Invoker
* 
Nether Ward on its own can greatly hinder Invoker from casting many of his abilities, at least until he gets a significant amount of HP or is under the protection of spell immunity from 
Black King Bar
* 
Life Drain provides True sight, revealing Invoker through Ghost Walk, and forcing him or his allies to use an ability or item to interrupt its channeling
* Outside of Nether Ward's range, Invoker shall have the advantage, as Invoker has Tornado to purge Pugna's 
Decrepify when it is used defensively, Tornado or Cold Snap to prevent Pugna from channeling Life Drain
* A poorly used Decrepify on Pugna's allies means Invoker's abilities can be used to deal more damage to them.
Additional:
* Because Invoker relies on casting a large amount of spells to contribute to fights, Nether Ward can force him to not cast anything at all or take a large amount of damage to cast spells.
Shadow Demon
* All of Pugna's abilities are active, making Demonic Purge break from 
Aghanim's Scepter useless.
* Nether Ward punishes Shadow Demon's constant mana usage from spamming spells, especially Shadow Poison.
* An attempt to save an ally using Disruption can easily become a perfect setup for a 
Nether Blast for the enemy.
* Life Drain can be used to heal Pugna or an ally to save them from Shadow Demon's abilities.
* However, it can be cancelled by Disruption unless Pugna buys defensive items.
Invoker
* Puck Outlanes Invoker with his abilities: 
Illusory Orb, 
Waning Rift finishing off all creeps on the line and getting a higher level than him
* Puck dodges Invoker's magic attacks with his abilities: Illusory Orb, 
Phase Shift in a fight, preventing Invoker from doing damage
Additional:
* Puck Outlanes Invoker with his abilities: Illusory Orb, Waning Rift finishing off all creeps on the line and getting a higher level than him
* Puck dodges Invoker's magic attacks with his abilities: Illusory Orb, Phase Shift in a fight, preventing Invoker from doing damage
Shadow Demon
* All of Puck's abilities are active making Demonic Purge break from Aghanim's Scepter useless.
* Shadow Demon will find a hard time catching a Puck, as he can get away with Illusory Orb or even Waning Rift;
* Puck can dodge Shadow Poison waves and potentially avoid the damage from Demonic Purge with Phase Shift. Furthermore, after Disruption ended, Puck can use Phase Shift to avoid any further danger and can blink away with 
Blink Dagger.
* Waning Rift can be used to initiate Shadow Demon, prevent him from using any spells.
Invoker
* Queen of Pain usually outlanes Invoker, giving her team a significant early game advantage while Invoker is still farming.
* 
Blink allows Queen of Pain to escape from Invoker's combo if he doesn't have disables.
Shadow Demon
* All of Queen of Pain's abilities are active, making Demonic Purge break from Aghanim's Scepter useless.
* However, Demonic Purge can help his allies kill a squishy Queen of Pain.
* Blink allows Queen of Pain to escape from Shadow Demon's abilities if he doesn't have disables.
* An attempt to save an ally using Disruption can easily become a perfect setup for a 
Sonic Wave for the enemy.
Invoker
* Lone Druid has a very large reserve of health against Invoker abilities, this allows him to survive a large number of attacks from Invoker and kill him, also 
Entangling Claws reveal invisibility from 
Ghost Walk, which allows the Lone Druid team to catch the popular QW-Invoker
Additional:
* Lone Druid has a very large reserve of health against Invoker abilities, this allows him to survive a large number of attacks from Invoker and kill him, also Entangling Claws reveal invisibility from Ghost Walk, which allows the Lone Druid team to catch the popular QW-Invoker
Shadow Demon
* 
Chaos Knight, 
Lone Druid, 
Meepo and 
Arc Warden can be hard targets since Shadow Demon's spells are ill-suited to fight many enemies at once.
Invoker
* In the early to mid game, Invoker is defenseless against Storm Spirit's ganking with 
Ball Lightning and 
Orchid Malevolence.
Shadow Demon
* Shadow Demon will have a hard time catching Storm Spirit, as he can get away with Ball Lightning.
* 
Static Remnant will make quick work of the spawned illusions from Disruption.
* With very high mobility and usually being paired with Orchid Malevolence, he can catch Shadow Demon with ease both in ganks and in teamfights if Shadow Demon has no survivability items.
Invoker
* Heroes with mana burn: 
Nyx Assassin, 
Invoker, 
Outworld Destroyer, 
Pugna, 
Lion
Shadow Demon
* Icarus Dive quickly escapes from Shadow Demon abilities, especially 
Demonic Purge.
* Phoenix AoE abilities remove Shadow Demon's illusions created by 
Disruption.
Invoker
* Broodmother can kill Invoker easily in the early game with her 
Spawn Spiderlings and her spiderlings.
* Broodmother is both an Orchid Malevolence and a 
Nullifier carrier. As she can farm it early, she can kill Invoker easily.
Invoker
* Templar Assassin can easily counter Invoker's last hitting process in the early game with 
Refraction. Refraction also negates the stun from Cold Snap, since it will need to deal damage in order to apply its stun.
* Additionally, Refraction completely blocks damage from Sun Strike should Invoker try to finish her off, provided she activate Refraction beforehand.
Invoker
* Nyx Assassin can simply activate 
Spiked Carapace while under many Invoker's abilities to stun him.
* Nyx Assassin takes advantage of Invoker's massive intelligence gain to do tons of damage using 
Mind Flare, as the spell does more damage based on the target's intelligence.
* 
Vendetta burns a large amount of Invoker's essential mana pool.
Shadow Demon
* Diabolic Edict and Pulse Nova will tear apart any illusions spawned from Disruption
* Split Earth can punish improper usage of Disruption.
* Leshrac does not have any buffs that can be removed by Demonic Purge.
Additional:
* 
Pulse Nova makes quick work of any illusions with amplified damage, and deals damage even if Leshrac is in Disruption.
