What does it mean to win or lose a combat?

Winning and losing combats is a system that was inadvertently left out of the most recent rules update. Here are the conditions under which you win, lose, or tie a combat.

After combat damage has been dealt:

• If neither player has units remaining at the battlefield or both players have units remaining, combat is a tie. If both players do, attackers are recalled.

• If only one player has units remaining at the battlefield, that player wins the combat and the other player loses. Draven triggers if he’s among the units that survive.

It doesn’t matter whether combat damage was actually dealt, only that there was a combat showdown and only your units were left after combat damage. If you killed or removed all the opposing units with spells and abilities before Draven had to throw any punches, he still wins. (Think of it as winning by default.)

You can win a combat on either offense or defense.

Riot's question and answer, word for word, from theRiftbound Spiritforged FAQ·Jan 14, 2026