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I definitely see Pestilence as a viable third item, but first we need to ask ourselves a few questions.
Who is the direct match-up in lane?
How often the Jungler is ganking the lane?
How does this impact the rest of the build?
In most cases, your lane match-up is going to be another physical God; however, with Gods like Chang'e, Hel, and Zhong Kui are starting to make their cases as viable picks in the Solo Lane, which would prompt the use of Pestilence early anyways.
As for the Jungler, I think it’s safe to say that we could narrow this down to Ao Kuang and Freya? This would all depend on how often they are ganking the Solo Lane. If you’re really bullying your match-up, you should expect an increase in ganking, but I believe Hide of the Urchin should be sufficient when dealing with Jungler ganks, and 72 Transformations offers a reliable escape (in theory).
Now for the impacts on the build. Purchasing Pestilence third would shift around the build as expected, but to what extent? At this point you would have to decide whether you were still going to purchase Hide of the Urchin or not. I personally would chose to slide Mantle of Discord up to the fourth item, or even consider Spirit Robe here when getting Pestilence early.
With all this being said, I feel purchasing Pestilence third item is more dependent on who your lane match-up is rather than the Magical presence of the Jungler. Still viable to purchase early though.
And then, if you're talking Solo matchups that are physical where Pest would also help against a magical jungler, they would include healers such as Guan, Chaac, Ama, Herc, and Cama.
As your build is stated, it says for Patch 5.17. In 5.18, Berserker's Shield and Erlang Shen's puppy got adjusted, but before that point, I would expect to see the Shield as a very strong option with a bit of better explanation. I know it's in your bridge items listing, but I would show it in the example build, with notation to sell it late.
Also, that example build has Midgardian Mail 2nd. Is that the replacement for Shield if you get it, or are you suggesting it 2nd? Seems a little early for that item, especially since you might not be going against an enemy in the solo lane that's a basic attacker.
Situational item list looks okay. You might add Witchblade.
That's all I have. I don't play him =P
Thanks for the feedback. You are correct in saying that Midgardian Mail was a replacement for Berserker's Shield; I can see how that could be misinterpreted when looking at the build.
As noted in my Artio Guide, I’m not the avid Conquest Player and it is something that I have started to indulge in heavily as we head full-steam into this year’s Odyssey. With that being said, I hope everyone can bear with me as I try to learn how to effectively build in the game mode.
I have seemed to find my place in the Solo Lane and obviously with Erlang Shen a majority of the time. Lately, I have been starting as such:
Warrior's Blessing
Round Shield
Healing Potion x2
Multi Potion x1
Obviously rushing Berserker's Shield has its ups and down.
First is essentially choosing sustain over mobility; however, this hasn’t seemed to be an issue since 72 Transformations can be utilized in a few viable ways.
Second is being able to sustain effectively before Berserker's Shield is fully online. With this start, you’re only left with 150 Gold to spend on Potions, which could get tricky. So, I’ve had to really rely on the Mana Buff early on.
Thanks again for your feedback and I have made changes to the build in lieu of it.
With 5.18, I'm guessing Berserker's Shield will still be good for his sustain, as his attack progression for it is fitting (0.75 / 0.75 / 0.75 / 1.1 cleave / 0.9).
I would suggest providing and describing an alternate start and build when facing magical solo enemies.