3 needed targeting improvements, and simple solutions.

[Stenrik]

As both a hybrid PVP healer as well as a tank who throws out guard, here's a couple problems I see:

 

1. Unpredictable tab targeting. I have a naga mouse with all the different targeting functions on it (target next friendly, target next enemy, target self), and still I find it takes way too long to get to the right target if I have a bunch of players nearby behind me.

 

2. Clunky direct-click targeting. Players are constantly moving, and in the general chaos, it's very easy to accidentally click the wrong player. On top of this, there are different clickbox sizes (think male 3/4 vs. female 1/2 or male 1). Makes it noticeably harder to click-heal smaller characters in the heat of the moment.

Usually, I'm trying to heal a friendly who's being attacked by 2 enemies, making it more likely I accidentally attack the enemies. Also, in certain conditions, it's hard to tell if I clicked the right person without checking the player portrait or the ops bar, which wastes more precious split-seconds.

 

3. Legacy names and titles adding confusion. I bring this up because as a healer, I always have one eye on the ops bar to see who needs attention. Clicking it is also the only reliable way I can target said player (see above). However, whether I heal them first depends on their situation.

--Are they currently being zerged and not worth trying to save?

--Are they out of combat and about to recharge?

--Are there a couple enemy players ABOUT to attack them?

Point is, I can't simply rely on the ops bar to choose who to heal. The most elegant way is to be able to watch the actual game to decide who to heal, then select them on the ops bar to make sure I click them reliably.

 

Now onto the confusion part: Because some people have beginning titles, and others have end titles, and others have legacy names combined with front titles, it can be hard to make the connection between the ops bar name and the nameplate name instantly. Sure I can do that with the extra second it takes to read their nameplate name, see what their regular "name" is, then scan the ops bar to find it. But that can be too long.

 

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I propose 3 solutions that would make the whole process easier and more direct:

 

1. A "select friendly target only" hotkey that, when held down while clicking, means you don't accidentally click an enemy player. Same with a "select enemy target only" hotkey.

 

2. Better, a good "nameplate targeting" system. An clickable box around players' nameplates that lights up would make it clear whether or not I selected them.

 

3. Give us the option to disable all player legacy name displays AND title displays for warzones and ops. This would make it so much easier for someone who is paying attention to the fray but clicking the ops bar to most quickly and reliably heal their targets.

-----3b. In line with no. 3, sort the ops bar in alphabetical order, so we can read someone's name ingame, and very quickly find it on the ops bar. (Currently I just try to memorize it before the match, but it's not the best system.)

 

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I believe these solutions would not be hard to implement, and are in no way trying to make the game "easier". They simply let me put more attention to fighting and helping players than fighting the UI.

I have *some* WoW experience as a dps, hardly PVP'd, and never used any of those EZ-mode, borderline-cheating mods for healing. So don't accuse me of being spoiled or entitled.

I am enjoying warzones for the most part, but the experience could be much better with these simple fixes.

Edited March 5, 2012 by Stenrik

[cefan_essaomofo]

/signed.

[maticlandarr]

Well thought out and written. I agree targetting can be problematic. I havent looked into it but is it possible to use f1-f8 to target ops members?