Dave Guskin, the Game Director of Riftbound TCG at Riot Games, has took to social media X on potential card bans in the future, given the current metagame. In summary, while there is no set date or specific cards mentioned, it may come before the third set, Unleashed. Check out the full text below!
Hey Riftbounders! TL;DR
1: We're discussing card bans in the near future based on overly-dominant play patterns, but none to announce today, nor an expected date for bans.
2: Expect a separate rules update on 3/30 for the new mechanics being introduced in our next Set, Unleashed, as well as a few clarities around penalties, judge rewind, edge cases, and more.
Read on for more!
We're watching the meta evolve after Spiritforged, in large competitive events like the four Minor Opens held in China along with RQs in Bologna & Vegas, and have been keeping a close eye on strategies that may be becoming too dominant / creating frustrating play patterns.
We promised to keep you updated if we were considering bans, and based on what we’re seeing we’ve begun internal discussions about the possibility.
As we shared last month, our philosophy is that bans should only be used as a last resort. For us to remove a card from play, there needs to be a strong and specific reason, and we must firmly believe the change will significantly improve the player experience.
Our goal is to take a careful approach ensuring that as many cards as possible in each set remain viable. If we do see a concerning trend across all levels of play, we’ll respond as quickly and decisively as we can.
We’re watching as the meta continues to develop and reviewing the data, and no final calls have been made quite yet. We’ll wait until after the Shenzhen Major Open in late March before making any changes.
As we promised, we’ve committed to not making large changes so close to competitive events to try and ensure players have a chance to playtest and adapt.
We also have a rules update arriving March 30. This update includes support for the upcoming Unleashed mechanics and improvements to rules clarity around penalties, judge rewinds, ambiguities, and other edge cases.
Until those updates arrive, rulings may vary slightly between events by region and players should continue to follow the rulings provided by their local judges.
That’s all for today - it’s been so exciting and humbling for both myself and the entire Riftbound team to watch the community grow and see new decks and strategies emerge from players all around the world.
Keep the questions, suggestions, and feedback coming. We’ll do our best to continue to stay transparent and proactive with updates like these, and thanks as always for your continued support!
