Drifter’s main threat#
Drifter is a assassin: finds isolated targets, deletes them and leaves before the enemy team can answer.
The kit is spirit-leaning, so spirit resistance and spirit shields do the most to blunt it.
Abilities to play around#
Ability 1
Rend
Swipes at enemies in a cone ahead, dealing spirit damage with bonus melee damage at close range.
Play around it Respect its range and cooldown; fight when it’s been used.
Ability 2
Stalker's Mark
Marks the first target hit so it bleeds over time, and reactivating it instantly teleports Drifter behind that enemy.
Play around it Mobility — it’s also the escape. Don’t chase it into their team; force it out first, then commit. Slowing Hex shuts down many movement abilities.
Ability 3
Bloodscent
Isolated heroes leave a trail and their heartbeat can be heard from afar, and Drifter deals amplified damage to them and grows stronger when they die nearby.
Play around it Respect its range and cooldown; fight when it’s been used.
Ultimate
Eternal Night
Surrounds nearby enemy heroes in darkness, briefly revealing them and treating them as isolated, while giving Drifter bonus sprint speed.
Play around it Mobility — it’s also the escape. Don’t chase it into their team; force it out first, then commit. Slowing Hex shuts down many movement abilities.
Counter items, with reasons#
Specific answers to this kit
Slowing Hex
Spirit · 1,600 souls
Slowing Hex disables the teleport cast of Stalker's Mark, though the bleed still lasts its full duration.
Stalker
Weapon · 1,600 souls
Slowing Hex disables the teleport cast of Stalker's Mark, though the bleed still lasts its full duration.
General answers
General answers are our editorial reading of the kit. Counter items only help if you’re the one being hit — buy for the threat you actually face.
How to beat Drifter#
- Slowing Hex disables the teleport cast of Stalker's Mark, though the bleed still lasts its full duration.
- Dispel Magic can remove the effect of Stalker's Mark.
- Indomitable prevents the disable from Rend.
- Unstoppable suppresses the crowd control effect from Rend.
Mistakes to avoid
- Walking alone through the districts when they’re missing from the map.
- Using your escape before they’ve committed.
Want to see the hero from the other side? Read the Drifter guide, or open the counter-pick helper to plan against a whole enemy team.