[2.6a] The Only Riven Guide You’ll Ever Need

There is a crucial setting that you must disable in order to perform at your highest potential.

Go to Settings > Controls > Targeting > Dash In Move Direction > Off

By disabling this setting, Broken Wings will stop at your locked target when tapped. If it's enabled, Broken Wings will always go through your target, which will often put you in dangerous positions. 

Note that disabling Dash In Move Direction also means that if you don't have a locked target, tapping Broken Wings will make you dash toward your closest target. Therefore, during teamfights and skirmishes where there are more than one enemies, make sure to manually aim Broken Wings to navigate around the map.

Additionally, you must play with sound effects on. Riven relies on timing her abilities based on her basic attacks, and sound cues for her basic attacks play a big factor in your mechanical speed and abilities. Note that sound cues timing and delays depends on the skin you’ve chosen, and are different for different skins. It is therefore recommended to use the Practice Tool to get used to the timing and animation of your basic attacks and Fast Combo whenever you buy a new skin.

Taking animations and sound effects into account, the best Riven skins mechanics performance wise from highest to lowest is as follows:

Sentinel Riven > Original > Arcade Riven

• Sentinel Riven has smooth animations and sound cues. They are quite visible and can help with your combo timings.
• The original skin works well and should always do the trick, however its animations aren’t as flashy and may be hard to distinguish.
• Arcade Riven is very clunky and has too many unnecessary colourful effects. The basic attacks + sound feel very odd and can even impair your combos. The only advantage of this skin is the usage of its unique recall animation to hide Blade Of The Exile ’s animation.

Good skin selection is neither required nor necessary, and should only be considered if you have a lot of trouble with your current skin. Before buying a skin, make sure to check the skin spotlight on YouTube to get a general idea of how the animation and sound effects will look like.

Learning a mechanical champion is already a challenge by itself, but when that mechanical champion has more skill matchups than every other matchups types combined, it becomes that much harder. Below is a proposed strategy to flatten the learning curve.

1. Before every session, spend 10-15 minutes in practice tool. Use this time to perfect your Fast Combo, animation cancels, cs/min and combos that has [flash]. This can act as an excellent warm-up while also increasing your mechanical accuracy. Fast Combo can be done on a dummy placed against a wall to make it an immobile and easier target, before putting it in the middle of a lane. Once you’re confident, you may then practice your combo against a bot.
   
   
2. Play in the Baron Lane with [ignite]. Even if you’re only going to play Riven Mid or Jg, having experience against braindead (most of them) melee powerhouses will help you understand your damage output by level/item and help you know when a certain combo is more useful than another. There is no need to check out any guides or the matchup section before the game starts: play aggressively. While this doesn’t mean you should permanently engage as soon as you can press [riven:1], not being afraid of trading will help you get to know Riven at a much faster rate compared to someone who hugs his tower because he read that Darius is a hard matchup, for example. If you have trouble in a certain matchup, only then study it by reading/watching tutorials on said matchup. Every matchup descriptions in this guide has at least 3 full game gameplay videos by high elo Riven mains (only PC gameplays for now due to limited ressources).
   
   
3. Repeat. If you still have trouble with a certain concept, mechanic or matchup, feel free to ask a question by leaving a comment, or visit the r/RivenMains subreddit on reddit.com.

Runic Blade : Abilities charge Riven ’s blade up to 3 times. Attacks expend charges to deal x (AD%) physical damage. Deals 50% damage to structures.

• Deals 22% AD at level 1, increasing by 2% per level until 50% AD at level 15.
• Is responsible for a good portion of Riven ’s damage.
• Passive duration is reset upon spending a charge or casting an ability.
• Bonus damage can critically strike.
• Bonus damage can apply lifesteal.

Broken Wings : Slash in a direction up to 3 times. Each slash deals x physical damage (Base Damage + AD%) to nearby enemies. The third slash crosses terrain and knocks up nearby enemies for 0.5 seconds. Tap casting prioritizes champions and large monsters within slash range.

• Maxed 1st for DPS.
• Cannot be used while immobile.
• 3rd cast can jump over any terrain where the current dash range exceeds 50% of the wall’s length.
• Does not scale with movement speed.
• Cooldown starts to tick after first cast.
• Cooldown does not decrease after level up. Has a set cooldown of 13 seconds.
• Can be used to cancel the animation of your AAs and other abilities.

Ki Burst : Stun nearby enemies for 0.75 seconds, dealing x physical damage (Base Damage + 100% bonus AD).

