Earth Spirit vs Slardar

How this matchup plays

Kiting a hero like Slardar seems simple for Earth Spirit on paper, but the reality is more complicated. Slardar has plenty of tools to stay on top of a mobile target. Guardian Sprint provides the speed to keep up, while Corrosive Haze gives vision that prevents Earth Spirit from juking into the trees. A well-timed Slithereen Crush can also interrupt Rolling Boulder, stopping an escape before it even begins. This means Slardar can often stick to and bring down the otherwise slippery Earth Spirit.

Early on, Earth Spirit's roaming can set the game's tempo. The tables turn once Slardar gets his Blink Dagger, however. He can now initiate directly on Earth Spirit, locking him down before he can react or reposition. From that point, teamfights are decided by who gets the better jump. Slardar wants to blink on a core and delete them with his team's help, while Earth Spirit focuses on multi-hero control and saving allies with well-placed kicks and pulls.