style="width: 640px; height: 200px;" alt="LotRO Champion Guide"
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href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/overview">OVERVIEW
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/solo">SOLO
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/group">GROUP
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/pvmp">PvMP
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champion/endgame">LEGENDARY
ITEMS | href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/90510/page/2">TRAITS
| VIRTUES
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/skills">SKILLS

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CHAMPION SKILLS OVERVIEW

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Striking Skills

These are single-target attacks. Runes of Striking lower the
power cost of these skills. Many of these skills can be upgraded with
traits from the Berserker line.

href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/90461"> style="border: 0px solid ; width: 240px; height: 350px; float: left;"
alt="A Dwarf Guardian"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/90461">

Re-defining
the word "firearms"

  • Wild Attack
    - When dual-wielding, this is a double-attack that does decent damage
    and adds 1 pip of fervour. When using a 2-handed weapon or 1-hander and
    shield, this does a single attack with good damage. This skill can be
    upgraded with the trait Call of the Wild to generate additional threat,
    and/or with Blood-Lust to generate 1 extra fervour with a critical hit.

  • Swift Strike - A quick single
    attack
    that does good damage and adds 1 pip of fervour. This skill has a high
    power-cost and should be used sparingly. Can be upgraded with the trait
    Swift to Anger to add 1 additional fervour pip with a critical hit.

  • Feral Strikes -A double-attack
    that does
    good damage with each swing and has a 25% chance to remove 1 corruption
    from the target. Requires 3 fervour and removes 2 pips when used.

  • Savage Strikes - A big,
    dramatic
    triple-attack when dual-wielding, or a double-attack when equipped with
    2-hander or shield. First two attacks (main-hand) do good damage, third
    (offhand) does decent damage.

  • Relentless Strike - A very
    powerful
    attack that drains 4 fervour. This strike cannot be blocked or parried
    and will never miss against on-level opponents, though it can be
    evaded. When dual-wielding, the second strike does decent damage.

  • Brutal Strikes - This attack
    does 3
    equal hits that each do good damage. Dual-wielding does not add an
    additional strike. Requires at least 4 fervour to use, and removes 3
    fervour once fired.

  • Remorseless Strike - A very
    powerful
    attack that drains 4 fervour and does high damage. It is as difficult
    to defend against as Relentless Strike (cannot be blocked or parried,
    will never miss against on-level opponents, may be evaded).
    Dual-wielding does not add an additional strike. This skill does
    massive damage on critical hits.

  • Merciful Strike - A powerful
    single
    attack that can only be used on opponents under 20% morale.
    Dual-wielding does not add an additional strike. Using this skill adds
    2 pips of fervour. This skill can be improved with the trait Bountiful
    Mercy to be useable when the target is at 50% morale.

  • Bracing Attack - An attack
    that does good damage and restores a bit of the Champion's morale.
    Dual-wielding adds an additional off-hand strike that does decent
    damage. Costs 2 fervour. This skill can be upgraded with the trait
    Braced Against Defeat to restore more morale.

  • Clobber - This skill does good
    damage and, more importantly, interrupts inductions. This skill is the
    most reliable interrupt in the game, as it has a very short cooldown (5
    seconds) and does not require extensive planning to use, unlike Warden
    gambits. Dual-wielding does not grant an off-hand attack. Costs 1
    fervour.

  • Hamstring - This attack does
    good damage and slows the target's run speed significantly, making it
    handy for off-tank kiting. Costs 1 fervour.

  • Ferocious Strikes - A
    legendary skill that can be attained at level 39 by collecting pages
    for the Tome of Swords. Does 3 powerful strikes (dual-wielding does not
    grant an additional off-hand strike) and is as difficult to defend
    against as Relentless Strike. This skill generates a large amount of
    threat.