• Maxed last due to bonus damage being unnecessary for Riven ’s DPS. However, you can put an extra point in Ki Burst at level 7 or level 8 before maxing Valor in order to get 40 extra damage, which is enough to quickly clear minions with Broken Wings + Ki Burst in the middle game. If you want lane priority or are against someone with faster wave clear, this can be an option although not required.
• You are rooted while the animation is active.
• Stun range is shorter than what most new Riven players think, and may take time to get used to.
• Animation can be cancelled.
• Can be used to cancel the animation of your AAs and other abilities.

Valor : Dash in a direction and gain a shield absorbing x damage (Base Shield + 100% bonus AD) for 1.5 seconds. Valor cannot cross terrain.

• Maxed 2nd to decrease ability cooldown, thus increasing Riven ’s fighting chances.
• Cannot be used while immobile.
• Cannot cross impassable terrain, including player created ones.
• Can be used into a wall to reduce the distance between Riven and the wall. Works best if Riven does not directly touch the wall.
• Can be used to cancel the animation of your AAs and other abilities.

Blade Of The Exile : Expand Riven 's blade for 15 seconds, granting 20% bonus AD, increasing the range of her attacks and damaging abilities, and granting a single cast of Wind Slash.

Wind Slash: Launches a shockwave, dealing x (Minimum Base Damage + 60% bonus AD) to y damage (Maximum Base Damage + 180% bonus AD) based upon enemies' missing health.

• Massive powerspike. If Blade Of The Exile is almost up and you’re in a pinch, always try to run without using any abilities and turn back as soon as you can cast Valor + Blade Of The Exile . This is what a lot of early Riven outplays look like.
• Increases the range of Broken Wings and Ki Burst .
• After 1 second, gains the ability to use Wind Slash.
• Wind Slash’s maximum damage is capped when target is at 25% HP.
• Cooldown does not tick after initial cast, nor after casting Wind Slash.
• Wind Slash’s animation may be bigger than actual ability hitbox.
• Both charges has a animation duration of 0.25s.
• Animation can be cancelled for both changes.
• Can be used to cancel the animation of your AAs and other abilities.

There is a mechanism in League of Legends that's called animation canceling. As the name suggests, it allows some champions to cancel the animation of an ability, and therefore cast more abilities within a certain time frame. While many champions have some sort of animation cancels, none of them rival Riven , who is able to cancel the animation of all four abilities and even her basic atttacks, in more ways than one. If used correctly, you will be able to dish out damage that exceeds the mathematical limit. 

There exist two basic animation cancels that are very crucial to understand: the Fast Combo and the Doublecast.

• Fast Combo : AA > Broken Wings > AA > Broken Wings > AA > Broken Wings > AA

The Fast Combo is a combo where you immediately cast Broken Wings to cancel part of Riven 's basic attack animation. By doing this, you increase your attack speed when executing the combo and can increase your maximum DPS. This was initially a bug that was eventually added by Riot as a part of Riven 's kit. Note that canceling Riven 's basic attack animation is not limited to this ability sequence. You can cancel said animation as long as you cast Broken Wings within the next fraction of a second upon attacking a target. Additionally, it will still work if you cast Broken Wings over your target, a combo that's called Q Dancing. By using Broken Wings over your target, your dash will not stop at your target but rather go over it, which can help you dodge key abilities such as Charm and Chain Of Corruption . This also allow you to chase your enemies with much higher efficiency. This combo works on turrets and wards. If fast enough, you can destroy a ward before it disappears without vision.

• Doublecast : Valor > Ki Burst > Broken Wings

The Doublecast is a foundamental animation cancel that allows Riven to cancel the animation of Ki Burst by casting Ki Burst + Broken Wings while Valor is still active. You need to wait about 0.2s after casting Valor to follow up with this ability sequence. Since Ki Burst 's animation is a self-root, canceling it allow Riven to follow up much easily instead of waiting until she is able to move. You can insert a basic attack after Valor for extra burst damage as shown in the example below.

Outside of these two animation cancels, there are also a multitude of other weapons that you should fully master:

• Triplecast : Valor > Wind Slash > Ki Burst > Broken Wings

You can insert Wind Slash between Valor and Ki Burst to cast three abilities within the animation of Valor . 

• Ult Animation Cancel (with Valor) : Valor > Blade Of The Exile

After casting Valor , immediately following up with Blade Of The Exile will cancel Blade Of The Exile 's animation. It is more apparent when used before a sequence of abilities. You can also follow up with a Doublecast while Valor is still active. This works for both charges.

