Phantom Lancer vs Rubick

How this matchup plays

Fighting against a Phantom Lancer presents a dilemma for Rubick. His signature Spell Steal looks for high-impact abilities to turn a fight, but Phantom Lancer's kit doesn't really offer any. Stealing a Spirit Lance is fine, but it’s not the kind of play that wins a major teamfight. At the same time, Rubick has trouble dealing with the illusion army. His single-target disable is hard to land on the correct hero once there are multiple copies, and he lacks the area-of-effect damage to clear them out on his own. He can neither easily counter PL nor gain a significant advantage from his presence.

This problem gets worse as the game goes on. Early on, Rubick can still contribute to ganks and lane pressure. But once Phantom Lancer gets a few items, he can overwhelm heroes who can't handle his illusions. Rubick is then often forced to play on the defensive, hoping to land a good Telekinesis on the real hero before the fight gets messy or looking to steal a more useful spell from one of PL's allies. It puts the burden on Rubick's teammates to bring the necessary AoE damage, giving Phantom Lancer's team a small but consistent edge in engagements.