* An attempt to save an ally using Disruption can easily become a perfect setup for a 
Split Earth for the enemy.
* Disruption does not stop 
Diabolic Edict and Pulse Nova once they start pulsing, and even worse it provides a safe shelter for Leshrac to keep pumping up his powerful AoE damage onto the battlefield.
* Shadow Demon doesn't have the burst damage to take Leshrac out of the fight quickly, although Demonic Purge can help his allies kill a squishy Leshrac.
Invoker
* Earth Spirit is a dangerous foe to encounter for Invoker in the early stages of the game. Since Invoker needs to gain levels as fast as possible and is not very strong in the early game, Earth Spirit can use his incredible early game power to gank Invoker and ruin his game plan.
* Earth Spirit combines stuns and silences with his spells and can apply them from a great distance. This is bad for Invoker as he is dependent on a smart usage of his spells with 
Invoke and Earth Spirit can disrupt his combos easily.
Shadow Demon
* All of Lion's abilities are active making Demonic Purge break from Aghanim's Scepter useless.
* 
Hex and 
Mana Drain can make quick work of whatever illusions you're creating, especially when he acquires his Talents at level 20 and 25.
* An attempt to save an ally using Disruption can easily become a perfect setup for a 
Earth Spike or 
Finger of Death with Aghanim's Scepter for the enemy.
Invoker
* Quas-Exort Invoker is also a good matchup due to the fact he has no 
Wex to run faster due to the movement impairment on his stealth. The 
Forge Spirit and 
Cold Snap combo doesn't harm her as well since you can drain Invoker's HP with Spirit Siphon which forces him to retreat.
* Silence also prevents Invoker from using Invoke or casting his main spells temporarily. There is no way Invoker can block it unless he has 
Eul's Scepter of Divinity to cyclone himself or has help from allies.
Shadow Demon
* 
Death Ward with Aghanim's Scepter makes quick work of the spawned illusions from Disruption.
* However, it can be cancelled by Disruption until Witch Doctor buys 
Linken's Sphere or Black King Bar.
* All of Witch Doctor's abilities are active, making Demonic Purge break from Aghanim's Scepter useless.
* 
Voodoo Restoration can out-heal the damage from Shadow Demon's abilities.
* An attempt to save an ally using Disruption can easily become a perfect setup for a 
Maledict or 
Paralyzing Cask for the enemy.
Invoker
* Zeus greatly hinders Invoker on the line with his long-range abilities. QW- and QE-Invoker have a very long recharge on abilities, and Zeus' 
Arc Lightning ability recharges too quickly, which is why he quickly kills a pack of creeps and drives Invoker under his tower, punching and not letting finish off creeps
* 
Lightning Bolt and 
Thundergod's Wrath abilities reveal invisibility of enemies, for example Invoker invisibility from Ghost Walk ability
Additional:
* Zeus greatly hinders Invoker on the line with his long-range abilities. QW- and QE-Invoker have a very long recharge on abilities, and Zeus' Arc Lightning ability recharges too quickly, which is why he quickly kills a pack of creeps and drives Invoker under his tower, punching and not letting finish off creeps
* Lightning Bolt and Thundergod's Wrath abilities reveal invisibility of enemies, for example Invoker invisibility from Ghost Walk ability
Invoker
* A good choice against Invoker, as it has some advantage with the help of abilities.
* With the 
Dissimilate, Voidspirit can evade Invoker's skills, going to another world where he does not receive damage. The same ability to run away or attack quickly.
* 
Astral Step moves quickly from point to point, which also reduces the Invoker's probability that he will hit him with skills and cause at least some damage.
Additional:
* A good choice against Invoker, as it has some advantage with the help of abilities.
* With the Dissimilate, Voidspirit can evade Invoker's skills, like 
Chaos Meteor or 
E.M.P., going to another world where he does not receive damage. The same ability to run away or attack quickly.
* Astral Step moves quickly from point to point, which also reduces the Invoker's probability that he will hit him with skills and cause at least some damage.
Invoker
* 
Doom completely takes Invoker out of a team fight, a hero who relies heavily on using abilities and items to contribute in team fights.
Additional:
* Doom is a good way to shut down Invoker, preventing from casting spells and using items for a lengthy time, thus forcing him to invest on Linken's Sphere.
Invoker
* Heroes with long lockdowns: 
Shadow Shaman, 
Legion Commander.
Invoker
* 
Bounty Hunter and 
Slardar both have ultimates (
Corrosive Haze and 
Track) that reveal Invoker through Ghost Walk.
Invoker
* Bounty Hunter and Slardar both have ultimates (Corrosive Haze and Track) that reveal Invoker through Ghost Walk.
Shadow Demon
* 
Lycan and 
Weaver has abilities that allow them to move at maximum movement speed, and those abilities can't be dispelled, potentially wasting the slow from Demonic Purge.
Shadow Demon
* You can potentially kill a fragile Weaver by using Disruption during 
Shukuchi with a well-placed 
Sentry Ward, wasting the Shukuchi. But odds are he'll wait to get low health, 
Time Lapse the damage away and Shukuchi away once more.
Shadow Demon
* Chaos Knight, Lone Druid, Meepo and Arc Warden can be hard targets since Shadow Demon's spells are ill-suited to fight many enemies at once.
Invoker
* Heroes with silence: 
Death Prophet, 
Riki, 
Drow Ranger.
Invoker
* Heroes with abilities which have a built-in spell immunity: 
Lifestealer, 
Juggernaut, 
Pangolier.
Shadow Demon
* Poof will destroy Shadow Demon's illusions created by Disruption and quickly escapes from 
Shadow Poison & Demonic Purge.
Invoker
* Heroes with powerful area-of-effect disables can initiate on Meepo and his clones and shut him down, such as 
Enigma, Invoker, 
Magnus, 
Puck, and 
Sand King.
