Best ways to spend money playing Legends of Runeterra for new players

April 2023 · 4 minute read

Players can maximize their money spent playing Riot Games’ new CCG, Legends of Runeterra, by earning FTP rewards to build a solid collection of cards.

Riot Games officially released LoR via PC and mobile on April 30. Upon its launch, new players can earn a free Ashe starter deck via seven-day login rewards and will receive additional starter decks after completing the challenge tutorials.

Collecting cards within LoR as an FTP player is easier than any other CCG, especially games like Hearthstone and Magic: The Gathering Arena. But there are options available for those who want to spend money too.

Is LoR really free-to-play or play-to-win? 

The developers of Legends of Runeterra have initiated a monetization system that allows FTP players the opportunity to collect cards quickly via gameplay. And according to the developers of Runeterra, “how much you spend does not determine how much you win.” 

With the official launch of LoR on April 30, players can earn 50 percent additional XP that is applied towards levels one to 12 in the original six Region rewards (not Bilgewater). Rewards in the Weekly Vault were also increased to help players earn champions, random rarity cards, and Expedition tokens.

Related: Everything you need to know about earning Legends of Runeterra region rewards

Players pick a region to compete in, leveling up to unlock capsules, chests, random rarity cards, random champions, and champion wildcards. To maximize region rewards, we recommend completing levels one to 12 in each region before attempting to complete a Region road.

What’s in the LoR starter bundle?

Upon completing the LoR tutorial and earning starter decks, players have an option to purchase a starter bundle pack containing 11 cards from every region:

The price of the bundle prior to the open beta release was 642 coins ($5) for a total of 66 cards from every region. Players who purchase the starter bundle can potentially craft an ideal deck, helping them win games quickly to collect region rewards. 

Can I buy wildcards?

Wildcards in LoR are available for purchase, and players can purchase any number of them. The Riot team experimented with putting a cap on wildcard purchases during the LoR open beta. But the team decided to reverse that decision, allowing players the freedom to purchase cards for any deck while rewarding FTP players extra reward benefits to compete on the same level as those who purchase cards.

Are expeditions worth paying for?

Expeditions in LoR earn players an automatic Epic Capsule, along with wildcards, and shards that can purchase additional rounds of Expedition or unlock cards (including champions). Each expedition costs 200 coins, or 2,000 shards, and offers players two trials with up to seven wins each.

How much do the coins cost?

There are also cosmetics available within LoR that include Guardians, game boards, emotes, and card backs.

Here are the Coin prices for individual wildcards:

Players seeking to maximize rewards should focus on completing a Region road up to level 12 and then switching over to a new region. Those purchasing wildcards to unlock a deck will notice that most top-meta LoR decks consist of mostly Common and Rare cards, along with six champion cards (three copies of each champion).

Update Jan. 22 1:55pm CT: Several changes have been made regarding the coin value of cards and the number of coins per dollar amount. The amount of coins has decreased per dollar amount, but so have the prices. Previously, $10 purchased 1,380 coins and a champion card was 400 coins. After today’s update, $10 gets a player 1,000 coins but a champion card is now priced at 300 coins.

Update May 7 12:30 pm CT: All rewards and prices were updated to reflect changes made during the official launch of LoR via PC and mobile on April 30.

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