Overview
Bard is one of the most popular League of Legends champions, thanks to his unique playstyle, abilities and playmaking potential. If you’re looking to get into playing him, you’ve come to the right place.
In this overview, we’ll cover all the basics you need to know about Bard, including his abilities, playstyle, and tips for playing him in game. Let’s dive in!
Brief history of Bard
Bard is a champion in League of Legends that was first introduced to the game in the 2015 set called “Candy and Floss“. He has since become a popular choice for players and teams alike, thanks to his powerful damage-dealing capabilities and versatile passive.
Bard’s first story begins when he was summoned from an unknown force. His origin is vague, but some believe he is an eternal jailer of some kind – either sent by the gods or born from a powerful magical ritual – either way, nothing can keep him bound. After roaming the land for centuries, Bard eventually formed an agreement with two powerful entities: The Watchers and the Betrayer. Together, they gave him access to (and control over) the power of magic, granting him access to ancient secrets which allowed him further connection with magical energy.
Using this newfound power, Bard sided himself with adventurers in their pursuit of knowledge and glory; aiding them where possible and advising them on matters of fate and destiny. He ventured through many lands destroying those who threatened his allies while also taking on those who had wronged him or violated laws that he deemed right or necessary.
Throughout his travels Bard met many other champions along the way who quickly learned that despite his gentle demeanor, he possessed great inner strength that could defy even death itself. This made him welcome wherever he went as people sought out his counsel/guidance when it came to negotiation or talk between armies as he could always be trusted as both a neutral party and confidant for those seeking council on matters big or small.
Abilities and playstyle
Bard is a champion that specializes in controlling the battlefield with his broad range of abilities. This powerful support champion is ideal for making big plays and setting up assists for teammates. With his unique Chime mechanic, Bard can use these Chimes to empower himself and teammates. Then, if necessary, he can collect them to use powerful spirit walkers that will grant bonus stats or limited invulnerability against crowd control effects.
To make the most out of Bard’s kit, it’s important to familiarize yourself with his abilities and playstyle. He can be played in a range of ways – from being an aggressive playmaker by working with his jungler to quickly gank lanes, or as a more defensive enabler for ADC and other champions who excel at dealing damage safely. His Ultimate is perhaps one of the strongest abilities in the game so don’t hesitate to use it when needed! And finally, owing to his large range of mobility options and protective abilities, he is great at roaming from lane-to-lane as well as picking up objectives like Dragon or Baron Nashor on behalf of your team.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Bard is a support champion in League of Legends, and is a great pick for players wanting to improve their game in the support role. He offers a lot of utility to his team, and has a lot of strengths that make him a valuable pick. However, like all champions, Bard also has his fair share of weaknesses. Let’s take a look at his Strengths and Weaknesses:
Strengths of Bard
Bard is an incredibly powerful champion whose skillset makes him a valuable team asset in League of Legends. He has two primary strengths:
- Mobility – Bard can move quickly around the map and position himself to take advantage of enemy weaknesses. Because of his low cooldowns, he can quickly close gaps, engage in fights, and support allies for multiple battles at once. His ultimate temporally warps allies to his location, allowing for surprise attacks and sieges.
- Adaptability – Bard has a varied set of abilities that enable him to adapt to various playstyles and strategies. His Magical Journey allows him to transport enemies across walls, while Celestial Touch helps him when kiting or chasing down escaping opponents. Bard has the flexibility to play both aggressive and defensive roles in team fights, allowing him to counter most champions he faces off against.
Weaknesses of Bard
Bard is a support champion in League of Legends, and this unique champion brings both strengths and weaknesses to the Rift. Like all champions, Bard’s weak points should be taken into consideration when formulating a strategy to a successful match.
One of the biggest weaknesses of Bard is his inconsistency. His kit requires precise timing and careful positioning to be effective, making it difficult for players at all levels to capitalize on his abilities. Additionally, due to his low damage output, he struggles against other support champions who can easily take him out with one or two well-placed attacks or spells.
