Is Bard good?

Archon X·9/27/2015, 1:23:54 AM·1 votes·3,435 views

So I rode my three favorite champs to glorious Platinum 5.

Since I won't be climbing anymore this season but still need to play ranked in order to not decay, I was thinking of trying .

I mean, is he good? I haven't been terribly impressed with him when I faced him in-lane but that could have been the operator as opposed to his natural abilities.

And yeah I can read some build guides and see what he does, which I'll do and come up with a strat before actually taking him into a game but can someone experienced and more op than me give me a tl;dr of what he's really capable of?

11 Comments

Dark Dronnam9/27/2015, 1:38:00 AM1 votes

I'm not sure, to be honest. There's a lot more champions that can do what he does 10x better.

Bard is still a new champion, and not a lot of people have mastered his kit. Sure, he's got poke with q and his meep-empowered auto's, but that's all for damage... He's got a weak heal/movement speed buff, A stun/slow, and a tunnel because why shouldn't he. I guess it's useful for invades/escapes, as it makes the team quite slippery, if followed by a q stun when being chased.

He can't really peel that great, and he's often built full tank, meaning that he lacks all the cc a tank should have, and replaces it with a weak heal and a tunnel that can't be used in teamfights.

Compared to other supports, he's not very high tier. If you can get a good q in lane, that'd be nice, but there's no cc chains.

*Forgot about his ult.

His ult makes sieging and diving easy, as it can shut down turrets. His ult will always get at least one teammate killed, as, since it's a zhonya's for all 10 players, it will put someone at a positioning disadvantage. If you're not catching/following up your long range ult with a Righteous Glory, it's not really that good of an engage, as short range it will put your team at a disadvantage, and unlike a sejuani ult, etc. You can't damage them while cc'd.

TaiwanNumbaWan9/27/2015, 1:52:24 AM1 votes

Bard is a support who is excellent if you've had lots of experience as a support.

His kit requires a lot of practice and has a large skill cap but when played right is largely rewarding. On that idea of rewarding he can also be punishing (ex: his ult or a misused tunnel).

One champion I can most compare him to is Nami except he has a punishing laning phase when behind but when ahead excels at extending that lead to other lanes.

As a side note I also find him a super safe champion to ward deep with with many escape tools.

Aeolian Melodies9/27/2015, 2:00:04 AM1 votes

He's kinda awkward tbh. I wouldn't rely on him in solo queue because his ult can seriously throw allies under the bus if they aren't thinking the same thing you are. Pick him with full premades. I've seen him shine there but he never seems to do well in solo queue.

Truly Prideful9/27/2015, 2:10:45 AM1 votes

Short answer, yes.

Long answer, Bard is very good once you have a lot of experience with him. His laning really isn't bad at all, it's a learning process. If you can cycle having your shrines ( W ) up and grabbing chimes to sit at about 50% mana at all times, you are golden.

Learning the great spots for Magical Journey ( E ) so you can traverse the map quickly is also really important to be successful. The quicker you can excute your chime collection trips, the sooner you can make a stop in a lane for a gank. I've had plenty of games where my routes collecting and exp from ganks will get me to almost outlevel the ADC. It's really just a matter of routing it out before you back in terms of where you will place your journies to cut travel time. It's also probably one of the most interesting ganking tools in the game. You can set your jungler up really well, especially from red side, for a really nasty gank on the enemy botlane. Other applications are baron sneaks when it might not be warded, crazy escapes, etc.

And Bard's ult, probably my favorite part. Once you get the hang of it, Bard's ultimate is an insane tool for making picks or setting up nice dives early game. Playing against other Bards and playing him a lot myself, the most important part is honestly knowing when not to use it. While it has really great big play potential, it can also backfire if you choose poorly. It's probably one of the more satisfying abilities in the game once you get used to landing the precision ults to save teammates or getting those game winning picks.

Overall I really like Bard, so I might be biased a bit. I have a lot of success with him myself. I'd say if you already own him, give him 10-20 games before you really pass judgement. By then you'll really start to get his play potential and know if it's something that suits you.

Caytheles9/27/2015, 2:11:05 AM1 votes

In my opinion, YES!!!. He does require abit of skill and Managing on your end. But he is very fun and if played right, very Powerful. He has the ability to change Lost Games with his Powerful ult if timed and placed Correctly. Warding is not much of a problem with his Chimes. and he has Alot to offer to the battlefield that alot of other Supports dont.

(Just a tip on what i like to do) It isnt much however at lvl 1 i always take "Caretaker Shrine" and place one at the Top Lane, Junglers first Big Camp (Red or Blue) and one around the mid lane so where the jungler can access it aswell as the mid laner. This provides a small heal that could be Lanechanging sometimes. But yes he is a Vry good support, infact ALL supports have Strengths tat others dont.

FeelsBardMaín9/27/2015, 2:17:57 AM1 votes

To be honest, I'm quite interested as to why you haven't mained Thresh. In my opinion, he's quite possibly the most satisfying support to play (on the same level as Janna). Thresh can hard carry several games by virtue of his hook and lantern alone. So, if you are looking for a new support to utilize, I would highly recommend Thresh (I actually solely mained Thresh from Silver V to Plat IV).

As for Bard, he's my second main after Thresh. Bard mostly excels if you are duo-queueing with someone else (particularly the Jungler or ADC). He is best used in the following ways:

-Take W (the healing shrine) level 1. Place 2-3 on your jungler's route before 1:30 (I sometimes place one in mid lane), then recall to replenish your mana. This allows your jungler to clear faster and heals them as well (and occasionally you'll get the added bonus of an assist if mid or jungle kills someone after using your shrine). -Take Q second. This is your main method of CC and winning bot lane. Using your Q's accurately are a good way to tell good and inexperienced Bards apart. -Take W third (unless you are winning lane heavily, then take E). The reason for this is that you should be planting heal shrines behind you in lane for you or your ADC at all times. Let your chimes build up around you and then go on a quick journey to pick them all up when low on mana so you don't have to recall. -Coordinate jungler ganks by walking into your jungle and E'ing into lane with them. This works especially well if you are constantly shoved under turret. After journeying through with the Jungler, this is the best moment to ult the enemy bot lane so that you, your adc, and your jungler can setup for the kill. -Bard's ultimate can be used in a variety of ways. The absolute best method is to catch out someone on the enemy team. If you are roaming to gank or your team is grouped and near an enemy, ult the enemy champion. Then, Journey through a wall towards them. Be in a position to Q them into a wall/minion to stun them. If the enemy team has one fed player in particular, your priority is to ult them during/before a team fight. -You can also use Bard's ultimate to save teammates. If you are in range and a teammate is caught out, aim the ult so that you will stun the enemy team, but not your teammate.

Playing Bard successfully is massively rewarding (probably the most rewarding feeling on any support, imo) because of his skillcap (particularly with his ultimate). However, as good as Bard is, I generally find Thresh to be even more utility-based and useful than Bard, and would recommend him more for ranked play.