• Ult Animation Cancel (with Broken Wings) : Blade Of The Exile > Broken Wings

When casting Blade Of The Exile , you can use Broken Wings to cancel the ult animation. This works for both charges.

• Ult Animation Cancel (with Ki Burst) : Blade Of The Exile > Ki Burst

When casting Blade Of The Exile , you can use Ki Burst to cancel the ult animation. This works for both charges.

• Ult Animation Conceal : Blade Of The Exile > Recall

This works only with the Arcade Riven skin. If you recall after using Blade Of The Exile , the recall animation will remove your sword, therefore hiding the fact that your sword has become bigger and that your ult is now active. You can bait enemies into thinking that you're recalling, before doing an all-in with Windslash.

• Basic Attack Animation Cancel (with Ki Burst) : AA > Ki Burst

After you use a basic attack, immediately casting Ki Burst can cancel the animation of the basic attack.

• Basic Attack Animation Cancel (with Wind Slash) : Ki Burst > Windslash > AA

After using Ki Burst and Wind Slash, your next basic attack will happen instantly. 

• Wind Slash Animation Cancel (with Flash) : WIndslash > [flash]

When casting Wind Slash, you can [flash] to skip the ult animation as well as extending the range of your shockwave.

• Wind Slash Animation Cancel (with Valor) : Wind Slash > Valor

When castling Wind Slash, you can use Valor to cancel the ult animation.

• Broken Wings Cooldown Cancel (aka Extended Broken Wings) : Broken Wings > wait > Broken Wings > wait > Broken Wings

This is a crucial mechanic that you must understand. After using the first charge of Broken Wings , the game considers that you have used this ability, which goes on cooldown. That means that if you use Broken Wings with a delay between each cast, you can extend the charge of your passive and by the time you're casting your third charge of Broken Wings , its cooldown will be greatly reduced or even become zero with enough AH. You could therefore start a fight with full charges of Runic Blade , use 4 Broken Wings in succession or bait the enemy into thinking that your Broken Wings is on cooldown.

The following combos feature essential as well as examples of completed combos. To find more relevant combos, you can check out the r/RivenMains community montages linked at the end of the guide.

• Short Trade : Broken Wings > Ki Burst > AA > Valor

This is Riven 's universal short trading combo. It can be used against almost any champion with little drawbacks. With this combo, you can deal 3 instances of damage which is enough to proc Electrocute , then retreat before you take any damage on your end. It can also be used under enemy towers, although the AA might need to be skipped in order to block the towershot in time.

• S3-S2 : Valor > Ki Burst

If you cast Valor + Ki Burst instantly, you will stun at your initial position while dashing. It is very hard to pull off, but can be very rewarding. For example, if Jax were to cast Counter Strike , just before it hits you you can cast this combo and safely get out of Counter Strike 's range while preventing Leap Strike . This is also a very strong disengage combo and can be used to escape ganks.

• Under Tower Trade : AA > Broken Wings > Valor > Ki Burst

This is an under tower combo that uses the combo above.

• Under Tower Trade (2nd variation) : 3rd Broken Wings > AA > Valor > Ki Burst

A second variation of the Valor + Ki Burst under tower combo.

• BoxBox's Flash Cancel : AA > Broken Wings > AA > Broken Wings > [flash] > Broken Wings > AA

This is a rare variation of the Fast Combo. By replacing the third AA with a [flash], you can cancel a basic attack, dodge an ability or simply gain some time to cast your 3rd Broken Wings safely, then follow up with a basic attack or other abilities while the target is airborne. Since the 3rd Broken Wings has a longer cast time than a normal Broken Wings , using this combo can be a lifesaver when both players are at a critically low health. A lot of Riven outplays feature this combo.

• Adrian's Doublecast : Valor > [flash] > AA > Ki Burst > Broken Wings

You can insert a [flash] in the Doublecast to surprise your opponents and finish them off. 

• Adrian's Doublecast (with ult) : Valor > Blade Of The Exile > [flash] > AA > Ki Burst > Broken Wings

Adrian's Doublecast but with Blade Of The Exile .

• Full DPS Combo : Valor > AA > Broken Wings > AA > Ki Burst > Broken Wings > AA > Broken Wings > AA

This is what a standard DPS combo looks like.