Invoker
* 
Rage grants immunity from Invoker's spells and can dispel most of the disables such as the armor loss from Forge Spirit and the constant stuns of Cold Snap.
Additional:
* Rage protects Lifestealer from all of Invoker's spells (except for 
Sun Strike).
Shadow Demon
* Melee carries such as 
Sven, 
Ursa or Lifestealer can be slowed and easily kited with Demonic Purge.
Invoker
* 
Blade Fury, similar to Rage, grants immunity to Invoker's spells and can dispel some debuffs as well.
* 
Omnislash renders Juggernaut invulnerable to Invoker's spells and can easily take Invoker down.
Additional:
* Juggernaut's instant spell immunity from Blade Fury. helps him dodge Invoker's combos. He can dispel the disables from Cold Snap and 
Deafening Blast and dodge the damage from Chaos Meteor, as well as walk through 
Ice Wall.
* Juggernaut's high DPS allows him to kill split pushing Forge Spirit(s) effortlessly, and his high armor prevents them from being a threat to him.
* However, Invoker can hit Juggernaut with Sun Strike through Blade Fury, making the 
Tornado and Sun Strike combo a threat if he does not dodge Tornado.
Shadow Demon
* Heroes with abilities that can save teammates are also effective such as 
Shadow Demon, 
Dazzle, 
Oracle, 
Bane, Pugna, 
Tusk, 
Winter Wyvern, 
Io, 
Underlord, 
Treant Protector and 
Keeper of the Light.
Additional:
* Be ready to save an ally from Omnislash with your Disruption.
* Spawning Juggernaut's illusions is a great deal, as his base attack time is low and he has a critical strike. Illusions will benefit from both.
* Demonic Purge will prevent Juggernaut's desperate attempt to flee using Blade Fury. However, it cannot stop him if he is using 
Town Portal Scroll.
Invoker
* 
Crippling Fear is a good way to shut down and gank Invoker in the early game..
* 
Void deals good damage to Invoker and makes escaping harder.
* With 
Hunter in the Night and Void, Invoker can't get away from Night Stalker and won't be able to catch him with Sun Strike during the night.
Shadow Demon
* Heroes that can punish aggressive heroes, such as: 
Leshrac, Shadow Demon, Pugna, Death Prophet.
Invoker
* 
Tidebringer pressures Invoker easily in lane due to Invoker's low health and armor in the early game.
Shadow Demon
* Similarly, they can negate your X Marks The Spot & Torrent combo by protecting your target when you use Return. Good candidates to negate your combo include Outworld Destroyer and his 
Astral Imprisonment, and Shadow Demon and his Disruption.
* Heroes with hide abilities can often dodge a Ghostship just before it hits.
* Similarly, they can negate your X Marks The Spot & Torrent combo by protecting your target when you use Return. Good candidates to negate your combo include Outworld Destroyer and his Astral Imprisonment, and Shadow Demon and his Disruption.
* A Eul's Scepter of Divinity can also do the trick, but, unlike the previously mentioned abilities, you can only use it on yourself and not your allies.
Shadow Demon
* 
Dragon Slave will make quick work of the spawned illusions from Disruption.
* An attempt to save an ally using Disruption can easily become a perfect setup for a 
Light Strike Array for the enemy.
* Shadow Demon doesn't have the burst damage to take Lina out of the fight quickly, although Demonic Purge can help his allies kill a squishy Lina.
Invoker
* Heroes with long animations can be frequently interrupted with Cold Snap: 
Earthshaker, 
Monkey King, 
Shadow Fiend 
Lina
Invoker
* Tornado allows Invoker to purge Necrophos's 
Ghost Shroud, nullifying any benefits he could get out of it
* E.M.P. allows Invoker to burn Necrophos's mana, preventing him from using his abilities constantly
Shadow Demon
* Disruption can save an ally from a fatal Reaper's Scythe.
* Demonic Purge can remove Ghost Shroud, making Necrophos vulnerable to physical damage and preventing him from regenerating health.
Invoker
* 
Quas-
Exort Invoker can win the mid lane easily against Alchemist because Quas regeneration will nullify Acid Spray's damage over time and Exort damage bonus will allow Invoker to out last hit Alchemist.
Shadow Demon
* Alchemist is a well-known 
Radiance carrier among other auras your illusions will benefit from. They also get the extra move speed and reduced base attack time from his 
Chemical Rage, and it's even better if you can catch him as his own rage is about to expire.
* Disruption will buy enough time for all allies to retreat when Alchemist starts to activate 
Unstable Concoction.
Invoker
* Quas Exort Invoker has high physical damage in the form of Cold Snap and Forged Spirits that allows him to trade hits with Huskar.
* Although Huskar can dispel Cold Snap with Life Break.
* Sun Strike deals pure damage and pierces spell immunity, and Huskar tends to drain his HP, making him a susceptible target.
Shadow Demon
* Shadow Demon's Shadow Poison can quickly stack to the point where Huskars generally low health is easily finished off.
* Shadow Demon's Disruption can turn Huskar's high attack speed and regeneration against him, It also makes him an easy target for Shadow Poison,
* Shadow Demon commonly builds a 
Meteor Hammer, allowing him to land a heavy stun on Huskar
* Shadow Demon's upgraded Demonic Purge breaks Huskar, It also pierces Spell Immunity, Without his passive for 7 seconds Huskar quickly falls in battle
* However note that Shadow Demon is a squishy target and you can often overwhelm him if he is alone, But he can still Disrupt you to escape
Additional:
* Shadow Poison can quickly stack up on Huskar, And with his naturally low health you don't need as many stacks to be effective.
