Hi. My name is Druidpants, and I'm a clicker-holic.

(hello Druidpants).

I'm looking for advice and guidance to set up the most efficient PvP-style hotkeys. Right now, I move useing my left hand with the standard A-W-S-D and perform ALL actions with the mouse. Sometimes, I use the TAB key for targeting though I find that unreliable.

I ask you for your help. My playing is now suffering because of it. And I have never button mashed before. Teach me before it's too late!

I used to ask people to take it slow. Just remap A and D to be Strafe Left and Strafe Right, and remap Q and E to Trinket 1 and Trinket 2. Once you get used to popping your trinkets as needed with Q and E, and run with mouse and A and D to strafe, you remap 1 to 5 with most useful spells, the ones you use every fight. Then you remap Z, X, C, V as situational spells,that's where my healing spells are. Etc., etc.

Take it slow. It'll take you days of PvP to stop popping your trinkets accidentally with Q and E, and Strafe with A and D. I sometimes recommend NOT mapping A and D as strafe, so all you have is mouse, nothing on the keyboard will move or turn you, to force you to start moving with a mouse. But for a lot of people that was too much of a shock, they HAD to have A and D as strafe, and for many classes that's needed too.

After you get used to this scheme, so for example you know that C means Regrowth, try hiding your action bars, so you no longer see C-Regrowth on your action bar. That's how I have it on my warlock, F2 is Banish, F3 is Shadow Ward, etc., etc., but none of these spells are showing anywhere on my screen, because I don't need to see them, I know they're there.

And just practice, practice, practice. Within a month or two you should never click anything, except for buffs in the beginning of a match, stuff you do out of combat. But in combat, your right hand is on the mouse, and you're always moving. The left key is on the keyboard, casting spells with 1-5, healing with Z-V, popping trinkets with Q and E, and strafing with A and D. All of these keys are REALLY close together. Later on add R and T and F and G for other spells, and keep going.

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Q u o t e:
I used to ask people to take it slow. Just remap A and D to be Strafe Left and Strafe Right, and remap Q and E to Trinket 1 and Trinket 2. Once you get used to popping your trinkets as needed with Q and E, and run with mouse and A and D to strafe, you remap 1 to 5 with most useful spells, the ones you use every fight. Then you remap Z, X, C, V as situational spells,that's where my healing spells are. Etc., etc.

Take it slow. It'll take you days of PvP to stop popping your trinkets accidentally with Q and E, and Strafe with A and D. I sometimes recommend NOT mapping A and D as strafe, so all you have is mouse, nothing on the keyboard will move or turn you, to force you to start moving with a mouse. But for a lot of people that was too much of a shock, they HAD to have A and D as strafe, and for many classes that's needed too.

After you get used to this scheme, so for example you know that C means Regrowth, try hiding your action bars, so you no longer see C-Regrowth on your action bar. That's how I have it on my warlock, F2 is Banish, F3 is Shadow Ward, etc., etc., but none of these spells are showing anywhere on my screen, because I don't need to see them, I know they're there.

And just practice, practice, practice. Within a month or two you should never click anything, except for buffs in the beginning of a match, stuff you do out of combat. But in combat, your right hand is on the mouse, and you're always moving. The left key is on the keyboard, casting spells with 1-5, healing with Z-V, popping trinkets with Q and E, and strafing with A and D. All of these keys are REALLY close together. Later on add R and T and F and G for other spells, and keep going.

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Wow, thanks for the great advice.

Question though, what do I do about target selection, both of the oposing faction and my party members. I suppose I could just make /target macros, but that would seem a bit much.

Wow, I was expecting this guy to be ridiculed and shot down. It's good to see a constructuve well thought out post. Nice one Sabbathius.

that's funny, someone asked the same question over in the lock forum...maybe some good advice for you over there too.
http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html?topicId=2215451790&postId=22152125614&sid=1#9

Why am I the only one that never uses 1-5?

Q E F G R for mine and Z X for shifting, 1 2 3 4 are for heals or non spam abilities FC and finishers/roars

It's a matter of personal preference, but I use ESDF for movement rather than WASD. It leaves my pinky available to do useful things on the Q, A, and Z keys. It's also a natural position for me as a touch-typist; I don't need to move my hand from where it normally rests on the keyboard, so finding keys is more natural.

