Editing Bard

{{DISPLAYTITLE:Bard (class)}}
[[File:Bard armor.png|thumb|right|250px|A full set of gold armour. Any gold set activates the class — no dye required.]]

'''Bard''' is a support [[class]] in [[Hardcore Factions]], active while wearing a full set of gold armour. It is the only class that buffs teammates and debuffs enemies, and it is generally considered the hardest class to play well and the most valuable to have.

Gold has the worst armour value in the game. A bard survives by never being reached, and dies the moment it is. Every server's meta revolves around protecting your bard and killing theirs.

== Activation ==
All four pieces must be gold. Losing a piece mid-fight drops the class immediately, taking your energy passive with it. Most servers apply a warmup after equipping before effects can be used.

== Energy ==
Bard is built around an energy bar that fills passively while the full set is worn, typically to a cap of 100. Effects cost energy; running dry makes you a very fragile diamond. Energy regenerates faster when standing still or out of combat on most configurations, so bards top up between pushes rather than during them.

== Effects ==
Holding a potion ingredient in hand and right-clicking applies an effect. Two delivery methods exist and the distinction matters more than anything else on this page:

* '''Buffs''' apply to faction members within a radius. Sugar for speed, blaze powder for strength, iron for resistance, ghast tear for regeneration.
* '''Debuffs''' apply to enemies in that same radius. Sometimes called a "bard hold" or "bard drop" — commonly slowness, weakness or wither.

Exact items, radii, durations and costs vary by server. Check the network's own rules page; assuming Faithful's values on a different server is a classic way to waste a fight.

== Role in a fight ==
* '''Stay behind the frontline.''' Your effective range is a sphere around you, not a beam. You do not need line of sight, so use terrain and stay out of reach.
* '''Time buffs to the push.''' Strength dropped as your diamonds engage wins fights. Dropped thirty seconds early, it expires before contact.
* '''Save energy for the retreat.''' Speed on a losing fight saves your whole team's gear. Spending everything on the opening push and having nothing left is the most common bard mistake.
* '''Debuff the enemy bard first.''' Wither and weakness on their support collapses the other side faster than damage does.
* '''Never chase.''' A bard following a fleeing enemy is a bard away from its team and about to be pearled onto.
* '''Call your holds.''' Teammates need to know when strength is up so they commit at the right moment.

== Strengths and weaknesses ==
{| class="wikitable"
! Strengths !! Weaknesses
|-
| Only class that supports the whole team || Lowest armour value of any class
|-
| Effects apply through walls and terrain || Dies almost instantly if focused
|-
| Wins outnumbered fights outright || Useless once energy is depleted
|-
| Debuffs counter enemy support directly || Requires constant ingredient resupply
|-
| High impact for a single player || Steepest learning curve of the classes
|}

== Gear and preparation ==
Beyond the gold set, a bard carries stacks of every effect ingredient it expects to use, plus the usual [[Ender pearl|pearls]], [[potions]] and blocks. Ingredient stock is the real limiting factor over a long map — bards burn through sugar and blaze powder far faster than new players expect, and a bard out of ingredients contributes nothing.

== Notable players ==
''This section is a stub. Add players with a source — a VOD, clip or map recap — rather than reputation alone.''

{| class="wikitable"
! Player !! Faction !! Known for !! Source
|-
| || || ||
|-
| || || ||
|}

== See also ==
* [[Class comparison]]
* [[Diamond class|Diamond]]
* [[Archer]]
* [[Rogue]]
* [[PvP techniques]]

[[Category:Classes]]
[[Category:Combat]]
[[Category:Game mechanics]]