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WriteAGuide
Guides are written as simple text files where each line describes one step of the guide. In order to make use of the different features of the addon certain codes can be inserted. These codes are always put in brackets [] starting with a capital letters (such as QA for accepting a quest, G go to coordinates and so on) which defines what kind of code it is.
This page contains complete explanations containg all possible features. In order to get a quick overview you can also take a look at the Cheatsheet.
The follwing can be used for formatting text:
-
\\will be replaced with a line break. This allows to have multiple lines of text for one step without each having their checkbox as well as having more than one line of text for the guide's details.
Also when putting\\at the end of a line, the step continues on the next line. Therefore having a step with multiple lines of text does not require it to be all on a single line in the source file. - Putting text in *asterisks* will make it appear in a different color.
- If there is a link in your text (
http://... orwww....) it will be clickable. While due to game limitations clicking won't open a browser window, at least the link can be copied. - A double hyphen ("
--") indicates a comment which runs until the end of the line. It wil be ignored from parsing.
Same as comments in Lua, although block comments (--[[) are not supported.
The following codes can be used:
These codes should each only be used once in your guide. (If there is more than one of a kind, all but the last one will be ignored.) You can put them anywhere in your guide. At the beginning would make most sense. It makes no difference whether you put each on a separate line of text or all in the same line.
This sets the name and level range of your guide. This defines how the guide will show up in the guide selection list.
Example: [N 1-6 Coldridge Valley]
Here you can give a more detailed description of your guide. This will be shown below the guide selection list whenever the user mouses over your guide. You should describe what the player can expect from your guide whenever this is not clear from the given level range and zone alone. You can also put your name, your website / youtube channel / twitch stream / or whatever you want people to know about you here.
Example: [D My personal guide to the *gnome/dwarf* starting zone \\https://github.com/max-ri/Guidelime_MyGuide]
Whenever this is set and a player finishes your guide the user can proceed with the guide named here with only one click. So if you are writing a series of guides this should be used to connect one guide of the series with the next.
Only guides selectable by the current player are listed as a possible choice. See the description of GA below.
If a guide contains multiple NX codes for selectable guides, different routes are offered as alternatives. A link to each guide is presented.
Example: [NX 6-12 Dun Morogh]
(support for reputations added in addon version 2.001 / support for skills and spells added in addon version 3.015)
Here you can set what players will be seeing your guide in the guides list. You can put any combination of a faction, races, classes, reputations, skills, or even spells here, separated by commas. Names are case-insensitive and can contain spaces (use English names). For reputation names you can leave out the leading 'The' and apostrophes. For guides for the starting zones you would put the respective races here. Later guides would only specify the faction. Maybe you are writing a guide only for a specific class? (Maybe for one of the lengthy class quest chains?) You can then put that class here and only players of that class will be able to see and select this guide.
If only a part of your guide applies to certain players, e.g. a guide for a zone also contains class specific quests, then you will not want to use GA since this would make the whole guide selectable to certain players only. For details on how to make parts of the guide apply to certain players only see the description of A below.
When a reputation name is given, the guide is only selectable when the player has reached a certain reputation with the given faction. (An example could be having two separate guides for a zone such as Shadowmoon Valley for players who chose Aldor vs Scryers.) The reputation name may be followed by a positive or negative number which specifies how many points a player has to have gained (0 = Neutral). The number can be prepended with a < to specify that the current value should be below the given value. If no value is specified the default is 3000 which means the player has to have a Friendly standing. For the details on specifying reputations see the description of REP below.
When a skill name is given, the guide is only selectable when the player has reached a certain level in the given skill. (Examples could be profession guides that would only be shown to players that have picked up that profession.) The skill name may be followed by a positive number which specifies how many points a player has to have gained in that skill. The number can be prepended with a < to specify that the current value should be below the given value. If no value is specified the default is 1 which means the player has to have the skill.
When a spell name is given, the guide is only selectable when the player has learned the given spell. (An example could be a guide that requires flying in Northrend and therefore be shown to players that have learned Cold Weather Flying.) The spell name may be followed by a positive number which specifies the rank of the spell the player has to have learned. The number can be prepended with a < to specify that the current rank should be below the given value. If no value is specified the default is 1 which means the player has to have the spell. Instead of a spell name you can also write SP followed by the numeric spell id.