• Full DPS Combo (with ult) :   Valor > Blade Of The Exile > AA > Broken Wings > AA > Ki Burst > Broken Wings > AA > Wind Slash > Broken Wings > AA

You can insert both casts of Blade Of The Exile in the DPS combo.

• Engage Combo : Valor > Blade Of The Exile > [flash] > 3rd Broken Wings

This is Riven 's strongest engage ability sequence. Although the 3rd Broken Wings isn't as fast, it allows you to initiate a fight by knocking up multiple targets by surprise and from a distance. You can also use this combo to chase fleeing enemies.

• Flash Combo : Valor > Blade Of The Exile > [flash] > AA > Ki Burst > Broken Wings > AA > Wind Slash > Broken Wings

Standard Flash Combo. It combines Adrian's Doublecast with a second animation cancel to insert a Broken Wings during Wind Slash.

• Flash Combo (2nd variation) : Valor > Wind Slash > [flash] > 3rd Broken Wings > AA > Ki Burst

This Flash Combo is designed to finish off multiple enemies starting with the 3rd cast of Broken Wings . It uses the Engage Combo with Wind Slash instead of Blade Of The Exile , then quickly ads a basic attack before canceling its animation with Ki Burst .

• Flash Combo (3rd variation) : Valor > [flash] > Wind Slash > Ki Burst > Broken Wings

This combo uses a Triplecast with [flash] to catch low health enemies.

• Shy Combo : Valor > Blade Of The Exile > [flash] > Ki Burst > AA > Wind Slash > Broken Wings

This is the most popular Riven combo ever created. Named after professional player Kang "The Shy" Seung-lok, this is the one shot combo with the least room for counterplay out of every Riven combos. The first ability sequence ( Valor > Blade Of The Exile > [flash] > Ki Burst ) allows Riven to instantly AoE stun in [flash] location. From there, as soon as Riven uses an AA you follow up with Wind Slash + Broken Wings to cancel the AA and Wind Slash's animation. If successful, you can deal a great amount of burst damage especially with lethality builds within Ki Burst 's stun duration, thus preventing the enemy from defending against it. The entire combo lasts only a single second, and the only way to counterplay is to dodge the stun. 

• NidaleeJR Combo : Valor > Blade Of The Exile > [flash] > Ki Burst > Broken Wings > AA > Wind Slash > Broken Wings

This one shot combo is similar to the Shy Combo, the only difference being that an additional Broken Wings is added, creating a Doublecast. It deals more damage than the Shy Combo, however players now has the possibility to react to Wind Slash since it will no longer be cast within the stun duration, although it's not easy to do so.

• Adrian Combo : Valor > Blade Of The Exile > [flash] > AA > Ki Burst > Broken Wings > AA > Wind Slash > Broken Wings

Of all 3 one shot combos using S3-S4-Flash, this one deals the most damage. However, it gives enemies a chance to retaliate since there will be two short moments where they will not be stunned prior to Wind Slash. 

• Dekar Combo : Valor > Blade Of The Exile > [flash] > AA > Ki Burst > Broken Wings > AA > Broken Wings > AA > Wind Slash > Broken Wings > AA

This is Riven 's all-in combo. Instead of trying to kill someone as quick as possible, it attempts to deal a high amount of damage over an extended duration.

• BoxBox Combo : Valor > Blade Of The Exile > [flash] > 3rd Broken Wings > AA > Ki Burst > Wind Slash > AA

This is the standard full Engage Combo. It adds a follow up to the normal Engage Combo while sneaking two additional AAs.

• Kyzer Combo : Broken Wings > wait > Broken Wings > wait > Valor > Blade Of The Exile > [flash] > Broken Wings > AA > Ki Burst > Wind Slash > AA > Broken Wings > AA > Broken Wings > AA > Broken Wings > AA

This is an extended version of the BoxBox combo by extending Broken Wings before engaging in order to follow up with a Fast Combo.

• Sexy Combo : Wind Slash > Valor > [flash] > Ki Burst > Broken Wings

As the name suggests, this is simply a visually appealing execute combo. You start by casting Wind Slash before going for a Flash Doublecast before Wind Slash hits the target, all just so you can kill it with style.

• NovA Combo : Valor > [flash] > WInd Slash > Broken Wings > Ki Burst

To be honest, I don't know why this combo exist, I don't know why it's named, but it would be disrespectful as a Riven main if I listed every named combos except this one, so here it is, Riven 's most useless combo to date. It is full of flaws and weak points so don't learn or use it.

• Werhli Combo : Valor > WInd Slash > [flash] > Ki Burst > Broken Wings

This combo is similar to the first 3 one shot combos, except it uses Wind Slash instead of Blade Of The Exile . It is the strongest execute combo against low % health targets, as it immediately cast Wind Slash instead of using other abilities to increase Wind Slash's damage.

• Virus Combo : Valor > [flash] > Blade Of The Exile > Broken Wings > Ki Burst > AA > Wind Slash > Broken Wings

Although its purpose is not clearly demonstrated in the video below, this combo is used if Ki Burst can't immediately hit the target. With a buffed Broken Wings . it helps Riven close off distance before going for Ki Burst > AA > Wind Slash > Broken Wings

Broken Wings 's third charge can jump over walls. This was originally a bug, but was eventually added by Riot as an official part of Riven 's kit. While most terrains are very straightforward to jump over, there are some harder ones that require either good aiming and/or the use of Valor .

Medium Difficulty

The walls behind each Red Bramblebacks can be jumped over both ways. In order for it to work, Broken Wings 's range must cross at least 50% of the wall's length regardless of the angle chosen. This rule of thumb works for most terrains, but is especially important here. Having Blade Of The Exile active can help, as it increases the range of Riven 's abilities. Valor is not necessary, but can be used to cancel Blade Of The Exile 's animation with S3-S4-S1(3) and shorten the distance between Riven and the wall.

High Difficulty

The following wallhops should not be tried in a real game unless you are very confident. Even if you position yourself perfectly, it is very hard to aim accurately with joysticks, since Broken Wings 's missile isn't long enough to act as a reliable control point. 

The walls next to the Crimson Raptors and the middle Outer Turret can be jumped over both ways. The 50% rule does not apply. You need to stand right in the middle and use Valor to dash directly into the wall perpendicularly to the Outer Turret first before casting Broken Wings while dashing. 

The walls to the right of the Elemental Drakes and Baron Nashor can be jumped over from the exterior. The 50% rule does not apply. You need to stand right in the middle and use Valor to dash directly into the wall perpendicularly to the objective first before casting Broken Wings while dashing. 

There exists many mechanics in the laning phase that can help you get the upper hand. A video demonstration with every mentioned concepts & ideas will be published here in the future.

• Tethering : This is a movement trick that helps keeping you safe in the laning phase. The idea is to copy/predict your opponent's movement and keep an equal distance in between at all time. It is especially useful in melee vs ranged matchups, since you can stay right outside their attack and/or ability range, thus giving you the opportunity to test the waters before going for a last-hit. As you are very close to being targetable, your opponent's movement will often tell you whether or not he will harass you if you walk up. You will also be able to dodge abilities much easily by only entering the edge of its range and having an overall longer react window. Perfecting this movement technique will save you from a lot of poke damage. Note that it also works against melee champion, for example against a Renekton by staying outside of his dash range. This trick requires knowledge of your opponent's attack/ability range for maximum efficiency.
  
  
• Canceling Minion Aggro : When you attack a champion, nearby enemy minions will start targeting you, which can often turn the tides of a fight especially in the early levels where they deal as much damage as a normal hero. However, you can reset minion aggro by cc'ing them and making sure you are no longer attacking a champion once they wake up. Since Riven 's 3rd Broken Wings and Ki Burst are both AoE ccs, you can finish a trade by stunning not only your opponent laner, but also any minions that happens to be around. This makes Riven one of the few melee champions that can engage early game for a short trade while the enemy wave is much bigger.
  
  
• Canceling Ranged Basic Attacks : Note: This technique will not work in low ELO, and its efficiency will increase the stronger the enemy is. When you disengage against a ranged enemy laner while they're retreating, running or kiting you, there's a brief moment where you can look to trick them, push them back and cancel any basic attacks they were hoping to land. When you disengage in this scenario, you are walking back while your opponent is running toward their tower. Since they are ranged and you are melee, they will turn back ASAP to get some damage in while they still can. When they're turning, there's a short window where you can also turn back halfway for just a tiny moment to force your opponent to instinctively change their mind and retreat once more. Since this is entirely dependant on how well your opponent can react to small movement details, this likely won't work against a lower skilled player. Whether or not you will be able to cancel basic attacks will depend on your timing and your opponent's attack speed, but in most case you should be able to get some extra distance between you and the enemy laner, and take less poke damage when you fall back from a trade.
  
