- Lootbound Support Bard: A companion class specializing in buffs and healing rather than raw damage.
- Order Stat: The primary attribute for Bards, boosting healing output and buff effectiveness.
- Healing Trigger: The Bard's special ability activates automatically when an ally drops below 50% HP.
- Inventory Management: Positioning gear with auras is crucial to maximizing the Bard's support capabilities.
- Party Synergy: Best paired with tanks like the Paladin to protect the Bard while it supports the team.
Understanding the Support Bard
The Support Bard in Lootbound is a unique companion designed to sustain and buff your party during tactical runs. Unlike the Warrior or Paladin, the Bard does not rely on high burst damage or armor. Instead, it uses the Order stat to empower abilities that restore health and apply buffs.
Video Highlights:
- Introduction to the Bard as a "minstrel whose music can inspire hope."
- Demonstration of the Bard's healing trigger activating when party health is low.
- Comparison of Bard damage output versus Paladin and Warrior classes.
- Tips on equipping the Bard with mana and Order items.
Core Mechanics
The Bard operates on an Automatic Trigger System. You cannot manually command the Bard to use its healing ability during your turn. Instead, the game monitors the health status of your party. When any member falls below the 50% health threshold, the Bard prioritizes them for a heal or a buff.
This makes the Bard's Action Economy very efficient. While your main hero spends mana and turns dealing damage, the Bard acts independently to keep the team alive. However, because the Bard often attacks the enemy with the lowest health (using "Cords of Concentration"), it contributes minimal damage. Your strategy should focus on keeping the Bard alive to maximize its support uptime.
The Bard has low base defense and health. If the Bard dies, your team loses its primary source of healing, making the final boss significantly harder. Always prioritize gear that increases the Bard's survival.
Stats and Build Strategy
Building the Bard requires a different approach than building a damage dealer. You must understand the specific stats that scale its abilities.
| Stat | Description | Impact on Bard |
|---|---|---|
| Order | Increases effectiveness of blessings, healing, and armor. | Critical: Directly scales the amount of health restored. |
| Mana | Resource required to use abilities. | High: Ensures the Bard can heal repeatedly in long fights. |
| Chaos | Increases effectiveness of curses. | Low: Useless for a standard Support Bard build. |
| Fortitude | Absorbs a portion of incoming damage. | Medium: Helps the Bard survive burst damage. |
| Health | Total hit points. | High: Increases the buffer before the Bard needs healing itself. |
The Order Stat Explained
The Order stat is the equivalent of "Faith" or "Magic Power" for the Bard. According to the game's loot descriptions, "The effectiveness of buffs directly depends on the character's order points." This means:
- Higher Order = Bigger Heals: A Bard with 50 Order will heal for significantly more than one with 10 Order.
- Buff Duration: While not explicitly detailed in the demo, Order likely affects the strength of buffs like critical power increases.
When selecting loot cards, prioritize items with Order and Health. Avoid items with negative Order modifiers, as they will cripple your healing efficiency.
Look for items with Auras. An item that grants "+Order to adjacent items" can be placed in the center of your inventory to buff multiple pieces of gear simultaneously, drastically increasing your stats.
Step-by-Step: Building the Bard
To maximize the Support Bard's potential, follow this progression path during your runs.
Recruitment and Initial Setup
The Bard is typically unlocked after progressing through the initial zones (The Gate/Barracks). When offered a choice between companions, select the Bard if your main hero lacks self-sustain. Upon recruitment, give the Bard any Health or Armor loot you find, even if it's not high-tier, to prevent it from being one-shot by elites.
Prioritize Mana Regeneration
The Bard's healing ability consumes Mana. In the demo, players noted that running out of mana stops the healing cycle. Equip items with +Mana or Mana Regen. If you find a "Dungeon Mana Potion," equip it in a dedicated consumable slot. You can use this potion on the Bard's turn (if controlled) or rely on the main character to feed it to the Bard.
Stack Order Items
As you approach the mid-game (Grimwood), start looking for items with +Order. These are often helmets, amulets, or instruments. Place these in your inventory grid. If you have an item with an aura that buffs "Helmets," try to center your high-tier helmet in the grid to maximize the aura bonus.