Examples:
[GA Dwarf,Gnome]
[GA Aldor]
Type [GL off] at any place in your guide in order to disable the generation of additional locations (see L below) for quest completion steps QC. Per default the addon will try to generate automatic additional locations for spawn locations for quest mobs (sword icon) and mobs dropping quest items (bag icon) and also locations of clickable quest game objects (gear icon). If you want more control over the placement of these icons you can disable the automatic generation. But keep in mind that automatic placement of additional locations is disabled for a quest step whenever one or more additional locations are added to the same line using the L-code. Therefore if you only want to place the additional markers manually for single quests while keeping the automatic ones for all other quests you will not want to use GL off. Use this only when you want to disable automatically placed additional locations for your whole guide.
Type [GG off] at any place in your guide in order to disable the generation of waypoint locations (see G below) for quest steps Q and flight steps F and P. Per default the addon will try to generate automatic waypoint locations for all quest steps and also for flight steps (nearest flight point for Fand specified flight point for P). If you want more control over the placement of the waypoints you can disable the automatic generation. But keep in mind that automatic placement of waypoints is disabled whenever one or more waypoint locations are added to the same line using the G-code. Therefore if you only want to place the waypoints manually for single steps while keeping the automatic ones for all others you will not want to use GG off. Use this only when you want to disable automatically placed additional locations for your whole guide. (Since automatic waypoint locations are usually accurate using GG off is not recommended for any guide. It merely exists in order to complement GL off.)
Type [GT off] at any place in your guide in order to disable the generation of use target NPC buttons (see TAR below) for quest steps Q. Per default the addon will try to generate target NPC buttons for quest steps that involve targetable NPCs. If you want more control over the placement of these buttons you can disable the automatic generation. But keep in mind that automatic placement of target NPC buttons is disabled for a step whenever one or more buttons are added to the same line using the TAR-code. The automatic placement can also be disabled without adding a button with the code TAR0-. Therefore if you only want to place the target NPC buttons manually for single steps while keeping the automatic ones for all other you will not want to use GT off. Use this only when you want to disable automatically placed use item buttons for your whole guide.
Type [GI off] at any place in your guide in order to disable the generation of use item buttons (see UI below) for quest steps Q and hearth steps H. Per default the addon will try to generate use item buttons for quest accept steps for all quests started by an item and for other quest steps involving usable quest items and also for hearth steps for showing a button to use the hearthstone. If you want more control over the placement of these buttons you can disable the automatic generation. But keep in mind that automatic placement of use item buttons is disabled for a step whenever one or more buttons are added to the same line using the UI-code. The automatic placement can also be disabled without adding a button with the code UI0-. Therefore if you only want to place the use item buttons manually for single steps while keeping the automatic ones for all other you will not want to use GI off. Use this only when you want to disable automatically placed use item buttons for your whole guide.
For all of these codes a small icon will be displayed. It will be replaced with a check mark once completion has been detected. When all steps on one line are completed the checkbox for this line will be checked and the line will disappear.
This is for steps dealing with quests. You can have more than one quest code on one line if multiple quests are adressed at the same time e.g. turning in a quest and accepting the follow up. The Q is always followed by a second letter specifying which type of quest step it is:
-
AAccept a quest -
CComplete a quest -
TTurn in a quest -
SSkip a quest (only use this to point out to the player not to accept a certain quest e.g. when it is not worth the time or if it is to be done at a later time)
Next you need to specify the id of the quest. Since quest names are not unique it is mandatory to specify the exact id of the quest. When using the "Add a quest"-button of the inbuilt editor you can enter the unique name of a quest and the corresponding id will be filled in. Whenever there are multiple quests of the same name you will need external tools to find out the id of the quest. (You will usually find the id e.g. by looking at the url of the page of the quest in any database website.)
After the id you can specify the text that will be shown for this step. If omitted the name of the quest will be shown. (In case of quest series no part 1/2/3 will be shown. The name will appear in the same way as it does in the quest log. If the part should be shown you have to specify it in the text.) You can put a - here if you don't want any text to be shown.
For completing quests there is also the possibility to specify that only one specific objective is to be completed. For this case put the number of the objective that should be completed (1 for first, 2 for second, ...) after the id of the quest separated with a comma.
