Every Radiance Date
Radiance is Riftbound's fifth set — 180 cards including 66 Showcase cards, nine new Legends, and a music theme running through every treatment in the set. Here is the complete calendar.
| Event | Date | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Preview season | Sep 25 – Oct 9, 2026 | Card reveals, kicked off at RQ Los Angeles (Sep 25–27). |
| Rune & Skirmish reveal | Oct 5, 2026 | Full alt-art Rune set shown; Summoner Skirmish 1 participation, Top Cut and Champion prizes revealed. |
| Pre-Rift events | Oct 16 – 22, 2026 | Sealed prerelease at participating stores. Heimerdinger, Academy Instructor promo. |
| Nexus Night promo reveal | Oct 16, 2026 | Full Nexus Night promo list, Runes and the chase card announced. |
| Worldwide release | Oct 23, 2026 | All products on shelves. |
| Summoner Skirmish 1 | Nov 9 – Dec 13, 2026 | First competitive window. One event per store. |
| Summoner Skirmish 2 | Dec 14, 2026 – Jan 17, 2027 | Second window. Adds a Skirmish Playmat and the Ahri, Confident promo. |
A note on the date: you will occasionally see October 26 quoted for Radiance. Riot's retailer communications and the official set page both state October 23, 2026, and that is the date to plan around.
Every Radiance Product
| Product | Contents | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Booster Pack | Three foil cards — one foil Common/Uncommon plus two rare-or-above slots — alongside non-foil Commons and Uncommons. | Casual opening, topping up a collection. |
| Booster Display | 24 packs. | Collectors and anyone chasing Showcase treatments. |
| Showdown Decks: Seraphine vs Evelynn RB-05SD01-EN · $34.99 | Two complete 56-card preconstructed decks, 2 Radiance boosters, 2 full-size paper playmats, deckboxes, rules and deck-building guide. | Two new players starting together. The best-value entry point in the set. |
| Vault Bundle | Storage box, 6 Radiance boosters, foil tokens, and a full set of 36 Runes. | New players who need Runes; collectors who want the foil tokens. |
| Pre-Rift Event Kit store allocation only | 16 player kits (each: 15-card mini-precon with Champion Legend + Champion Unit, 5 boosters, 1 Pre-Rift promo) plus 1 booster display for prize support. | Stores. Players buy a seat, not the kit. |
| Playmats & art sleeves | A range of accessories themed to the set. | Players who already have a deck. |
Showdown Decks: Seraphine vs Evelynn
The Showdown Deck format returns from Vendetta (where it was Zed vs Shen). This time it is Seraphine, Starry-Eyed Songstress against Evelynn, Agony's Embrace — two of the three Champions debuting in Riftbound with this set.
Inside the $34.99 box:
- Two full 56-card preconstructed decks, ready to play out of the box
- Two Radiance booster packs for customisation
- Two full-size paper playmats
- Deckboxes for both decks
- A rules and deck-building guide
The pitch is specific and it is a good one: this is one SKU that gets two people playing immediately. Riot describes Showdown decks as essentially two Champion Decks combined, and at $34.99 for two constructed decks plus two boosters and two playmats, it is comfortably the cheapest way to bring someone into Riftbound.
The caveat for existing players: preconstructed decks are built for learning, not for competition. If you already play, you are buying this for the Seraphine and Evelynn cards and the playmats, and you should check whether the singles you actually want are cheaper bought directly.
The Vault Bundle
The Vault is the awkward product to evaluate, and the answer hinges entirely on one item in the list. Contents:
- A storage box
- Six Radiance booster packs
- Foil tokens
- A full set of 36 Runes
Runes are the deciding factor. Every Riftbound deck needs them, they are not something you reliably open, and a complete 36-Rune set is genuinely useful to anyone who does not already have one. If you are new, or building a second deck for a friend, the Vault is the cheapest route to a full Rune set and the six packs are a bonus.
If you already own Runes from Origins, Unleashed or Vendetta, the calculation inverts — you are paying a bundle premium for six packs and a box. Note that Radiance's alt-art Runes are a separate thing found in packs, not the basic set in the Vault; do not buy the Vault expecting the music-themed Rune art.
Pre-Rift Events & Promos
Pre-Rift is Riftbound's prerelease. For Radiance it runs October 16–22, 2026, the week before general release, and the format is sealed.
What a player gets
Each participant receives a Pre-Rift Player Kit containing:
- 1 mini-preconstructed deck — 15 cards, including a Champion Legend and a Champion Unit
- 5 Radiance booster packs
- 1 Pre-Rift promo card
You build a deck from the mini-precon, your five boosters and the promo, then play a paired tournament with it. It is deliberately beginner-friendly — the mini-precon means you are never looking at a pile of cards with no idea how to start.
The Pre-Rift promo: Heimerdinger, Academy Instructor
Every Pre-Rift attendee gets a copy of Heimerdinger, Academy Instructor while supplies last. This is the only way to get the card at launch, which historically has meant a meaningful secondary-market premium on Riftbound event promos in the first weeks.
A detail worth knowing: Pre-Rift kits also contain a seeded Pre-Rift pack for each of the nine new Legends in the set, so the event pool is built to make sure Legends actually show up rather than leaving it to chance.
Finding an event
Stores had to register their Pre-Rift event by August 29, 2026 and kits were allocated based on logged play activity, so not every store will be running one. Allocations are finite. If you want a seat, contact your local store now rather than in the week itself — Pre-Rift seats for recent Riftbound sets have sold out well in advance.
