Riki

Riki

The Radiant

17 + 2 34 + 2.9 14 + 1.3

Level 1 16 25 Hit Points 473 1081 1765 Mana 182 455 845 Damage 48-52 93-97 137-141 Armor 5.76 12.06 18.22 Attacks / Second 0.78 1.05 1.31

Movement Speed 300 Sight Range 1800/800 Attack Range Melee Missile Speed Instant Attack Duration 0.3+0.3 Cast Duration 0.4+0.51 Base Attack Time 1.7

Riki, or Rikimaru, the Stealth Assassin is a melee agility Hero that uses stealth in order to surprise enemies and quickly kill them. His trademark ability, Permanent Invisibility, allows him to sneak into the shadows to hide and slip by without giving himself away.

Though Riki might be a great hero for beginners to use, he encourages them bad behavior and metagame especially if they have just started out playing. Riki has some item dependency and still requires smart thinking and map knowledge to escape due to his low health. He is recommended for intermediate players.

Bio

Riki, the Stealth Assassin "If you can see me, you're already dead." Role: Carry / Escape Lore: Riki was born middle child to the great dynasty of Tahlin. With an older brother groomed for the throne, and a younger brother coddled and kept, Riki, the small middle son, seemed born for the art of invisibility. It was an art he cultivated, and one which ultimately saved his life on the night that his people were betrayed and his family slaughtered. Of all the royal line, he alone escaped—small and agile, unassuming, using smoke as cover. He cut his way out of the royal grounds, using the advantage of surprise, quietly slitting the throats of one enemy warrior after another. Now free of his royal responsibilities, Riki uses his talents in service to a new trade: Stealth Assassin. He silences his enemies, sharpening his skills, hoping to one day take revenge on those who killed his family and robbed him of his birthright. Voice: Responses

Gameplay

Riki's invisibility is both his greatest strength and his greatest weakness. On one hand, it makes him able to surprise enemies and farm with very little concern. On the other hand, without invisibility he has no real defense. His early game priority is reaching level 6 quickly. Once he has permanent invisibility, he still has to watch out for revealing items such as Dust of Appearance and Gem of Truesight, as well as abilities that Silence him and prevent him from going invisible. If he stays alive and picks off lone enemies, he can quickly get out of control.

Smoke Screen provides a powerful Silence and gives enemies a high miss chance, as well as slowing them down. If targeted properly, it can hold an enemy down long enough to finish them off. However, enemies must stay in the area to be affected. A good strategy is to throw a Smoke Screen in the enemy's path, rather than where they are presently. Blink Strike is Riki's chase and escape ability. It operates like other Blink abilities, in that it allows Riki to teleport to a target quickly. However, Blink Strike must target a unit. It helps catch up with fleeing enemies, jump into fights quickly, and escape from situations by targeting allies. Blink Strike pairs well with Backstab, because it teleports Riki behind the enemy. Backstab causes any attack from behind to deal additional damage, and allows you to absolutely flatten weaker enemies. If they turn to run, Riki suddenly hits for much more. Finally, Riki's Permanent Invisibility allows him to go completely invisible after a short delay. If Riki's enemies don't have any form of revelation, this lets Riki escape with ease and roam freely. If they do, Riki has to rely on his cunning and speed in order to get the drop on enemies, and get out alive.

Abilities

Smoke Screen Q C Ability Affects Target Point Enemies Throws down a smoke bomb, silencing and slowing enemy units in an area while causing them to miss on most attacks. Lasts 6 seconds. Range: 425 Radius: 250/275/300/325 Duration: 6 Miss Chance: 40%/50%/60%/70% Attack and Movement Speed Slow: 25% 13 75/80/85/90 Since his escape during the night of his betrayal, Riki has valued the use of a simple smoke screen to confuse his opponents.

Notes: Does not silence castable items.

Blink Strike W B Ability Affects Damage Target Unit Units Magical Teleports behind the target unit, striking for bonus damage if it is an enemy. Range: 750 Bonus Damage: 30/60/90/120 20/15/10/5 50 The Stealth Assassin's agile movement makes him impossible to escape.