* Disruption turns Huskars high attack speed against him, They also have the highest survivability as illusions due to his passive 
Berserker's Blood, It also allows you to put Shadow Poison stacks on him,
* Dissimulate turns Huskar's burning damage against his team, You can cast it on an ally who is taking a bunch of 
Burning Spear stacks and cause Huskar to take high amounts of damage as well
* Scepter upgraded Demonic Purge is your most effective weapon against him, It's 7 second Break causes him to quickly die in battle
Invoker
* Invoker's arsenal of magical spells are troublesome for Sniper who has low HP and high armor, which does not benefit him much against Invoker.
* Besides magical damage, he can be disarmed and repeatedly mini-stunned with Cold Snap, preventing him from reacting.
* Leveling Quas can allow Invoker to lane effectively against Sniper despite right-click harassment.
Shadow Demon
* Heroes with high physical damage output but lack of reliable escape mechanisms are always a good target for a solo gank: 
Sniper, Shadow Fiend, 
Troll Warlord, Drow Ranger. Those heroes, however, are dangerous if they manage to close the gap, so take caution.
Invoker
* Ice Wall can slow down 
Charge of Darkness in its tracks at max level, allowing counterplays such as Cold Snap to end the charge, bursting down with Tornado, Meteor, and right clicks, or even teleporting back to spawn to drag Spirit Breaker into the fountain.
* Cold Snap (if timed right) and Invoker's other disables like Tornado can interrupt Charge of Darkness, especially since Charge is telegraphed by the symbol appearing over head.
Additional:
* Cold Snap allows Invoker to interrupt Charge of Darkness and Nether Strike.
* Tornado's long range can be used to cancel Charge of Darkness.
* Deafening Blast prevents Spirit Breaker from right clicking and thus proccing his Greater Bash.
Shadow Demon
* Heroes with ways to protect themselves or allies from Spirit Breaker's initiation: Shadow Demon, Outworld Destroyer, 
Omniknight, 
Dawnbreaker.
Invoker
* Heroes with high magical or pure damage will bypass Bulwark: 
Timbersaw, 
Dark Willow, Enigma, Invoker, Pugna, 
Skywrath Mage, 
Tinker, 
Zeus, Oracle.
Shadow Demon
* Heroes with break abilities: Shadow Demon (with Aghanim's Scepter), 
Viper.
Invoker
* Heroes with naturally low mana can be easily shut down by E.M.P.: Sven, 
Tiny, 
Wraith King, Omniknight
Shadow Demon
* Heroes that lose a great amount of damage output and become less threatening: 
Phantom Assassin, Sven, 
Slark, 
Phantom Lancer.
* Once you have an Aghanim's Scepter, Shadow Demon instantly reaches a new power spike and becomes a counter for a variety of heroes that have strong passives.
* Heroes that lose a great amount of their tankiness and become easier to finish off: 
Bristleback, 
Spectre, Phantom Assassin, 
Enchantress, 
Dragon Knight.
* Heroes that lose a great amount of damage output and become less threatening: Phantom Assassin, Sven, Slark, Phantom Lancer.
* You can always stack camps and farm the scepter with Shadow Poison.
Invoker
* Heroes with long animations can be frequently interrupted with Cold Snap: Earthshaker, Monkey King, Shadow Fiend Lina
Shadow Demon
* Heroes with high physical damage output but lack of reliable escape mechanisms are always a good target for a solo gank: Sniper, Shadow Fiend, Troll Warlord, Drow Ranger. Those heroes, however, are dangerous if they manage to close the gap, so take caution.
Invoker
* Heroes who can summon illusions and summons because Terrorblade has no abilities to deal with multiple enemies at once outside Reflection: Shadow Shaman, 
Naga Siren, 
Broodmother, Lycan, Enigma, Chaos Knight, Phantom Lancer, Shadow Demon, 
Dark Seer, 
Nature's Prophet, Invoker, 
Morphling, 
Visage, 
Grimstroke with Aghanim's Scepter.
Shadow Demon
* Heroes who can summon illusions and summons because Terrorblade has no abilities to deal with multiple enemies at once outside Reflection: Shadow Shaman, Naga Siren, Broodmother, Lycan, Enigma, Chaos Knight, Phantom Lancer, Shadow Demon, Dark Seer, Nature's Prophet, Invoker, Morphling, Visage, Grimstroke with Aghanim's Scepter.
Invoker
* Heroes with naturally low mana can be easily shut down by E.M.P.: Sven, Tiny, Wraith King, Omniknight
Additional:
* Tornado dispels Heavenly Grace and Guardian Angel from multiple targets.
* Guardian Angel is generally useless against Invoker as he primarily relies on magical damage.
* E.M.P. depletes Omniknight's already small mana pool.
* Invoker's many disables keep Omniknight's team occupied until Guardian Angel times out.
Shadow Demon
* Heroes that can purge buffs can dispel Guardian Angel: Invoker, Shadow Demon, Oracle.
Additional:
* Demonic Purge can dispel 
Guardian Angel on the key target during combat, allow your allies to finish them.
Shadow Demon
* Shadow Demon's spammable illusions can be used to scout Techies' 
Proximity Mines.
Shadow Demon
* For the same reason, he has to be slightly more cunning when playing against heroes that can scout the treeline, such as 
Ancient Apparition and his 
Ice Vortex and Shadow Demon and his Shadow Poison.
Invoker
* QW-Invoker perfectly resists Batrider in his attacks, since Batrider has a small mana reserve and depends very much on him - E.M.P. perfectly allows Invoker to deprive her, and he also has the abilities of Tornado and Cold Snap, which can help him fend off his attack, and possibly even kill along with his team
Additional:
* QW-Invoker perfectly resists Batrider in his attacks, since Batrider has a small mana reserve and depends very much on him - E.M.P. perfectly allows Invoker to deprive her, and he also has the abilities of Tornado and Cold Snap, which can help him fend off his attack, and possibly even kill along with his team
Shadow Demon
* Shadow Demon, Outworld Destroyer and Tusk can all save a Lasso'd teammate with their defensive spells.
