LotRO Minstrel Guide
This is a basic introduction to Minstrels. If you are looking for an advanced strategy guide, this minstrel guide is highly recommended.
When you first start out as a baby minstrel you will find yourself with only a few skills to be equipped. Raise the Spirit, which is your basic fast-cast small heal, Ballad of Vigour, which is a tier 1 ballad that does damage and gives you some vitality, and Herald's Strike, which is a melee ability. It's not much, but it's the start of a much larger world for you.
Basic Skills and Uses
All of your ballads can be cast on the move, and they all act as ranged abilities, which makes it easy to pull mobs from a distance rather than having to run up to them. It also helps because you don't have to chase things down if they decide to flee. You can merely use your abilities and kill them in mid-flight.
At level 2 you get another one of the foundation skills, Piercing Cry. This ability will become particularly useful later on, as your War-Speech will give it enhanced damage and reduced cooldown, and you can slot a trait which adds a stun every time you land a critical hit with your Cry. This is one of your highest damage abilities, so you should use it as often as possible for the fastest advancement.
At level 4 you gain the Ballad of Swiftness, which is your first tier 2 ballad and does some damage to the mob as well as giving you a bonus to your attack speed. You also get the Ballad of Steel, which is another tier 1 ballad that enhances your armor and does some damage.
At level 5 you gain the first of your Instrument abilities. These are passive abilities. You can use a lute from level 1, but at level 5 you can learn the flute, the harp, the clarinet, horns, and the cow-bell (which is basically useless; it's just fluff). Be aware that while some of these instruments can be crafted and add bonuses to your minstrel songs/ballads/abilities, some of them are pure fluff for playing music in-game.
At level 6 you gain your first tier 3 ballad, which also happens to be a fellowship buff, giving your entire fellowship an increase to their melee damage. It's important to note that almost all of the tier 3 ballads are group buffs. Through your early days as a minstrel your tier 1 and tier 2 ballads will be specifically for damage and most commonly used for soloing, while in a fellowship setting you will be focused on stacking your ballads to unlock the tier 3 and Anthems as quickly as possible in order to maximize the damage output of your group and to unlock the more powerful group abilities.
Once you hit level 8 you gain another tier 1 ballad, the Ballad of Resonance. It gives an enhancement to Tactical damage. You also gain another tier 3 ballad, the Ballad of Unshakable Will. This gives your group a boost to their fear resists and is particularly useful on boss fights or areas where fear/dread are particularly bothersome.
Level 10 is when you get your first group heal, Inspire Fellows. This is one of the most important abilities you will ever get. It's also a major aggro puller, so while you should use it as often as necessary, be aware that the moment you let this baby fly, any loose mobs are going to make a beeline for you. You also gain the ability to use Drums.
This is a basic introduction to Minstrels. If you are looking for an advanced strategy guide, this minstrel guide is highly recommended. | 
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