Focus, man! Focus!
by David Bowers 
May 18th 2007 at 3:00PM
One new largely unknown feature that came with the expansion is the ability to set a certain unit, whether friendly or hostile, as your "focus" with the "/focus" command (and to clear the focus with the "/clearfocus" command). This helps in a lot of situations where you might otherwise lose track of a certain player or monster and find things getting out of control. A mage, for instance, can set a certain target as the focus at the beginning of a battle, and use a "/polymorph focus" macro to keep it out of the fight at all times without having to switch targets. Unfortunately, however, the standard blizzard interface provides no new unit frame or other visual means for you to see the current status of your focus or even to know what your focus is. Fortunately, there are a few good addons out there which can fill in this gap, and help you utilize your new focus power to the utmost of your creativity.
First and foremost of these is a lovely unit frames addon, "ag-UnitFrames." It allows you to show, arrange, and customize any unit frame, including its own special focus frame, which you can place anywhere on your screen, according to your own needs. Keeping an eye on the 3D portrait of the focused polymorph target, in the mage's example, would allow him or her to know right away if polymorph has broken and needs to be recast. Additionally, a tank could use this new focus frame to keep a close eye on the main healer's health to see if a monster might be attacking him, or if some monster's cleave or AoE ability is still reaching him. With the "target-of-focus" frame enabled, the tank could also keep track of the healer's target, and get a better idea of when heals are incoming for her or for someone else instead. A healer could do the same thing in reverse, to keep track of the tank's health and target, and feel reassured when the "target-of-focus" frame shows the tank changing her target in order to pick up a monster attacking him. All the damage-dealers in your group with this addon could set the focus to most experienced damage player, and immediately see when that player changes targets, so that they can assist and attack the same enemy at the same time.
If you really like the standard blizzard unit frames, or if you just don't want to deal with the hassle of setting up the new ones, there are other focus frame options for you as well. FocusFrame (also pictured above) provides you with focus and target-of-focus frames that blend right into the default Blizzard style, while Hadar's Focus Frame goes for its own, more box-like style.
Have you put the focus feature to an especially creative use? Please share your ideas with us in a comment below.
Filed under: Tips, Tricks, How-tos, Odds and ends, Add-Ons
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Hiroshi May 25th 2007 1:15PM
I love the Focus feature. Along with X-Perl unit frames, I have my focus frame set at lower center. This way I can target my primary healing target (usually someone I'm paired up with in PVP, or the main tank in PVE) or in instances I'll usually put the boss on Focus so I always see the progress of the fight (enemy health) at a glance, despite all the target switching for heals and judgements.
nav976 May 18th 2007 3:23PM
I recall seeing this a few months ago but only this week did I figure out what it does. It has amazing potential since this can also let a person "Focus" on a friendly Target as well, so healers can keep an OT targeted in a certain fashion without unselecting the MT or other key players.
Also.. Tanks.. Consider this.
Focus on your main healer.
Make a macro to Defensive Charge on your main healer.
They will love you forever.
Lyrsuk May 18th 2007 3:41PM
My favorite use is for polymorph and seduce. Here is a poly macro. Note that this assume you already set your focus.
#showtooltip Polymorph
/cast [target=focus, exists, nodead, harm] Polymorph; [nodead, harm, exists] Polymorph
/script SendChatMessage("Sheeping >>"..UnitName("focus")..">"..UnitName("focus").."
BaboonNL May 18th 2007 3:46PM
I use it all the time for Shackle duty in Karazhan, and keeping track of bossfights.
I also use it on Thrall and Millhouse Manastorm in CoT / Arcatraz.
Tseran May 18th 2007 7:57PM
As a hunter, I love Focus too. When I get in a group, I immediately make the tank my focus, and start using the macro to cast misdirection on the focus. Or, if I am asked to pull for the tank and trap in the same pull, I have another macro where I focus the mob I am trapping, and misdirect to the tank.
Halicante May 18th 2007 4:15PM
X-Perl UI has a very good focus frame too, fyi.
Here is my polymorph focus. I like it a little better than Lyrsuk's, but I guess it's a personal preference. Mine sets the focus if it isn't already set and clears and resets it if the old target is dead. You can also manually reset focus with the alt key.
#show Polymorph
/clearfocus [modifier:alt]
/focus [target=focus,noexists]; [target=focus,dead]
/cast [target=focus,exists,harm]Polymorph
This is my counterspell one. It's useful on fights like Romulo and Julianne when I'm dpsing Romulo but Julianna needs a cs for the heal.
/stopcasting [target=focus,harm,exists,nodead]
/cast [target=focus,harm,exists,nodead] Counterspell
MartinC May 18th 2007 6:38PM
The author failed to mention Pitbull, the natural successor to agUF. Heck, the author of agUF said even he is using Pitbull now.
Pitbull of course does a fantastic job with Focus, FocusTarget, and FocusTargetTarget, along with making just about every aspect of unit frames configurable. Definitely check out Pitbull if you are considering switching to something other than the standard Blizz UI (or other older unit frame mods like agUF, Perl, etc).
captinplanet May 21st 2007 11:47PM
hey i am a hunter and was woundering how i would program my focus to target the tank cast m,isdirection and then cast distracing shot on to is target id it is at all possible, i tried a couple thingds but nothing works out as i hope
wowinsider.qsh May 18th 2007 9:27PM
I'm working on a focus frame specifically designed for re-sheeping. Keep an eye out for it, it'll be on WoWI soon... name's ControlFreak.
Laurens Holst May 19th 2007 1:09AM
I’m not sure, but for me the target that’s focused gets a white glow around its status bar… I don’t think this is done by an extension, as I don’t have any that would do that kind of thing installed.
So to say that the Blizzard UI provides “…no visual means… …to know what your focus is…” is I think incorrect.
~Grauw