Invoker
* Cold Snap can prevent Timbersaw from using both Timber Chain and Chakram due to the frequent stuns interrupting the lengthy cast animations, as well as stopping him mid-chain. This can negate Timbersaw's attempts to escape or dole out extra ability damage.
* Later in the game, Invoker's heavy magical and pure damage can be difficult to avoid, meaning Timbersaw's armor is less useful.
Invoker
* Invoker is a big problem for Tiny the whole game because of its multiple disables. For example, the Cold Snap ability can catch an attack from Tiny's hand by surprise, because it becomes slower with the pumping of 
Grow. has a giant deceleration, creating a condition for the kite, which Tiny is very afraid of. In addition, Invoker has a Deafening Blast that disables Tiny's main weapon - strong blows from the hand
Additional:
* Invoker is a big problem for Tiny the whole game because of its multiple disables. For example, such as Tornado + E.M.P. create unrealistic conditions for Tiny with mana, which is very necessary for Tiny at least for some attacks in a fight. The Cold Snap ability can catch an attack from Tiny's hand by surprise, because it becomes slower with the pumping of Grow. has a giant deceleration, creating a condition for the kite, which Tiny is very afraid of. In addition, Invoker has a Deafening Blast that disables Tiny's main weapon - strong blows from the hand
Shadow Demon
* Shadow Demon can waste precious seconds of 
Windrun with Disruption.
* Alternatively, Demonic Purge can be used to dispel it altogether, leaving her completely defenseless for 7 seconds.
* Disruption can be used to save an ally if they get stunned by 
Shackleshot.
Additional:
* Shadow Demon can waste precious seconds of Windrun with Disruption.
* Alternatively, Demonic Purge. can be used to dispel it altogether, leaving her completely defenseless.
* Disruption can be used to save an ally if they get stunned by Shackleshot.
Shadow Demon
* In the laning stage, making illusions of Venomancer will turn his 
Poison Sting back at him, making for an easy gank at level one, and for later when your mid comes for ganks.
Shadow Demon
* Disruption instantly removes Phantom Embrace, and can potentially save allies affected by Soulbind.
* Demonic Purge dispels Ink Swell.
Shadow Demon
* Chaos Knight, Lone Druid, Meepo and Arc Warden can be hard targets since Shadow Demon's spells are ill-suited to fight many enemies at once.
Invoker
* Invoker's Forge Spirit can negate 
Flux.
* Provided he does a right combo with Chaos Meteor, Invoker can easily burst down Arc Warden (plus his clone if he spawns it.)
* An early Orchid Malevolence can shut down Arc Warden pretty hard, especially when Invoker has a good lane against him if he kills him early on.
* Deafening Blast and Ice Wall limit's Arc Wardens mobility and damage, crippling him greatly.
Shadow Demon
* Heroes with summons or illusions can counter Flux, such as 
Beastmaster , 
Chen, or Shadow Demon.
Shadow Demon
* Her illusions with 
Desolate are very valuable, especially when they are usually paired with Radiance. Unlike blink or force movement, 
Spectral Dagger's escaping mechanic requires manual movement, and therefore Demonic Purge can hold her back really hard and allow your allies to finish her off.
* If she tries to kill you or any key ally with 
Haunt at any point of the game, remember to not panic and always use Disruption on the illusion, whether it is fake or the real Spectre herself. When the situation calls, Demonic Purge can save a second victim from a haunting Spectre.
* When upgraded by Aghanim's Scepter, Demonic Purge can remove Spectre from a fight by disabling Desolate and 
Dispersion, negating her damage and tankiness respectively.
Shadow Demon
* Disruption will save Shadow Demon's teammates from being killed by Counter Helix or Culling Blade.
* Demonic Purge slows Axe to a crawl, making him nearly useless after initiating. If Shadow Demon has Aghanim's Scepter, it will also break Counter Helix.
* 
Demonic Cleanse clears Battle Hunger and Aghanim's Shard Counter Helix Damage Reduction, both allowing targets to escape and reducing your own survivability.
Additional:
* While it is unwise to encounter Axe alone, Disruption can be used to save your allies from Axe's initiate 
Berserker's Call, or, if timed correctly, from his 
Culling Blade.
* Illusions spawned from Axe has the Counter Helix passive, which with deal some nasty damage if an enemy focuses them
* Your upgraded Demonic Purge breaks Axe's primary damage output: 
Counter Helix, This can be used on him during Berserker's Call to seriously hinder him.
* Demonic Cleanse will clear 
Battle Hunger, which is Axe's method of catching heroes, and Shard upgraded Counter Helix's Damage Reduction, which is one of Axe's primary survivability abilities.
Invoker
* Heroes with long lockdowns: Shadow Shaman, Legion Commander.
Invoker
* Invoker's spells will disable and destroy Legion Commander while she's locked in a 
Duel.
Shadow Demon
* Heroes who can hide the Dueled target (Outworld Destroyer, Shadow Demon, Tusk, 
Phoenix with Aghanim's Scepter etc).
Additional:
* Disruption can save allies and mess up an initiation from an enemy Legion Commander. Using Disruption on your ally that is affected by Duel will leave her totally exposed without the benefit of the life steal from 
Moment of Courage. A precise decision to Disrupt Legion Commander or her victim is crucial to waste Duel's potential.
* Demonic Purge cannot be dispelled by a hard dispel from 
Press the Attack, which in turn can be dispelled by your ultimate.
Shadow Demon
* Shadow Demon with an Aghanim's Scepter will use Demonic Purge to disable Curse of Avernus and the passive component of Borrowed Time. If this is combined with a silence, Borrowed Time will not trigger at all.
* Even without Aghanim's Scepter, he can still waste Borrowed Time with Disruption. Curse of Avernus fully works on illusions, turning the passive ability against him.
Invoker
* E.M.P. allows Invoker to burn Medusa's mana to weaken 
Mana Shield.
