* Keeper of the Light's
Aghanim's Scepter upgrade loses much of its power, due to Night Stalker being able to reduce the duration of daytime by a lot.
Additional:
*
Crippling Fear prevents Keeper of the Light from using his spells to keep his team alive during team-fights.
*
Dark Ascension is very strong against Keeper of the Light, as it allows Night Stalker to jump the backline and quickly kill the squishy Ezalor, especially when combined with the slow from
Void.
*
Dark Ascension reduces vision for the enemy team, which makes it more difficult for Magnus to initiate with Blink Dagger and Reverse Polarity. It is also more likely that Night Stalker will scout out Magnus with
Aghanim's Scepter and a
Gem of True Sight, after which he can silence Magnus with
Crippling Fear.
* Jakiro's reliance on his abilities can cause struggles for heroes who rely on evasion or blinds to get upper hand:
Phantom Assassin,
Windranger,
Riki,
Troll Warlord,
Keeper of the Light.
* Jakiro's abilities deal damage over time, which can disrupt Magnus's attempts to initiate with Blink Dagger and Reverse Polarity.
*
Macropyre not only disables Blink Dagger for a considerable duration, but can also destroy Trees, revealing Magnus's cover and position.
* Vulnerable spellcasters with no escape mechanisms are easy targets for Huskar:
Lich,
Crystal Maiden,
Silencer,
Keeper of the Light,
Venomancer, etc.
* Magnus cannot manfight Huskar even with Empower,
Berserker's Blood's high attack speed and health regeneration, combined with Huskar's high health and
Burning Spear stacks will allow Huskar to kill Magnus before he can kill him.
* From a safe distance, Huskar can surprise and counter Magnus's initiation with
Life Break and
Burning Spear.
*
Burning Spear also deals damage over time, disabling Blink Dagger and preventing him from initiating or escaping.
* Pugna easily copes on the line with the Keeper of the Light push with his
Nether Blast, and in addition to
Nether Ward, the Keeper of the Light is not able to throw
Illuminate on creeps for a long time, so Pugna earns more gold and a level on the line
Additional:
* Pugna easily copes on the line with the Keeper of the Light push with his
Nether Blast, and in addition to
Nether Ward, the Keeper of the Light is not able to throw
Illuminate on creeps for a long time, so Pugna earns more gold and a level on the line
* 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.
* Heroes with dispels:
Legion Commander,
Oracle,
Slark,
Phantom Lancer
* 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.
* Zeus can easily find Magnus who is often hiding in the trees with
Thundergod's Wrath and
Lightning Bolt, which allows him to warn allies and disrupt his initiation attempts.
* Magnus has very mediocre damage against Alchemist, because he can survive the stun duration of Reverse Polarity with
Chemical Rage.
* Being an intelligence caster hero, Ezalor usually has a high mana pool and low health and armor, making him a prime target for
Mana Void
* Ezalor's Illuminate damage and Solar Bind's magic resistance reduction are greatly reduced thanks to
Counterspell. Counterspell can also block and reflect Solar Bind if timed properly.
* Anti-Mage usually is not hampered by Solar Bind or Will-O-Wisp thanks to
Blink.
* However, despite all of this, if Keeper of the Light is played carefully and tops off his team's mana at all times, Anti Mage will not be able to get off a good Mana Void.
* By the same token once Keeper of the Light gets a
Octarine Core, he can spam Charka Magic to keep his own mana ful
* Heroes who build mana boosting items but have low mana regeneration are especially vulnerable against Mana Break and Mana Void:
Timbersaw,
Slark,
Shadow Fiend,
Clinkz,
Bristleback
Nyx Assassin,
Magnus
Additional:
* Anti-Mage can survive against Magnus's
Reverse Polarity thanks to the high magic resistance from
Counterspell.
* Should Anti-Mage survive Magnus's
Reverse Polarity and
Skewer, Magnus will have exhausted most of his skills and items, preventing him from defending himself against any counter initiation or a follow-up from a blink escape.
*
Mana Break can deplete Magnus's much needed mana.
* Anti-Mage's
Blink will make him a very hard target or Magnus to use
Reverse Polarity on, having to solo ult him later on in the game or leave him out of the
Reverse Polarity.
