Glossary /

Your cards

Legend

The card that sets your deck’s two domains. It stays in your Legend Zone for the whole game. Try it in the first lesson

Chosen champion

A champion unit you set aside before the game, so you can play it without drawing it. Try it in the first lesson

Main Deck

The cards you draw and play. Tournament lists show 40 cards, counting the chosen champion. Tournament decks

Runes

A separate 12-card deck of resources. Each ready rune you exhaust adds 1 energy. Try it in the first lesson

Battlefields

Shared locations both players fight over. Moving in and taking one scores points. A deck brings 3. Try it in the first lesson

Sideboard

Up to 10 extra cards a tournament player can swap in between games. Tournament decks

Domains

The six colors: Fury, Calm, Mind, Body, Chaos and Order. Your Legend’s domains set which cards your deck can use. Browse cards

Printing

One physical version of a card. Alternate art and Showcase versions share the same text; the code, such as VEN-155/166, tells them apart. How printings are grouped

Reading a card

Energy

The cost to play a card, shown at the top left. Try it in the first lesson

Might

A unit’s strength in combat, shown at the top right. Try it in the first lesson

Exhaust and ready

Turning a card sideways to use it is exhausting. A ready card is upright and available again. Try it in the first lesson

Assault N

The unit gets +N Might while it is attacking. Browse cards

Empowered

A state a unit can be in. The card’s own text says what changes while it is Empowered. Browse cards

Errata

An official correction to a card’s printed text. Play the corrected wording. Rules and bans

Playing the game

Base

Where your units enter play. Try it in the first lesson

The chain

Where a card or ability waits while both players decide whether to respond. Try it in the first lesson

Points

In 1v1 you win at 8 points. Learn the Zed deck

Tournaments

Standard Constructed

The main 1v1 tournament format, with its own banned list. Rules and bans

2v2 Constructed

The two-player-team tournament format. It keeps a separate banned list. Rules and bans

Banned card

A card that cannot be registered in that format at organized-play events. Casual games follow whatever the table agrees. Rules and bans

Overall placement

Where a player finished among everyone at the event, for example Overall #12. Tournament results

Best-Of

The award for the highest-finishing player with a particular Legend at an event. A Best-Of list can sit far outside the Top 8. Tournament results

Top 8

The eight players who reached the final bracket. Tournament results

Regional Qualifier

Riot’s large regional tournaments, such as Barcelona, Singapore and Los Angeles. Tournament results

Showdown Series

Weekend tournaments run by partner organizers. Events calendar

Sealed

You build a deck from an event kit instead of your collection. Events calendar

Local play

Nexus Night

A store’s regular local play night. Events calendar

Summoner Skirmish

A store tournament program that runs in set windows during a set’s season. Events calendar

Pre-Rift

Store Sealed events in the week before a set releases. The event kit supplies the cards. Events calendar

Every card keyword, with Riot’s reminder text and rulings: Keywords. Keywords not listed here are defined in Riot’s Core Rules ↗.