Heimerdinger matchup: Wait for you jungler . Exhaust is a great option to survive his burst. Play patiently, farm whatever you can, and don't force fights. You're a much stronger champion than Heimerdinger later on, and if he mispositions even once, he's an easy kill.

Jayce matchup: Almost unplayable unless he misplays. He outranges you, outdamages you, and has far more tools to control the lane. Farming is extremely difficult , so you'll often fall behind in gold. Your only real chance is to all-in the instant he switches into ranged form .

Kennen matchup: Rare in mid, but the matchup is basically the same as top. It's extremely difficult until you complete Merc Treads and Maw . The laning phase is the hardest part— avoid his empowered auto , stay behind the wave , and focus on surviving above all else.

Renekton matchup: Bruiser build is the way to go. I don't recommend Eclipse here—it simply doesn't perform as well. Rush Sundered Sky into Plated Steelcaps and Black Cleaver.

Vex matchup: Almost impossible to play early. Start Doran's Shield, farm with auto attacks instead of abilities, tank the poke when needed, and avoid giving her free Electrocute procs. If she wastes his fear , immediately look for a trade or an all-in . Exhaust is highly recommended to survive his burst. Once you have some MR, you should be able to solo kill her easily in the side lane.

Yuumi matchup: Almost impossible to lane against. She outscales you, has enough burst to one-shot you , and her mobility makes kiting effortless. If you see "Yummi" locked in, just dodge the lobby.

Ahri matchup: Ahri is a very difficult champion to kill because of her ultimate mobility, sustain, and Charm . I recommend looking for a cheese angle once you have completed one or two items, as you can often force her out without even committing your own ultimate. Sometimes, the correct play is simply to burst her hard enough that she is forced to disengage with Spirit Rush . By the time you have taken around half of her HP, she will often have already used two dashes to escape, making it nearly impossible to finish the one-shot. Because of this, the matchup usually comes down to trading your ultimate for hers and waiting for another opportunity while her R is on cooldown. She is extremely difficult to kill unless you are heavily fed and manage to land several critical strikes during your burst.

Anivia matchup: She has a lot of range and can trade into you very easily. She also becomes surprisingly tanky as the game progresses, and her overall teamfighting is stronger than yours . Rush Mercury’s Treads for the movement speed, magic resistance, and tenacity against her crowd control. Serpent’s Fang is also a strong option because she commonly builds Seraph’s Embrace , allowing you to reduce its shield. Always try to save your third Q while being pressured or poked, as you can use it to jump over her wall and avoid getting trapped.

Aurora matchup: Very strong against linear engage champions. She wins most trades with his combo, passive, and auto attacks, while his W, ultimate, and Rocketbelt make it easy for him to kite you. Rush Maw if you're struggling.

Azir matchup: He'll always outscale you in gold through farming. Once he completes his first item, he becomes a serious threat. He'll constantly look to pull you under his turret with his ultimate, so always be ready to click backwards and avoid it. Without his R, he's just a sitting duck .

Cassiopeia matchup: The entire matchup revolves around whether she lands his Q . Even while you're trapped inside his W, Hail of Blades allows you to deal significant damage. Always prioritize dodging her ultimate by either instantly clicking backwards or using your Q to reposition behind him.

LeBlanc matchup: One of the most boring matchups in the game. Your only real option is to mitigate her damage with E and look for a doublecast if she uses his leap to engage. She'll almost always have a way to escape your all-ins. I recommend building Maw and Profane Hydra . Hydra works especially well here, since you can use your R2 followed by the active as soon as his passive is triggered to deal enough damage to kill.

Locke matchup: The lane is nearly impossible during the early levels. His trades are simply too strong . He out-sustains you with his W and can easily kite you with his slows and E. Once you get a couple of items, the matchup changes completely— if he wastes his E , he's nothing more than a punching bag, even with the healing from his W.

