How to win lane as Riven against Mordekaiser · 55.14% win rate over 1,694 Emerald+ games · Updated 2026-07-27
| Stage | Favoured | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Even / skill | Neither kit has a decisive Level 1 edge — Mordekaiser needs three passive procs to sustain damage while you need W to really commit, so both sides are feeling out the wave. |
| Level 2 | Riven | W comes online and he has no dash to escape it — E in, land W stun, chain into Q3 knockup, and E back out before his slow E pull can grab you. |
| Level 3 | Riven | Full Q-W-E kit running at Level 3 and he is still a sitting target — your combo resets faster than his cooldowns reset and he can absorb nothing without his R. |
| Levels 4-5 | Riven | His E pull is the only setup tool and if you dodge it with your own E every trade, Levels 4-5 are a sustained torture session of short burst windows that he cannot answer. |
| Level 6 | Mordekaiser | Realm of Death inverts the duel — his W shield refuels, your stats are partially stolen, and Wind Slash alone cannot burst him before he heals back. Never take this fight low. |
| First item | Riven | Eclipse completes and your burst pattern decisively outpaces his W healing outside of Realm of Death — force the all-in the moment his R cooldown lights up as spent. |
| Two+ items | Riven | Two items and Mordekaiser cannot keep pace in a side lane — his immobility means you E in, full-combo, Wind Slash execute, and walk away before he ever lands the E pull. |
He is one of the weakest Level 1s in the game — no dash, no reliable CC until his E pull, and his Darkness Rise passive needs three auto-attacks on you to proc. Walk up to contest every last-hit with Q autos and weave the passive Runic Blade empowered hit between casts. At Level 2 your W stun comes online and he has nothing to stop it: E in, W, third-Q knockup, E back out before his E pull can grab you — that is your core exchange and it wins cleanly all the way through Level 3. Keep the wave slightly on your side of lane so he has to walk into you rather than you walking into his passive-stacking range.
The full Riven vs Mordekaiser report continues with the mid-game plan, the late-game and teamfight plan, every power spike to play around, and the win conditions for both sides — plus cooldown tracking and the live enemy-jungle tracker inside the app.
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Playing the other side? Mordekaiser vs Riven guide →
All Riven top lane matchups →