles 4-5 are considered judges for the purpose of this document.…
§ 204.2.a Judges equally serve as both rules arbiters and ambassadors of a healthy and welcoming environment for all players.…
§ 204.3 Competition Organizer (CO): The CO is responsible for all competition logistics, including:…
§ 204.3.a Sanctioning the event by registering it with Riot Games or its official partners.…
§ 204.3.b Providing a site for the event (the venue) that meets the competition’s needs, including providing sufficient space and amenities for the ex…
§ 204.3.c Promoting the event before it begins.…
§ 204.3.d Staffing the event with the necessary tournament officials and support.…
§ 204.3.e Providing all materials necessary to operate the event.…
§ 204.3.f Reporting the event results.…
§ 204.3.g Maintaining records of the event results (by game and match) for a minimum period of 3 months for the purpose of appeals. See 413 for more i…
§ 204.4 Head Judge: All sanctioned competitions require a Head Judge. The Head Judge is the ﬁnal authority on competition rules and regulations, and…
§ 204.4.a Ensuring that rules, procedures and regulations are followed.…
§ 204.4.b Ensuring that all game or policy violations are dealt with and any appropriate corrective action taken.…
§ 204.4.c Responding to ﬂoor judges who bring matters to their attention.…
§ 204.4.d Coordinating and delegating responsibilities to ﬂoor judges as necessary.…
§ 204.4.e Determining corrective action for errors or violations of the scorekeeper or ﬂoor judges.…
§ 204.4.f The head judge has ultimate discretion if situations arise where the written rules are unclear or inadequate.…
§ 204.5 Floor Judge: Floor judges respond to players and spectators who have questions about rules and regulations, and/or need judgment on the same…
§ 204.5.a Answering questions about rules, interactions among cards, providing Watcher wordings, or derived game state.…
§ 204.5.b Provide rulings related to game and policy violations brought to their attention.…
§ 204.5.c Assist with translation if able.…
§ 204.5.d Assist players in technically precise play (at low OPL). (This should generally not include strategic advice.)…
§ 204.6 Scorekeeper: All sanctioned competitions require a scorekeeper. Scorekeepers are responsible for correct competition logistics as it relates…
§ 204.6.a Generating each round of the competition and necessary data to proceed with that round (e.g. match pairings).…
§ 204.6.b Generating standings in the competition before the last round of the competition (in Swiss competitions).…
§ 204.6.c Generating standings in the competition after the last round of the competition (in Swiss competitions).…
§ 204.6.d Solving scorekeeping problems with a-c above in conjunction with the Head Judge.…
§ 204.6.e Reporting on the competition afterward and including all necessary data.…
§ 204.7 Player…
§ 204.7.a Any non-official participant of the competition is a player.…
§ 204.7.b Players have responsibilities, including:…
§ 204.7.c Even if officials assist, the player remains ultimately responsible for the above.…
§ 204.7.d Individual members of a team in a team competition are each individually responsible for the above.…
§ 204.7.e Violations of the above responsibilities may be subject to penalties, suspension, or revocation of that player’s eligibility.…
§ 204.8 Spectator…
§ 204.8.a Any person present at a competition but not in one of the above roles is a spectator.…
§ 204.8.b A player who is at a competition but not currently playing a match is also a spectator.…
§ 204.8.c Spectators have responsibilities, including:…
§ 204.8.d Spectator are prohibited from the following:…
§ 204.8.e Players may request to a judge that a spectator not observe their match, at that judge’s discretion.…
§ 204.8.f Competition officials may instruct that a spectator not observe a match.…
§ 205 Organized Play Level (OPL): OPL is shorthand that helps communicate expectations to players and judges.…
§ 205.1 The purpose of OPL is to deﬁne how strictly to treat deviations from rules, policy, and procedures as violations and what penalty those viol…
§ 205.2 Casual (low): Most competitions are casual and are focused on fun and social interaction, not rules enforcement.…
§ 205.2.a Players are expected to know most of the rules as deﬁned in the Core Rules.…
§ 205.2.b Players are responsible for playing according to the rules in the Core Rules and this document, but:…
§ 205.2.c Generally, violations at this level have lower penalties which are covered below in section 700.…
§ 205.3 Competitive (high): These competitions have signiﬁcant rewards, which may include invitations or advantages at the Professional level.…
§ 205.3.a Players are expected to know the rules as deﬁned in the Core Rules and this document.…
§ 205.3.b All attendees are expected to maintain the integrity of the competition, while recognizing that some players may not be used to playing at t…
§ 205.3.c Generally, violations at this level have stricter penalties which are covered below in section 700.…
§ 205.4 Professional (high): These competitions have signiﬁcant rewards and prestige.…
§ 205.4.a Players are expected to know the rules as deﬁned in the Core Rules and this document completely.…
§ 205.4.b All attendees are expected to maintain the integrity of the competition and the highest standard of behavior and technically precise play.…
§ 205.4.c Generally, violations at this level have the strictest penalties which are covered below in section 700.…
§ 206 Round Cycle: A round cycle is the duration (in turns) that contains the standard turn for all players.…
§ 206.1 Additional turns do not affect the round cycle.…

§ 300 Eligibility (21)

§ 301 Anyone is eligible to participate as a player in Riftbound competitions, unless the player is:…
§ 301.1 Suspended.…
§ 301.2 A competition official in that same competition, unless the competition explicitly allows it (non-premier competitions only).…
§ 301.3 Speciﬁcally prohibited by Riot or official partner policy.…
§ 301.4 Under 13 years of age and do not have a parent’s or guardian’s permission.…
§ 301.5 Prohibited by law, the rules or policy of the Competition Organizer, or by the venue’s rules or policy.…
§ 301.6 Restricted by competition addenda regarding age, as long as those restrictions are messaged ahead of time (at low OPL).…
§ 302 Anyone is eligible to participate as a competition official, unless the player is:…
§ 302.1 Suspended.…
§ 302.2 A player in that same competition, unless the competition explicitly allows it (non-premier competitions only).…
§ 303 If a competition official for an event participates in that event, it must be run at Casual OPL.…
§ 304 Owners of organizations that run premier competitions may not play in those competitions, even if otherwise allowed.…
§ 305 Some competitions have additional criteria regarding eligibility for players or competition officials (for example, invitation-only competit…
§ 306 Employees of Riot and their families are subject to additional restrictions.…
§ 306.1 Family is deﬁned here as any person living with or related to the relevant employee, but not themselves an employee.…
§ 306.2 All employees and their family are allowed to participate in local competitions.…
§ 306.2.a If the reward is product or cash, the employee or family member may claim that part of the reward.…
§ 306.3 Employees must declare themselves to the CO.…
§ 306.4 The CO may decline to allow Riot employees to participate in the competition for any reason; if so, they must abide by this decision.…
§ 306.5 No Riot employee is allowed to play in premier or qualiﬁer competitions.…
§ 306.6 Families of employees are allowed to play in premier or qualiﬁer competitions, if they are otherwise eligible to compete.…

§ 400 Policies (178)

§ 401 Deck Registration…
§ 401.1 Players in competitions are required to register their decks and sideboards (if applicable to the format) at high OPL.…
§ 401.1.a The Head Judge may require deck registration at low OPL.…
§ 401.2 A registered decklist must have a complete, unambiguous record of the player’s Champion Legend, battleﬁelds, Main Deck including Chosen Cham…
§ 401.3 Once a decklist has been registered and delivered to a competition official, it can’t be changed.…