Orianna matchup: Do everything you can to avoid falling too far behind during the laning phase. Prioritize farming and soaking up XP , otherwise she'll be able to dive and kill you under your turret over and over. Once you have one or two items, you can beat her comfortably in a 1v1. After level 6, always look for an all-in whenever your ultimate is available. Serpents strong here .

Quinn matchup: Hail of Blades makes this matchup much easier, as your burst becomes stronger than hers. Look for a very fast engage and immediately r eposition behind her. As long as she can't kite you back to her turret , you should win the fight without much trouble.

Syndra matchup: Personally, this is my permaban . This champion is a massive counter to Riven. Her E is almost impossible to dodge , and once he gets Ability Haste, it feels like she's playing URF . Without Maw of Malmortius , you'll die in a single combo. That said, he's also easy to one-shot if you manage to catch her first.

Singed matchup: This champion is Exodia in high elo . His entire game plan is to instantly clear the wave and perma roam . Without early Magic Resist , he'll kill you very easily, and you should expect the enemy jungler to play heavily around him.

Taliyah matchup: The laning phase is very difficult . His/her kiting tools and his/her E , which completely shuts down dashes, make her/him especially effective against Riven . Rush Mercury's Treads and try to space him/her. If you ever manage to get on top of him/her , it's almost always a free kill .

Vel'Koz matchup: His true damage makes his damage almost impossible to mitigate. He'll constantly poke you, and the moment you can no longer kill him in a single all-in, he'll simply press R and win . Most players stay very safe, making him difficult to punish. Even if you try to cheese him, getting hit by his CC will usually get you killed.

Viktor matchup: One of the hardest lanes to survive. He's a lane bully that usually runs Bone Plating , making every trade and all-in much harder. All he has to do is land his full combo during his stun, and you won't even get the chance to fight back. Buy Magic Resist as early as possible. Between his movement speed, slows, and Protobelt , he'll kite you with ease.

Zed matchup: Low-key one of the easiest assassins to pick up, but with an incredibly high skill ceiling . The lane is pretty boring since he'll spend most of it spamming Qs and poking with his shadow while abusing First Strike . I recommend rushing Plated Steelcaps and avoiding fights while you're marked unless you know you can one-shot him with W + R.

Akali matchup: Without Maw of Malmortius , she can one-shot you before you have any chance to respond . She is difficult to kill while her abilities are available, but as soon as she wastes her key cooldowns , you have a clear window to engage and one-shot her with ease . Go for Profane Hydra to deal extra damage is she uses her W

Akshan matchup: Lobby-admin champion. Before level 6 and before your first item, he will completely abuse the matchup. He will shove the wave, roam, kill your teammates, return to lane with five kills , and prevent you from playing the game. Your main objective is to stop him from snowballing through early roams . If you manage to keep the game under control and deny him those free kills, you can solo kill him fairly easily once you reach your power spike.

Ekko matchup: Very annoying matchup. He'll spam Q to clear waves , making him hard to punish. Once he gets items, he can kite you endlessly while dealing massive damage. Use Hail of Blades to chunk him whenever possible, save your R , and let him engage first. Chasing him usually means wasting your cooldowns .

Garen matchup: The only thing this champion does is sit back, freeze the wave, and regenerate health. Once he hits level 6, he'll constantly have kill pressure . That said, he's still an easy kill whenever his W is on cooldown.

Hwei matchup: Strong at every stage of the game. As soon as he wastes his CC on the wave or misses it, commit to the all-in. Without it, he can't survive unless Flash is available. Prioritize MR and Tenacity , and consider running Cleanse since his fear is the only tool he has to stop your engage.

Lissandra matchup: Rough early game until you complete Merc Treads . Take Cleanse to completely shut down her ultimate. Once you have Mercs, the matchup becomes heavily Riven-favored. Your only priority early on is to avoid falling behind in lane .

Malzahar matchup: Boring matchup overall. He's easy to punish early if his spacing is poor. Rush QSS as soon as possible or you'll barely get to play the game. Ravenous Hydra is also a great rush here— engage with E + Hydra active to maximize your Q and passive auto damage.

