The board and its zones

Everything in a game of Riftbound sits in a zone. The rules call the whole collection the Play Area, and group it into the Board and the Non-Board Zones.¹Rule 106. The Play Area is a collection of logical Zones that are defined by their behaviors and relationships to Players. These Zones are grouped into The Board and Non-Board Zones. Open in the rules browser

The Board

• Your base. Each player has their own base²Rule 107.1.a. Each player has their own Base. Open in the rules browser, and the permanents and runes you control sit in it.³Rule 107.1.c. Permanents and Runes controlled by a player reside in that player's Base. Open in the rules browser
• The Battlefield Zone. It holds the battlefields you are playing over.⁴Rule 107.2.a. The Battlefield Zone houses multiple Battlefields. Open in the rules browser Battlefields and bases are the game's locations⁵Rule 198.1. Locations include the Battlefields and the Bases. Open in the rules browser, and a unit on the board is always at one of them.⁶Rule 141.1.a.1. Units are at one of several Locations while on the Board: a Battlefield or their Base. Open in the rules browser
• The Legend Zone. Your Champion Legend sits in a zone of its own⁷Rule 107.4.a. The space for each player's Champion Legend. Open in the rules browser and stays there: it cannot be removed, moved or displaced from the zone.⁸Rule 107.4.d. The Champion Legend cannot be removed, moved, or displaced from this zone. Open in the rules browser

Your own zones

Everything else is one of the non-board zones⁹Rule 108. Non-Board Zones Open in the rules browser, and most of them are yours alone. Five of them matter in a first game:

• Hand. Cards go here when you draw them.¹⁰Rule 108.7.b. This is the location cards go when Drawn. Open in the rules browser Your opponent may count them¹¹Rule 108.7.e. The number of cards in a player's hand is Public Information. Open in the rules browser, but which cards you hold is private.¹²Rule 108.7.c. The cards in a player's hand are Private Information. Open in the rules browser
• Main Deck. The zone that houses your face-down deck during play.¹³Rule 108.4.c. Primarily houses the face-down Main Deck during gameplay. Open in the rules browser
• Rune Deck. A second face-down pile¹⁴Rule 108.5.c. Primarily houses the face-down runes during gameplay. Open in the rules browser, kept separate, holding exactly 12 rune cards.¹⁵Rule 161.2.a. Exactly 12 Rune cards chosen during Deck Construction. See rule 103.3. Rune Deck for more information. Open in the rules browser
• Champion Zone. Where your chosen champion waits¹⁶Rule 108.3.b. The space each player puts their Chosen Champion at the start of the game. Open in the rules browser at the start of the game, to be played from there like a card from hand.¹⁷Rule 108.3.d. The Chosen Champion can be played from here as normal, following the rules of Playing a Card. See rule 349. Playing Cards for more information. Open in the rules browser
• Trash. Where cards go when they are killed or discarded, when a spell finishes being executed, or when an effect moves them there.¹⁸Rule 108.2.b. This space is where cards are placed when they are killed or discarded, when they finish being executed as spells, when they are moved to the trash as an effect, etc. Open in the rules browser

Two more sit alongside them. The chain¹⁹Rule 108.1.a. Cards and abilities are placed here as part of the process of being played. See rule 327. Chains for more information. Open in the rules browser is where cards and abilities are placed while they are being played, and your Banishment holds cards a spell or effect has removed from play.²⁰Rule 108.6.b. This space is where cards are placed when they are banished by a spell or effect. Open in the rules browser Track 4 is where the Chain starts to matter.