Riot Games have announced the first cards to be banned from Riftbound Standard Constructed play. As you can see in the image above, seven cards are affected. For clarity, this includes the four draw deck cards as follows:
- Called Shot
- Draven, Vanquisher
- Fight or Flight
- Scrapheap
And three Battlefield cards, as follows:
- The Dreaming Tree
- Obelisk of Power
- Reaver’s Row
There are a number of reasons given for the bans in the official announcement, but it can essentially be boiled down to these cards giving players far too much power; Called Shot and Scrapheap, for example, allow players to get through their deck at a ridiculous pace, and for little, if any, in-game cost. Draven, Vanquisher has simply proven too dominant in the early game in conjunction with the Draven Legend card.
The banned Battlefields have all been “defining the game”, as Riot put it, and Reaver’s Row is even linked to the fact that it’s disproportionately strong with the aforementioned Draven.
Can I Still Use the Banned Cards in My Deck?
The most obvious answer here would be no; the bans have been enforced for good reason, and not without serious consideration by Riot. However, you may still have these physical cards in your collection, and your deck. If you’re playing casually against opponents who are aware that these cards are in your deck, and have their blessing ahead of any game you play with them, then of course you’re free to use them outside of organized play.
Do Card Bans Happen Often?
With Riftbound having brought in a sizeable chunk of players who are new to trading card games, this news might be concerning to read. However, though bans may happen more than once in any given year, and this particular announcement is coming so soon after Riftbound’s launch, you can rest assured that any and all bans are carefully weighed up and used only as a last resort by a game’s design team.
There’s no denying that it is startling to see seven cards banned so soon, with three of them being Battlefield cards, but I have faith that Riot are doing the right thing here, and nipping any potential problems in the bud so early can only be a good thing. Riot acting so decisively in reaction to problems seen by players means that they’re keeping a very close eye on the game and listening to the community, which bodes very well for Riftbound going forwards.
Speaking of which, check out our list of cards for Riftbound’s upcoming set, Unleashed, as well as our look at the new rules for Ambush, Hunt and XP.
