Worst item per cost...

Guys, you're really not looking at Vanguard for what it offers to the player. In some situations it's better to get mek but once you have mek on your team or you know someone will get it, getting Vangaurd is not bad at all.

It's really strong especially if you're behind or need it to survive burst damage from heroes like Clinkz. Vanguard is a really strong for laning and it provides that extra survival for your early game, that's what it's for. That's why you still see some Spectres still build it, especially if the team is not doing good or if there's a ton of burst damage. Why some Spectres build Drums is for it's cheap stats and better offensive capabilities compared to Vanguard but think about what you build if you don't go for Vanguard.

Unless Spectre getting total free-farm to get that quick radiance then you're going to need a way to survive. This also applies to a few other heroes who CAN get mek or need an item to SURVIVE. It's ok to get Vangaurd on heroes like BB, Clockwerk or Timbersaw if you really need an item to survive especially if there is a brutal early game with aggressive plays and lots of damage (i.e heroes like Slark, Kunkka, Skywrath).