* Overall, any attempt for Magnus to gank Anti-Mage will hurt him more than it will hurt Anti-Mage.
*
Keeper of the Light can stall pushes with
Illuminate. This makes him strong against pushing heroes:
Terrorblade
Naga siren
Nature's Prophet and
Anti-Mage
* Disruptor can disable Magnus's Blink Dagger using
Thunder Strike during a considerable duration, disrupting his initiation attempts.
*
Glimpse brings Magnus back after he escapes with Skewer and/or Force Staff.
*
Static Storm if used on a fight can prevent Magnus from using Reverse Polarity after he jumps in.
* If Luna can use
Eclipse in anticipation, Magnus will be killed before he can even manages to cast
Reverse Polarity.
*
Aghanim's Scepter upgraded
Eclipse is a very good counter-initiation tool against Magnus when he casts
Reverse Polarity, granted as long as Luna can cast it from safe distance.
* Phoenix will usually be on the sidelines or further back ready to use
Sun Ray. Even after Magnus successfully uses Reverse Polarity and skewer Phoenix's teammates, Phoenix can usually counter-initiate using all of its abilities.
* Low health spellcasters:
Lina,
Witch Doctor,
Tinker,
Keeper of the Light, all rely heavily on their spells and are fragile heroes. They all also have avoidable spells, allowing Puck to get to them and quickly burst them down.
*
Illusory Orb serves as a good scouting tool whenever Magnus is hiding in the trees, allowing Puck to warn its allies and disrupt his initiation attempts.
*
Phase Shift allows Puck to dodge Shockwave when timed correctly.
* Even after Magnus successfully uses Reverse Polarity and Skewer Puck's teammates, Puck can usually counter-initiate using both
Waning Rift and
Dream Coil.
* Magnus cannot use Skewer when he is affected by
Dream Coil, making him vulnerable to follow-up disables.
* Puck usually gets its own
Blink Dagger as well, which makes it harder to lock down unless Magnus commits Reverse Polarity only for Puck.
* Heroes who are strong against mobile heroes:
Disruptor,
Bloodseeker,
Kunkka,
Keeper of the Light.
*
Plasma Field can slow Magnus during Skewer, and when combined with
Eye of the Storm, will potentially disable his Blink Dagger, preventing him from initiating.
*
Static Link drains the bonus damage from Empower. However, it can be broken by Skewer and/or Force Staff.
*
Storm Surge gives Razor and his allies high mobility needed to avoid Shockwave & Reverse Polarity.
*
Reverse Polarity, if stolen, can counter-initiate
Magnus's team and put them at a huge disadvantage.
* Magnus himself is positioned at the center of teamfight after casting
Reverse Polarity, and will be stunned by Rubick's stolen one most of the times.
* Bear in mind that Magnus will usually cass
Skewer or
Shockwave after he casts the ultimate, so the time windows left for steal can be short.
*
Shockwave allows Rubick to farm fast, and also deals decent AoE damage in teamfights.
*
Empower can be casted on the carry (especially affective if melee) on Rubick's team to accelerate their farm or amplify their damage in fights.
*
Skewer could be used to displace enemy or escape from danger.
*
Telekinesis can relocate the enemy in front of Rubick for
Skewer.
* With Quick Cast enabled, Rubick can stop the enemy Magnus with careful prediction using
Telekinesis to interrupt
Horn Toss -
Skewer combo.
Additional:
* All of Magnus's spells are perfect for Rubick to steal, especially Reverse Polarity for a counter-initiation.
*
Telekinesis is one of the best instant-disables in the game, completely ruining Magnus's initiation.
* Being a cast-oriented hero, Ezalor will suffer from all of Silencer's abilities.
*
Global Silence is a guaranteed lengthy silence which will render Ezalor useless in a teamfight.
*
Arcane Curse and
Last Word are good against any caster, since they are extremely potent.
* However, it should be worth mentioning that a smart Ezalor will buy Eul's Scepter of Divinity to dispel Silencer's abilities. Combined with the level 20 talent (Chakra Magic applies a basic dispel), Ezalor can purge Silencer's abilities off allies and himself alike.
* Spectre can use
Haunt to intercept and disrupt Magnus's initiation attempts.
