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Riven
Champion Guide

Riven Guide

By LoLSuggest

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Riven is no longer a safe blind pick or one-trick champion: she wins many lanes but loses many too, so pick her when you have a good matchup. With a good lane she snowballs through trades, roams, split-pushes and draws pressure.

Recommended Setup

Our recommended Riven build

Our recommended runes, summoner spells and items. Compare build win rates on the stats page.

Items

Starting Items

Item 1055
Item 2003

Core Items

Item 6696
Item 3158
Item 2517

Situational Items

Item 6333
Item 3033
Item 3156
Item 6610
Item 3071
Item 3053
Item 6692
Item 3026

Conqueror with Triumph, Legend: Haste and Cut Down is the primary tree; secondaries vary — Second Wind and Revitalize into poke, Bone Plating and Shield Bash or Inspiration (Cash Back or Biscuit Delivery with Jack of All Trades) otherwise. Take Flash and Ignite, or Teleport into low-kill-pressure lanes. Start Doran's Blade and build The Brutalizer toward Axiom Arc, then Ionian Boots and Endless Hunger, finishing with Death's Dance, Mortal Reminder and Maw of Malmortius. As your team's only frontline, go Sundered Sky, Black Cleaver, Sterak's Gage and Death's Dance; an Eclipse and Sundered Sky path is the 'old reliable'. Max Q, then W, then E.

Runes

Primary Tree
Press the Attack
Lethal Tempo
Fleet Footwork
Conqueror
Absorb Life
Triumph
Presence of Mind
Legend: Alacrity
Legend: Haste
Legend: Bloodline
Coup de Grace
Cut Down
Last Stand
Secondary Tree
Demolish
Font of Life
Shield Bash
Conditioning
Second Wind
Bone Plating
Overgrowth
Revitalize
Unflinching

Summoner Spells

Flash
+
Ignite

Skill Max Order

Broken Wings Q
Ki Burst W
Valor E

Strengths

  • High mobility and burst with Broken Wings, Ki Burst and Valor.
  • Wind Slash's missing-health damage makes her a strong finisher.
  • Excellent at turning a lane lead into split-push pressure across the map.

Weaknesses

  • Not a blind pick anymore — she loses a large number of matchups.
  • Needs a good lane with access to CS to be useful.
  • Valor has a long cooldown and a reduced shield, so mistakes are costly.

Laning Phase

Fight inside your minion wave early: if your minions outnumber the enemy's, trade with autos, Q and Ki Burst while kiting back, and finish with the third Q. Never do this when you're down in levels. CS is essential, but a big health lead secures future CS. Against squishy or weak level 1 laners, wait in the front brush near your tower for an early trade. If you're being camped, rush tier-two boots.

Mid & Late Game

Turn your lead into map pressure: take red buff, Rift Herald and the enemy jungler's camps when safe, roam to other lanes after shoving waves, and split-push while watching the minimap. Drawing several enemies to you is good as long as you don't die. With Teleport up when your laner's isn't, shove a wave and join a fight elsewhere. In teamfights, don't flank until you have Guardian Angel.

Key Tips

  • Weave an auto between each Q and click behind you to cancel the animation.
  • Valor into Ki Burst ('sliding W') stuns the spot where you started, great for escaping ganks.
  • Hide your ultimate's activation by chaining it with Valor.
  • Use Ki Burst before Wind Slash so the target can't dodge it.