How to counter Drow Ranger

With the new arcana for Drow Ranger, Dread Execution, it appears more frequently in the game. According to Dotabuff, she is now the 7th most popular hero for the last week.

Countering Drow Ranger can seem like a silly thing to do until you see your health bar melt under a barrage of arrows. But during the holidays and weekends, more and more people will start playing Dota 2, and some will want to show off a cool new arcana, which they bought.

Drow Ranger is a fairly simple carry for even beginners to play. And in the hands of more skilled players, she becomes a big problem. But she also has weaknesses, and there are heroes and items that help you to win against her.

The most important thing when fighting against Drow Ranger is to close the distance. Her passive ultimate, Marksmanship, deals incredible damage. Ultimate also grants a 50% Agility bonus to nearby allies. However, there is also a drawback. The ability does not work when the enemy hero is within 400 range or closer. Therefore, the best heroes against her are those who can quickly close the distance with her and turn off her passive ability.

According to statistics, the best heroes for this are Mars, Spectre, Lycan, Phantom Lancer and Phantom Assassin. They all have abilities that allow you to quickly get close to Drow Ranger or force her to fight close.

For example, Mars with his ultimate Arena of Blood fetters the battlefield, while God Rebuke and Spear of Mars prevent her from escaping. Spectre's ultimate instantly disables Marksmanship and, if necessary, moves to the illusion directly to Drow Ranger.

Lycan and Phantom Lancer can quickly close the distance due to their running speed. Another popular carry, Phantom Assassin, uses Phantom Strike to quickly close the distance and kill Drow Ranger.

Following this logic, any melee hero with good initiation and Blink Dagger can win a fight. Especially if Drow Ranger is out of position.

Riki, Bounty Hunter or invisible Slark can sneak up on her in a teamfight. Spirit Breaker can attack and use Nether Strike to incapacitate her. Storm Spirit or Void Spirit can travel a long distance and attack by spells.

A lot depends on the initiation and the heroes. As long as you can get close to her and have control in the team, almost any melee hero could theoretically counter Drow Ranger.

As written above, you need a hero with a Blink Dagger who is able to rush into Drow Ranger and initiate a fight. Without the main damage dealer, the enemy team can lose.

If you don't have a hero that counters Drow Ranger, there are other options for dealing with her. There are several items that will help you in this difficult struggle. Again, it's important to fully understand how Marksmanship works. Arrows, when triggered, fully penetrate base armor and ignore evasion, but bonus armor still blocks damage no matter what.

Assault Cuirass is the best item for cores. In addition to 15 armor for the owner, the aura also gives 5 armor to allies. Manta Style and Black King Bar are great options to  Gust. Lotus Orb serves a double function: bonus armor and dispel silence. Just remember that Marksmanship procs ignore misses, so Butterfly and Heaven's Halberd are not as good as they seem.

Supports don't have many options for increasing survivability in fights. Guardian Greaves, Medallion of Courage and Solar Crest are the best solution. Another good idea is mobility items. Silence is bad, so Force Staff, Eul's Scepter, and Glimmer Cape are best for saving yourself or an ally. If no one on your team wants to get close and disable Marksmanship, you can always use the same items to close the distance. Ghost Scepter can save you from a lot of physical damage for some time.

There is one more, but ultimatum, method of countering Drow Ranger - a hero ban. However, this is not always possible. And, frankly, there are many other stronger, more scary, or just just nasty heroes out there. Good luck in defense of the Ancients, and don't forget to ban Techies.