Neeko matchup: Harder than it looks. Unless you rush Mercury's Treads or early Magic Resist , you won't have any real way to win. Her CC lasts forever, and his ultimate is practically impossible to dodge in melee range. I recommend rushing Profane Hydra to guarantee damage whenever she uses her W .

Ryze matchup: If you think Ryze is a late-game champion, you're right—but his laning phase against Riven is incredibly strong . He'll beat you pretty easily before level 5. Make sure to have Serpent's Fang before he completes Seraph's Embrace , otherwise you'll struggle to ever kill him. In most 1v1s, though, you'll beat him comfortably once you have your ultimate.

Qiyana matchup: The first few levels are almost entirely in her favor unless she wastes her cooldowns. I recommend rushing Plated Steelcaps and Profane Hydra . She'll spend about 80% of the lane invisible, so Hydra is a great way to guarantee damage.

Swain matchup: A difficult matchup that becomes much harder if he rushes Frozen Heart. Hail of Blades works well during the early game, but later on you simply won't have enough damage to deal with him. In teamfights , avoid focusing him whenever possible— prioritize squishier targets, as he's extremely durable and difficult to bring down.

Zoe matchup: You'll almost never have lane priority . She'll spend the entire lane poking you and looking to one-shot you from out of vision . Keep a ward behind the mid lane wall to spot her angles. Enjoy getting hit by two Ignites at level 2. Maybe throw in a couple of Titanic Hydras , Heal , and Exhaust while you're at it. If you Flash all-in her, just remember the free summoner you gifted her. Mercury's Treads are a top priority, but if she ever misses her Bubble , she's surprisingly easy to kill.

Ambessa matchup: Don't play Hail of Blades here. He has higher damage, can kite your autos, and survives your burst. Go for a bruiser build instead.

Cho'Gath matchup: The most dangerous part of this matchup is getting hit by his E while running Hail of Blades. Even if you get silenced, you can still chunk a significant amount of his HP with Hail of Blades alone. That said, I highly recommend building Maw of Malmortius , especially if he's going for an AP build, as his burst damage becomes extremely high.

Galio matchup: More of a skill matchup than it seems. His combo can easily chunk 50% of your HP. If he misses his E, save your W for his taunt and punish him with your full combo. Even if Stormraider Surge procs, he'll usually die anyway.

Irelia matchup: Just like most bruiser matchups, Hail of Blades isn't particularly effective here . His sustain, kiting, and tankiness make it difficult to deal enough damage before he outlasts you. Even so, Riven has a slight advantage as long as you avoid wasting your damage into his W .

Malphite matchup: Malphite is definitely a SOLID pick into Riven , but the matchup isn't as one-sided as people think. If your team can survive to his engage, you'll become far more useful once you get your items. Hail of Blades is terrible here—go bruiser instead.

Riven matchup: I can't really give reliable advice on this matchup, as I've never had to play against one in ranked . On paper, though, it looks fairly even .

Sylas matchup: The matchup is fairly even after his recent buffs. Look for short trades while he's at full HP, but commit to an all-in once he's around 50–60% HP . Extended trades at that health threshold will usually favor him. If necessary, pick up some Grievous Wounds , but you should have enough burst to one-shot him with Ignite.

Veigar matchup: Focus on farming until you have enough damage to one-shot him. He has to place his cage perfectly to survive your burst. Mercury's Treads are very helpful in this matchup, especially during teamfights.

Annie matchup: Run Cleanse , rush Merc Treads , and buy Maw if needed. Most Annie players will throw Tibbers off cooldown, so walk into her engage range and preemptively E backwards to predict the cast timing. If timed correctly, you'll dodge it about two-thirds of the time.

Diana matchup: Her W is the only real threat in this matchup. Kite out his engage , wait for the duration to end, then turn and kill him. Rush Maw if needed to survive his burst.

