000Golden and Silver Rules
002
Card text supersedes rules text. Whenever a card fundamentally contradicts the rules, the card's indication is what is true.
051
Card text uses different terminology than rules. Card text should be interpreted according to these rules, not as though it were text within these rules.
052
Card , when written in card effects, is shorthand for " Main Deck card." Runes, legends, and battlefields are not considered cards when executing the abilities and effects of game objects. They are considered cards for the purposes of these rules.
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.
056
Cards a player owns may never be placed into a non-Board zone belonging to another player.
000Golden Rule
001
The tournament rules exist to ensure anyone who attends a Riftbound organized play event has a fun, equitable, fair, safe and consistent experience. They aim to empower competitors and judges to work together to have mutual expectations and understandings.
100Game Concepts
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 two Decks, a Champion Legend , and a number of Battlefields determined by the Mode of Play.
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 Main Deck.
103.1.b.1
Cards included in your Deck must abide by your Domain Identity.
103.1.b.2
Your deck’s Domain Identity is dictated by the domains of your Champion Legend. In the default card frame, these domains appear as symbols in the legend’s upper left corner.
103.1.b.3
If a card has a single Domain , then that card is permitted in the Domain Identity that corresponds to the same Domain.
103.1.b.4
If a card has more than one Domain , then that card is permitted only in a Domain Identity that contains all of the indicated Domains on that card.
103.2
A Main Deck of at least 40 cards 1 Chosen Champion Unit, Units, Gear, Spells
103.2.a
Chosen Champion
103.2.a.1
This will be placed in the Champion Zone at the start of the game.
103.2.a.2
Must be a champion unit with a champion tag that matches the tag on your Champion Legend.
103.2.a.3
A player’s Chosen Champion is both the specific card chosen for this slot during Deck Building and also any Champion Unit with the same name as the specific card selected for this specific slot during the course of play.
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.
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 The Board and Non-Board Zones.
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 various Game Effects.
107.3.b
Each Facedown Zone has a maximum occupancy of one card.
107.3.b.1
The maximum occupancy of a Facedown Zone can increase or decrease.
107.3.b.2
If the maximum occupancy of a Facedown Zone decreases to a number less than the number of cards currently located there, the controller of that Facedown Zone must put a number of cards equal to the difference in the trash from the Facedown Zone.
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 Cleanup. See rule 318. Cleanups for more information. See rule 421. Hide for more information.
107.3.e
Facedown Zones are not locations.
107.5
Banishment for more information.
108
Non-Board Zones.
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 trash as an effect, etc.
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.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 information.
108.3.e
Cards in a player’s Champion Zone are Public Information.
108.4
Main Deck Zones
108.5
Rune Deck Zones
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 being processed.
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 number of cards in a player's hand is Public Information.
108.7.e
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.
110
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 capacities. Examples: Damage is cleared. Buffs are removed. Granted Keywords are no longer granted.
112
Each player separates their Champion Legend and places it in the Legend Zone.
113
Each player separates their Chosen Champion and places it in the Champion Zone.
116
Determine Turn Order using any fair random method agreed on by all players.
116.2
See the selected Mode of Play for any adjustments to each player's first turn. See rule 476. Modes of Play for more information.
117
Players each draw 4.
118
In turn order, players perform their Mulligan.
119
Begin play with the First Player taking their turn.
121
A Game Object is any game piece that can produce one or more Game Effects or grant prerequisites for players to take Game Actions.
122
A Game Object does not include nor preclude any inherent properties beyond the ability to produce, or act as the prerequisite for, Game Effects and Game Actions.
123
A Game Object can be a literal object or a logical object.
124
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 zone Abilities of any type on the chain Buffs and other status markers
126
Riftbound games are composed of players playing the cards in their respective decks.
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 , or part of their Main Deck or Rune Deck . The legal owner of a card doesn't matter during gameplay.
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 where it resides at a given time
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 or look at the face of the card.
128.5
Public: This level of Privacy indicates that any player may read or look at the face of the card.
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 Champion Legends.
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 and cards in hand have their back side presented.
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 front side is considered Private Information.
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 the card.
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.
131.1
Main Deck cards have a Cost , listed in the upper left corner of the front face of the card. See rule 164. Rune Pools for more information.
131.4
Effects that need to determine a card’s cost for any purpose always use its printed cost, even if that cost is altered or ignored as the card is played.
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 deckbuilding and gameplay.
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], [Subtitle]”.
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 exclusively.
133.4
Main Deck Cards begin the game in the Main Deck or (in the case of a Chosen Champion ) the Champion Zone.
133.6
Non-Deck Cards are not part of any deck and begin the game in a zone determined by their type.
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 information.
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 information about Signature cards.
133.7.c
Token is a supertype applied to temporary game objects of any card type. See rule 176. Tokens for more information.
133.8
Tags are Categories that may apply to game objects of multiple types. They are listed after a card’s type.
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].
135.1
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.b
Instructions
135.2.b.1
Instructions are a type of text that appears on spells and within abilities.
135.2.b.2
They describe the actions to be taken as the spell or ability resolves.
135.2.b.3
Instructions will self-describe when they are to be executed. If there is no timing described, they will execute during resolution.
135.2.b.4
Instructions can usually be recognized by the way they are written. An instruction is written in the imperative mood, using the base form of a verb and omitting the subject unless necessary.
135.2.e
Symbols
135.2.e.1
Rules text sometimes contains symbols that express game concepts. Each symbol also has a shorthand used to represent it in written text.
135.2.e.2
The cost of Exhausting a Permanent is represented by the “exhaust symbol,” which resembles a card turning sideways. Its shorthand is [E]. (Some previous rules information has given its shorthand as [T].)
135.2.e.3
Might is represented by the “Might symbol,” which resembles a sword and shield. Its shorthand is [M]. (Some previous rules information has given its shorthand as [S].)
135.2.e.4
Power of a specific Domain is represented by its domain symbol and the corresponding shorthand. See rule 134. Domain for more information.
135.2.e.5
Power of any Domain is represented by a swirling rainbow symbol. Its shorthand is [A].
135.2.e.5.a
When required as a cost, [A] can be paid by Power of any Domain .
135.2.e.5.b
When Added to a player’s Rune Pool, [A] can be spent to pay a Power cost of any Domain.
135.2.e.6
Power of a domain corresponding to a card’s own Domain is not represented by a symbol, but appears in these rules similarly to other symbols. Its shorthand is [C].
135.2.e.6.a
When a [C] shorthand is printed on a card as reminder text, it assumes that card’s usual Domain , but it still means “one Power of this card’s Domain .”
135.2.e.6.b
A [C] shorthand on a card with no Domain or with multiple Domains is processed as [A] instead.
135.2.e.7
A keyword associated with an ability is indicated by the [>] symbol.
135.2.e.7.a
This could be a dependent keyword like [Legion][>] or [Level][>], or it could be a permissive keyword like [Action][>] or [Reaction][>].
135.2.e.7.b
Whatever instruction or ability comes after the [>] is modified by the keyword that comes before the [>]. Either it will be inactive, in the case of a dependent keyword, or it will receive the permission granted by the keyword in the case of a permissive keyword.
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 720. Inactive for more information.
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 rule 720. Inactive for more information.
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 Attached.
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 more information.
139.1
Each card has an illustration. It conveys no gameplay information.
141.1
A Game Object
141.1.a
While on the Board :
141.1.a.1
Units are at one of several Locations while on the Board : a Battlefield or their Base.
141.1.a.2
Units and their details are Public Information while on the Board.
141.1.a.3
Units can be chosen, affected, or manipulated by spells, affects, or game actions that specify Units.
141.1.a.4
Units can be Killed. See rule 428. Kill for more information.
141.1.b
While in the Trash:
141.1.b.1
Units are treated as Cards , similar to when in the Hand.
141.1.b.2
They retain the properties of being a Unit , but are not on the Board and thus cannot take actions or be affected by spells, abilities, or game actions that target Units on the Board.
141.1.b.3
Units can be affected by spells and game effects that target Units in the Trash.
143
Units have multiple Intrinsic Properties unique to them:
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 damage in the Combat Damage Step . See rule 460. The Combat Damage Step for more information.
143.2.b.1
Although the unit’s Might is treated as 0, it is not 0. Effects that calculate Might increases and decreases use the actual value of the unit’s Might.
144
Units have the Inherent Ability to perform a 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 Abilities for more information.
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 Showdown.
148.1
A Game Object
148.1.a
While on the Board.
148.1.a.1
Gear can only be played to a player's Base unless an effect specifies otherwise.
148.1.a.2
Gear and their details are Public Information while on the Board.
148.1.a.3
Gear can be chosen, affected, or manipulated by spells, effects, or game actions that specify Gear.
148.1.a.4
Gear can be Killed. See rule 428. Kill for more information.
148.1.b
While in the Trash
148.1.b.1
Gear are treated as Cards before Game Objects , similar to the Hand.
148.1.b.2
They retain the properties of being Gear , but are not on the Board and thus cannot take actions or be affected by spells, abilities, or game actions that affect Gear on the Board.
148.1.b.3
Gear can be affected by spells and game effects that affect Gear in the Trash.
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 Gear is at a Battlefield for any reason during a cleanup, then it is recalled to its controller's Base as a corrective action. See rule 449. Recalls for more information. See rule 318. Cleanups for more information.
150
Gear may have Activated Abilities.
150.1
Activated Abilities are Game Effects that are written as Costs followed by a ":", and then succeeded by an effect. See rule 376. Activated Abilities for more information.
150.2
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 Showdown.
153
Spell is a card type.
154
A spell can be played during an Open State outside of Showdowns on its controller's turn.
155
A spell is controlled by the player who played it.
156
A spell creates a game effect according to its instructions and is then placed in the Trash of the player who owns it.
157
When a spell is successfully played, a player executes the rules text of the spell. This is called Resolving the spell.
157.1
Spells have their rules text executed from top to bottom when they are Resolved.
157.2
If a later part of a spell applies a Replacement Effect that alters earlier parts of the spell, apply those replacement effects as appropriate.
157.3
While a spell or ability on the chain is Resolving , no other spells or abilities can be finalized on the chain or resolved, including triggered abilities or game effects that would occur as a result of the execution of the spell.
157.3.a
Finish resolving all effects of a spell before addressing any chain items or Tasks the spell may have added or made outstanding through execution.
160
Rune is a Card Type.
161
Runes produce the resources needed to pay costs.
162
Runes produce Energy and Power.
163.1
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
165
The Rune Pool is a conceptual collection of a player's available Energy and Power available to pay Costs.
165.1
When a card adds Energy or Power, it is added to the controlling player's Rune Pool .
165.2
Players must first 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.
165.3
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 Energy and Power over the course of their turn.
167
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 information.
169
Battlefields are Game Objects.
169.1
Battlefields are Owned by a player.
169.3
Battlefields cannot be Killed during the course of regular play.
169.4
Battlefields cannot be Moved.
169.6
Any number of Units can be present at a Battlefield.
169.7
Battlefields can be targeted by spells or game effects.
169.8
Battlefields can have Passive Abilities. See rule 363. Passive Abilities for more information.
169.9
Battlefields can have Triggered Abilities. See rule 382. Triggered Abilities for more information.
169.10
Battlefields can be referenced in different states in card text:
170
Battlefields are not Permanents.
171
The number of Battlefields on the Board is determined by the Mode of Play.
173
Legends are Game Objects.
173.1
Legends are Owned by a player.
173.3
Legends cannot be Killed during the course of regular play.
173.4
Legends cannot be Moved.
173.5
Legends can be targeted by spells or game effects.
173.6
Legends can have Passive Abilities. See rule 363. Passive Abilities for more information.
173.7
Legends can have Triggered Abilities. See rule 382. Triggered Abilities for more information.
173.8
Legends can have Activated Abilities. See rule 376. Activated Abilities for more information.
174
Legends are not Permanents.
177
Tokens are Game Objects created by spells and abilities during play.
178
Tokens can be represented by anything. Printed tokens are included in Riftbound booster packs, but they are not required to play a token.
179
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 spell or ability specifies that a different player is the token's controller.
180
A token's owner is the player who controlled the effect that created it.
181
The effect that creates a token may specify the conditions or circumstances under which it enters the board. These stipulations may alter the usual steps for playing a card.
182
Tokens are not cards.
182.1
Tokens have some properties in common with cards.
182.1.a
Tokens are played by their owner if their card type is played, following all the applicable steps for playing a card plus any restrictions or modifications from the effect that created the token. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information.
182.1.b
Token units have a Might .
182.1.c
Tokens may have one or more tags .
182.1.d
Tokens have a type . They follow all rules for their type unless otherwise specified.
182.1.e
Tokens inherit the recycle destination of their type.
184
The spell or ability that Creates a token specifies some of its characteristics. It may have other characteristics, as listed below.
184.1
A 1 [M] Recruit token is a domainless unit token with 1 Might and the Recruit tag.
184.2
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 for more information.
184.3
A 2 [M] Sand Soldier token is a domainless unit token with 2 Might and the Shurima tag.
184.4
A 3 [M] Mech token is a domainless unit token with 3 Might and the Mech tag.
184.5
A Gold gear token is a domainless gear token with “[Reaction][>] Kill this, [E]: [Add] [A].”
184.6
A 0 [M] Reflection token is a domainless unit token with 0 Might.
184.7
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.
184.8
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 here, you may replace this with the battlefield it replaced.”
184.9
The Baron Pit battlefield token is a domainless battlefield token with “Units can move here from anywhere.”
186
Control is the concept of a player having influence of a Game Object and applies differently to different card types.
187.1
Control is established over Battlefields through the course of play.
187.3
Control can be Contested through the course of play.
187.3.a
Contested is a temporary status applied to the battlefield when a Unit controlled by a Player who does not currently Control that Battlefield Moves or otherwise becomes present there.
187.3.a.1
Units moving to or being played to a battlefield apply Contested status if that battlefield is not already contested and that Unit ’s controller does not already control that battlefield.
187.3.b
A Battlefield remains Contested until Control is established or re-established.
187.3.c
The state of a Battlefield being Contested is used to determine when Combat should occur, when a Non-Combat Showdown should occur, and when Control will change.
187.3.d
At this time Game Effects cannot reference this status.
187.4
Control is established by having Units at a Battlefield at the end of a Showdown or Combat after applying the contested status.
187.4.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 that Battlefield.
187.4.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 Showdown .
187.4.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, unless there is a Combat or Showdown ongoing there.
187.5
Control is a constant state.
