For someone who plays WoW casually, I think modifications and addons to the user interface can be a daunting experience. I have literally spent hours at a time trying to pick and configure the right mods for my playing experience. For a person that doesn't have a lot of time to play each week, the idea of losing that time to set up mods and keep them updated could discourage the use of mods entirely. That would be a shame since the use of mods can really enhance your gaming experience. So, I thought I would share some of my experiences and recommendations about ui mods and addons with the casual gamer in mind.
I have to admit that I did not start using any mods right away. I think I had been playing WoW for over a year before I gave them a try. I was afraid that mods would mess my game up or make my computer more susceptible to viruses. However, I always found it frustrating when a forum post would refer to specific map coordinates and I had no idea on how to find that location on the map. I finally decided that I needed a map mod so I could take advantage of all these great tips. So I started to do research on what map mod to use. I was instantly overwhelmed by the number of choices. The other problem I ran into was that there did not seem to be a stand alone map mod. Every map mod I liked either had dependencies that required more mods or was packaged together with additional mods. This opened up a flood gate of other decisions to make. Do I go with Ace2 mods? What about Titan Panel? Or is Cosmos the way to go?
I finally decided on using Cosmos. I felt confident in the safety and reliability of Cosmos since it was listed on the WoWWiki site, which is like gospel to me =) One of the main reasons I choose Cosmos was that it contained a package of mods that addressed all my needs. It had the map mod I wanted, plus a number of neat extras. I also liked that it came with its own updating software, which really makes it easy when patch day comes along and all your mods are out of date. I have tried a number of different mod schemes since I started using Cosmos, but always find myself going back to Cosmos because it is so easy to use and has all the mods I want.
In my opinion, Cosmos is the one stop shop for mods for the casual gamer. It is easy to set up, use & keep up to date. This allows you to spend your free time playing WoW instead of tinkering with settings. When you do want to play with the different modules within Cosmos, it is very easy to do so. There is a button right on your mini map that opens up the options menu. The menu itself is very intuitive and has tooltips for all the choices. Some of my favorite addons in Cosmos include the Durability Status window, expanded quest log, quickloot (places the loot window at your cursor), the detailed experience and dps monitors, free bag slots, equipcompare & fluid frames (allows you to drag & resize the default WoW windows). Cosmos also includes excellent map mods & mob info, which gives you detailed information on each mob you fight. The mob info mod actually creates a database of information as you fight different mobs. It is great for keeping track of what mobs drop the quest items you need.
Many people might complain that Cosmos contains too many unnecessary addons in the package. There are quite a few that I do not use such as some of the chat functions or the Thottbot plugin, but it is very easy to disable any unwanted addons so they do not eat up your memory. Another great feature of Cosmos is that you can download an addon that allows you to register any Ace2 mod with the Cosmos options menu. This gives you the ability to change the settings of your Ace2 mods right within Cosmos & gives it great flexibility for adding mods not included in the package.
Now for the casual player, I think you can download Cosmos, check out a few of the options & never have to look for another mod again. However, if you are like me & like to experiment and try out new things, here are few recommendations for additional mods:
Unit Frames - If you don't like the look or feel of the default unit frames, or are like me and would like the party pet frames to be bigger, there are a few options. The two main choices are X-Perl & Perl Classic. These mods completely revamp your unit frames. X-Perl is amazing in the amount of customization available. You can change the size, location & look of everything. I found the amount of options within X-Perl to be too much. For the casual gamer, I would recommend Perl Classic. It gives most of the same functions as X-Perl, but has a much more straightforward options menu & is easier to configure. Cosmos actually comes with a Unit Frame addon called Archaeologist. I was not very impressed with this mod as it doesn't seem to allow you to change the size or position of the frames. It basically adds more information to the default frames. However, I find that the options in the default interface menu are more than sufficient, making Archaeologist unnecessary. By the way, if anyone can recommend a mod that increases the size of the party pet frame to make it easier for healing, I would greatly appreciate it =)
Action Bars - I have always found the default action bars to be fine. You can add an additional 4 actions bars from the interface settings in the WoW options menu. However, if you are looking for more actions bars than that, then Bongos or Bartender are the way to go. I've tried both and didn't like either as they didn't work properly with my Logitech G15 keyboard.
