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What Is A Macro?
Creating A Macro
Macros can make your life so much easier, and in World Of Warcraft, combining a variety of aspects of combat into one button may just be the thing you need to end up in the top ranks in PVP, Raids, and Mythic+ dungeons.
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They have endless uses, like stacking trinkets, buffs, and various cooldowns all into one button. Knowing how to create macros can be tricky, some abilities won't work together inside a macro. Whether you are new to creating macros or want to deepen your knowledge of them, you're in the right place. Let's jump into it.
What Is A Macro?
Simply put, a Macro is a combination of abilities or even text to use in chat, all put into one customized button. They can get pretty complicated but for starters, Macros can be formatted to Say, Emote, Cast,Cancel, and Use and can be specified to targets and can even be linked to Addons. Make sure that abilities typed out in a Macro are correctly spelled. It is so important to make sure you spell everything correctly, or else it won't work. If using combat abilities, it may require some testing on dummies or private duels before finalizing it in the heat of battle. With a variety of slash commands, the possibilities of what any Macro can do is pretty limitless, but there are some restrictions.
One of the restrictions comes with Global Cooldowns. If a Global Cooldown is cast it will cancel the rest of the macro. An example of this is Arcane Shot and Aimed Shot, these cannot be macro-ed together in this way. Another restriction is using tools that aren't in your normal rotation. Macros also cannot make decisions for you. For instance, making a Macro to target the enemy with the least amount of health is not possible.
Examples of Macros:
/say Please Help Me!
/cast Sniper Shot
/use Eternal Gladiator's Bade of Ferocity
/cancel Heal
/emote Dance
/stopcasting Chaos Bolt
/targetlasttarget
You can also add Target Modifiers to your Macros. This will make it easier, whether in Arena, Raids, or Dungeons, to target the preferred enemy or ally more quickly. These would typically be put in the macro after the first slash command. For example, if you want to cast Fireball on the focused target the Macro would look like this '/cast [@focus] Fireball'. You will want to place any target modifier commands inside brackets for this to work.
Examples of Target Modifiers:
@player
@target
@targettarget - (this will target the target's target)
@arena1 - (this will target the enemy player in arenas who is the first arena enemy unit frame, this can also be modified as @arena2 or @arena3 to target the second or third enemy in arenas)
@mouseover - (the spell will be cast to whoever the mouse is currently over)
@cursor - (will place the spell where the cursor currently is, great for AoE spells that have a ground spell ring before the ability is cast)
@focus
@boss1
@pet - (this will target the player's pet)
You can also create conditional for Macros. Using conditional commands for Macros is a great way to specify the action of the Macro. This is where creating Macros can get a bit more complicated but with some trial and error practice, you can get it down in no time. You will want to place any Conditionals in the Commands following a target specificity command with commas.
A few examples of Conditionals in Macro Creation:
harm - (for when casting on an enemy)
pet - (for classes with pets)
exists - (for when the target is still alive)
dead - (for when the target is dead)
channeling - (for when the spell cast is a channeled ability)
combat - (for when in combat)
help - (for when you can aid target in a cast)
Creating A Macro
.jpg "World Of Warcraft: Shadowlands - How To Create Macros (2)")
After pushing Escape, you will see a Macros option. Click on that, and it will bring you to a new window to create your macro. Select an Icon you wish to represent your Macro and type in your desired name. From there in the 'Enter Macro Commands' window, you can wire your Macro to your demands. Keeping in mind the restrictions, you have pretty free rein to create whatever macro you wish. Combining Trinkets with non-Global Cooldown abilities and finalizing them with Global Cooldown abilities is a great way to make the most of your rotation.
Some Examples of long Macros:
If you want to say "Nom Nom Nom" when eating food, your Macro would look like:
/say Nom Nom Nom
/use Honeyplum Pie
If you want to cast Heal on yourself, it would look like:
/cast @player Heal
A more complicated Macro for Marksmanship Hunters to make the most of their Burst Cooldowns would look like:
/use Eternal Gladiator's Bade of Ferocity
/cast Doubletap
/cast Trueshot
A complicated Macro using Conditionals in the Macro Commands for Marksmanship Hunters
/cast [@area1,exists,harm][]Aimed Shot
You can get very creative with creating Macros. Exploring, Discovering, Learning, and Creating Macros is a fun process and has a lot of helpful potential, but it can definitely be a trial-and-error endeavor. Make sure to try out any new Macros on Target Dummies, Private Duels, or any Unranked Arenas or Battlegrounds before bringing them into a Raid, Mythic+, or Rated PVP match. Getting your hands on a great Macro can be a game changer, and the more you explore this world the more possibilities will arise and possibly make your skill that much higher.
Now that you know the basics of creating Macros, go try them out and see how much a well-created Macro can help you in your next battle!
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