Wave 1 Origins case: the lot code on the carton that sets it apart
📦 In the photo above, two cases compared: on the left the first print (code 5BAI102), on the right the second (code 5CZI101). The labels are identical: only the small code printed in the bottom right changes.
An Origins case holds six booster boxes, 144 packs, inside a factory-sealed carton. While it stays closed you cannot see the boxes, so the back-and-bottom checks that work for a single box are no use here. People buying and selling wave 1 cases look at one thing: the lot code printed on the carton, which on the first print run starts with 5A, 5BA, 5BB or 5BZ, while second-wave cases start with 5C. Here is where it is, how to read it, and what still needs checking.
As with the boxes, telling case print runs apart is the collectors’ work, not Riot Games’ or UVS Games’. The codes quoted come from a photo posted in a collectors’ Facebook group, from seller listings and from r/riftboundtcg threads; no official source explains how to read them.
The cartonSide by side: where the code is and what is not the code
The carton has two printed sides, and it pays to know them, because almost everything written on it is the same on every print run.
- Short side: the up arrow, the Riftbound League of Legends logo and the short label: «Riftbound Origins: Booster Display», PO 22239R1, SKU RB-01BD01-EN, Qty 6 displays, dimensions, weight, Made in Japan. There is no lot code here.
- Long side: the black swirl with the barcode 810155274054 inside it and the full label, which adds «Company: UVS Games» and «Language: English». The lot code is here: seven characters printed smaller and lighter, in the bottom right, below the last line of the label, towards the corner.
- What is not the code: PO 22239R1 is the purchase order number, the same on wave 1 and reprints (and the same 22239 printed on the bottom of every box); SKU RB-01BD01-EN is the product code; the barcode is the case barcode. None of the three tells the print run.
If you are buying at a distance, ask the seller for exactly that photo: the long side, bottom right corner, with the code readable. The factory shrink wrap is transparent and does not cover it: it can be read on a sealed case.
The guideWhere the code is and what it says
On the side of the carton, in the bottom right, below the label, sits a seven-character code printed small. In the photo above, posted on January 7, 2026 in a collectors’ Facebook group by someone who owned a case from each run, the first print carton reads 5BAI102 and the second print carton reads 5CZI101. Everything else is the same: label, logo, dimensions, weight. It is the only direct photo comparison between two cases from different runs I have found, and the whole article rests on it.
The other codes I know from r/riftboundtcg. On January 1, 2026, when a collector from the Benelux asked what set the two waves apart, the most precise answer was: «wave 2 sealed cases have codes starting with 5C; wave 1 is 5BA, 5BB, 5BZ». Just below, another user added he owned a wave 1 case with a 5A code. On eBay the «Wave 1 (First Printing)» listings quote full codes such as 5BZI112. On January 31 someone reported a case coded 5BC, asking whether it was first or third wave: nobody answered the question. On February 25 another thread noticed that Cardmarket sellers had started putting codes such as 5BCC101, 5BCG101 and 5BCB101 in their titles, selling those cases as «wave 1» at nearly twice the base price: again, no documented answer.
Adding it up: 5A, 5BA, 5BB and 5BZ are the codes the community links to wave 1, and the photo confirms 5BA; 5C is the second wave, and the photo confirms 5CZ; the 5BC codes share the 5B prefix of the first wave, but nobody has ever attributed them to a print run. Nobody has officially explained what the letters mean either: the «5 as in 2025» reading that circulates in the groups remains a guess. The code works as a fingerprint, not as a certificate, and sellers photograph it: always ask for the photo.
| Check | Wave 1 | Reprints |
|---|---|---|
| Lot code (side, bottom right) | Starts with 5A, 5BA, 5BB or 5BZ (photo: 5BAI102; eBay: 5BZI112) | 5C = second wave (photo: 5CZI101); 5BC (e.g. 5BCC101) unattributed |
| Short side (arrow, logo, short label) | PO 22239R1, SKU RB-01BD01-EN, 6 displays, 4.8 kg; no lot code | Same |
| Long side (swirl, barcode, full label) | Lot code bottom right, below the label | Same spot, different code |
| Contents and barcode | 6 boxes, 144 packs, 810155274054 | Same |
| Boxes inside (if the case is open) | Bold back, no importers, CE and UKCA on the bottom | Regular weight, UK and EU importers, usually no CE and UKCA |
| Cards | No confirmed difference; the community argues about foil and saturation | |
The productWhat a case is and what it looks like
The case is the unit distributors use to deliver Origins to stores: 6 boxes of 24 packs, 144 packs, 2,016 cards, barcode 810155274054. In Italy it reaches stores through the official distributor, as I explained in the guide for store owners, and from there it passes to private buyers almost only through Cardmarket and eBay. It is the biggest purchase a sealed collector can make in this game: on Cardmarket the Origins case averages around 1,170 € with about 150 copies listed.
The carton is brown, with the Riftbound logo printed in black and a label reading «Riftbound: Origins - Booster Display», «Company: UVS Games», purchase order PO 22239R1, SKU RB-01BD01-EN, «Qty: 6 displays», dimensions 364×156×180 mm, weight 4.8 kg, «Language: English» and «Made in Japan». Careful: that 22239 is the same number printed on the bottom of every box, wave 1 and reprints alike, and so is the SKU RB-01BD01-EN. Neither the label nor the barcode identifies the print run: only the small code in the bottom right does.
