Riewoldt booted five goals in the first 19 minutes to set the tone for the Tigers, who registered just their second win of the season in emphatic fashion - 19.12 (126) to 11.11 (77).
While the in-form forward couldn't sustain that amazing pace, he attracted a crowd of Eagles defenders for the rest of the match, which opened the door for his teammates to hit the scoreboard.
Riewoldt was outstanding in the air - seven of his nine marks were contested - but he was also a threat when the ball hit the ground as evidenced by his eighth major which he bounced through the middle after gathering in heavy traffic.
Young gun Dustin Martin was almost as important early with 14 disposals and a goal in the opening term that finished with his side 22 points ahead.
Martin finished with 20 possessions and two goals in just his eleventh AFL game with Brett Deledio (26 possessions) and Shane Tuck (24) prominent throughout.
Tigers coach Damien Hardwick was thrilled that Riewoldt was able to reap the rewards of some long hours spent on the training track in such resounding fashion.
"He has worked hard with [assistant coach] Brendon Lade on his kicking action," Hardwick said.
"A lot of the goal-kicking is mental application on how you go about your routine and he has worked very hard on that.
"He has been in terrific form - the pleasing thing is our guys are starting to deliver the ball inside 50 a hell of a lot better. Credit [also goes] to those guys up the ground kicking it to a favoured side and letting Jack use his body which he does very well."
Richmond held an imposing 48-point lead at the main break and was briefly challenged by the visitors who kicked the first three goals of the third quarter.
But then a Scott Selwood 50m penalty - for throwing away the dislodged boot of Ben Cousins - put Ben Nason on the goal line, with the resultant major sparking a five-goal run that effectively ended the contest.
The Eagles trailed by 65 points shortly before three-quarter time and despite winning the final term to add some respectability to the score line, it was a dark day for the visitors who also lost Mark Nicoski to a shoulder dislocation.
Andrew Embley (30 possessions) and Matt Priddis (28) battled hard on the ball for West Coast who also had Dean Cox (22 touches and 25 hitouts) play a pivotal role in the ruck, but the day belonged to Riewoldt who received a hero's send-off from the Tiger army after the final siren.
Richmond 6.1 11.5 16.11 19.12 (126)
West Coast 2.3 3.5 7.6 11.11 (77)
GOALS
Richmond: Riewoldt 10, Nason 3, Martin 2, Connors, Vickery, Farmer, White
West Coast: LeCras 3, McKinley 3, Kennedy 2, Priddis, Waters, Dalziell
BEST
Richmond: Riewoldt, Deledio, Tuck, King, Jackson, Cotchin, Martin
West Coast: Waters, Priddis, Embley, Rosa, Cox, LeCras
INJURIES
Richmond: Moore (ankle), Tambling (shoulder)
West Coast: Nicoski (dislocated shoulder) Before game: Swift (appendicitis), A. Selwood (shoulder) replaced in the selected side by Nicoski, Jones.
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Stevic, Stewart, Jennings
Official crowd: 30, 870 at MCG
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