§ 401.4 In a constructed event, a player’s deck must be registered prior to the start of the ﬁrst round of competition.…
§ 401.5 Other player’s decklists are normally considered private information. The head judge of an event may run that event or the ﬁnal rounds of th…
§ 401.5.a In an open decklist competition, each round players are provided with their opponent’s decklist to review at the start of the match and in b…
§ 401.5.b Typically, professional OPL competitions should be run with open decklists, but it is ultimately up to the discretion of the head judge rega…
§ 402 Deck Size…
§ 402.1 In a constructed event, players must register a Main Deck of exactly 40 cards (including a chosen champion), 1 Legend, 12 runes, and exactly…
§ 402.2 Otherwise, deck construction is deﬁned in the Core Rules.…
§ 403 Sideboard…
§ 403.1 In certain competitions, players may have a group of additional cards (outside of their starting conﬁguration) called a sideboard. See 600 f…
§ 403.2 Sideboard size and contents are dictated by the competition format.…
§ 403.3 Limits on copies of named cards as deﬁned by competition format apply to the combination of Main Deck and sideboard.…
§ 403.4 Players may use sideboard cards to modify their deck in between games of a match. Sideboard cards must be exchanged 1 for 1 with Main Deck c…
§ 403.4.a During that time, a player may change their Chosen Champion to one from their sideboard or Main Deck that meets the deckbuilding rules of th…
§ 403.4.b In constructed formats, a player may not change their Runes, Legend, or Battleﬁelds at any point after deck registration.…
§ 403.4.c After the sideboarding process, a player’s Main Deck must meet deck size requirements dictated by the competition format.…
§ 403.5 Players may not use sideboard cards in the ﬁrst game of a match.…
§ 403.6 Players may count the cards in their opponents’ sideboards at any time.…
§ 403.7 A player may look at their own sideboard at any time, but must keep it distinguishable from other cards.…
§ 403.8 A player’s deck and sideboard must be returned to their registered states before the ﬁrst game of the next match.…
§ 403.9 If a match completely skips the ﬁrst game due to a penalty, neither player may sideboard for the following game.…
§ 403.10 If a game ends in a draw, neither player may sideboard for the following game.…
§ 403.11 If a game restarts due to an in-game effect or due to corrective action by judges, the state of each player’s deck and sideboard must remain…
§ 404 Match…
§ 404.1 A match of Riftbound consists of a series of games that are played until one side has won a predetermined number of games.…
§ 404.2 Most matches of Riftbound are “best of 3,” meaning the predetermined number of games to win is 2.…
§ 404.3 Games that end in a draw do not count toward this goal.…
§ 404.4 If the competition round ends (due to time limits) prior to any side achieving the goal, the winner of the match is the one who has won the …
§ 404.5 If all sides have equal game wins, the match is a draw.…
§ 405 Start of Match Procedure…
§ 405.1 Prior to the start of each round, players must seek out information about their imminent match, opponent, and seating in the venue.…
§ 405.2 Players must arrive at their seats prior to the start of the round.…
§ 406 Start of Game Procedure…
§ 406.1 The setup process for a game of Riftbound is deﬁned in the Core Rules. See CR 110. Setup Process. Additionally:…
§ 406.1.a In competitions where sideboards are allowed, players may exchange cards from their main deck and their sideboard after each game of a match…
§ 406.1.b If a game ends in a draw, players must use the same battleﬁelds for the following game.…
§ 406.1.c Each player must shuffle their Main Deck and their Rune Deck. See 420 for more information on shuffling.…
§ 406.1.d Each player must present their Main Deck, Rune Deck, and sideboard (if applicable to the format) to their opponents.…
§ 406.1.e Each player may shuffle the Main Deck and Rune Deck of each of their opponents.…
§ 406.1.f For the ﬁrst game of a match, start of game procedures may be performed as soon as both players reach their assigned seat, even before the s…
§ 406.1.g For competitions run using a “best of 1” format instead of a “best of 3” format, the head judge may opt to use the altered initial setup pro…
§ 407 Play First Rule…
§ 407.1 For the ﬁrst game of a match, a designated player decides whether they wish to play ﬁrst or last.…
§ 407.2 Any random method that is agreed upon by all players in the current game may be used to determine the designated player.…
§ 407.2.a At high OPL, during playoff matches that occur following the end of Swiss rounds, the higher ranked player from the Swiss rounds is automati…
§ 407.3 The player is designated and the choice of playing ﬁrst is made during the Start of Game procedure. See CR 115. Determine turn order.…
§ 407.4 For games after the ﬁrst game of a match, the loser of the previous game gets to choose if they play ﬁrst or last. If the previous game was …
§ 407.5 For alterations to this rule for 2v2, see 603.7.…
§ 408 End of Match Procedure…
§ 408.1 A match is complete once a match result is recorded by players or a tournament official.…
§ 408.2 If the time limit for a competition round is reached before a winner is determined, the player whose turn it is ﬁnishes their turn.…
§ 408.2.a After that player’s turn is complete, three additional turns are played, and then the match ends.…
§ 408.2.b If the game is incomplete at the end of the additional turns, a player is declared the winner of the game if they have a point lead of two o…
§ 408.2.c Additional turns are untimed, but at professional OPL a judge must be present to ensure a reasonable pace of play.…
§ 408.2.d If the players are between games when the round time ends, no new game is started.…
§ 408.3 The winner of a match is the ﬁrst player who reaches the appropriate game win score.…
§ 408.3.a If neither player has reached that score by the end of the end of match procedure, the player with more game wins wins the match.…
§ 408.3.b If players are tied on game wins, the match is a draw.…
§ 408.4 Single elimination matches use untimed rounds so players can play their games to a natural conclusion. In the event that single elimination …
§ 408.4.a When time is reached before a winner is determined, if players are in-between games, if a player has more game wins in the match they win th…
§ 408.4.b When time is reached before a winner is determined, if players are in the middle of a game, the player whose turn it is ﬁnishes their turn.…
§ 408.4.c After that player’s turn is complete, three additional turns are played. At the conclusion of those additional turns:…
§ 408.4.d If the game score is tied and a new game needs to be started, players start the new game and act as though time immediately runs out, beginn…
§ 409 Tiebreakers…
§ 409.1 In the course of determining standings, the scorekeeper might need to distinguish between two players with equal match records.…
§ 409.2 In these cases, the following tiebreakers should be applied in order:…
§ 409.2.a The player with higher opponents’ mean (average) match win percentage.…
§ 409.2.b The player with higher game win percentage.…
§ 409.2.c The player with higher opponents’ mean (average) game win percentage.…
§ 409.3 If after all tiebreakers are applied, two players are still of equal standing in the competition, the scorekeeper should use a random method…
§ 410 Concessions and Intentional Draws…
§ 410.1 At any time before a game is completed, any player may concede that game or all players may mutually agree to draw it.…
§ 410.2 At any time before a match is completed, any player may concede that match or all players may mutually agree to draw it.…
§ 410.3 Players can’t agree to concessions or draws in exchange for anything. See 704.5 for more information on bribery.…
§ 410.4 Players can’t scout other match results before deciding to concede or draw their match and need to remain in their seats while their match i…
§ 410.5 If a player refuses to play, tournament officials should treat that as conceding the match.…
§ 411 Deck Checks…
§ 411.1 At high OPL, judges should perform deck checks during the course of the competition.…
