Addons, how do they work?

First and foremost, you may be wondering what an addon is. The closest comparison to World of Warcraft addons would be Smartphone applications. An addon is a user-written user-interface (UI) modification for World of Warcraft. Programmers or crafty World of Warcraft players take it upon themselves to create these UIs that show crucial information, or make the game more aesthetically appealing. So just like the Smartphone, there are applications that are used for aesthetic reasons such as changing wallpapers, ringtones, and sounds, and there are also applications that are useful tools, such as maps, calculators, and weather trackers. In World of Warcraft, addons can change the looks of your unit frames, add custom sounds to certain events, change how your text looks, provide crafting lists (of materials), they can track the markets on the auction house, and relay important information for raid boss fights. There are just a few examples of the thousands of addons. The go-to place for addons is typically Curse Gaming , although there are also other hosts for addons, as well as privatized websites for specific addons.

People may write addons for any number of reasons, but typically people write addons because they feel that the game would benefit from their change. Some authors of addons even receive donations for their addons if they have a website set up to receive them. I believe they cannot technically be paid because their work is ultimately licensed to Blizzard Entertainment (the creators of World of Warcraft).

Addons are good, but in moderation. Here is an example of an addon addict, who has taken it too far: (Rediculous UI ). As you can see, this is what I call “information diarrhea” because there is way too much information, or information delivered very poorly. Addons can also cause problems. Some people do not know that addons take up system resources (RAM), and can slow down your computer the same way that having a multitude of programs and windows open. Some addons even experience invisible errors to the user and cause them to mysteriously disconnect. But don’t let this turn you off from addons, like everything, addons are good in moderation. If you have problems, you can usually turn off the last installed addon to remove the problem. You can also go through and turn all of your addons off, and enable them one by one until you find the problematic addon. Every couple of months I clean out my crummy addons by asking myself, “When was the last time I used this?”

Here is a rundown of addons I usually use and have been very helpful.


Atlasloot is an addon that is a huge list of all of the items that can be crafted, dropped by bosses, and other items. This addon is very handy, especially when a player needs the help of others. Rather than bothering people asking what a recipe for certain armor calls for, you can have the materials ready.

Auctioneer is an amazing addon for anyone interested in World of Warcraft economy. By doing regular scans of the auction house, you create a database of average prices for items. This allows the user to find auctions that are priced under value. It has various other options as well.



Bagnon is an addon that combines all of the bags that make up a players inventory. It turns the annoying 5 separate bags into one large bag, usually making it easier to see things, if you have sorted it well. It also draws faint highlights around items, so that the user can determine the quality of the item.



Bartender4 is my addon of choice for my bars. Bartender allows me to create custom hotkeys, change the size and location of my bar, and hide bars as well. It’s very handy and very lightweight.

Deadly Boss Mods is a required addon by most raiding guilds. This addon displays crucial boss information, and alerts the user when they need to do something. This may sound ominous, but for example in the Lich King fight, it will play trumpeting sounds for the player that is afflicted by Necrotic Plague, or Raging Spirit. It also alerts the user to phase changes as well.

Grid is an essential addon, although some people do not use it. Grid is so customizable that it is hard to describe. I use grid to show my entire raid’s health, status, and whether or not they are afflicted by a curse, disease, or something of that nature. This addon is the best way to show raid frames hands down.


Mik’s Scrolling Battle Text is an aesthetic addon that allows the user to change how the combat text is displayed. You can change fonts, styles, sizes, animations of numbers, and many other things. You can also set up a useful sound or chime when your health or mana drop below a certain percentage.


Ratingsbuster is an informative addon that shows detailed information on “invisible stats.” For example, with dodge rating being subject to diminishing returns, I can see how much actual dodge I will gain from 55 dodge rating. It is presented to me by the decimal as to how much dodge it will actually add.


Recount is an information collecting addon that tracks all the statistic and information of everyone in the raid. Recount is useful for seeing what attacks people used, damage per second, healing per second, and damage taken, etc. This addon is great for detailed information.

This is the gist of what I use. Every person is different, and places different priorities on their UI. A tank’s UI is very different from a healer’s or even a damage-dealer. Use what works for you, and if you take anything from this post, please remember to use addons in moderation.