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Blade Skills

These are the area-effect skills. Runes of Vanquishing will
lower the cost of these skills. These skills are generally improved by
slotting traits from the Deadly Storm line.

src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/90465"
alt="A Champion using AOE"
style="border: 0px solid ; width: 240px; height: 400px; float: left;">

Strangely,
the streaking arrow represnts slightly more danger than the four giant
orcs.

  • Blade Wall -A frontal area-effect attack
    (180-degree arc in front) that does good damage. Generates no fervour
    unless improved with the Stalwart Blade trait, which adds 1 pip of
    fervour for each successful attack. Dual-wielding grants an additional
    off-hand attack.

  • Cleave
    - A full area-effect attack (360 degrees) that does good damage and has
    a 50% chance to cause a bleed. Dual-wielding does not grant an
    additional off-hand attack. Costs 2 fervour. This skill is replaced at
    level 54 by Rend, which automatically
    applies a larger bleed. The trait
    Improved Rend also causes these skills to reduce the targets' armour
    rating.

  • Blade-Storm
    - A full area-effect attack that does very good damage. Dual-wielding
    grants an additional off-hand attack. Costs 4 fervour; the trait Eye of
    the Storm reduces this cost by 1, and the trait Winds of the Storm
    allows this skill to affect an additional 5 targets.

  • Fighting Dirty
    - A Burglar-worthy attack that does modest damage against opponents
    below 25% morale, and causes subsequent area-effect attacks to do an
    additional 25% damage. This skil can be upgraded with the trait Dirt
    Cheap, enabling it to be used on targets at 50% morale. Adds 1 pip of
    fervour.

  • Sound the
    Attack
    - A full area-effect attack that does good damage
    and stuns up to 5 opponents for 3 seconds. Can be upgraded to Horn of
    Gondor with the trait Mighty Blast, which does additional damage and
    checks against cry resistance rather than block/parry/evade. Costs 5
    fervour.


  • Raging Blade
    -A legendary skill attainable at level 39
    by collecting
    pages for the book The Artisan Blade. This skill does 2 high-damage,
    full-area-effect attacks and generates significant threat.
    Dual-wielding adds an additional off-hand attack. Costs 5 fervour.

  • Great Cleave
    - A non-damaging skill that makes all area-effect attacks cost 1 les
    fervour for 15 seconds. This skill is transformed into Deathstorm
    when
    the legendary skill Deathstorm is slotted, and using it will reset the
    cooldowns for all area-effect attacks and make them cost 0 fervour for
    a short time.


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Stances

These are toggled skills that change the way the Champion
fights. Stances can be switched mid-combat to better react to changing
battle conditions as required.

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alt="An Champion engaging Ardour stance"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/90475">

Limbo
LOWER now! How low can you go?

  • Fervour - This stance is the
    default offensive stance for soloing. It increases outgoing damage by
    15% and in-combat power regeneration by a set number, and 1 fervour pip
    is generated ever 5 seconds while in combat. The Champion cannot block,
    parry or evade while in Fervour stance, and incoming heals are reduced
    by 30%, making this a less-than-ideal stance for use in a group.
    Fervour generation is increased by slotting 4 traits in the Berserker
    trait line.

  • Ardour
    - This stance is slightly more defensive than Fervour stance. In-combat
    power regeneration is increased (though not as much as in Fervour
    stance), the Champion gets a boost to all critical defense ratings, and
    1 pip of fervour is generated every 9 seconds. Parry and evade ratings
    are reduced, but block rating is unaltered by this stance. Despite the
    relative hit to damage output and decreased fervour generation, this is
    a slightly more ideal stance to use in a group if the Champion
    anticipates needing any sort of healing.

  • Glory - This stance is the off-tanking
    stance. In-combat power regeneration is increased (though to a lesser
    degree than either Ardour or Fervour stance), all critical defense
    ratings get a significant boost (higher than Ardour stance), and
    block/parry/evade ratings remain unaltered. However, this stance
    reduces outgoing damage by 15% and generates 60% more threat, and
    fervour generation is slow at 1 pip every 12 seconds. Slotting 4 traits
    from the Martial Champion line makes Glory stance increase maximum
    morale while toggled.