187.6
Control of a Battlefield determines Control of its Abilities.
187.6.a
While a Battlefield is Controlled , its Controller controls its Abilities . That player takes responsibility for adding them to the Chain if applicable, and makes all choices required by them unless otherwise specified.
187.6.b
While a Battlefield is Uncontrolled , its Abilities are also Uncontrolled. The Turn Player takes responsibility for adding them to the Chain if applicable, makes all choices required by them unless otherwise specified, and is treated as their Controller if any game rule or effect requires one.
187.6.c
“You” in a battlefield’s abilities refers to the battlefield’s Controller , as does the implied “you” in instructions like “draw 1.” If the battlefield has no Controller , “you” refers to no one, and all such instructions are ignored.
188.1
When a player Plays a Card or other Game Object , they are established as that Game Object's Controller.
188.3
For Permanents and Runes , when they Enter the Board , that player is assigned as that Game Object's Controller.
188.3.a
That player may make decisions about the Game Object's Inherent Abilities.
188.3.b
That player may make decisions about the Game Object's Unique Abilities.
188.3.c
That player may make decisions about any game effects or decisions necessary while the card is being played.
188.3.d
That player may make decisions about any game effects created from "When you play me" effects of Permanents.
188.4
For Abilities , they are the Ability’s Controller.
100Introduction
101
Purpose: This document provides the frameworks and structures for Riftbound competitions by defining rules, responsibilities and procedures to be followed in all Riftbound competitions.
102
Consistency: All Riftbound competitions must be run consistently regardless of their organizer or location to ensure equal treatment of players and interchangeability of events no matter the region or level.
103.1
Attendees: All competitors AND all competition officials are expected to be responsible for following the rules as written and in the spirit in which they were written. This includes respecting all people at competitions.
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 Level (OPL). See 205 for more information on Organized Play Levels.
104.1
vs. Core Rules: In some cases, information in this document may contradict, or provide information not contained in, the Riftbound Core Rules. In all such cases, this document takes precedence for competitions.
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 in official addenda for specific competitions. In all such cases, those addenda take precedence.
105
Alteration: Riot Games or its official Riftbound partners reserve the right to alter this document, or any subsequent competition-specific addenda, at any time without prior notice.
200Definitions
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
Competition Format: Riftbound competitions can be run with one of two formats.
202.1
Limited: A limited competition is one where all product needed for play is provided during the competition.
202.2
Constructed: A constructed competition is one where players compete using decks they prepare beforehand.
202.3
Swiss: A competition or component of a competition where players are paired based on their current standing in the competition.
202.4
Playoff: A competition or component of a competition where players are initially paired based on their standing and are subsequently eliminated by losses.
202.5
Rules: Each format has rules specific to it.
202.6
Multiple: Some competitions may consist of multiple formats within the same competition.
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 expected attendance.
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 information on appeals.
204.4
Head Judge: All sanctioned competitions require a Head Judge. The Head Judge is the final authority on competition rules and regulations, and their responsibilities include:
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, and their responsibilities include:
204.5.a
Answering questions about rules, interactions among cards, providing Watcher wordings, or derived game state.
204.5.a.1
At high OPL, judges may not answer direct questions about the results of game actions a player has not yet taken. In these situations, players must ask hypothetical questions about the rules. Examples:
204.5.a.1.a
Inappropriate question: “If I attack and conquer this battlefield with my Tryndamere, Barbarian, will I score the winning point?”
204.5.a.1.b
Appropriate question: “Can point scoring abilities like Tryndamere’s score you the winning point?”
204.5.a.1.c
Judges may ask players to rephrase their questions to be appropriate where possible.
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 to games and game records, including:
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.b.1
Behaving respectfully to all attendees of the competition, including officials and spectators.
204.7.b.2
Maintaining clear game state.
204.7.b.3
Complying with all processes and procedures of the competition, including announcements and time limits.
204.7.b.4
Calling to the attention of a judge any rules or policy violation in their matches.
204.7.b.5
Calling to the attention of a judge any error in their competition record as noted by the scorekeeper.
204.7.b.6
Reporting the result of their competition matches to an official in a timely manner.
204.7.b.7
Obeying eligibility rules.
204.7.b.8
Familiarizing themselves with this document and any addenda.
204.7.b.9
Presenting themselves physically for the competition for its duration.
204.7.c
Even if officials assist, the player remains ultimately 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.c.1
Remaining silent during matches and anywhere else in the venue where silence is required.
204.8.c.2
At Casual and Competitive OPL, spectators can ask players to pause play while they alert a judge of a potential issue.
204.8.c.3
At Professional OPL, spectators can’t ask players to pause play, but they can still alert a judge of a potential issue.
204.8.f
Competition officials may instruct that a spectator not observe a match.
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 violations warrant.
205.2
Casual (low): Most competitions are casual and are focused on fun and social interaction, not rules enforcement.
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 the highest and most technically precise level of play.
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.
300Playing the Game
302
Play continues cyclically until one player wins.
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 step of the turn ends and the next phase, step, or turn begins.
306
The Turn Player changes when the current Turn Player reaches the End of all of the Phases of their Turn.
308
At any given time, the turn is in either a Neutral State or a Showdown State.
310
These descriptions can be combined, such that the turn is always in one of these four states:
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.
312.2
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 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.
315.2
Beginning Phase
315.2.b
Scoring Step
315.2.b.1
The following Task becomes Outstanding :
315.2.b.2
1. The Turn Player Holds all Battlefields they Control . See rule 462. Scoring for more information.
315.2.b.3
Reminder: In Modes of Play with Teams , Battlefields held by a Teammate of the Turn Player during this phase are disqualified from being scored this turn by the Turn Player.
316.1
When all steps of the Start of Turn have been completed, the Main Phase begins.
316.2
The Main Phase has no defined structure.
316.2.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 more information.
316.2.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 of the Turn for more information.
316.2.b.1
In Modes of Play with teammates, the Turn Player's teammates may play spells and activate abilities, including ones without Action or Reaction. They can only do so when the Turn Player invites them to do so with their own Priority.
316.3
As a result of a player taking Discretionary Actions , one or more structured phases may occur.
316.4
Combat
316.4.a
A Combat occurs as a result of Units controlled by opposing players being present at the same Battlefield .
316.4.b
This could be the result of a Standard Move Standard Action , a Spell , or other Game Effect.
316.4.c
The source effect does not change the structure or flow of Combat once initiated.
316.4.d
A Combat can only occur between two players. See rule 454. Combat for more information.
316.4.e
Play proceeds following the steps of combat. See rule 458. The Steps of Combat for more information.
316.4.f
Combat will also include a Showdown.
316.5
Showdowns
316.5.b
A Showdown is marked as Staged at a Battlefield when the Contested status is applied to a Battlefield with no current controller.
316.5.b.1
Showdowns that occur as a result of a player moving to an empty Battlefield are a stand-alone Phase and do not create a Combat.
316.5.b.1.a
These Showdowns are called Non-Combat Showdowns . During the proceedings of a Non-Combat Showdown , units controlled by a different player may become present at the Battlefield where the Showdown is ongoing. This will cause the Showdown to become a Combat Showdown.
316.5.c
A Showdown is a structured Window of Opportunity where Players may play cards and activate abilities with Action or Reaction. See rule 341. Showdowns for more information.
317.2
Expiration Step
317.2.a
Invoke an Ending Special Cleanup. See rule 318. Cleanups for more information.
317.2.b
Insert “2c. Heal all Units .”
317.2.c
Insert “2d. All ‘this turn’ effects expire simultaneously.”
317.2.d
Insert “2e. 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.
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 Legal 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
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 their Controller now
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 that designation, and gain the same designation as their controller now
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 designations, they lose those designations now
323.3
3. Handle outstanding board state
323.4
3a. All Units that have non-zero Damage marked on them equalling or exceeding their Might that have Deathknell abilities will trigger their Deathknell ability now, making note of their current location, attributes, and other information relevant to add the trigger as a Pending Item See rule 808 Deathknell for more information .
323.5
3b. All Units that have non-zero Damage marked on them equalling or exceeding their Might are killed and placed in their owners' Trash.
323.6
4. If the turn is in an Open State, Battlefields with no Units occupying them and no Showdown or Combat ongoing become Uncontrolled.
323.7
5. Recall all Unattached non- Unit Gear at Battlefields, and all Permanents and Runes in Bases other than their controller’s. Remove all Hidden cards from all Battlefields that are not controlled by the same player and place them in their owner's Trash.
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 cease being Staged
323.11
8. If the current state is a Neutral Open State and one or more Showdowns are Staged , the Turn Player chooses one of those Battlefields. A Showdown begins there.
323.12
8a. If a Showdown and Combat are staged at the same Battlefield and the turn player chooses to initiate the Showdown there, the Showdown will open as a Combat Showdown.
323.13
9. If the current state is a Neutral Open State and Combat is Staged at one or more Battlefields , the Turn Player chooses one of those Battlefields . Combat begins there.
323.14
9a. If the current state is Showdown Open State and Combat is Staged at a Battlefield where there is a Non-Combat Showdown ongoing, that Showdown becomes a Combat Showdown.
324
Special Cleanups are Cleanup steps invoked at specific times that have additional steps not present in a normal Cleanup.
329
Cards and abilities added to the chain are added as Pending Chain Items that become Finalized Chain Items.
331
The State of the Turn is partially determined by whether or not the Chain currently exists.
334
A Task is one or more steps or processes that one or more Players must perform before continuing with any other actions.
334.1
Tasks include, but are not limited to: Cleanups , the actions performed during the Start of Turn Process , throughout Combat in its various steps, and the actions performed during the End of Turn Process. See rule 318. Cleanups for more information on Cleanups See rule 315. Start of Turn for more information on the Start of Turn process See rule 454. Combat for more information on the steps of Combat See rule 317. Ending Phase for more information.
335
Whenever a Player takes one or more actions that incur Tasks they should refer to the process of HOT FEPR: H andle O utstanding T asks; then F inalize, E xecute, P ass, R esolve.
335.1
In the course of Handling Outstanding Tasks, Chain Items may be added to the Chain . They will remain there until the Tasks are complete.
335.3
If there are no Outstanding Tasks , no pending Chain Items , and it is the Main Phase, the Turn Player receives priority. If there are no Outstanding Tasks , no pending items, and it is any other phase of the turn, proceed to the next substep, step, phase, or turn.
337.1
If one or more Items are Pending , their controllers must complete the steps of Playing those Pending Items until they are Finalized Items or leave the Chain.
337.1.a
This process does not pass Priority.
337.1.b
Each Item is Finalized in the order it was appended to the Chain.
337.1.c
Units, Gear, and abilities that Add resources resolve immediately when Finalized and do not progress to Step 2: Execute. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information.
337.1.c.1
If the Chain is empty, play proceeds in an Open State.
337.1.c.1.a
If this occurs during a Showdown , the next player in turn order gains Focus .
337.1.c.2
If the Chain is not empty and there are one or more Pending Items , repeat Step 1.
337.1.c.3
If the Chain is not empty and there are no Pending Items , the controller of the newest item on the chain gains Priority and becomes the Active Player. Proceed to Step 2: Execute.
338.1
The player with Priority may do any the following:
338.1.a
Play a Card that is legally timed.
338.1.a.1
Cards , by default, cannot be played during a Closed State.
338.1.a.2
A Legally Timed Card would be a Card with Reaction or a card that will have Reaction when played under appropriate circumstances.
338.1.a.3
Other exceptions may be created during regular play.
338.1.a.4
The card will be added to the chain as a Pending Item , following the steps of playing a card.
338.1.a.5
This can be an additional card to the item that Started the Chain in the case of the first player with Priority after creating the Chain.
338.1.a.6
Whether a Card is legally timed is evaluated during the “Check Legality” step of Playing a Card. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information.
338.1.a.7
Playing a card will create one or more Pending Items . Return to Step 1: Finalize.
338.1.b
Activate Abilities of Game Objects that are legally timed. See rule 398. Playing or Activating Abilities for more information.
340.1
The newest item on the Chain resolves. Execute its game effects in their entirety. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information on resolving spells. See rule 398. Playing or Activating Abilities for more information on resolving abilities.
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: Execute.
344
A Showdown begins when Control of a Battlefield is Contested 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. See rule 454. Combat for more information.
344.2
If Control of a Battlefield is Contested and the Battlefield in question is uncontrolled when it becomes Contested , a Showdown is opened during the Cleanup at the end of the action that caused the Battlefield to become Contested.
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 both Focus and Priority.
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 result of an Add ability being added to the chain.
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 458. The Steps of Combat for more information.
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 Control over the Battlefield . See rule 185. Control for more information on Control . See rule 464.1. for more information on Conquering .
348.2.a.1
This results in a Conquer if that player has not yet scored that Battlefield this turn.
354
1. Remove the card from the zone you are playing it from and put it onto 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 334. for more information on Tasks.
355
2. Make relevant choices.
355.1
If the card is a spell, or has an effect that specifies a choice "As I am played," those choices are made now.
355.2
For Units , choose a valid Location where that Unit will be placed upon being Played.
355.3
For Spells and Abilities with a bulleted list of modes to choose from, make the appropriate choices now.
355.5
If a card requires you to specifically choose one or more Game Objects , that choice is made now.
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 some other zone. e.g., “Kill a unit” targets a unit on the board. e.g., “Recycle a unit from your trash” targets a unit card in your trash.
355.9.a.1
“Unit,” “gear,” and “rune” refer to objects on the Board unless specified otherwise.
355.9.a.2
“Spell” and “ability” refer to objects on the Chain unless specified otherwise.
355.9.a.3
“Facedown card” refers to a card in a Facedown Zone unless specified otherwise.
355.9.a.4
“Legend” refers to a legend in the Legend Zone.
355.9.a.5
“Chosen Champion” and “unit in the Champion Zone” refer to a unit in the Champion Zone unless specified otherwise.
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 you control,” or “unit with Might 4 or greater” only if it meets the appropriate criteria.
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 target that permanent, because abilities and their sources are separate objects.
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 following are true:
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., “Return a unit from your trash to your hand” targets a unit card in your trash, because your trash is Public. e.g., “You may play a unit from your hand, ignoring its costs” does not target a unit card in your hand, because your hand is not a public zone.
355.10.a.1
Public zones are Battlefield Zones, Bases, Trashes, Legend Zones, Champion Zones, and Facedown Zones.
355.10.b
It is included only as part of a targeting restriction for another choice. e.g., “Kill a unit at a battlefield” targets a unit, but not a battlefield, because the units are targets and “at a battlefield” is a restriction. e.g., “Kill all units at a battlefield” targets a battlefield, but not any units.
