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Riven Build Guide by Corogrin

Riven: Patiently Malevolent

Riven: Patiently Malevolent

Updated on October 7, 2011
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League of Legends Build Guide Author Corogrin Build Guide By Corogrin 12,591 Views 3 Comments
12,591 Views 3 Comments League of Legends Build Guide Author Corogrin Riven Build Guide By Corogrin Updated on October 7, 2011
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Riven: The Exile


Becoming the Edge in every Game.

Riven is a good Champion, not a great Champion, in fact there is no such thing as a great champion. Everyone has their opinions and every game produces different results. Can you become the Riven that makes the difference and ensures the results that your team hopes for?

Become Great and your champion becomes Great!
Riven Champion Spotlight]

Lets start at the basic, Riven's abilities.

Abilities:
Runic Blade
Riven's abilities charge her blade, causing her to do 5 / 7 / 9 / 11 / 13 / 15 (+0.5 per bonus attack damage) bonus damage on her next autoattack. Riven can store up to 3 charges, but only expends one at a time.

Ability Use: Runic Blade is valuable when you allow Riven to auto attack between each ability. There is one disadvantage in this that the amount of time that it takes one to go through a ability sequence you dps goes down as opposed to relying on the abilities and then allowing auto attacks during cool downs.

Broken Wings

Riven steps forward and lashes out in a series of powerful sword slashes. This ability can be activated up to 3 times in a short period.

1st Use/2nd Use: Deals 30 / 50 / 70 / 90 / 110 (+0.6 per bonus attack damage) physical damage to a small area in front of her.

3rd Use: Jumps into the air and slams downward, causing a larger impact nova that deals 30 / 50 / 70 / 90 / 110 (+0.6 per bonus attack damage) physical damage and knocks nearby enemies back.

Ability Features: You will notice shortly that Broken wing act differently in battle as opposed to in the open area. When used in free area each attack can be used to jump the direction Riven is facing. In battle the first two attacks do not go through enemies so most of the time in order to do damage it will appear as if it is not moving forward however the 3rd attack is a jump and will move Riven forward as it smashes down. The other thing to note is that these attacks will move in the direction Riven is facing unless your cursor is active over an enemy in which case it will launch you towards that champion.

Ability Use: This ability is one of Riven escape tools and can be used to aid in getting away from Enemies. However this ability is also valuable for the attack and pursuit of enemies. Remember the 3rd Knocks Up the surrounding enemies. This effect can be make a great effect in team battles if you use it to knock up as many enemies as possible.

Ki Burst

Riven stuns nearby enemies for 0.5 seconds and hits them for 50 / 90 / 130 / 170 / 210 (+1.0 per bonus attack damage) physical damage.

Ability Use: Ki Burst is once again an addition to Riven's mobility. Not that it actually moves you any more but it can hold of the enemies just enough to get away at times. In battle the AoE of this ability has small CC but can always help turn the tides to victory.

Valor

Riven dashes forward and gains a shield that protects her from up to 40 / 70 / 100 / 130 / 160 (+1.0 per bonus attack damage) for 2.5 seconds.

Ability Use: A dash and a shield....probably good for getting into fights and getting out..The shield adds the survivability and the dash adds to mobility....need I say more?

Blade of the Exile


Riven's sword reforms, giving her a bonus 20% Attack Damage, extended range on her damaging abilities and basic attacks for 15 seconds.

While Blade of the Exile is active, Riven can reactivate the ability to activate Wind Slash, emitting a large cone shockwave that deals 80 / 120 / 160 (+0.6 per bonus attack damage) - 240 / 360 / 480 (+1.8 per bonus attack damage) physical damage to all units hit based on their missing life.

Ability Features: Riven's range and damage is respectable but needs a bit of a boost. The Blade of the Exile does exactly that. Valor's range increases about double and the AoE of her attacks makes here a formidable team fight foe when her ultimate is active.

Ability Use: The Blade has a duration of 15 seconds which most Team fights don't last much longer than this. It is a must to remember to use this early in the battle to deal the most damage and have the most mobility in case an escape is needed. Wind Slash is a great finisher used when the enemy has about 25% health (keeping in mind health and armor of enemies) it can be a great way to finish a team fight as the enemy runs in fear or to knock off those few sticking around with the tank trying to help a without dieing. They best part is that Wind slash, unlike a similar enemy health based ability in Garen's ultimate Demacian Justice, is a another Cone AoE and can hit anyone in it's path.

Now these abilities have valuable routines that you can find all over everywhere. You will need to feel out each team fight and figure out the best way to win. I will, However, offer a preferred 1v1 Ability Sequence that usually provides a kill if done right. (I will use initials of ability names for simplicity sake)

V(to the enemy and put up sheild)/KB/BOTE/BW/BW/BW(knock up one)/V(if they are fleeing already)/KB/Wind Slash
Keep in mind that you need to keep auto attacking and it is okay to let your auto attacks hit in between Broken Wings, just be cautious to keep the damage output or they will take you down.
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In the Beginning


Everyone wants the edge. The best time to take that is in the beginning. Now as Riven is a fairly mobile and offensive character, at least in this build, survivability needs to be a big part of how you play. How you play is just as good as the items you get. With out good play the items don't make much difference. In the Beginning the goal is to get offensive items followed by survivability play style become increasingly important. If you are always far to eager try building the chain mail instead of the Pick axe int he beginning but I can guarantee that without thought out and smart play no item will give you a good early game. At that rate the only way you will achieve a kill early is if you are playing a terrible player but don't count on that. You should always aim at being the best player you can be and with gaining skill you should also practice some humility as we have all encountered some pig nosed people in game and in real life that just don't know how to respect others.

