Kez vs Tidehunter

How this matchup plays

Trying to burst down Tidehunter often feels impossible for Kez. The core problem is Kraken Shell, which passively dispels slows and stuns, making it incredibly difficult for Kez to lock Tidehunter down for a kill. Even if Kez commits to a duel, Anchor Smash heavily reduces his outgoing attack damage, neutering his primary source of threat. A hero built around parrying big hits and winning skirmishes finds himself fighting a target that can't be controlled and who cripples his ability to deal damage in the first place.

This dynamic puts Kez on the back foot from the start of the game. In lane, Tidehunter is an immovable object who makes farming miserable with Anchor Smash. Later on, Kez wants to find pickoffs to get ahead, but Tidehunter is a terrible target for this. In teamfights, a single Ravage can completely disable Kez and leave him vulnerable. Kez is forced into a difficult position of having to split push or find isolated supports, while Tidehunter can confidently group with his team and force fights, knowing the enemy carry can't effectively deal with him.