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How to Win Zilean vs Riven Counter MatchupZilean is in the s tier of champions

Zilean vs Riven

How to Beat Riven as Zilean in LoLZilean is in the s tier of champions
SupportMage
FighterAssassin

How to Beat Riven as Zilean

based on 1,463 Zilean vs Riven matchups
Win Rate
50.2 %
K/D/A
3.02
Pick Rate
3.3 %

How We Analyze LoL Champion Counters

We at MOBA Champion analyze millions of ranked LoL games each and every week. Within our database, Zilean battled Riven 1463 times. Using so many matchups for Zilean vs Riven gives us a lot of faith in our ability to produce enlightening data and a pro build to obliterate your enemy. This pairing is relatively rare. Zilean has to counter Riven in only 3.3% of his games.

Zilean vs Riven Matchup Summary

Zilean has done a average job of beating Riven. Normally, he wins a acceptable 50.2% of games the champions oppose each other in. In Zilean vs Riven games, Zilean’s team is 0.2% less likely to gain first blood. This implies that he probably won't get first blood versus Riven.

Best Zilean vs Riven Counter Build

Items

Starter Items

Time Target
Health PotionWorld Atlas

Early Items

~5 Mins
Sapphire CrystalAmplifying Tome

Core Zilean Items

~22 Mins
Shurelya's BattlesongMorellonomiconSolstice Sleigh

Optional Items

Liandry's TormentSeraph's EmbraceCosmic DriveZhonya's Hourglass

Summoner Spells

summonerflash summoner spell D
summonerdot summoner spell F

Skill Order

First skill for Zilean to level upq
>
Second ability for Zilean to level upe
>
Last skill for Zilean to max outw

Runes

SorcerySummon AeryManaflow BandTranscendenceWaterwalking
DominationCheap ShotRelentless Hunter
Ability HasteAdaptive ForceArmor
Zilean's passive ability p
Zilean's q ability q
Zilean's w ability w
Zilean's e ability e
Zilean's ultimate ability r
1
Q
2
W
3
E
4
Q
5
Q
6
R
7
Q
8
E
9
Q
10
E
11
R
12
E
13
E
14
W
15
W
16
R

Guide to Countering Riven as Zilean

Tips for Playing as Zilean against Riven

Time Warp is an effective way to enable allies to finish off enemies, or escape from a losing battle.

Chronoshift is a powerful deterrent to attacking your carries, but casting Chronoshift too early in a fight can cause the enemy to switch targets too soon, making it less effective.

You can combine the use of Time Bomb and Rewind to place two Time Bombs on a target quickly. Placing the second bomb will detonate the first and stun all nearby enemies.

Advice to Win Against Riven

All of Riven's damage is physical, prioritize high Armor if an opposing Riven gets out of control.

Riven has a great deal of mobility but she cannot move very far with any one skill. Rooting or silencing her during her combo will greatly reduce her effectiveness.

Riven excels at dueling multiple melee attackers at once, as she will be on an almost equal footing damage-wise. If pairing up against Riven, don't go in as double melee until she has expended her full combo.

Zilean vs Riven Counter Stats

Zilean Image
Win Rate
50.2 %
VS
Win Rate
49.8 %
Riven Image
2.3
< Kills >
6.9
5
< Deaths >
5.8
12.8
< Assists >
4.3
0.46
< Killing Sprees >
1.54
58
< Minions Killed >
182
0.04
< Dragons Killed >
0.08
0.53
< Inhibitors >
0.43
978
< Physical Damage >
19,610
9,222
< Magic Damage >
53
691
< True Damage >
1,158
10,892
< Damage Dealt >
20,822
18,204
< Damage Taken >
24,924
8,908
< Gold Earned >
12,211
2
< Towers >
2.23
0.01
< Baron Takedowns >
0.02
6,736
< Total Healing >
5,440
11,907
< Experience >
15,141
53
< Vision Score >
16
23
< Wards Placed >
8
171
< Time Dealing CC >
131

How to Counter Riven with Zilean in LoL

The stat comparisons shown on this page clarify some significant Zilean against Riven counter stats that may help us grasp the distinctions between the pair. Zilean’s KDA ratio ([kills + assists] / deaths) of NaN is greater than Riven’s ratio of NaN, demonstrating that Zilean may be more central to his team's team fighting capability than Riven. This observation is largely fueled by the differences in assists.