§ 411.2 When deck checks are performed, at least 10% of all decks, chosen at random, should be checked during the course of the competition.…
§ 411.3 Deck checks for the players in a match should occur after players have randomized and presented their decks, but before opening hands are dr…
§ 411.3.a If a deck check is performed within a match, judges should grant a time extension to that match sufficient to cover the logistical time need…
§ 412 Judge Calls…
§ 412.1 At any point during a match, a player may pause to ﬂag a ﬂoor judge. See 204.4 for ﬂoor judge responsibilities.…
§ 412.2 Time extensions should be granted if the total time of a judge call is more than 1 minute.…
§ 413 Appeals…
§ 413.1 If a player disagrees with a judge’s ruling, they may appeal to the head judge.…
§ 413.2 At high OPL, the head judge may designate certain ﬂoor judges to be appeals judges, who are then empowered to hear and rule on appeals. In s…
§ 413.3 Players may not appeal before a full ruling is made by a judge.…
§ 413.4 Players may not appeal a ruling of an appeals judge or the head judge.…
§ 413.5 If a penalty is applied outside the scope of a competition, the appeals process should follow what’s laid out on the official Riot Games web…
§ 414 Dropping…
§ 414.1 Players may drop from a competition at any time.…
§ 414.2 If a player drops before the competition begins, they never participated in the competition.…
§ 414.3 Players who wish to drop must inform the scorekeeper before pairings for the next round of the competition are generated.…
§ 414.4 If a player doesn’t show up for their match, they are automatically dropped from the competition unless they report to the scorekeeper.…
§ 414.5 Players who drop from limited format tournaments own the cards that they correctly have in their possession at the time of dropping, includi…
§ 414.6 If a player drops from a competition after a top placement cut has been made, no player is advanced in replacement. The highest ranked remai…
§ 414.7 Players who have dropped may re-enter the competition before the start of the following round at the discretion of the head judge.…
§ 414.8 Players can’t re-enter a competition if they missed a portion where a deck construction activity was required.…
§ 414.9 Players can’t re-enter a competition after a top placement cut.…
§ 415 Tracking Score & Resources…
§ 415.1 All players within a game are responsible for tracking all players’ scores throughout the game.…
§ 415.2 Changes to score should be announced and acknowledged by all players.…
§ 415.3 Scores must be tracked, displayed, and updated legibly in writing.…
§ 415.3.a At low OPL, an electronic device, dice, or similar methods can be used to track score.…
§ 415.3.b If any player notices a score discrepancy, they must immediately make all players aware of it. If it can’t be resolved easily by the players…
§ 415.4 Players must track their own resources such as XP and unspent Energy/Power they have ﬂoating. They are not required to be written down, but …
§ 415.4.a Resources being immediately spent need to be communicated, but do not need to be tracked in this way.…
§ 415.4.b If any player notices a resource discrepancy, they must immediately make all players aware of it. If it can’t be resolved easily by the play…
§ 416 Taking Notes…
§ 416.1 Players may take written notes during a match and refer to those notes during games in the same match.…
§ 416.2 At the beginning of each match, each player’s written note sheet must be empty and visible to all opponents and tournament officials.…
§ 416.3 Players do not have to reveal their written notes to opponents. Judges may ask players to reveal and/or explain their notes.…
§ 416.4 Players may not refer to notes from outside the current match, including notes from previous matches, during games.…
§ 416.5 Between games, players may refer to notes they made prior to the match. They do not have to reveal these notes to opponents.…
§ 417 Electronic Devices…
§ 417.1 Players may use electronic devices during competitions, but can’t use them during matches.…
§ 417.2 At low OPL, digital devices may take the place of written note sheets.…
§ 417.3 The head judge may further restrict or permit usage of electronic devices.…
§ 418 Coverage…
§ 418.1 Some competitions at high OPL use video capture of matches.…
§ 418.2 Certain events or portions of events may require players to appear on camera.…
§ 418.3 Spectators and players who are on camera during matches are responsible for behaving respectfully toward all participants.…
§ 418.4 Spectators are permitted to record matches using video capture, provided they do so without interfering with the match.…
§ 418.5 At Professional OPL, the head judge may consult video capture to help make rulings during a match.…
§ 418.6 Judges should never honor a player's request to consult video capture.…
§ 419 Proxies and Alters…
§ 419.1 A proxy is a stand-in, unofficial version of an actual Riftbound card.…
§ 419.2 Proxies are not allowed at competitions of any OPL.…
§ 419.2.a The only exception is an official proxy issued by the head judge at their discretion to replace a card deemed unusable.…
§ 419.3 An alter is an official Riftbound card that has been modiﬁed in some way.…
§ 419.4 Alters are allowed in competition only if the modiﬁcations do not:…
§ 419.4.a Modify or obscure the card name or cost, or make the art unrecognizable.…
§ 419.4.b Contain substantial strategic advice.…
§ 419.4.c Contain offensive images or text.…
§ 419.5 By judge discretion, alters may not be allowed to be used during matches that are streamed or otherwise broadcast.…
§ 419.5.a Players using altered cards are responsible for having official unaltered versions of those cards to use during gameplay that is streamed or…
§ 419.5.b When instructed, players must replace the altered versions with the official unaltered versions before gameplay begins for a match that is s…
§ 419.5.c Alters containing material outside of Riot Games intellectual property may not be permitted during matches that are streamed or otherwise br…
§ 419.6 The head judge of a competition is the ﬁnal decider on whether a card is acceptable for a competition.…
§ 420 Card Language…
§ 420.1 Players may include official Riftbound cards of any language in their decks during deckbuilding and gameplay.…
§ 420.2 A player may call a judge at any time to get the Watcher wording for any card in the language of their preference.…
§ 421 Shuffling…
§ 421.1 Decks must be made random at the start of each game, and whenever an instruction from cards or tournament officials require it.…
§ 421.2 Random is deﬁned as a state where no player could have any information about the order or position of cards in any part of the deck.…
§ 421.3 Shuffling by methodically placing cards into distinct piles (informally known as “pile shuffling”) may be used as a method to count the deck…
§ 421.4 When a deck is made random, it is presented to the player’s opponent. This signals that the player believes their deck is legal and random.…
§ 421.5 Players must notify a judge if they believe their opponents’ deck has not been made sufficiently random. See 703.7 for more information on i…
§ 421.6 Players may shuffle their opponents’ decks additionally.…
§ 421.7 Players must take care not to damage cards or sleeves through this process of shuffling, nor cause cards or sleeves to become marked.…
§ 421.8 When two or more cards are recycled to the player’s Main Deck as part of a single action, the above procedures 1-7 should be followed for th…
§ 422 Sleeves…
§ 422.1 Players may use plastic sleeves or other protective devices on their cards.…
§ 422.2 If a player chooses to do this, all such sleeves must be identical and all cards in a deck must be placed in sleeves in the same manner. Car…
§ 422.2.a It’s suggested but not required that players use different sleeves for the different decks (Main, Rune).…
§ 422.2.b Players may use a unique sleeve or additional layer to distinguish their Chosen Champion during game setup, but must change its sleeve to ma…
§ 422.3 Sleeves must have opaque backs.…
§ 422.4 During a match, a player may request that a judge inspect an opponent’s sleeves.…