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 unit” doesn’t target anything. e.g., “When a friendly unit dies, kill a gear” targets a gear, but not a friendly unit. e.g., “When you play me, the next time a friendly unit would die this turn, return it to your hand instead” doesn’t target anything. The replacement effect applies when any friendly unit dies. e.g., “Choose a friendly unit. The next time it would die this turn, return it to your hand instead” targets a friendly unit, because “choose a friendly unit” is not part of the replacement effect.
355.10.c.1
This includes costs within instructions, identified by phrases like “[do X] to [do Y].” The cost within that instruction is “[do X].” e.g., “When I hold, you may kill another friendly unit here to draw 1” does not target anything. e.g., “When you play me, you may spend a buff to move a friendly unit” targets the friendly unit, but not the buff.
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 at a battlefield” targets a battlefield, but does not target any units. e.g., “Kill all units at battlefields” doesn’t target anything. e.g., “Destroy a unit. Its controller draws 2 cards” targets the unit, but not its controller. e.g., “Ready your legend” doesn’t target anything, because you can only have one legend. e.g., “Ready a friendly legend” targets a legend, because in a 2v2 game there are two friendly legends. e.g., “Recycle all cards in your trash” doesn’t target anything, because it affects all cards and you only have one trash.
355.10.d.1
This exception applies solely to objects for which no choice is ever possible.
355.10.d.2
This exception does not apply to objects that are the only valid choice at the moment a spell or ability is placed on the chain, but which would require a choice under other circumstances. e.g., “Kill a unit at a battlefield” always targets a unit, even if that unit is the only unit currently at a battlefield.
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. Each player, including the one who played the spell, chooses a unit to kill as the spell or ability resolves.
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 choose from among your runes as the spell or ability resolves. e.g., “Recycle a rune you control” targets a rune. You choose a rune you control as you put the spell or ability on the chain.
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 controller can choose a subset of the original targets that fulfills the targeting requirement for the spell or ability to affect.
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 chosen independently of the decision to perform the Game Action.
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 available targets, including zero. If they choose zero, the spell or ability can be played without any targets.
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.
355.14.d
Each Target is valid, and contributes to Chosen triggers 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 dealing damage determines which Targets cease being Targets.
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, or otherwise triggered.
355.15
These choices cannot be changed after this step.
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 they have no choice.
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.b.1
If a card allows a player to play a card "ignoring its cost," its base Energy cost and base Power cost are set to zero.
356.1.b.2
If a card instructs a player to play a card "ignoring its Energy cost" or "ignoring its Power cost," only the appropriate cost is set to zero, and the remaining cost still applies.
356.1.b.3
Further additional costs and/or cost increases applied in subsequent steps may raise the card's Total Cost above zero.
356.2
Apply additional costs in any order.
356.2.a
Mandatory Additional Costs
356.2.a.1
Some Additional Costs specified by Passive Abilities on the card being played or another card are Mandatory , and must be paid to complete playing the card. They use the phrase "as an additional cost" and don't include the word "may."
356.2.a.2
The cost imposed by the Deflect keyword is a Mandatory Additional Cost. See rule 809. Deflect for more information.
356.3
Apply cost increases.
356.4
Apply discounts.
356.5
Energy and Power costs can't be reduced below 0.
356.6
Costs may be Energy costs, Power costs, or non-standard costs.
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 the card's costs. See rule 164. Rune Pools and rule 429. Add for more information.
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 they have no choice.
358
5. Check legality.
358.1
Check that all chosen targets are legal.
358.2
Ensure that the outcome of the effect of this card being played would not create an illegal state.
358.3
Ensure that the card has the appropriate permissions to be played at this timing.
358.4
If the card, if continued to be played, would create an illegal state, or if a choice or action at this state is illegal, 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.
359.3
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 those items before continuing. See rule 327. Chains for more information .
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 the owning player.
359.3.e
Handling illegal and impossible instructions
359.3.e.1
The spell resolves even if some or all of its targets are illegal.
359.3.e.2
A target is illegal as the spell resolves if it no longer meets the targeting requirements of the spell, or if it has changed Zones to or from a Non-Board Zone.
359.3.e.3
If a target ceases to meet the targeting requirements while the spell is on the chain, then meets them again, it's a legal target.
359.3.e.4
If a target changes Zones to or from a Non-Board Zone and then returns to its original zone, it is no longer a legal target, because it's not treated as the same object. Examples: An enemy unit at a battlefield is no longer a legal target if it is no longer an enemy, no longer a unit, or no longer at a battlefield. A unit with 3 or less Might is no longer a legal target if it is no longer a unit or if its Might is greater than 3. Something that's exhausted is no longer a legal target if it is no longer exhausted. (It can't stop being "something.") A spell that's played from hidden can normally only target its own battlefield or something at that battlefield. A target for such a spell may cease to be a legal target if it moves from the battlefield where that spell was played, even if the spell has no location targeting requirement otherwise.
359.3.e.5
If any of the spell's targets are no longer legal, those targets are unaffected by the spell as it resolves.
359.3.e.6
Instructions that can't be followed, either because of illegal targets or other circumstances, are ignored.
359.3.e.7
If all of an instruction's Targets become Invalid or Unavailable by the time the spell is finished being played, that instruction will not execute.
359.3.e.8
If an instruction has more than one Target and fewer than all of the Targets become Invalid or Unavailable by the time the spell is finished being played, the instruction will execute, with only the Targets available and valid being operated on.
359.3.e.9
The process for a card's choice becoming Invalid or Unavailable is referred to as mistargeting.
359.3.e.10
It is possible for none of a spell's instructions to be executed as it resolves, due to all of them requiring targets to act on and all of those targets becoming Invalid or Unavailable . In this case, the spell has no effect but is still considered played.
359.3.e.11
Instructions that can be partially followed are followed as much as possible and ignored otherwise.
359.3.e.12
If the spell checks information about a target that is no longer legal or a card or permanent whose location, zone, or status has changed such that that information is no longer available, that check returns "null" and all calculations based on it are ignored. Examples: A unit that is no longer on the board is treated as having null Might, null cost, etc. A unit that is no longer on the board has no location, is neither exhausted nor readied, etc. Baited Hook says "[1][C], [E]: Kill a friendly unit. Look at the top 5 cards of your Main Deck. You may banish a unit from among them that has Might up to 1 more than the killed unit and play it, ignoring its cost. Then recycle the rest." While Baited Hook’s ability is on the chain, an opponent reacts with a spell that returns the friendly unit to its owner's hand. Because the friendly unit is no longer a legal target, it can't be killed and its Might is treated as null. Baited Hook’s controller looks at the top 5 cards of their Main Deck, but can’t choose any unit from among them.
359.3.e.12.a
If the spell checks information about a target that is legal, or a card or permanent whose location, zone, or status has not changed such that information is no longer available, that information is accessible.
359.3.e.13
A spell or ability that moves something to a different zone as a cost or effect can "look back" at its characteristics before it changes zones.
359.3.e.14
Some instructions may reference Game Objects affected by, or Game Actions performed in, other instructions in a card. The referenced and referencing instructions are called “linked instructions.”
359.3.e.14.a
In order for a later linked instruction to execute, its earlier linked instruction must have executed. If the earlier linked instruction is ignored for any reason, the later linked instruction will also be ignored.
359.3.e.14.b
If the Game Action performed in an earlier linked instruction is replaced, this will not affect the later linked instruction.
359.3.e.15
A spell or ability that leaves the chain during the process of its resolution will cease further execution of its instructions. This immediately causes the spell or ability to finish resolving.
359.3.f
Referents
359.3.f.1
Some information used by abilities is referenced from the source of those abilities, or from one or more targets of a spell or ability. This can usually be recognized by the presence of words like “here,” “my,” or “its.”
359.3.f.2
Information referenced in an instruction in this way will be checked on execution of the instruction. Examples: A player moves Yasuo, Remorseful to an occupied enemy battlefield and initiates combat there. In reaction to the Yasuo, Remorseful attack trigger, their opponent plays Fight or Flight from hidden targeting Yasuo, moving him back to base. When the attack trigger resolves, “here” is no longer the battlefield where combat is ongoing and the attack trigger mistargets. In reaction to a Yasuo, Remorseful attack trigger, an opponent plays Stupefy targeting Yasuo. When Yasuo’s attack trigger resolves, it will deal damage equal to his current Might of 5.
359.3.f.3
Some information used by triggered abilities is referenced from the trigger condition of the ability. This information is checked when the trigger condition is fulfilled.
359.3.f.3.a
In the case of a delayed triggered ability, the information is referenced when the triggered ability is created unless specified otherwise. In the case of a linked ability that references information from a linked triggered ability, that information may be referenced from the trigger condition of the linked triggered ability if specified.
359.3.f.4
Some information used by the effect of a triggered ability is referenced from the triggered ability itself, such as “enemy” and “friendly” status. This information is checked on execution of the referencing instruction.
362
A card can have more than one Ability and more than one type of Ability.
364
Conditions, rules, constraints, or statements that affect the course of regular play.
365.1
Passive Abilities of Permanents are typically only active while on the Board.
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 circumstances by which an event or instruction will qualify to be replaced.
370.1.a
When a Replacement Effect applies, it replaces the qualifying event with one or more Game Actions or events, or the qualifying instruction with another instruction.
370.2
A Replacement Effect can only be applied once to an event, or to any Game Actions or events that replace that event.
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 before an event occurs that it could replace.
372
If more than one Replacement Effect applies to the same event being executed, then the owner of the object being acted on determines 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 the purposes of Replacement Effects, and Replacement Effects with the same controller are applied in the order of their controller’s choosing.
373.1
Although these events are simultaneous, the applied Replacement Effects are ordered. If multiple applied Replacement Effects with different controllers would execute simultaneously, they execute in turn order.
373.2
When applying Replacement Effects to events that occur simultaneously, each Replacement Effect may only be applied in one sequence, to any number of events that are qualified to be replaced.
373.2.a
A sequence of Replacement Effects is an uninterrupted series of applications to a set of simultaneous events.
373.2.a.1
A Replacement Effect that replaces an event or Game Action that is part of another Replacement Effect will not interrupt the sequence of the replaced Replacement Effect’s application.
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 a Game Effect , or the results of that event would be modified by a Game Action, the Replacement Effect will inherit those modifications.
377
Activated Abilities are repeatable effects with a cost. They follow a process of going onto the chain and resolving, similar to Playing a Card. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information.
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.
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 time during the turn sequence; or the phrase “the [Nth] time” followed by a game action or event. Examples: " When you conquer here, you may spend a buff to draw 1." "At the end of your turn, ready 2 runes." “The first time I move each turn, you may ready something else that's exhausted.”
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 controller picks one of those instances to serve as the trigger condition. The ability triggers only once, due to the chosen condition.
383.2
Triggered Abilities have a Condition and an Effect.
383.2.a
The Condition follows the When.
383.2.b
The Effect is the Instruction that follows the comma after the Condition.
383.2.c
The Condition of a Trigger is evaluated after a potentially inciting event has been processed.
383.2.c.1
If a Game Object with a Triggered Ability that is active in a specific zone, it is evaluated and subsequently triggered if it enters that zone at the same time that its Trigger ’s condition is met.
383.2.c.2
A Game Object will not be able to successfully be able to evaluate its Trigger Condition , however, if it leaves the zone that its Trigger is active from at the same time that its Trigger is satisfied.
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” as the first part of its Effect , the controller of its source will choose whether or not to place the Triggered Ability on the chain when its trigger Condition is fulfilled.
383.3.b
If a Triggered Ability contains a cost within instructions, that cost is treated as the base cost of the Triggered Ability.
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 on the Chain.
383.3.d.1
If multiple players separately control Triggered Abilities that are Triggered simultaneously, then starting with the Turn Player and proceeding in Turn Order , each player orders their Triggered Abilities on the Chain.
383.3.e
If a triggered ability has a conditional statement following the Condition, that conditional statement must be true in order for the trigger to be placed on the Chain.
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 associated with it.
383.4.a
Play Effects are Triggered Abilities with the Condition that the Permanent that has the Play Effect being played to the board.
383.4.a.1
These are commonly structured as “When you play me…” for Units and “When you play this…” for Gear.
383.4.a.2
These Triggered Abilities are put on the Chain as Pending Items after the Permanent these effects correspond to is finalized and enters the board.
383.4.a.3
These Triggered Abilities can be referred to as Play Effects.
383.4.a.4
Abilities that trigger when another object is played are not considered Play Effects.
383.4.b
Targeting Effects are Triggered Abilities with the Condition that a Game Object becomes targeted.
383.4.b.1
These are commonly structured as “When you choose me …” or “When you choose a [Game Object] …”
383.4.b.2
These Triggered Abilities are put on the Chain as Pending Items after a spell or ability that targets an appropriate Game Object is Finalized.
383.4.b.3
Although these abilities say “choose” in their Condition , they trigger specifically when an appropriate Game Object is Targeted. See rule 355.6. Targeting for more information on what counts as Targeting.
383.4.b.4
These Triggered Abilities can be referred to as Targeting Effects.
383.4.c
Conquer Effects are Triggered Abilities with a Condition of a Unit participating in, and successfully Conquering a Battlefield.
383.4.c.1
These are commonly structured as “When I conquer…” and “When you conquer…”
383.4.c.2
This category of Triggered Abilities encompasses only those that are triggered from Units that were present during the Conquer action, or Abilities that reference the player that performed the Conquer action.
383.4.c.2.a
The Conquer Abilities of Units are put on the Chain as Pending Items after the Unit(s) these effects correspond to are present at a Battlefield when a player gains control of it and gains 1 Victory Point from Conquering.
383.4.c.2.b
The Conquer Abilities of anything that references the player Conquering is put on the Chain as a Pending Item when the Condition that the player that controls the triggering source has performed a Conquer and gained 1 Victory Point.
383.4.c.2.c
If the act of gaining one point from Conquering is negated or replaced in any way, the Conquer Effect will still trigger.
383.4.c.3
These Triggered Abilities can be referred to as Conquer Effects.
383.4.d
Hold Effects are Triggered Abilities with a Condition of a Unit being present at a Battlefield during the Beginning phase when a player scores Victory Points from Holding.
383.4.d.1
These are commonly structured as “When I hold…” or “When you hold…”
383.4.d.2
This category of Triggered Abilities encompasses only those that are triggered from Units that were present during the Hold action, or Abilities that reference the player that performed the Hold action.
