Monkey King vs Riki

How this matchup plays

Picking Monkey King into an open draft feels like a gamble because of Riki. Monkey King relies on landing consecutive hits to build Jingu Mastery stacks, but Riki’s kit is perfectly built to prevent this. A single cast of Tricks of the Trade makes Riki untargetable, forcing the Jingu counter to reset. Worse, Smoke Screen silences and causes attacks to miss, completely shutting down Monkey King's ability to fight back or escape with Tree Dance. It's a fundamental mismatch of offensive and defensive tools.

This dynamic forces Monkey King to play defensively all game. Riki will actively hunt him, knowing he has the advantage. The most common disaster is seeing Wukong’s Command get completely nullified by a well-placed Smoke Screen, turning Monkey King’s ultimate into a self-imposed trap. To even have a chance, Monkey King must rush a Black King Bar, delaying his core damage items. Riki, meanwhile, can simply play his normal game, using his invisibility to find the perfect moment to strike and dismantle his opponent.