§ 422.5 Judges may disallow any speciﬁc sleeve or the sleeves generally if they believe they are marked, worn, inappropriate, offensive, or otherwis…
§ 422.6 At high OPL, using sleeves for the Main Deck, Rune Deck and Battleﬁelds is a requirement. At low OPL, using sleeves can be required at the d…
§ 422.7 At high OPL, sleeves must also not:…
§ 422.7.a Have highly reﬂective backs.…
§ 422.7.b Contain holographic patterns on the front or back.…
§ 423 Marked Cards…
§ 423.1 Players are responsible during competitions to make sure their cards and/or sleeves are not marked.…
§ 423.2 Marked is deﬁned as bearing something that makes it possible to identify the card without seeing its face.…
§ 423.3 If cards are sleeved, they should be inspected for marking while in the sleeves.…
§ 423.4 Judges may ask players to remove sleeves or replace any speciﬁc sleeve at any time during a competition.…
§ 424 Display…
§ 424.1 During a match, the start of match procedure, and other relevant times during a competition, players must keep cards above the vertical leve…
§ 424.2 Players are responsible for making reasonable effort to prevent secret information from being revealed accidentally. See CR 128. Privacy for…
§ 424.3 Players may reveal private information unless speciﬁcally prohibited by the Core Rules.…
§ 424.4 At high OPL, players don’t need to inform opponents of accidentally revealed private information.…

§ 500 Communication (106)

§ 501 Requirements…
§ 501.1 Players are required to communicate honestly about the state of the game with their opponents.…
§ 501.2 Players are required to communicate honestly and completely with tournament officials.…
§ 501.3 Players are not required to assist their opponents in playing the game.…
§ 501.4 Players are required to treat other players, tournament officials, and spectators with respect.…
§ 501.5 In team events, communication between teammates is allowed and encouraged, but it must be done in a reasonably timely manner. See 703.2 for …
§ 502 Information…
§ 502.1 Cards have a level of privacy as speciﬁed in CR 128. Privacy. These apply to levels of information accessible to the players as well.…
§ 502.2 In addition to these levels of information, some information is derived.…
§ 502.2.a Derived information is a combination of public information and a player’s own skill or calculation.…
§ 502.2.b Players are not required to assist opponents in determining derived information.…
§ 502.3 Like cards, other relevant information about the game state can be public, derived, private, or secret.…
§ 502.4 The additional relevant public information includes:…
§ 502.4.a The current turn player, phase, step, state of the turn, and who has priority and focus.…
§ 502.4.b Rune Pools and the number and quantity of resources in them.…
§ 502.4.c All players’ current scores.…
§ 502.4.d A permanent’s current state, as distinct from its printed ones.…
§ 502.4.e Spells and abilities on the Chain, their order, and play choices made for them.…
§ 502.4.f Spells and abilities that resolved previously in the turn, and the sources of them are themselves public.…
§ 502.5 The additional relevant derived information includes:…
§ 502.5.a Which public cards have been recycled.…
§ 502.5.b The order of runes in a Rune Deck.…
§ 502.5.c Consequences of actions that might happen in the future, such as a unit receiving a Might bonus from the Shield ability if a player attacks.…
§ 502.6 Players must acknowledge changes to public information that result from their cards and effects as those effects would have an observable im…
§ 502.6.a As part of acknowledging changes to public information, the accountable player must communicate the change to all other players in an unders…
§ 502.7 Players must answer honestly any questions regarding public information.…
§ 502.8 Players must not represent public or derived information incorrectly.…
§ 502.9 Players must point out discrepancies between announced and recorded public information.…
§ 502.10 Judges are encouraged to help players determine public information, but not derived information.…
§ 502.11 In 2v2, teammates may share Private information, including directly showing each other the cards in their hand as deﬁned by 484.8.e. in the …
§ 503 Shortcuts…
§ 503.1 In competitions, players may take actions that skip parts of the technically precise play sequence without explicitly announcing that sequen…
§ 503.2 The most common type of shortcut is skipping one or more parts of a turn, phase, or step to the mutual understanding of all involved players…
§ 503.3 Players may request to use a new shortcut in a game but must be clear about the game state at the start and end of the shortcut.…
§ 503.4 Players may interrupt shortcuts by explaining where they want to intervene to take an action.…
§ 503.5 Players may interrupt their own shortcuts.…
§ 503.6 Players can’t use shortcuts they haven’t previously announced or modify existing shortcuts without announcement.…
§ 503.7 Players can’t interrupt a shortcut with the intent to do nothing.…
§ 503.8 When resolving spells or abilities, players can’t assume their opponents are using shortcuts without asking.…
§ 503.9 The following are common shortcuts for Riftbound competitions:…
§ 503.9.a When a player channels runes or draws a card at the start of their turn, it is assumed that they have passed through the Beginning Phase.…
§ 503.9.b When a player places a spell or ability on the chain, they are assumed to be passing priority unless they explicitly announce they intend to…
§ 503.9.c When a player puts a spell or ability on the chain and announces choices for it that are normally made upon resolution, they must adhere to …
§ 503.9.d When a player asks about choices normally made upon resolution, they are assumed to be passing priority and allowing the spell or ability to…
§ 504 Sequencing…
§ 504.1 Complex series of game actions are sometimes shortcutted into out-of-order sequences, which are technically incorrect or imprecise, but arri…
§ 504.1.a Example: Drawing a card before channeling runes.…
§ 504.2 Players may ask their opponents to do these actions, or a subset of these actions, in the correct order so that they can react at the approp…
§ 504.3 Players can’t shortcut out-of-order in a way that gives them information prematurely that might affect decisions later in that sequence.…
§ 504.4 When something is recycled, it must be immediately put on the bottom of the appropriate deck.…
§ 504.4.a Example: A player may not keep their recycled runes facedown on the board to track Energy.…
§ 504.4.b Failure to recycle in this way is a Communication Violation. See 703.5 for more information on Communication Violations.…
§ 505 Loops…
§ 505.1 Some sequences of actions can be repeated and are shortcutted as a loop.…
§ 505.2 Players performing a loop must have each iteration of the loop be identical with no conditional actions.…
§ 505.3 To decide how to proceed with a loop, determine how many players are needed to maintain it (who must take actions or make decisions to susta…
§ 505.3.a No players…
§ 505.3.b One player…
§ 505.3.c Two or more players…
§ 505.4 For each maintaining player (if any), in turn order, that player chooses a number of iterations.…
§ 505.5 Each other player (if any), in turn order, may choose to agree to that number or choose a number of iterations after which they commit to ta…
§ 505.6 If no player chooses to break the loop and there were no maintaining players, the game ends in a draw.…
§ 505.7 Otherwise, the loop continues until the lowest number of iterations chosen, then that player either gains priority (if a maintaining player)…
§ 505.8 If a player intervenes to break a loop, they may choose to interrupt a partially completed iteration.…
§ 505.9 If a sequence of actions is non-deterministic, it may not be shortcut and iterations must be performed manually.…
§ 505.10 Some loops are maintained by decisions rather than actions. In these cases, apply…
§ 505.11 Judges are the ﬁnal arbiter of what constitutes a loop, or if choices are available to continue a loop when secret information is involved.…
§ 505.12 Players who try to opt-out of shortcutting or propose incorrect shortcutting to use up time are cheating. See 704.8 for more information abo…
§ 506 Triggered Abilities…
