If you have been playing ranked lately, you already know that getting through a draft without seeing Gloo in the ban phase is basically a miracle. With a ban rate sitting at around 76% in Mythic Glory during Season 40, he is comfortably the most feared hero in the current meta, and honestly, it is not hard to see why. Even after the durability and HP regen nerfs Moonton pushed through in Patches 2.1.58 and 2.1.61, Gloo is still posting a 56.1% win rate at the highest ranks. The nerfs trimmed the edges, but the core of what makes him oppressive has not changed at all.
The thing is, Gloo does not have to be your mandatory first ban every single match. If you understand what actually makes him hard to deal with and what specifically punishes him, you can play around him instead of hiding from him.
Why Gloo Is So Hard to Kill
Before you can counter Gloo, it helps to understand what you are actually fighting. His passive, Sticky, applies a stack to enemies every time one of his skills connects, and once an enemy reaches full stacks, Gloo can trigger his ultimate and physically attach himself to that hero. While attached, he transfers up to 80% of the damage he takes onto his host, which means attacking Gloo during this phase is essentially helping him kill your own teammate.
His Skill 1 has a self-healing reset mechanic where detonating the Goo he leaves on the ground restores a chunk of his HP, and he can chain these resets in extended fights to stay healthy far longer than he has any right to. His Skill 2 splits him into multiple smaller Goos that apply Sticky stacks and slow enemies simultaneously, which is what lets him ramp up to his ultimate faster than most players expect. Altogether, his kit rewards staying in fights rather than retreating from them, which is why trying to brute-force him down without a plan rarely works.
Best Heroes to Counter Gloo
| Hero | Role | Why It Works | Key Item |
|---|---|---|---|
| Faramis | Mage / Support | AOE damage hits all split forms; ultimate lets dead allies respawn during Gloo’s attach, cancelling his value. | Glowing Wand |
| Vexana | Mage | Cursed Oath marks Gloo and deals continuous magic damage even while he’s attached; AOE skills and passive Nether Touch burst him during his split form. | Glowing Wand |
| Claude | Marksman | High mobility prevents Sticky stacks from building; Demon Hunter Sword and Sea Halberd shreds HP and blocks regen. | Demon Hunter Sword + Sea Halberd |
| Moskov | Marksman | Skill 1 push disrupts Gloo’s positioning and cooldown reset loop; sustained ranged damage before Sticky stacks up. | Sea Halberd |
| Wanwan | Marksman | Passive mobility makes her nearly impossible to pin down; ultimate bursts Gloo faster than his regen can keep up. | Sea Halberd |
Faramis is the most reliable counter to Gloo at any rank, and high-level players who are not banning Gloo are almost certainly banning Faramis to protect him. His ultimate creates a zone where dead allied heroes can respawn temporarily, which completely undermines the value Gloo gets from attaching to a carry. If your hero dies while Gloo is latched on, Faramis just brings them back, and his AOE magic damage can hit all of Gloo’s split forms at once during the Skill 2 phase.
Vexana is a strong mage pick against Gloo for two specific reasons. Her ultimate, Cursed Oath, marks Gloo and deals continuous magic damage that keeps ticking even while he is attached to one of your heroes, which punishes him directly for overcommitting. On top of that, her passive Nether Touch and AOE skill kit can deal significant burst damage to his split form during Skill 2, which is one of the phases where Gloo is most vulnerable if your team focuses him down quickly.
Claude is one of the better marksman options because of how well his mobility and DPS combine in this specific matchup. His Battle Image Mirror lets him dodge Gloo’s skill combinations consistently, and building Demon Hunter Sword alongside Sea Halberd means he shreds Gloo’s massive HP pool while cutting off his regen at the same time. Stay mobile, keep poking, and avoid committing to a full engage since Gloo wants to close the gap and stack Sticky.
Moskov punishes Gloo’s movement specifically. His Skill 1 push effect interrupts Gloo’s positioning and prevents him from charging between his Goo patches for the cooldown reset. Moskov has enough range to apply sustained pressure without walking into the Skill 2 fan-shaped area, and his passive attack speed boost lets him deal damage quickly before Sticky stacks reach full.
Wanwan is difficult for Gloo to pin down long enough to build stacks because her passive mobility keeps her jumping around the fight. Her ultimate is also one of the cleaner ways to burst Gloo down in situations where his HP regen would otherwise carry him through a sustained fight.
Best Items to Counter Gloo
| Item | Who Builds It | What It Does |
|---|---|---|
| Sea Halberd | Marksmen, Fighters | 50% healing reduction on hit. Directly counters Gloo’s Skill 1 regen loop and his ultimate HP recovery. |
| Dominance Ice | Tanks, Fighters | Wider passive range after Patch 2.1.67 buff. Reduces nearby enemy attack speed and healing simultaneously. |
| Glowing Wand | Mages | Burn effect reduces healing on contact. Best option for Faramis and other magic damage dealers. |
| Demon Hunter Sword | Marksmen | Deals damage based on a percentage of max HP, making Gloo’s large health pool a liability rather than a shield. |
Sea Halberd is non-negotiable in almost every Gloo matchup since the 50% healing reduction on hit directly shuts down the HP regen he gets from his Skill 1 Goo detonations and his ultimate attachment. Dominance Ice got a meaningful buff in Patch 2.1.67 with a wider passive range, making it even more effective at reducing Gloo’s attack speed and healing simultaneously, and it is worth prioritizing in any frontline build. Glowing Wand covers the same ground for mage players, while Demon Hunter Sword turns Gloo’s enormous HP pool into a liability by dealing damage scaled to a percentage of his max health.
In-Game Tips for Playing Against Gloo
- Never attack Gloo while he is attached to a teammate. It sounds obvious, but in the chaos of a teamfight it is easy to instinctively target the closest enemy hero, which in this case is exactly what Gloo wants you to do. Focus the host hero if needed, or redirect your damage to other targets until the attachment ends.
- Keep Purify ready if you are playing a carry, since it removes the Sticky debuff and breaks Gloo out of his ultimate early. That one battle spell choice can be the difference between surviving the engage and getting deleted in the middle of a teamfight.
- Map awareness also matters more than usual against Gloo since he is one of the strongest roaming tanks in the current meta. If you lose track of him on the minimap, assume he is hiding in a bush near your lane and play accordingly.
Final Thoughts
Gloo’s 76% ban rate in Season 40 says more about how many players have not bothered learning his counters than it does about the hero being unbeatable. The nerfs in Patches 2.1.58 and 2.1.61 created real windows where the right hero picks, the right items, and basic game sense are enough to handle him. Once you have got that figured out, you might find yourself actually happy to see him slip through the bans because you will already know exactly what to do about it.
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Editor’s Note: Mobile Legends is always changing, and so are our guides. We update them every patch to keep you ready for the current meta.
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