  
• Canceling Melee Basic Attacks (Kiting with Broken Blades) : Every auto attacks have a windup window, also known as auto attack animation. It is divided into three parts: When you attack, the entire animation for the basic attack starts. However, depending on certain variables such as attack speed and animation delays, it takes a set amount of time before the attack registers. Once the action is registered, the damage can no longer be prevented by dodging or flashing away. If the attack is canceled before it becomes registered, then no damage will be dealt and the animation stops. To cancel an enemy basic attack, you must get out of its attack range before the attack is issued to the servers. While this may not be possible against ranged champions, certain champions with great mobility may cancel attacks from melee champions. For instance, in the most iconic LoL outplay of all time, Faker managed to cancel two of Zed 's basic attacks which let him survive with less than 4% of his HP. While Riven may not have instantaneous blinks, her Broken Wings can let her kite certain champions with low attack speed by using Broken Wings backward and or at any other similar direction upon attacking/using other abilities, and if timed correctly can also let her cancel any basic attacks her target may be trying to execute.
   
• Maximizing Fast Combo Damage Output : 
• Asserting Psychological Dominance :

Riven is a jack of all trades, but master of none. Most Baron laners specialize in either splitpush or teamfight, but Riven isn’t perfect in neither. Instead, she can fulfill several roles depending on her needs.

Riven ’s main role is often unclear. Most people believes that she is a teamfighter, but it isn’t actually true. Riven ’s AoE chain cc is a powerful asset to any teamfights, however she lacks what it takes to really be that strong 5v5 champion. Her animation canceling tricks become less relevant and more difficult to pull off, and Valor won’t be enough to tank multiple abilities. Therefore, some criteria becomes necessary to teamfight correctly, and more often than not you will have to adapt depending on your team and the enemy team’s strength, composition, itemization, etc.

Here’s how you can play depending on the circumstances:

• Be an engager: If your team does not have an initiator other than yourself, you may have to fulfill this role in order to start a fight with the highest chances of winning. In order to do that, you must first build enough defensive items to not get shredded instantly, and have allies that can quickly follow up. Rushing Guardian Angel as early as your 4th item can be an option. When you engage, you must cc at least 3 enemies and above with the standard engage combo (S3-S4-Flash-S1(3)) to make full use of your utility potential, and make sure to prioritize the enemy adc whenever you do so. 

• Teamfight: In a fight, if you cannot reach for the backline, you should still look to cc chain as many enemies as possible, and pray that your team follow up. If not, you look to kite your target(s) with Broken Wings or keep fighting if you’re strong enough to deal considerable and/or lethal damage. Usually, you wait until someone else engages (regardless on which team), and only then follow up by choosing your priority target accurately depending on the situation. If you fight too early, you will get deleted instantly. 

• Tank: In 99% of cases, you shouldn’t tank. But in the event that your team does not have a tank and that you are the tankiest, and that your team does not have any form of self-peel or strong cc chains, you may act as a tank and fight in the frontline. This requires items such as Thornmail and Maw of Malmortius to work properly. Your goal is to peel for your entire team by sticking to anyone who tries to reach the backline, and disrupt them as much as possible while your team deal with the rest. Keep in mind that this isn’t what Riven is designed for, and should not be a consistent strategy. 

• Splitpush: Riven ’s complex mechanics makes her a very strong duelist. Not only can she 1v1 almost anyone, she also has one of the best 1v2 and 1v3 potentials, assuming that you know what you’re doing. While her tower damage is somewhat poor compared to the top spltpush champions, her splitpush presence remains a deadly threat. Note that you should only splitpush if your team is weaker in teamfights or if your team really need to push certain lanes. Make sure that you have Teleport Enchant to join any decisive teamfights, especially those involving key objectives.

• Peel for your adc (or any other ally with carrying potential): If you’re behind, or if your adc is considerably fed, you may look to prioritize the safety of said ally by disrupting anyone who tries to get close. Since you can easily stick to enemies while ccing them, your kit can perfectly act as a peel for a stronger carry. However, if your damage is high enough to have a solid impact, you should instead look to delete the enemy adc. Offense is the best defense, after all.

• Assassinate the enemy adc (or any other high priority target): This is what Riven excels at the most. Anyone who hasn’t faced a good Riven player might find this odd, but Riven can and should always look to 100-0 a strong enemy target. On the right hands, Riven can easily reach out to most backlines and take them out within mere seconds. While lethality builds are specifically designed for this job, any non-tank builds can work, as long as your mechanical skills are accurate. Your goal is to wait until you get into a situation where you won’t be instantly cc’d when you jump into the backline, and quickly clear out enemy carries. While you wait, you can look to peel for your adc, but make sure you don’t blow up your entire rotation or you won’t deal enough damage to kill your targets. If successful, this is the best and safest way for Riven to win a teamfight. Note that you shouldn’t only look to delete a single champion: your kit allows you to execute anyone within the range of your cc chains. 

