Leveling Guardian

Overview

Red is pure dps, with blue now being all about tanking. Yellow supports both lines. Both leveling guides are basically go full of the traitline and fill up with yellow traits.

How Guardian plays

Guardians cycle through their strongest skills by reacting to Block and Parry Responses. Both lines are very tough, and Guardians are masters at spreading debuffs from their target to every enemy nearby. It is a good pick if you want to try tanking in LOTRO, although the red line is harder to play well at the top end because of its busy skill set and fast reactions.

Choosing a traitline for levelling

Red (Keen Blade) chains Blade skills through Parry Responses to stack bleeds, then uses Hammer Down to cash them in for big damage. Blue (Defender of the Free) chains Shield skills through Block Responses to build Fortifications and is a well-rounded tank for large groups. Yellow supports either line, which is why this guide has you fill the remaining trait points there.

Open a colour below for its levelling rating and screenshots of the trait tree at key levels. When you reach endgame, see the full Guardian build guides. Class mechanics summarised from the LOTRO Wiki.