I've a Lv90 (i460) brewmaster (tank) monk that I'm currently running through heroics and might one day do some LFR with. I've a question or two about using addons etc to help make me more effective as a tank.
Very quick version - is there an addon that adds a timer to a button that counts down the buff/debuff uptime rather than or as well as the cool down.
Very long version - I've no experience of other classes at (Lv90) so this may be a common issue and there may be some nice addons to help so here goes.
A Tank monk relies on a number of self buffs and a debuff or two that helps hold aggro and mitigate some incoming damage. These various abilities can proc off other abilities, require spending energy or using Chi (same as rogues combo points). Each ability seems to have a unique effect duration and cool down which makes tracking them a real pain. Using the default WOW UI makes it impossible to keep track of where I am with each of these abilities and which are ready to use. Usually these effects are on me or on my main target so I'm not looking for a warlock like addon where dots need to be up on a number of targets at the same time. I just need something that says 'This effect is about to wear off, get ready to reapply it quickly!'
I've found a nice addon called monk timers. This add on recreates and replaces the buttons for the abilities that have these duration effects and cool downs. The buttons show a timer for how long the buff/debuff has to go until it wears off and so I can easily see when something is about to expire and can reapply without too much trouble. I have a few normal button bars (ElvUi) where I place the abilities that are not covered by Monk Timers.
The problem is that there seems to be no way to add keybinds to any of the Monk Timer buttons so I am having to mouse click them. It's not a deal breaker but I'd like to add a few key binds to the buttons I'm hitting on a regular basis. I have a set of buff/debuff bars that show the abilities and their timers but to be honest it's hard to keep an eye on them as well as everything else that is going on. I know there are a few add ons like Bitten that might do something similar. However I really need something more than just a button flash when a spell is ready again, as often I need to cast another ability to generate enough energy/chi to cast the buff/debuff. Seeing a timer is really useful as I can anticipate when I'll need to reapply.
I might be coming to the issue of timers etc from completely the wrong direction and there may be a much better way to make sure I'm keeping my buffs and debuffs up. any advice would be very welcome.
Thanks.
OmniCC is a great addon for button CDs
I use Tell me when(TMW) for my my monk, and he has tank & dps set up its easy to set up and use.. and you can set the vast majority of cd`s into it to show a visual and a stack & timer
Thanks I'll look into both. I'm a bit of a duffer when it comes to heroics and have to concentrate very hard to make sure I've got aggro, am doing the right self healing, adding a bit of DPS, spotting adds and picking them up, watching for the bosses special tricks and as TeaLeaf says ' Not standing in the bloody green stuff!' Anything that leaps up on my screen and shouts 'Do this now' is a great help. Hopefully as time goes on I'll be able to make more decisions for myself and rely less on addons.
Again thanks.
As mentioned on TS, you really want to get GTFO installed. It's great for letting you know when your standing in the green stuff. If the Monk Timers addon works with it then Bartender lets you assign keys to each of the buttons and it can be customised a lot. I use bartender and then use Weak Auras to highlight what's off cooldown or needs re-applied.
Quote from: Whitey;365370As mentioned on TS, you really want to get GTFO installed. It's great for letting you know when your standing in the green stuff. If the Monk Timers addon works with it then Bartender lets you assign keys to each of the buttons and it can be customised a lot. I use bartender and then use Weak Auras to highlight what's off cooldown or needs re-applied.
Installed cheers.
I use StaggerMeter for my monk tank to see how much damage I'm staggering. Helpfull addon for Brewmasters
I'll take a look at StaggerMeter. At the moment I am using Weak Auras with a downloaded script for stagger damage. It has a nice siren when I move to yellow (moderate) damage and Homer Simpson swears at me if it ever gets into red (high) damage