383.4.d.2.a
The Hold Abilities of Units are put on the Chain as Pending Items after the Unit these effects correspond to are present at a Battlefield when a player maintains control of it and Gains 1 Victory Point during their Beginning Phase from Holding.
383.4.d.2.b
The Hold Abilities of anything that references the player Holding is put on the Chain as a Pending Item when the Condition that the player that controls the triggering source has performed a Hold and gained 1 Victory Point.
383.4.d.2.c
If the act of gaining one point from Holding is negated or replaced in any way, the Hold Effect will still trigger.
383.4.d.3
These Triggered Abilities can be referred to as Hold Effects.
383.4.e
Attack Triggers are Triggered Abilities that trigger when a Unit gains the Attacker designation for the first time during a combat.
383.4.e.1
These are commonly structured as “When I attack…”
383.4.e.2
These Triggered Abilities are put on the Chain as Pending Items after the Unit these effects correspond to gains the Attacker designation during Combat .
383.4.e.2.a
These triggers will only have their condition checked once per combat, despite a Unit being able to gain and lose the Attacker designation multiple times in the same combat.
383.4.e.2.b
If the trigger condition contains other requirements besides attacking and if those requirements are not fulfilled when the unit gains the Attacker designation, it will not trigger in that combat.
383.4.e.3
These Triggered Abilities can be referred to as Attack Triggers.
383.4.f
Defend Triggers are Triggered Abilities that trigger when a Unit gains the Defender designation for the first time during a combat.
383.4.f.1
These are commonly structured as “When I defend…”
383.4.f.2
These Triggered Abilities are put on the Chain as Pending Items after the Unit these effects correspond to gains the Defender designation during Combat .
383.4.f.2.a
These triggers will only have their condition checked once per combat, despite a Unit being able to gain and lose the Defender designation multiple times in the same combat.
383.4.f.2.b
If the trigger condition contains other requirements besides defending and if those requirements are not fulfilled when the unit gains the Defender designation, it will not trigger in that combat.
383.4.f.3
These Triggered Abilities can be referred to as Defend Triggers.
387
Reflexive Triggers are a type of Triggered Ability that create one or more Chain Items when their condition is met.
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 to the Chain. See rule 398. Playing or Activating Abilities for more information.
390
Delayed Abilities are a type of Ability whose trigger Condition identifies a specific time during a turn or a specific event that can occur during a specific timeframe.
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 Abilities.
390.2
Delayed Triggers are Triggered Abilities that can be recognized by describing a specific time of the turn, or by structuring a Triggered Ability with a specific frame of time as a restriction.
390.3
Delayed Replacements are Replacement Effects that can be recognized by specifying the effect they are replacing at a specific time, or “the [Nth] time” in the description of the effect as it resolves.
390.4
Delayed Passive Abilities are Passive Abilities that are applicable only during a specified window of time. The time that the Delayed Passive Ability applies will be recognized in the effect that initiates it.
390.5
Delayed Linked Abilities are Linked Abilities that are generated by another Ability and reference that Ability or Game Objects it affects. Delayed Linked Abilities don’t necessarily identify a specific window of time, and instead are defined by the Ability they are linked with.
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. Refl391. Delayed Abilities will resolve or be active just like the ability they augment, but only during the specified time in the effect that created the Delayed Ability.
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 condition and/or specified time occurs regardless of whether the source of the Delayed Ability is still on the board or not.
394
Linked Abilities are a set of Abilities with one or more of the component Abilities referencing the other Abilities in the set.
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 granted by the same source to another Game Object.
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 by the Abilities it is Linked with.
399
Playing or activating Abilities follows the same steps of playing cards.
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 not have a card representing it, this will create a Closed State. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information.
401.2
If there is currently a game effect being resolved, continue resolving the game effect instead of continuing the following steps.
402.1
Make all choices required for this ability, such as targets, modes, or other relevant decisions. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information
402.2
If legal options are not available for an Activated Ability, it is not legal to activate it.
402.3
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. It ceases to be a Pending Item but never becomes a Chain Item.
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.
403.1.b.1
If a Triggered Ability has a cost within instructions (e.g. “[do X] to [do Y]”), the cost is taken as the base cost. See rule 742.1. for more information on costs within instructions.
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.
404.1
Pay costs as determined in the prior step. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information.
406.1
This Ability is no longer Pending.
406.2
This Ability becomes a Chain Item.
406.3
If there are other Pending 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. 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.
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.
410.1
Discretionary Actions
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 cannot perform these actions at-will.
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 the turn.
411.1
Game Actions may be the responsibility of up to one player. The player that performs the Game Action is responsible for it.
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 any player.
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.
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 Unit that is already Exhausted cannot be Exhausted again.
414.1.c
If a Unit 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.
414.4
When Exhausting is listed as a Cost , then the Action must be able to be completed for the cost to be paid.
414.5
In abilities, the Exhaust symbol represents the cost "Exhaust this" or "Exhaust me." It resembles a card turning sideways.
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 corresponding deck.
416.3
When Recycling is listed as a Cost , the action must be able to be completed for the cost to be paid.
416.4
When Recycling is part of an effect, a player must Recycle as many cards as possible from the specified zone or zones.
416.6
This action, when instructed, is sometimes formatted as " Recycle X from [Zone]." That means to take X cards of the instructed player's choice from the relevant zone and recycle them.
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.
417.2
Only Damage can be Dealt.
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 Damage for more information.
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.
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.b.1
Units and Spells can be the source of Damage for Deal actions.
417.6.b.2
Abilities can be the source of Damage for Deal actions.
417.6.b.2.a
When an Ability is the source of Damage for a Deal action, it is in addition to the Spell or Unit that created that Ability.
417.6.b.3
When a spell or ability specifies a Unit as the source of the Damage for the Deal action, it is not in addition to the spell or ability that specified it.
417.7
Deal actions can distribute Damage as part of combat actions or non-combat actions.
418.2
More than one Unit can be Healed at the same time.
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 playing cards. See rule 337. Finalize for more information on finalizing cards.
419.1.a
By default, a player can only Play cards from their hand or their Chosen Champion zone.
419.3
Game effects may result in cards being played as part of their resolution.
419.4
Some Abilities trigger when cards are played or otherwise check whether cards have been played.
419.4.a
These abilities trigger when the act of playing the card has been completed by the resolution of the card.
419.4.b
If a game effect prevents the resolution of the card—for example, because the card was countered —the card wasn't played and no abilities that trigger on playing cards trigger. See rule 425. Counter for more information.
420.1
Moving is the act of a Game Object moving between two Locations on The Board. See rule 440. Movement for more information on movement.
421.1
Hiding a card is the act of placing a card facedown at a Battlefield you control.
421.3
Cards that are facedown at Battlefields have their gameplay properties and permissions defined by the effect that put them there.
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.
422.1
Discarding a card is moving it from a player's hand directly into their trash without activating or executing its normal rules text.
422.3
When Discarding is listed as a Cost , then the Action must be able to be completed for the cost to be paid.
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 cards than they have in their hand, further discard instructions are ignored.
422.5
This action is formatted as "Discard X."
423.1
Stunning is the act of selecting one or more Units on the Board and rendering them Stunned.
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 as revealing and does not trigger any effects that trigger when cards are revealed.
424.3
This action is formatted as "Reveal cards from [zone]."
425.3
This action is formatted as " Counter [a card or ability on the chain]."
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 the same battlefield."
427.1
Banishing is the action of placing a card from any zone to Banishment. See
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 your trash." e.g., "Look at the top 2 cards of your Main Deck. Draw one of them and banish the other."
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.
428.1.a.1
Active Kill is when the action is taken when instructed by a game effect or as a cost for a card or ability.
428.1.a.1.a
This is referred to as a Kill Instruction.
428.1.a.1.b
When a unit with a Deathknell is to be put in the Trash due to a Kill Instruction , it first has its Deathknell added to the chain as a Pending Item. Note the unit’s location, attributes, and other relevant information to process its Deathknell when finalized before completing this Kill Instruction .
428.1.a.2
Passive Kill is when the action is taken as a result of Lethal Damage or as a consequence for any other state.
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 that Cleanup that dealt damage to the Unit or Units . The player responsible for the deal action is responsible for the kill action.
428.5.d
Abilities originating from Game Objects that are attributed Kill Actions are attributed in addition to the Game Object that created them.
428.5.e
In order to Kill something “with” a spell or ability, the Kill action must be attributed to the spell or ability, the player must control that spell or ability, and the player must be responsible for the Kill action.
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 gear."
429.1
Adding is the action of putting resources into a player's Rune Pool.
429.3
Activated abilities that Add resources and have the Reaction tag can be activated during the playing or resolution of other spells and abilities, any time that those spells or abilities require resources be paid.
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.
429.5
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 of the Order domain." e.g., "Add [1][G]." means "Add 1 Energy and 1 Power of the Calm domain."
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 the board.
430.4
This action is formatted as "Channel X rune(s)," optionally followed by conditions or stipulations. e.g., "Channel 1 rune." e.g., "When you play me, channel 1 rune exhausted." e.g., "Channel 2 runes exhausted. If you couldn't channel 2 runes this way, draw 1."
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 the number of cards remaining in their Main Deck:
431.1.a
If a player must Draw cards in excess to the number of cards in their deck, they will Draw as many as possible, perform this action, then Draw the remaining amount instructed.
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 deck they will do so as much as possible, perform this action, and then complete the remaining number required by the instruction.
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 or Reveals as many as possible, but does not Burn Out, then proceeds with the rest of the instruction.
431.1.c.1
If there are insufficient cards among the looked at or revealed cards to perform subsequent actions to the revealed or looked at cards, any further instructions are ignored. This does not cause a Burn Out , even if those instructions would cause those cards to change zones. Reminder: Cards are considered in the zone of origin while being looked at or revealed, in this case the Main Deck .
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 randomized
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.
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 action again, it will cause another Burn Out .
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 passes the Victory Score and wins the game.
431.3.b
Points gained after the first Burn Out being processed in sequence cannot be replaced or prevented by any means. 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 mode will cause that player to win the game if they also have more points than any opponent. The player wins immediately, without needing to wait for a cleanup to occur.
431.5
Burning Out is a Replacement Effect. See rule 367. Replacement Effects for more information.
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 values are reversed.
433.1.a
Swapping creates two different effects that apply to each attribute. One that Increases one value and one that Decreases the other.
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 attributes, and a Decrease of that amount to the higher value of the two attributes.
433.1.c
If both attributes are the same numeric value, Swapping has no effect.
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 become Attached and at least one card to become a Top-Most Card. See rule 716. Attachment for more information.
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 showing, but nothing else from the card or cards Attached.
434.1.b.1
In the situation where there is more than one card attached to the Top-Most card , they should be stacked in such a way that all Effect Text boxes and Might Bonuses are readable. The order of the Attached cards has no bearing on the application of effects.
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’ Rules Text to become Inactive for as long as they remain Attached. See rule 716. Attachment for more information.
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.
434.3
Attaching cards does not inherently choose or specify a target. However, Game Effects that Attach cards may do so.
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 , and potentially causes the other to cease being a Top-Most 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.
435.3
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.
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 Attached Card will Detach to is the last location the Top-Most Card was at before changing from a board zone to a non-board zone.
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.
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 relevant for.
437.1.b.1
Prevent actions are usually formatted as “ Prevent the next X [source] damage that would be dealt to a [unit] this turn.”
437.1.b.1.a
The X is referred to as the Prevent Value.
437.1.b.1.b
X can be “All,” which specifies an infinite amount of damage.
437.1.b.2
Prevent will always apply to the next damage that would be dealt to a unit affected by the Prevent action.
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.
437.4
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 affected by the Prevent action.
437.7
Prevent is a Delayed Replacement Effect. See rule 367. Replacement Effects for more information. See rule 389. Delayed Abilities for more information.
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 of the game object it replaced.
438.4
Replacing is not a subset of Banishing.
438.7
Tokens that have been Created through a Replace action can be instructed to be “Swapped back.”
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 effects and statuses.
438.7.c
If there is nothing in Banishment to swap back to, usually because a token was replaced, then this object can never swap back.
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 zones in question.
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 zones as appropriate for Game Objects of their type.
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. Permanents will be Created to any location on the Board that they can be played to.
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 is established as usual for Game Objects of the appropriate type.
439.5
This action, when instructed, is usually formatted as "Create [X] to [Y]" or “Add [X] to [Y].”
442
Moving is defined by the Origin and Destination of the Permanent that is changing locations.
442.1
The Origin is where the Permanent is starting from.
442.2
The Destination is where the Permanent is going to.
442.2.a
In Modes of Play with more than two players, Battlefields with Staged Combats or Combats in Progress are Invalid Destinations for Moves of all kinds ( Standard Moves or otherwise) by Units controlled by Players not involved in those Combats or who don't already have permanents at that Battlefield .
442.2.b
In Modes of Play with teammates, Battlefields Controlled by a player’s teammates are Invalid Destinations for Moves of all kinds ( Standard Moves or otherwise) by Units that player controls.
442.2.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 Battlefield with two players that are not the controller of the Unit performing this Move action are in a Combat or such a Combat is Staged , it instead Recalls. See rule 449. Recalls for more information.
442.3
Units are the only Permanents that can Move.
443
Players may choose to move their Units with the Standard Move. See rule 144. for more information on the Standard Move.
445
The Destination becomes Contested if it is a Battlefield not controlled by the controller of the Unit or Units that moved.
447
Units may cause Combat when they Move.
447.1
A Combat is opened when a Move causes a Battlefield to become Contested and Units controlled by opposing players, or when a Move causes Units controlled by opposing players to become present in the same Battlefield where a Showdown is ongoing. See rule 454. Combat for more information.
448
When a Move action is complete, perform a Cleanup.
450
A Recall is when a Permanent is relocated from anywhere to its Base without it being a Move.
455
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 is ongoing at any other Battlefield. See rule 318. Cleanups for more information.
455.1
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 be initiated there.
456
Combat is considered Staged if there are units controlled by two opposing players at a Battlefield but the Steps of Combat have not been initiated.
456.1
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 first.
456.2
If Staged Combats stop being Staged before the Steps of Combat are initiated, they are not resolved or executed.
456.3
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.
457
Combat can only occur between Units controlled by exactly two players.
457.1
In Modes of Play with more than two players, Battlefields with Staged Combats or Combats in Progress are Invalid Destinations for Moves of all kinds ( Standard Moves or otherwise) by Units controlled by Players not involved in those Combats or who don't already have Units at that Battlefield. See rule 442.2.a. for more information on Invalid Destinations.