With that said if you follow this build Get the pick axe over the prospector's blade for the simple reason that the game unfolds fast and if you play the normally anticipated patient offensive stance you will gain much greater reward from getting an infinities edge very early in the game just in time to counter the opponents offensive item completion with the guardian angel. Most of the time players don't expect Riven to have a guardian angel and the life saving portion of it's ability usually bring you back at key times of team fights if you die and give your team the surprise edge to win the battle.

Take the time to stay alive; your life always leads to their
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Time to dominate

Youmuu's Ghost blade is a very nice weapon to get with Riven mid game as she become much more mobile. To note though The frozen mallet gives you an advantage in a battle you may situationaly need the over all movement speed that a phantom dancer offers to play the roll required. Riven can become great at aiding team mates and responding to pings. Even if you get lost of kills and assists be ready not to get the highest personal score as often you will join in defense or offense of a turret instead of initialize it and before the turret is taken you will be needed elsewhere and have to leave the turret capture to the player who was originally there.

Now realize that Riven does not have much for support if any but she can be a very supportive character. Ki Burst, although it is short, can carry a great area of affect stun to either hold or ward off opponents. Also consider that aiding a player that is all but dead against multiple enemies with more health will likely not be the time to respond. Pay attention to the pings and act immediately to make the most difference.

She can become like a first responder and become genuinely irritating to the enemy by her sudden appearance and burst damage.
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The last few ticks

Making the biggest difference can come from the last few ticks. Giving up in a close game guarantee's a loss. Pushing to the finish can surprise a team. I am sure we all have seen or been a part of an impressive comeback. NEVER GIVE UP!!!

With that said use your gold to dig in and take root of what your team has and push for more. Riven always needs more damage and now that you have the guardian angel getting the Frozen Hammer and Sanguine Blade to help terminate the enemy advances can be a brutal and discouraging way to get knock out and refuse their last hopes of taking the round.


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How Riven Roll's

Lets consider how Riven's Roll's:

Riven is usual best in the Disrupter Role. He mobility is great and getting her from point A to point B fast and her burst damage can make it hard to ignore her when she is approaching.

Now most people see a Disrupter as a a Role to stop enemies from taking over points. In this build we are going to rename the role as Global Disturptor in that her Role is not just to disrupt the enemies from taking points but it is also to disrupt any attempt to thwart the ganking on your teams defenders as well as to disrupt the hope of winning the larger team battles. When Riven is at her best she is the difference maker, not that she is more important nor more capable at killing/capturing or ganking but rather that she, with her team, can cumulatively and continuously gain the advantage. And that is what counts.

Now pay attention to what is going on, it is beneficial to at least consider Boot of Swiftness or even Boots of Mobility instead of Ionian Boots of Lucidity to increase mobility.

Remember answer the pings (of course if there are reasonable pings) as soon as they occur in order to make the biggest difference. Later is not always better than never it may lead to an enemy double kill or worse. Getting there on time is worth it, dieing is not.
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Foot Notes and Rune works

Boots

Boots are nice, movement speed makes a big difference. I say that in case you haven't noticed that. So consider what your role is. As stated previosuly, Frozen hammer is nice in battle but has little benefit outside. An item like Phantom dancer can extend your mobility and become the difference between take down or escape.
Runes

With that said, you will notice the runes choosen are some what defensive. This is designed to compensate for the offensive notion of Riven with her Masteries and initial items.

Remember if you are just trying to achieve a final build and loose sight of what you are building and who you are building against you probably have already lost.

And don't panic if you have lots of kills/assists and have a low personal score in Dominion. It is your job to be a battle difference maker and when you can take the turrets. With that remember that it is always a huge advantage for you team to take a turret over a kill. Never leave a turret for the sake of a kill when you can capture. Kills aren't the point of dominion just a required aspect.
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Spells in control

But what about the summoners spells. Well consider what you are used to, being comfortable is always helpful. If you are very comfortable with two and not with others pick those.

However with that said, the suggestions may be slightly unusual. Riven can take advantage of many but the recommendation here is to pick up first Heal as it is yet another AoE to add to Riven's arsenal but this time it can sustain your team for the edge. With that another mobility spell like Flash or Ghost increase Riven's ability to
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Team Work

No guide is complete without the mention of team work. And as already mentioned Riven needs to be highly aware of what her team is doing and where she can most help.

At times the best action is to relieve the tank of the onslaught of 2 enemies by aiding him to remove them.

At other times Disrupting enemy captures makes the most difference and at other times joining in team fights can return the edge back to your team.

To play Riven well you need to think of your team first and getting the win over the urge to increase your personal score or kill/death ratio.

Make the right choice throw away your pride so you can become the best Riven possible!!!
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Summary

To close,

Keep Humble, Be Patient, Hold on to the Edge, and Win or Lose as a team!
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League of Legends Champions:

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