Some examples:
Accept [QA179] (Since no text is given quest name is added and this will show up as Accept Dwarven Outfitters)
Loot the chest for [QC3361,2 A Refugee's Quandary] (For this quest the chest is the second step. Please look up the correct order of the objectives when using this.)
Go do [QC237 In Defense of the King's Lands Part 2] if you haven't done so already, [QT237 turn it in] & accept [QA263 Part 3] (If text is specified this will be used instead of the name of the quest)
Complete [QC263-][QC2038 both quests]
Here you can specify waypoint coordinates the player should go to. Coordinates of upcoming steps will be shown on the map and minimap. Whenever a step becomes active an arrow will appear pointing towards the specified coordinates. When the player reaches the coordinates the arrrow will disappear.
Coordinates are specified by their x and y value separated by a comma optionally followed by the respective's zone name (English names only; you can leave out a leading 'The' and apostrophes). If the zone name is omitted coordinates are assumed to be in the same zone as previous coordinates. For the first pair of coordinates the zone name must not be omitted. As another optional value a radius in yards can be specified after the y value separated by a comma. This defines how close the player must go towards the coordinates in order to mark the step as completed and the arrow to disappear. If no radius is specified the default radius is 10.
Examples:
[G 29.93,71.2 Dun Morogh]
[G 30,70,100 Dun Morogh] (Increased radius, meaning the player will only have to be in the general area.)
You can specify additional coordinates as well where the player does not necessarily need to go to. These coordinates will also be shown on the map and minimap but no arrow will appear. This can for instance be used for marking several possible spawn points on the map.
As with G coordinates are specified by their x and y value separated by a comma optionally followed by the respective's zone name (English names only). If the zone name is omitted coordinates are assumed to be in the same zone as previous coordinates (respectively the zone of the last quest step where the quest was categorized under a zone). For the first pair of coordinates the zone name must not be omitted.
Example: [L 29.93,71.2 Dun Morogh]
At certain points the player might be required to have obtained a certain level in order to continue e.g. in order to be able to pick up a quest. Ideally your guide should tell the player where to do some grinding in advance instead of letting the player find out that he is too low level when he is standing in front of the npc where there may not even be any mobs nearby. Considering the player might have skipped parts of your guide, you can tell the player in regular intervals what his current progress should be in order to not run into problems later on. By using the XP-code this can be done in a way which will be tracked automatically by the addon.
First specify the level the player has to have reached. This can be a fractional number in order to specify the fraction of the next level the player needs to have reached already. Alternatively to a fractional number you can also specify that the player should have obtained a certain amount of experience points towards the next level by writing (level)+(amount of points) or that the player should be missing at most a certain amount of experience points until reaching the specified level by writing (level)-(amount of points)
After the level/points you can optionally specify a text to be shown. If no text is specified the level/points will be shown as entered.
Examples:
Kill trolls in the area for [QC182 The Troll Cave][O] until you are level [XP4] (This will be shown as until your are level 4)
Grind until [XP18] (Shown as Grind until 18)
You should be [XP8.5 half way to 9] now (Shown as You should be half way to 9 now)
You should be about [XP6-500 500 to 6] now (Shown as You should be about 500 to 6 now)
(added in addon version 1.045)
This can be used to track specific items, for instance, if you want to make sure to have 15 silk cloth before starting Searing Gorge, which is used later on for a quest that you don't have at the moment you start the guide.
You need to specify the id of the item to be tracked. (You can find the id by looking at the url of the page of the item in any database website; e.g. for silk cloth this would be 4306.)
This has to be followed by the amount needed separated by a comma.
Finally you can specifiy the text shown for the step. Following the syntax for quests, if omitted the localized name is filled in automatically (e.g. [CI4306,15]) and putting - will only show the icon and omit the item name entirely (e.g. [CI4306,15-]).
When the specified amount is zero, the step will only complete when the item is not present in the inventory. This can be used to make the player delete an item.
Some examples:
Make sure you have 15 [CI4306,15] on your bags before heading to Searing Gorge
Loot 6 [CI11515,6 Corrupted Soul Shards]
Delete your [CI6948,0 Hearthstone]
(added in addon version 2.001)
This step gets completed automatically as soon as the player reaches a certain amount of reputation points with a given faction.
