Riftbound keyword
Hidden
Hidden is a Riftbound keyword: pay one power of any domain to hide it facedown at a battlefield you control, then play it on a later turn as a Reaction for free.
50 cardsFirst seen in OriginsCore Rules 811
Official text
On the cards
Hidden (Hide now for 
Any Rune to react with later for 
0 Energy.)
Core Rules
- 811.1
- Hidden is a keyword that acts as a prerequisite to perform the Hide Discretionary Action.
- 811.1.a
- It is present on Spells, Units, and Gear.
- 811.1.b
- It is functionally short for "While this card is in your hand or in your Champion Zone on your turn during an Open State, you may pay Any Rune to hide this facedown at a battlefield you control that doesn't already have a facedown card hidden there for as long as you control that battlefield. Beginning on the next turn, this gains [Reaction] and you may play this, ignoring its base cost."
- 811.1.c.1
- Hide is not a subset of Play.
- 811.1.c.2
- Hiding a card does not open a chain.
- 811.1.c.3
- Playing a card from facedown (or "from Hidden") does open a chain.
- 811.1.d
- Some choices made while playing a card from facedown are restricted to the battlefield where it was hidden. A card cannot be played from facedown if it is a spell with no valid targets under these restrictions.
- 811.1.d.1
- A hidden permanent must be played to that battlefield.
- 811.1.d.2
- If a hidden spell chooses any targets, those targets must be chosen from among options at the battlefield it was played from, unless it explicitly restricts targeting in such a way that makes this impossible.
- 811.1.d.3
- If a play effect of a hidden permanent chooses any targets, those targets must be chosen from among options at the battlefield it was played to, unless the ability explicitly restricts targeting in a way that makes this impossible.
- 811.1.d.5
- If a hidden spell or a play effect of a hidden permanent causes you to play a unit, you must choose to play that unit at that battlefield.
- 811.2
- Abilities and instructions of hidden cards other than the choices listed above function as normal.
- 811.3
- Instead of being hidden, a card with Hidden may be played for its cost as normal, at its normal timing with no restrictions on targeting.
- 811.6
- A card that is Hidden gains Reaction the turn after it is hidden while facedown or played from facedown, and may be played any time a card with Reaction may be played as a result.
Riftbound Core Rules, updated October 9, 2026
How Hidden works
How do I hide a card?
On your turn, while no chain is open, pay one power of any domain and put the card facedown at a battlefield you control. It can come from your hand or your Champion Zone. A battlefield normally holds only one facedown card, so you can't hide a second card where you already have one.
Core Rules 811.1.b, 107.3.bRiftbound Core Rules: Patch Notes
When can I play a card I hid?
From the next turn on, including your opponent's very next turn. A hidden card gains Reaction the turn after you hide it, so you can play it any time a Reaction can be played, whether or not you're responding to something. You can't play it on the turn you hid it.
Core Rules 811.1.b, 811.6
What does it cost to play a card from facedown?
Its base cost is ignored, so its energy and power costs are zero. Any additional costs still apply: you still pay for Deflect if you choose an enemy unit that has it, and you can still choose to pay an optional additional cost.
Core Rules 811.1.b, 356.1.b, 356.1.b.3
Where does a hidden unit or gear go when I play it?
To the battlefield where it was hidden. That even goes for gear, which are normally played to your base, although a gear that isn't attached to a unit is then recalled to your base in the next cleanup. Units that a hidden card makes you play, like tokens, enter at that battlefield too.
Core Rules 811.1.d.1, 811.1.d.1.a, 811.1.d.5, 459.1
Do hidden spells have to target things at their battlefield?
Yes. Any target a spell chooses when you play it from facedown must be at the battlefield where it was hidden, and the same goes for the "when you play me" abilities of hidden units and gear. Each target is checked on its own, and one the text says must be elsewhere, like the unit at another location that Tideturner swaps with, can be anywhere. A spell with no legal target there can't be played from facedown.
Core Rules 811.1.d, 811.1.d.2, 811.1.d.3, 811.1.d.4Core Rules: Vendetta Patch Notes
Do all of a hidden card's effects stay at that battlefield?
No, only the choices it makes. Everything else works as normal. Stand United played from facedown must buff a friendly unit at its battlefield, but its second effect, an extra +1 Might from buffs this turn, applies to your units everywhere.
Core Rules 811.2
What happens to my hidden card if I lose the battlefield?
It goes to your trash. A facedown card can only stay at a battlefield its controller controls, so once you lose control there, the card you hid is removed in the next cleanup.
Core Rules 107.3.c, 107.3.d, 323.6.a
Does hiding a card count as playing it?
No. Hiding isn't playing, so it doesn't turn on Legion or trigger "when you play" abilities. It doesn't open a chain either, so there's nothing for your opponent to react to. Playing the card from facedown later is a normal play.
Core Rules 811.1.c.1, 811.1.c.2, 811.1.c.3
Can my opponent see what I hid?
No. They can see that a facedown card is at the battlefield, but not what it is. While it's facedown, no card can check its front side: it has no name or cost, and it doesn't even count as a card with Hidden.
Core Rules 107.3.f, 129.4, 811.5.aCore Rules: Radiance Patch Notes (Effective October 16, 2026)
Do I have to hide a card with Hidden?
No. You can play it from your hand for its normal cost at its normal timing instead, and then there are no restrictions on its targets.
Core Rules 811.3
Example: A Hidden Blade waiting for an attacker
On your turn you control a battlefield, so you pay one power of any domain and hide Hidden Blade there. On your opponent's turn, they move a unit to that battlefield to attack. Hidden Blade has Reaction now, so you play it from facedown without paying its cost and kill the attacker, which is at the battlefield where Hidden Blade was hidden. As the card says, the attacker's controller draws 2.
From Riftbound Core Rules
Official rulings
Riot's own words, from its rules articles.
Cards in the Champion Zone can now use their Hidden abilities.
We’ve clarified that you treat each choice individually when applying the hidden targeting restriction.
Can I show off a facedown card at a battlefield with the Show Off ability of Gutter Guardian?
You cannot. Facedown cards don’t have any referenceable characteristics from their front side. … While a card is facedown, any information on its front side cannot be referenced by other cards and effects.
Core Rules: Radiance Patch Notes (Effective October 16, 2026)
Every Hidden card (50)
kw:hiddenCards with Hidden · 44
Cards that care about Hidden · 6
