Minstrel (LotRO Class)  

Minstrel need icon Critical Type Tactical Races Dwarf, Elf, Hobbit, Man Skill Level Beginner Role Healer Skills Traits

Minstrel

Lord of the Rings Online Wikibase™ Classes

Anger a man of some power and infamy you may gain but that is a small thing in the scope of the world. Anger a Bard and your infamy shall be world-wide and eternal. No sane man angers a Bard.

The Minstrel is the primary Healer class for this game, but he can also DPS well when solo (though not anywhere close to Tier 1 DPS). Still, if you keep your head and play your strategy, the Minstrel (or mini as he is often called in-game) is one of the hardest classes to kill. On the down side, it is very easy to drop into a feeling of invulnerability, and that will get you dead.

Like the Bard class from EQ2, the minstrel's power is in how he crafts his songs, twisting expressions together into a medley of need. His songs are divided into one, two and three-note ballads and each higher ballad requires the recent use of ant ballad of the lower tier to use. Within each group of ballads he will have choices to make regarding the purpose of his song. Each ballad has a 10s duration and the Healing and Motivational Skill buffs stack so the more ballads that are active at any moment the more effective his healing and motivation songs become.

Some very powerful skills (Anthems) will reset this ballad-counter to naught, requiring him to re-build his song. This makes the Minstrel class a little harder to play well, but once mastered he becomes indispensable.

Because of War Speech he must decide in advance if he is going to assist in dealing the damage or heal the party, as use of War Speech significantly reduces the effectiveness of his healing songs while it is active and for a minute after it is canceled.

Minstrel Ballads

Tier	Role
	Attack	Defence	Healing	All
I	Ballad of Resonance<s> +10% Tactical Damage	Ballad of Steel<s> +240 Armour Value	Ballad of Vigour<s> +20 Vitality	Light Damage† +3% Tier 1: Healing and Motivational Skill Healing
II	Ballad of Swiftness<s> -4% Attack Duration	Ballad of Balance<s> +195 Evade Rating	Ballad of the Stout<s> +325 Poison, Wound and Disease Resist Ratings	Light Damage† +3% Tier 2: Healing and Motivational Skill Healing
III	Ballad of War<s> +10% Melee Damage	Ballad of Unshakeable Will<s> +325 Fear Resist Rating	Ballad of Flame<s> +330 Fire Defence	+3% Tier 3: Healing and Motivational Skill Healing

† At level 20 all Tier I and II Ballads do 31-44 Light Damage. They did less at lower levels and presumably do more as the players level increases (apparently at the rate of 2-3 per level). Tier III Ballads do not do damage.

Quests

1. A Pressing Matter<s> (15) - Bring the letter to Burt Ninetails
2. A Song for the Company<s> (15 Solo) - Help Leland Underhill, then perform a ballad about the adventure
• Instance: A Song for the Company<s> (15) - Defend Leland Underhill