Riftbound Growth & Value Keywords Explained: Legion, Level, Hunt, Weaponmaster, Equip, Accelerate, Vision & Deathknell
Where the combat keywords decide who takes damage and the timing keywords decide when a card can be played, this cluster of eight is about the long game — scaling a board up, banking XP toward a threshold, arming a unit with gear, and turning a card's death into an advantage instead of a loss.
Legion: rewards playing more than one card a turn
A Legion ability is dormant until you've played a second card the same turn — then it stays active for the rest of that turn. It's a running condition, not a one-time trigger, and playing any single other card turns on every Legion ability you control at once. Full reference: Legion keyword page.
Level: a running XP threshold
A Level [N] ability is active for as long as your XP total stays at N or more, and goes inactive the instant it drops below — including if the card changes controller and the new controller doesn't meet the threshold. It's a long-game investment: unremarkable early, and only worth its full text once your XP engine catches up. Full reference: Level keyword page.
Hunt: the XP engine behind Level
Hunt X grants that much XP whenever the unit with it Conquers OR Holds a battlefield — both winning a fight and simply keeping a battlefield you already hold can trigger it, so a Hunt unit that sticks around keeps paying out turn after turn. It's the most direct way to reach the thresholds Level cards check for. Full reference: Hunt keyword page.
Weaponmaster: free equipping on entry
When you play a unit with Weaponmaster, you may immediately choose an Equipment card you control and attach it, paying the Equip cost at a discount. It only does something if you already have Gear sitting around — a payoff for a deck that plays Equipment early and expects to arm a threat later. Full reference: Weaponmaster keyword page.
Cards printed with Weaponmaster
Real, officially catalogued cards whose rules text carries the Weaponmaster keyword.
Equip: attaching gear on your own timing
Equip [Cost] is an activated ability on Gear cards — pay it, choose a unit you control, and the Gear attaches to it. It's the manual version of what Weaponmaster automates: you control exactly when it happens, rather than only getting the option the turn a Weaponmaster unit lands. Full reference: Equip keyword page.
Accelerate: pay more now, act immediately
Accelerate lets you pay an optional extra cost as you play a unit so it enters the board readied instead of exhausted — meaning it can attack or block right away instead of sitting out its first turn. It only matters at the moment of playing the card; once the unit's on the board, Accelerate has already done its job. Full reference: Accelerate keyword page.
Vision: card selection on entry
Vision triggers when the permanent with it is played, letting its controller Predict — look at the top card of their deck and choose whether to keep it there or Recycle it away. It doesn't draw an extra card; it just smooths out what you're about to draw next, and it's most valuable stacked across several sources. Full reference: Vision keyword page.
Deathknell: turning a death into value
Deathknell is short for "when I die, [Effect]" — it fires when the permanent is Killed and actually sent to the trash, not if that death is replaced by something else (a recall, for instance). It rewards a deck that's happy to trade a unit away, or even sacrifice it deliberately, because the death itself is the payoff. Full reference: Deathknell keyword page.
Cards printed with Deathknell
Real, officially catalogued cards whose rules text carries the Deathknell keyword.
How these eight fit together
Hunt feeds Level. Legion rewards a low, wide curve of cheap cards. Equip and Weaponmaster both want a Gear-heavy shell, just on different timings. Accelerate and Vision are both about smoothing out a game plan rather than winning it outright — one skips downtime, the other skips a bad draw. Deathknell is the odd one out: it's the only keyword here that wants a unit gone, not scaled up, which makes it a natural fit alongside sacrifice effects and trades you were happy to make anyway.
See the full Riftbound keywords glossary for every mechanic in the game, or the Empower, Flow and Burn guides for Vendetta's three headline new mechanics.
Frequently asked questions
How do you gain the XP that Level checks for?
Hunt is the most direct source — it grants XP whenever a unit with Hunt Conquers or Holds a battlefield, defaulting to 1 XP unless a higher value is printed.
Does Legion need two cards WITH Legion to turn on?
No — playing any one other card that turn satisfies every Legion ability you control, not just a matching pair.
What's the difference between Equip and Weaponmaster?
Equip is something you pay for and activate yourself, on your own timing. Weaponmaster automatically offers a discounted equip the instant a unit with that keyword is played — no separate activation needed.
Does Accelerate do anything once a unit is already on the board?
No — it only affects how the unit enters (readied instead of exhausted); it has no function afterward.
Does Deathknell trigger if a permanent is recalled instead of dying?
No — Deathknell specifically watches for the permanent being Killed and sent to the trash. If that death is replaced by something else, like a recall, the trigger never fires.
Are any of these eight keywords new to Vendetta?
No — Legion, Level, Hunt, Weaponmaster, Equip, Accelerate, Vision and Deathknell are all core Riftbound rules, not set-specific mechanics like Empower, Flow and Burn.
Ready to buy?
Compare live prices for every Riftbound single across every store we track.