If you are familiar with PC league, you may already know by heart the respawn timers for neutral camps, timestamps for common early ganks, clear durations by champions, etc etc. Many of these fundamental ideas can be carried over, however some tracking tactics will require certain level of modifications, since the map on Wild Rift is significantly smaller and different than the big old Summoner Rift. Additionally, CS score is replaced by total gold, meaning that mental mathematic calculations are far less relevant due to a higher percentage of uncertainty. Control wards are not available either, which will limit the amount of vision you can provide both for you and your team. Still, there exist many remaining strategies, and mastering the skill of jungle tracking will help you win lane far more consistently, as you will be able to safely defend against any uninvited guest.

First and foremost, you need to understand why jungle tracking is so important. Unlike PC league, where the laning phase lasts for 10 to 15 minutes, Wild Rift's transition to the middle game is very fast. Surviving ganks is only one of the many reasons you would want to know at all time the enemy jungler's location. Below is a list of alternative motifs:

1. Counter-Roams: Predicting potential ganks give you a window to intercept the enemy jg during or before their roams, which can completely destroy their plans and ideas. Since Mid/Baron laners are usually far stronger than junglers in the early/mid due to the fact that they're constantly farming gold and XP, it is very easy to put them behind if you come across them in the jungle. If you're able to predict their pathing, specifically aiming for their heads when they think they're the one hunting can be a very powerful strategy. While this doesn't mean you should start camping the jungle, if you do see a Master Yi at 30% HP heading toward the Red Buff, you know what to do.
   
   
2. Safe Windows: If you can assume that the enemy jg is too far to interrupt a skirmish, objective taking or roam, you can create advantageous opportunities both for you and your entire team. The jg plays a huge role in teamfights and objectives, so knowing that the enemy jg isn't present in a certain situation can be a powerful asset. For instance, knowing that you're safe from ganks for a set duration can let you use this moment to commit in a 1v1 that would've been far too risky if the location of the enemy jg was unknown.
   
   
3. Gathering Informations: The jungler is at the heart of all macro interactions. Knowing the enemy jungler's location allows you to determine his pathing, thus predicting his future actions. Achieving this feat gives you the opportunity to prevent his future ideas and possible threats, thus diminishing his overall impact over the game, which is a jungler's raison d'être. As Sun Tzu once said, "The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting."

Now the question is how. One of the most important tool in jungle tracking is warding, and if you're able to know where the enemy jungle is at any given point in time, then his future actions can be easily telegraphed. Therefore, one key technique is to put a ward deep into the enemy jungle in areas he is likely to go, such as near the raptors or one of the buffs. One common mistake is that some players always try to put their wards in bushes. Unless necessary, your wards should always cover the biggest area possible, which is often in open areas away from bushes. 

The second strategy is to infer where the enemy jungler might be. You don't need to be a master at Fermi calculations to guess its location: whenever you spot the enemy jungler with a ward, always take a moment to note the direction of his movements. Even if the jungler has a oracle lens and clears your ward, the lingering vision is more than enough to tell you which way he will be going. Being aware of his movement patterns is key to predicting his possible pathing. Additionally, you must take into consideration what their champion is. Each jungler champion has its own optimal pathing, jungle clearing speed and ganking patterns. Although this is something that you learn from experience or by playing said jungler yourself, intuitively knowing where the enemy jungler should be depending on the time and/or the state of the game can massively help you get a much better idea of his location. You must also take into consideration their ganking strength, which is often affected by the strength of the opposing laners. Some champions can easily set up ganks, which can increase the chances of that lane being ganked. Some junglers are weak until they hit level 5, in which case they might delay significant ganks until that powerspike is reached.

Another factor which can influence the enemy jungler's action is lane priorities. In short, a lane that has priority is a lane where the laner has a pushed wave, and thus can roam quicker than its opponent. Laners without priorities are often stuck clearing a wave, and are unable to immediately impact the state of the game with a roam, river skirmish or countergank. Junglers will often take macro decisions depending on the state of the three lanes, and if you're able to deduce what the enemy jungler's best choices are from all these factors, you will be much better prepared.

