Combo · ENGINE

466.3.a is stricter than Nidalee's own reminder text - she draws only when your side is the ONLY side left

6 cards · body · verified

Pieces

• Nidalee, Cat Form ×3 UNL-114 · payoff · body

  [Ambush] (You may play me as a [Reaction] to a battlefield where you have units.) When I win a combat, draw 1. (I win if I remain after combat.)

• Towering Combatant ×3 UNL-099 · engine · body

  [Shield 2] (+2 Might while I'm a defender.) [Tank] (I must be assigned combat damage first.)

Payoff

Deck

• All cards are mono-Body, so 103.1.b.3 admits any legend with Body in its pair: SFD-203/SFD-250 Battle Mistress, OGN-257/OGN-304 Blind Monk, OGN-267/OGN-309 Bounty Hunter, VEN-141/VEN-190 Butcher of the Sands, VEN-149/VEN-194 Defender of Tomorrow, SFD-205/SFD-251 Grand Duelist, SFD-193/SFD-245 Grandmaster at Arms, UNL-203/UNL-237 Keeper of the Hammer, VEN-153/VEN-196 Matriarch of War, OGS-023 Might of Demacia - Starter, UNL-183/UNL-227 Pridestalker, SFD-183/SFD-241 Purifier, OGN-249/OGN-300 Relentless Storm, OGN-269/OGN-310 The Boss, UNL-201/UNL-236 Voidreaver, OGS-019 Wuju Bladesman - Starter, UNL-191/UNL-231 Wuju Master.
• Neither card is banned or restricted in either format, and neither is a Signature card.
• Units already at the battlefield, because [Ambush] is 'I may be played to a battlefield where you control Units' (822.1.b) - the Towering Combatant standing there is what makes the flash-in legal.

Run play

• Nidalee draws only behind an attack of eight or less, and the card is the smallest thing the ambush wins

