Riftbound: Radiance puts Ekko and K/DA on the TCG stage
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Riftbound: Radiance, the fifth set of the League of Legends TCG, puts Ekko, Seraphine and K/DA special cards on a music-themed stage now on sale.
The official Riftbound: Radiance trailer, published on IGN's channel, puts Ekko and K/DA's special cards at the centre of the fifth set for the League of Legends trading card game. The video is circulating after the set's worldwide release on October 23, 2026, when Riot Games began selling boosters, displays and the Seraphine vs. Evelynn Showdown Decks in English, French and Simplified Chinese. The expansion has a music theme, nine new Legends and three new mechanics — Deploy, Show Off and Disarm — plus more than 60 Showcase cards. For readers outside the United States, the trailer matters less on its own and more for what it summarises: the first time K/DA and Heartsteel share the same physical set, with dollar-denominated prices and distribution that has to be checked with local retailers.
Radiance is the fifth Riftbound collection, the tabletop TCG Riot launched to bring League of Legends champions and factions to kitchen tables and game stores. The set closes the line's 2026 schedule and arrives with a different pitch from its predecessors: instead of revolving around a region or a lore conflict, it is organised like a music festival. K/DA and Heartsteel appear on cards, alternate art and collectible variants; True Damage surfaces indirectly in the colours of Ekko's card, while characters such as Seraphine, Evelynn and Ekko take on leading roles in decks.
A music set and the first three-language launch
Riot describes Radiance as the first Riftbound set released simultaneously in English, French and Simplified Chinese. The worldwide launch took place on October 23, one week after Pre-Rift events at local game stores between October 16 and 22. The company cites 180 cards, with more than 60 Showcase treatments; the main numbering, however, runs from RAD-001 to RAD-167, and alternate art, overnumbers, runes and promos sit outside that count. That distinction matters to collectors: the headline total and the size of the numbered checklist are not the same thing.
"Radiance is about performing like a master: playing at the absolute peak of your powers, under the brightest lights, with everything on the line."
The Legends lineup is also one of the largest ever assembled for a single collection: nine champions debut as Legends, including Ekko, Seraphine, Evelynn, Ziggs, Jarvan IV, Orianna, K'Sante, Mordekaiser and Riven. For competitive players, that means new deck-building routes; for collectors, it means nine overnumbered and signed versions to chase.
K/DA across five special cards
K/DA's presence goes beyond the box art. Riot confirmed five Special Alt Art cards, coded RAD-SP1 to RAD-SP5, one for each member of the virtual group. They follow the Crystal Rose Special cards introduced in Vendetta and appear at roughly the same frequency as regular Alt Arts — meaning they are not guaranteed in any pack, box or display.
| Champion | Card | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Ahri | Ahri, Confident | RAD-SP1/005 |
| Akali | Akali, Brash | RAD-SP2/005 |
| Evelynn | Evelynn, In Control | RAD-SP3/005 |
| Kai'Sa | Kai'Sa, Rebel | RAD-SP4/005 |
| Seraphine | Seraphine, Not Alone | RAD-SP5/005 |
"We couldn't have a music themed set without featuring the K/DA girls."
The group's spotlight coexists with Heartsteel, which receives overnumbered variants for six champions, and with True Damage, present indirectly on the Ekko card that opens the trailer. Riot treats K/DA and Heartsteel as the set's two main musical draws but avoids ranking one above the other. In practice, the collection targets different audiences: pop music fans who want the Fortiche artwork and players looking for competitive pieces.
For pack openers, the distribution is worth understanding. Each Radiance booster contains 14 cards: seven commons, three uncommons, one foil slot, one rare or epic, one flex slot, one token or rune and one informational insert. The flex slot is the only one that can contain an Alt Art, a K/DA Special Alt, an Overnumber, a signed card or the Ultimate Rare. No special card is guaranteed in any pack, box or sealed case.
Ekko, Revolutionary: the card the trailer puts front and centre
The trailer highlights Ekko, Revolutionary, numbered RAD 177/167. It is a champion unit in the Fury domain, tied to Zaun, costing 5 Energy with 4 Might. The card enters ready, has Assault and an action ability that, by discarding a card and paying 1 Energy and a Fury rune, banishes the unit and immediately replays it to your base, ignoring its cost. The art is credited to Grafit Studio, and the flavour line carries two phrases that read like a chorus: "I keep on shattering time / I might just leave you behind".
