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Playing Against Riven
TopPatch 16.2.1
What They Do
Hyper-mobile AD caster and lane bully. She chains abilities with auto-attacks to trigger , uses multiple dashes to outmaneuver you, and executes low-health targets with . She is manaless and relies entirely on cooldown management and snowballing.
Abilities (What to Watch For)
| Ability | What You'll See | What It Means For You |
|---|---|---|
| Riven's sword glows green after casting an ability | Her next basic attacks deal bonus physical damage. She can stack this up to 3 times. Avoid long trades when her blade is glowing. | |
| A three-part dashing strike | has 3 casts. The first two are small dashes; the third is a knockup. The 13s cooldown starts on the FIRST cast, so she will often 'delay' casts to have it back up sooner. | |
| A circular burst of energy around her | An instant point-blank stun. It is very short (0.75s) but allows her to get a free proc and dash away with before you can react. | |
| A short dash with a grey shield bubble | A short-range dash that grants a shield for 1.5s. She uses this to negate your poke or to bridge the gap for an engage. It has a 10-6s cooldown depending on level. | |
| Her sword grows larger and glows with wind energy | Gains 20% extra AD and increased range on attacks/spells. She can recast this once to fire 'Wind Slash,' a massive cone that deals execute damage based on your missing HP. |
Respect
- !Level 1 'Fast Combo'→If she starts and you walk up, she can hit you with three strikes and three autos, potentially taking 60-70% of your HP instantly.
- !Short Trade Safety→A good Riven will in, to stun you, then away. You are stunned while her shield is up, meaning you literally cannot damage her back.
- !Flash-W Engage→She can Flash while casting for an instant, unreactable stun to set up a jungle gank or her full burst combo.
- !Wind Slash Execute→The second cast of deals massive damage to targets below 25% HP. If you stay in lane with low health, she will dive you.
Punish
- +is on cooldown (13s early)→When her three dashes are used, she has no mobility and significantly lower damage. This is your 10-second window to all-in or zone her from XP.
- +is wasted→If she uses to dodge a minor spell or just to move, she has no way to block your primary damage. Hit her with your main burst immediately.
- +Missing the 3rd knockup→If she misses the knockup, she loses her CC and her best escape tool. Punish her with a chase-down as she tries to walk away.
- +Level 1-3 Cooldowns→Riven's early cooldowns are very long (E is 10s, Q is 13s). If she uses them to clear waves, she is a sitting duck for a full trade.
Laning Tips
- •Buy Plated Steelcaps early; they reduce damage and her basic attacks significantly.
- •Stand near your own minions; if she uses to hit you, she will naturally push the wave toward your tower, keeping you safe.
- •Save your CC or displacement for her 3rd to cancel her knockup mid-air.
- •Bone Plating is mandatory against her; it blocks the majority of her 'short trade' burst.
- •Do not waste your 'big' abilities (like Garen R or Darius R) while her shield is active.
- •If she has active, stay above 50% HP; her burst combo with Ignite can kill most top laners from that threshold.
Teamfight Warning
- ⚠She will look for a 'Flank' to Flash-W into your backline; keep the jungle entrances warded.
- ⚠Do not group in tight circles; her 3rd , , and are all Area of Effect (AoE) and can wipe a team.
- ⚠If she uses dashes just to get TO the fight, she has significantly less damage to use ON you.
- ⚠Exhaust is extremely effective at the start of her combo to mitigate her burst.
- ⚠Chain CC her the moment she enters the fight; she is squishy and relies on to survive damage.
AI-generated counterplay guide • Patch 16.2.1 • Cached