Another weakness is that Bard lacks crowd control, making it difficult for him to set up plays and protect teammates from enemy aggression. He also doesn’t have any consistent way to move around the map quickly, so he relies on other champions for mobility or has to wait for an ally’s ability cooldowns before he can join battles elsewhere.
Finally, Bard’s ultimate power – Tempered Fate – is considered a double-edged sword because of its potential to backfire if not used correctly. Although incredibly powerful when used in the right situations, it can leave your allies vulnerable if cast too far away from them or on a hostile target that moves out of range when the spell is activated.
Tips and Tricks
Bard is a unique champion in LoL, and playing him well can be a tricky task. It is important to understand his skillset and the way his kit is designed in order to maximize his effectiveness in game. Whether you are a new or experienced player, these tips and tricks will help you get the most out of Bard:
Early game tips
Early game is essential for Bard as it sets the foundation for a good performance in the mid and late game. Here are some tips to help maximize your potential with this champion in the early games:
- Focus on learning how to use Bard’s ultimate, Cosmic Binding effectively as it can be one of your greatest assets during team fights.
- Utilize Bard’s Magical Journey to move quickly between lanes, allowing you to provide much needed assistance and supplies when teammates are struggling.
- Keep an eye out for any opportunities that can be taken advantage of using Tesseract Blast and Portal Breach – often you can catch enemies off guard or surprise them if they don’t expect a Bard ultimate.
- Since both his abilities cost mana, make sure you have high mana regeneration items like Sorcery Flask and Morellonomicon so that you can always use your abilities without running out of mana quickly.
- Take time to ward key objectives such as dragon and Baron every chance you get – this will give your team more vision control during team fights and allow them to make smarter decisions.
Mid game tips
Entering the mid game can be a critical time for Bard when strategies are formed and teamfights are around the corner. Being able to nail your Bard timings during this pivotal stage of the game is imperative to the success of your team. Here are some essential tips and tricks to guide you through these important moments:
- Build towards maximum stacks on your Cosmic Binding as quickly as possible. This will ensure that you have access to all five charges of Meep’s damages when teamfights arise.
- Use Tempered Fate proactively. This ultimate allows you to set up unique gank scenarios where enemies cannot simply click away into safety thanks to its stasis effect. Try using it on wandering marksmen or isolated healers who are alone in lane!
- Focus on ambushing isolated targets with Blast Cones when they come in range with Portal Jump rather than taking any further risk by overextending yourself or your team members too far against multiple opponents. Utilizing this trick will place tremendous pressure on receiving teams if executed properly.
- Wards with your Caretaker’s Shrine often since it can provide immense vision control for you and your team to safely farm or engage in skirmishes throughout the mid game stage and beyond!
- Finally, push objectives such as turrets or dragons quickly if you have map control after clearing out waves of minions with ease; this will shift pressure from lanes onto other side of map where it’s needed most! Keep track of enemy jungler/roamers who will try disrupt these moves so make sure anticipate their arrival!
Late game tips
In the late game, it is important for Bard to make use of his global presence by roaming and assisting allies in skirmishes. Whenever possible, try to use Lunar Rush or Magical Journey to roam quickly and help your allies pressure objectives or ambush enemies.
Most importantly, however, is using his ultimate Global ult Ultimate ULTIMATE: Tempered Fate. This can either be used to lock an enemy team in a single location allowing your own team to burst them down and score an easy ace, or whittle down the enemy team’s health before initiating a fight that you might face unfavorable odds on normally.
Bard’s Ultimate is a great tool for peeling and protecting allies as well as surprising enemies with unexpected ganks from fog of war locations. Always weigh the risks associated with using it when sieging objectives; often times it can be more advantageous to follow up with your ultimate after teammates engage than firing off in the middle of a siege where enemies can dodge away easily.
Builds
Choosing the right build for Bard is key to success in League of Legends. Different builds require different strategies, and it is important to choose the one that fits your playstyle and the situation best.
This article will provide an overview of some of the most popular builds for Bard and their primary advantages and disadvantages:
General builds
Choosing the right build is essential to success with a champion. It can make or break a game and getting it right requires knowledge and practice. A build is composed of different items, runes, and masteries that are geared towards maximizing your effectiveness in League of Legends (LoL). Builds have to be tailored to the specific role a champion plays on the team. In general, mages will focus on abilities while assassins prioritize damage. Tanks will look for durability while fighting powerhouses go after cooldown reduction.