Number 177 sits above the set's numbered total, making it an Overnumber: an extra printing, usually in full art and harder to pull. It is the third version of the same card. The first, RAD 021/167, shows a masked Ekko with art by Yeon Art Studio; the second, RAD 021a/167, is the Showcase printing with the Pulsefire look, by Dark Glow. The trailer version is the only one in the yellow and black colours associated with True Damage, another League of Legends musical group. Riot does not officially label the card as "True Damage Ekko"; the reading comes from the colour scheme, the hashtags used in the promotion and the outfit.
Choosing Ekko as the face of the trailer is no accident. The character headlines the booster box alongside Seraphine, and his presence connects three sides of the set: Zaun's lore, an urban music aesthetic and the competitive appeal of a unit with a repositioning ability. For Fury players, the card offers a way to put a champion back on the board without paying its cost again — provided there is a card to discard and a rune available. For collectors, it is the kind of printing that tends to sustain secondary-market interest after the launch excitement fades.
Deploy, Show Off and Disarm: the game's new vocabulary
Radiance introduces three keywords. Deploy lets a player put a Gear directly onto a battlefield, where it grants benefits while it stays there; when the opponent takes control of that battlefield, the Gear is destroyed. Show Off asks the player to reveal a qualifying card from hand or board to unlock an extra effect. Disarm lowers an enemy unit's Might during an attack and stacks with each instance. All three change how players think about positioning and sequencing, especially in multiplayer games.
The set also expands card types. Orianna's Legend ability turns equipment into units, creating Equipment Units. Bomb tokens now set each other off in a chain reaction, and Neeko arrives as Riftbound's first neutral-domain champion unit, playable in any deck regardless of its domains. These are additions that matter to casual players and tournament deck-builders alike, because they widen the combinations without forcing players to abandon established archetypes.
What it costs to step on stage
The product line follows the format of previous collections, with individual boosters, a display, Showdown Decks and the Vault. The prices below are those reported by specialist outlets for the US market at launch; Riot's official store and local retailers may charge different amounts, and buyers outside the US depend on imports or local distribution.
| Product | Contents | Reference price |
|---|---|---|
| Single booster | 14 random cards | $4.99 |
| Booster display | 24 boosters | $119.99 |
| Showdown Decks: Seraphine vs. Evelynn | Two 56-card decks, 2 boosters, 2 playmats and 2 deck boxes | $34.99 |
| Radiance Vault | 6 boosters, 36 runes, 3 foil tokens and a storage box | $34.99 |
| Pre-Rift Kit | 5 boosters, a seeded pack and a Heimerdinger promo | Event entry |
The rarest card in the set is Packed Amphitheater, the first Ultimate Rare that is also a Showcase Battlefield. According to Riot, it appears in roughly 0.025% of boosters — about one in every 4,000 packs. That is rarer than the Baron from Unleashed and is likely to absorb much of the secondary market's speculation. For players who only want to compete, regular Legends and the Showdown Decks are the cheapest route; for collectors, the challenge lies in signatures, overnumbers and the five K/DA cards.
Competitive calendar and the next act
Radiance arrives alongside Riftbound's first Regional Championship cycle. The European Regional Championship runs in Stuttgart, Germany, from November 6 to 8. The North American Regional Championship takes place in Las Vegas as part of Convergence Fest, from December 11 to 13. In stores, Summoner Skirmish events begin on November 9 and December 14, and Nexus Nights promo packs have been refreshed with Radiance cards, headlined by Lulu, Whimsical as the chase card.
The next set already has a date: Riftbound: Legacy arrives on January 29, 2027, with its first preview at Convergence Fest. Riot is also celebrating the Radiance booster display's selection for The Pop Insider's 2026 Holiday Gift Guide, which features nearly 200 items from more than 100 companies. For the TCG market, recognition beyond the card-playing bubble is a sign that Riftbound is trying to widen its audience beyond people who already play League of Legends.
Outside the United States, the launch calls for extra care. Riot's official store requires a Riot ID login, the products are listed in English and the page consulted does not detail local distribution. Anyone who wants to play or collect should check specialist stores, importers and local player groups before assuming the set will be available at every retailer. Dollar prices also exclude shipping, taxes and any import duties.
For followers of the League of Legends universe, Radiance works as a showcase of what Riot intends to do with the game's music brands: turn K/DA and Heartsteel into physical products, not just digital events. The Ekko and K/DA trailer is the doorway; the set is the test. Readers who want the full Riftbound and K/DA coverage can check the story on the Riftbound x K/DA collection drawing, the piece on the FIRESTARTER EP and the games section of O Santuário Geek.
Official information is available in the Radiance overview and in Riot Games' launch release. The trailer can be seen on IGN's channel, and the detailed analysis of the Ekko card is on Riftbound Zone.