§ 506.1 Accountable Player: The player responsible for putting a triggered ability on the chain, as deﬁned by the core rules. See CR 383. Triggered …
§ 506.1.a The accountable player for triggers sourced from battleﬁelds depends on control of the battleﬁeld and is not automatically the player who br…
§ 506.2 Players are not required to notify other players of triggered abilities when they are not the accountable player, but may if they wish.…
§ 506.2.a At low OPL, a player is not required to notify other players of triggered abilities when they are not the accountable player, but it is enco…
§ 506.3 The accountable player must acknowledge their triggers by the time they would have an observable impact on the game. If they do not, they ar…
§ 506.3.a As part of acknowledging a trigger, the accountable player must communicate the trigger to all other players in an understandable and observ…
§ 506.3.b A trigger is considered forgotten once its point of observable impact has been reached and a new game action is taken without the accountabl…
§ 506.3.c Players ruled to be abusing this rule to intentionally forget mandatory triggers that they are the accountable player for will be penalized.…
§ 506.3.d For triggers that occur “At the start of each player’s ﬁrst Beginning Phase”, the accountable player has the full duration of the turn in wh…
§ 506.3.e Examples of observable impact:…
§ 506.4 A triggered ability that was forgotten never goes on the chain.…
§ 506.5 A triggered ability that was forgotten is still considered to have triggered for the purpose of non-optional “First time” or similarly restr…
§ 507 Teams in Separate Matches…
§ 507.1 Players may communicate with teammates at all times unless explicitly prohibited by the format rules.…
§ 507.2 Players that acquire secret or private information about a match in which a teammate is playing can’t communicate with that teammate for the…
§ 508 Layout…
§ 508.1 In high OPL, players must arrange their cards according to the following rules, for clarity.…
§ 508.2 Runes must be closer to the player than nonrunes.…
§ 508.3 Nonrunes must be closer to the player’s opponent than the player’s runes.…
§ 508.4 Main Deck and trash must be together on either the left side or the right side of the board.…
§ 508.5 Rune Deck should be on the other side (right or left) of the board from the Main Deck.…
§ 508.6 Legend must be between nonrunes and Chosen Champion, and both legend and Chosen Champion must be together on either the left side or the rig…
§ 508.7 Each card or indicator that attaches to another card must be clearly associated with it physically.…
§ 508.8 Tokens must be represented by card objects that show all relevant information including ready state.…
§ 508.9 Buffs must be represented by an object that unambiguously represents a buff in game terms.…
§ 508.10 Ready objects must be oriented facing the controller. Exhausted objects must be oriented at a 90 degree rotation to ready objects, either cl…
§ 509 Gameplay Decisions…
§ 509.1 In competitions, players are responsible for considering options before taking actions.…
§ 509.2 Once an action is communicated to an opponent, that action can’t generally be taken back.…
§ 509.3 At low OPL, a player can reverse their most recent action and make a different decision for that action (including not taking it at all) as …
§ 509.4 At high OPL, a player can reverse their most recent action and make a different decision for that action (including not taking it at all) if…
§ 509.4.a The player wants to make a different decision for a spell or ability immediately after all choices have been made and communicated for putti…
§ 509.4.b The player wants to make a different decision for playing a unit or gear immediately after playing it to a location. Example:…
§ 509.4.c The player wants to make a different decision immediately after making a choice such as moving a unit to a location or discarding a card. Ex…
§ 509.4.d The player wants to undo a decision to exhaust or recycle runes.…
§ 509.5 Intentionally attempting to reverse decisions to gain information from an opponent is considered angle shooting. Players may not change thei…
§ 509.6 While changing decisions as described above is allowed, players must still maintain an appropriate pace of play. See 703.2 for more informat…

§ 600 Competition Formats (51)

§ 601 Constructed…
§ 601.1 Deck Construction…
§ 601.1.a The rules for constructing a Riftbound deck are found in CR 101. Deck Construction, except where modiﬁed here below for the competition Cons…
§ 601.1.b In competitions, a player’s Main Deck must be exactly 40 cards.…
§ 601.1.c In competitions where a sideboard is allowed:…
§ 601.1.d In some competitions, the legal battleﬁelds are different from the format-legal battleﬁelds. If this is the case, it will be communicated to…
§ 601.2 Card Legality…
§ 601.2.a A card may only be included in a deck if it is from a set that is legal in that format or it has the same name as a card from a set that is …
§ 601.2.b Until set release parity is reached, regional limitations on the legality of cards will be enforced according to the official product launch…
§ 601.2.c If an existing card is reprinted in a new set, but its collector number is not within the normal numbering of that set, it does not affect t…
§ 601.2.d If a card is banned in a speciﬁc format, that card may not be included in a deck.…
§ 601.3 Standard…
§ 601.3.a Standard is a format consisting of the most recent 5-8 sets.…
§ 601.3.b Each Standard consists of the current year’s sets plus the previous year’s sets.…
§ 601.3.c The current Standard consists of:…
§ 602 Limited…
§ 602.1 Legality…
§ 602.1.a A limited competition is one where all product needed for play is provided during the competition.…
§ 602.1.b Even if a card is banned in constructed, it is legal to use in a limited deck as long as it is not also banned in that limited format.…
§ 602.2 Abnormal Product…
§ 602.2.a There is no guarantee that the composition or distribution of any speciﬁc unopened product is correct.…
§ 602.2.b If a player notices a discrepancy between expected rarity or frequency of cards in a pack and what is opened, they must notify a judge.…
§ 602.2.c The head judge may, at their discretion, replace atypical product in these cases.…
§ 602.2.d In some cases, competition officials may allow players to provide their own product, but in such cases player-brought products must be poole…
§ 602.3 Building From a Limited Pool…
§ 602.3.a 602.1.a. The rules for constructing a Riftbound deck are found in CR 101. Deck Construction, except where modiﬁed here below for limited for…
§ 602.3.b At high OPL, players may not use electronic devices to take notes or as a strategic aid during deckbuilding. At low OPL, this can be allowed…
§ 602.3.c At high OPL, players may not receive any outside assistance during deckbuilding. At low OPL, this can be allowed by the head judge.…
§ 602.3.d Limited decks can use battleﬁelds from their provided card pool or any number of "blank" battleﬁelds. Players may opt to use “blank” battleﬁ…
§ 602.3.e At high OPL, players must register a starting conﬁguration from the card pool provided and must register the remaining contents of their car…
§ 602.3.f At low OPL, starting conﬁguration registration is not required and players may freely change the composition of their starting deck and side…
§ 602.3.g For card pool generation and deck construction rules speciﬁc to each limited format, see Limited Formats below.…
§ 602.4 Limited Formats…
§ 602.4.a Sealed…
§ 602.4.b Draft…
§ 603 2v2…
§ 603.1 A 2v2 team consists of 2 players who enter a competition together and register together as a team to play congruently in a single match as d…
§ 603.2 Each player must provide their individual registration information to enter the competition.…
§ 603.2.a When registering, teams must specify an ordering for the players on their team for seating purposes by indicating an A player and a B player…
§ 603.3 If a player drops from a competition, their entire team is dropped.…
§ 603.4 If a player is disqualiﬁed from a competition, their entire team is disqualiﬁed.…
§ 603.5 In some competitions, 2v2 teams may provide a team name to be displayed. Tournament officials may disallow a speciﬁc name for any reason.…
