Creator Spotlight: Adrian
The Creator Spotlight is our way of featuring a variety of different talented League of Legends creators. This time, we’re diving into the mind of the master educator and Challenger top laner, Adrian. Read more to find out how Adrian got his start as a YouTuber and streamer, and maybe you’ll pick up a tip or two on how to improve your gameplay.
Tell us about yourself!
Hey Adrian here! I am known as Adrian Riven. I’m an educational YouTuber and streamer who teaches top lane in general, but I'm mostly known for my Riven play since I dominate with her in high elo quite a bit.
I am from Cuba. Cuba is a place with the friendliest people you will ever meet! The one thing though that will make League players probably not enjoy it so much is that there is no internet in homes for now... Yeah, that's right: no League of Legends nor any online game of any kind! It’s a place stuck in time with cars from the 1950's and structures that are very old, but it’s my home and one of the most peaceful places on Earth.
People might be surprised to know I speak Spanish and a little bit of French!
What got you into League of Legends?
My friends in school were all into League of Legends and I wanted to see what all the hype was about so I got into playing League that way! To this date, I have never had another game bring as many happy experiences between friends!
1Adrianaries1 Playing League of Legends - Twitch Clips
Adrian POG 1v3 - Clipped by xxxt4bl3t0p
Who inspires you?
It has always been a goal for me to get rank 1 consistently and watching players like TFBlade pop off and get it when they want really makes me want to be better. It makes me want to try even harder because i know it’s possible! I got rank 1 a few weeks ago and am now currently rank 4, but I will keep trying my best! TFBlade is insane; definitely check him out!
The other person who has been my main inspiration for improving and becoming a better player is Team Liquid’s Impact. Impact is the definition of consistency and insane skill!
Tell us about how you started streaming and making videos.
Back when I got Challenger in Season 2, I found my friends encouraging me to stream the game for players wanting to learn and see sick Riven plays. For new streamers, my best advice would be to really work on interaction with viewers. I always try to answer everyone's questions and enjoy having conversations with my chat. It makes it a really chill experience for me.
I got into making YouTube videos a few years ago when I made my first League of Legends montages and saw all the positive feedback I got from the community. I really enjoy making videos that make people hyped to play the game and realized that I love being part of the community as a content creator!
What League-related project are you most proud of?
Honestly if I had to pick, I’d have to say the montage I made with my boy, Viper. He’s currently a rookie in LCS but I know he will dominate I always knew he would do well!
Since you’re known for your educational content too, can you please drop some knowledge and tell us what is a common mistake you see other players make that they could address to improve?
After teaching for so many years, I think the most common error or bad habit is that players go on autopilot after laning phase or even during laning phase sometimes. One thing that helps out a lot is to always tell yourself what you will do next and why. It keeps you thinking and helps you make sure you don't blank out in an important part of the game.
For those who aren’t familiar with you, who is your favorite champion and why?
Well if it wasn't obvious enough already Riven is my favorite champion. The reason I play her so much and have the most fun playing her is because she reminds me of fighting games, which are what I am best at. I love the varieties of combos you can do with her and how practicing everything can make her such a dominating champion. But one mistake and you die! Shy combo btw.
How do you feel about Riven in the current meta?
I think Riven is very strong in solo queue and can even work in pro play, as my buddy Viper has shown. Riven in general has a very versatile kit so she will always be good when you put your time and effort into learning her.
As Riven is a tougher champion mechanically, do you have any advice for new Riven players or players interested in learning?
My main advice for new Riven players is to not fixate on learning specific combos (like the doublecast or shy combo) and just get accustomed to her kit because fluidity/adaptation of her abilities for every situation is very important with her. The most difficult thing about Riven is getting to the point where the mechanical part of the champion is fully on autopilot and you can get into a state where you can simply focus on the macro game.
What project are you currently working on?
I am currently working on a full guide for Riven matchups in season 9, focusing on each of the current top champions in the meta. I’m also working on growing my Twitch channel by streaming almost every day.
Thank you, Adrian, for being an incredible source of knowledge and entertainment!
You can find Adrian killing it as Riven by following his channels here:
