Power Auras is a great addon to help you keep track of buffs, debuffs, cooldowns, etc., while keeping your eyes up on your character, where you can see what is happening. Instead of on your action bars, where you can’t see what is happening.
I use Power Auras to track my Riptide Cooldown, Earth Shield, Water Shield, and Nature’s Swiftness. The addon is extremely customizable, but here’s what I do:
The Riptide icon only shows up when the spell is off cooldown, letting me know that it’s available to cast.
Earth Shield pops up as yellow when there are less than 2 charges, and goes red and flashes when I do not have Earth Shield on anyone. It goes away completely when I cast Earth Shield on anyone in the raid.
Water Shield shows up when I have only 1 orb left, and flashes when I am down to 0.
The green bar represents my Nature’s Swiftness cooldown, and lets me know if I have my emergency instant heal available. Combined with Riptide, I can look here while running and see if there is anything I can cast.
Before using Power Auras, I figured I had pretty good uptime on my shields, but I have been able to improve them using this method. Here’s the uptime from our three resto shamans during some recent Lich King attempts:
Earth Shield:
Wugan: 89.3%
Offspec Healer: 80.5%
Newer Healer: 73.1%
Water Shield:
Wugan: 95%
Offspec Healer: 56.6%
Newer Healer: 41%
Riptide:
Offspec Healer: 88.9%
Wugan: 84.7%
Newer Healer: 38.7%
The Lich King is pretty hectic, especially if you’re not used to it. Our newer healer hadn’t seen the fight before, and that’s one reason they saw such low uptimes. I expect that naturally to improve over time.
Using an addon like Power Auras is great, because it makes it very hard to ignore certain things, even when you are learning a new fight or are otherwise distracted. Getting up that missing Earth Shield just might keep a tank alive. Keeping Water Shield up, especially during the transition phases, means you can gear for less Mp5 and more Haste, which will really help your throughput. Keeping Riptide up means more HoTs, and better uptime on your totem, both of which will improve your healing.
You don’t have to use Power Auras to be a good healer, but make sure you have a reliable way of tracking uptime on your important spells.
For those using Power Auras Classic, here are the settings I use. I promise that configuring your own auras is much easier than the garbled mess below would lead you to believe. Copy and paste these strings into your own Power Auras to get what I use, which you can then tweak to fit your own purposes.
Earth Shield string 1:
Version:st3.0.0F; gcd:bofalse; b:nu0.11372549019608; anim1:nu4; g:nu0.58039215686275; optunitn:bofalse; ignoremaj:botrue; Instance25ManHeroic:nu0; stacksLower:nu0; target:bofalse; icon:stInterface\Icons\Spell_Nature_SkinofEarth; size:nu0.18999999761581; torsion:nu1; r:nu1; Instance5ManHeroic:nu0; y:nu-75; x:nu0; customname:st; groupany:botrue; isAlive:botrue; timerduration:nu0; unitn:st; bufftype:nu1; stacks:nu2; focus:bofalse; Instance10ManHeroic:nu0; raid:bofalse; texture:nu21; alpha:nu0.90000003576279; aurastext:st; InstanceBg:nu0; symetrie:nu0; owntex:botrue; isResting:nu0; duration:nu0; mine:botrue; multiids:st; inVehicle:bofalse; speed:nu1; Instance5Man:nu0; anim2:nu0; InactiveDueToState:botrue; stacksOperator:st<; realaura:nu1; sound:nu0; threshold:nu50; exact:bofalse; id:nu7; HideRequest:bofalse; textaura:bofalse; Active:bofalse; buffname:stEarth