*
Spectral Dagger can severely slow down Magnus after he uses
Skewer.
* Magnus often travels alone when he is trying to initiate, so
Desolate can be very effective against him.
* In late game, Spectre can survive
Reverse Polarity initiation thanks to
Dispersion.
Additional:
* Spectre disables Magnus' Blink Dagger using her ultimate, and later into the game can usually outlive Reverse Polarity's duration.
* Tinker can break Magnus's Blink Dagger using
March of the Machines and
Heat-Seeking Missile, therefore delaying any initiation or making Magnus use Skewer or
Force Staff to initiate. His {Ability ID:Defense Matrix|Tinker} will decrease the duration of Reverse Polarity and can also be cast on all of his teammates with {Ability ID:Rearm|Tinker}. Tinker usually gets his own Blink Dagger as well, which makes him harder to lock down unless Magnus commits Reverse Polarity only for Tinker.
* Treant Protector can usually scout out Magnus in the trees with
Eyes in the Forest and disrupt his initiation attempts. He can also counter Magnus' initiation with
Overgrowth.
* Venomancer can simultaneously scout Magnus hiding in trees and putting
Blink Dagger on cooldown with Plague Wards, which makes Magnus real problems to blink and initiate.
Additional:
* Similar to Night Stalker, Venomancer can simultaneously scout Magnus hiding in trees and put Blink Dagger on cooldown with
Plague Ward, which gives Magnus problems when trying to blink in and initiate.
* Heroes that can jump and kill him:
Meepo,
Clinkz,
Templar Assassin
* Heroes who take a long time to become strong are in for a rough mid game, such as
Outworld Destroyer,
Magnus,
Medusa, and
Anti-Mage.
* Heroes with dispels:
Legion Commander,
Oracle,
Slark,
Phantom Lancer
* Heroes with blink or movement abilities, which are disabled by Pounce's leash:
Anti-Mage,
Earth Spirit,
Faceless Void,
Magnus,
Mirana,
Monkey King,
Morphling,
Pangolier,
Phantom Assassin,
Phoenix,
Puck,
Queen of Pain,
Riki,
Sand King,
Spirit Breaker,
Timbersaw,
Tusk.
* Melee carries during the laning phase:
Sven,
Slark
* Heroes with silences:
Puck,
Doom,
Riki.
* 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.
* 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.
* 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.
* Any hero who can survive Magnus's initiations and manfight him:
Huskar,
Faceless Void,
Weaver,
Abaddon,
Troll Warlord,
Alchemist,
Dragon Knight,
Night Stalker,
Viper.
* Heroes with teleports to escape Solar Blind and Will-O-Wisp:
Phantom Assassin,
Puck,
Queen of Pain,
Storm Spirit
* Any hero who can survive Magnus's initiations and manfight him:
Huskar,
Faceless Void,
Weaver,
Abaddon,
Troll Warlord,
Alchemist,
Dragon Knight,
Night Stalker,
Viper.
* 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.
*
Finger of Death can instantly shred many targets, especially fragile Heroes like
Keeper of the Light,
Ancient Apparition or
Bounty Hunter.
* Any hero who can survive Magnus's initiations and manfight him:
Huskar,
Faceless Void,
Weaver,
Abaddon,
Troll Warlord,
Alchemist,
Dragon Knight,
Night Stalker,
Viper.
* Heroes that have an escape that doesn't disjoint projectiles:
Mirana,
Faceless Void,
Magnus
* 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.
* 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.
* 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.
* Heroes with silences:
Puck,
Doom,
Riki.
* 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.
* Heroes with hastes:
Dark Seer,
Lycan
* Heroes that have high health but little to no magic resistance are easy prey for Necrophos, as no matter how high they build their health up, Reaper's Scythe will kill them outright as long as they fall under a certain threshold, and Heartstopper Aura will deal the same amount of damage regardless, decaying their health the longer they stay within range. As such, Strength heroes like
Chaos Knight,
Centaur Warrunner or
Magnus are good targets for his ultimate.
* Heroes with channeling abilities:
Enigma,
Witch Doctor,
Crystal Maiden.
* Large area-of-effect with delay or require channeling:
Enigma,
Crystal Maiden,
Invoker,
Shadow Fiend,
Pugna,
Keeper of the Light,
Dawnbreaker.