For a sealed investor the case has one advantage over the box: a factory-closed carton is harder to tamper with than shrink wrap, and the six boxes inside have never seen a shelf. It also has a drawback: you cannot check the boxes without opening it, and opening it wipes out the value of the seal.
Cross-checkIf the case is open, look at the boxes
A case already opened, or sold «from a case» box by box, is verified through the boxes: on wave 1 the riot.com/riftbound line under the QR is bold, the legal block lists no UK and EU importers, and on the bottom the code RB-01BD01-EN is bold with the CE and UKCA marks next to the recycling symbols. The three checks, with photos from six collectors, are in the article on the box. If the carton code says 5B and the boxes inside have a bold back, the two clues confirm each other; if they do not match, one of the two has been swapped.
PricesHow much wave 1 weighs on a case
On the single box the American premium is documented: over $500 for a wave 1 against about 180 for a reprint, based on eBay sales in July 2026. On cases the numbers are softer. In February 2026 a «base» Origins case on Cardmarket cost around 1,000 € and the ones labelled wave 1, codes in the title, nearly twice that; today the product is a single one, around 1,170 €, and Italian sellers do not mention the print run even in titles for now. On eBay, in September 2026, «Wave 1» cases run at auction, but an auction is judged at closing, not at the opening bid, and I do not have enough completed sales to give an honest number. Expect the distinction to reach Europe too: on boxes, shops have already started writing «reprint».
Why it matters to us. A case is a purchase of more than a thousand euros, almost always at a distance and from a private seller. Before paying a premium for «wave 1», ask for a photo of the code in the bottom right of the carton and one of the intact seal; if the code starts with 5BC, know that nobody has ever established which print run it belongs to; if the seller will not show you the code, treat the price as a reprint’s. And if you have a case bought at launch and never opened, photograph the code now: it is the only proof you will have without breaking the seal.
My takeA collector’s bet, with a single piece of evidence
The whole wave 1 premium on a case rests on seven small printed characters that no institution certifies and that even the community has not fully decoded. The cards inside have no confirmed difference from the reprints, and Riot has said plainly it will keep printing Origins «until the market reaches more healthy quantities». In the same Facebook group as the photo, for that matter, the replies dismissed the whole thing with «same cards, zero difference in value», and on Reddit some openly call the «wave 1» case sellers scalpers. This is how I see it: if your goal is to play or to open packs, the cheapest case is the right one; if you want to bet on first-print sealed product, do it only with the code photographed and without paying today a premium the European market does not yet recognize. I keep sealed prices updated in the Prices section.
In short
- An Origins case holds 6 boxes (144 packs); sealed, it gives you no way to check the boxes. Label (PO 22239R1, SKU RB-01BD01-EN) and barcode are the same on every print run.
- The lot code sits on the side, bottom right: 5BAI102 on the photographed first-print case, 5CZI101 on the second-print one. The community links 5A, 5BA, 5BB and 5BZ to wave 1; 5C is the second wave; the 5BC codes have never been attributed.
- If the case is open, the boxes are verified with the three checks from the dedicated article: bold print, importers, CE and UKCA marks.
- Cardmarket treats the case as a single product around 1,170 €; in February 2026 «wave 1» cases were offered at nearly double. Always ask for a photo of the code.
FAQWave 1 Origins cases
Where is the lot code on an Origins case?
On the long side of the carton, the one with the swirl and the barcode: bottom right, below the last line of the label, seven characters printed small, for example 5BAI102 or 5CZI101. It is not on the short side with the arrow.
Do PO 22239R1, SKU RB-01BD01-EN or the barcode tell the print run?
No. They are the same on every Origins case, wave 1 and reprints alike. Only the lot code counts.
How do I recognize a wave 1 Origins case without opening it?
From the lot code: according to collectors, on wave 1 it starts with 5A, 5BA, 5BB or 5BZ, on the second wave with 5C. Always ask for a photo of the code.
Is a case coded 5BC wave 1?
Nobody knows: the code was reported in late January 2026 and from February it appears in Cardmarket titles sold as wave 1, but no thread has ever attributed it to a print run. Do not pay for it as a wave 1.
Does the carton label tell the print run?
No. PO 22239R1, SKU RB-01BD01-EN and barcode 810155274054 are the same on every run; 22239 is the same number printed on the bottom of every box.
How many boxes are in a case?
Six boxes of 24 packs, 144 packs in total, in a carton measuring 364×156×180 mm and weighing 4.8 kg.
Are the cards in a wave 1 case different?
There is no confirmed difference. Some collectors have photographed slightly different foil and saturation between runs, others have not: for now these are print variations.
Is a wave 1 case worth more?
On boxes the premium is documented in the United States (over $500 against 180). On cases, in February 2026, Cardmarket «wave 1» listings asked nearly double the base price, but there are not enough completed sales to give a number.
Sources: photo of the two cartons from the January 7, 2026 thread in a collectors’ Facebook group; r/riftboundtcg threads Wave 1 vs Wave 2, differences, errata and collector value (January 1, 2026), Wave 3 case codes (January 31), What do Riftbound case codes mean on Cardmarket? (February 25), Likelihood of a scam? (September 20); seller listings on eBay (case «Wave 1 First Printing 5BZI112»); box comparisons by @BardyGG; Riot announcement Flash Promos & Origins Reprint Updates; Cardmarket prices from the Riftbound Zone monitor. Photos: Facebook group (cartons), @BardyGG, u/exarpeee, u/ACampingPanda.
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