Ancient Apparition vs Rubick

How this matchup plays

Stealing Ice Blast seems like a huge win for Rubick, but it's much trickier to use effectively than it looks. He only gets the initial tracer, and finding a good spot for the follow-up explosion under pressure is difficult. Ancient Apparition plans his ultimate from a safe distance with vision, a luxury Rubick rarely has in the middle of a chaotic teamfight. More often, Rubick will end up with a stolen Cold Feet or Ice Vortex. These are useful spells for sure, but they aren't the game-breaking play that a stolen ultimate implies, making the direct interaction less one-sided than you might think.

The outcome of this matchup really depends on positioning and execution from moment to moment. Rubick generally has a stronger laning presence and can set up kills with Telekinesis, potentially putting Ancient Apparition on the back foot. Later on, it becomes a duel of vision and initiation. If Rubick's team can find and jump on the AA, they can negate his impact. But if Ancient Apparition can stay hidden and land a good Ice Blast on Rubick's team, it severely limits their ability to sustain through a fight, regardless of what spells Rubick manages to steal.