Notes: Bonus damage is dealt before Rikimaru's regular attack. Teleports to the back of the target, forcing a backstab on the next attack. If the target is an ally, no damage will be dealt.

Backstab E K Ability Affects Damage Passive Enemies Physical If Riki attacks from behind, bonus damage is applied based on his current agility. Damage Bonus: 0.5/0.75/1.0/1.25 × Agility The Stealth Assassin is not afraid to fight dirty, and specializes in attacking his opponents from behind.

Notes: Even if the animation is shown for Rikimaru's images the effect will not work. Bonus damage from Backstab can't be evaded.

Permanent Invisibility R E Ability Affects Passive Self Riki fades into the shadows, staying permanently invisible except while attacking or using abilities. While silenced, Riki will be visible. Fade Time: 3/2.25/1.5 Rikimaru comes for you.

Notes: Being silenced prevents this skill from working

Recommended Items

Explanation: Starting Items: Riki has very little health. He'll need the Tangoes to keep himself at his healthiest during the laning stage, and the Salve to heal up after attempted ganks. He can take some Slippers to build into his Shield, and a ton of Iron Branches for the stat boosts. Early Game: Boots and Poor Man's Shield can be grabbed in any order depending on how well Riki's doing. If his team is doing well or he's getting a lot of ganks, Boots will help him to chase enemies down. If Riki keeps dying or taking damage, the Shield will reduce some of the physical harm he takes. Magic Stick could be crucial in times of danger. Core: Diffusal Blade is a huge plus for Riki. Not only does it make him even more effective against weak or Intelligence Heroes, it also allows him to remove buffs from his enemies. Power Treads are debatable, but they give a hefty stat bonus and let him deal even more damage (base and backstab.) Magic Wand because Magic Stick should upgrade, and Town Portal Scrolls to move about quickly. Luxury: Butterfly is good for any Agility Hero, and Riki is no exception. More attack speed + more agility = killing machine. It's expensive though. Vlad's is cheap and, with the damage Riki can deal, should keep Riki healthy for a while. Black King Bar will prevent Riki from being stunned and silenced during fights, so that he can escape safe and sound. Assault Cuirass will reduce enemy armor, but could accidentally give him away too. Sange and Yasha give him a nice stat boost, like Butterfly, but also can slow enemies that are escaping.

Tips

• It is usually recommended to get Permanent Invisibility as soon as possible.
• Casting Smoke Screen after using Blink Strike will stop enemies from escaping or fighting back after a sudden attack.
• Although chasing enemies might be useful, it is recommended not to be too reckless. If Riki is revealed, he can go down very quickly.
• Blink Strike can target allies and enemies. Jumping to a friendly unit can be useful in case Rikimaru needs to escape.
• Using items will drop Riki's invisibility. Caution is advised when using a Magic Wand while invisible.

Trivia

• Riki's name in Dota Allstars's Fun Mode was Riki Martin, a reference to Ricky Martin, a pop singer.

Update History

December 08, 2011 Patch

• Riki will only say "This is Redundant" when picking up an Rune of Invisibility while invisible.

November 03, 2011 Patch

• Fixed the Backstab sound sometimes playing when it wasn't proccing.

October 27, 2011 Patch

• Fixed Backstab working on mechanical units.
• Fixed Smokescreen working on Ancients.
• Fixed the timing on Blink Strike damage.

October 13, 2011 Patch

• Enabled Riki.

July 29, 2011 Patch

• Backstab's bonus now increases properly when leveled up.

March 03, 2011 Patch

• Fixed Backstab working on denies.

February 12, 2011 Patch

• Fixed Riki's backstab angle being too narrow.

February 09, 2011 Patch

• Scaled Riki down 10%.

Ability Change Log

6.73

• Backstab damage bonus increased from 0.25/0.5/0.75/1.0 to 0.5/0.75/1.0/1.25 of agility.

6.72

• Base HP regeneration increased from 0.25 to 0.75.
• Blink Strike cooldown rescaled from 30/20/10/5 to 20/15/10/5.
• Smoke Screen cast range increased from 350 to 425.
• Smoke Screen cooldown decreased from 15 to 13 seconds.

Gallery

• 

  Splash artwork

See also

• Riki responses