Additional:
*
Spiked Carapace can be used to reflect Illuminate damage and stun Keeper of the Light.
*
Vendetta allows Nyx Assassin to follow Keeper of the Light around if he tries to split-push.
* Keeper of the Light is very squishy and will very quickly die to Vendetta and it's followup abilities.
* 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.
* 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.
* With
Bloodthorn, Clinkz becomes a strong counter to heroes who rely on evasion and blind such as
Windranger,
Phantom Assassin,
Troll Warlord and
Keeper of the Light.
* Squishy heroes, usually supports, like
Lion,
Ancient Apparition,
Keeper of the Light etc can die quickly to Tiny's magic burst.
* Heroes with channeling abilities:
Enigma,
Witch Doctor,
Crystal Maiden.
* Any hero who can survive Magnus's initiations and manfight him:
Huskar,
Faceless Void,
Weaver,
Abaddon,
Troll Warlord,
Alchemist,
Dragon Knight,
Night Stalker,
Viper.
* 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.
* Heroes with teleports to escape Solar Blind and Will-O-Wisp:
Phantom Assassin,
Puck,
Queen of Pain,
Storm Spirit
* 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.
*
Shrapnel can sometimes scout out Magnus and also place his Blink Dagger on cooldown. Aside from that, Sniper likes to stay far back behind enemy lines, so it's difficult to catch him with Reverse Polarity unless you already have vision on him and can Skewer him to the rest of his team.
* Squishy core heroes (
Shadow Fiend,
Sniper, etc)
* Juggernaut's
Healing Ward keeps his team healthy even when pushing against Keeper of the Light's
Illuminate.
* Blade Fury can dispel
Blinding Light, as well as dodge an incoming
Illuminate. Juggernaut can attack towers during Blade Fury, so he can dodge an Illuminate without having to stop pushing.
* Should Keeper of the Light obtain
Will-o-Wisp through purchasing an
Aghanim's Scepter, Juggernaut can make quick work of Ignis Fatuus without being interrupted by its pull.
* Keeper of the Light has low health, low armor, and no natural defense against
Blade Fury.
Additional:
*
Blade Fury allows him to be immune to all of Ezalor's abilities.
*
Healing Ward heals his entire team, mitigating Ezalor's weak magical burst damage.
*
Keeper of the Light's
Blinding Light makes Juggernaut miss his attacks. However, it can be dispelled easily with
Blade Fury.
* Even if Wraith King dies after Magnus disables him, Magnus' entire team will be slowed and vulnerable for counter-initiation.
* Heroes which rely exclusively on right clicks will struggle somewhat against Blinding Light:
Phantom Assassin,
Wraith King,
Medusa
*
Press the Attack can dispel Blinding Light or Solar Bind from a hero.
*
Duel can be used to instantly take Keeper of the Light out of a team-fight.
* Heroes with abilities that blind or cause Legion Commander to miss will prevent her from winning Duels:
Arc Warden,
Keeper of the Light,
Riki,
Tinker
* Blinding Light can knock Monkey King outside of his ultimate, Wukong's Command and can blind him.
* Will-O-Wisp will stun Monkey King from Tree Dance by destroying his tree.
Additional:
*
Blinding Light can easily push Monkey King out of Wukong's Command, as well as blinding him.
* Monkey King is vulnerable to burst damage,
Solar Bind makes him more so
* However, Keeper of the Light can be easily ganked by Monkey King during early-mid game stage.
*
Skewer and
Reverse Polarity will often push Monkey King out of Wukong's Command.
*
Illuminate clears Beastmaster's summons and is effective against his push.
* Heroes with AoE abilities are a bane to Beastmaster's summons:
Storm Spirit,
Magnus,
Pangolier.
* Heroes that have AoE damage:
Lina,
Keeper of the Light,
Timbersaw,
Leshrac,
Bristleback,
Axe.
* Heroes with cleave damage:
Sven,
Magnus,
Kunkka.
