Riftbound game action
Buff
Buff is a Riftbound game action: you put a buff counter on a unit, giving it +1 Might until it's spent or the unit leaves play. A unit can only have one buff.
53 cardsFirst seen in OriginsCore Rules 427
Official text
On the cards
Buff a friendly unit. (Give it a +1 
Might buff if it doesn't have one.)
Buff me. (Give me a +1 Might buff if I don't have one.)
Core Rules
- 427.1
- Buffing is the action of placing a Buff counter on a Unit.
- 427.1.b
- To Buff a unit, place a Buff Counter on it if it does not have one already
- 427.1.b.1
- If the unit already has a Buff Counter on it, it does not get another one.
- 427.1.b.2
- Some effects may grant a Game Object permission to be Buffed multiple times. Such an effect ignores this restriction.
- 427.1.c
- Units with Buff Counters can still be chosen for actions that Buff units, but will not be Buffed as part of the execution.
- 427.2.a
- Players may only Buff units when Game Effects direct them to do so.
- 702.2.b
- Spending a Buff removes a single Buff counter from a Unit.
- 703
- Each Buff individually contributes +1 Might to a Unit.
- 705
- If a Unit leaves play, remove all Buffs from it.
Riftbound Core Rules, updated October 9, 2026
How Buff works
What does Buff do?
It puts a buff counter on a unit, and each buff gives the unit +1 Might. A unit can only have one buff, so buffing a unit that already has one doesn't add a second.
Core Rules 427.1.b, 427.1.b.1, 703
How long does a buff last?
Until it's spent or the unit leaves play. Unlike "+1 Might this turn", a buff doesn't wear off at the end of the turn. If the unit goes to your hand, trash or anywhere else off the board, its buff is removed.
Core Rules 702.2.a, 705, 317.2.c
Can I buff a unit that's already buffed?
You can still choose it, but it doesn't get another buff. Abilities that trigger when a unit is buffed don't trigger, and text like "if it was buffed this way" doesn't happen. A few effects allow more than one buff, and they override this.
Core Rules 427.1.b.2, 427.1.c
If my unit is already buffed, does the rest of the card still work?
Yes. The buff is simply skipped, and the card's other instructions still happen unless they depend on the buff itself. One-Two Punch still stuns the enemy unit even if your unit already had a buff.
Core Rules 427.1.c, 359.3.e.14.bVendetta Rules FAQ and Clarifications
What does it mean to spend a buff?
Some cards let you remove a buff as a cost or for a bonus, like Riven, Broken Blade, which can spend its own buff to stun an enemy unit or ready itself. Spending removes the buff counter, and with it the +1 Might. You can only spend buffs on units you control.
Core Rules 702.2.b, 702.2.b.1, 702.2.b.2
Why don't older cards show Buff highlighted?
Riot added the highlight for Buff, along with Stun and Predict, starting with Unleashed. Older cards that tell you to buff a unit, like Kinkou Monk, work exactly the same way, and they're in the list below too.
Core Rules 427.3Riftbound Core Rules: Unleashed Patch Notes
Example: Buffing twice with Iridescent Avian
Your 3 Might unit has no buff. You exhaust Iridescent Avian to buff it, and it becomes a 4 Might unit for as long as it keeps the buff. On a later turn you use the Avian on the same unit again. It can't get a second buff, so the Avian gives it +2 Might this turn instead, making it a 6 Might unit until the end of the turn.
From Riftbound Core Rules
Official rulings
Riot's own words, from its rules articles.
As part of Predict being codified into a game action, we’ve added word backers to several game actions that frequently appear in card text, similar to the ones we use for keywords. You’ll see those appear starting with cards printed in Unleashed, with backers for Stun and Buff joining Predict.
An instruction is not ignored if an ability, effect, or circumstance of the game prevents it from occurring. … it could take the form of a game action like Buff or Ready being performed on a unit that already has the appropriate state. … The instruction in these cases isn’t ignored, but instead negated. A negated instruction has its effects skipped, replaced, or prevented. A negated instruction will not cause any linked instructions to be ignored unless those instructions refer specifically to the action being performed.
Every Buff card (53)
o:buff
