Io
* 
Take Aim and 
Assassinate allow Sniper to reach Io even if it stays in the backline.
Grimstroke
* Sniper's position in the far back line makes him unlikely to be hit by any of Grimstroke's abilities during teamfights.
* Sniper is relatively unaffected by the silence from Phantom's Embrace.
* Sniper's long range and fast projectile speed allows him quickly to destroy any Phantoms attacking his allies.
Io
* Heroes with high mobility can approach Sniper: 
Anti-Mage, 
Earth Spirit, 
Io, 
Nature's Prophet, 
Pangolier, 
Puck, 
Queen of Pain and most notably 
Riki.
Io
* Heroes with either magical, physical or pure damage burst: 
Bane, 
Ember Spirit, 
Leshrac, 
Lina, 
Luna, 
Nyx Assassin, 
Phantom Assassin, 
Skywrath Mage, 
Tinker, 
Ursa, 
Void Spirit.
Grimstroke
* Heroes with powerful spammable abilities will prove problematic for Grimstroke as Ink Swell does not protect him from them: 
Zeus, Skywrath Mage, Tinker, Lina
Io
* Heroes with either magical, physical or pure damage burst: Bane, Ember Spirit, Leshrac, Lina, Luna, Nyx Assassin, Phantom Assassin, Skywrath Mage, Tinker, Ursa, Void Spirit.
Grimstroke
* Heroes with powerful spammable abilities will prove problematic for Grimstroke as Ink Swell does not protect him from them: Zeus, Skywrath Mage, Tinker, Lina
Io
* Heroes that can easily bypass Io's allies to get to Io: Riki, 
Tusk, 
Clinkz, 
Sniper, 
Slark, Phantom Assassin, Void Spirit, 
Storm Spirit, Ember Spirit, Earth Spirit, 
Spirit Breaker, 
Lifestealer.
Grimstroke
* Heroes with mobility spells can quickly escape from Stroke of Fate or break out of Soulbind: Anti-Mage, Queen of Pain, 
Morphling, Storm Spirit
Io
* Heroes with either magical, physical or pure damage burst: Bane, Ember Spirit, Leshrac, Lina, Luna, Nyx Assassin, Phantom Assassin, Skywrath Mage, Tinker, Ursa, Void Spirit.
Grimstroke
* Heroes with powerful spammable abilities will prove problematic for Grimstroke as Ink Swell does not protect him from them: Zeus, Skywrath Mage, Tinker, Lina
Io
* 
Cold Embrace can render the extra attack speed from 
Overcharge meaningless.
* 
Splinter Blast and 
Winter's Curse are very affective against Io, as it has to stay close to his 
Tethered target.
Io
* Ice Blast prevents Io from healing an ally with Tether and prevents healing from Overcharge
* Io is a common 
Mekansm builder which is useless if he is affected by Ice Blast.
Additional:
* 
Ice Blast prevents Io from healing the target.
* Ancient Apparition can easily harass Io on lane with 
Chilling Touch due to it's high range and damage. This can get even worse if Ancient Apparition buys 
Aghanim's Scepter and combines it with items that can give him bonus attack damage and attack speed.
* Chilling Touch combined with 
Ice Vortex makes it nearly impossible for Io to escape from 
Cold Feet. Ice Vortex can also make Io and it's tethered target more vulnerable to Ancient Apparition and his allies's magical damage.
Grimstroke
* 
Nether Swap breaks one ally out of Soulbind, and can be used to redistribute the shared damage to Vengeful Spirit herself.
Io
* Disruptor can always Glimpse back Io or his target after he 
Relocated nearby.
* Even better, thanks to the indicator on the ground, you can even preemptively drop Static Storm and Kinetic Field on the spot they will relocate to.
* Thunder Strike and Glimpse are also good tools to bring back an Io that Tethered away in the fog of war.
Additional:
* 
Glimpse directly negates Relocate.
* 
Kinetic Field prevents Io from escaping with Tether.
* 
Static Storm can silence and damage both, Io and it's tethered target. And it can also mute both, Io and it's tethered target when upgraded with Aghanim's Scepter.
Io
* 
Poison Touch allows Dazzle to harass both, Io and it's tethered target on lane. 
Aghanim's Shard upgraded Poison Touch can also hex both, Io and it's tethered target, preventing them from escaping with Relocate, and also disarming them, silencing them, muting them and rendering them helpless against Dazzle and his allies.
* Io's damage output is one of the weakest, therefore Dazzle will have plenty of time to save an ally with 
Shallow Grave from gank by Io and it's tethered target.
* 
Shadow Wave will always hit both, Io and it's tethered target if they are near the ally Dazzle uses Shadow Wave on, while healing Dazzle's allies near them. Aghanim's Scepter upgraded Shadow Wave can bounce on both, Io and it's tethered target, causing them both to take damage and to be attacked by Dazzle. And unlike Io who doesn't get healed while using Tether, Shadow Wave will always heal Dazzle no matter on which of his allies he uses it on.
* 
Bad Juju will cause both, Io and it's tethered target to lose armor every time Dazzle casts a spell while strengthening armor of Dazzle's allies.
Additional:
* Poison Touch allows Dazzle to harass both, Io and it's Tethered target on lane. Aghanim's Shard upgraded Poison Touch can also hex both, Io and it's Tethered target, preventing them from escaping with Relocate, and also disarming them, silencing them, muting them and rendering them helpless against Dazzle and his allies.
* Io's damage output is one of the weakest, therefore Dazzle will have plenty of time to save an ally with Shallow Grave from gank by Io and it's Tethered target.
* Shadow Wave will always hit both, Io and it's Tethered target if they are near the ally Dazzle uses Shadow Wave on, while healing Dazzle's allies near them. Aghanim's Scepter upgraded Shadow Wave allows Dazzle Shadow Wave directly on Io and it's Tethered target which can also bounce on both, Io and it's tethered target, causing them both to take damage and to be attacked by Dazzle. And unlike Io who doesn't get healed while using Tether, Shadow Wave will always heal Dazzle no matter on which of his allies he uses it on.
* Bad Juju will cause both, Io and it's tethered target to lose armor every time Dazzle casts a spell while strengthening armor of Dazzle's allies.
Io
* 
Strafe, 
Tar Bomb and 
Burning Barrage from Aghanim's Shard allow Clinkz to quickly kill Io due to its low armor.
* Clinkz iz a hero that very often goes for 
Orchid Malevolence, and its upgrade 
Bloodthorn. Alternatively, Clinkz also loves to buy 
Gleipnir. And if Clinkz has both of them, he will be able to root and silence Io and prevent him from escaping with either Tether or Relocate.
Io
* 
Thirst allows Bloodseeker to see where Io relocated to, should either Io or the tethered hero have low health.
* 
Rupture forces Io to stay in place, preventing it from using the Tether bonus movement speed to escape.
Grimstroke
* 
Phase Shift can easily disjoint Phantom Embrace and waste half of the Soulbind's duration.
* Puck is very mobile hero who can jump backsides and burst Grimstroke before he can cast anything.
Io
* Io is a hero who needs to be close to it's tethered target to make it effective, and that's where Leshrac gets the advantage thanks to many of his area-of-effect abilities.
* 
Lightning Storm will usually hit both Io and its tethered target since both will be close enough for the lightning to jump.
* 
Diabolic Edict and 
Pulse Nova hit all units near Leshrac, meaning he can do colossal damage to both, Io and its tethered target.
Additional:
* Lightning Storm will usually hit both Io and his Tethered target since both will be close enough for the lightning to jump. It can then be followed up by Split Earth.
* Diabolic Edict and Pulse Nova hit all units near Leshrac, meaning he can do colossal damage to Io and his Tethered target.
Io
* 
Charge of Darkness can be used to escape or counter-initiate against a Relocate gank.
* 
Greater Bash and 
Nether Strike is devastating due to Io's low armor, and can even knock it away from his Tethered target.
Io
* Lich's 
Chain Frost forces Io to either give up providing buff to his ally with Tether or suffer devastating damage with his Tethered ally.
* Lich can easily use 
Sinister Gaze to disable Io from getting away with Tether or Relocate.
Io
* Jakiro's area-of-effect ability arsenal allows him to affect multiple heroes at once, giving Io difficulties in saving them as he can only heal one hero at a time with Tether.
* 
Ice Path can be used to cancel both, Tether and Relocate.
* Jakiro commonly buys 
Rod of Atos that can be used to cancel Relocate, prevent Io in escaping with Tether and make Io easy target for Ice Path and 
Macropyre.
Additional:
* Jakiro's area-of-effect ability arsenal allows him to affect multiple heroes at once, giving Io difficulties in saving them as he can only heal one hero at a time with Tether.
