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Slippers of AgilitySlippers of Agility
Circlet
Tango
Wraith Band
Wraith Band
Power Treads
Yasha
Ogre Club
Wraith Band
Wraith Band
Power Treads
Sange and Yasha
Morbid Mask
Ethereal Blade
Butterfly
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10 | 12 | 13 | 14 |  |
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2 | 4 | 8 | 9 |  |
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1 | 3 | 5 | 7 |  |
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6 | 11 | 16 |  |
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15 | 17 | 18 |
Ive never written a guide before, but i've been so successful with Riki i had to share it with the world. It's not hard to own with Riki, you just have to learn how to survive, farm, and abuse his primary damage source: Backstab.
Why Backstab first:
You may notice i focus on Backstab and Blinkstrike, while delaying Smokescreen. Getting backstab is your top priority, because it allows you to farm easily, and it is your primary damage source. Farming is your top priority until you finish Sange and Yasha. Riki is a carry hero with permanent invisibility. If you keep a low profile, hopefully the enemy won't invest in ganking you.
Backstab deals extra damage based on your agility. If you cant last hit with Backstab at the level highest possible and with your build focused on agility, you might as well quit DotA. If it's too dangerous to farm, switch lane.
Why Blinkstrike second:
Blinkstrike is your only active damage dealing skill, and also a very useful farming tool. Using blinkstrike to farm will help you avoid some harrassment. It only costs 50 mana, so if used wisely, it will give you a strong farming edge. If it's too dangerous to farm, switch lane.
At lvl4, Blinkstrike has a 5 second cooldown. This means that you'll be able to cast this at least twice during a gank or teamfight. Also, Blinkstrike position yourself at the back of the enemy, usually leading to a series of lethal backstab. With both backstab and blinkstrike maxed out with good items, you can expect over 300-400 damage in the first hit.
Why Backstab first, Blinestrike second?
A lot of players will tell you to max out blinkstrike first, but i say you should max out backstab first. Let's analyze this. At level 7 you should already have 2 wraith bands with good farming, giving you 63.4 Agility. With backstab maxed out at level 7, you'll have at least 79 extra damage per hit (depending on your items). Add this with your normal attack at level 7, which is around 67 dmg, you get 146 dmg per hit. Instead, at level 7, if you have blinkstrike maxed out, you'll only get a measly 120 damage. Arguably, with a 5 second cooldown, you'll be able to cast it twice in a gank, but how many normal attacks do you think you'll get in a gank? Not to mention backstab makes farming so much easier, and riki is a carry.
Why delay Smokescreen:
Smokescreen is completely situational. If you're laning with aggressive players or heroes with a tendency to gank early, get smokescreen at level 2 to protect yourself and your teammates. Otherwise delay smokescreen until enemy heroes start ganking and/or big fights are more likely (usually level 6, but sometimes enemy heroes are either too lazy or too nice).
Smokescreen when used correctly will win team fights, but you must always have a clear reason to sacrifice your primary source of damage (backstab) or blinkstrike. Smokescreen use is limited, and at level1, smokescreen AoE is too small to have a lot of uses. For example, during a gank, the time it takes to cast smokescreen is enough for riki to land a backstab or two. So if your enemy is running away, and you try to use lvl1 smokescreen to block a blink, you must be extremely skilled, because you're sacrificing a backstab.
Get Per Invisibility ASAP:
This skill makes farming a bit safer. It's extremely useful to scout using this skill, giving your team an edge in team fights. Watch out for wards and dust by always checking the enemy heroes' inventory.
There are two primary components to a good Riki: Survivability and Damage.
Survivability:
The cheap source of str coming from wraith bands should keep you alive until you get power treads. Once you get power treads, make sure to keep it at str. You may be tempted to switch it to agi, but as Riki, you are always so lacking in health that 8 str is a giant increase which definitely will make a difference.
Damage:
Get the cheapest source of agility possible. This means 2 wraith bands (easy to build and cheap), and then Yasha as soon as you finish power treads (for agi and 10% movespeed which proves especially useful against running-away enemy heroes. Complete Sange for some more survivability, and buy a source of lifesteal for more survivability. Then start building Etheral Blade, which is the most cost-efficient way to stack up agility.
What about Diffusal Blade?
If you like feedback and purge, go for it. But how do you plan to replace the str that Sange gives? Also, the 10% movespeed that Yasha gives is very useful when enemies are running away.
What about Butterfly?
Personally, i find the 25% evasion trivial. As riki, you should never fight face-to-face with another player. If your enemy isn't running away, you probably should. Riki is a damage dealer. Etheral Blade is a much more cost-efficient way to stack agility. The 10 extra agility means 10 extra normal damage and 12.5 extra backstab damage and 10 extra attack speed. It goes pretty close to Butterfly, while it's a heck lot cheaper. Oh, did i mention it adds 10 str and 10 int too? Not bad!
What about SkullBasher and BlackKingBar?
Why would i choose normal damage over agility with THAT price? O.O
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