  • Continuous Blood Rage - A legendary
    skill attainable at level 58 by completing (something in Moria).
     Less of a "stance" than a "fast-burning fuse," Continuous
    Blood Rage shakes off roots, stuns, dazes knockdowns and conjunction
    stuns, and makes the Champion immune to all combtat states while
    active. It also increases outgoing damage significantly and adds 50% to
    all resist ratings except disease. However, this frenzy comes at a
    terrible cost: incoming healing is reduced by 90%, and the Champion
    burns morale every second while it is active. Keeping this skill active
    for an extended period of time may make the Champion impervious to
    crowd-control, but it will also make him more vulnerable to defeat by
    ordinary means because of the heavy per-second morale drain.
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href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/overview">OVERVIEW
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/solo">SOLO
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/group">GROUP
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/pvmp">PvMP
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champion/endgame">LEGENDARY
ITEMS | href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/90510/page/2">TRAITS
| VIRTUES
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/skills">SKILLS

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style="width: 640px; height: 200px;" alt="LotRO Champion Guide"
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href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/overview">OVERVIEW
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/solo">SOLO
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/group">GROUP
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/pvmp">PvMP
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champion/endgame">LEGENDARY
ITEMS | href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/90510/page/2">TRAITS
| VIRTUES
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/skills">SKILLS

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Picking Fights and Staying In Them

These skills are best used to initiate battles, or to prolong
fights in a productive way.

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alt="A Champion buffing"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/90466">

The
effects of Red Bull on a Champion.

  • Let Fly - A basic ranged
    attack with a
    bow that does decent damage.

  • Champion's Challenge -A ranged
    cry that
    does no damage but forces aggro for 10 seconds.

  • Battle-Frenzy
    -Instantly increases fervour. The base is 3 pips, but this can be
    increased with the trait Fervent Rage, which causes it to add 5 pips,
    filling the fervour meter.

  • Flurry - Increases the
    Champion's attack
    speed by 15%. Can be improved with the trait Flurry of Blows, which
    makes the effect last longer and further increases attack speed. Costs
    2 fervour.

  • Sudden Defense - Dumps all
    fervour and
    boosts parry and evade ratings.

  • Exchange of Blows - A buff
    that has a 50% chance to reflect
    common damage back onto the attacker. Costs 2 fervour.

  • Sprint - Increases run speed
    to 125% and ignores the effect
    of slowing debuffs. Improved by the trait Athletic, which reduces the
    cooldown by 2 minutes.

  • Dire Need - Drains half of the
    Champion's current power and
    returns it as double the amount of morale. The trait Time of Need
    improves this skill, causing it to add 5 pips of fervour and recover 5
    minutes faster (default is 30 minutes).

  • Hedge - A small melee attack
    that removes the disarmed
    effect, increases parry and wound resist ratings and makes the Champion
    immune to further disarming attacks for a short time. This skill is
    improved by the trait Tight Grip, which reduces the cooldown and
    extends the duration of the buff.

  • Fear Nothing! - Instantly
    removes up to 3 fear debuffs and
    adds 2 to fervour.

  • Adamant - Reduces incoming
    ranged and melee damage by 10%
    for 30 seconds. This skill is improved by the legendary trait
    Invincible, which increases the damage reduction to 30%.

  • Blood Rage - This skill
    instantly recovers
    the Champion
    from dazes, stuns, knockdowns, and conjunction stuns at the cost of
    morale.

  • Rising Ire - Instantly
    transfers 15% of total accumulated
    threat from a group member to the Champion, useful for keeping healers
    aggro-free when the tanks are busy. Costs 2 fervour.

  • Ebbing Ire - Instantly
    transfers 25% of total accumulated
    threat from the Champion to another member of the group. Useful for
    transferring aggro to the tank after taking it off the healer. Costs 4
    fervour.