You have to specify the name of a faction. Names are case-insensitive and can contain spaces (use English names). You can leave out the leading 'The' and apostrophes. For a list of possible faction names see e.g. https://wowpedia.fandom.com/wiki/FactionID.
The reputation name may be followed by a positive or negative number which specifies how many points a player has to have gained (0 = Neutral). The number can be prepended with a '<' to specify that the current value should be below the given value. If no value is specified the default is 3000 which means the player has to have a Friendly standing.
The value you have to specify here is the total number of points the player has increased or decreased from Neutral reputation. A Friendly standing is achieved at 3000 points, Honored at 9000 (3000 for Friendly plus an additional 6000), Revered at 21000, and Exalted at 42000. Standings below Neutral are specified with negative values: Unfriendly from 0 to -3000, Hostile from -3000 to -6000, and Hated below -6000. In order to specify that the bar towards the next standing should have reached a certain value you would choose the total number of points accordingly, e.g. having filled the bar from Honored to Revered half way (showing in game as 6000/12000 Honored) is represented by a value of 15000. (This is also explained e.g. at https://wowpedia.fandom.com/wiki/API_GetFactionInfo.)
Finally you can specifiy the text shown for the step. Again following the syntax for quests, if omitted the localized reputation name is filled in automatically and putting - will not show any text.
Examples:
Grind on Deadwood until you are Unfriendly with [REP Timbermaw Hold -3000]
Kill Magram Clan Centaur until they [REP Magram Clan Centaur < -6000 hate you]
(added in addon version 3.015)
This step gets completed automatically as soon as the player reaches a certain level in a given skill.
You have to specify the name of a skill. Names are case-insensitive and can contain spaces (use English names).
The skill name may be followed by a positive number which specifies how many points a player has to have in that skill. If no value is specified the default is 1 which means the player has to have the skill.
Finally you can specifiy the text shown for the step. Again following the syntax for quests, if omitted the localized reputation name is filled in automatically and putting - will not show any text.
Examples:
Level up to [SK Tailoring 45] 45 skill with [SP 2963]. (Craft at least 90 [CI 2996,90])
(added in addon version 3.015)
This step gets completed automatically as soon as the player learns a certain spell or certain level in a given skill at a trainer.
You have to specify the name of a skill or spell. Names are case-insensitive and can contain spaces (use English names). Instead of a spell name you can also write SP followed by the numeric spell id.
The spell or skill may be followed by a positive number which specifies the rank the player has to have in the spell respectively what the maximum number of skill points the player has to have learned. If no value is specified the default is 1 which means the player has to have the spell or skill.
Finally you can specifiy the text shown for the step. Again following the syntax for quests, if omitted the localized name is filled in automatically and putting - will not show any text.
Examples:
Train [LE Tailoring] at [TAR 1346].
Learn [LE ColdWeatherFlying].
Learn [LE Tailoring 125 Journeyman Tailoring][TAR 1346-].
(added in addon version 3.013)
This can be used to add a button to the side of the guide window to cast a specific spell.
You need to specify either the id or the (English) name of the spell to be cast. (You can find the id by looking at the url of the page of the item in any database website; e.g. Teleport: Stormwind would be 3561.) As the numeric id is unique it is the most reliable way to refer to a spell. Using the name of the spell might not work in every case. (All 'default' spells learned from a trainer should be supported.)
You can specify the text shown for the step. Following the syntax for quests, if omitted the localized name is filled in automatically (e.g. [SP3561]) and putting - will only show the icon and omit the item name entirely (e.g. [SP3561-]).
The step will be considered completed once the spell has been cast successfully.
Note: A step including a spell will be shown to everybody whether or not they can actually cast the spell. So it would make sense to combine this with A to make it only appear for the correct class for instance. When a character does not have the spell the button still be shown but it just will not work.
Note 2: Automatic completion does not work with ranked spells. Each rank of a spell has its own id. When specifying the base spell id, the step will only complete when the rank 1 spell was cast. The button on the other hand will always cast the highest rank available.
