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Many hands make light work.
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Bad against...[]
- In the early game, Omniknight can look like an easy target for Spirit Breaker, but with Purification and Hammer of Purity, what could be an opportunity could quickly turn into disaster.
- Repel can be used to counter Charge of Darkness by minimizing the damage and lowering the stun duration with status resistance.
- Spirit Breaker's Greater Bash from all sources (Charge of Darkness or normal attacks) will deal no damage at all if Omniknight and his allies are protected with presence.
- Due to this, Spirit Breaker's damage will always be lower when targeting Omniknight.
- Battery Assault will continuously prevent Spirit Breaker from using Nether Strike, Charge of Darkness and even right clicking because of his slow base attack speed.
- Searing Chains can stop Charge of Darkness if timed correctly.
- Activate Fire Remnant can be used to escape an approaching Spirit Breaker, or lead Spirit Breaker into a bad situation.
- Fire Remnant and Sleight of Fist allows Ember Spirit to dodge Charge of Darkness if timed correctly.
- Astral Imprisonment can be used to protect allies by imprisoning either them or Spirit Breaker.
- Arcane Orb will heavily drain Spirit Breaker's maximum mana, rendering him almost useless and unable to cast spells. And considering how Spirit Breaker's intelligence is very low, Sanity's Eclipse will deal a lot of damage to him.
- Even if Spirit Breaker survives Sanity's Eclipse, mana allergy applied by the Sanity's Eclipse will discourage Spirit Breaker from using his abilities as it will cause him to lose health and heal Outworld Destroyer.
- Rubick can cancel Spirit Breaker's Charge of Darkness with Telekinesis under the condition that Rubick is able to cast it on time. And considering Rubick commonly buys Eul's Scepter of Divinity that can also cancel Charge of Darkness, Spirit Breaker will have a hard time charging Rubick or his allies until Spirit Breaker buys Shadow Blade. Telekinesis can also be used to cancel Nether Strike and Aghanim's Shard upgraded Telekinesis also allows Rubick to save his allies from Spirit Breaker.
- Fade Bolt weakens Spirit Breaker's damage output, reducing damage of Greater Bash.
- If Rubick succeeds to steal Charge of Darkness, he will be able to reduce much of Spirit Breaker's global presence. Rubick can also steal Nether Strike to further disable Spirit Breaker once he disables him with stolen Charge of Darkness. But bear in mind, however, that a skilled Spirit Breaker can use Bulldoze to prevent all that.
- If Luna chooses to use Eclipse in anticipation right before Spirit Breaker gets to her with Charge of Darkness, she will be able to kill Spirit Breaker before he will be able to kill her as Spirit Breaker's attack speed is rather low.
- Meanwhile, when Spirit Breaker is focusing on any of Luna's allies with Charge of Darkness, Aghanim's Scepter upgraded Eclipse can be used to counter-initate against Spirit Breaker.
- Aghanim's Shard upgraded Moon Glaives allows Luna to reduce damage from Greater Bash and Nether Strike inflicts on her, and damage Spirit Breaker whenever he is close to her, even while he is invisible.
- Lucent Beam can be used to cancel Spirit Breaker's Charge of Darkness under the condition that Luna is able to cast it on time. Lucent Beam can also be used to cancel Nether Strike. But bear in mind, however, that Spirit Breaker can counter this with Planar Pocket from Aghanim's Shard which can be used to reflect Lucent Beam back at Luna.
- If Luna buys Linken's Sphere, it will become nearly impossible for Spirit Breaker to reach Luna unless some of Spirit Breaker's allies can pop it and put it on a cooldown.
- Even though Spirit Breaker can evade all of Luna's abilities with Shadow Blade, smart Luna will always buy Dust of Appearance to provide vision on Spirit Breaker to her and her team. Luna can also buy Gleipnir to counter Spirit Breaker's Charge of Darkness and Shadow Blade combo.
- Malefice prevents Spirit Breaker from using his spells for the duration.
- Eidolons from Demonic Summoning have high magic resistance, receiving little damage from Charge of Darkness and Greater Bash.
- Midnight Pulse can deal big damage to Spirit Breaker, as it deals damage based on enemy hero's max health.