§ 603.6 A 2v2 competition can be either constructed or sealed. In sealed 2v2, the team shares a single product pool of 8 packs.…
§ 603.7 During matches, teammates sit next to each other in their registered AB order. The setup process for a game of Riftbound is deﬁned in the Co…
§ 603.7.a Turn order is as follows:…
§ 603.7.b A random method is used to decide which team selects the starting player.…
§ 603.7.c Once the appropriate step in the core rules process is reached, the team that earned the decision chooses where within the a.1-4 turn order …
§ 604 Event and Round Time Limits…
§ 604.1 It’s recommended that players be given 60 minutes for rounds of play in the Swiss portion of a competitive event.…
§ 604.2 It is strongly recommended that single elimination matches use untimed rounds so players can play their games to a natural conclusion. If si…
§ 604.2.a Players are still expected to play at a reasonable pace. See 703.2 the Slow Play penalty.…

§ 700 Enforcement and Penalties (199)

§ 701 General…
§ 701.1 Philosophy…
§ 701.1.a Errors are assumed to be committed unintentionally. If the judge believes it was intentional, it is cheating. See 704.8 for more information…
§ 701.1.b Judges are neutral arbiters and enforcers of policy and rules.…
§ 701.1.c Judges should not stop errors from occurring. Instead they deal with errors that have occurred.…
§ 701.1.d Judges should not intervene in games unless:…
§ 701.1.e Judges should model fair play, sporting conduct, and diplomatic behavior.…
§ 701.1.f Judges should not account for a player’s history or skill when determining whether errors occurred.…
§ 701.1.g Judges may take into account a player’s history or skill when investigating.…
§ 701.1.h Penalties are designed to educate players on mistakes and encourage them not to make them in the future.…
§ 701.1.i Penalties are also designed to deter other players from similar errors.…
§ 701.1.j Penalties are issued and tracked to help judges understand intent over patterns of behavior.…
§ 701.1.k Head judges and head judges ONLY may issue penalties outside of these guidelines. They have discretion to apply harsher penalties or investi…
§ 701.1.l Judges are human and they make mistakes.…
§ 701.1.m If a judge recognizes their own mistakes, they should acknowledge them and correct them if possible.…
§ 701.1.n If a competition official makes a mistake and it results in a penalty applied to a player, the head judge can downgrade the penalty.…
§ 701.1.o If a player acts on information given in error by a competition official, the head judge can rewind the game to account for it, even if ther…
§ 701.2 Deﬁnitions of Penalties…
§ 701.2.a Warning: An indication that an error occurred that provides a record of the error.…
§ 701.2.b Game Loss: A game loss causes the erroring player and any of their teammates to concede the game. If this does not result in a winner, remai…
§ 701.2.c Match Loss: A severe penalty that’s issued when the entire match has been compromised by the error.…
§ 701.2.d Disqualiﬁcation: A penalty issued for errors that damage the integrity of the competition or for severe misconduct.…
§ 701.3 Applying Penalties…
§ 701.3.a Penalties of Game Loss of higher (b-d) should be reported to the head judge.…
§ 701.3.b Judges should explain the error, the procedure to ﬁx it, and the penalties for involved players.…
§ 701.3.c Some errors include remedies beyond the scope of the base penalty, to protect competition officials from accusations of bias.…
§ 701.3.d If a single error leads to multiple related penalties, judges should issue only the one with the most severe penalty.…
§ 701.4 Shuffling…
§ 701.4.a Some remedies require shuffling the randomized portion of the deck.…
§ 701.4.b Many cards recycle cards to the bottom of a deck. The judge should do what they can using information available from the game state and from…
§ 701.4.c Once the deck has been shuffled, any cards set aside in this way should be returned to their proper locations in the deck.…
§ 701.4.d Shuffles performed by a judge in this way are not considered shuffles in game terms.…
§ 701.5 Rewinding…
§ 701.5.a Some remedies allow rewinding the game state in extreme circumstances, where leaving the game in its current state is substantially worse th…
§ 701.5.b Some rewinds are simple; this means rewinding only the last action completed or one currently in progress.…
§ 701.5.c For rewinds more complicated than a simple rewind, only the head judge or designated appeals judges (at high OPL) may authorize rewinding in…
§ 701.5.d To rewind:…
§ 701.6 Investigations…
§ 701.6.a Any penalty that results in disqualiﬁcation automatically starts an investigation into that player and patterns of behavior that might impac…
§ 701.6.b Investigations may also occur at a judge's discretion following the application of a penalty if cheating is suspected. See 704.8 for more in…
§ 701.6.c The result of an investigation can be suspension of the player from Riftbound competitions.…
§ 701.6.d Suspended players may not enter Riftbound competitions. If a suspended player is found to have registered for a competition, the organizer r…
§ 702 Game Play Errors…
§ 702.1 Overview…
§ 702.1.a A game play error is caused by incorrect and inaccurate play of the game that violates the Core Rules.…
§ 702.1.b Repeated game play error [Warnings] can upgrade to [Game Loss].…
§ 702.1.c At low OPL, penalties should generally be less harsh and rewinds may be applied even if the erroring player gains an information advantage.…
§ 702.2 Missed Trigger [No Penalty]: The accountable player for a triggered ability doesn’t demonstrate awareness of the trigger before the ﬁrst tim…
§ 702.2.a See 506 for deﬁnition of triggered abilities.…
§ 702.2.b After the initial point at which a triggered ability is missed, any further errors related to that trigger are considered a General Error in…
§ 702.2.c Players may not attempt to cause triggered abilities where an opponent is the accountable player to be missed by taking game actions or othe…
§ 702.2.d A triggered ability is considered to have triggered even if it was subsequently missed. Effects that count or restrict the number of times t…
§ 702.2.e If a mandatory trigger is missed by its accountable player and missing that trigger is advantageous for them, this penalty is a [Warning] in…
§ 702.2.f Remedies:…
§ 702.3 Forgetting to Score a Point [No Penalty]: A player is entitled to a point from conquering or holding a battleﬁeld but fails to track it.…
§ 702.3.a This does not apply to points that would be scored from card triggers such as Ahri, Alluring.…
§ 702.3.b Remedies:…
§ 702.4 Forgetting to Draw Cards [No Penalty]: A player is obligated to draw a card, either as part of their draw phase or instruction from a card, …
§ 702.4.a Remedies:…
§ 702.4.b If forgetting to draw was advantageous to the erroring player (example: the player is near burning out), this penalty is a [Warning] instead…
§ 702.5 Looking at Extra Cards [Warning]: While taking a game action that allows a player to look at cards from a deck, they look at more cards than…
§ 702.5.a Cards being looked at from secret information such as a deck are added to a private information group while they are being looked at.…
§ 702.5.b Once extra cards being looked at have touched a new private or secret group from their original source, they become part of that group. If t…
§ 702.10 for more on Looking at Secret Information errors.…
§ 702.5.c Remedies:…
§ 702.6 Channeling Too Many Runes [Warning]: A player channels a number of runes greater than they are entitled to under the Core Rules as the resul…
§ 702.6.a Errors of this sort are generally public, and all players are expected to be mindful of game state.…
§ 702.6.b Remedies:…
§ 702.15 for more information about General Errors.…
§ 702.7 Channeling Too Few Runes [No Penalty]: A player channels a number of runes less than what they are entitled to under the Core Rules as the r…
§ 702.7.a Errors of this sort are generally public, and all players are expected to be mindful of game state.…
§ 702.7.b Remedies:…
§ 702.7.c If forgetting to channel runes was advantageous to the erroring player, this penalty is a [Warning] instead.…
