Four Radiance cards surface in China: a K/DA Kai’Sa and a battlefield that grants Tank
Early this morning a Reddit user posted photos of four Radiance cards that appeared on the game’s Chinese channels. None of the four has been shown by Riot in English yet. The only one with a readable photo is the Kai’Sa above, in her K/DA version; for the other three (a battlefield and two gear) we know the text only from the description written by the person who opened the post. In this article I explain them one by one, in plain words.
The Kai’Sa
There is a full photo of the Chinese card, coded RAD SP4/005. It is the special print of a card already known in English, Kai’Sa, Rebel.
The other three
A battlefield and two gear: the photos in the post are in Chinese and hard to read, the text below is the poster’s own translation. Names, costs and wording may change.
First things firstThe game terms you need to follow along
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Battlefield | The zones on the table you fight over to score points. Each battlefield is a card with its own effect. |
| Tank | In combat the opponent must assign damage to units with Tank first: they shield the others. |
| Deploy | Radiance’s new keyword for gear: the gear is played straight onto a battlefield and stays there. If the opponent takes that battlefield, the gear is destroyed. |
| Holding a battlefield | Still controlling it at the end of the turn. That is when the battlefield gives you the point. |
| Reaction | A spell speed: it can be played in response, in the middle of a combat, not only on your own turn. |
Card 1K/DA Kai’Sa: the special print of a card we already know
It is the only one of the four that can be read in full, and it is the one in the photo at the top. In the bottom left it carries the code RAD · SP4/005 · SC: RAD is the set (Radiance), SP4/005 means «special print number 4 of 5» and SC is the Simplified Chinese edition. Special prints are alternate-art versions of regular cards in the set: this one is the K/DA version, League of Legends’ virtual pop group, of the Kai’Sa, Rebel Riot already showed in English on September 26. The text is the same: it costs 5, has 5 Might, carries the keyword Disarm (it removes Might from the opposing unit when it attacks) and, while it is in a combat, gives your spells Reaction, meaning you can play them in response. At the bottom of the card, in place of the flavour text, are three English lines from a K/DA song.
Why people care: numbered special prints are the most expensive cards of every set, and commenters are already pricing in «another $100 SP». Others note that, with Kai’Sa and Ahri already in Radiance as units, a K/DA theme for the special print series was in the air: SP4 means at least four more exist, still unseen.
Card 2A battlefield that grants Tank when you defend (Shen?)
According to the post, the battlefield reads: when you defend, choose one of your units and give it Tank for that combat. In practice, every time the opponent attacks that battlefield, you decide which of your units must soak the damage first. It is a free effect, repeated on every attack, and needs no card to be played: having the battlefield in play is enough.
The post does not give the card’s name. In the comments, though, many recognise Shen, the Ionian ninja, in the art: «they turned my man Shen into a battlefield», one user writes, and others agree. The clue holds because Shen and Tank have always gone together: his Vendetta Legend, below, has exactly «give a friendly unit Tank this turn» as its action. If confirmed, it would be the first time a League champion ends up on a battlefield rather than a unit. Careful: the card below is not the new one. It is the Shen card that already exists, placed here to show the connection; I do not have a readable photo of the Chinese battlefield yet.
Cards 3 and 4Two Deploy gear: one draws three cards, the other belongs to Jarvan IV
The last two are gear, meaning equipment, with the Deploy keyword: they are played onto a battlefield and stay there. Again from the post’s description:
- The purple gear: when you play it, discard one card and draw three. If at the end of the turn that battlefield is still yours, the gear returns to your hand, and you can play it again to draw more.
- Jarvan IV’s signature gear (his Legend’s personal gear): when at least one of your units attacks on that battlefield, one of them gets +2 Might for the turn. This one too, if you hold the battlefield, can return to your hand.
The purple gear is what lit up the comments: drawing three cards for one is a lot, and if the gear is replayed every turn the advantage piles up. «An absurd amount of value for its cost», one user writes; another fears that, added to the other gear that draw, it leads to a future ban. These are hot takes on a card whose exact cost we do not even know.
| Card | Type | What it would do | How solid |
|---|---|---|---|
| K/DA Kai’Sa (SP4/005) | Champion Unit, 5 energy, 5 Might | Disarm; while in combat, your spells gain Reaction | Full photo; the special print of Kai’Sa, Rebel |
| Unnamed battlefield (Shen?) | Battlefield | When you defend, give one of your units Tank for that combat | Description only; name and art unconfirmed |
| Purple gear | Deploy gear | Discard 1, draw 3; returns to hand if you hold the battlefield | Description only; cost unknown |
| Jarvan IV’s signature gear | Deploy gear | +2 Might to a unit attacking there; can return to hand | Description only |
Why it matters to us. Chinese cards usually come out a few days before the English ones, so following them means seeing Radiance early. But they are second-hand previews: until Riot publishes the English versions, names, costs and text can change, and a hand-made translation can get wrong the one word that changes everything in a card game. Good for a first idea of the set reaching Pre-Rift events from October 16 and stores from October 23; not good for building a deck. As soon as the official cards are out, I will update this article.
In short
- Four Radiance cards circulated in China on September 29 and landed on Reddit; Riot has confirmed none of them.
- The only readable one is a K/DA Kai’Sa, special print SP4/005 of the already known Kai’Sa, Rebel: same text, new art.
- A battlefield would give one of your units Tank every time you defend; many recognise Shen in the art, but there is no readable photo yet.
- Two Deploy gear: one discards 1 and draws 3, the other is Jarvan IV’s personal gear and gives +2 Might; both can return to hand if you hold the battlefield.
Source: u/SenlanZWH on r/riftboundtcg (post and comments, September 29, 2026). Chinese card photo: u/SenlanZWH. English card images: Riot Games.
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