Gangplank matchup: Gangplank effectively cheats gold, allowing him to hit his first item power spike much earlier than you. Even so, you should be able to win almost every all-in. Hail of Blades also lets you destroy his barrels during fights, denying a massive amount of his damage.

Gwen matchup: Harder in mid than in top, as she can safely disengage towards her tower. Hail of Blades loses a lot of value once she has her ultimate due to her healing and sustained damage. Kite her out, wait for her R to expire, then look for the re-engage.

Katarina matchup: You have full control of the lane. Always save your E for her Q to completely negate his poke. Never use your W before she casts her ultimate —holding it for his R denies his engage and leaves her with no way to kill you. The same rule applies in teamfights. Despite that, she's still difficult to kill unless she makes a mistake.

Mel matchup: Delete this champion . Thankfully, the recent nerfs made this matchup much more manageable. His poke is no longer as overwhelming, and his CC is relatively easy to avoid. Always use W before R so he can't reflect your ultimate. Even then, don't underestimate his damage .

Naafiri matchup: You'll win almost every trade. The best approach is to engage quickly with W , unload as much damage as possible, then let him disengage with her W and E . Once those abilities are on cooldown , she's an easy kill.

Twisted Fate matchup: A fairly annoying matchup during the early levels. Once you have the Tenacity rune and Mercury's Treads , though, he becomes much easier to deal with. He gets surprisingly tanky after Rod of Ages and brings a lot of value in skirmishes, but you should have no trouble beating him in a side lane. Always keep a ward on the route between his tower and bot lane, especially once he has his ultimate , since he'll constantly look for roaming opportunities.

Brand matchup: His abilities are fairly easy to dodge . Avoid the proc from his E in wave , and he'll struggle to poke you effectively. Mercury's Treads are still a great purchase in this matchup. Overall, it's Riven-favored , and almost any successful cheese should result in a kill .

Vladimir matchup: The early levels can be a bit annoying. Between his sustain and his ability to freeze the wave, you're very vulnerable to jungle ganks . That said, he's fairly easy to all-in . Save your third Q until he comes out of his pool , and it's usually a free kill. Very few Vladimir players actually know how to play this matchup well.

Xerath matchup: This matchup mostly comes down to avoiding too much poke early so you don't fall too far behind in lane. His stun is fairly easy to dodge , and he's a very immobile champion. In a side lane, he has almost no answer to a good cheese. If you do get hit by his E, move as close to him as possible to minimize the stun duration . +300g.

Fizz matchup: Easy matchup overall. He's melee, and most of his abilities are easy to dodge or absorb with your E . That said, if he snowballs , he becomes surprisingly hard to kill. Build Maw as your second or third item if needed.

Lux matchup: There's not much to this matchup. Avoid taking too much poke— her Q is fairly easy to dodge , and she's vulnerable to any well-timed all-in. She'll usually play at range and spam her ultimate to clear waves, so your best option is to look for roams whenever possible.

Yasuo matchup: Give up the first few levels . There's no reason to trade or lose HP early. Once you have a bit of Lethality and hit level 6 , he can barely survive your all-in without Exhaust . Use your Hail of Blades auto attacks and Qs to slowly chip him down, then finish him with W + R to avoid his Wind Wall. Profane Hydra (active to proc his passive) then all-in . Serpents second.

Yone matchup: Pretty much the same as his brother —arguably even easier . His E is his only real tool to survive your all-in. If he misuses it, his only option is to run away with his ultimate once he hits level 6. Rush Serpent's Fang as your second item.

Aurelion Sol matchup: The laning phase is extremely abusable . You can kill him at almost any level if you play it correctly, but don't underestimate him. Once he gets a few items and starts stacking, he can easily turn the matchup around and kill you.

Kassadin matchup: Most Kassadins I've played against could do nothing but sit under their turret and watch me play. Punish every single CS attempt, even if it's just one minion. You can dive him repeatedly during the early levels. If the game goes long, consider building Maw of Malmortius.