By GamGem ResearchLast updated 20 Aug 2026 · 00:00
Bard
the Wandering Caretaker
SupportMage
League of LegendsPatch 26.16SupportRanked Solo/DuoEmerald+NA86,585 gamesSample data
Role snapshot (Support)
- 54.9%
- Win Rate
- 16.9%
- Pick Rate
- 23.5%
- Ban Rate
86,585
Games
Very High
Confidence
Matchup map (Support) — level 1–18
Conditional build matrix
| vs AP Burst | vs AD Assassins | vs Tanks | vs Sustain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mythic / Core |   |   |   |  |
| Core 2 |   |   |   |   |
| Core 3 |   |   |   |   |
| Boots |  |  |  |  |
| Situational |  |   |   |  |
Popular build
39,829 games55.3%Win Rate
Flash
IgniteReliable build
28,573 games54.0%Win Rate
Flash
TeleportHigh observed win rate
10,390 games57.4%Win Rate
Flash
ExhaustRunes
Primary: Resolve
Guardian
Shield Bash
Second Wind
Overgrowth
Secondary: Precision
Absorb Life
Legend: Bloodline
Shards
+9 Adaptive Force
+9 Adaptive Force
+10-180 Health (based on level)
Skill order
| Q | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| E | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| R | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
Ability details
Traveler's Call
Meeps: Bard attracts lesser spirits that assist with his basic attacks to deal extra magic damage. When Bard has collected enough Chimes, his meeps will also deal damage in an area and slow enemies hit.Chimes: Ancient chimes randomly appear for Bard to collect. These grant experience, restore mana, and provide out of combat Move Speed.
Passive — never cast
Cosmic Binding
Bard fires a missile which will slow the first enemy struck, and continue onward. If it strikes a wall, it will stun the initial target; if it strikes another enemy, it will stun them both.
Cost 60 ManaCooldown 11/10/9/8/7sRange 25000
Caretaker's Shrine
Reveals a Health shrine which powers up over a short time, disappearing after healing and speeding up the first ally that touches it.
Cost 70 ManaCooldown 0sRange 800
Magical Journey
Bard opens a portal in nearby terrain. Allies and enemies alike can take a one-way trip through that terrain by moving into the portal.
Cost 30 ManaCooldown 22/20.5/19/17.5/16sRange 900
Tempered Fate
Bard sends spirit energy arcing to a location, putting all champions, minions, monsters, and turrets hit into stasis for a brief time.
Cost 100 ManaCooldown 110/95/80sRange 3400
Scaling — level 1–18
BardSupport average
1918
1918
1918
Counter plan — how to beat Bard
Track the roam — it is strongest where the enemy jungler already is
Dodge the primary — its rotation is one skillshot; sidestep it and the rest is chip
Punish the cooldown — Bard is exposed while its rotation is down
Ward the flank — vision is what turns its best opening into a worse one
Respect the spike — Riot rates the kit 9/10, so a practised player gets more out of it than the average
ARAM performance
- 49.9%
- Win Rate ▲ 1.0%
- 6.5%
- Pick Rate ▲ 3.7%
- 0.4%
- Ban Rate ▲ 2.8%
- Damage dealt
- 95.0%
- Damage taken
- 104.2%
- Healing
- 109.3%
- Shielding
- 94.9%
- Ability Haste
- +15
Best ARAM build
Patch timeline
We hold the rates, not the balance log. What actually changed each patch is in Riot’s own notes.
- 26.16Live now-0.5
- 26.14Sample win rate across this patch-0.7
- 26.11Sample win rate across this patch-0.2
- 26.08Sample win rate across this patch+0.9
- 26.05Sample win rate across this patch+0.3
Share cheat sheet
Methodology
- Data window
- 512,340 games on patch 26.16, Ranked Solo/Duo, NA. Last refreshed 20 Aug 2026.
- Rank aggregation
- Emerald+ and above, pooled. Splitting further leaves samples too small to separate a real effect from noise.
- Role assignment
- A champion is filed under the lanes it actually plays, not the one class it belongs to — which is why several appear in two.
- Counters
- A matchup, not a tier gap: how this champion does into that one specifically, over that pairing’s own games.
- Minimum sample
- The confidence indicator beside every rate is driven by how much of the window this champion appears in. A low reading means read the figure loosely, not that it is wrong.
- Why a build is not a cause
- The best-scoring build is the one the best-placed players happened to take. Correlation is what a rate can show; it is not evidence that buying those items caused the wins.
- Where the numbers come from
- Names, classes, lanes, abilities, items and runes are Riot Data Dragon. Win, pick and ban rates are derived samples — Riot publishes none of them, and nothing on this page presents one as measured.