457.2
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 to play one or more Units by a player not involved in that Combat by any means,
457.2.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 unit is not a participant, instead the Unit is played to its controller's Base.
457.2.b
Any subsequent reference to "here" in the corresponding effect is reassigned to the Controller's Base , where the Unit was played. Any further effects that may be invalidated are invalidated as if the effect was mistargeted. See rule 355.6. Targeting for more information on Mistargeting.
457.3
All choices that would result in a Combat occurring between more than two players simultaneously are invalid and ineligible to be completed.
459.1
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 ; or when the turn is in a Showdown Open State and a Combat is staged at the Battlefield where the current Showdown is ongoing. See rule 318. Cleanups for more information.
459.2
When Combat opens, it either opens with a Combat Showdown, or the current Showdown becomes a Combat Showdown.
459.2.a
The following Tasks become Outstanding , in the order described:
459.2.b
1. Establish who is Attacker and who is Defender.
459.2.b.1
The Attacker is the player whose unit(s) applied the Contested status to the Battlefield. They gain the Attacker designation now.
459.2.b.1.a
This player gains Focus as the showdown begins.
459.2.b.2
The Defender is the player who did not apply the Contested status to the Battlefield. They gain the Defender designation now.
459.2.b.3
Units at the Contested Battlefield controlled by the Attacker gain the Attacker designation now.
459.2.b.3.a
If a Unit controlled by the Attacker becomes present at this Battlefield after this moment, it will gain the Attacker designation during the Cleanup phase following the action that caused it to become present
459.2.b.4
Units at the Contested Battlefield controlled by the Defender gain the Defender designation now.
459.2.b.4.a
If a Unit controlled by the Defender becomes present at this Battlefield after this moment it will gain the Defender designation during the Cleanup phase following the action that caused it to become present
459.2.c
2. The Attacker gains Focus.
459.2.d
3. Add items to the Combat Chain if establishing Attacker and Defender has caused Triggered Abilities to become Pending.
459.2.d.1
The Attacking player, who has Focus , places Triggered Abilities on the Chain first, followed by all non- Defender players in Turn Order , followed by the Defending Player.
459.2.f
Players proceed with any play on the Chain as normal.
459.2.g
Focus does not pass upon closure of the Combat Chain, if any.
460.1
If both Attacking and Defending units remain at this battlefield, the following Tasks become Outstanding , in the specified order:
460.2
1. When the Showdown closes, Attackers and Defenders resolve Combat Damage at the Battlefield that was attacked, using their current Might.
460.2.a
Sum the Might of all Attacking Units.
460.2.b
Sum the Might of all Defending Units.
460.2.c
Starting with the Attacker , each player assigns an amount of damage equal to their summed Might among the other's Units.
460.2.c.1
Assigning Damage is not Dealing Damage.
460.2.c.1.a
When all Damage is assigned, it will be Dealt simultaneously. These actions are not synonymous.
460.2.c.2
Abilities or effects may influence the order in which damage is assigned. Reminder: Lethal Damage is non-zero damage equaling or exceeding the Might of a Unit.
460.2.c.3
Units must have lethal damage assigned to them in full before damage is assigned to a different Unit.
460.2.c.4
Units cannot have more damage assigned to them than the minimum required to constitute lethal damage unless no further units remain to have damage assigned to them.
460.2.c.5
A player must obey all requirements and restrictions on damage assignment if able.
460.2.c.6
If multiple Units have abilities or effects that require a player to assign them damage with the same priority, that player may assign damage to those units in any order.
460.2.c.7
If a Unit has one or more Abilities or effects applying to it that demand it be assigned damage in a specific way that is exclusionary, then the assigning player chooses only one of those abilities to apply when assigning damage.
460.2.c.8
If there is more than one unit in which this situation applies to, each unit is dealt with individually. The assigning player chooses which ability or effect applies, and then resolves the assignment. If this creates a situation where now more than one unit must be assigned with the same priority, those units may be assigned damage in any order as normal within that priority.
460.2.c.9
If a unit cannot be dealt damage, then no amount of damage can be considered lethal. Such a unit is exempt from any considerations of mandatory assignment.
460.2.d
Deal Damage to each unit equal to the amount assigned to it.
460.3
2. Skip the FEPR process and proceed to the Resolution Step.
461.2
The following Task becomes Outstanding:
461.3
1. Determine Combat Result
461.3.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 this battlefield during this step.
461.3.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 remaining at this battlefield during this step.
461.3.c
Units at this battlefield inherit the same combat result as their controllers
461.5
1. If no Showdown or Combat is staged at this location, the player with Units remaining here Establishes Control .
461.5.a
Clear the Contested Status .
461.5.b
If there are no Units remaining here controlled by any player, the Battlefield becomes Uncontrolled.
461.5.c
Remove all Hidden cards from this Battlefield that do not share a controller with the Battlefield .
461.5.d
Establishing Control results in a Conquer if that player has not yet scored this Battlefield this turn. See rule 185. Control for more information on Control. See rule 464.1. for more information on Conquering.
461.5.e
This does not have to be the player that applied Contested to the Battlefield.
461.6
The following Task becomes Outstanding :
465
A player may only Score , from either method, once per Battlefield per turn.
466.1
The player Gains up to one Point , depending on their current score.
466.1.b
When a player tries to Gain a Point through a Score , and their current Point Total is 1 point from the Victory Score of the Mode of Play or higher, the following occurs:
466.1.b.1
If the player has Scored through Hold , that player Gains the Winning Point.
466.1.b.2
If the player has Scored through a Conquer and has Scored every Battlefield through either method this turn, that player Gains the Winning Point. If the player has Scored through a Conquer and has not Scored every Battlefield this turn, that player draws a card.
466.2
Trigger Score abilities at the Battlefield that Scored.
467
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 more points than any opponent, they Win the Game .
469
Layers are the mechanism in which Game Effects alter the Traits, Intrinsic Abilities, or other properties of Game Objects.
471
The layers are applied repeatedly until all effects operating on objects have been applied once and no changes have been processed.
471.1
Layers are applied in sequence. Each effect in them is applied as soon as able, and only a single time across all sequences.
471.2
When a sequence of applications completes, recur the process, and evaluate each layer again applying any effects that may now be applicable.
471.3
The removal or disqualification of an effect is separate from the application of the effect, but still can only be applied once.
472.1
1. Trait-Altering Effects
472.1.b
Copy effects are applied in this layer.
472.1.b.1
When one Game Object becomes a copy of another, all Traits, including the Rules Text, replace or are added to those of the original Game Object as specified by the Game Effect directing the Copy. This is applied in this layer.
472.1.b.2
Some Game Effects may specify copying certain traits of a card - only the traits specified by the Game Effect will be copied.
472.1.b.3
Copy effects will copy the copyable traits of a Game Object: by default, those are the printed traits of the Game Object . When a Game Object becomes a copy of something, its copyable traits are updated to the new traits it has received.
472.1.c
Effects for this layer can be identified by the phrase "become(s)", "give," "is," or "are" in the text.
472.2
2. Ability-Altering Effects
472.2.a
This layer deals with effects that grant, remove, or replace the abilities or rules text of Game Objects . Keywords Passive Abilities Appending rules text Removing rules text Duplicating Rules Text from one Game Object to another
472.2.b
Effects for this layer can be identified by the phrase "become(s)," "give," "lose(s)," "have," "has," "is," or "are" in the text.
472.2.c
Abilities of Effect Text of Attached cards are appended in this layer.
472.3
3. Arithmetic
472.3.a
This layer deals with the mathematics of increasing and decreasing the numeric values of the traits of Game Objects. Might Energy Cost Power Cost
472.3.b
When an arithmetic effect has a limitation that applies, it is limited at the time of its application, and is “remembered” at that limited level for the duration of its effect. This process is called “snapshotting.”
472.3.c
Might Bonuses of Attached cards are applied in this layer.
472.3.d
This layer applies arithmetic in the following way.
472.3.d.1
1. Increases
472.3.d.1.a
Positive values, or increases, to Might are applied first.
472.3.d.1.b
If there is a restriction or limitation to this increase, the limitation is “snapshotted” for the duration of the effect.
472.3.d.2
2. Decreases
472.3.d.2.a
Negative values, or decreases, to Might are applied last.
472.3.d.2.b
If there is a restriction or limitation to this decrease, the limitation is snapshotted for the duration of the effect.
473
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 but their order may be determined by Dependency.
474
To determine which effect Depends on another, determine which of the prior criteria applies, and then also which effect’s evaluation is altered by the sequence of applications. That effect is said to Depend on the other.
474.1
To resolve a dependency, the effects within the same layer that created the dependency must be applied such that: 1. Identify which effect Depends on the other within the Layer. 2. Apply the effect that is depended on first. 3. Immediately apply the effect that Depends on the first effect next.
475
If more than one effect applies in the same layer but no dependency is established, then Timestamp order is applied to the effects within that layer and sublayer
475.1
When an effect begins applying, it establishes a time for which it is compared against other Game Effects for purposes of resolving Layered effects as its Timestamp.
475.2
When Rules Text becomes Inactive for any reason, it loses its Timestamp. When it ceases to be Inactive, a new Timestamp is established.
475.3
Effects are applied such that the earliest Timestamp within each Layer and Sublayer applies first, followed by other Effects in that Layer and Sublayer in chronological order.
477
There are multiple methods of playing Riftbound.
478
A Mode of Play must define several variables for the game.
480.1
2 Players
480.2
1v1 1 opponent each No teams
480.4.a
Each player provides three (3) Battlefields , included in their deck during deck building. Only 1 will be used, chosen during setup.
480.5
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. The selected Battlefields are placed simultaneously in the Battlefield Zone.
480.6
Format: Best of 1. The first player to reach the Victory Score in Points wins the Match.
480.7
First Turn Process: The player going second channels an extra Rune from their Rune Deck during their first Channel Phase of the game.
481.1
2 Players
481.2
1v1 1 opponent each No teams
481.4.a
Each player provides three (3) Battlefields , included in their deck during deck building. Only 1 will be used, chosen during setup.
481.5
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. The selected Battlefields are placed simultaneously in the Battlefield Zone . After this game, the Battlefields that were used are to be removed and not selected again for this Match . One of the remaining Battlefields that were set aside must be chosen instead.
481.6
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 then reset the game state, remove the Battlefields in play from the game, choose new Battlefields from those set aside, and play again. The first player to earn Two Game Wins wins the match.
481.7
First Turn Process: The player going second channels an extra Rune from their Rune Deck during their first Channel Phase of the game.
482.1
3 Players
482.2
FFA 2 opponents each No teams
482.4.a
Each player provides three (3) Battlefields, included in their deck during deck building. Only 1 will be used, chosen during setup.
482.5
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. The selected Battlefields are placed simultaneously between the three Players before play and will be used for this game.
482.6
Format: Best of 1. The first player to reach the Victory Score in Points wins the Match.
482.7
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 extra Rune from their Rune Deck during their first Channel Phase of the game.
483.1
4 Players
483.2
FFA 3 opponents each No teams
483.5
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 used for this game. The selected Battlefields are placed simultaneously between the players before play and will be used for this game.
483.6
Format: Best of 1. The first player to reach the Victory Score in Points wins the Match.
483.7
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 extra Rune from their Rune Deck during their first Channel Phase of the game.
484.1
4 Players
484.2
2v2 2 opponents each 1 teammate
484.4.a
Each player provides three (3) Battlefields , included in their deck during deck building.
484.5
Setup:
484.5.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 for this game. The selected Battlefields are placed simultaneously between the players before play and will be used for this game.
484.5.b
The player who is taking the first turn removes their Battlefields. They will not be used.
484.5.c
Turn order alternates teams.
484.5.c.1
The first player will be followed by an opponent, then the first player's teammate, then the first opponent's teammate, and so on.
484.5.c.2
If allies are sitting across from each other, turn order proceeds clockwise as normal.
484.5.c.3
If allies are sitting next to each other, turn order is passed across the table.
484.6
Format: Best of 1. The first team to reach the Victory Score in Points wins the Match.
484.7
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 extra Rune from their Rune Deck during their first Channel Phase of the game.
484.8
Unique Rules
484.8.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 spell or activate an ability using their own Priority.
484.8.b
Battlefields controlled during the Beginning Phase of a player's turn by that player's teammate are disqualified from being scored by that Team, that turn.
484.8.d
Friendly describes controlled Game Objects by a player or their Teammate.
484.8.f
The Final Point has an adjustment to the criteria when scoring.
484.8.g
Teammates may not utilize the same Champion Legend.
484.8.h
Teammates may not utilize the same Battlefields.
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 characteristics of units or hidden cards there.
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.b
Focus
652.5.c
Priority
652.5.c.1
If the removed player had Priority during a Chain , the next Player in order receives Priority .
652.5.c.2
If the player being removed creates a state where all Players have passed Priority , then the most recent spell or ability on the Chain will resolve with Priority being re-established as appropriate for the state after the resolution of that spell or ability.
400
Abilities when added to the Chain become Pending Items until they complete the steps of Playing.
300Eligibility
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).
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 competitions).
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.
306.3
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.
400Policies
401.2
A registered decklist must have a complete, unambiguous record of the player’s Champion Legend, battlefields, Main Deck including Chosen Champion, Rune Deck, and sideboard (if applicable to the format).
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 that event using an open decklist policy. In this case, all players’ decklists will be considered public information.
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 between games of the match. Players may not review decklists during gameplay.
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 regardless of the event level.
403.1
In certain competitions, players may have a group of additional cards (outside of their starting configuration) called a sideboard . See 600 for more information on sideboards based on competition formats.
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 cards.
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 the competition format.
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 the same in the restarted game.
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 most games.
404.5
If all sides have equal game wins, the match is a draw.
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. See 403 for more information on sideboards.
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 start of the round clock. Gameplay must wait for the round clock to begin.
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 process listed below to closer mirror the “best of 3” experience:
406.1.g.1
Each player separates their Champion Legend and places it in the Legend Zone.
406.1.g.2
Each player randomly selects one of their three Battlefields, and places it into the Battlefield Zone.
406.1.g.3
Players use the Play First Rule listed below to determine the designated player. See 407 for more information on the Play First Rule.
406.1.g.4
The designated player chooses if they would like to go first or last.
406.1.g.5
Players then have the opportunity to sideboard as if they were in between games of a “best of 3” match. See 403 for more information on sideboards.
