Puck vs Witch Doctor

How this matchup plays

Struggling to find safe farm is the main issue for Puck here. Witch Doctor's Maledict completely undermines Puck's core survivability. The entire plan for Puck is to blink in, use spells, and then Phase Shift to dodge return damage and escape with low health. Maledict makes that impossible; any damage taken during its effect gets amplified and will finish Puck off even while they're invulnerable. This threat alone forces Puck into a passive posture. Even Dream Coil can be a liability, potentially holding targets in place for Witch Doctor to channel a full Death Ward from a safe distance, turning Puck's own initiation against their team.

This dynamic makes teamfights incredibly difficult. Puck can't reliably jump the back lines to assassinate Witch Doctor, because a pre-emptive Maledict or a quick Paralyzing Cask can turn the gank into a suicide mission. As a result, Puck is often zoned out of fights, unable to contribute effectively until key spells are on cooldown. Witch Doctor, on the other hand, can position comfortably behind his cores, knowing Puck is hesitant to engage him directly. The Puck player is pressured into buying defensive items much earlier than they'd like, slowing down their own offensive impact and tempo.