* Medusa's lack of mobility makes her easy to kite with Invoker's spells.
Additional:
* E.M.P. is a large mana burn nuke which can hit Medusa's Mana shield with enough damage to lose even more mana.
* Deafening Blast disarms Medusa's ability to deal pseudo-AOE damage during teamfights.
* Cold Snap allows the opposing team to repeatedly stun Medusa in short succession, preventing her from successfully casting her ultimate due to its long cast time.
Shadow Demon
* The constant dispel from Demonic Purge will make any attempt to save the victim or himself by 
Surge become futile. For what it's worth, Demonic Purge will also dispel 
Ion Shell.
Invoker
* Any hero with a low HP pool is easy for Tinker to nuke down: 
Crystal Maiden, Enchantress, 
Gyrocopter, Lion, Riki, 
Techies, 
Terrorblade, 
Necrophos, Invoker.
Invoker
* Tinker is relatively helpless against Invoker, as his 
Rearm and 
Boots of Travel can be easily interrupted by Invoker's long range disables, even if he blinks away.
Shadow Demon
* Heroes that can gain vision over trees to catch Tinker: Invoker, Shadow Demon, 
Batrider.
Shadow Demon
* Disruption can protect Shadow Demon's allies from Fortune's End, preserving healing or buffs. It can also catch Oracle's allies, allowing Shadow Poison to be used without being dispelled.
* Demonic Purge prevents over-time healing during False Promise, such as Purifying Flames and 
Urn of Shadows. If he has Aghanim's Scepter, this issue can persist for longer or on multiple allies.
* It will not, however, prevent healing from instant abilities, items, or auras, making 
Mekansm a good choice against him.
Invoker
* Cold Embrace is the perfect setup for all his nukes - Chaos Meteor, E.M.P. and especially global Sun Strike.
Shadow Demon
* Hex abilities prevent attacking, ability and item usage, which is a severe problem for Phantom Assassin as it prevents her from using Black King Bar, the one item that helps protect her against the aforementioned dangers. 
Doom and Shadow Demon with Aghanim's Scepter also disables Phantom Assassin's Evasion and Critical Strike, removing much of her damage and survivabaility: Doom, 
Disruptor with Aghanim's Scepter, Dazzle with 
Aghanim's Shard
Shadow Demon
* Heroes with break can disable Untouchable for a while: Doom and Shadow Demon (via Aghanim's Scepter), Viper, Shadow Shaman with Hex Breaks talent.
Invoker
* Heroes that can keep Marci for a long time in one place so she can't pursue her targets, like Bane, Lion, Shadow Shaman, Invoker, Disruptor and 
Kunkka.
Invoker
* Any hero who can counter-initiate in anticipation without getting caught in Reverse Polarity: Sven, Omniknight, Enigma, 
Luna, Naga Siren, 
Mars, 
Jakiro, 
Venomancer, 
Elder Titan, 
Faceless Void, 
Rubick, Keeper of the Light, Pugna, Invoker, Spectre, 
Alchemist, Treant Protector, Lina, Oracle, Zeus, Shadow Shaman, Phoenix, 
Razor, 
Huskar, Batrider, Kunkka, 
Tidehunter, Wraith King, Sand King, 
Medusa, Dawnbreaker.
Shadow Demon
* Heroes that lose a great amount of their tankiness and become easier to finish off: Bristleback, Spectre, Phantom Assassin, Enchantress, Dragon Knight.
* Once you have an Aghanim's Scepter, Shadow Demon instantly reaches a new power spike and becomes a counter for a variety of heroes that have strong passives.
* Heroes that lose a great amount of their tankiness and become easier to finish off: Bristleback, Spectre, Phantom Assassin, Enchantress, Dragon Knight.
* Heroes that lose a great amount of damage output and become less threatening: Phantom Assassin, Sven, Slark, Phantom Lancer.
* You can always stack camps and farm the scepter with Shadow Poison.
Invoker
* Heroes with long animations can be frequently interrupted with Cold Snap: Earthshaker, Monkey King, Shadow Fiend Lina
Shadow Demon
* Heroes with high physical damage output but lack of reliable escape mechanisms are always a good target for a solo gank: Sniper, Shadow Fiend, Troll Warlord, Drow Ranger. Those heroes, however, are dangerous if they manage to close the gap, so take caution.
Shadow Demon
* Heroes that lose a great amount of damage output and become less threatening: Phantom Assassin, Sven, Slark, Phantom Lancer.
* Once you have an Aghanim's Scepter, Shadow Demon instantly reaches a new power spike and becomes a counter for a variety of heroes that have strong passives.
* Heroes that lose a great amount of their tankiness and become easier to finish off: Bristleback, Spectre, Phantom Assassin, Enchantress, Dragon Knight.
* Heroes that lose a great amount of damage output and become less threatening: Phantom Assassin, Sven, Slark, Phantom Lancer.
* You can always stack camps and farm the scepter with Shadow Poison.
Invoker
* Heroes who can clear the waves of Enigma's Eidolons: Lina, Luna, Dawnbreaker, Jakiro, Shadow Shaman, Death Prophet, Keeper of the Light, Invoker, Leshrac, Puck.
Shadow Demon
* Heroes with summons or illusions makes Sacred Arrow harder to land: Shadow Demon, Phantom Lancer, Nature's Prophet.
Shadow Demon
* Shadow Demon's Demonic Purge with Aghanim's Scepter disables Bristleback's passives.
Shadow Demon
* Melee carries such as Sven, Ursa or Lifestealer can be slowed and easily kited with Demonic Purge.
Additional:
* Shadow Demon's Demonic Purge renders Ursa useless even through Black King Bar as it slows him, continually purges his Overpower charges and can not be dispelled by Ursa's Enrage.