Prerequisites

• THE REMINDER TEXT IS A SIMPLIFICATION, AND THE RULE IS STRICTER. Nidalee says '(I win if I remain after combat.)' 466.3.a: 'A Player has won a combat if they received either the attacker or defender designation and are the only Player that has units remaining at this battlefield during this step', with 466.3.c passing the result to their units. And 466.3.d: 'There is "No Result" if units were recalled during step 3d of the Combat Cleanup, if BOTH Players have units present during this task, or if neither player has units present.' Since 466.1.a.2 recalls surviving Attackers when Defenders remain, a defence in which the attackers live is No Result - so Nidalee draws only when your side WIPES theirs, not merely when she survives.
• WHICH IS WHY THE PARTNER HAS TO DO BOTH JOBS. 815.1.b: '[the Tank] must be assigned LETHAL damage before any other unit with the same controller as me that does not have [Tank] during the Combat Damage step', and 815.1.c.2 makes every non-Tank body an invalid assignment until it has. So the Towering Combatant keeps Nidalee alive; and her own Might still counts toward 465.2.c ('Starting with the Attacker, each player assigns an amount of damage equal to their summed Might'), which is what kills the attackers and turns 'remaining' into 'winning'. CORRECTED 2026-10-18 (#405, from the run play docs/plays/2026-10-18-nidalee-draws-only-behind-an-attack-of-eight-or-less-and-the-card-is-the-smallest-thing-the-ambush-wins.md): it keeps her alive only against an attack of 8 or less. [Tank] takes lethal and 465.2.c.4 stops the assignment there, so an attack of T puts 5 on the Combatant and T - 5 on Nidalee (M4): she survives 8 and dies to 9. The arithmetic notable below states the closed form.
• AND THE SHIELD IS EXACTLY THE MIGHT THAT COUNTS HERE. 814.1.c makes [Shield] 'While I am a defender, I have +X [M].', so the Towering Combatant is a printed 3 that reads 5 in precisely the situation this entry is about. That is the mirror of this walk's jaull-fish-garen-rugged-mighty-discount, where the same keyword contributes NOTHING because the count happens in the Main Phase with no designation in play. One keyword, two entries, opposite answers - the question is always whether a designation exists. ADDED 2026-10-18 (#405, from the run play docs/plays/2026-10-18-nidalee-draws-only-behind-an-attack-of-eight-or-less-and-the-card-is-the-smallest-thing-the-ambush-wins.md): the Main-Phase 3 is where the cheap removal lives. Before they attack, the Combatant has no designation and is a printed 3, so OGN-169 Gust (Chaos, E1, no Power: "[Reaction] (Play any time, even before spells and abilities resolve.) Return a unit at a battlefield with 3 :rb_might: or less to its owner's hand.") returns it, OGN-009 Hextech Ray (Fury, E1 + 1 Power: "Deal 3 to a unit at a battlefield.") kills it (143.2.a), and SFD-138 Windsinger (Chaos, E2: "When you play me, you may return another unit at a battlefield with 3 :rb_might: or less to its owner's hand.") returns it. Inside the combat it is a 5 and none of the three reaches it. UNL-124 Isolate (Chaos, E2: "Move an enemy unit from a battlefield to its base. Then, if there's an enemy unit alone at that battlefield, draw 1.") also takes it off the battlefield, but it reads no Might: it is confined to their Main Phase by 155 ("A spell can be played during an Open State outside of Showdowns on its controller's turn."), not by the 3. With the Combatant gone there is no unit of yours at the battlefield, and 822.1.b gives Nidalee nowhere to go.
• 822.1.b IS TWO PERMISSIONS, NOT ONE. '[Ambush] is functionally short for "I may be played to a battlefield where you control Units" AND "I have [Reaction] as long as I'm being played to a battlefield where you control Units."' The [Reaction] half is what lets her arrive after the attack is declared, and 822.1.c makes the location an added option during the Make Relevant Choices step of playing the card.
• SHE IS IN THAT COMBAT'S DAMAGE STEP. 319.6 runs after Game Objects enter the Board and 323.2.a says: 'If there are Units present at the Battlefield the Combat is taking place at, but do not have a designation, they gain the same designation as their Controller now.' So a body flashed in mid-combat is a Defender before 465.2 resolves, and 143.4's entering exhausted costs nothing, because neither 464.2.c.3 nor 465.2.b filters by state. ADDED 2026-10-18 (#405, from the run play docs/plays/2026-10-18-nidalee-draws-only-behind-an-attack-of-eight-or-less-and-the-card-is-the-smallest-thing-the-ambush-wins.md): the paragraph written for this case is 464.2.c.3.a: "If a Unit controlled by the Attacker or Defender becomes present at this Battlefield after this moment, it will gain the Attacker or Defender designation during the Cleanup phase following the action that caused it to become present, as appropriate for its controller." It reaches the same place as 319.6 and 323.2.a.
• THE ARITHMETIC. Towering Combatant 4 Energy for a body that soaks 5 (3 printed + [Shield 2]) and forces every point onto itself; Nidalee 3 Energy + 1 Power for a 4 Might body played at Reaction speed. Their summed 9 is assigned to the attackers under 465.2.c; if that clears the attacking side, 466.3.a gives you the combat and Nidalee draws. Three of each by 103.2.b. CORRECTED 2026-10-18 (#405, from the run play docs/plays/2026-10-18-nidalee-draws-only-behind-an-attack-of-eight-or-less-and-the-card-is-the-smallest-thing-the-ambush-wins.md): it forces only lethal onto itself. 815.1.b: "It is functionally short for "I must be assigned lethal damage before any other unit with the same controller as me that does not have [Tank] during the Combat Damage step."" 465.2.c.4 caps the assignment there while another unit remains, so the Combatant takes 5 and an attack of T puts T - 5 on Nidalee: she survives an attack of 8 or less and dies to 9. THE CLOSED FORM, which this notable did not state: undamaged attackers need their own Might in lethal (142.4.b), so the defence's summed 9 clears every attack of 9 or less. With no tricks on either side, an attack of 8 or less always dies and Nidalee always lives, an attack of 9 kills everybody (No Result, 466.3.d), and an attack of 10 or more kills her. So Nidalee survives exactly when she draws. And the Combatant dies in every defence of 5 or more: it is a 5 throughout the damage step (814.1.d.1: "Shield remains in effect as long as the Unit maintains the Defender designation."), it is assigned 5, and 143.2.a: "If a Unit ever has nonzero damage marked on it equalling or exceeding its Might, it is Killed." Each card drawn against an attack worth answering costs a Combatant.
• WHAT IT IS NOT. Nothing here scores, and a defended battlefield is one you already control - 466.5 establishes Control only 'if they didn't already control this Battlefield', so no Conquer follows. ADDED 2026-10-18 (#405, from the run play docs/plays/2026-10-18-nidalee-draws-only-behind-an-attack-of-eight-or-less-and-the-card-is-the-smallest-thing-the-ambush-wins.md): true, and it undersells the line. In the play's walk (going first, Might of Demacia against a Fury/Chaos Draven deck that attacked the lone Combatant with 7 on their T3), the ambush killed both attackers, kept the battlefield and drew: 4 to 3 after their T4. The honest control is OGN-217 Trifarian Gloryseeker (Order, E2, M2: "[Legion] — When you play me, buff me. (If I don't have a buff, I get a +1 :rb_might: buff. Get the effect if you've played another card this turn.)"), buffed, beside the Combatant from the same three runes (its [Legion] needs another card played that turn, which in the walk is the UNL-154 Crimson Pigeons played first): an 8 on defence deters the same attack, 3 to 3. Nidalee played face-up on your own turn deters it too and draws nothing, 3 to 3. So over a real defence the ambush buys one point, two of their units and the card. Only a Combatant left alone loses the battlefield, 3 to 4. That needs Order in the legend's pair, as Might of Demacia has.
• NO ANSWER WAS NAMED - ADDED 2026-10-18 (#405, from the run play docs/plays/2026-10-18-nidalee-draws-only-behind-an-attack-of-eight-or-less-and-the-card-is-the-smallest-thing-the-ambush-wins.md). The attacker has Focus again after Nidalee resolves, 347.1.b: "When that Chain closes, Focus passes to the next Player in Turn Order." So the ambush is never the last card in the combat. In the combat: OGN-004 Cleave (Fury, E1, no Power: "[Action] (Play on your turn or in showdowns.) Give a unit [Assault 3] this turn. (+3 :rb_might: while it's an attacker.)") makes an attack of 7 a 10, which kills the Combatant and Nidalee while the defence's 9 cannot clear it, so they win the combat. SFD-003 Blood Rush (Fury, E1: "[Action] (Play on your turn or in showdowns.) [Repeat] :rb_energy_1: (You may pay the additional cost to repeat this spell's effect.) Give a unit [Assault 2] this turn. (+2 :rb_might: while it's an attacker.)") makes it 9: everybody dies and nobody draws (466.3.d). With its [Repeat] paid, E2 and still no Power, it is an attack of 11, and they win the combat and the battlefield. UNL-014 Monster Harpoon (Fury, E1 + 1 Power: "Deal 2 to a unit at a battlefield. If you control a facedown card, deal 4 to it instead.") or OGN-009 Hextech Ray (Fury, E1 + 1 Power: "Deal 3 to a unit at a battlefield.") on Nidalee kills her together with the attack's T - 5, since lethal counts marked damage (142.4.b); against the attack of 7 either one is enough, and with the attackers dead too nobody remains and nobody draws. Each costs one rune, exhausted and recycled. Before the attack, the Combatant is a printed 3 in their Main Phase (814.1.c), so Gust returns it for one rune and no Power; the [Shield] notable above lists the rest. One more breaks it with no card at all: VEN-004 Dune Surfer (Fury, E3, M3: "You ignore [Tank] while assigning combat damage here.") in the attack lets them put lethal on Nidalee first. That one is from the play's breaks section, not its Leads.
• THE ORDER TWIN - ADDED 2026-10-18 (#405, from the run play docs/plays/2026-10-18-nidalee-draws-only-behind-an-attack-of-eight-or-less-and-the-card-is-the-smallest-thing-the-ambush-wins.md). In a legend with Order in its pair, VEN-123 Soulspinner (Order, E3, M3, no Power: "[Ambush] (You may play me as a [Reaction] to a battlefield where you have units.)") beside the Combatant makes a defence of 8. By the same arithmetic it lives and wipes the attackers against an attack of 7 or less, and an attack of 8 kills everybody, so it gives the same wipe one point lower and no card. What Nidalee adds over it is one point of margin and the draw, for one Body Power.