- Black Hole makes it very dangerous for Spirit Breaker to reach Enigma with Charge of Darkness unless if he has Nether Strike available to use.
- 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.
- If Medusa activates Stone Gaze before Spirit Breaker reaches her with Charge of Darkness, the charge will inevitably fail.
- Medusa has three ways to counter Spirit Breaker's Charge of Darkness: Stone Gaze can disable Spirit Breaker's Charge of Darkness if he faces Medusa directly. Aghanim's Scepter upgraded Mystic Snake can disable Spirit Breaker and cancel his Charge of Darkness if it hits him. And Cold Blooded provided by Aghanim's Shard that can cast a single-targeted Mystic Snake at Spirit Breaker if he uses Charge of Darkness on her.
- Mana Shield and overall tankiness allows Medusa to easily survive Spirit Breaker's initiation. And to make things worse, Spirit Breaker is not a common Diffusal Blade nor Disperser wielder to counter this problem at all.
- Overall, any attempt for Spirit Breaker to gank and kill Medusa will hurt him more than the other way around.
- Earthbind's root prevents/interrupts Charge of Darkness.
- As a single-target focused hero without much damage output, Spirit Breaker is ineffective in general against Meepo.
- Morph allows Morphling to copy abilities of Spirit Breaker and combine them with Waveform to turn things around. Aghanim's Scepter upgraded Morph also allows Morphling to create a strong illusion of Spirit Breaker that can cast all of his basic abilities. This allows Morphling to give Spirit Breaker a taste of his own medicine.
- Spirit Breaker's low attack speed and lack of burst damage makes it unlikely for him to win against Morphling when he has Attribute Shift (Strength Gain) toggled on.
- Due to Spirit Breaker's low attack speed, Supernova is problematic for Spirit Breaker to take down, and even more so with Fire Spirits debuff applied.
- Plasma Field can slow Spirit Breaker and reduce damage from Greater Bash.
- Static Link drains damage bonus from Greater Bash, and it cannot be removed by Nether Strike.
- Storm Surge will proc on Spirit Breaker every time he attacks Razor or if he uses Charge of Darkness on Razor, damaging him and alerting Razor to Spirit Breaker's incoming ganks, no matter how far Spirit Breaker is from Razor.
- Eye of the Storm can rapidly reduce Spirit Breaker's armor, making him much less durable, especially in teamfights.
- Nature's Grasp severely slows down Spirit Breaker, reducing effects of Charge of Darkness and Greater Bash.
- Living Armor can mitigate a large portion of Spirit Breaker's damage since his attacks are slow.
- Treant Protector can also counter-initiate against Spirit Breaker with Leech Seed, Overgrowth and with his root from Aghanim's Shard upgraded Nature's Guise before he manages to escape.
- Aghanim's Scepter gives Treant Protector access to Eyes In The Forest ability, which allows him to turn trees into wards that provide vision, allowing him to keep his allies warned about Spirit Breaker's attempts to gank them. Eyes In The Forest will also trigger Overgrowth if Spirit Breaker is in range of the tree affected by it.
- Pit of Malice can be cast in the path of Spirit Breaker's Charge of Darkness to cancel it.
- Spirit Breaker's damage output is entirely physical, therefore Atrophy Aura is very hazardous for him in most of the stages, particularly since it also affects Greater Bash, hindering Spirit Breaker's main source of damage.
- Fiend's Gate provides a way to escape from a gank for Underlord and his teammates. Likewise, Fiend's Gate can be used to ambush Spirit Breaker who has little to no ways of intercepting Underlord and his teammates when they use it to move around the map.
- Due to Spirit Breaker's low attack speed, Tombstone is problematic for Spirit Breaker as the zombies summoned from Tombstone apply a stacking movement speed slow, which can significantly reduce Greater Bash's damage.
- Soul Rip and Decay allows Undying and his allies to survive and recover from any incoming ganks by Spirit Breaker.
Others[]
- Heroes that can cancel Charge of Darkness: Ogre Magi, Earthshaker, Lion, Rubick, Lina, Luna, Jakiro, Dawnbreaker, Alchemist, Ogre Magi, Axe, Shadow Shaman, Naga Siren, Mars, Bane, Pudge, Clockwerk.
