A big issue with Solo Tanks are early game options that feel good
Not going to get too deep into 'are tanks good' here. I just wanted to make a post to bring some light on why so many players feel like tanks suck in the solo lane, and I believe a big part of that is because there is such a lack of opener items that feel good to build.
In a Warrior v Warrior/Guardian matchup, I am happy to open with Runeforged and Glad/Genjis. It feels good. RF isn't always a perfect fit for every kit though, but that matters a lot less in a traditional matchups.
In a Warrior v Mage matchup, I am not so happy to build that way. In a Warrior v Hunter matchup, I am not happy at all to build that way.
I think the game needs more diversity in Solo openers, particularly around Helms and Hammers.
Helm of Radiance is a great item if you can make use of the INT. Its good defensiveness for laning, but more importantly, it offers some offense.
That's a big deal in Solo that typically doesn't matter that much in traditional matchups, but matters a lot more against the ranged meta. Nobody wants to be the Warrior with Valor and Genjis and 0 STR taking 5 minutes to clear a blue buff while their opponent Anubis one shots the wave, camp, buff, and runs over to a mid rotation way before you.
If youre not gonna let us be superior tanks, let us have some more offensive options. Not a lot, just a little bit in the form of some effective Helms and Hammers. It will really go a long way in making traditional Solos feel good to play in the lane.
I think in particular, Hammers and Helms should provide more of the following combinations:
STR+Magic prots. This combination almost doesn't exist at all, and that feels really bad. I think an item like 'Helm of the Blackguard' Str, Magic prots, Passive: When you take Magical Damage gain stack of Dampening' would be a huge swing for making Warrior v Mage matchups feel good. Basically just a type-variant of Radiance.
STR+Cooldown Hybrid. Another combo that doesnt exist at all. I think a new Blackthorn Hammer that gave some STR Health and CDR would go a long way in making Warrior v Ranged matchups feel good. It would also just be nice not to be forced into Runeforged every game even on gods that dont use it that well.
STR+CDR+Plating. Actually make a good item with the new stats. Knight's Stirrups: Str, Phys Prots, Passive: when hit by a basic attack, gain a stack of Plating and Pathfinding. Boom, Hunters are gone in solo.
Sphere of Negation is another item that feels really good to build when trying to deal with Mages, but only if you can make use of the INT. Making a STR+Phys version of that item would feel great. Or even making that item Adaptive so STR kits can use it vs Mages too.
And this last idea might be a bit of a stretch, but as a Wukong player it occurred to me how awesome it is to have a slight extension of my ability range from these kinds of hybrid laning items.
Like grabbing a Radiance or Negation with a Beatstick into a Mage just feels great. I'm able to remain tanky and to do my job as a solo, but also control the lane without feeling like I'm just being pushed into tower all game by a Range Diff.
So what if we added an item that gave this to other warriors too? Call it a Polearm or Halberd or something flavorful like that. Give it good hybrid stats like STR and Phys Prots and maybe even CDR, and a passive that lets melee gods abilities have slightly longer range. Maybe a stretch here.
I think a huge part of the sentiment around tanks being bad is rooted in the fact that they are bad during lane. This leads to being behind during mid game when they should be peaking, and then late game, when they rightfully should get outscaled (and imo I think its normal for tanks late game to still get kinda lit up) it feels terrible. Not just because they've built six tank items and still aren't tanky, but because they never really had a phase of the game to even be strong.
In Smite 1, tanks still fell off late game, but their laning and mid game dominance helped make that a lot less 'feels bad'. It was a very natural flow for gameplay. A late game pwoer spike ramps slowly and is weak to an early/mid game power spike that falls off late. Its just common sense tbh. But 2 doesnt have that. Instead we have Damage Solos that are just stronger early, mid, and late.
And so a strong early game, with strong laning items like above, would allow Warriors to actually have a chance to control the lane, leverage it into a strong mid game like they should, and then when they still kinda fall off late game, and become overly reliant on Active items to survive, and their full tank build gets lit up anyway, and when they can't enjoy the 3k pot one-shot circus races like everyone else, it doesn't feel quite as terrible.