Riot Games has revealed Riftbound: Radiance, with nine new Legends, three new mechanics and the game's first neutral-domain Champion Unit. The set launches worldwide on 23 October 2026.
Riot Games is preparing its biggest Riftbound: The League of Legends Trading Card Game set of 2026. Riftbound: Radiance adds nine Legends, three new keywords, Equipment Units, Bomb tokens and Neeko, the game's first neutral-domain Champion Unit. Independent coverage identifies the new mechanics as Deploy, Show Off and Disarm.
Radiance takes the spotlight
Radiance is the fifth Riftbound set and the final release in the game's 2026 schedule. Its cards focus on making plays under pressure. They reward players who find unusual answers and commit to bold decisions instead of simply building the largest board.
The set launches worldwide on 23 October 2026 in English, French and Simplified Chinese. All three versions arrive at the same time. Riftbound is still building its organised-play structure across local stores, Regional Qualifiers and championship-level competition. Coverage of Riot Games' official preview rollout says the first public Radiance cards were shown at a Regional Qualifier in Los Angeles on 25 September. The rest of the set is being revealed piece by piece.
Riot's announcement also names K'Sante, Pride of Nazumah as one of the new Legends. The set has nine new Legends in total. Coverage has confirmed Ekko, Seraphine, Evelynn, Ziggs, Jarvan IV, Orianna and K'Sante, while the rollout continues to reveal the remaining cards.
Three mechanics change the board
Deploy lets gear enter a battlefield directly. That battlefield can belong to an opponent. The gear stays there until that opponent holds the battlefield. This gives players a reason to fight over locations instead of treating Equipment Units as cards that only improve a friendly unit.
Ziggs, Hexplosive Expert shows the most volatile version of Deploy. He creates Bomb tokens. When a Bomb is killed, it damages enemy units and triggers every other Bomb in a chain reaction. A battlefield full of tokens can turn into a cascade of removal.
Show Off adds a second effect when a qualifying card is revealed from hand while another card is played. The reward is extra impact, but the reveal also gives away part of the player's plan. In Radiance, spectacle comes with a cost. A strong play may become easier to read before it resolves.
Disarm attacks the opposing board by reducing the Might of an enemy unit on the same battlefield when a unit with Disarm attacks. Multiple instances stack. Kai'Sa, Rebel combines the keyword with Reaction access for spells during a showdown. That lets the mechanic affect combat strength and timing.
New Legends and collectibles
Orianna, Lady of Clockwork is built around animation and accumulation. Her design can turn gear into Units and pressure opponents with machines, epic treasures and Gold tokens. Ekko, The Boy Who Shattered Time takes the opposite approach. He lets expensive units appear early, but they must be lost at the end of the turn.
Neeko is the set's biggest addition for deck construction. As Riftbound's first neutral-domain Champion Unit, she can go into any deck regardless of its domains. Players get a new way to use a champion without tying a deck to one specific domain identity.
Collectors will find the nine new Legends as Overnumbered variants. The set also includes Heartsteel Overnumbers and Special Alt Art cards, following the Crystal Rose treatment used for Vendetta. Radiance contains Riftbound's second Ultimate Rare, with a stated pull rate of fewer than 0.025% of packs. It also includes musically inspired Alt Art Runes.
Independent set trackers describe Radiance as a large expansion with 180 cards and 66 Showcase variants. They also point to a mismatch in photographed card numbering, which suggests a 167-card base run. Card photos circulating in collectors' channels show Neeko, Blending In numbered RAD 167/167. Tracking sites have interpreted that as evidence that Neeko belongs to the printed set. They also say Riot's wider set-count claims and the numbering system may not line up cleanly. As of 26 September 2026, those trackers report at least two Radiance cards in print or circulation: Neeko, Blending In and Seraphine's Legend, Starry-Eyed Songstress.
A new Collector's Binder completes the product line. It is meant to store and display cards, not change how the game is played. It gives collectors a dedicated physical product alongside the booster release.
Release events and player access
Local game stores will host Pre-Rift events from 16 to 22 October. Each Pre-Rift Kit contains five Radiance boosters and a seeded Pre-Rift pack for each of the nine new Legends. Attendees can also receive a Heimerdinger, Academy Instructor promo card while supplies last.
Card previews run from 25 September through 9 October. After launch, Summoner Skirmish events begin on 9 November and 14 December. These dates map out a path from preview season to early organised play. The announcement does not give entry prices, event capacity or product availability for individual shops.
The figures are clear. Radiance adds nine new Legends and three new keywords. Each Pre-Rift Kit has five boosters. The set launches in three languages, and its Ultimate Rare appears in fewer than 0.025% of packs. Radiance releases worldwide on 23 October 2026. Pre-Rift events begin one week earlier.
Riftbound's first year has been presented as an opening act. Radiance now has to turn that promise into repeatable play patterns. Deploy, Show Off and Disarm change battlefield ownership, hidden information and combat maths. Neeko also expands deck-building options beyond the existing domain structure. For readers tracking how the wider League of Legends tabletop ecosystem is growing, the earlier live-service coverage offers a useful contrast with the release schedule of a physical card set. Radiance will test whether creative decision-making can become Riftbound's signature instead of just its marketing theme. The October launch will provide the first real measure of that ambition at the table.
In Riftbound, a keyword is a short rules instruction, not a guarantee of power. Its value depends on the cards around it, the battlefield being contested and the timing of the opponent's response. That is why the new mechanics matter before the full card pool is known. They set the decisions players will face, but they do not yet show which decks will make those decisions consistently worthwhile.