* Certain heroes can mess up with Pangolier's positioning and timing (especially if he intends to use Rolling Thunder during combat):
Vengeful Spirit,
Keeper of the Light,
Huskar,
Dark Seer
* Heroes with other kind of disables that pierce spell immunity can hold Pangolier in place during Rolling Thunder:
Axe,
Beastmaster,
Enigma,
Magnus,
Pudge,
Batrider,
Bane,
Winter Wyvern
* Heroes with summons/illusions/neutral creep armies:
Beastmaster,
Chen,
Naga Siren
* Heroes with strong area-of-effect damage can make quick work of Chen's converted creeps and at same time gain farm:
Magnus,
Jakiro,
Shadow Fiend,
Kunkka,
Luna,
Dragon Knight,
Medusa,
Alchemist.
* Using Reality Rift sets up a
Reverse Polarity on Chaos Knight and his illusions.
*
Shockwave and
Skewer kill Phantasm's illusions quickly, as can
Empower cast on a melee carry.
Additional:
* All Magnus abilities are very good against Chaos Knight's
Phantasm illusions.
* 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.
*
Ensnare prevents using any kind of movement abiilties, Making Naga Siren good against heroes who rely on gap-closing abilities to escape:
Phantom Assassin,
Magnus,
Slark,
Riki,
Faceless Void,
Storm Spirit.
*
Keeper of the Light can stall pushes with
Illuminate. This makes him strong against pushing heroes:
Terrorblade
Naga siren
Nature's Prophet and
Anti-Mage
* Heroes whose attacks can affect multiple enemies at once will clear Naga Siren's illusions. Such heroes include
Sven,
Magnus,
Dragon Knight,
Luna,
Medusa,
Templar Assassin,
Gyrocopter,
Muerta.
* Squishy core heroes (
Shadow Fiend,
Sniper, etc)
* Heroes with forced movement abilities or non-interrupting forced movement, such as
Lion,
Drow Ranger,
Magnus,
Mars, as they can cancel blast-off mid air, removing his ability to initiate or escape.
* 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.
*
Keeper of the Light's AoE blind can keep Sven from landing hits.
* Sven is very vulnerable to chain stun such as
Lion,
Shadow Shaman or
Magnus.
* Heroes that punish mobile heroes:
Bloodseeker,
Keeper of the Light,
Kunkka,
Disruptor.
* 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.
* Heroes with cleave or multi-target attacks can quickly take on Familiars and reduce Visage's firepower like
Gyrocopter,
Kunkka,
Magnus and
Medusa.
*
Keeper of the Light can stall pushes with
Illuminate. This makes him strong against pushing heroes:
Terrorblade
Naga siren
Nature's Prophet and
Anti-Mage
* Heroes who have most or all their abilities (damage or disable) unable to pierce spell immunity:
Keeper of the Light,
Lina,
Lion,
Zeus.
Additional:
*
Rage allows him to be immune to all of Ezalor's abilities. Also, the increased movement speed combined with the slow from
Ghoul Frenzy and the squishy nature of Ezalor allows Lifestealer to take him down very quickly.
* Reverse Polarity pierces through
Rage, wasting part of it's duration.
* Magnus is tanky and mobile, making it hard for Lifestealer to focus and kill him in all stages of a game.
* With
Aghanim's Scepter, Broodmother will gain access to
Spinner's Snare, which will allow her to create invisible lines on her webs from
Spin Web that will root, deal damage over time, and reveal enemy heroes if they unwittingly step on them. This allows Broodmother to keep her allies alerted on heroes who rely on invisibility-themed and movement-themed abilities and items to surprise enemy heroes and disrupt ganking attempts of enemy heroes:
Phantom Assassin,
Nyx Assassin,
Mirana,
Bounty Hunter,
Templar Assassin,
Riki,
Spirit Breaker,
Anti-Mage,
Tusk,
Ursa,
Nature's Prophet,
Enigma,
Void Spirit,
Magnus etc.
* Illuminate wipes out Broodmother's spiders and prevents her from pushing the lane. It also gives vision to reveal where broodmother is hiding in the trees.
* Heroes with channeling abilities:
Enigma,
Witch Doctor,
Crystal Maiden.
* 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.
*
Illuminate can wipe the pushing Eidolons in a lane with ease, diminishing Enigma's laning presence by a lot.
*
Solar Bind will severely slow down Enigma and make him more vulnerable to magical damage more he moves for it's duration.