* Disruption is a good way to save teammates against Ursa. Disrupting Ursa is also a good way to kite him, as it can not be dispelled by Enrage.
Invoker
* Invoker's multiple spells can lock down Undying and disable him from doing much.
Invoker
* Some heroes with extreme range, like Zeus, Invoker or 
Clockwerk, can snipe your allies from anywhere after your Grave has expired.
Invoker
* Invoker's E.M.P. is extremely effective against Earthshaker due to his low natural mana.
Invoker
* Astral Imprisonment allows Outworld Destroyer to save himself or ally from Invoker's combo, or remove Invoker from a fight temporarily.
* 
Arcane Orb's pure damage will deal a lot of damage against Invoker's mediocre strength gain.
* E.M.P. is useless against Outworld Destroyer by activating 
Equilibrium.
* However, be aware that 
Sanity's Eclipse will most likely not deal any damage at all, due to Invoker's high intelligence gain compared to Outworld Destroyer's.
Invoker
* Any heroes with high intelligence, such as Invoker and Pugna.
Shadow Demon
* Shadow Demon's Disruption will allow his allies to maneuver around you. It can also be used to protect an ally from your abilities, or Astral Imprisonment - Meteor Hammer combo.
* 
Disseminate turns your high damage Arcane Orb and Sanitiy's Eclipse against you and your teammates.
* Scepter upgraded Demonic Purge will break your Essence Flux passive for 7 seconds, preventing you from regaining mana, and severely hindering your damage output.
Invoker
* Heroes whose abilities can affect multiple enemies at once: Dawnbreaker, 
Ember Spirit, Lina, Luna, Jakiro, Leshrac, Invoker, 
Muerta, Dazzle.
Invoker
* Heroes with silence and mana drain abilites, as Ancient Apparition relies entirely on his abilities: Invoker, 
Silencer, Nyx Assassin, Skywrath Mage, Shadow Shaman, Lion and etc.
Shadow Demon
* Illusions and summons are double-edge sword type of matchup for Luna. On one hand, they can tank damage from Eclipse, but on the other hand, she can easily clear them before Eclipse with Moon Glaives. Examples include Spectre, Shadow Demon, Phantom Lancer, Naga Siren, Chaos Knight, Terrorblade) or bring other units into the fight (such as Nature's Prophet, Lone Druid, Chen, Enchantress, Meepo and Arc Warden).
Shadow Demon
* Demonic Purge takes off Luna's superior mobility, removing the need for chasing her and allowing your team to reposition in team fights or escape when at low HP. If Shadow Demon has Aghanim's Scepter it will also take away glaive bounces and extra damage from Luna's passive. And Luna's commonly items Manta Style and Black King Bar does not work dispell to Demonic Purge
* Luna's illusions created by Disruption are very valuable with their 
Moon Glaives. These will effectively counter her pushing attempts and are painfully effective in team fights.
* Disruption can be used to save an ally from 
Eclipse.
* For the same reasons, Shadow Demon makes a very powerful ally for Luna when they are in the same team.
Additional:
* Demonic Purge takes off Luna's superior mobility, removing the need for chasing her and allowing your team to reposition in team fights or escape when at low HP. If Shadow Demon has Aghanim's Sceptre it will also take away glaive bounces and extra damage from Luna's passive.
* Luna's illusions created by Disruption are very valuable with their Moon Glaives. These will effectively counter her pushing attempts and are painfully effective in team fights.
* Disruption can be used to save an ally from Eclipse.
* For the same reasons, Shadow Demon is a very good ally for Luna when they are in the same team.
Shadow Demon
* Although Phantom Lancer will generate strong illusions, and you can also break his 
Juxtapose with an Aghanim's Demonic Purge, you have a small chance of guessing which is the real Phantom Lancer after he uses 
Doppelganger.
Shadow Demon
* Shadow Demon's Demonic Purge is undispellable.
* Heroes with undispellable debuffs will help identify the real Phantom Lancer through visual effects or debuff indicators, provided that it was cast on the real Phantom Lancer to begin with:
* Doom's Doom marks Phantom Lancer with a highly visible effect, and also silences and mutes him.
* 
Bloodseeker's 
Rupture shows a clear red trail effect on the real Phantom Lancer.
* Ancient Apparition's 
Ice Blast will only debuff Phantom Lancer and not his illusions.
* Grimstroke's 
Soulbind is undispellable.
* Shadow Demon's Demonic Purge is undispellable.
* Monkey King's 
Jingu Mastery is undispellable and puts a big yellow Mark over his head.
Additional:
* Phantom Lancer's strength is the sheer amount of illusions he can conjure, Dissimulate can be cast on an ally that he is focusing to quickly thin out his ranks
* Landing a upgraded Demonic Purge on the real Phantom Lancer prevents him from making very many illusions (His only source being Doppelganger), You can reapply as needed if you have the Shard
* Disrupting Phantom Lancer allows you to create multiple extra illusions with Juxtapose, As he is a common carrier of 
Diffusal Blade, you can also drain the mana of any nearby heros
Invoker
* 
Corrosive Skin makes Viper receive less damage from Invoker's spells
* Viper can harass Invoker with his 
Poison Attack in the early game.
* 
Viper Strike and Poison Attack can kill Invoker easily if Ghost Walk is on cooldown.
Invoker
* Ice Wall and Ghost Walk can be used to kite and escape from Viper.
* Chaos Meteor and Sun Strike deal heavy damage and can quickly bring Viper down.
* Cold Snap, Tornado, and Deafening Blast are powerful disables that reduce Viper's effectiveness.
* E.M.P. burns Viper's limited mana pool, reducing his potential poison damage.
* Forge Spirits can melt Viper's armor and reduce his durability.
Invoker
* Time Walk can easily avoid Invoker's combo damage if doesn't have disables.
* Chronosphere will reveal Invoker during Ghost Walk.
* All of Invoker's hidden cooldowns are affected by Time Dilation, so Faceless Void can easily slow him down a lot.