Shield; wowtex:bofalse; groupOrSelf:botrue; customsound:st; combat:nu0; inRaid:botrue; InstanceArena:nu0; inParty:botrue; tooltipCheck:st; GTFO:nu0; aurastextfont:nu1; stance:nu10; spec2:bofalse; Instance10Man:nu0; customtex:bofalse; PvP:nu0; spec1:botrue; Instance25Man:nu0; isSecondary:bofalse; thresholdinvert:bofalse; Debug:bofalse; beginSpin:bofalse; Showing:bofalse; UseOldAnimations:bofalse; begin:nu0; off:bofalse; party:bofalse; texmode:nu1; inverse:bofalse; ismounted:bofalse; targetfriend:bofalse; randomcolor:bofalse; finish:nu1; stacks.a:nu1; stacks.Showing:bofalse; stacks.HideLeadingZeros:bofalse; stacks.y:nu-71; stacks.h:nu1; stacks.id:nu7; stacks.Transparent:bofalse; stacks.UpdatePing:bofalse; stacks.enabled:botrue; stacks.x:nu-3; stacks.Texture:stAccidentalPresidency
Earth Shield string 2:
Version:st3.0.0F; gcd:bofalse; b:nu0.25882352941176; anim1:nu4; g:nu0.03921568627451; optunitn:bofalse; ignoremaj:botrue; Instance25ManHeroic:nu0; stacksLower:nu0; target:bofalse; icon:stInterface\Icons\Spell_Nature_SkinofEarth; size:nu0.23999999463558; torsion:nu1; r:nu1; Instance5ManHeroic:nu0; y:nu-75; x:nu0; customname:st; groupany:botrue; isAlive:botrue; timerduration:nu0; unitn:st; bufftype:nu1; stacks:nu0; focus:bofalse; Instance10ManHeroic:nu0; raid:bofalse; texture:nu21; alpha:nu0.75; aurastext:st; InstanceBg:nu0; symetrie:nu0; owntex:botrue; isResting:nu0; duration:nu0; mine:botrue; multiids:st; inVehicle:bofalse; speed:nu1; Instance5Man:nu0; anim2:nu0; InactiveDueToState:botrue; stacksOperator:st>=; realaura:nu1; sound:nu0; threshold:nu50; exact:bofalse; id:nu8; HideRequest:bofalse; textaura:bofalse; Active:bofalse; buffname:stEarth Shield; wowtex:bofalse; groupOrSelf:botrue; customsound:st; combat:nu0; inRaid:botrue; InstanceArena:nu0; inParty:botrue; tooltipCheck:st; GTFO:nu0; aurastextfont:nu1; stance:nu10; spec2:bofalse; Instance10Man:nu0; customtex:bofalse; PvP:nu0; spec1:botrue; Instance25Man:nu0; isSecondary:bofalse; thresholdinvert:bofalse; Debug:bofalse; beginSpin:bofalse; Showing:bofalse; UseOldAnimations:bofalse; begin:nu0; off:bofalse; party:bofalse; texmode:nu1; inverse:botrue; ismounted:bofalse; targetfriend:bofalse; randomcolor:bofalse; finish:nu1
Water Shield string 1:
Version:st3.0.0F; gcd:bofalse; b:nu1; anim1:nu1; g:nu0.85882352941176; optunitn:bofalse; ignoremaj:botrue; Instance25ManHeroic:nu0; stacksLower:nu0; target:bofalse; icon:stInterface\Icons\Ability_Shaman_WaterShield; size:nu0.18999999761581; torsion:nu1; r:nu0.60392156862745; Instance5ManHeroic:nu0; y:nu-75; x:nu57; customname:st; groupany:botrue; isAlive:botrue; timerduration:nu0; unitn:st; bufftype:nu1; stacks:nu1; focus:bofalse; Instance10ManHeroic:nu0; raid:bofalse; texture:nu26; alpha:nu0.60000002384186; aurastext:st; InstanceBg:nu0; symetrie:nu0; owntex:botrue; isResting:bofalse; duration:nu0; mine:botrue; multiids:st; inVehicle:bofalse; speed:nu1; Instance5Man:nu0; anim2:nu0; InactiveDueToState:botrue; stacksOperator:st=; realaura:nu1; sound:nu0; threshold:nu50; exact:bofalse; id:nu9; HideRequest:bofalse; textaura:bofalse; Active:bofalse; buffname:stWater Shield; wowtex:bofalse; groupOrSelf:bofalse; customsound:st; combat:nu0; inRaid:nu0; InstanceArena:nu0; inParty:nu0; tooltipCheck:st; GTFO:nu0; aurastextfont:nu1; stance:nu10; spec2:bofalse; Instance10Man:nu0; customtex:bofalse; PvP:nu0; spec1:botrue; Instance25Man:nu0; isSecondary:bofalse; thresholdinvert:bofalse; Debug:bofalse; beginSpin:bofalse; Showing:bofalse; UseOldAnimations:bofalse; begin:nu0; off:bofalse; party:bofalse; texmode:nu1; inverse:bofalse; ismounted:bofalse; targetfriend:bofalse; randomcolor:bofalse; finish:nu1
