Bristleback vs Winter Wyvern

How this matchup plays

Casting Winter's Curse on Bristleback is a massive risk. While the spell freezes him, his allies are forced to attack his backside, triggering a barrage of reactive Quill Sprays. Since they can't actually damage their own teammate, any melee heroes caught in the curse end up taking heavy damage for no reason. On the other hand, Winter Wyvern has excellent tools to deal with him otherwise. Cold Embrace can completely negate Bristleback’s physical damage to save a focused ally, and the long-range slow from Arctic Burn is great for kiting him.

The matchup often hinges on spell usage and positioning. An experienced Winter Wyvern will try to use her ultimate on Bristleback's squishier teammates, leaving him for last. Her goal becomes peeling for her own team with slows and saves. Bristleback's plan is to survive the initial magic damage and use his relentless chase potential from Warpath to eventually run down the back lines. If he can force Wyvern to use Cold Embrace early or catch her out of position, her ability to control the fight diminishes significantly.