406.1.g.6
After sideboarding is complete, each player separates their Chosen Champion and places it in the Champion Zone.
406.1.g.7
Players perform shuffling steps 406.1.c.-406.1.e.3. listed above, then proceed to CR 116. Setup Process .
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 automatically the designated player for the first game of each match.
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 a draw, the starting play from the previous game is maintained.
407.5
For alterations to this rule for 2v2, see 603.7.
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 or more. If no player has a point lead of two or more, the game is a draw.
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.
408.4
Single elimination matches use untimed rounds so players can play their games to a natural conclusion. In the event that single elimination rounds must use a timer, the following altered End of Match Procedure can be used to determine a winner if time runs out:
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 the match. If game wins are tied, proceed to 408.4.d.
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.c.1
If a player has the most points in the current game, they win that game. Then, if a player has more game wins in the match, they win the match. If the game score is tied, proceed to 408.4.d.
408.4.c.2
If the point score of the current game is tied, but a player has the most game wins in the match, that player wins the match.
408.4.c.3
If the point score of the current game is tied and the game score of the match is tied, players continue to play until the next point is scored. The player who scores that point wins the match. This does not remove normal scoring restrictions if the next point is the Final Point. See CR 448.1.a. for Final Point details.
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, beginning the process of moving into sudden death scoring as described in 408.4.c.3. if the point score is tied at the end of those turns.
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 is in progress.
410.5
If a player refuses to play, tournament officials should treat that as conceding the match.
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 drawn.
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 needed to perform the check.
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 such cases, those judges must wear uniforms matching the head judge’s uniform.
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 website. [citation needed]
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, including unopened packs.
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 remaining player receives a bye if the drop happens before pairings.
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.
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.
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.
419.1
A proxy is a stand-in, unofficial version of an actual Riftbound card.
419.3
An alter is an official Riftbound card that has been modified in some way.
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 otherwise broadcast if instructed by a judge.
419.5.b
When instructed, players must replace the altered versions with the official unaltered versions before gameplay begins for a match that is streamed or otherwise broadcast.
419.5.c
Alters containing material outside of Riot Games intellectual property may not be permitted during matches that are streamed or otherwise broadcast.
419.6
The head judge of a competition is the final decider on whether a card is acceptable for a competition.
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, but can’t solely be used to make a deck random.
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 insufficient randomization.
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’sMain Deck as part of a single action, the above procedures 1-7 should be followed for that group of cards to properly randomize them before recycling them.
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. Cards in decks must have the same number of layers and be the same orientation at all times.
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 match their Main Deck if it would enter a zone whose information level is private during gameplay. See CR
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 otherwise interfere with shuffling or play.
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 discretion of the head judge.
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.
424.1
During a match, the start of match procedure, and other relevant times during a competition, players must keep cards above the vertical level of the playing surface.
424.2
Players are responsible for making reasonable effort to prevent secret information from being revealed accidentally. See CR 127. Privacy for information types.
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.
500Communication
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 more information on Slow Play.
502.1
Cards have a level of privacy as specified in CR 127. Privacy . These apply to levels of information accessible to the players as well.
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.
502.6
Players must acknowledge changes to public information that result from their cards and effects as those effects would have an observable impact on the game. See 506.3.d. for examples of observable impact.
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 Core Rules.
503.1
In competitions, players may take actions that skip parts of the technically precise play sequence without explicitly announcing that sequence.
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 retain it.
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 those choices unless their opponents react.
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 resolve.
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.
505.4
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 taking action to break the loop or choose not to break the loop.
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) or breaks the loop.
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 about cheating.
506.1
Accountable Player: The player responsible for putting a triggered ability on the chain, as defined by the core rules. See CR 375. Triggered Abilities for more information on triggered abilities.
506.1.a
The accountable player for triggers sourced from battlefields depends on control of the battlefield and is not automatically the player who brought the battlefield to the game. See CR 184.6. For more information on battlefield abilities.
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 encouraged for sportsmanship and learning.
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 are forgotten.
506.3.a
A trigger is considered forgotten once its point of observable impact has been reached and a new game action is taken without the accountable player acknowledging the trigger.
506.3.b
Players ruled to be abusing this rule to intentionally forget mandatory triggers that they are the accountable player for will be penalized. See 702.2 for more information about missed triggers as a penalty.
506.3.c
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 which the trigger occurs to acknowledge the trigger before it's considered forgotten, regardless of its observable impact. (Example cards: Obelisk of Power and The Arena’s Greatest.)
506.3.d
Examples of observable impact:
506.3.d.1
The trigger would change a point total. (Example card: Ahri, Alluring)
506.3.d.2
The trigger would change a rune total. (Example card: Startipped Peak)
506.3.d.3
The trigger would add a Buff token to a unit. (Example card: Sett, Brawler)
506.3.d.4
The trigger would impact combat or other game procedures. A card that reads “When you play a spell, give me +1 Might this turn.” does NOT have an immediate observable impact. It has an observable impact once it’s Might would be relevant. (Example card: Ravenbloom Student)
506.3.d.5
A trigger would cause a player to draw or discard. (Example card: Traveling Merchant)
506.3.d.6
A trigger would cause a game object to be exhausted or readied. (Example card: Miss Fortune, Captain)
506.3.d.7
A trigger would cause a unit to move. (Example card: Stealthy Pursuer)
506.3.d.8
A player asks for public information that would be impacted by a trigger. See 502 for more information on public information.
506.3.d.9
A player would be required to make a choice of whether or not to place an optional trigger on the chain. (
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 restricted triggers.
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 remainder of that match. See CR for information types
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 right side of the board.
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 clockwise or counterclockwise, but all exhausted objects must be rotated consistently.
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 long as no new action has been taken by either player. The change in decision does not need to be immediate.
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 no new action has been taken by either player and the following is true:
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 putting it onto the chain. Example:
509.4.a.1
A player plays Discipline indicating a unit. They immediately change their mind and choose a different unit, or choose not to play the Discipline at all.
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.b.1
A player plays Traveling Merchant to Reaver’s Row. They immediately change their mind and choose to play it to their base instead, or choose not to play it at all.
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. Example:
509.4.c.1
A player moves Pouty Poro to Void Gate. They immediately change their mind and choose to move an additional unit there as well, or they decide not to move at all.
509.5
Intentionally attempting to reverse decisions to gain information from an opponent is considered angle shooting. Players may not change their decisions based on an opponent’s physical reaction or as a response to an opponent starting to take a game action. See 704.4. for more information on angle shooting.
509.6
While changing decisions as described above is allowed, players must still maintain an appropriate pace of play. See 703.2 for more information on Slow Play.
600Competition Formats
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 Constructed play format.
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.c.1
A player’s sideboard can include 8 or fewer cards.
601.1.c.2
A sideboard can consist only of valid Main Deck cards.
601.1.c.3
Limits on copies of named cards apply to the combination of main deck and sideboard.
601.1.c.4
A player may change their Chosen Champion to one from their sideboard or main deck that matches their Legend whenever sideboarding would be allowed.
601.1.c.5
See 403 for more information about sideboards.
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 players via specific event addenda.
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 legal in that format.
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 date in the region where an event is being held.
601.2.d
If a card is banned in a specific format, that card may not be included in a deck.
601.2.d.1
Riftbound’s list of banned cards can be found here .
601.2.d.2
At low OPL, if a player is using the exact deck configuration of a preconstructed Riftbound deck product, they are allowed to play with cards on the banned list. For example:
601.2.d.2.a
At Nexus Nights, if a player is playing a deck matching the exact contents of the preconstructed Jinx Champion Deck, they are allowed to use the banned cards in the deck, such as Fight or Flight, Scrapheap and Reaver’s Row. If the player makes any changes or adds a sideboard, they can no longer include the banned cards.
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:
601.3.c.1
The Origins supplemental set contained in Proving Grounds (OGS)
601.3.c.2
Origins (OGN)
601.3.c.3
Spiritforged (SFD)
601.3.c.4
Unleashed (UNL)
601.3.c.4.a
China legal date - 4/10/26
601.3.c.4.b
Rest of world legal date - 5/8/26
602.1
Legality
602.1.a
A limited competition is one where all product needed for play is provided during the competition.
602.1.a.1
A card may only be included in a limited deck if it is provided to the player as part of the competition.
602.1.a.1.a
For some limited competitions, players may be given additional promotional cards that the head judge will specify are not part of that player’s limited card pool and can’t be used for that event.
602.1.a.2
Players may utilize any number of the 6 basic Runes from any source, even if they are not in the player’s provided card pool. Players may utilize as many “blank” battlefields as they need for limited gameplay. See 602.3.d. below for more information on “blank” battlefields.
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 pooled and distributed amongst participants randomly.
602.3
Building From a Limited Pool
602.3.a
CR 101. Deck Construction , except where modified here below for limited formats.
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 by the head judge.
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” battlefields in place of battlefields they received in their provided card pool.
602.3.d.1
“Blank” battlefields function as battlefields that do not have any rules text. Otherwise, they adhere to all other normal battlefield rules as defined in the Core Rules.
602.3.d.2
At low OPL, “Blank” battlefields can be represented by anything agreed upon by all players in the game.
602.3.d.2.a
At high OPL, “Blank” battlefields must be represented by any official Riftbound card, put in an opaque card sleeve with the cardback facing outwards.
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 card pool as their sideboard.
602.3.e.1
Players must use their registered starting configuration in the first game of each match.
602.3.e.2
Legend, Chosen Champion, and Rune deck composition must be registered as part of a player’s starting configuration.
602.3.e.3
For “best of 1” competitions, players must register three battlefields to randomly select from during the start of game procedure, including any “blank” battlefields they wish to use.
602.3.e.4
For “best of 3” competitions, players may select any battlefield from their card pool or a “blank” battlefield during the start of game procedure.
602.3.e.4.a
Players may only use a specific copy of a battlefield once per match, but may use the same named battlefield as many times as they have copies of it in their provided card pool.
602.3.f
At low OPL, starting configuration registration is not required and players may freely change the composition of their starting deck and sideboard between games and matches unless otherwise specified by the head judge.
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.a.1
Sealed is a limited format where players are each provided with 6 unopened Riftbound booster packs to open and use to construct their deck.
602.4.a.2
Main Decks for sealed decks must be at least 25 cards, but can be more.
602.4.a.3
The domain identity of a sealed deck is any three domains, or any domain plus the domains of the deck’s Champion Legend.
602.4.a.3.a
A sealed deck may have any Champion Unit that is included in its domain identity as its Chosen Champion, even one that does not have a champion tag that matches its Champion Legend (if it has one).
602.4.a.3.b
A sealed deck may contain any signature spells that are fully included in its domain identity, even if the deck does not include the corresponding champion.
602.4.a.4
Players may only include Runes from any source in their Rune Deck that match the domain identity of their sealed deck.
602.4.a.5
A sealed deck is still legal if it has no Champion Legend or Chosen Champion.
602.4.a.5.a
A player may opt not to use a Champion Legend or a Chosen Champion in their sealed deck even if they have one in their provided card pool.
602.4.a.5.b
If a player's deck is missing a Champion Legend and/or a Chosen Champion, they draw a card at the start of their first Beginning Phase each game. (If both are missing, they still only draw one card.)
602.4.a.6
The normal restrictions on quantities of named or signature cards do not apply. For example, a player may use 10 Pouty Poro in their Main Deck if they received them in the provided card pool.
602.4.a.6.a
The “Unique” keyword does not apply in sealed.
602.4.a.7
A sealed deck’s sideboard is every card provided to the player as part of the competition that isn’t used in their starting deck configuration, unless otherwise specified. See 403 for more information on sideboards.
602.4.a.7.a
Additionally, players may change their domain identity, Rune Deck, Legend, and Chosen Champion while sideboarding as long as the resulting deck still meets 602.4.a.2-602.4.a.4.
602.4.a.8
Sealed Pool Registration & Deck Construction
602.4.a.8.a
At high OPL, the head judge must require registration of the sealed pool prior to deck construction.
602.4.a.8.b
Each player receives the unopened product at their seat.
602.4.a.8.c
Players on one side of the table (A) open their product, observed by players on the other side (B).
602.4.a.8.d
Players verify that the product has the correct undamaged quantity of cards and rarity distribution. If a pack with an error is found, call a judge to replace the pack if possible.
602.4.a.8.e
Once all unopened product has been opened and observed by B, those cards are placed next to B.
602.4.a.8.f
Repeat the steps outlined in 602.4.8.c-e but with (B) opening and (A) observing.
602.4.a.8.g
Each player now sorts and registers the contents of the pool placed next to them.
602.4.a.8.h
After registration is complete, each player returns the pool and registration sheet to the other player.
602.4.a.8.i
Each player verifies that their own pool has been registered correctly.
602.4.a.8.j
Deck construction begins.
602.4.a.8.k
It’s recommended that players be given 20 minutes for deck registration and 30 minutes for deck construction. Deck construction can be increased to 45 minutes for low OPL events where players are experiencing the cards for the first time, such as pre-rift and release events.
602.4.a.8.l
The starting deck configuration and sideboard are registered on the same sheet as the total card pool.
602.4.a.9
Preconstructed Decks in Sealed Competitions
602.4.a.9.a
Some competitions or portions of competitions provide preconstructed decks for players to use. These are considered sealed decks.
602.4.a.9.b
Players must use exactly the decks provided, except as modified by any addenda to the competition.
602.4.a.9.b.1
This may override the sealed deck construction rules above.
602.4.b
Draft
602.4.b.1
Draft is a limited format where players are each provided with 3 unopened Riftbound booster packs to open and draft amongst other players.
602.4.b.2
Draft groups consist of as close to eight players as possible, seated randomly around a table. Draft process is as follows:
602.4.b.2.a
Each player opens one of their boosters, removes the Rune or token, then looks through the remaining contents to ensure there are thirteen undamaged cards in the pack with a correct rarity distribution.
602.4.b.2.a.1
Players can keep the Rune or token they opened.
602.4.b.2.a.2
If an opened pack has an error, players must call a judge to replace the pack if possible.
602.4.b.2.b
Once pack contents are verified, players will look through the cards in their pack and select one to draft to the top of a single unobscured facedown pile in front of them, then pass the remaining contents facedown to the player to their left. Players repeat this process with the cards passed to them until there are no cards remaining.
602.4.b.2.b.1
Once the first pack is completed, repeat passing cards to the right.
602.4.b.2.b.2
Once the second pack is completed, repeat cards to the left.