* Ice Path can be used to cancel both, Tether and Relocate.
* Jakiro commonly buys Rod of Atos that can be used to cancel Relocate, prevent Io in escaping with Tether and make Io easy target for Ice Path and Macropyre.
Io
* Fireblast is a good tool to interrupt Io during its escapes through Tether.
* Ignite can be one of the few spells with enough total damage to out-trade the sustained healing Io provides for its fellow laner.
* However, picking other supports that focus less on the laning phase is generally a better choice against Io.
Grimstroke
* 
Disruption instantly removes Phantom Embrace, and can potentially save allies affected by Soulbind.
* 
Demonic Purge dispels Ink Swell.
Io
* 
Homing Missile can be used to cancel escape attempts with Relocate.
* 
Flak Cannon allows Gyrocopter to attack both, Io and his Tethered target, especially when upgraded with Aghanim's Scepter.
* 
Rocket Barrage and 
Call Down allow Gyrocopter to deal serious damage to both Io and his Tethered target.
Additional:
* Homing Missile can be used to cancel escape attempts with Relocate.
* Flak Cannon allows Gyrocopter to attack both, Io and his Tethered target, especially when upgraded with Aghanim's Scepter.
* Rocket Barrage and Call Down allow Gyrocopter to deal serious damage to both Io and his Tethered target.
Io
* 
Living Armor and 
Leech Seed can be used to save a hero from a Relocate gank.
* 
Overgrowth can be used to cancel escape attempts with Relocate.
* Once Treant Protector buys Aghanim's Scepter, he will gain access to 
Eyes in the Forest, that will allow him to enchant a tree which will grant him unobstructed vision in that location, allowing him to keep his allies alerted on Io and his Tethered's attempts to gank them, and which can also allow Overgrowth to damage them and root them if they are within a 800 radius of an tree affected by Eyes in the Forest.
Grimstroke
* 
Stroke of Fate provides Rubick with a short cooldown nuke.
* Note that Rubick uses a fixed 0.15 second cast time for the skill, much shorter than the 0.6 second cast time for Grimstroke.
* 
Phantom's Embrace is an unique ability with extra silence and damage.
* 
Ink Swell is a great initiation/counter-initiation ability for frontliners.
* With 
Telekinesis, Rubick can grant extra duration for Phantom's Embrace's phantom latch, or throw an enemy within the area covered by Ink Swell.
* 
Soulbind, as a powerful ultimate, gives Rubick extra crowd control and sows chaos among enemies.
* Both Telekinesis and 
Fade Bolt are single-target abilities, and can be applied twice on the enemy. The damage of Fade Bolt is effectively doubled as the bounce is very likely to happen as the bound heroes must walk together.
Io
* Batrider's 
Flaming Lasso can be used to cancel Io's attempts to escape with Relocate and drag him away from his Tethered target. And since Io doesn't like buying 
Linken's Sphere, he will be always vulnerable to Batrider's initiations.
* Io's tendency to stick close to it's Tethered target can make Io and it's target vulnerable to Batrider's harrasing.
* Aghanim's Scepter upgraded Flaming Lasso allows Batrider to catch and drag two heroes at once, not just one. Which can potentially turn Io's Tether against him.
Additional:
* Batrider's Flaming Lasso can be used to cancel Io's attempts to escape with Relocate and drag him away from his Tethered target. And since Io doesn't like buying Linken's Sphere, he will be always vulnerable to Batrider's initiations.
* Io's tendency to stick close to it's Tethered target can make Io and it's target vulnerable to Batrider's harrasing.
* Aghanim's Scepter upgraded Flaming Lasso allows Batrider to catch and drag two heroes at once, not just one. Which can potentially turn Io's Tether against him.
Io
* 
Phantom Strike allows Phantom Assassin jump directly to Io.
* 
Coup de Grace can make a short work of Io's low health and armor.
Io
* Heroes with both illusions and summons, for Io has nothing to deal with multiple enemies at once outside from Spirits's weak area-of-effect: 
Beastmaster, 
Broodmother, 
Chaos Knight, 
Lycan, 
Naga Siren, Nature's Prophet, 
Phantom Lancer, 
Shadow Shaman, 
Terrorblade, 
Visage, 
Warlock, 
Wraith King.
