Riftbound Beginner's Guide

What is Riftbound?

Riftbound is the League of Legends trading card game from Riot Games, played by 2–4 players. Each player brings a self-built deck centred on a “legend”.

Win condition: conquer battlefields, first to 8

Every deck brings battlefield cards, but once the game starts all battlefields are contested by both sides. Conquering a battlefield scores 1 point, plus 1 more each turn you hold it. First to 8 points wins (11 in team play).

The core is taking and holding ground — offense and defense tempo matter equally.

Deck construction: five parts

• Legend ×1: the core of your deck — it defines your two domains (colors) and the champion that starts face-up on board.
• Main deck ×40: units, spells and gear, including your chosen champion (counted within the 40).
• Rune deck ×12: runes only from your legend’s two domains; they pay your costs.
• Battlefields ×3: each with a unique name.
• Sideboard: two published versions coexist — “exactly 0 or 8” (old) and “0–10 of any number” (current, confirmed 2026-09). Follow the rules version cited by your event organizer.

Runes and costs: two per turn, two uses

Every card has a cost, paid with runes. You gain two new runes each turn. Exhaust them for regular costs, or fully consume them — returned to your rune deck — to pay for stronger cards; they come back soon enough.

Common terms

• Battlefield: the shared objective — conquer for 1 point, then 1 per turn held; first to 8 wins.
• Might: a unit’s combat stat; it deals damage equal to its Might in combat.
• Exhaust: turn a card sideways to pay a cost or use an ability; it readies on your next turn.
• Showdown: the window where both players take turns playing spells and abilities; Action cards can be played during showdowns.
• Rune: the resource card that pays costs, from a separate rune deck — you gain two each turn.

Your first steps

• Start with an official preconstructed deck — playable out of the box. For 2–4 players, the Proving Grounds starter set includes 4 precons, a rulebook, playmat and tokens.
• Use our deck builder: load official precons in one click, simulate opening hands, and validate legality.
• Log your physical cards in the Collection page — “missing cards” analysis then tells you exactly what a deck still needs.
• Match physical cards by card number: there is no official Traditional Chinese card list, and some hero names differ between editions.

FAQ