- Heroes with ways to protect themselves or allies from Spirit Breaker's initiation: Shadow Demon, Outworld Destroyer, Omniknight, Dawnbreaker.
- Heroes that punish mobile heroes: Bloodseeker, Keeper of the Light, Kunkka, Disruptor.
- Heroes that usually build Linken's Sphere as either a core or situational item: Weaver, Medusa, Morphling, Queen of Pain, Storm Spirit, Luna, Naga Siren.
- Durable heroes: Axe, Dawnbreaker, Bristleback, Mars, Omniknight, Tidehunter, Wraith King, Primal Beast, Underlord.
- Heroes who can continue dealing damage even while being stunned: Luna, Razor, Axe, Bristleback, Leshrac, Death Prophet, Jakiro.
- Heroes that can slow Charge of Darkness by a huge amount: Venomancer, Viper, Dazzle, Arc Warden, Lion, Huskar, Shadow Shaman, Visage, Undying, Jakiro.
- Heroes with summons and illusions as Spirit Breaker has no strong AoE capabilities to deal with them: Chaos Knight, Phantom Lancer, Terrorblade, Naga Siren, Broodmother, Warlock, Visage, Nature's Prophet, Shadow Shaman, Lycan, Wraith King.
Items[]
- Linken's Sphere blocks Charge of Darkness and Nether Strike, rendering him unable to surprise nor finish off enemy heroes. And Spirit Breaker has no any way of putting in on a cooldown at all.
- Ghost Scepter and it's upgrade Ethereal Blade prevents Spirit Breaker from right clicking and bashing affected heroes. Ethereal Blade can also be used to disarm Spirit Breaker, slow him down and make him more vulnerable to magical damage.
- Eul's Scepter of Divinity can be used on it's owner or Spirit Breaker to cancel Charge of Darkness and Nether Strike. Later it can be upgraded into Wind Waker that can do the same and which can be used to escape from Spirit Breaker.
- Rod of Atos and it's upgrade Gleipnir, Scythe of Vyse, Abyssal Blade, Force Staff, and its upgrade Hurricane Pike are all good items against Spirit Breaker that can interrupt Charge of Darkness. Gleipnir can also interrupt Charge of Darkness even if Spirit Breaker is invisible, which can potentially ruin his Charge of Darkness and Shadow Blade combo.
- Any good survivability item like Eye of Skadi, Heart of Tarrasque or even Bloodstone can completely eliiminate Spirit Breaker's solo ganking as a threat.
- Eternal Shroud greatly weakens damage from Charge of Darkness, Greater Bash and Nether Strike, as they all deal magical damage.
- Vanguard and it's upgrades: Crimson Guard and Abyssal Blade can make Spirit Breaker's attacks only tickle enemies who wield them. Abyssal Blade can also stun Spirit Breaker even if he is debuff immune.
- Dust of Appearance allows enemies to have vision over Spirit Breaker, as he is prone to buying Shadow Blade to maximize effects of his Charge of Darkness.
- Manta Style's illusions can be used to distract Spirit Breaker, and he has no AoE abilities to deal with them effectively.
- Heaven's Halberd can prevent Spirit Breaker from right clicking and bashing, thus rendering him unable to do almost anything to enemy heroes.
- Silver Edge can disable Greater Bash, weakening Spirit Breaker's damage output. However, it is not advised to used it for escapes as Charge of Darkness can give vision over the hero affected by it if used first.
- Diffusal Blade can quickly burn all of Spirit Breaker's mana, which is really detrimental for Spirit Breaker as his mana pool is very low, it can also be used to slow Spirit Breaker down and reduce effects of Charge of Darkness and Greater Bash. Later it can be upgraded into Disperser which can do the same and which can also dispel it's owner from most of the disables Spirit Breaker tries to throw at them while also granting them movement speed and making them immune to slows.
- Nullifier can dispel Bulldoze and ruin any of Spirit Breaker's escape attempts with Wind Waker, as he is prone to buying Wind Waker.