Io
* Heroes with both illusions and summons, for Io has nothing to deal with multiple enemies at once outside from Spirits's weak area-of-effect: Beastmaster, Broodmother, Chaos Knight, Lycan, Naga Siren, Nature's Prophet, Phantom Lancer, Shadow Shaman, Terrorblade, Visage, Warlock, Wraith King.
Io
* Heroes that can easily bypass Io's allies to get to Io: Riki, Tusk, Clinkz, Sniper, Slark, Phantom Assassin, Void Spirit, Storm Spirit, Ember Spirit, Earth Spirit, Spirit Breaker, Lifestealer.
Io
* Heroes with both illusions and summons, for Io has nothing to deal with multiple enemies at once outside from Spirits's weak area-of-effect: Beastmaster, Broodmother, Chaos Knight, Lycan, Naga Siren, Nature's Prophet, Phantom Lancer, Shadow Shaman, Terrorblade, Visage, Warlock, Wraith King.
Grimstroke
* Heroes with mobility spells can quickly escape from Stroke of Fate or break out of Soulbind: Anti-Mage, Queen of Pain, Morphling, Storm Spirit
Io
* Heroes whose abilities can affect multiple enemies at once: 
Dawnbreaker, Ember Spirit, Lina, Luna, 
Jakiro, Leshrac, 
Invoker, 
Muerta, 
Dazzle.
Io
* Heroes that are hard to gank: 
Axe, 
Death Prophet, Phantom Lancer, Slark, 
Centaur Warrunner, 
Bristleback, 
Medusa, 
Mars.
Io
* Heroes with either magical, physical or pure damage burst: Bane, Ember Spirit, Leshrac, Lina, Luna, Nyx Assassin, Phantom Assassin, Skywrath Mage, Tinker, Ursa, Void Spirit.
Grimstroke
* Fragile supports with low armor are always a good prey, also her Psionic Trap will wear down most attempts to flee with their built-in disables: 
Silencer, 
Crystal Maiden, Warlock, 
Ancient Apparition, 
Grimstroke, 
Witch Doctor
Io
* Heroes that are hard to gank: Axe, Death Prophet, Phantom Lancer, Slark, Centaur Warrunner, Bristleback, Medusa, Mars.
Io
* Fragile heroes: Bounty Hunter has decent nuking capabilities with Shiruken Toss and Jinada thus making fragile heroes easy picks for ganking. Few examples of such heroes are:Crystal Maiden, 
Pugna, Skywrath Mage, Io, Witch Doctor, etc.
Io
* Heroes whose abilities can affect multiple enemies at once: Dawnbreaker, Ember Spirit, Lina, Luna, Jakiro, Leshrac, Invoker, Muerta, Dazzle.
Io
* Heroes with both illusions and summons, for Io has nothing to deal with multiple enemies at once outside from Spirits's weak area-of-effect: Beastmaster, Broodmother, Chaos Knight, Lycan, Naga Siren, Nature's Prophet, Phantom Lancer, Shadow Shaman, Terrorblade, Visage, Warlock, Wraith King.
Io
* Squishy heroes (Io, Crystal Maiden, Lina...), as Earth Spirit can deal tons of damage with Magnetize.
Io
* Heroes that are hard to gank: Axe, Death Prophet, Phantom Lancer, Slark, Centaur Warrunner, Bristleback, Medusa, Mars.
Io
* Heroes with either magical, physical or pure damage burst: Bane, Ember Spirit, Leshrac, Lina, Luna, Nyx Assassin, Phantom Assassin, Skywrath Mage, Tinker, Ursa, Void Spirit.
Grimstroke
* Heroes with powerful spammable abilities will prove problematic for Grimstroke as Ink Swell does not protect him from them: Zeus, Skywrath Mage, Tinker, Lina
Grimstroke
* Heroes with mobility spells can quickly escape from Stroke of Fate or break out of Soulbind: Anti-Mage, Queen of Pain, Morphling, Storm Spirit
Io
* Heroes with either magical, physical or pure damage burst: Bane, Ember Spirit, Leshrac, Lina, Luna, Nyx Assassin, Phantom Assassin, Skywrath Mage, Tinker, Ursa, Void Spirit.
Io
* Heroes that can easily bypass Io's allies to get to Io: Riki, Tusk, Clinkz, Sniper, Slark, Phantom Assassin, Void Spirit, Storm Spirit, Ember Spirit, Earth Spirit, Spirit Breaker, Lifestealer.
