Combat — Riftbound Rules

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.

Related FAQ (13)

Can I move more units in before a combat starts using a spell or ability?

If you don't move units together as a group using the standard move, then you can only move additional units afterward if you use a spell or ability with the Action or Reaction keywords, after the combat starts as part of the showdown.

What happens when both sides in combat have the same total Might?

In this case, both sides will assign damage to the other side equal to the total Might of all units there, which will end up killing all units on both sides. No units will remain to control the battlefield, leaving it open and nobody will score a point.

What happens if units from both sides in combat survive, either because of Kayn or a stun?

In this case, both sides will still assign damage to the other side as normal (stunned units will not deal damage). Units will still die if they are assigned damage equal to or greater than their Might (unless they don't die, for example because of Kayn's ability). Then if units from both sides remain alive at the battlefield, any remaining attacking units will be recalled to base and the defending player will maintain control (no score, though).

Do units heal from combat damage? When?

Yes, units everywhere will heal from damage at the end of every combat and at the end of every turn. That means if a unit survives through damage assignment, it'll be back to zero damage at the end of the combat.

Can I use the exhaust ability of a unit in combat?

The cost of using an ability with the exhaust symbol is to exhaust that unit. If you just moved a unit into combat using the standard move, then you already exhausted the unit as the cost to do that, so you won't be able to use its ability with the exhaust symbol that same turn. If the unit is defending, it might be ready and then you can use abilities that require exhausting it in combat (as long as those abilities have the Action or Reaction keyword).

I have Garen, Commander at a battlefield along with a Recruit token. Thanks to Garen, the Recruit has 2 Might. My opponent's total Might during the combat damage step is 6, so they deal 5 damage to Garen and 1 to the Recruit. Does the Recruit die?

No. Under the revised rules, combat damage is dealt, any units with lethal damage on them are killed, and then units are immediately healed of all damage before lethal damage is checked again. This means that if one of your units that died was providing a Might boost to other units, they're healed of any damage before losing that Might boost. This is a change from previous rulings that impacts cards including Captain Farron; Taric, Protector; Garen, Commander; and Darius, Executioner.

Does the damage from Kog'Maw's Deathknell ability happen before or after combat damage is healed?

After. Kog'Maw, Caustic has a Deathknell ability that says “Deal 4 to all units at my battlefield." Under the revised rules, all damage currently on units will be healed before Kog'Maw's Deathknell ability resolves. This does mean, however, that any units that survive his Deathknell will still have 4 damage on them after combat, and you can use a spell or another combat to finish them off. This is a change from previous rulings.

What does it mean for combat to be a “tie?"

The updated rules will more clearly define what it means to win, lose, or tie a combat. ● A player wins a combat if only their units are present after combat damage has been dealt. ● A player loses a combat if the other player in combat still has units present and they do not (ie, if the other player wins). ● A combat ends in a tie if either: ○ Neither player has units left at the battlefield (e.g. they all died to combat damage). ○ Both players have units left at the battlefield (e.g. one or more units was ineligible to deal or receive combat damage—stunned units, Kayn, etc). Winning a combat is not the same as conquering, although ordinarily the attacking player must win in order to conquer. Either the attacker or the defender can win, and each combat either ends in a tie, or has exactly one winner and one loser. When combat ends in a tie, all attacking units are recalled to their base and the defender retains control of the battlefield. This doesn't cause the defender to win the combat; it's too late for that.

What does this card do, and when can it do it? If I play him from Hidden during combat, does his ability trigger twice?

We're issuing a rules update that changes how Teemo and other defend and attack triggers work, and we're issuing a minor errata for Teemo in accordance with it. We're also clarifying what his ability does and how many targets it has. This contradicts some previous guidance we've given on this card, as we've examined what it says, what it's intended to do, and what our rules can support. Teemo has a “when I defend" trigger. Under previous rules, attack and defend triggers happened only at the beginning of combat. Teemo's dual trigger condition was meant to cover this—he either triggered at the beginning of combat, or he triggered when you played him into combat. Under the updated rules, attack and defend triggers trigger any time a unit becomes an attacker or defender—whether that's because combat began, because the unit was moved into combat using a spell or ability, or because the unit was played into combat somehow. (And yes, this means that a unit that starts in combat, moves out somehow, and then moves back can trigger these abilities twice. We think this is fine—moving a unit at Action speed isn't easy to do, and doing it twice is even harder, so we don't mind there being a substantial reward.) One thing to note about this change that doesn't apply to Teemo directly: Assault and Shield are not attack or defend triggers, so they'll work the same way they did before. They apply while a unit is an attacker or defender in combat as appropriate, stop applying once the unit is no longer in combat, and start applying if it joins or rejoins combat partway through. This rules change makes the “played from (Hidden)" part of Teemo's text redundant. And since the ability only does anything if enemy units are present, we're issuing errata to clarify that it only triggers once as intended, whether Teemo is played into combat or was there from the start. We're also rephrasing the ability to make it clearer that it only has one target.

What does it mean to win or lose a combat?

After combat damage, if only one player has units remaining at the battlefield, that player wins and the other loses. Draven triggers if he's among the units that survive. It doesn't matter if damage was actually dealt, only that there was a showdown and only your units remain.