Deal — Riftbound Rules

417.1.

Spells, Units, Abilities, and other game effects may Deal Damage to units.

417.1.a.

Assigning Damage during the Combat Damage Step is not Dealing Damage, but will cause Damage to be Dealt when assignment is complete.

417.1.b.

To Deal Damage to Units, mark the specified amount of Damage on the Unit.

417.1.c.

Damage is marked on each unit separately.

417.1.d.

Damage can be Dealt to more than one Unit at the same time.

417.1.e.

Valid Damage is a positive integer amount, greater than or equal to 1 Damage.

417.1.e.1.

Only Valid Damage is Dealt. Example: A unit has “when I take damage, give me +2 [M] this turn.” A spell is played that Prevents the next 3 damage the unit would take. If a player plays Hextech Ray targeting the unit, it will take no damage and its triggered ability will not trigger. If that player had played Void Seeker instead, it would be Dealt 1 and trigger its ability. Example: A unit is present at Void Gate. A spell is played that Prevents the next 3 damage the unit would take. If a player plays Hextech Ray targeting the unit, it will take no damage - in order to apply the Bonus Damage from Void Gate, the Deal game action would have to occur, and Hextech Ray did not Deal any damage.

417.2.

Only Damage can be Dealt.

417.3.

Dealing Damage is a Limited Action.

417.3.a.

Assigning Damage causes Damage to be dealt outside of being directed to Deal Damage. See rule 454. Combat for more information.

417.4.

Dealing can have the intrinsic property of Bonus Damage.

417.5.

Bonus Damage is a property granted to the action of Dealing and alters the amount of Damage distributed by this action. See rule 712. Bonus Damage for more information.

417.6.

Deal actions can originate from one or more sources.

417.6.a.

If a game effect does not specify a source, the game effect describing the Deal action is the source. Example: Void Seeker is a spell that reads “Deal 4 to a unit at a battlefield. Draw 1.” The damage that Void Seeker instructs you to deal is dealt by Void Seeker.

417.6.b.

If a game effect does specify a source, then that source is what is considered the origin of the Damage for this Deal action.

417.6.b.1.

Units and Spells can be the source of Damage for Deal actions.

417.6.b.2.

Abilities can be the source of Damage for Deal actions.

417.6.b.2.a.

When an Ability is the source of Damage for a Deal action, it is in addition to the Spell or Unit that created that Ability. Example: Iron Ballista is a gear that says “[E]: Deal 2 to a unit at a battlefield.” This damage is dealt both by a gear and by an ability.

417.6.b.3.

When a spell or ability specifies a Unit as the source of the Damage for the Deal action, it is not in addition to the spell or ability that specified it. Example: Challenge is a spell that reads “Choose a friendly unit and an enemy unit. They deal damage equal to their Mights to each other.” The damage that Challenge causes to be dealt is dealt by the chosen units, not by Challenge.

417.6.c.

Damage Dealt as a result of being assigned during Combat has the Units as its source.

417.6.c.1.

The Damage assigned, and subsequently Dealt, to attackers has the defenders as the source and vice versa.

417.7.

Deal actions can distribute Damage as part of combat actions or non-combat actions.

Related FAQ (3)

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.

What does it mean to “kill a unit with a spell?" It seems like Hidden Blade counts, but what about a spell that deals damage? A spell that causes a unit to deal damage? A spell that causes a unit to die in some other way, like Stupefy on a unit that has 1 more Might than it has damage currently marked on it?

This is unclear under existing rules, so the updated rules will clarify. “When you kill a unit with a spell" triggers immediately after a spell you control resolves if either of the following is true: 1. That spell instructs you to kill a unit during its resolution, and that unit is put into the trash this way. 2. A spell instructs you to deal damage to a unit during its resolution, and that unit is put into the trash during the cleanup immediately following that spell's resolution. This includes “direct kill" spells you control like Hidden Blade. It also includes damage spells like Void Seeker, provided they mark lethal damage on the unit that immediately causes it to die. In all cases, the unit has to actually die—if that death is replaced by a card like Unlicensed Armory, then you didn't kill a unit with a spell. Notably, the following do not count as you killing a unit with a spell: ● You are instructed to kill a unit by a spell another player controls, even if the spell instructs you to kill the unit (e.g., another player's Cull the Weak). ● Another player is instructed to kill a unit by a spell you control (e.g., your Cull the Weak, if you don't kill any of your own units with it). ● You play a spell like Challenge that causes a unit to deal lethal damage to another unit. ● You use a spell to mark damage on a unit and the unit dies later in the turn, even if that damage later became lethal damage for any reason. ● You use a spell to directly or indirectly lower the Might of a unit, causing damage it's already taken to become lethal damage. For example: ○ You use a spell like Stupefy to lower the Might of a unit that has already taken damage, causing that damage to become lethal damage. ○ You use a spell like Charm to move a unit with damage on it away from Trifarian War Camp, indirectly lowering its Might and causing that damage to become lethal damage. ○ You use a spell like Rebuke to return Lee Sin, Centered to its owner's hand, indirectly lowering the Might of a buffed unit at the same battlefield that has damage on it, causing that damage to become lethal damage. ● You do anything else with a spell that causes a unit to die in any other way than the two methods listed above, or at any time other than during or immediately after the spell's resolution. ● You do any of the above, but the unit doesn't actually die.

If a spell deals damage to one or more units at Void Gate and one or more units somewhere else, which parts of that deal Bonus Damage?

The Bonus Damage from Void Gate is only for damage being dealt to units at Void Gate. It will receive errata to clarify this. (As a bonus, Bonus Damage will now be fully defined in the rules.)