Io
* Heroes that can easily bypass Io's allies to get to Io: Riki, Tusk, Clinkz, Sniper, Slark, Phantom Assassin, Void Spirit, Storm Spirit, Ember Spirit, Earth Spirit, Spirit Breaker, Lifestealer.
Io
* Heroes that are hard to gank: Axe, Death Prophet, Phantom Lancer, Slark, Centaur Warrunner, Bristleback, Medusa, Mars.
Io
* Heroes with both illusions and summons, for Io has nothing to deal with multiple enemies at once outside from Spirits's weak area-of-effect: Beastmaster, Broodmother, Chaos Knight, Lycan, Naga Siren, Nature's Prophet, Phantom Lancer, Shadow Shaman, Terrorblade, Visage, Warlock, Wraith King.
Io
* Heroes with the ability to heal allies will not be able to heal heroes affected by 
Doom: 
Chen, Dazzle, Io, 
Oracle, 
Omniknight, Witch Doctor, 
Winter Wyvern, 
Abaddon, etc.
Io
* 
Ensnare and 
Song of the Siren can be used to cancel both, Tether and Relocate and to close the distance on Io.
* 
Rip Tide combined with illusions from 
Mirror Image often finish off Io before he can save himself with Tether or Relocate.
* 
Spirits's weak area-of-effect makes it a bad tool to deal with Naga Siren's illusions from Mirror Image.
* Once Naga Siren buys Aghanim's Scepter, she can gain access to 
Reel In, which not only allows her to cancel both, Tether and Relocate, but also to pull Io to herself and her team while he is affected with Ensnare, similarly to Batrider's Flaming Lasso.
* Aghanim's Shard upgraded Song of the Siren can also heal the hero Io and his Tethered targed try to gank.
Additional:
* Ensnare and Song of the Siren can be used to cancel both, Tether and Relocate and to close the distance on Io.
* Rip Tide combined with illusions from Mirror Image often finish off Io before he can save himself.
* Spirit's weak area-of-effect makes it a bad tool to deal with Naga Siren's illusions from Mirror Image.
* Once Naga Siren buys Aghanim's Scepter, she can gain access to Reel In, which not only allows her to cancel both, Tether and Relocate, but also to pull Io to herself and her team while he is affected with Ensnare, similarly to Batrider's Flaming Lasso.
* Aghanim's Shard upgraded Song of the Siren can also heal the hero Io and his tethered targed try to gank.
Grimstroke
* Heroes who are reliant on illusions or summons: Chaos Knight, Broodmother, Naga Siren.
Io
* 
Lucent Beam can be used to cancel both, Tether and Relocate.
* Like with Leshrac's Diabolic Edict, Lightning Storm and Pulse Nova abilities. Luna's 
Moon Glaives and 
Eclipse abilities can make short work of Io and its tethered ally, particularly when upgraded with Aghanim's Scepter.
Additional:
* Lucent Beam and 0.25s Eclipse Lucent Ministun talent for Eclipse can be used to cancel both, Tether and Relocate.
* Luna's Moon Glaives and Eclipse abilities can make short work of Io and its tethered ally, particularly when upgraded with Aghanim's Scepter.
Grimstroke
* Hard-hitters who relies mostly on raw stats or good passive and therefore make a perfect target for 
Dark Portrait: Naga Siren, 
Faceless Void, Terrorblade, Luna, Anti-Mage
Io
* Io can escape from Pit of Malice with Tether or Relocate.
* Relocate can counter Dark Rift's split pushing.
