Larssen_PM
Tricks of the Trade
After playing WoW for a while, we all pick up a few little tricks we like to use. Some of them work quite well, and become “trade secrets” of sorts. Others don’t work so well at all, and become bad habits. Here are the top ten dirty little secrets I’ve found useful in WoW – some of which work better than others. The first five are generic tips that anyone can use, and the last five are some eclectic things I’ve picked up over the years.
1. Use Add ons. This one is ironic coming from me, since I try to run with as few add ons as possible, but the few that I use, I consider indispensable. Two recent events reminded me of the difference they can make, those being running heroics with someone who used no addons at all, and raiding with someone who didn’t have DBM. It can be argued that healing addons sometimes do more harm than good, and that learning to heal without them ultimately makes you a better healer. Either way, whether it’s using DBM for boss alerts, using Tidy Plates and Threat Plates for tanking, or using Spell Flash to help learn a new rotation, addons have their place in the game and are a big help when used wisely.
2. Use macros. Like addons, macros are best used sparingly but wisely. As detailed in my last blog, even something as simple as a tank focus macro can make your life in Azeroth much easier.
3. Tweak your UI. This one is ironic too, since I run with a plain vanilla UI and am a clicker by default, although I do use a few keybinds for things like interrupts. The best tip I can give here is twofold. First, whether you are a clicker or a keyboarder, put abilities that you often use in quick succession side by side on your action bars. This way, you can either click straight across a row of icons, or use one hand for your core abilities without ever having to take your eyes off the screen. Second, set up an identical UI for every character you play. That is, put your opening attacks in the same place, all your DPS cooldowns in the same place, and all your defensive abilities in the same place. This way, muscle memory does most of the work for you when it comes to learning new classes.
4. Roll Your Own. When learning a new class, many people are inclined to look up a spec, either online or by inspecting a friend’s character, and copy it verbatim. This is fine in itself, as the spec is question is usually quite good. The downside of it is that you will often find yourself not fully understanding the spec or using all of its resources to the fullest. I have never copied a spec; I always experiment and develop my own, with varying degrees of success. By doing this, you will come away with two benefits. You will make a spec that best suits your play style, and you will stop and read what every talent point does before spending it. This will give you a better understanding of your spec and the synergy between various abilities. If you do need to make changes later, it will make that easier too, because you will understand what you are changing and why.
5. Study Hard. Do as much research as you can, not only about your own class, but about others as well. I’ve found more useful advice for my warrior by reading paladin and druid tanking guides than I have from reading warrior guides. The reader comments in particular are enlightening because they can teach you offbeat new ways of doing things that you may be having trouble with. Our Beth’tilac and twin dragons kills are two examples of this – I found both strategies in the comments section of guides that advised doing things the usual way, which didn't work for us. Even running PUGs can teach you new ways of doing things. By studying a broad range of topics, you can become a jack of all trades and have a better grasp of what every member of your raid can do to help the group.
6. Use the PTR. The Public Test Realm is your friend. Copy your character to it, and use it to change your spec, your gems, and your gear around and evaluate the results without wasting all of your “real” gold on expensive reforges.
7. Undercut Shrewdly. When playing the auction house, you can undercut your competitors without really undercutting them and lowering your profits. For example, if an item you want to sell is listed for 1300g bid and 1500g buyout, list yours for 1250g bid and 1500g buyout. Because your starting bid is lower, your item will be placed above the other one in the list, even though the buyout prices are the same. When items are the same price, players will usually buy the first one listed, so you can effectively “undercut” the competition without lowering your buyout price.
8. Drink Early, Drink Often. As we’ve seen, potions can be a big help when learning a new encounter, just to get that extra burst of DPS or healing. But the game limits you to one potion per encounter, so you have to save them for the end, right? Not necessarily. If the tanks count down and announce the pull, you can “pre pot” by drinking a potion at the last second before the fight starts. The game sees you as being “not yet in combat” at this time, so you can enjoy 20 seconds or more of extra throughput, and still have another potion available for the burn phase at the end. This can be expensive, but the end results are worth it.
9. Use the Mail as Storage. If you are running low on bank space, you can send a bunch of items back and forth between two or more characters and use the mail system as temporary extra storage. Just be sure to either resend the items or take them out of the mailbox every 30 days, or they will vanish for good!
10. Faster is Better. Lag makes everything you do in the game harder. The best tool I’ve found to reduce it is Leatrix Latency Fix, a tiny program that works for most versions of Windows and Mac OS, and can reduce your latency by as much as 70% by changing the way packets of data are handled while you’re gaming. You can find the latest version of it here:
http://www.wowinterface.com/downloads/info13581-LeatrixLatencyFix.html
The main thing I've learned in my time playing WoW is how much I still have to learn, so I'm always on the lookout for more and better ways to get the job done. What tricks and tips have you found that make your life in Azeroth easier? Feel free to post them in our forums, because little things really do mean a lot. Keep an open mind, and remember that old habits die hard, and your way of doing things may not always be the best. As a priest healer memorably said to Finn in an SSC run way back in 2008, "I know your $14.99 entitles you to play the game your way, but the rest of the raid's $359.76 says know your role!"
by Larssen_PM on 2011-08-30 02:52:52
No comments yet.