How to Play Riftbound: Beginner’s Guide

Learn the objective, deck structure, Domains, turn flow, and how to conquer & hold battlefields to win.

Riftbound is a new League of Legends trading card game (TCG) that pits 2–4 players against each other in battles for strategic locations. If you’re brand new to card games, don’t worry — Riftbound is designed to be accessible and fun. This beginner guide breaks down the core rules in simple terms so you can start playing fast.

You’ll learn how victory points work, the structure of your deck (Legend, Champion, Main Deck, Rune Deck), the six Domains (factions), the turn structure (phases & timing), and how to attack and hold battlefields.

What is Riftbound?

Riftbound is a collectible card game for 2–4 players where each player chooses a Champion and leads units and spells to fight for control of key battlefields. You build around a Legend (your champion’s profile) and deploy a Champion unit alongside troops, spells, and gear. The core loop is simple: develop resources, deploy threats, capture battlefields, and defend them for points.

Objective: How to Win (Victory Points & Battlefields)

The first player (or team) to reach 8 points wins (teams typically race to 11).

  • Conquer: When you take control of a battlefield on your turn, you immediately score +1 point.
  • Hold: At the start of your turn, you score +1 point for each battlefield you still control (you have a unit there).

Final Point Rule: Your winning point (the one that hits 8) can’t come solely from a single last-moment conquest unless you also scored from every other battlefield that turn. If you would win only by sniping one battlefield while not scoring others, instead draw a card. This nudges games to end via sustained control.

Summary: Balance aggression (to conquer) with defense (to hold). Accumulate points by capturing new battlefields and keeping units on them across turns.

Deck Structure: Legend, Champion, Main Deck & Rune Deck

  • Legend Card (1): Your deck’s centerpiece. It defines which two Domains (colors) you can use and often grants an ongoing/activated ability. It starts face-up in play.
  • Champion Unit (1): A unit matching your Legend — your Champion. It starts set aside face-up (in a special zone) and can be played as if in your hand.
  • Main Deck (40 cards): Units, Spells, and Gear that all belong to your Legend’s two Domains. Up to 3 copies per card name (typical rule of thumb).
  • Rune Deck (12 cards): Your resource deck. Draw runes each turn to pay Energy (exhaust runes) and sometimes Power (recycle a colored rune) costs. Runes match your Domains.
  • Battlefields (3): Neutral location cards you bring to the table. They’re not shuffled into your main deck; they set up the board you’ll fight over.

Card Types

  • Units: Bodies that fight on battlefields (with a Might value).
  • Spells: One-shot effects (Action/Reaction); go to Trash after resolving.
  • Gear: Equipment or upgrades that remain in play attached to units or your Base.

Resource System (Runes)

  • Energy cost: Exhaust that many runes to play a card. Exhausted runes ready next turn.
  • Power cost: Recycle (return to bottom of deck) a rune of a specific color for strong effects. You can recycle even an exhausted rune.

Each turn you gain 2 new runes from your Rune deck (player two may gain 3 on their very first turn), and all your runes ready. Think of runes like a renewable “mana” system. If you can’t meet a cost, you can’t play that card yet.

The Six Domains (Factions/Colors)

Every Legend has two Domains; your deck can include cards of only those colors. Each Domain has a distinct identity:

  • Fury (Red): Aggression and damage. Rewards successful attacks; excels at pressure and removal.
  • Calm (Green): Defense, control, and stalling. Redirects, stuns, and protects holdings.
  • Mind (Blue): Planning, card draw, and combos. Gear synergies and clever manipulation.
  • Body (Orange): Big, efficient units and ramp. Win through brute-force combat.
  • Chaos (Purple): Unpredictability, discard/trash play, and trickery. Break the usual patterns.
  • Order (Yellow): Teamwork, tokens, sacrifice, and death triggers. Swarm & value trades.

Your two Domains blend their strengths — e.g., Fury/Chaos = aggressive damage + surprises; Calm/Body = sturdy defense + powerful combat units.

Turn Structure & Phases of Play

Start of Turn – Refresh & Resources

  1. Awaken: Ready all your exhausted cards.
  2. Score (Hold): Gain +1 point for each battlefield you control (you have a unit there).
  3. Channel Runes: Draw 2 runes (player two may draw 3 on their first turn).
  4. Draw: Draw 1 card from your main deck (no max hand size).

Action Phase – Play & Move

  • Play Cards: Units, Spells, and Gear (paying rune costs).
  • Use Abilities: Activate effects on your Legend or units.
  • Move Units: From Base to an open battlefield (claim it) or to an enemy battlefield (start combat).
  • Initiate Combat (Showdown): When entering an enemy-held battlefield.

Game States & Timing

  • Open: Action window. Active player may play normal cards/abilities; others can only React.
  • Closed: An effect is on the Chain (stack). Only Reaction cards can be added until it resolves.

Combat has its own Open reaction window where both players can add Action/Reaction effects to the Chain, then everything resolves, and units fight.

End of Turn

  • Resolve “end of turn” triggers.
  • Clear damage from surviving units.
  • Expire temporary effects; lose any floating energy.
  • Pass the turn.

Attacking, Conquering & Holding Battlefields

Conquering an Open Battlefield

Move a unit from your Base onto an uncontrolled battlefield to claim it immediately and score +1 point. (You can only score a given battlefield once per turn.)

Attacking an Enemy Battlefield (Showdown)

  1. Triggers: “When I attack/defend” effects fire.
  2. Action/Reaction Window: Both players may add combat-relevant Actions/Reactions to the Chain.
  3. Resolution – Units Fight: Each side deals damage equal to total Might, assigned by its controller.
  4. Destroy Defeated Units: Damage ≥ Might → that unit dies. Survivors heal after combat.
  5. Determine Control:
    • Attacker only survives → attacker conquers, scores +1, units stay.
    • Defender has any survivors → defense holds, attacker’s survivors retreat to Base.
    • Both sides wiped → battlefield becomes open (neutral).

Holding

Keep at least one unit on a battlefield to maintain control and score Hold points on future turns. If you leave it empty (or lose all units there), it becomes open again.

Conclusion

Build a deck within your Legend’s Domains, develop your rune economy, and fight over battlefields. Win by reaching 8 points through a mix of conquering and holding. Track the Open/Closed timing for plays and Reactions, and learn when to attack versus defend. With a few games, you’ll be ready to master Riftbound’s battlefields. GG!