Steps

1. Have Towering Combatant (4 Energy) standing at a battlefield you control. Its [Tank] and [Shield 2] do nothing until somebody attacks it.
2. The opponent attacks. 464.2.c.3 designates, and 465.2.c fixes each side's summed Might.
3. Play Nidalee, Cat Form (3 Energy + 1 Power) with [Ambush] as a [Reaction] to that battlefield (822.1.b). 319.6 and 323.2.a give her the Defender designation before 465.2 resolves.
4. Damage is assigned. 815.1.c.2 forces the attacker's whole assignment onto the Towering Combatant until it has lethal, so Nidalee survives; your side's summed 9 is assigned back at the attackers. CORRECTED 2026-10-18 (#405, from the run play docs/plays/2026-10-18-nidalee-draws-only-behind-an-attack-of-eight-or-less-and-the-card-is-the-smallest-thing-the-ambush-wins.md): only against an attack of 8 or less. [Tank] demands lethal first (815.1.b), and 465.2.c.4 stops the assignment at lethal while another unit remains, so the Combatant takes 5 and Nidalee takes the attack's Might less 5. An attack of 9 or more kills her.
5. If no attacking unit remains, 466.3.a gives you the combat, 466.3.c passes the result to Nidalee, and she draws 1. If any attacker survives, 466.1.a.2 recalls them and 466.3.d makes it No Result - no draw. CORRECTED 2026-10-18 (#405, from the run play docs/plays/2026-10-18-nidalee-draws-only-behind-an-attack-of-eight-or-less-and-the-card-is-the-smallest-thing-the-ambush-wins.md): with no tricks on either side that cannot happen while Nidalee lives. An attacker survives the defence's 9 only in an attack of 10 or more, and that attack puts at least 5 on Nidalee, who is a 4. Nidalee survives exactly when she draws.

Per iteration

one card per combat your side wins outright, on a body flashed in for 3 Energy + 1 Power after the attack was declared CORRECTED 2026-10-18 (#405, from the run play docs/plays/2026-10-18-nidalee-draws-only-behind-an-attack-of-eight-or-less-and-the-card-is-the-smallest-thing-the-ambush-wins.md): and against an attack of 5 or more, each card costs the Towering Combatant (814.1.d.1, 143.2.a), and an attack of 9 or more draws nothing.

How it ends

engine only - one card per Nidalee per won combat, three of each by 103.2.b, and nothing at all when the attackers survive (466.3.d); nothing here scores

Sources

Published elsewhere

• Riftbound Core Rules, Last Updated 2026-07-16 (data/Riftbound-Core-Rules-2026-07-16.txt) 2026-07-16
• Card text verbatim from data/corpus_flat.txt (built from Riot's gallery content API) 2026-09-07

Walked here, in this project

• Hand walk 2026-09-07 (docs/phase0/walks/2026-09-07-uncatalogued-body.md, batch 2) 2026-09-07 record
• Run play 2026-10-18, issue #401 2026-10-18 record

Walked against Core Rules 2026-07-16

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