602.4.b.2.b.3
Once a card has been added to a player’s single facedown pile in front of them it is considered selected and can’t be returned to the pack.
602.4.b.2.b.4
Players must make a reasonable effort to conceal the front face of cards they have selected and cards in their current pack from other players.
602.4.b.2.c
Once this process is complete, each player should have 39 cards to use as their limited card pool.
602.4.b.2.d
At high OPL, players may not use electronic devices to take notes or as a strategic aid during drafting. At low OPL, this can be allowed by the head judge.
602.4.b.2.e
At high OPL, players may not receive any outside assistance during drafting. At low OPL, this can be allowed by the head judge.
602.4.b.2.f
At high OPL, during the draft process players may not reveal cards they have seen or selected, or openly discuss the draft. At low OPL, this can be allowed by the head judge.
602.4.b.2.g
During the draft process, players are not permitted to seek knowledge of cards fronts other drafters are viewing or have already selected through any means. Attempting to do so is cheating.
602.4.b.2.g.1
It is not cheating for a player to see card backs of cards other players are viewing or of cards players have added to the facedown pile in front of them.
602.4.b.2.h
At high OPL, players can’t look at the cards they have already drafted, except during intervals designated by a judge between packs. At low OPL, this is allowed at any time as long as the player is not holding other cards at the same time.
602.4.b.2.i
At professional OPL, drafts must be timed. At competitive OPL, drafts are timed at the discretion of the head judge. At casual OPL, drafts are untimed but players must draft at a reasonable pace.
602.4.b.3
Main Decks for draft decks must be at least 20 cards, but can be more.
602.4.b.4
The domain identity of a draft deck is any three domains, or any domain plus the domains of the deck’s Champion Legend.
602.4.b.4.a
A draft deck may have any Champion Unit that is included in its domain identity as its Chosen Champion, even one that does not have a champion tag that matches its Champion Legend (if it has one).
602.4.b.4.b
A draft deck may contain any signature spells that are fully included in its domain identity, even if the deck does not include the corresponding champion.
602.4.b.5
Players may only include Runes from any source in their Rune Deck that match the domain identity of their draft deck.
602.4.b.6
A draft deck is still legal if it has no Champion Legend or Chosen Champion.
602.4.b.6.a
A player may opt not to use a Champion Legend or a Chosen Champion in their draft deck even if they have them among their drafted cards.
602.4.b.6.b
If a player's deck is missing a Champion Legend and/or a Chosen Champion, they draw a card at the start of their first Beginning Phase each game. (If both are missing, they still only draw one card.)
602.4.b.7
The normal restrictions on quantities of named or signature cards do not apply. For example, a player may use 10 Pouty Poro in their Main Deck if they selected them during the draft.
602.4.b.7.a
The “Unique” keyword does not apply in draft.
602.4.b.8
A draft deck’s sideboard is every card drafted by the player as part of the competition that isn’t used in their starting deck configuration, unless otherwise specified. See 403 for more information on sideboards.
602.4.b.8.a
Additionally, players may change their domain identity, Rune Deck, Legend, and Chosen Champion while sideboarding as long as the resulting deck still meets 602.4.b.3-602.4.b.5.
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 described in the Core Rules.
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 Core Rules, with these additional exceptions for 2v2:
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 play begins.
603.7.c.1
For games after the first game of a match, the losing team of the previous game gets to choose who plays first. If the previous game was a draw, the turn order from the previous game is maintained.
604.1
It’s recommended that players be given 60 minutes for rounds of play in the Swiss portion of a competitive event.
700Additional Rules
702
Buffs are objects placed on Units.
703
Each Buff individually contributes +1 Might to a Unit.
704
Buffs are Game Objects and may be referenced, counted, or targeted by other effects as specified.
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.
710
Units on the board are evaluated according to their current Might.
711
Units in Non-Board Zones are evaluated according to their inherent Might.
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.
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 targets eligible to be chosen.
715.4
If no damage was Dealt, because it was replaced or reduced by any means, then Bonus Damage will not apply.
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 become Attached and the other to become A Top-Most Card. See rule 434. Attach for more information.
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 Might by its Might Bonus.
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.
719.4
The Exhausted and Ready state of the Top-Most card does not affect nor change the status of the Attached cards and vice versa.
719.5
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 zones.
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 effects that occur due to the Detach occurring.
721
Card text can occasionally be assigned to be ignored, disregarded, or otherwise rendered as not applicable during the course of play. This state is referred to as Inactive.
722
Inactive text is still present on cards.
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 off of Attaching , that text exists and can be processed as it Attaches.
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 off of Detaching , that text exists and can be processed as it Detaches.
725.3
If an Attached card has an Equip ability, the Weaponmaster keyword can reference that Equip ability and any abilities that passively modify that Equip ability.
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 itself.
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, when it becomes Active
727.1.c
The Dependent Abilities of Dependent Keywords can be of any type
727.1.c.1
Triggered Abilities of Dependent Keywords must be Active for their trigger to be evaluated.
727.1.c.1.a
If a Triggered Ability becomes active at the same time as its trigger condition would be fulfilled, it triggers.
727.1.c.2
Passive Abilities begin applying at the same time the Dependent Keyword becomes true.
727.1.c.3
Activated Abilities that become Active from Dependent Keywords can be activated at their associated timing after that ability has been granted
727.1.c.3.a
If the condition for the Dependent Keyword causes the A ctivated Ability to become Inactive after it has been added to the chain as a Pending Item , that chain item will not be affected and will proceed with being played as normal.
729
XP is a resource that is accrued, spent, or otherwise modified by Players through the course of play.
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.
735
Certain Game Effects will instruct a player to “take a turn after this.” These effects create a temporary Additional Turn owned by that player that is inserted into the turn queue after the current turn.
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 take, starting with the first turn taken by the First Player, and repeating indefinitely.
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 has the next queued turn. After that turn is completed, it will be removed and the queue will proceed with its previously queued turns.
738
If multiple Additional Turns are queued, they are added to the queue in the order the Game Effects that generated them occurred.
741
Some card text refers to Units in particular ways:
742
Some terms in this document are used in particular ways:
742.1
Costs within instructions are instructions that take a particular form (“[do X] to [do Y]”). [Do X] is the cost associated with the instruction, and [do Y] is the effect.
742.1.a
For spells, costs within instructions are paid on resolution of the spell. In order to get the effect, the cost must be paid.
742.1.b
For triggered abilities, costs within instructions are paid on finalization of the triggered ability. In order to place the triggered ability on the chain, the cost must be paid.
700Enforcement and Penalties
701.1
Philosophy
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.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 investigate cheating if needed. See 704.8 for more information about cheating.
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 there were no other errors.
701.2
Definitions of Penalties
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, remaining players continue the game.
701.2.b.1
Game losses are applied immediately if the game is ongoing, or to the player’s next game in the competition if it is not.
701.2.b.2
If a player would receive multiple game losses at the same time, they only receive one.
701.2.b.3
If all players in a match receive a game loss simultaneously, the current game ends in a draw. All game losses are recorded but do not affect the match score.
701.2.d
Disqualification: A penalty issued for errors that damage the integrity of the competition or for severe misconduct.
701.2.d.1
Disqualification causes that player to lose the current match and be dropped from the competition.
701.2.d.2
If a player has already physically received prizes from the competition, they keep them, but they will not receive any other prizes after disqualification, even if their placement in the event would otherwise entitle them to prizes.
701.2.d.3
When a player is disqualified, they are removed from the competition and from standings.
701.2.d.4
Any attendee of a competition can be issued a disqualification, not just players. Being barred from the tournament venue may apply to disqualification at the head judge’s discretion.
701.2.d.5
This penalty can be issued by the head judge even without conclusive proof if the head judge determines the integrity of the competition has been compromised.
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 the players to determine which portion of the deck is knowable by one or more players, and separate those before shuffling that deck.
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 than rewinding.
701.5.b
Some rewinds are simple; this means rewinding only the last action completed or one currently in progress.
701.5.b.1
Any judge may perform a simple rewind of the most recent action of a game.
701.5.b.2
When performing a simple rewind of a player's game action, rewind to before the action began, such as before a played card would be put on the chain. The player may then opt not to take the action, or take the action making different decisions.
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 this way.
701.5.d
To rewind:
701.5.d.1
Each individual action since the time of the error is reversed, starting with the most recent one.
701.5.d.2
Every action must be reversed in the correct sequence.
701.5.d.3
If the identity of a card involved in a rewind is non-public (e.g. a drawn card), a random card is chosen from possible candidates.
701.5.d.4
If a player learned the identity of a card in a deck, but did not draw or channel it, it should be shuffled into the random part of the deck.
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 impact their eligibility in future competitions.
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 information about cheating.
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 reserves the right to issue a disqualification at any time.
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.b.1
Except for 702.17, if a player commits the same exact category of game play error [ Warning ] 3 or more times in the same event, the penalty is upgraded to [ Game Loss ].
702.1.b.2
At competitive OPL, if a player commits a total of 6 or more of any category of game play error [ Warning ] in the same event, the penalty is upgraded to [ Game Loss ].
702.1.b.3
At professional OPL, if a player commits a total of 5 or more of any category of game play error [ Warning ] in the same event, the penalty is upgraded to [ Game Loss ].
702.1.b.4
Even if a player has not yet met the threshold to upgrade their penalties, a head judge may initiate a cheating investigation if they feel it is appropriate. See 704.8 for more information about cheating.
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.
702.1.c.1
At low OPL, penalties that require an opponent of the erroring player to make a choice are made at random by a judge when they can’t be avoided by a rewind.
702.2
Missed Trigger [No Penalty]: The accountable player for a triggered ability doesn’t demonstrate awareness of the trigger before the first time it would have an observable impact on the game.
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 instead. See 702.15 for more information about General Errors.
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 otherwise prematurely advancing the game, including through otherwise acceptable shortcuts.
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 that ability can trigger will count the missed one.
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 ] instead.
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, but fails to do so.
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 they are entitled to.
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 the extra cards have not touched a new group, this is instead a Looking at Secret Information error. See
702.5.b.1
For example, if a player plays a Stacked Deck and adds a fourth card to the private set of cards they are looking at, it is Looking at Extra Cards. If they correctly look at the top three, but knock the top card of their Main Deck over without adding it to the private group, it is Looking at Secret Information.
702.5.c
Remedies :
702.5.c.1
If the error is caught while the erroring player is looking at the extra cards, the next opponent in turn order of the erroring player looks at the private group and chooses the appropriate number of extra cards to shuffle back into the randomized portion of the appropriate deck.
702.5.c.1.a
If one or more of the cards has already been added to a new group of cards, the next opponent in turn order of the erroring player looks at that group and chooses the appropriate number of cards to return to the original group of cards being looked at. Then perform 702.5.c.1
702.5.c.2
If the error is caught at a later stage in the game, instruct players to continue playing.
702.10
for more on Looking at Secret Information errors.
702.10.a
Players should not be penalized via a remedy for errors their opponents make.
702.10.b
Remedies:
702.10.b.1
If possible, take involved cards in the now-known secret information and re-randomize them with the original randomized source of appropriate cards to remove the information advantage.
702.10.b.2
If this is not possible, reveal the information to all players to remove the information advantage and instruct the players to continue playing.
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 result of a limited action.
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 :
702.6.b.1
If the additional runes have been used to pay for actions, rewind if possible. If rewinding is not possible, this is a General Error instead. See
702.6.b.2
If the additional runes are caught and no more than a full round cycle has passed, shuffle them appropriately into the rune deck.
702.6.b.2.a
If the specific runes can’t be identified, shuffle random runes instead.
702.6.b.3
Otherwise, instruct the players to continue playing.
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 result of a limited action.
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:
702.8.b.1
If a cost is overpaid and it is still the turn where the cost was paid, the overpaying player is considered to have the extra resources floating in their resource pool.
702.8.b.1.a
If overpaying a cost was advantageous to the erroring player, this penalty is a [ Warning ] instead.
702.8.b.1.b
If overpaying a cost caused a result that would not otherwise have happened, it is a General Error. See 702.15 for more information about General Errors.
702.9
Mispayment for Cost [Warning]: A player pays a cost underpaying its power or energy cost, or uses the incorrect domain to pay a power cost.
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:
702.9.b.1
If possible, perform a simple rewind to before the card or ability was put on the chain.
702.9.b.2
If a simple rewind is not possible, correct the cost paid if possible, by exhausting, or recycling runes as needed.
702.9.b.2.a
If runes were incorrectly recycled as part of the cost, rewind if possible.
702.9.b.3
If rewinding is not possible, instruct the players to continue playing. Looking at Secret Information [Warning]: A player looks at information that is not available to any player. See CR 127. Privacy for information types.
702.11
Looking at Opponent Private Information [Warning]: A player accidentally looks at information that is private to their opponent. See CR 127. Privacy for information types.
702.11.a
Players should not be penalized via a remedy for errors their opponents make.
702.11.b
Remedies:
702.11.b.1
The opponent whose private information it is may decide whether to take involved cards in the now-known private information and re-randomize them with the original randomized source of appropriate cards.
702.11.b.2
If they decide not to, instruct the players to proceed.
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 a player draws cards when they are not entitled to under the Core Rules.
702.12.a
Drawing extra cards is also looking at extra cards, but only this error should be recorded.
702.12.b
Remedies:
702.12.b.1
If the error is caught before the extra cards drawn are added to a private set, shuffle them into the main deck appropriately to remove the information advantage.
702.12.b.2
If the error is caught when a player draws their opening hand during the start of game procedure and the player has not performed their mulligan yet, shuffle the extra cards into the main deck appropriately to remove the information advantage.
702.12.b.3
If the error is caught after the cards drawn are added to a private set and it is within the round cycle, the next opponent in turn order of the erroring player looks at that player’s hand and chooses the appropriate number of cards to shuffle into the main deck appropriately.
702.12.b.4
If at a later stage in the game it is determined a player has more cards in hand than they should, the remedy should be applied at this time.
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 Rules.
702.13.b
Remedies:
702.13.b.1
If the error is caught by the erroring player immediately and before any additional game actions have been taken, return the card to the zone it came from and resume play.
702.13.b.2
If the error is caught after additional game actions have been taken but before any cards have been added to the zone where the illegal card came from (such as a new card being drawn), return the illegal card to that zone and replace it with a random card from that zone that is legal for the facedown zone and resume play.
702.13.b.2.a
If there is no available legal replacement, this penalty upgrades to [ Game Loss ].
702.13.b.2.b
If the error is caught after cards have been added to the zone where the illegal card came from, this penalty upgrades to [ Game Loss ].
