Let's add bards to WoW, and make them a pure support class


My favorite class to play in EverQuest was the Bard.

It was a really good support class. Lots of buffs and utility. And being able to twist several songs together took real skill.

In Warcraft, I'm imagining a pure support class. It can't Tank. It doesn't do big Heals. And it does really low DPS (almost impossible to go solo).

What it does do is buff all the other roles. Extra damage mitigation when needed. Extra health regeneration, and buff healing. And to make up for a "lost" DPS, it increases damage output by a lot.

Upon request, a Bard can increase a specific type of damage -- melee, nature, holy, shadow, fire, etc. Or they can protect from a specific type of damage when needed. Also, they can increase any stat -- INT, AGI, STR, STA, haste, crit, mastery. And a short food buff.

The real strength of a Bard is in their utility. They can sing almost every non-damaging spell and ability in the game -- interrupt, stun, invisibility, run increase, fear, sap, snare, levitate, slow, mind control, taunt, fade, shield, dispell, vanish, leech . . .

Most of their songs will be AoE, but the closer you are to the Bard, the more effective it will be.

The effect of any Bard song won't last more than 15 seconds. So they will have to be aware of what is needed at any given moment.

As an extra bonus, having multiple Bards in your party will increase the buffs literally exponentially. A band of five Bards, or an orchestra of forty will be a devastating force.

In EQ, Bards wore plate armor, but I think leather or cloth is more appropriate.

I'm not sure what weapons they will wield, if any. Their hands should be too full with instruments. Different instruments will increase the Bard's abilities.

As the stats on the Bard's equipment improves, so will the effectiveness of their songs.

As for different specs, I suppose you could create one of each for Tank support, Healer support, and DPS support. But I think just one talent tree would be enough to choose from.

I realize I'm pulling a lot of ideas from EverQuest's Bards, but I think it's appropriate considering that WoW was developed by dissatisfied EQ players.

I expect nobody is going to like this idea because there will be no way to criticize other players for having low numbers, nor brag about being at the top of any healing or DPS chart.