Grimstroke
* Heroes with strong area-of-effect damaging and/or disabling abilities will be able to intercept Underlord and his team when they exit from Fiend's Gate: Luna's Aghanim's Scepter upgraded Eclipse, Dawnbreaker's 
Solar Guardian, Axe's 
Berserker's Call, Mars's 
Arena of Blood, Jakiro's Macropyre, 
Dual Breath and Ice Path, Naga Siren's Song of the Siren, 
Razor's 
Eye of the Storm and 
Plasma Field, Lina's 
Light Strike Array, Broodmother's 
Spinner's Snare from Aghanim's Scepter, 
Elder Titan's 
Earth Splitter and 
Echo Stomp, 
Alchemist's 
Unstable Concoction and 
Acid Spray, Queen of Pain's 
Sonic Wave, 
Dark Seer's 
Wall of Replica and 
Vacuum, 
Venomancer's 
Noxious Plague and 
Poison Nova from Aghanim's Scepter, Oracle's 
Fortune's End and 
Rain of Destiny from Aghanim's Shard, 
Bloodseeker's 
Blood Rite, 
Enigma's 
Black Hole and 
Midnight Pulse, 
Shadow Fiend's 
Requiem of Souls, 
Batrider's Aghanim's Scepter upgraded Flaming Lasso, 
Firefly, 
Flamebreak and 
Sticky Napalm, Ancient Apparition's Ice Blast, 
Sand King's 
Epicenter, 
Sand Storm and 
Burrowstrike, 
Gyrocopter's Call Down, Ember Spirit's 
Sleight of Fist, Death Prophet's 
Exorcism and 
Silence, 
Monkey King's 
Wukong's Command, Crystal Maiden's 
Freezing Field, Muerta's 
The Calling, Medusa's 
Stone Gaze, Zeus's 
Nimbus from Aghanim's Scepter. 
Dark Willow's 
Bramble Maze, Pangolier's 
Swashbuckle, Grimstroke's Soulbind, Ink Swell and Stroke of Fate, 
Earthshaker's 
Echo Slam and 
Fissure, Puck's 
Dream Coil and 
Waning Rift, Winter Wyvern's Winter's Curse, 
Magnus's 
Reverse Polarity.
Io
* Tether and Overcharge makes it much harder for Pudge to kill a target with 
Meat Hook, and Relocate can save the Io's ally while 
Dismember is being channeled.
Grimstroke
* Heroes with powerful channeling abilities are easily interrupted by Phantom's Embrace: Bane, 
Pudge, Witch Doctor, Crystal Maiden, Enigma.
Grimstroke
* Soulbind ignores spell immunity, forcing Pangolier to roll in place during his ultimate as well as anchoring the other victim to his vicinity.
Grimstroke
* Timbersaw relies heavily on his abilities so Phantom's Embrace's silence makes it more difficult for him.
* Timbersaw cannot use 
Return Chakram or attack the phantom during Phantom's Embrace, forcing him to take full damage and refreshes Phantom's Embrace's cooldown.
Additional:
* Timbersaw is completely powerless against Phantom's Embrace if 
Chakram is out.
Grimstroke
* Phantom's Embrace can silence Crystal Maiden and disrupt Freezing Field's channeling. Her slow movement speed and fragile nature will also make her an easy target for Stroke of Fate and Ink Swell.
Grimstroke
* Soulbind pierces spell immunity and prevents Faceless Void from escaping with Time Walk.
Grimstroke
* Phantom's Embrace and Soulbind prevent Weaver from using 
Shukuchi or 
Time Lapse to escape.
* Ink Swell discourages Weaver from moving through and damaging allies with Shukuchi.
Grimstroke
* 
Ghost Shroud amplifies damage taken from all of Grimstroke's abilities. Necrophos is particularly vulnerable to Ink Swell and Phantom's Embrace while in Ghost Shroud.
* 
Death Pulse works against Necrophos in lane by keeping his creeps alive and add damage to Stroke of Fate.
Io
* Drow Ranger's lack of escape abilities makes her an easy target for Relocate ganks.
Io
* Phoenix's limit AoE, damage-over-time abilities give Io plenty of time to save allies with Relocate.
Grimstroke
* Grimstroke's Soulbind will always reliably connect onto both of them if they are close together.
Io
* Tether helps Io escape from Earthbind even if Meepo has Blink Dagger.
* Io's Spirits can pressure Meepo while laning and will usually hit at least one of his clones.
Grimstroke
* Windranger heavily relies on her abilities for any form of tactical advantage and damage. A well timed silence will make her useless: Puck,Silencer, Death Prophet, Skywrath Mage, 
Drow Ranger, Earth Spirit, Grimstroke.
Grimstroke
* Heroes who rely heavily on melee attacks and lack early spell immunity are easily blocked and interrupted by Ink Swell: Lycan, Ursa, 
Troll Warlord.
Grimstroke
* Heroes with powerful channeling abilities are easily interrupted by Phantom's Embrace: Bane, Pudge, Witch Doctor, Crystal Maiden, Enigma.
Grimstroke
* Heroes with powerful channeling abilities are easily interrupted by Phantom's Embrace: Bane, Pudge, Witch Doctor, Crystal Maiden, Enigma.
