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Riftbound is a 2–4-player League of Legends trading card game about deploying units, managing rune resources and competing for shared battlefields. In a standard game, the first player to reach 8 points wins—but the final point has a special restriction. Your core loop is to move units onto battlefields to conquer them, then keep control until your next turn to score again.
This guide follows the official beginner rules. For card-specific timing, format rules or later changes, consult the Riftbound Rules Hub; its Core Rules were last updated July 16, 2026.
What you need to play
Each player brings a deck built around a Champion Legend and a matching Chosen Champion. The official beginner guide describes the deck as:
- One Champion Legend and its matching Chosen Champion
- One battlefield
- 40 main-deck cards, including the Chosen Champion
- Exactly 12 Rune cards in domains permitted by the Legend
The Chosen Champion starts outside the shuffled main deck, so shuffle the other 39 main-deck cards together. Shuffle the Rune Deck separately. Put your battlefield in the Battlefield Zone, place the Legend and Chosen Champion face up, and leave room for your Base, runes and Trash. The official How to Play guide illustrates the setup.
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How to set up the first game
The official beginner guide describes this opening procedure; check the Rules Hub for current event or format-specific setup rules.
- Randomly select a starting player from the players’ chosen battlefields.
- Each player draws four cards.
- In turn order, each player may take one mulligan: put up to two cards face down on the bottom of the main deck, then draw the same number.
- The last player gets one extra rune on their first turn.
In four-player War, the first player skips their first draw and removes their starting battlefield. This is a mode-specific change, not part of every game’s setup.
How runes pay for cards and abilities
Rune cards are a separate resource deck. At the start of your turn, you channel its top two cards onto the board ready. Costs use runes in two different ways:
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- COMPLETE OUT-OF-THE-BOX PLAY: Includes prebuilt decks designed for balanced matchups, making it easy for anyone to learn and start battling immediately. 4 character starter decks: Master Yi, Annie, Lux and Garen.
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- Energy: Exhaust a rune by turning it sideways. Exhausted runes can be readied again at the start of your next turn.
- Power: Recycle a rune by putting it on the bottom of the Rune Deck. The card’s required domain symbols must match the runes you use.
A rune exhausted for Energy can also be recycled to pay Power. In practical terms, exhausting uses a rune temporarily; recycling sends it back through the Rune Deck and removes it from your available resources for now.
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The beginner guide presents the turn in this order. Card text and other effects can add details to individual situations.
- Awaken: Ready your exhausted units, Legend and runes.
- Beginning: Resolve start-of-turn effects. Then score one point for each battlefield you control.
- Channel: Put the top two Rune Deck cards onto the board ready.
- Draw: Draw one card from your main deck. The guide says there is no maximum hand size.
- Action Phase: In any order, play cards, use abilities and exhaust units to move to or from battlefields, as often as you are able. Moving into a battlefield occupied by an enemy begins combat.
- End turn: Resolve end-of-turn effects. Units heal to full health, then the next player begins.
How battlefields, conquering and holding work
A unit moving to an unoccupied battlefield conquers it. You control a battlefield while you have at least one unit there. A battlefield you control can score again at the beginning of a later turn if you still have a unit there.
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- Conquer: Move onto an unoccupied battlefield, or take it after defeating its defenders. A successful conquer scores a point.
- Hold: Keep one or more units at a battlefield until the beginning of a later turn. If you still control it then, score a point.
These are distinct scoring opportunities: taking a location can score immediately, while maintaining control can score again later.
How combat resolves
Moving into an enemy-occupied battlefield starts combat. The guide’s beginner-level sequence is:
- Resolve relevant defend and attack abilities.
- Players get a showdown window to play actions or cards allowed at that time. Reactions may respond before a spell or ability resolves.
- When both players pass, units fight. Each side totals its units’ Might and assigns that much damage among opposing units. Assign lethal damage to one unit before assigning damage to another, and assign damage to TANK units first.
- Damage is dealt simultaneously. A unit dies when its damage equals or exceeds its Might.
If only the attacking player’s units remain, they conquer the battlefield and score. If a defending unit survives, the attackers do not conquer; surviving attackers return to their Base.
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How to win—and why the final point is different
The regular game target is 8 points. In team games, the target is 11 points. The final point must come from holding a battlefield, unless you score all battlefields in one turn by holding or conquering them. If you would otherwise gain the winning point without meeting one of those conditions, you draw a card instead of scoring it.
This makes the last point a planning problem, not just a race to reach the target. A lone conquer can score during the game, but cannot by itself supply the winning point. You can instead keep control of a battlefield until a later turn or arrange to score every battlefield in the same turn.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.First-game tips
- Track both kinds of scoring. Conquering scores for taking a battlefield; holding scores when you still control it at the beginning of a later turn.
- Choose carefully between Energy and Power. Exhausting a rune preserves it for later readiness; recycling it pays Power but returns it to the bottom of the Rune Deck.
- Account for exhausted units. Units enter play exhausted, and moving exhausts a unit. A newly played unit may not be immediately available to move or defend unless a card effect says otherwise.
- Expect a response when you attack. Moving into an enemy-held battlefield begins combat and gives the opponent a showdown window.
- Plan the winning point early. Remember the hold-or-score-all-battlefields condition when deciding whether to leave a location or commit units elsewhere.
These are rules-based pointers, not claims based on playtesting.
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- ASSEMBLE YOUR MECHA-MINIONS! Each cog in the machines makes your units more powerful, until even the dinkiest clunker can become arena champion. DESIGNED FOR BATTLE!
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What is a good way to start?
The official guide recommends preconstructed decks as a starting point. The official Learn to Play page describes the Proving Grounds Starter Set as a four-deck product for 2–4 players with a rulebook, playmats and tokens. It also lists standalone starter decks as playable out of the box, with an additional booster; booster packs expand a collection rather than providing the same ready-to-play setup. Confirm current contents and availability with the official page or retailer before buying.
| Option | Players supported | Ready-to-play contents | Customization |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proving Grounds Starter Set | 2–4, according to the official Learn to Play page | Four preconstructed decks, rulebook, playmats and tokens | Start with the included decks; the page does not state a customization level |
| Standalone starter deck | Not stated on the official page | Playable out of the box; includes an additional booster | Can be expanded with cards; exact customization level not stated |
| Booster pack | Not stated on the official page | Not stated as a ready-to-play product; listed for expanding a collection | Collection expansion |
For local games and beginner events, the official page also recommends looking for a game store running Riftbound or Nexus Nights.
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