Graves, Blasting Through is a champion unit from Riftbound Radiance, the fifth set of Riot Games’ League of Legends trading card game, released on 23 October 2026. His effect triggers whenever he attacks or defends, which creates interesting ways to control the board and gain value during combat. With synergies such as Thrill of the Hunt, could Graves become a competitive option in Riftbound?
What Graves, Blasting Through does
| Graves, Blasting Through | |
|---|---|
| Type | Champion unit · Graves · Bilgewater |
| Domain | Orange (Body) |
| Cost | 5 energy + 1 power |
| Might | 4 |
| Set | Radiance (RAD 085/167) |
| Text | When I attack or defend, deal damage equal to my Might to all enemy units here. I don’t deal combat damage. |
The upsides of Graves
An unbuffed Graves kills units with four Might without being traded back, which makes him effectively stronger than a normal four-Might unit in combat. He is not quite as reliable as a five-Might unit, though, so positioning and timing will matter.
Another major advantage is that his effect triggers when he attacks or defends. Because the trigger resolves before players get a window to play actions, your opponent has fewer opportunities to respond than in a normal combat. That makes Graves particularly dangerous against decks that rely on winning combat through buffs or other tricks.
The downsides
The biggest problem with Graves is his cost. Paying that much for what is essentially a pseudo-four-Might unit is difficult to justify, especially if you cannot consistently get value from his effect.
He would also benefit greatly from ways to accelerate him onto the board. Once your opponent knows Graves is coming, they can avoid putting valuable units on the same battlefield, or simply play around his trigger.
Which cards work best with Graves?
The first card that comes to mind is Thrill of the Hunt. By resolving Graves’ trigger and then playing Thrill of the Hunt during the showdown, you can potentially trigger his effect again. That could be devastating on attack or defence, giving Graves the potential to clear multiple units in a single combat.
Green (Calm) also looks like a promising colour to pair him with. Reaction-speed buffs like Discipline and En Garde make his trigger even more threatening, letting you flip combat situations your opponent thought they could handle.
Will Graves find a place in the meta?
Graves could be a strong situational answer to certain decks, but his value depends heavily on the meta. If Vex and Evelynn become popular, he could be a valuable option against them. He can also help against Miracle decks like Kennen and Zed, which try to overwhelm opponents by establishing holds with Rhasa the Sunderer.
His cost, however, makes him hard to justify in every orange deck. You really need consistent value from his trigger to make him worthwhile.
Riftbound Radiance in our vending machines
Radiance boosters go into the BoosterStop machines on release day, like every new set. Check the live stock of the Geneva machines before you go, and find every Riftbound product we carry on the Riftbound page. The next set, Legacy, is due on 29 January 2027: all the dates are in the TCG release calendar.
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