For instance, I use A as my focus key. Ctrl-A sets my focus, and A selects it. Useful for selecting targets, which you were worried about. Beyond that, I use TAB to select targets or, occasionally, click with the mouse.

I don't heal much, but if I did i would probably get a party frame like Grid to help me select healing targets (and I would click them!). Mouseover macros (which cast a spell/use an ability on whatever mob or unit frame your mouse is currently hovering over) can help with that, and I actually also use a mouseover macro for Mangle and Lacerate to help me tank multiple targets.

Beyond that, just put your most important spells on 1-6, which are the ones you can most easily reach from WASD/ESDF. Also consider using the first line of keys past your index finger (RFV or TGB, respectively), and the keys below your hand (XCVB). It will take some getting used to which keys do what, but as you get used to them it'll just get faster. I use G for Faerie Fire and Hibernate, and X to activate one of my trinkets.

Two more things. #1, if you have a multi-button mouse, you can bind a lot of useful functions to those keys, especially if you're using Ctrl, Shift, and/or Alt in conjunction. I have all of my shapeshifts bound to my mouse, as well as auto-run and a few feral abilities (Prowl, Tiger's Fury, Dash).

Lastly, this puts me a little apart from much of the crowd, but I also use the two bars above and below my main hotbar. I do this by binding my mousewheel to scroll my bars (default is shift-mousewheel), so I can just quickly flick my bar up or down and select another spell there.
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These are just ideas -- take or leave them as you like. The most important thing, though, is to stick with it and try every time you play to learn a little more. It's all about being consistant, even if it slows you down (or gets you killed ^^). Can't remember what hotkey you bound Healing Touch to? Don't mouse it -- find the damn hotkey or else! Obviously in some cases you're going to have to put speed before learning, but as often as possible, force yourself to do it the "hard" way. The more you practice, the better you get. ^^

Here are my hotkeys, i really like them.

Q - shift bear
E - shift travel
1 - swiftmend
2 - regrowth
3 - rejuv
4 - moonfire
5 - lifebloom
Shift + 1 - Self innervate
Shift + 2 - Healing trinket
Shift + 3 - Wrath
Shift + 4 - Stafire
Shift + 5 - Rank 1 moonfire
R - decurse
T - abolish poison
F - Warstomp
Shift + R - Entangle
Shift + Q - Cyclone
Shift + E - Nature's grasp
Shift + F - Barkskin
Z - Tranquility
G - pvp trinket
` - NS healing touch (so easy to mash ` :D) btw its the key next to 1

Thats for healing, in bear form/cat just use 1-5 (like 1 feral charge 2 enrage 3 bash etc)

Imo the keys CLOSEST to aswd should be your top priority binds that you use most often (12345QERF etc)

Hope it helps lol.

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Q u o t e:

...It's a BIG button?

>_>;

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LOL ew backspace as cyclone? no wonder you don't arena XD

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Q u o t e:

I'm also too poor to gem and enchant ANOTHER set of gear.

I mean, just look at my current equipment. I take freebie enchants because I can't afford real ones. :(

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But don't you have to take your hand off your WSAD or mouse? could be a disaster if your trying to LOS mana burns/fears whilst sneaking in a cyclone :p

Awesome, keep the advice coming. I'm at work now, but I'm dipping out early today at lunch. I'm excited to try a few of these out.

I used to click a long time ago, when you switch it takes a while to get used to but the difference is really noticeable (although a lot more with melee, my rogue i can't live without it). Took me about a week to get used to.



(abilities i use most, or that i need to use the fastest: hand rests on these)
4- wrath
6-moonfire
7-insect swarm
9-cyclone

(move 1 spot away from rest, abilities with long cooldowns or ones that do not need to be used fast)
3-barkskin
5-starfire
8-roots
0-treants

(abilities i need with long cool down, hard to hit, couldn't do these at first)
2-warstomp
- dire bear form (6 enrage 7 bash and - to leave, only abilities i use as balance)

thumb is on alt/space bar

alt+4 - pvp trinket
alt+6 - lifebloom
alt+7 - rejuv
alt+9 - regrowth

alt+3 - spell dmg trinket
alt+5 - faerie fire
alt+8 - healing touch
alt+0 - moonkin form

alt+2 - remove curse
alt+ - travel form

move with left+right click, jump click if i need to target while moving, jump turn cast if i need to cast while running away.

prob not normal but this way you can see what you want to do with the abilities on the bar, rather than memorizing what key does what.