Balance the Party
The Bard cannot carry the team alone. Ensure your Paladin or Warrior has high Thorns or Armor. The Bard works best when the other party members are absorbing damage. If the Bard is drawing aggro (due to high damage output on another character), consider equipping items that reduce enemy focus or increase the Paladin's threat generation.
Final Boss Preparation
Before the final boss (The Sentinel), ensure the Bard has a full mana bar and over 50% health. The Sentinel has attacks that hit the whole party (Beams of Frost/Flames). The Bard will likely trigger its heal immediately after the first AoE attack. Make sure your Order stat is maximized here to recover from the unavoidable damage.
Companion Synergy & Loadouts
The Bard is not a standalone solution; it thrives when paired with specific teammates and gear setups.
Best Team Compositions
Warrior + Bard
- Warrior Role: High damage dealer (Shred/Slash).
- Bard Role: Sustains the Warrior who takes aggro.
- Synergy: The Warrior's high damage kills enemies quickly, reducing the total damage the Bard takes. The Bard keeps the Warrior healthy through "Raging Defense" phases.
Paladin + Bard
- Paladin Role: Tank with high Armor/Crush damage.
- Bard Role: Heals the Paladin when armor breaks.
- Synergy: The Paladin's "Indestructible Strike" often targets the lowest health enemy, cleaning up trash, while the Bard ensures the Paladin survives heavy hits from elites.
Ideal Loot for the Bard
Not every item fits the Bard. Avoid Chaos or Thorns items unless the Bard has nothing else. Here is a checklist of ideal affixes:
Bard Loot Priority:
- High +Order values (Priority #1)
- +Health and +Armor (Survivability)
- +Mana (Sustain for long fights)
- Auras that buff adjacent items (Inventory efficiency)
- Avoid: -Order penalties (Healing reduction)
- Avoid: High Chaos (No curses in standard build)
If you find a Vampirism item, consider giving it to your main damage dealer instead of the Bard. The Bard heals based on percentages and Order, while Vampirism provides a flat lifesteal that scales better with high attack damage.
Advanced Tactics and Troubleshooting
Mastering the Bard involves understanding its AI behavior and limitations.
Trigger Mechanics
The Bard's healing is not random. It follows a logic:
- Check Health: Is any ally < 50% HP?
- Select Target: Prioritize the ally with the lowest % HP.
- Execute: Use heal/buff.
If the Bard is not healing, check the following:
- Mana: Is the Bard out of mana? (Common issue).
- Health: Is the Bard silenced or stunned? (Check debuffs).
- Threshold: Are allies above 50% HP? (The Bard will attack instead).
Inventory Management Puzzles
Lootbound features a unique inventory system where item Shape and Rotation matter. The Bard's gear often has unique shapes (like the "Lute" or "Harp" shapes found in the data). You may need to rotate items 90 or 180 degrees to fit them into your grid alongside your main hero's gear.
| Problem | Solution |
|---|---|
| Bard runs out of Mana | Equip a +Mana item or a Dungeon Mana Potion. |
| Bard deals 0 Damage | This is normal. Focus on keeping the Paladin/Warrior alive. |
| Bard dies too often | Move the Bard's position in the party UI (if available) or give it the highest Armor item found. |
| Healing is weak | Check the Bard's Order stat. Remove items with -Order penalties. |
Outside of runs, use any currency earned to upgrade the Bard's base stats in the Barracks. Increasing base Order or Health can make the Bard significantly more effective in the first few zones.
FAQ
Q: Is the Support Bard good for solo play?
The Bard is a companion, not a main hero class. You must select a main hero (Warrior, etc.) first, then recruit the Bard as a companion. It is excellent for solo runs because it compensates for the main hero's lack of self-healing.
Q: What stats should I prioritize for the Lootbound Support Bard?
Prioritize **Order** above all else. It increases the power of heals and buffs. Secondary stats are **Health** and **Mana**. Avoid Chaos and offensive stats like Slash/Crush damage unless you have no other options.
Q: How do I trigger the Bard's healing ability?
You cannot trigger it manually. The Bard's AI automatically activates its healing ability when a party member's health drops below **50%**. Ensure the Bard has Mana to cast the heal when needed.
Q: Which companion works best with the Bard?
The **Paladin** is the best pairing. The Paladin has high armor and crush damage, allowing them to tank hits while the Bard keeps the party healthy. The Warrior is also a solid choice for high damage, but they are squishier than the Paladin.