Some examples:
Teleport to [SP3561Stormwind][A Mage]
Teleport to [SP TeleportStormwind Stormwind][A Mage]
Return to Ebon Hold with [SP50977Death Gate][A DeathKnight]
The next set of steps will also be completed automatically while you play a guide but unlike the previous steps progress on these steps is not detected retroactively. This means that when you load a new guide (or reset the current guide) you might have to mark these as completed manually.
Using the hearthstone will always complete an active H-code even when the hearthstone was not set to the correct location. Currently no check for the specified hearth location is implemented.
Example: Hearth to [H Thelsamar]
Setting the hearthstone will always complete an active S-code even when the hearthstone was not set to the correct location. Currently no check for the specified hearth location is implemented.
Example : Set hearth in [S Goldshire]
When the name of flight point is specified within the code the corresponding flight will be selected automatically. The flight point can be specified by the zone's name for when there is just one flight point for the player's faction in that zone. Otherwise the name of the place where the flight point is located must be names. Names can be localized.
When no flight point is specified the step is completed as soon as the player takes any flight.
Example: Fly to [F Thelsamar]
Getting a new flight point will always complete an active P-code even when the player activated a different flight point than specified. Currently no check for the specified hearth location is implemented. Also when the player takes a flight an active P-code will also be completed as it is assumed that the player then already had the flight point activated beforehand.
The specified flight point is used for obtaining automatic coordinates for this step (when these were not deactived using [GG off])
Example: Activate the flight point in [P Thelsamar]
All of the following steps do not (yet) have automatic detection built in. The player will have to manually click on the checkbox in order to confirm he has done what is asked for, so that the step disappears from his list. Basically all these codes do is add a nice icon to the step text. If none of the icons fit you can also just not use any code on a line and it will also be considered as a step the player has to check off manually.
Example: [T]Get new skills at your trainer
Example: You can [V]sell vendor loot and resupply and [R] repair here
(added in addon version 3.006)
This can be used to add a button to the side of the guide window to quickly target an NPC. Clicking the button will try to target the specified NPC. A raid marker will also be set on the target to be able to find it quickly (unless this is deactivated in the options).
You need to specify the id of the NPC. (You can find the id by looking at the url of the page of the NPC in any database website; e.g. for King Varian Wrynn this would be 29611.) If the id is 0 no button will be generated. This can be used to disable automatic generation of use item buttons for one step by writing [UI0-].
You can specifiy the text shown for the step. Following the syntax for quests, if omitted the localized name is filled in automatically (e.g. [TAR29611]) and putting - will not show any text (e.g. [TAR29611-]).
Example:
Speak to [TAR29611]
(added in addon version 3.001)
This can be used to add a button to the side of the guide window to quickly use an item. This can be any usable item such as a quest item, the hearthstone, or even a (specific) health potion.
You need to specify the id of the item to be used. (You can find the id by looking at the url of the page of the item in any database website; e.g. for the hearthstone this would be 6948.) If the id is 0 no button will be generated. This can be used to disable automatic generation of use item buttons for one step by writing [UI0-].
You can specifiy the text shown for the step. Following the syntax for quests, if omitted the localized name is filled in automatically (e.g. [UI6948]) and putting - will only show the icon and omit the item name entirely (e.g. [UI6948-]).
Some examples:
Use an [UI5996 Elixir of Water Breathing]
Use your [H hearthsone][UI6948-] (In this case the UI is not needed and could as well be omitted. It will be generated automatically for any step containing H as well as for most quest steps involving usable items unless automatic generation is disabled. See GI.)
(support for reputations added in addon version 2.001 / support for skills and spells added in addon version 3.015 / support for item possession added in version 3.022)
Similar to GA you can set to which players one step of your guide applies. Again you can put any combination of a faction, races, classes, reputations, skills, or spells here, separated by commas.
It is also possible to only show a step whether or not the player has a certain item (e.g. a key) in his bags. This is done by adding IT followed by the id of the item and optionally < for not having the item, and an amount (see examples below).
Names are case-insensitive and can contain spaces (use English names). For reputation names you can leave out the leading 'The' and apostrophes. For players that do not meet the criteria the whole line of the guide will not show up.
When steps address class-/race-/reputation-specific quests technically you are not required to use the A-code since the addon would detect that and not show the whole line in any way. But for making it easier for you to read your guide you might still want to specify it.