Io
* 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.
Io
* Heroes with both illusions and summons, for Io has nothing to deal with multiple enemies at once outside from Spirits's weak area-of-effect: Beastmaster, Broodmother, Chaos Knight, Lycan, Naga Siren, Nature's Prophet, Phantom Lancer, Shadow Shaman, Terrorblade, Visage, Warlock, Wraith King.
Grimstroke
* Stroke of Fate's damage increases the more units are hit by it, making it effective against Phantom Lancer's army of illusions.
* Phantom's Embrace and Ink Swell's stun can prevent Phantom Lancer from escaping with 
Doppelganger if properly timed.
* If he has already used Doppelganger, Soulbind can tie Phantom Lancer to one of his own illusions to keep him in place, or to ensure a kill if Grimstroke's team is unsure which one is the real hero.
Additional:
* Stroke of Fate clears Phantom Lancer's illusion easily as it deals bonus damage to more targets.
* Ink Swell can be used on an allied hero or Grimstoke himself to stun Phantom Lancer and his illusions.
* Soulbind has an undispellable debuff that can be used to mark the real Phantom Lancer. It also prevents him from using Doppelganger.
Io
* Heroes with both illusions and summons, for Io has nothing to deal with multiple enemies at once outside from Spirits's weak area-of-effect: Beastmaster, Broodmother, Chaos Knight, Lycan, Naga Siren, Nature's Prophet, Phantom Lancer, Shadow Shaman, Terrorblade, Visage, Warlock, Wraith King.
Io
* Nature's Prophet is extremely easy to gank with Relocate while he's split pushing.
* Tether on a friendly unit can destroy Nature Prophet's trees should he surround himself with 
Sprout as a defense.
Io
* Heroes that can easily bypass Io's allies to get to Io: Riki, Tusk, Clinkz, Sniper, Slark, Phantom Assassin, Void Spirit, Storm Spirit, Ember Spirit, Earth Spirit, Spirit Breaker, Lifestealer.
Grimstroke
* Phantom's Embrace cannot be dispelled by Slark's 
Dark Pact, and will cause him to suffer damage if he doesn't kill Phantom fast enough.
* Soulbind also cannot be dispelled by Slark's Dark Pact, and will cause Slark to suffer from a single-targeted ability used on his ally that is also affected by it.
Grimstroke
* Heroes with mobility spells can quickly escape from Stroke of Fate or break out of Soulbind: Anti-Mage, Queen of Pain, Morphling, Storm Spirit
Grimstroke
* A combination of Soulbind and Phantom's Embrace can prevent Anti-Mage from casting spells.
* If Grimstroke has Aghanim's Scepter, Dark Portrait can reflect Anti-Mage's Mana Break, making it useful in team fights.
Io
* Heroes whose abilities can affect multiple enemies at once: Dawnbreaker, Ember Spirit, Lina, Luna, Jakiro, Leshrac, Invoker, Muerta, Dazzle.
Grimstroke
* Any long duration disables that can pierce through both, Pierce The Veil and 
Black King Bar are devastating against Muerta: Enigma's Black Hole, Dawnbreaker's Solar Guardian, Axe's Berserker's Call, Naga Siren's Aghanim's Scepter upgraded Ensnare and Reel In from Aghanim's Scepter, Jakiro's Aghanim's Scepter upgraded Macropyre, Bane's 
Fiend's Grip, Pudge's Dismember, Batrider's Flaming Lasso, Beastmaster's 
Primal Roar, Grimstroke's Soulbind, Medusa's Stone Gaze, Magnus's Reverse Polarity.
Io
* Heroes with both illusions and summons, for Io has nothing to deal with multiple enemies at once outside from Spirits's weak area-of-effect: Beastmaster, Broodmother, Chaos Knight, Lycan, Naga Siren, Nature's Prophet, Phantom Lancer, Shadow Shaman, Terrorblade, Visage, Warlock, Wraith King.
Grimstroke
* Heroes who are reliant on illusions or summons: Chaos Knight, Broodmother, Naga Siren.
Io
* Terrorblade can easily take advantage of Io's weak durability with 
Reflection and 
Metamorphosis.
* As Io relies on boosting his and his Tethered target's attack speed with Overcharge, Terrorblade can take advantage of this with Reflection, which can damage and slow both, Io and his Tethered target.