  • Fight On - A legendary skill
    attainable at level 39 by
    collecting pages for the book the Joy of Battle. Sucks the power out of
    nearby enemies and transfers it to the Champion, in a similar fashion
    to the Guardian skill Thrill of Danger. Additionally, the Champion does
    25% extra damage for the duration of the effect. When the skill wears
    off, the Champion's in-combat power regeneration is reduced to 25% of
    normal.

  • Controlled Burn - A legendary
    skill attainable at level 45
    by completing both class quests. Using this skill activates improved
    versions of Flurry (20% reduction to attack duration) and Exchange of
    Blows )75% chance to reflect common damage), increases in-combat power
    regeneration and outgoing damage, and adds 1 pip of fervour every 5
    seconds.
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Defeat Events

These skills are only usable after an enemy has been defeated
by the Champion or his group.

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alt="A Champion receiving a defeat event"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/90467">

The
reward for killing an orc: 30 XP and a heavy metal album.

  • Second Wind - Restores a small amount of
    power. The trait Vigour of Champions empowers this skill to restore
    more power.

  • Heroics -This skill restores the power
    of allies after the defeat of a foe, draining the Champion's power.
    This skill is replaced at level 64 by True Heroics, which adds a
    secondary 30-second self-buff according to the Champion's current
    stance:
  • Fervour - +30% incoming healing
  • Glory - +15% melee damage
  • Ardour - +60% to in-combat power regeneration
  • No stance - no buff.

  • Blocking Blades - Boosts Champion's
    parry rating until out of combat for 9 seconds.

  • Red Haze - Adds a pip of fervour, and an
    additional pip every 15 seconds until out of combat for 9 seconds.

  • Boast - While not necessarily available
    only after the defeat of an enemy, this skill recounts the tales of the
    Champion's many, many victories to all those who are nearby, causing
    them to cheer.




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Class Tools

All classes have a few specialized
tools that only
they can
use. Champions have a few neat ones.

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alt="A Champion blowing his horn"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/90469">

Tarkrip
Blade is not a fan of smooth jazz.

  • Runes
    - These items go in the class item slot on the
    character record panel, and come in two flavours: Runes of Striking and
    Runes of Vanquishing. Runes of Striking lower the power cost of
    "Striking" skills, i.e. single-target attacks, and Runes of Vanquishing
    lower the power cost of "Blade" skills, i.e. area-effect attacks. Basic
    versions of these runes can be purchased at any Champion class trainer,
    and more advanced versions can be crafted by tinkers. Legendary runes,
    available to premium members who purchase the Mines of Moria expansion,
    are also craftable by tinkers, and are discussed in greater detail on
    the Legendary Items page located href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champion/endgame">here.

  • Champion Horns - These can be made by
    woodworkers. Champion horns do not inflict damage, but stun groups of
    enemies for a duration depending on the level and quality of the horn.
    Low-level, low quality horns have short durations and affect few mobs,
    and high-level, high quality horns affect more mobs for longer. They
    have a 15-minute cooldown across the board.

  • Shields -While not technically
    a
    class-specific item, Champions are one of only 2 classes able to use
    heavy shields (when traited with Heavy Shield Use; otherwise they are
    limited to light and medium shields the same as Captains and Minstrels).

  • Weapon Selection - Champions
    have the widest selection of
    available weapons. While they cannot use class-specific weapons
    (halberds, for example), they can use basically
    everything else, and they have 3 configurations (2-hander, dual-wield,
    1-hander plus shield), which makes them somewhat more versatile than
    many other classes.
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href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/overview">OVERVIEW
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/solo">SOLO
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/group">GROUP
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/pvmp">PvMP
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champion/endgame">LEGENDARY
ITEMS | href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/90510/page/2">TRAITS
| VIRTUES
| href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro/guides/classes/champ/skills">SKILLS

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Last Updated: Mar 13, 2016

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