For each build, there are three main components: start items, core items, and situational choices. Start items are usually selected based on the matchup or what type of jungler you’re facing because these give the most bang for your buck at the beginning of the game. Core items focus on what you achieve with your win condition in mind since those decisions set up how you’ll be playing later in the game. Situational choices vary from game-to-game as opportunities present themselves but having an idea of what works best for your champion will come with experience.
When creating builds for LoL there are many factors that must be taken into consideration from individual playstyles to overall team composition; knowing when it is appropriate to go full damage versus more defensive builds can require significant expertise. Experimenting with runes and masteries can help refine builds over time but in the end, practice makes perfect!
Tank builds
Tank builds are a type of guide that is designed to maximize the durability of League of Legends (LoL) Champion, Bard, who is a support class character with high defensive capabilities. Tanks take a defensive strategy in combat by building items and champion attributes to protect their team or allies from aggressive attackers. The goal is not to outright kill enemies, but rather to allow the team’s damage dealers or carries to do their jobs and carry the match for victory.
Tank builds usually involve stacking health, armor/magic resist stats, ability power, and specific items that give bonuses to defense-oriented abilities or stats. Common tank builds focus on maximizing health points, getting cooldown reduction items on Bard’s support spells like Tempered Fate and Cosmic Binding, as well as priority on defensive item purchases like Guardian Angel or Locket of the Iron Solari. Depending on the type of match Bard finds himself in, players may also wish to acquire offensive items such as Liandry’s Torment and Void Staff – both statted towards awesome burst damage potential while still granting substantial bonuses towards defensive stats.
By building components with these tanks in mind, it suits Bard best for being an effective support role who will defend his allies from enemy aggression while bringing them closer to ultimate victory!
Mage builds
Mage builds are typically centered around creating heavy amounts of crowd control and burst damage. Mages can take advantage of their incredible ability to poke spells to wear down enemies, creating space for themselves or allies. Ideal core items to focus on when building a mage include various Ability Power and Cooldown Reduction items, as well as options that increase mana regeneration.
Mage champions will commonly begin with a Doran’s Ring in order to maintain mana early game while providing enough AP to land harass and required damage if need be. As the game progresses, champions will look to hold onto the scaled bonuses from early-game rings, transitioning them into their normal late-game accessories (usually Abyssal Mask or Void Staff). Furthermore many mid lane mages often get an Abyssal Scepter for additional magic resistance (MR) and Magic Pen for the group fights which become fairly frequent in later stages of the game. With regards to boots, mid laners will almost exclusively get Sorcerer’s Shoes for Magic Pen given it works for any type of spellcaster build seen in the mid lane.
Rabadon’s Deathcap is a signature item seen across most mages due its insanely high AP scaling on a relatively inexpensive consumable item. Lastly mages usually finish up with two specific category items – either Zhonya’s Hourglass or Guardian Angel depending on how much defensive stats they require against enemy teams; addedly this comes down just preference as both offer incredibly effective stats no matter what route is chosen by individual players.
Matchups
When it comes to playing League of Legends, understanding the matchups between different champions is essential. In this section, we will discuss the matchups for Bard, one of the most versatile and powerful champions in the game. Here, we will discuss how to play both against and with Bard in order to maximize your chances of winning your matches.
Common matchups
When playing Bard, it’s important to understand which opponents he is strong against and which opponents can counter him. A champion’s matchups can be determined based on an analysis of their stats, such as damage output, range, and defensive capabilities.
As a support champion, Bard’s role is mainly to protect his allies and provide crowd control so that they may attack or escape safely; because of this, it is important to consider some factors before deciding which matchup will work best. For example, champions who have powerful crowd control abilities like Thresh or Blitzcrank can be very effective against certain champions who lack form of mobility. Alternatively, champions who mainly rely on physical damage output may struggle against champions with higher armor ratings.
