Lion + Mars

Why this works

Picking Lion alongside Mars often creates a team with overlapping tools and a critical lack of damage. Mars wants to trap several enemies in his Arena of Blood, creating the perfect kill box for his allies. He needs teammates who can pump out heavy area damage to make his ultimate effective. Lion, however, contributes more lockdown with Hex and Earth Spike. While these are strong spells, they don't provide the widespread damage needed to capitalize on a multi-hero Arena. You end up with a powerful setup that lacks a real punchline.

This problem becomes obvious in mid-game teamfights. Mars will land a beautiful Arena, but Lion can only disable one target at a time inside it. This leaves the rest of your team to carry the entire damage burden, making your drafts predictable and easy to counter. Enemies can exploit this by grouping together, knowing your area damage is weak and Lion's single-target spells are less impactful against a full team push. Ultimately, you're left with two heroes whose signature abilities don't meaningfully help each other.