* However, Keeper of the Light does not have any way to cancel
Black Hole outside from
Will-O-Wisp provided by
Aghanim's Scepter.
* Long ranged disables, especially those that pierce spell immunity, cancel Black Hole:
Beastmaster's
Primal Roar,
Bane's
Fiend's Grip,
Faceless Void's
Chronosphere,
Magnus's
Reverse Polarity,
Axe's
Berserker's Call,
Pudge's
Meat Hook.
* Heroes with dispels:
Legion Commander,
Oracle,
Slark,
Phantom Lancer
*
Empower helps Magnus' allies clear out illusions.
*
Reverse Polarity and
Skewer will pull Phantom Lancer along with his illusions, and reposition them together for easy nuking.
*
Shockwave deals significant area damage in the early game,destroys phantoms and may even indicate the real Phantom Lancer.
* Most of Magnus's abilities except
Empower will trigger damage through
Corrosive Skin.
*
Poison Attack and
Viper Strike can slow Magnus during
Skewer, as well as putting his
Blink Dagger on cooldown, preventing him from initiating or re-initiating.
* The Keeper of the Light easily farms on the line against the Viper, due to the fact that it has a long-range
Illuminate, and the Viper, in turn, cannot use its advantage of dominance on the center line, due to the fact that it does not reach the Keeper of the Light
Additional:
* The Keeper of the Light easily farms on the line against the Viper, due to the fact that it has a long-range
Illuminate, and the Viper, in turn, cannot use its advantage of dominance on the center line, due to the fact that it does not reach the Keeper of the Light
* Heroes with teleports to escape Solar Blind and Will-O-Wisp:
Phantom Assassin,
Puck,
Queen of Pain,
Storm Spirit
* Heroes which rely exclusively on right clicks will struggle somewhat against Blinding Light:
Phantom Assassin,
Wraith King,
Medusa
* Heroes that can jump and kill him:
Meepo,
Clinkz,
Templar Assassin
* 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.
Additional:
* Meepo is vulnerable to area damage and disables from Magnus himself as well as his team through Empower.
* 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.
* Heroes with extremely slow movement speed will cripple against Solar Bind:
Medusa,
Viper
Additional:
*
Will-O-Wisp will keep Medusa busy after she got hit by
Blinding Light.
* Heroes with hastes:
Dark Seer,
Lycan
*
Keeper of the Light has a blind, which causes Lycan to miss his attacks.
* Any hero who can survive Magnus's initiations and manfight him:
Huskar,
Faceless Void,
Weaver,
Abaddon,
Troll Warlord,
Alchemist,
Dragon Knight,
Night Stalker,
Viper.
* Any hero that can nullify effects of Chronosphere: (
Keeper of the Light with
Aghanim's Scepter during daytime,
Winter Wyvern), banishing him or Faceless Void (
Outworld Destroyer,
Shadow Demon,
Earth Spirit with
Aghanim's Scepter) or protecting him in other ways (
Dazzle,
Oracle,
Abaddon) can greatly limit Chronosphere's potential.
To start select enemy heroes in the field above. It's intended to be used with multiple heroes. The more enemy heroes you provide the better results you will get.
This website was made to help you in pick stage of online game Dota 2. It calculates rating for each possible counterpicks based on tips from web-based database made up entirely of user contributions Dota 2 wiki.
You will get the list of recommended hero counters with a list of tips written by Dota 2 wiki contributors explaining why it's good against the particular hero. In comparison to other similar websites, which show only rating based on average hero win rate from dotabuff or similar service.
Take it with a bit of grain of salt, especially if the recommendation has a low rating (<= 1), some heroes
may win a lane in an early game but would lose in late game (and vice versa). That's why sometimes
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Keeper of the Light
*
Blood Rite makes Ezalor chose between getting off Illuminate or getting silenced for a while, as Illuminate is a channeled ability.
Rupture.
* Blood Rite's silence can completely take Ezalor out of a teamfight, as he relies on his abilities to be useful.
* Keeper of the Light's only mobility source, his high movement speed (via his high base movement speed and through spirit form), is entirely countered by
Magnus
*
Rupture deals extra damage to Magnus during Skewer or
Force Staff, preventing him from escaping or counter-initiating, forcing him to invest on a
Linken's Sphere.