Sometimes it might be required to have some lines only show up for certain races / classes / reputations even if no race-/class-/reputation-quests are addressed directly. E.g. certain races might not be required to run and pick up a new flight point but can fly instead since they will have to have come that way earlier anyway. Or when the guide does address a class quest this might change the way or the order other quests are done since the player takes a different route. Also directions might differ depending on whether the player is able to use flying mounts. This can be addressed by showing certain steps when the riding skill is high enough or not high enough (in order to fly in Outland) or whether or not the spell Cold Weather Flying has been learned (for flying in Northrend).
When a reputation name is given, as with GA the reputation name may be followed by a positive or negative number which specifies how many points a player has to have gained (0 = Neutral). The number can be prepended with a '<' to specify that the current value should be below the given value. If no value is specified the default is 3000 which means the player has to have a Friendly standing. For the details on specifying reputations see the description of REP above.
When a skill name is given, it may be followed by a positive number which specifies how many points a player has to have gained in that skill. The number can be prepended with a '<' to specify that the current value should be below the given value. If no value is specified the default is 1 which means the player has to have the skill.
When a spell name is given, it may be followed by a positive number which specifies the rank of the spell the player has to have learned. The number can be prepended with a '<' to specify that the current rank should be below the given value. If no value is specified the default is 1 which means the player has to have the spell. Instead of a spell name you can also write SP followed by the numeric spell id.
Note that using the A tag with a reputation, skill, or spell is not the intended way to mark a step in which you expect the player to actively gain a certain reputation e.g. by grinding mobs, leveling up a skill, or learning a skill or spell from a trainer. If you were to use it this way the step would disappear rather than be marked as completed. For reputations use REP instead. This tag can be used when certain steps of your guide do not apply to players having chosen a certain faction e.g. Aldor vs Scryers. When a large portion of your guide is only available to players that have chosen a certain reputation you might consider splitting your guide into separate parts and use GA for each part. For leveling up a skill use SK. For learning a skill or spell from a trainer use LE.
Examples:
Accept [QA3109 Encrypted Rune][A Dwarf,Rogue] (This actually is the same as just Accept [QA3109 Encrypted Rune])
In the troll cave keep left until you find and kill Grik'nir the Cold for [QC218 The Stolen Journal][A Warrior,Mage,Hunter,Rogue,Priest,Paladin] (Warlocks take a different path in the cave as they are doing a class quest at the same time.)
[G41.71,38.64 Shattrath City]Take the elevator to Aldor Rise [A Aldor]
[A Riding 225] This will showing a step only for someone who has Artisan riding and therefore can fly in Outland.
[A Riding <255] Shows only for a player who can not fly in Outland.
[A Tailoring] Shows for tailors only.
[A TeleportStormwind] Shows for a mage that has learned to teleport to Stormwind.
[A SP3561] The same as before but using the spell id instead.
[A TeleportStormwind<1] Shows for a mage who does not have Teleport Stormwind yet, so you could show them another way to get there.
[A ColdWeatherFlying] Shows for a player who can fly in Northrend.
[A ColdWeatherFlying<1] Shows for a player who can not fly in Northrend.
[A IT12382] Shows for a player who can use the back entrance of Stratholme.
[A IT12382<1] Shows for a player who cannot use the back entrance of Stratholme.
If you mark one step as optional the next step in the guide will become active at the same time. The player is not required to complete this step in order to go on with the guide.
When the O is followed by C this means that this step should be considered completed as well as soon as the next step is completed. Sometimes a step is only required in order to start with the next (usually going somewhere). Therefore it will be considered completed once the next step is started.
Examples:
Kill troggs along your way for [QC170 A New Threat][O] (You do not have to kill all of the troggs for your quest just kill some while you are on your way to the next step. Therefore the next step will be active immediately when you reach this step.)
Kill trolls in the area for [QC182 The Troll Cave][O] until you are level [XP4] (Note that here only killing the trolls is optional. Reaching level 4 is not. Therefore this step will be completed as soon as level 4 is reached even when not all trolls are killed.)
Grind up to the Dam[G46.05,13.61][OC]
Take the tram to Stormwind[OC] Turn in [G 55.51,12.51 Stormwind City][QT2041 Speak with Shoni]