702.14
Mulligan Procedure Error [Warning]: A player performs the mulligan procedure incorrectly.
702.14.a
Remedies:
702.14.a.1
If a player recycled and replaced more than 2 cards during their mulligan, the next opponent in turn order of the erroring player looks at that player’s hand and may choose cards up to the number of extra cards mulliganed to have that player recycle and replace.
702.14.a.2
If this error is caught after gameplay has begun, instruct the players to proceed.
702.15
Forgetting to Ready During the Awaken Phase [No Penalty]: A player forgets to ready one or more game objects during their Awaken Phase.
702.15.a
Remedies:
702.15.a.1
If it is still the turn the erroring player forgot to awaken, ready all game objects that should have been readied. If a game object being readied this way would put a trigger on the chain, it is not put on the chain instead.
702.15.a.2
If it is no longer the turn the erroring player forgot to awaken, leave game objects in their current state and proceed with play.
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:
702.16.c.1
Rewind if possible.
702.16.c.2
Otherwise, instruct the players to continue playing.
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 missed scoring from hold and conquer.
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.b.1
If a player commits the same category of tournament error [ Warning ] 3 or more times in the same event, the penalty is upgraded to [ Game Loss ].
703.1.b.2
At competitive OPL, if a player commits a total of 6 or more of any category of tournament error [ Warning ] in the same event, the penalty is upgraded to [ Game Loss ].
703.1.b.3
At professional OPL, if a player commits a total of 5 or more of any category of tournament error [ Warning ] in the same event, the penalty is upgraded to [ Game Loss ].
703.1.b.4
Even if a player has not yet met the threshold to upgrade their penalties, a head judge may initiate a cheating investigation if they feel it is appropriate. See 704.8 for more information about cheating.
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.
703.1.c.1
Penalties that require an opponent of the erroring player to make a choice can be made at random or by a judge if they can’t be avoided by a rewind.
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 limits specified for the tournament.
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.a.1
More or fewer cards than appropriate deck size. See 402 for more information about deck size.
703.3.a.2
Cards not legal in the format of the tournament.
703.3.a.3
More than 3 copies of a main deck card between main deck and sideboard.
703.3.a.4
Cards that do not match the domain of the registered legend.
703.3.a.5
A chosen champion that does not match the identity of the legend.
703.3.a.6
A player’s decks contain cards that do not match their registered decklist.
703.3.b
Remedies:
703.3.b.1
If the player’s registered decklist is illegal, the player must correct their decklist to a legal state making as little change as possible and ensure that their deck matches the newly registered deck.
703.3.b.2
If the player’s presented decks do not match their registered decklist but their presented decks are legal, the player must change their registered decklist to match their presented deck.
703.3.b.3
If the cards required to correct a decklist cannot be acquired in a timely manner, the head judge can issue a proxy.
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.a.1
A player submits a battlefield they have already used in the match.
703.4.a.2
A player forgets to restore their deck to a pre-sideboard state for the first game of a match.
703.4.a.3
A player forgets to take their chosen champion from their main deck and place it in the chosen champion zone.
703.4.a.4
A player’s deck is the incorrect deck size. See 402 for more information about deck size. (Examples: A player misplaced a card, a player forgot to shuffle their banished cards back into their deck between games, a player's deck has an extra card or is missing a card due to an effect like Possession from a previous game.)
703.4.a.5
A player has cards in their deck box with their deck that are not part of the registered contents of their decklist. Promotional cards given out as part of the event, tokens, and damaged cards replaced with official proxies are allowed to be stored this way and do not warrant this error.
703.4.a.5.a
At Professional OPL, extra cards stored in the deck box this way upgrades to a [ Game Loss ].
703.4.b
Remedies:
703.4.b.1
If the error is caught by any player before opening hands have been drawn, restore the deck to its correct state if possible and instruct players to proceed.
703.4.b.2
If the error is caught by the erroring player after opening hands have been drawn and it is easily possible, restore the deck to its correct state and instruct players to proceed. For example:
703.4.b.2.a
In game one of a match a player realizes they forgot to restore their deck to a pre-sideboard state.
703.4.b.2.a.1
A judge can restore their deck to the appropriate state by returning cards to the main deck and sideboard as needed.
703.4.b.2.a.1.a
If sideboard cards are in the player's hand, they are replaced randomly by main deck cards that were incorrectly in the sideboard.
703.4.b.2.a.2
Shuffle the randomized portion of the main deck once this process is complete.
703.4.b.3
If the error is caught by a player other than the erroring player after opening hands have been drawn, the penalty is upgraded to [ Game Loss ].
703.4.b.3.a
At casual or competitive OPL, if the error is a player forgetting to move their Chosen Champion from their Main Deck to the chosen champion zone at setup, the judge may downgrade the penalty to a [Warning] and restore the gamestate if possible, regardless of who caught the error or at which stage of the game it occurred.
703.4.b.3.b
Players may request a judge check an opponent’s deck for legality. (
703.4.b.4
If restoring the deck to its correct state is not possible, the penalty is upgraded to [ Game Loss ].
703.4.b.4.a
When applying a remedy for a missing Chosen Champion is applicable, if it occurs at any point after opening hands have been drawn and no copies of the Chosen Champion are available in the Main Deck to move to the Chosen Champion zone to restore the gamestate, the penalty may be downgraded to a [Warning] and gameplay can continue without the erroring player having a champion in the Chosen Champion zone.
703.4.b.5
If the cards required to correct the deck cannot be acquired in a timely manner, the head judge can issue a proxy.
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.
703.8
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 penalty is upgraded to [ Game Loss ].
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 a judge before the next match begins.
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 penalty at the judge’s discretion. (
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 a [Match Loss] . This penalty does not apply if the head judge deems the advice was delivered maliciously.
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 shuffling or card movement. This is not considered outside assistance.
703.10
Improperly Determining a Winner [Match Loss]: Games and matches of Riftbound must be decided by playing Riftbound appropriate to the tournament format.
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 to determine a winner.
703.10.c
Offering or accepting such offers is considered improperly determining a winner.
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 Loss] and may be further upgraded at the discretion of the head judge.
704.1.c
Infractions and penalties listed in this section aim to serve as general guidelines. Listed infractions are examples and are not exhaustive. All judges are empowered to escalate unsporting conduct issues and the head judge may apply any penalty they deem appropriate for unsporting conduct, up to and including [Disqualification] .
704.4
Angle Shooting [Warning]: A player uses the technical precision of the rules to gain an advantage where the spirit of the rules would not have garnered that advantage.
704.4.a
Examples include but are not limited to:
704.4.a.1
Asking a player to state a choice that they would make on resolution prior to deciding whether to react.
704.4.a.2
Taking actions quickly to prevent opponents from having time to have priority.
704.4.a.3
Promising a concession to garner additional information before making a different decision.
704.4.a.4
Using a printing of a card that is pre-errata without informing opponents once the card is played.
704.4.a.5
Baiting an opponent into a rules violation.
704.4.a.6
Intentionally distracting an opponent to get them to miss their priority window.
704.4.a.7
Using sloppy play or game state representation to obscure strategy or information.
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 agreements before or during their match, provided that the prize sharing is not offered or accepted in return for the outcome of a game or match, any in-game action, or a player dropping from the tournament.
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 unopened product, with the tournament organizer’s permission, agree to divide the subsequent tournament prizes evenly. All players still in the tournament must agree to the arrangement.
704.5.c.1
Players may end their participation in the tournament at this point or continue to play. If this is a major streamed event, players must continue to play for final rankings.
704.5.d
It is not bribery when, in the final round of the single-elimination portion of a tournament, with the tournament organizer’s permission, players mutually agree on a winner and how to divide the remaining prizes. In such cases, one player must agree to drop from the tournament. Prizes are then awarded based on each player’s final standing.
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 maliciously to obtain an advantage.
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.
800Keywords
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.
801.3
Keywords can be referenced or specified by other Game Effects.
801.3.a
Other effects may grant Keywords.
801.3.a.1
The definition and rules of the specific Keyword will determine the behavior if a Keyword is granted while it is already present.
801.3.a.2
The effect that granted the Keyword will specify the duration for which it is granted.
801.3.a.3
If an effect that grants a Keyword does not specify a duration, the duration is as long as that Game Object remains on the Board or in its current Non-Board Zone.
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.
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.
806.1
Action is a Permissive keyword.
806.1.a
It can be 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 player's turn.
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 to the ability as written or by default.
806.3
Action does not alter the function of any instruction of the corresponding card or effect it is on. It is only permission.
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 unless and until those circumstances are true.
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 the appropriate timing as long as doing so could fulfill the conditions.
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 or activating the chain item are undone and it is returned to the zone it was played from if it is a card.
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.
807.2
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 keywords is summed.
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.
808.1
Deathknell is a Triggered Ability keyword.
808.1.a
It is present on Permanents.
808.1.d
The Trigger for this effect is the Permanent being Killed and sent to the Trash.
808.1.d.1
If the Permanent with the effect is not sent to the Trash , for example because its "killed" event was replaced with a recall, the Deathknell will not occur.
808.1.d.2
The trigger will be added to the chain as a Pending Item before the card with Deathknell is moved to the trash due to a Kill instruction or a Cleanup.
808.1.d.3
Before the card with Deathknell is moved to the Trash , note its location, its attributes, and any other details related to the effect of its Deathknell to process the trigger after it has been Finalized .
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 Game Effects.
809.2
If a Unit has Deflect, or has been granted Deflect, and is granted Deflect by an additional source, the Deflect Value of all granted Deflect keywords is summed.
809.3
Deflect, and whether or not a permanent has Deflect, is a characteristic of the permanent and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.
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.
811.1
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 hide this facedown at a battlefield you control that doesn't already have a facedown card hidden there for as long as you control that battlefield. Beginning on the next turn, this gains [Reaction] and you may play this, ignoring its base cost."
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 if it is a spell with no valid targets under these restrictions. See rule 355.6. Targeting for more information.
811.1.d.1
A hidden permanent must be played to that battlefield.
811.1.d.1.a
This includes hidden gear, and overrides the normal restriction that gear have in only being allowed to be played to base.
811.1.d.2
If a hidden spell or a play effect of a hidden permanent chooses any targets, those targets must be chosen from among options at that battlefield, unless the ability explicitly restricts targeting in a way that makes this impossible.
811.1.d.3
If a hidden spell or a play effect of a hidden permanent causes you to play a unit, you must choose to play that unit at that battlefield.
811.2
Abilities and instructions of hidden cards other than the choices listed above function as normal.
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.
812.2
All instances of Legion on cards a player controls are satisfied by that player playing a single card.
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.
813.1
Reaction is a Permissive keyword.
813.2
The corresponding card or effect with this keyword is not restricted to Closed States or Showdowns . This permission is inclusive of all other timings and options available to the ability as written, Action's permissions, or by default.
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 player's base or a battlefield they control.
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 unless and until those circumstances are true.
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 the appropriate timing as long as doing so could fulfill the conditions.
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 or activating the chain item are undone and it is returned to the zone it was played from if it is a card.
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.
814.2
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 keywords is summed.
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.
815.1
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] during the Combat Damage step."
815.1.c
It alters how players can elect to assign combat damage during combat.
815.1.c.1
Players must still assign lethal damage to a unit before moving to the next when assigning their damage.
815.1.c.2
If more than one unit with Tank is present with the same controller in Combat, damage may be assigned to any of them. Units without Tank are invalid assignments until all units with Tank have lethal damage assigned to them.
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.
816.3
Temporary, and whether or not a permanent has Temporary, is a characteristic of the permanent and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.
818.1
Equip is an Activated Ability keyword.
818.1.a
Equip is normally present on Gear with the tag Equipment.
818.1.c
Equip is formatted as “ Equip [Cost]”
818.1.c.1
If paying costs or making choices for this ability causes triggered abilities to trigger, they will be placed on the chain above this ability in a Pending state. See rule 376. Activated Abilities for more information.
818.1.c.2
Equip is functionally short for “[Cost]: Attach this gear to a unit you control.”
818.1.c.3
Equip costs may include both resource costs and non-resource costs.
818.1.c.4
Equip abilities may also include text that alters the Equip cost. Such text is taken into account when determining a card’s Equip cost for any reason.
818.1.c.5
Equip abilities may include text that alters the timing or targeting of the Equip ability.
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 costs.
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 more information.
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.
820.2
When a spell’s effect is performed an additional time with Repeat , choices must be made at the usual time during the Make Relevant Choices step of Playing a Card. See rule for more information.
820.2.a
Choices made for the additional execution do not have to be the same as the choices made for the initial execution.
820.4
Repeat , and whether or not a spell has Repeat , is a characteristic of the Spell and may be checked or referenced by other Game Effects.
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 usual timing of the Equip ability, to Attach that Equipment to the unit with Weaponmaster.
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 its Rules Text are no longer Inactive if they are currently Inactive. Pay the cost of its Equip ability, reduced by [A], to attach it to this unit.” See rule 716. Attachment for more information.
821.1.c.1
Weaponmaster can choose an Equipment whether it has an Equip ability or not.
821.1.c.2
The cost of the Equip ability is determined as though that Equip ability was being activated choosing the unit with the Weaponmaster ability, as modulated by any abilities that alter Equip costs.
821.1.c.3
If the chosen card’s Equip cost does not contain [A], it can still be paid, but will not be reduced.
821.1.c.4
If the chosen card doesn’t have an Equip cost, it can’t be paid.
821.1.c.5
If the chosen card’s Equip cost can’t be paid, if it can’t be detached from its current Top-Most card, or if it can’t be attached to the unit with the Weaponmaster ability, it stays in its current location, Attached to anything it was already Attached to.
821.1.c.6
The Equip ability is not activated this way, and the unit with the Weaponmaster ability is not chosen.
821.1.c.7
Multiple instances of Weaponmaster trigger separately, and can choose different targets.
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 Effects.
822.1
Ambush is a Passive Ability keyword.
822.1.a
It is 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 a battlefield where you control Units .”
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 Playing a Card See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information
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 reasoning and cannot be played there
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 be valid
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.
823.2
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 summed.
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.
824.2
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.
825.1
Unique is a Deck Constraint Permission.
825.2
Unique is not functionally short for any rules text, and instead provides a restriction to players during Deck Construction.
825.3
Cards with Unique have no additional effects during gameplay.
825.4
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.
826.1
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 [Backline] during the Combat Damage step.”
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 Backline are invalid assignments until all units without Backline have lethal damage assigned to them.
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.