§ 702.8 Overpayment for Cost [No Penalty]: A player pays a cost overpaying its power or energy cost.…
§ 702.8.a Errors of this sort are generally public, and all players are expected to be mindful of game state.…
§ 702.8.b Remedies:…
§ 702.9 Mispayment for Cost [Warning]: A player pays a cost underpaying its requirements or using the incorrect requirements. See CR 201. Costs for …
§ 702.9.a Errors of this sort are generally public, and all players are expected to be mindful of game state.…
§ 702.9.b Remedies:…
§ 702.10.a Players should not be penalized via a remedy for errors their opponents make. Example: If one of your opponents inappropriately ﬂips over th…
§ 702.10.b Remedies:…
§ 702.11 Looking at Opponent Private Information [Warning]: A player accidentally looks at information that is private to their opponent. See CR 128.…
§ 702.11.a Players should not be penalized via a remedy for errors their opponents make. Example: If one of your opponents inappropriately drops a card…
§ 702.11.b Remedies:…
§ 702.12 Drawing Extra Cards [Warning]: A player draws more cards than they are entitled to under the Core Rules as the result of a limited action or…
§ 702.12.a Drawing extra cards is also looking at extra cards, but only this error should be recorded.…
§ 702.12.b Remedies:…
§ 702.13 Facedown Card Error [Warning]: A player places a card into a facedown zone in a manner other than how they are entitled to under the Core Ru…
§ 702.13.a Example: Hiding a card that does not have the Hidden keyword.…
§ 702.13.b Remedies:…
§ 702.14 Mulligan Procedure Error [Warning]: A player performs the mulligan procedure incorrectly.…
§ 702.14.a Remedies:…
§ 702.15.a Remedies:…
§ 702.15.b If forgetting to ready was advantageous to the erroring player, this penalty is a [Warning] instead.…
§ 702.16 General Error [Warning]: Any other violation of the Rules of Riftbound.…
§ 702.16.a This is a catch-all for any other game play error.…
§ 702.16.b Errors of this sort are generally public, and all players are expected to be mindful of game state.…
§ 702.16.c Remedies:…
§ 702.17 Failure to Maintain Game State [Warning]: A player does not call out another player’s failure to maintain the proper game state, including m…
§ 702.17.a Generally this error occurs when a player’s opponent commits a game play error and the player doesn’t call a judge immediately.…
§ 702.17.b Unlike other Game Play Errors, this error is primarily for tracking and never upgrades unless speciﬁcally instructed by the head judge.…
§ 703 Tournament Errors…
§ 703.1 Overview…
§ 703.1.a A tournament error is caused by actions in or around a tournament match that violate tournament procedure expectations.…
§ 703.1.b Repeated tournament error [Warnings] can upgrade to [Game Loss].…
§ 703.1.c At low OPL, penalties should generally be less harsh and rewinds may be applied even if the erroring player gains an information advantage.…
§ 703.2 Slow Play [Warning]: A player is performing their start of game procedure or is playing mid-game at an unreasonably slow pace.…
§ 703.2.a Players must take their turns in a timely manner, appropriate to a judge according to the state of the game at the time, and adhere to time …
§ 703.2.b Players may ask a judge to watch their game for slow play.…
§ 703.2.c Intentionally stalling to gain an advantage is cheating. See 704.8 for more information about cheating.…
§ 703.3 Decklist Error [Game Loss]: A player submits a decklist for registration that contains illegal elements.…
§ 703.3.a Examples:…
§ 703.3.b Remedies:…
§ 703.4 Deck Presentation Error [Warning]: A player’s deck’s contents are illegal during presentation to an opponent or during gameplay.…
§ 703.4.a Examples:…
§ 703.4.b Remedies:…
§ 703.5 Communication Violation [Warning]: A player does not effectively communicate with their opponents during gameplay.…
§ 703.5.a This error includes any unintentional violation of the communication policies listed in section 500.…
§ 703.5.b Remedies:…
§ 703.6 Marked Cards [Warning]: A player’s cards are possible to identify without seeing their face.…
§ 703.6.a This includes but is not limited to scratches, discoloration, and bends.…
§ 703.6.b If a player’s cards are sleeved, the cards must be examined while in the sleeves to determine if they are marked.…
§ 703.6.c The Head Judge has the authority to determine if a card in a player’s deck is marked.…
§ 703.6.d Remedies…
§ 703.7 Insufficient Randomization [Warning]: A player did not sufficiently randomize their deck when required to.…
§ 703.7.a If a player believes an opponent has not sufficiently randomized their Main Deck or Rune Deck before presenting them, they may call a judge.…
§ 703.7.b Pile shuffling is not a sufficient randomization method and should only be used as a counting method.…
§ 703.7.c Remedies:…
§ 703.8 Late to Match: A player arrives at their assigned match after the round clock has started.…
§ 703.8.a If the player arrives within 2 minutes of the round start, the penalty is a [Warning] and a time extension is issued.…
§ 703.8.b If the player arrives within 10 minutes of the round start, the penalty is a [Warning] and a time extension is issued. At high OPL the penal…
§ 703.8.c If the player arrives after 10 minutes of the round start, the penalty is a [Match Loss].…
§ 703.8.d If a player never arrives for their match, the penalty is a [Match Loss] and the player is dropped from the tournament unless they report to…
§ 703.8.e Players may call a judge before the round clock starts or in between games of a match to request up to a 10 minute time extension in lieu of…
§ 703.9 Outside Assistance: A player receives advice or strategic assistance from an individual outside of the match.…
§ 703.9.a If the player receiving the advice actively refuses the advice by calling a judge, they receive a [Warning]. Otherwise, that player receives…
§ 703.9.b If the player receiving the advice solicited the advice, it is cheating. See 704.8 for more information about cheating.…
§ 703.9.c If the spectator giving the outside assistance is also a player in the event, this penalty is also applied to them.…
§ 703.9.d Spectators providing advice may be barred from the tournament venue if the advice was given maliciously or knowingly.…
§ 703.9.e It is not outside assistance to receive strategic advice from a teammate in the 2v2 format or in other team formats when speciﬁed.…
§ 703.9.f At a judge’s discretion, a player may receive assistance with the physical logistics of the competition, including game actions such as shuf…
§ 703.10 Improperly Determining a Winner [Match Loss]: Games and matches of Riftbound must be decided by playing Riftbound appropriate to the tournam…
§ 703.10.a Other methods, including but not limited to ﬂipping a coin, rolling dice, or playing other games, may not be used to determine a winner.…
§ 703.10.b Playing other formats of Riftbound other than the one designated for the tournament with the appropriate registered decklist may not be used…
§ 703.10.c Offering or accepting such offers is considered improperly determining a winner.…
§ 704 Unsporting Conduct…
§ 704.1 Overview…
§ 704.1.a Riftbound does not tolerate unsporting conduct. Tournament attendees and spectators must behave in a respectful and honorable manner.…
§ 704.1.b If a player commits the same category of unsporting conduct [Warning] 2 or more times in the same event, the penalty is upgraded to [Game Lo…
§ 704.1.c Infractions and penalties listed in this section aim to serve as general guidelines. Listed infractions are examples and are not exhaustive.…
§ 704.2 Unsporting Minor [Warning]:…
§ 704.2.a Examples include but are not limited to:…
§ 704.3 Unsporting Major [Disqualiﬁcation]:…
§ 704.3.a Examples include but are not limited to:…
§ 704.3.b This penalty often comes with ejection from the venue at the discretion of tournament officials.…
§ 704.4 Angle Shooting [Warning]: A player intentionally uses the technical precision of the rules to gain an advantage where the spirit of the rule…
§ 704.4.a Examples include but are not limited to:…
§ 704.5 Bribery [Match Loss]: Tournament attendees and spectators may not bribe tournament players or tournament officials.…