Good against...[]
- Anti-Mage usually relies on Blink to escape, but with vision from Charge of Darkness it is easier to catch him.
- Spirit Breaker could single-handedly lock Anti-Mage down for 4 seconds (or even more with lucky bashes), allowing his teammates to follow up.
- As Anti-Mage is an elusive hero who likes to farm alone, Spirit Breaker could choose to charge whenever Anti-Mage is in sight.
- Vision from Charge of Darkness will easier to catch Lycan Shapeshift and Charge of Darkness out of reach Lycan Summon Wolves and Lycan's other creeps. Until upgrade Aghanim's Scepter faster catching Lycan Shapeshift.
- Shukuchi vision can easily target Charge of Darkness before Weaver purchase Linken's Sphere.
- Once caught with dust, Clinkz could be locked down for a long time by Spirit Breaker and has nowhere to escape.
- Charge of Darkness provides shared vision over its target, showing Clinkz even when he is in Skeleton Walk.
- Charge of Darkness allows Spirit Breaker to catch Nature's Prophet out when he tries to split push.
- Nature's Prophet can't hide in his Sprout against Spirit Breaker, as his Charge of Darkness provides vision on its target.
- Spirit Breaker can easily cancel Nature's Prophet's Teleportation.
- Tinker relies on his high mobility from Boots of Travel and Blink Dagger to survive. Those items don't help him if Spirit Breaker manages to cast Charge of Darkness on him.
- Spirit Breaker can easily cancel Rearm and Boots of Travel.
Others[]
- Heroes that are squishy by nature are an easy target for Spirit Breaker: Sniper, Drow Ranger, Shadow Shaman
- Heroes that rely on invisibility can be tracked with Charge of Darkness opening them to team attacks: Bounty Hunter, Mirana, Riki
- Charge of Darkness provides shared vision over its target, keeping track of heroes who rely on invisibility, mobility, or illusions: Riki, Broodmother, Phantom Lancer
- Heroes that rely on escapes to stay alive can be caught and locked down for a long time: Queen of Pain, Phantom Assassin
- Spirit Breaker's stuns pierce spell immunity, making him a good choice against heroes that heavily rely on Black King Bar; Huskar
Works well with...[]
- Bloodrage amplifies Spirit breakers damage, giving him higher solo kill potential.
- Thirst reveals low health enemies, enabling Spirit Breaker to use Charge of Darkness to finish them off.
- Track enables Spirit Breaker to charge heroes that are outside of the team's field of vision, also granting gold for the rest of the team should the gank succeed.
- Track also provides bonus movement speed to Spirit Breaker, increasing Greater Bash's damage.
- Bounty Hunter usually scouts areas, hence he can find lone targets for Spirit Breaker to charge.
- Tether provides bonus movement speed to Spirit Breaker, increasing Greater Bash's damage.
- Overcharge gives Spirit Breaker extra attack speed and thus a higher chance to proc Greater Bash.
- Relocate can turn a Charge of Darkness into a three man gank.
- Infest allows Lifestealer to come along when Spirit Breaker uses Charge of Darkness, for both ganking and escaping.
- Infesting Spirit Breaker gives him a massive buff to his movement speed, increasing Greater Bash's damage.
- With Aghanim's Scepter, Lifestealer can also give Spirit Breaker increased movement speed for more damage and spell immunity.
- Surge allows Spirit Breaker to increase his movement and Charge of Darkness speed, decreasing his target time to counter, while simultaneously increasing his damage.
- A Firesnap Cookie can be used on a charging Spirit Breaker, further disabling the enemies he targets.
- Grimstroke's Ink Swell can also be used while Spirit Breaker charges, both improving his damage from the movement speed buff as well as adding an AoE stun to the combo.
Others[]
- Heroes with attack speed buffs: ( Beastmaster, Invoker, Chen, Arc Warden)
- Heroes that can give extra movement speed to Spirit Breaker: ( Ogre Magi)
Items[]
- Glimmer Cape can be used on Spirit Breaker while he is charging, further increasing the surprise factor.
- Linken's Sphere can be used on Spirit Breaker while he is charging, protecting him against single-target disables that can interrupt Charge of Darkness.