Summoner Skirmish & Nexus Nights
Summoner Skirmish
Summoner Skirmish is the competitive tier at local level — 1v1 Constructed, best of three, Swiss rounds with an optional Top Cut. Stores can host one event in each of the two windows.
| Window | Dates | Prizing |
|---|---|---|
| Skirmish 1 | Nov 9 – Dec 13, 2026 | 32× Participation promo, 8× Top Cut promo, 1× Champion promo, 1× Champion Playmat. Prize details were revealed October 5. |
| Skirmish 2 | Dec 14, 2026 – Jan 17, 2027 | Same base kit, plus an exclusive Skirmish Playmat for the Champion. Top Cut and Champion prizing includes the Ahri, Confident promo. |
Worth noting for anyone organising: official Riftbound Organized Play does not permit cash prizing. Stores can add store credit or boosters to the pool, but not money.
Nexus Nights
Nexus Nights are the weekly casual program — the store picks the day, and the format can be Constructed, Sealed or Modified Champion Deck. Players receive a Nexus Night Promo Pack as a participation prize while supplies last.
For Radiance the promo packs are being refreshed with new cards, and the full list — including the Runes and the chase card — was revealed on October 16, 2026. Stores receive a season's worth of packs in one shipment, so prizing quality varies by how your store rations them across the season.
Which Product Should You Buy?
If you are new to Riftbound
Showdown Decks ($34.99). Two playable decks, two playmats, two packs, and a rulebook, for roughly the price of seven boosters. Nothing else in the lineup comes close on value, and you get a second deck so you have someone to play against.
If you are a returning player building for the new meta
Singles, in launch week. The strongest revealed cards — The Good Stuff, Portable Portal, Trifarian Captain — are low-rarity cards that will be cheap individually and expensive to chase through packs. Our card-by-card breakdown covers what to prioritise.
If you want the Showcase cards
Booster displays, with eyes open. 66 of the set's 180 cards are Showcase treatments, all nine Legends have Overnumbered variants plus signed versions, and the set's Ultimate Rare — Packed Amphitheater — appears in roughly 0.025% of packs. That is about 1 in 4,000 packs, or one per 167 displays. Open for the Overnumbers and the music-themed Runes; do not open expecting the Ultimate.
If you need Runes
The Vault Bundle. A full 36-Rune set plus six packs and a storage box. Skip it if you already have Runes.
If you can get a seat
Pre-Rift, October 16–22. Five packs, a mini-precon, a tournament, and the Heimerdinger promo — a week before anyone else can buy the set. It is the best single day of the release cycle, and allocations are limited.
The honest bottom line: Radiance follows the same product shape as Vendetta, so if you have bought a Riftbound set before you know what you are getting. The two genuinely good-value SKUs are the Showdown Decks (for new players) and Pre-Rift (for anyone who can get in). Booster displays are a collector purchase, not a value one — our Vendetta box data showed roughly 64% of packs producing nothing above a Legend or regular Rare, and Radiance uses the same pack structure. We will publish measured Radiance box odds in launch week.
Where to buy
Check your local game store first — supply on recent Riftbound sets has been healthier than the early releases, and buying locally also gets you access to Pre-Rift and Nexus Nights. For online, the Riftbound product pages on TCGPlayer list displays, Showdown Decks and Vault Bundles as they come in stock.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does Riftbound Radiance release?
October 23, 2026, worldwide. Preview season ran September 25 to October 9, and Pre-Rift sealed events run October 16–22, the week before general release. Some sources quote October 26 — Riot's retailer communications and official set page both say October 23.
What products are in Riftbound Radiance?
Booster packs and 24-pack booster displays, the Seraphine vs Evelynn Showdown Decks at $34.99, a Vault Bundle (storage box, six boosters, foil tokens, a full 36-Rune set), store-allocated Pre-Rift Event Kits, and a range of playmats and art sleeves.
What is in the Radiance Showdown Deck?
Product code RB-05SD01-EN contains two complete 56-card preconstructed decks (Seraphine and Evelynn), two Radiance booster packs, two full-size paper playmats, deckboxes, and a rules and deck-building guide. MSRP $34.99.
What is a Pre-Rift event in Riftbound?
Pre-Rift is Riftbound's prerelease sealed event, running October 16–22, 2026 for Radiance. Each player gets a kit with a 15-card mini-preconstructed deck (including a Champion Legend and Champion Unit), five Radiance boosters, and a Pre-Rift promo — Heimerdinger, Academy Instructor for this set. You build from those contents and play a paired tournament.
Is the Radiance Vault Bundle worth buying?
If you need Runes, yes — it is the cheapest route to a complete 36-Rune set and you get six packs, foil tokens and a storage box with it. If you already have Runes from a previous set, you are paying a bundle premium for six packs. Note the Vault contains the basic Rune set; Radiance's music-themed alt-art Runes come from packs.
When are the Radiance Summoner Skirmish events?
Two windows: Skirmish 1 from November 9 to December 13, 2026, and Skirmish 2 from December 14, 2026 to January 17, 2027. Stores can host one per window. Prizing is 32 participation promos, 8 Top Cut promos, a Champion promo and a Champion playmat, with Skirmish 2 adding a Skirmish Playmat and the Ahri, Confident promo.
How many cards are in a Riftbound Radiance booster box?
A booster display holds 24 packs, the same as Unleashed and Vendetta. Each pack has three foil cards — one foil Common or Uncommon plus two rare-or-above slots — alongside non-foil Commons and Uncommons. Our Vendetta pull-rate data is the closest available guide to what that structure yields until Radiance box data exists.
Disclaimer: Radiance releases October 23, 2026. Dates, contents and MSRP on this page come from Riot's retailer communications and official set materials, and are accurate at the time of writing. Product availability, allocations and pricing vary by region and retailer — confirm with your store. This is not financial advice.