§ 704.5.a The outcome of tournament games may not be inﬂuenced by offers of out-of-game rewards or incentives.…
§ 704.5.b Sharing prizes that have not yet been awarded in the current tournament does not constitute bribery. Players are permitted to make such agre…
§ 704.5.c It is not bribery when players in the single-elimination portion of a tournament offering only items such as cash, store credit, and/or unop…
§ 704.5.d It is not bribery when, in the ﬁnal round of the single-elimination portion of a tournament, with the competition organizer’s permission, pl…
§ 704.6 Wagering [Disqualiﬁcation]: Tournament attendees may not wager on any portion of a tournament, match, or game, including its outcome.…
§ 704.7 Theft [Disqualiﬁcation]: Stealing or attempting to steal the property of a tournament attendee, spectator, vendor, or event organizer.…
§ 704.8 Cheating [Disqualiﬁcation]: Riftbound does not tolerate cheating at any level of play.…
§ 704.8.a Cheating includes but is not limited to performing any action that results in a penalty listed under 702 or 703 if it is done knowingly or m…
§ 704.8.b Lying to a tournament official is cheating.…
§ 704.8.c Intentionally neglecting to indicate a teammate's error is cheating.…
§ 704.8.d The head judge has ultimate discretion to issue penalties for cheating.…
§ 705 Disciplinary Code…
§ 705.1 Overview…
§ 705.1.a All players participating in a premier or qualiﬁer Riftbound competition are subject to this Disciplinary Code.…
§ 705.1.b Players accept and agree to be bound by these Riftbound Tournament Rules including this Disciplinary Code by: a) signing a contract or regis…
§ 705.1.c Players also accept and agree that the Competition Organizer and Riot Games have the right to:…
§ 705.1.d This Disciplinary Code applies globally anywhere Riftbound competitions are held. It may also apply to circumstances that occur outside of c…
§ 705.2 Investigations of Rule Violations and Consequences…
§ 705.2.a Reporting: Players must report any violation of these Riftbound Tournament Rules to the Competition Organizer or Competition Officials upon …
§ 705.2.b Duty to Cooperate: Players are required to cooperate with the Competition Organizer, Riot Games, or designated representatives in any intern…
§ 705.2.c Abiding to Decisions: Players must comply with all instructions, directions, decisions, or rulings, including any disciplinary measures or ﬁ…
§ 705.2.d Consequences: At the Competition Organizer and/or Riot Games’ discretion, sanctions will be proportionate to the severity of the violation, …
§ 705.2.e Interim Measures: The Competition Organizer and/or Riot Games may issue interim or provisional disciplinary measures pending the outcome of …
§ 705.2.f Aggravating and Mitigating Circumstances: The type and extent of the disciplinary measures that may be imposed are based on the speciﬁc circ…
§ 705.2.g Intent. Violations of the Riftbound Tournament Rules are subject to disciplinary action, whether or not they were committed intentionally or…
§ 705.2.h Final Determinations. Competition Organizer’s and/or Riot Games’ determination as to the appropriate disciplinary action (or combination of …
§ 705.2.i Public Decisions. The Competition Organizer and/or Riot Games may make decisions public at their sole discretion, which may include certain …
§ 705.3 Conduct Rules…
§ 705.3.a General Obligations: Players who participate in Riftbound competitions must at all times observe the highest standards of personal integrity…
§ 705.3.b Unsporting Conduct. Players may not engage in any unsporting conduct listed in…
§ 705.3.c Cheating. Cheating is prohibited. Enabling or assisting others to cheat is also prohibited.…
§ 705.3.d Unauthorized Communications. Unauthorized coaching and other communications during a match can give a player an unfair competitive advantage…
§ 705.3.e Derogatory or Defamatory Statements and Hateful Acts. Players may not use words, gestures, digital or physical objects, or any other means t…
§ 705.3.f Vulgar or Provocative. Players may not use words, gestures, digital or physical objects, or any other means to transmit, allow or facilitate…
§ 705.3.g Harassment. Players may not engage in any form of harassment. Harassment is deﬁned as unwelcome and unwanted behaviors that diminish, demean…
§ 705.3.h Bullying and Abuse. Players may not engage in any form of bullying or physical or mental abuse. Bullying is deﬁned as malicious conduct whic…
§ 705.3.i Credible Threats. Players may not threaten others. A threat is deﬁned as a statement of intention to commit an act of violence or take other…
§ 705.3.j Match-ﬁxing or Manipulation. Players may not match-ﬁx or otherwise manipulate the outcome of any match or competition or request, encourage,…
§ 705.3.k Retaliation. Players may not retaliate against anyone who reports a possible violation of these Riftbound Tournament Rules in good faith or …
§ 705.3.l Violations of Law. Players are required to comply with all applicable laws at all times during their participation in Riftbound competitions…
§ 705.3.m Violations of Riot Games Terms of Service. Players are required to comply with the Riot Games Terms of Service and may face sanctions under …

How to Play – Proving Grounds PDF (UVS Games, partner) (22 secties)

§ 000 (22)

§ 2 Goal of the Game Riftbound is a Trading Card Game for 2-4 players where Each battlefield you take with your units scores 1 point, you join f…
§ 3 Parts of a Deck To play Riftbound, you’ll need a deck. Preconstructed 12 Rune Deck cards: These are the runes you’ll decks are a good place …
§ 12 runes, in any combination of the Domains of your Your deck has a number of components: champion legend. (These decks use an even split of 6 …
§ 1 Champion Legend: This special card determines what champion you’re teaming up with and which 40 Main Deck cards: These are the units and Dom…
§ 4 Champion Legend Battlefields Rune Deck Main Deck Champion Unit…
§ 5 Chosen Champion Your Chosen Champion is a champion unit that Your Main Deck can have a maximum of 3 copies of matches your Champion Legend. …
§ 6 Setting up the Game All players put their battlefields in the Battlefield Leave open space for: Zone. Then each player sets up their board a…
§ 7 Starting the Game You’ve already selected 1 battlefield for each player Before the game begins, you may take up to one (see Setting Up the G…
§ 8 Playing Cards Playing a card requires runes. The top left of each card • Power cost appears as symbols. It represents the displays its cost.…
§ 9 Types of Main Deck Cards Units are played exhausted on your turn, either to Spells do what they say they do, then go to the trash. your base…
§ 10 Units Spells Tokens (created during play) Action Reaction Abilities that add resources…
§ 11 Steps of a Turn The starting player takes these steps in order, then the C–Channel Phase: Channel the top two runes from next player in turn…
§ 13 Moving, Conquering & Control To score, you must conquer battlefields by moving It’s a Showdown! units there. Once you conquer a battlefield,…
§ 14 Fight! After all participating players in a combat are done If only attackers remain at the battlefield after combat, playing cards and abil…
§ 15 Modes of Play Riftbound supports multiple ways of playing with 2, 3, 2v2 Teams or 4 players. Remember that even in games with more A 2-on-2 …
§ 16 17 Meet Your Legends Wuju Bladesman, Master Yi Patience is the greatest teacher, and you have the powerful late-game tools and monsters to t…
§ 18 Lady of Luminosity, Lux No more hiding your light—unleash mighty spells to lead your forces to victory! Your units may start small, but your…
§ 19 Meet Your Legends Might of Demacia, Garen Unleash the might of Demacia with a vast army to drive out your foes. Line up your forces and outn…
§ 20 Dark Child, Annie Use quick units and fiery spells to torch your opponents, then close the deal with your best friend Tibbers! You’ll get ex…
§ 21 Beyond Proving Grounds You can get more Riftbound cards to customize these Hidden decks or even make new ones. When you’re ready to During y…
§ 22 Battlefields Gear Hidden Stun Buff…
§ 23 Riftbound Credits Narrative and Creative Riot Games Leadership Playtesters, Consultants, • T yler Morgan Executive Producer Production Devel…