Bristleback vs Io

How this matchup plays

Trying to run down a specific hero is Bristleback's whole plan, but doing it against a core tethered to Io is a serious problem. The speed boost from Tether makes it hard for Bristleback to stay on someone's back, and the damage reduction from Overcharge cuts into his sustained damage from Quill Spray. This often allows Io's partner to turn around and fight Bristleback head-on, bypassing his passive defenses entirely. Io can also use Relocate to save a teammate that Bristleback has managed to trap, completely resetting the chase.

The matchup often comes down to which hero’s team better enables their strategy. Bristleback wants his team to lock down Io's partner so he can build up Warpath stacks and overwhelm them. Io, on the other hand, wants to create opportunities with Relocate to pick off Bristleback's supports, leaving him isolated and kiteable. If Bristleback gets a significant farm lead, he can sometimes ignore the kiting and simply run through the tethered target anyway. It's a constant back-and-forth between Bristleback’s raw pressure and Io’s ability to reposition and empower key allies.