• All-in : Fully commiting to a fight and using all of your abilities to deal as much damage as possible.
• CC (Crowd Control) : Effects that diminishes or stops a player’s movement and prevent them from initiating movement commands or using moving abilities.
• Cheater Recall : Slow pushing the initial two waves before crashing the third one and recalling while the opponent laner is still clearing the wave.
• Crash : Shoving a big wave into a tower. Often done after slow pushing.
• DPS : Damage Per Second. Amount of damage you can deal over a certain duration.
• Dive : Attacking enemies under their tower.
• Freeze : Keeping minions in a specific area of the lane.
• Kite : Deal damage while retreating. Doing so as a melee champion is possible with Riven , if you can use Broken Wings by predicting your opponent’s movement and using it backward followed by AAs.
• Last-hit : Executing minions for bonus gold.
• Macro : Strategic aspect of the game.
• Micro : Mechanical aspect of the game.
• Powerspike : A point in time where a champion is significantly stronger.
• Priority : A pushed wave. The laner who pushed the wave can roam quicker than its opponent.
• Push : Killing enemy minions to make your wave advance. 
• Reset Wave : Both minion waves hit in the middle of the lane.
• Roam : Leaving a lane to assist allies.
• Rotation : Using all of your abilities.
• Scale : Having abilities which AD/AP ratio are stronger in the late game.
• Shove : Quickly killing enemy minions.
• Slow Push : Pushing by only last-hitting enemy minions, while your wave is bigger.
• Sustain : Healing and regeneration.
• Tethering : Mirroring an opponent laner’s movement to keep an equal distance in between.
• Trade : Dealing damage to an enemy champion. The target may trade back. 
• Zone : Keeping an opponent laner away from your wave.

HIGH ELO STREAMERS:

Adrian Riven

• PC Challenger Riven Main
• Watch for mechanical and educational purposes
• Stats: NA - Adrian Riven
• Twitch: 1adrianaries1
• YouTube: Adrian Riven

Viper

• PC Challenger Riven Main - was rank 1
• Great mechanical and macro skills
• Stats: NA - viperrr
• Twitch: Viper
• YouTube: Viper

잘 못 (BoxBox)

• PC Challenger
• Entertainer
• Riven Cosplay
• Stats: NA - 잘 못
• Twitch: BoxBox
• YouTube: BoxBox

Dekar173

• PC Challenger Riven & Rengar Main
• Strong macro skills
• Twitch: Dekar173
• YouTube: Dekar173

Revenge

• PC Challenger - 900 LP
• Stats: NA - Révenge
• Twitch: Its Revenge

Rueven

• Both English and German
• PC Masters
• Stats: EUW - Rüven
• Twitch: IamRueven

NovA

• Editor of r/RivenMains community montages among other content
• Twitch: noooovaaaa
• YouTube: NovA

GAMEPLAY:

• Riven Gameplay (video ressources in the matchups section comes from this channel): YouTube
• Wild Rift Replays: YouTube

WILD RIFT MONTAGES:

There currently aren’t any Wild Rift Riven montages featuring plays that doesn’t depreciate Riven‘s potential. For the time being, you can search for PC montages, although it might not feel the same. If any respectable montages were to be published, they will be added here.

R/RIVENMAINS COMMUNITY MONTAGES

The following montages feature plays submitted to the Riven Mains subreddit. Edited by NovA.

• Best of 2017
• November 2017
• October 2017
• September 2017
• August 2017
• June 2017
• May 2017
• April 2017
• March 2017
• February 2017
• January 2017
• Best of 2016
• December 2016
• November 2016
• October 2016

WALLPAPERS:

• Huge Riven wallpaper collection album: https://imgur.com/a/fptGY
• csgo_dream’s Riven wallpaper album: https://imgur.com/a/imDtI

2.5

Riven is overperforming in multiple roles, so we're taking this opportunity to cut down on two big points of frustration for playing against Riven : her early game damage output and the uptime of her defensive abilities.

Broken Wings

• Base damage: 20/45/70/95 → 15/40/65/90

Valor

• Cooldown: 9/8/7/6s → 10/9/8/7s

2.3a

Riven is underperforming, so we're amping up her shield from Valor to help her stay sharp in the Baron lane.

Valor

• Shield Strength: 95/135/175/215 → 105/145/185/225

2.3

Champion Release

• Hotfix: Fixed a bug where Riven could cast more instances of Broken Wings than intended in conjunction with Protobelt Enchant and [flash]