The following are some common matchups for Bard:
- Annie: The combination of Annie’s AP burst damage and stun makes her a formidable opponent for many champions – but not for Bard! With his long range basic attacks and his passive health regeneration ability that helps mitigate her burst damage, Bard has no difficulty facing off against Annie in lane.
- Fiddlesticks: Mages who rely on casting time are countered well by Bards’ crowd control abilities – like his meeps (which grant him bonus movement speed when hitting enemy champions) and ultimate Cosmic Binding (which stuns enemies in place), making Fiddlesticks an easy match up for the Guardian of the expansion pathway.
- Swain: Another mage champion whose main source of lethality lies in his damaging combo spells – Swain is still a powerful mid laner but thanks to Bards slow crowd controlling meeps he will struggle hard to reach you or your teammates instead try attacking the squishier characters focus on helping others pushing waves near turrets or simply leave them alone entirely.
- Yasuo: This champ with all their dashing abilities can give difficult times on most players lucky enough having a bard at your side can help shut down Yasuo using his ult Destiny if aimed correctly preventing any dash ,similarly you could use his Cosmic Binding slowing him down whenever he gets close enough doing this being an almost unstoppable wall between Yasuo you minions towers or anyone else trying cross while they get caught in midair shortly after.
Difficult matchups
Choosing the right Champions to counter your opponent is a crucial part of achieving success in League of Legends. Here we will take a look at Bard’s difficult matchups, including those where it’s important for the Bard player to play cautiously.
Difficult matchups for Bard include champions like Irelia, Akali, Fizz and Malphite. Each of these champions are agile fighters that rely on rapidly dealing low cooldown damage and healing through burst damage. In order to win against these champions it’s important to be patient and wait until you have enough mana or health to survive their burst. Additionally, it’s important to pay attention to their positioning, as they can use their mobility tools to quickly dash out of Bard’s abilities’ range.
Finally, defensive items such as Will of the Ancients can be useful in helping mitigate their damage before they gain enough gold for items such as Morellonomicon or Hiten Style.
Synergistic matchups
Synergistic matchups refer to the combination of Champions in League of Legends that work together better than other pairings. Probable synergies depend on the playstyles and abilities of each Champion – what works for one pair may not work for another.
Generally, strategies and strategies will be based on two conditions: a good harmonization of skills and a strong composition that is resilient in multiple situations. When pairing Bard with another champion, we look at both individual and team playstyle elements to understand how they can aid each other in battle.
Bard is especially powerful when paired with Champions who have crowd control abilities (CC) as his magical chimes will help keep enemies locked down while both take advantage of his healing and movement speed buffs. Champions such as Morgana, Leona, Ahri, and Malzahar all provide CC while receiving Bard’s support. His ultimate ability makes it easy to traverse quickly across the map when needed, greatly aiding ganking opportunities for himself or others on the team who can join him mid-journey.
It’s important to consider enemy match ups as well as Allied ones, as certain combinations can result in an easy win or an embarrassing defeat if opponents are able to counter your strategy quickly. Fortunately, a few minutes spent researching common meta picks of top tier players – along with some personal practice – will help you develop sound strategies that make use of Bard’s unique strengths!
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the Bard’s role in League of Legends?
A: Bard is a support champion who excels at roaming the map and helping out allies in fights. He can provide heals and shield teammates, teleport across the map, and even capture important objectives like the Baron or Dragon.
Q: What are Bard’s abilities?
A: Bard has four abilities – Cosmic Binding, Caretaker’s Shrine, Tempered Fate, and Chimes of the Ancient. Cosmic Binding is a long-range skillshot that knocks enemies in the air and slows them. Caretaker’s Shrine places a healing and movement speed buff on the ground. Tempered Fate is a global ultimate that stuns every enemy champion on the map. Finally, Chimes of the Ancient grants Bard and his nearby allies movement speed and mana regeneration.
Q: What are Bard’s strengths?
A: Bard is a very versatile champion who can provide a lot of utility to his team. He’s great at roaming, setting up plays, and protecting his team. His ultimate, Tempered Fate, can be used to turn the tide of a fight or secure objectives like the Baron or Dragon. He also has decent sustain and durability with his Caretaker’s Shrine ability.