Additional:
* 
Time Dilation prevents Invoker from further invoking for the entire duration of the debuff, as well as massively slowing Invoker based on the large amount of spells he has.
* 
Time Walk will completely negate Invoker's combo damage.
* If Invoker is caught in 
Chronosphere, he will most likely be the primary target due to the large teamfight contribution he can provide.
Shadow Demon
* Disruption can banish Faceless Void or an ally in Chronosphere, making it a less effective ability.
* Faceless Void's illusions created by Disruption will not get stunned by Chronosphere, allowing Shadow Demon to attack Faceless Void in his Chronosphere.
* Casting Disruption after releasing Shadow Poison charges will make Time Walk unable to backtrack the damage.
* Shadow Poison is a good way to deal damage as the initial damage and the release damage can't both be Time Walked at the same time.
* Demonic Purge is a great slow, useful to force out a Time Walk early and can break Time Lock with Aghanim's Scepter.
Shadow Demon
* Disruption is not reliable enough to catch an Ember Spirit with a backup 
Fire Remnant.
* 
Sleight of Fist will also make quick work of the spawned illusions.
* The best you can do against an Ember Spirit is to dispel his 
Flame Guard with your Demonic Purge.
Invoker
* Ember Spirit has a small mana pool, which is why QW-Invoker can burn it out very effectively with his own E.M.P., do not give Ember Spirit the opportunity to play with his abilities and cause damage with them in a fight.
* QW-Invoker Destroys Ember Spirit's Flame Guard with his own Tornado, which is why Ember Spirit cannot defend against Invoker's strong magic damage.
Additional:
* Ember Spirit has a small mana pool, which is why QW-Invoker can burn it out very effectively with his own E.M.P., do not give Ember Spirit the opportunity to play with his abilities and cause damage with them in a fight.
* QW-Invoker Destroys Ember Spirit's Flame Guard with his own Tornado, which is why Ember Spirit cannot defend against Invoker's strong magic damage.
Invoker
* Anti-Mage's mobility and magic resistance make him nearly impossible to kill alone.
* Invoker's spells cost a lot of mana, and Invoker himself has a lot of mana. This means Invoker and his team are vulnerable to 
Mana Void's heavy damage.
* 
Blink allows Anti-Mage to escape from Invoker's combo if he doesn't have disables.
Shadow Demon
* Disruption sets up Anti-Mage for a chain disable. The illusions will deal extra damage due to Mana Break.
* Shadow Poison hits Anti-Mage even after he's Blinked away.
* If Shadow Demon has Aghanim's Scepter, Demonic Purge can break Mana Break and Counterspell, weakening both his offense and defense.
Additional:
* While it is unwise to encounter Anti-Mage alone, Disruption's considerable cast range can become a perfect setup for any hard-disable to follow up. If he is pinned down, Anti-Mage will quickly face his demise when the illusions deplete his already low mana pool. 
Manta Style will easily allow him to escape, however.
* The illusions can be controlled to quickly sap mana from any other target, making Anti-Mage one of the most valuable targets to disrupt.
Invoker
* Heroes with silence: Death Prophet, Riki, Drow Ranger.
Shadow Demon
* Heroes with high physical damage output but lack of reliable escape mechanisms are always a good target for a solo gank: Sniper, Shadow Fiend, Troll Warlord, Drow Ranger. Those heroes, however, are dangerous if they manage to close the gap, so take caution.
Invoker
* Heroes that depend on disrupting fights with ability combos or big ultimate abilities are vulnerable to the long stun of Fiend's Grip: Disruptor, Death Prophet, Enigma, Faceless Void, Invoker, 
Lich, Magnus, Mars, Medusa, Outworld Destroyer, Phoenix, Puck, 
Queen of Pain, Shadow Fiend, Treant Protector, Underlord, Winter Wyvern, 
Witch Doctor, Zeus.
Shadow Demon
* Heroes with hiding abilities can protect disabled allies: Outworld Destroyer, Shadow Demon, Tusk, Phoenix with Aghanim's Scepter.
Shadow Demon
* Shadow Demon's Demonic Purge with Aghanim's Scepter cannot break 
Reincarnation, which could put him in a disadvantage against Wraith King if his whole team is with him.
* 
Vampiric Spirit can out-heal the damage from Shadow Demon's abilities.
* However, Wraith King is a single-target hero, so he cannot deal with Disruption illusions.
Invoker
* E.M.P. allows Invoker to burn Wraith King's mana to prevent Reincarnation from triggering (only until Wraith King gets his Aghanim's Shard).
* Ice Wall and Cold Snap are particularly crippling for Wraith King as they allow to kite him very effectively, preventing him from dealing melee attack damage.
Additional:
* Invoker can drain Wraith King's mana with E.M.P., preventing him from reincarnating unless Wraith King has his Aghanim's Shard.
* Even if Wraith King survives and reincarnates, Invoker still has an arsenal of spells to lockdown Wraith King, including an easily setup Ice Wall.
* Tornado applies an area dispel to clear skeletons.
Invoker
* Invoker is heavily dependent on his spells, making him useless during
Global Silence, as well as interrupting Invoker during his combo.
Arcane Curse is particularly deadly, because Invoker will continuously lose health if he keeps invoking and casting new spells.
Last Word will silence Invoker when he casts Invoke, interrupting his combo.
*
*
Shadow Demon
* Shadow Demon's main source of damage is his low cooldown, high damage spells - meaning Last Word and Global Silence will pretty much take him out of the game for the duration.
* Shadow Demon likes to spam his abilities, which makes him vulnerable to Arcane Curse.
* If Shadow Demon dies near Silencer, he will lose intelligence, reducing his mana pool, mana regen, and attack damage. Furthermore, if the game is long and Shadow Demon dies often, the intelligence losses will also reduce his spell damage.