Misc. Mods - Here is a list of different mods I love & use:
1. Omen - Great threat meter. It will only work in a group if all of your members are using a similar threat mod. However, if you are a Hunter, it really helps you in threat management with your pet.
2. Rating Buster - Ever wondered whether that new piece of quest gear is an upgrade to what you are currently wearing? If you said yes, then Rating Buster is a must. It sums up all the necessary stats for your class & if you have a mod such as equipcompare, it will compare and tell you the differences between your choices.
3. Totem Timers - If you play a shaman, this is a great mod for managing your totems. It also has a window to quickly cast your weapon buffs and lightning/water shield.
4. OmniCC - This mod will show you the cooldown for any possible ability, spell, trinket or item. Much better than what you can get in Cosmos.
5. DoTimer - If you play a restoration druid or warlock & want to keep track of how much time is left on your HoTs or DoTs, this is the mod for you!
6. Decursive - It may not have the same functionality it once had due to a recent patch change, but it is still an awesome mod for removing curses, diseases, poisons, etc.
7. FuBar - Not necessary if you have Cosmos, but if you are running only Ace2 mods, it is a must. This mod creates 2 bars at the top & bottom of the screen that acts like a docking station for various modules. When you get the mod remember that FuBar is worthless unless you also download all the different modules that come with it. Some of the ones I like include Durability Fu, Experience Fu, Emote Fu & Money Fu. You can also get packages where you get FuBar and most of the usual modules in one download. You can find these at the Curse Gaming site.
If you are wondering where to find all these mods, I would recommend Curse Gaming at wow.curse.com/downloads/addons. The Cosmos website is located at www.cosmosui.org. If you are looking for update software for your Ace2 mods, I would check out WoWMatrix.com. I found this program at BigRedKitty's site. It works really well. It was also featured on CNet's Download site and on Apple's site. As a result, I feel pretty good about it being safe. So, as a bottom line for the casual gamer, I'd say go Cosmos. If you feel a bit more adventurous, check out all the great Ace2 mods on the Curse gaming site. Enjoy!!!
I have to admit that I did not start using any mods right away. I think I had been playing WoW for over a year before I gave them a try. I was afraid that mods would mess my game up or make my computer more susceptible to viruses. However, I always found it frustrating when a forum post would refer to specific map coordinates and I had no idea on how to find that location on the map. I finally decided that I needed a map mod so I could take advantage of all these great tips. So I started to do research on what map mod to use. I was instantly overwhelmed by the number of choices. The other problem I ran into was that there did not seem to be a stand alone map mod. Every map mod I liked either had dependencies that required more mods or was packaged together with additional mods. This opened up a flood gate of other decisions to make. Do I go with Ace2 mods? What about Titan Panel? Or is Cosmos the way to go?
I finally decided on using Cosmos. I felt confident in the safety and reliability of Cosmos since it was listed on the WoWWiki site, which is like gospel to me =) One of the main reasons I choose Cosmos was that it contained a package of mods that addressed all my needs. It had the map mod I wanted, plus a number of neat extras. I also liked that it came with its own updating software, which really makes it easy when patch day comes along and all your mods are out of date. I have tried a number of different mod schemes since I started using Cosmos, but always find myself going back to Cosmos because it is so easy to use and has all the mods I want.
In my opinion, Cosmos is the one stop shop for mods for the casual gamer. It is easy to set up, use & keep up to date. This allows you to spend your free time playing WoW instead of tinkering with settings. When you do want to play with the different modules within Cosmos, it is very easy to do so. There is a button right on your mini map that opens up the options menu. The menu itself is very intuitive and has tooltips for all the choices. Some of my favorite addons in Cosmos include the Durability Status window, expanded quest log, quickloot (places the loot window at your cursor), the detailed experience and dps monitors, free bag slots, equipcompare & fluid frames (allows you to drag & resize the default WoW windows). Cosmos also includes excellent map mods & mob info, which gives you detailed information on each mob you fight. The mob info mod actually creates a database of information as you fight different mobs. It is great for keeping track of what mobs drop the quest items you need.