Zilean usually has a significantly smaller longest killing spree than his counter does. Typically, he receives less damage than Riven. This often reflects different amounts of tankyness; however, it can also indicate that the one champion has less agility and thus is not able to flee from further damage when poked or engaged.

Differences between Zilean and Riven

Damage Types Compared

Zilean
Riven
Physical Damage
Magic Damage
True Damage

Champion Playstyles Compared

Zilean
Riven

Who is Better, Zilean or Riven?

Both League champs are great. Both have their pros and cons. In League's current meta, Zilean usually fairs equally well when trying to fight Riven, with a 50.2% win rate. As a result, Zilean makes an ok counter to Riven.

While Zilean does have a higher win rate compared to Riven, when facing one another, Zilean also has a lower difficulty level that makes him a less difficult character to learn. You still need to be cautious when picking Zilean into Riven.

Additionally, Zilean also has a lot of utility and CC, a similar amount to Riven. This makes her just as valuable during team fights, especially when fighting champions with a ton of burst damage.

While there is not one best champion in League of Legends, in Zilean vs Riven matchups, Zilean is the better champion with a similar win rate, less champion complexity, and a similar amount of utility to help out your team members during late stage team fights.

Zilean is a decent counter to Riven. You will do well by focussing your actions on increasing your gold and cs and destroying objectives. If you can do that, you should hold your own as Zilean against Riven.

Additional Information for Zilean Players

How We Calculated Our Zilean vs Riven Build and Stats

For this guide on countering Riven as Zilean, we analyzed 1,463 matchups from recent LoL games. We use rigorous data cleaning and processing methods to ensure that our counter stats are of the highest quality. You can rest assured that the recommended build to counter Riven as Zilean comes from real data and is not the fabrication of some random LoL player, as some other sites provide. You can use the filters at the top of the page to view the most relevant stats and items to your rank.

Other Useful Resources

Further Insights to Win this Matchup

To truly master Zilean in order to counter Riven during both the lane and mid / late game phases of League of Legends, you should keep reading to learn a few extra tips and tricks for this matchup. If you listen to the build and stats displayed above, you should grow your win rate by a lot and be closer to League of Legends pro players.

Zilean most often picks up a lot less CS as Riven. Champs who on average don't earn much CS typically don't have to have much CS to be effective, such as support champions. These kinds of champions are able to scale properly off of their skills, stats, and first items alone. Yet, champions with large amounts of CS, such as hyper-carries, usually have to have several high cost items to be effective. In either situation, try to exceed the numbers shown on this page to do well.

The most crucial items to prioritize in your Zilean versus Riven build include Shurelya's Battlesong, Morellonomicon, and Solstice Sleigh. When Zilean combined at least these three items in his build, he performed much better vs Riven than with most other commonly used counter builds. In fact, Zilean boasted an average winrate of 50.2% battling Riven with this counter build.

To have the best probability of annihilating Riven as Zilean, you should take the Summon Aery, Manaflow Band, Transcendence, Waterwalking, Cheap Shot, and Relentless Hunter runes from the Sorcery and Domination rune sets. Of all the rune builds that we analyzed for Zilean vs Riven battles, this set of runes resulted in the highest win rate. Moreover, these runes provided a 50.2% win rate overall.

By default, tips, stats, and builds on how to beat Riven as Zilean are presented for all skill levels, merged. If you would like to scope the statistics and builds to an individual skill level, you should use the selection menu located above.