Matchup of the Day

Riven's primary goal is to secure early level priority, specifically reaching Level 3 and the Level 6 ultimate timer first. Achieving this priority often involves playing aggressively for lane control. A key fundamental play is utilizing the Level 6 timer: Riven should kill Mordekaiser to stack her Conqueror, ensuring she hits Level 6 before him.

Once Riven has a significant advantage, such as being "five levels on their AKs," her win condition shifts from constantly engaging and killing the weak enemy ("Z4 more kaiser") to translating that lead across the map. This involves pushing out the top wave, resetting, and then moving to influence the mid lane, jungle, or bot lane. Riven must also aim to be an exceptional farmer to maintain her resource advantage.

Mordekaiser's success relies on enduring Riven's early pressure while retaining his ability to fight, particularly if he manages to keep his Conqueror stack ("conk"). Mordekaiser wins if Riven secures solo kills but fails to gain the maximum experience reward, which can happen if an allied champion is present nearby, "steals my solo kill exp by being in the presence". Furthermore, Mordekaiser wins the macro game if he refuses to surrender ("He won't FF") and Riven fixates on continually killing him in the top lane instead of resetting and spreading her overwhelming advantage to other areas of the map.