Many people might complain that Cosmos contains too many unnecessary addons in the package. There are quite a few that I do not use such as some of the chat functions or the Thottbot plugin, but it is very easy to disable any unwanted addons so they do not eat up your memory. Another great feature of Cosmos is that you can download an addon that allows you to register any Ace2 mod with the Cosmos options menu. This gives you the ability to change the settings of your Ace2 mods right within Cosmos & gives it great flexibility for adding mods not included in the package.
Now for the casual player, I think you can download Cosmos, check out a few of the options & never have to look for another mod again. However, if you are like me & like to experiment and try out new things, here are few recommendations for additional mods:
Unit Frames - If you don't like the look or feel of the default unit frames, or are like me and would like the party pet frames to be bigger, there are a few options. The two main choices are X-Perl & Perl Classic. These mods completely revamp your unit frames. X-Perl is amazing in the amount of customization available. You can change the size, location & look of everything. I found the amount of options within X-Perl to be too much. For the casual gamer, I would recommend Perl Classic. It gives most of the same functions as X-Perl, but has a much more straightforward options menu & is easier to configure. Cosmos actually comes with a Unit Frame addon called Archaeologist. I was not very impressed with this mod as it doesn't seem to allow you to change the size or position of the frames. It basically adds more information to the default frames. However, I find that the options in the default interface menu are more than sufficient, making Archaeologist unnecessary. By the way, if anyone can recommend a mod that increases the size of the party pet frame to make it easier for healing, I would greatly appreciate it =)
Action Bars - I have always found the default action bars to be fine. You can add an additional 4 actions bars from the interface settings in the WoW options menu. However, if you are looking for more actions bars than that, then Bongos or Bartender are the way to go. I've tried both and didn't like either as they didn't work properly with my Logitech G15 keyboard.
Misc. Mods - Here is a list of different mods I love & use:
1. Omen - Great threat meter. It will only work in a group if all of your members are using a similar threat mod. However, if you are a Hunter, it really helps you in threat management with your pet.
2. Rating Buster - Ever wondered whether that new piece of quest gear is an upgrade to what you are currently wearing? If you said yes, then Rating Buster is a must. It sums up all the necessary stats for your class & if you have a mod such as equipcompare, it will compare and tell you the differences between your choices.
3. Totem Timers - If you play a shaman, this is a great mod for managing your totems. It also has a window to quickly cast your weapon buffs and lightning/water shield.
4. OmniCC - This mod will show you the cooldown for any possible ability, spell, trinket or item. Much better than what you can get in Cosmos.
5. DoTimer - If you play a restoration druid or warlock & want to keep track of how much time is left on your HoTs or DoTs, this is the mod for you!
6. Decursive - It may not have the same functionality it once had due to a recent patch change, but it is still an awesome mod for removing curses, diseases, poisons, etc.
7. FuBar - Not necessary if you have Cosmos, but if you are running only Ace2 mods, it is a must. This mod creates 2 bars at the top & bottom of the screen that acts like a docking station for various modules. When you get the mod remember that FuBar is worthless unless you also download all the different modules that come with it. Some of the ones I like include Durability Fu, Experience Fu, Emote Fu & Money Fu. You can also get packages where you get FuBar and most of the usual modules in one download. You can find these at the Curse Gaming site.
If you are wondering where to find all these mods, I would recommend Curse Gaming at wow.curse.com/downloads/addons. The Cosmos website is located at www.cosmosui.org. If you are looking for update software for your Ace2 mods, I would check out WoWMatrix.com. I found this program at BigRedKitty's site. It works really well. It was also featured on CNet's Download site and on Apple's site. As a result, I feel pretty good about it being safe. So, as a bottom line for the casual gamer, I'd say go Cosmos. If you feel a bit more adventurous, check out all the great Ace2 mods on the Curse gaming site. Enjoy!!!
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