There's this one guy in my friendship group who is constantly attacking me and insulting me. He directs these insults and jokes at me far more than anyone else. He paints this image of me while doing so that the other guys latch onto. The group dynamic completely changes as he spends time in it. When he isnt there I am fairly central and well received, but he seems to manage to impact everyone's views. As he hangs out with us more throughout a night I find myself more the butt of jokes and excluded from the core of the group. It is a subtle but palpable change, and I find that when I try to comeback to his jokes it falls flat, or gets a sarcastic overreaction if it comes across too butthurt. I can't seem to find the balance in how I react to this guy, either I take it and appear weak, or when I dish it back out I come across as too aggressive.

He and I seem to naturally clash, but at the moment I feel he comes out on top when its just a small group of guys. He's naturally wittier than I am, so I struggle on that front. I always end up feeling increasingly frustrated and uncomfortable when us guys hang out and he's there, like I'm being slowly and deliberately pushed to my limits throughout the night. What I find most uncomfortable is how the other guys vibe off him and the feeling in the room changes.

Please help me, how should I approach this situation?