* Spirits's weak area-of-effect makes it a bad tool to deal with Terrorblade's illusions from 
Conjure Image and 
Manta Style.
* Io's damage output is one of the weakest, therefore Terrorblade will have plenty of time to save himself with 
Sunder.
* However, Terrorblade has no way of stopping Io to escape with Tether or to stop both, Io and his Tethered target to escape with Relocate besides 
Terror Wave from Aghanim's Scepter.
Additional:
* Terrorblade can easily take advantage of Io's weak durability with Reflection and Metamorphosis.
* As Io relies on boosting his and his Tethered target's attack speed with Overcharge, Terrorblade can take advantage of this with Reflection, which can damage and slow both, Io and his Tethered target.
* Spirits's weak area-of-effect makes it a bad tool to deal with Terrorblade's illusions from Conjure Image and Manta Style.
* Io's damage output is one of the weakest, therefore Terrorblade will have plenty of time to save himself with Sunder.
* However, Terrorblade has no way of stopping Io to escape with Tether or to stop both, Io and it's Tethered target to escape with Relocate besides Terror Wave from Aghanim's Scepter.
Grimstroke
* Terrorblade's lack of escape mechanisms makes it hard for him to escape both Ink Swell and Stroke of Fate.
* Phantom's Embrace's silence will also prevent him from casting Sunder to save himself.
Io
* Heroes with both illusions and summons, for Io has nothing to deal with multiple enemies at once outside from Spirits's weak area-of-effect: Beastmaster, Broodmother, Chaos Knight, Lycan, Naga Siren, Nature's Prophet, Phantom Lancer, Shadow Shaman, Terrorblade, Visage, Warlock, Wraith King.
Grimstroke
* Heroes who rely heavily on melee attacks and lack early spell immunity are easily blocked and interrupted by Ink Swell: Lycan, Ursa, Troll Warlord.
Additional:
* Stroke of Fate deals more damage when it hits more targets which makes it very effective in dealing with Lycan and his units.
* Soulbind prevents Lycan from running away and makes him very easy to deal with.
Io
* Heroes with both illusions and summons, for Io has nothing to deal with multiple enemies at once outside from Spirits's weak area-of-effect: Beastmaster, Broodmother, Chaos Knight, Lycan, Naga Siren, Nature's Prophet, Phantom Lancer, Shadow Shaman, Terrorblade, Visage, Warlock, Wraith King.
Grimstroke
* Heroes with area of effect abilities that increase in power based on the number of units struck: Earthshaker, 
Legion Commander, Grimstroke.
Additional:
* Stroke of Fate can deal heavy damage to Broodmother and her spiders, and with enough spiders it can kill her instantly.
* Phantom's Embrace provides vision on Broodmother when she's fleeing into the trees.
Io
* 
Quill Spray is very effective against Io, as it has very low armor and has to stay close to the fight to not break its Tether.
Grimstroke
* Phantom's Embrace silences Viscous Nasal Goo and Quill Spray.
* Ink Swell stuns Bristleback and gets allies in position faster with increased movement speed to attack his front, countering his passive ability.
Io
* 
Duel is very effective against Io due to its low health and armor.
Io
* Tethered heroes are much harder for Legion Commander to kill in Duels.
* Relocate can cancel Duels and save allies.
Io
* Heroes with either magical, physical or pure damage burst: Bane, Ember Spirit, Leshrac, Lina, Luna, Nyx Assassin, Phantom Assassin, Skywrath Mage, Tinker, Ursa, Void Spirit.
Grimstroke
* Heroes who rely heavily on melee attacks and lack early spell immunity are easily blocked and interrupted by Ink Swell: Lycan, Ursa, Troll Warlord.
Io
* Heroes with either magical, physical or pure damage burst: Bane, Ember Spirit, Leshrac, Lina, Luna, Nyx Assassin, Phantom Assassin, Skywrath Mage, Tinker, Ursa, Void Spirit.
Grimstroke
* Heroes with powerful channeling abilities are easily interrupted by Phantom's Embrace: Bane, Pudge, Witch Doctor, Crystal Maiden, Enigma.
Io
* Heroes that are hard to gank:
Axe, 
Death Prophet, 
Phantom Lancer, 
Slark, 
Centaur Warrunner, 
Bristleback, 
Medusa, 
Mars.
Grimstroke
*
Stampede can allow Soulbinded heroes to just ran away.