Water Shield string 2:
Version:st3.0.0F; gcd:bofalse; b:nu1; anim1:nu4; g:nu0.87843137254902; optunitn:bofalse; ignoremaj:botrue; Instance25ManHeroic:nu0; stacksLower:nu0; target:bofalse; icon:stInterface\Icons\Ability_Shaman_WaterShield; size:nu0.18999999761581; torsion:nu1; r:nu0.33725490196078; Instance5ManHeroic:nu0; y:nu-75; x:nu57; customname:st; groupany:botrue; isAlive:botrue; timerduration:nu0; unitn:st; bufftype:nu1; stacks:nu0; focus:bofalse; Instance10ManHeroic:nu0; raid:bofalse; texture:nu26; alpha:nu1; aurastext:st; InstanceBg:nu0; symetrie:nu0; owntex:botrue; isResting:bofalse; duration:nu0; mine:botrue; multiids:st; CurrentMatch:stWater Shield; inVehicle:bofalse; speed:nu1; Instance5Man:nu0; anim2:nu0; stance:nu10; InactiveDueToState:botrue; stacksOperator:st>=; realaura:nu1; sound:nu0; threshold:nu50; exact:bofalse; id:nu10; HideRequest:bofalse; textaura:bofalse; Active:bofalse; buffname:stWater Shield; wowtex:bofalse; groupOrSelf:bofalse; customsound:st; combat:nu0; inRaid:nu0; InstanceArena:nu0; inParty:nu0; tooltipCheck:st; GTFO:nu0; aurastextfont:nu1; CurrentSlot:nu1; spec2:bofalse; Instance10Man:nu0; customtex:bofalse; PvP:nu0; spec1:botrue; Instance25Man:nu0; isSecondary:bofalse; thresholdinvert:bofalse; Debug:bofalse; beginSpin:bofalse; Showing:bofalse; UseOldAnimations:bofalse; begin:nu0; off:bofalse; party:bofalse; texmode:nu1; inverse:botrue; ismounted:bofalse; targetfriend:bofalse; randomcolor:bofalse; finish:nu1
Riptide:
Version:st3.0.0F; gcd:bofalse; b:nu1; anim1:nu1; g:nu0.69019607843137; optunitn:bofalse; ignoremaj:botrue; Instance25ManHeroic:nu0; stacksLower:nu0; target:bofalse; icon:stInterface\Icons\spell_nature_riptide; size:nu0.18999999761581; torsion:nu1; r:nu0.5843137254902; Instance5ManHeroic:nu0; y:nu-75; x:nu-57; customname:st; groupany:botrue; isAlive:botrue; timerduration:nu0; unitn:st; bufftype:nu15; stacks:nu0; focus:bofalse; Instance10ManHeroic:nu0; raid:bofalse; texture:nu1; alpha:nu1; aurastext:st; InstanceBg:nu0; symetrie:nu0; owntex:botrue; isResting:bofalse; sound:nu0; duration:nu0; mine:bofalse; multiids:st; spec1:botrue; inVehicle:bofalse; speed:nu1; Instance5Man:nu0; anim2:nu0; InactiveDueToState:botrue; stacksOperator:st>=; realaura:nu1; threshold:nu50; exact:bofalse; id:nu11; HideRequest:bofalse; textaura:bofalse; Active:bofalse; buffname:stRiptide; wowtex:bofalse; groupOrSelf:bofalse; customsound:st; combat:botrue; inRaid:nu0; InstanceArena:nu0; inParty:nu0; tooltipCheck:st; GTFO:nu0; aurastextfont:nu1; stance:nu10; spec2:bofalse; Instance10Man:nu0; customtex:bofalse; PvP:nu0; Instance25Man:nu0; isSecondary:bofalse; thresholdinvert:bofalse; Debug:bofalse; beginSpin:bofalse; Showing:bofalse; UseOldAnimations:bofalse; begin:nu3; off:bofalse; party:bofalse; texmode:nu1; inverse:bofalse; ismounted:bofalse; targetfriend:bofalse; randomcolor:bofalse; finish:nu1
Nature’s Swiftness:
Version:st3.0.0F; gcd:bofalse; b:nu0.6; anim1:nu1; g:nu1; optunitn:bofalse; ignoremaj:botrue; Instance25ManHeroic:nu0; stacksLower:nu0; target:bofalse; icon:stInterface\Icons\Spell_Nature_RavenForm; size:nu1.7400000095367; torsion:nu1.5; r:nu0.55294117647059; Instance5ManHeroic:nu0; y:nu-48; x:nu0; customname:st; groupany:botrue; isAlive:botrue; timerduration:nu0; unitn:st; bufftype:nu15; stacks:nu0; focus:bofalse; Instance10ManHeroic:nu0; raid:bofalse; texture:nu66; alpha:nu1; aurastext:st; InstanceBg:nu0; symetrie:nu1; owntex:bofalse; isResting:bofalse; sound:nu0; duration:nu0; mine:bofalse; multiids:st; spec1:botrue; inVehicle:bofalse; speed:nu1; Instance5Man:nu0; anim2:nu0; InactiveDueToState:botrue; stacksOperator:st>=; realaura:nu1; threshold:nu50; exact:bofalse; id:nu12; HideRequest:bofalse; textaura:bofalse; Active:bofalse; buffname:stNature’s Swiftness; wowtex:bofalse; groupOrSelf:bofalse; customsound:st; combat:botrue; inRaid:nu0; InstanceArena:nu0; inParty:nu0; tooltipCheck:st; GTFO:nu0; aurastextfont:nu1; stance:nu10; spec2:bofalse; Instance10Man:nu0; customtex:bofalse; PvP:nu0; Instance25Man:nu0; isSecondary:bofalse; thresholdinvert:bofalse; Debug:bofalse; beginSpin:bofalse; Showing:bofalse; UseOldAnimations:bofalse; begin:nu0; off:bofalse; party:bofalse; texmode:nu1; inverse:bofalse; ismounted:bofalse; targetfriend:bofalse; randomcolor:bofalse; finish:nu1
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Nice auras thanks. I did the LK last night and I found my uptimes were similar to yours except for riptide, which was 70%. I find in the first phase I don’t use it exactly off cooldown as the damage isn’t that great on the tanks. Though with all the movement in the next 2/3 phases I use it all the time. So my uptime is lower.
I was thinking about starting to use Power Auras the other day and with this post, you’ve just made the setup a whole lot easier. Thanks a bunch.
My resto shaman is getting closer to 80 (71 today!) and I’ve been thinking that I should probably pick up Power Auras. I’m curious why you don’t have Tidal Waves show up on your auras. I’ve been under the impression that this is a good thing to have up all the time, and at this point it takes a lot of brain-work to make sure it is up.
These strings are really intimidating. I haven’t tried Power Auras at all yet – tell me it’s not as bad to configure as it looks!
Tidal Waves is definitely important to keep up, but as a 25 man raid healer, it’s almost impossible not to get good uptime on most fights. The ability is activated by Chain Heal or Riptide, which you are going to be casting all the time. So, I thought about tracking the buff, but I didn’t really see the need to clutter up the UI any more than it already is.
The strings are really easy to copy and paste into Power Auras, and setting up your own is really not too hard either!
Also make an aura for Earthliving weapon and one for low mana.
Howdy,
I’m leveling my Resto/Ele shaman primarily through LFD, and this post inspired me to start using PowerAuras, which I find invaluable. However, I can’t get the Earth Shield ones to work, it simply gives the error that I’m not in a raid, and after fiddling with the options I’ve no idea which to check/uncheck to make these auras appear in 5man normals or even heroics. Any ideas?
Thanks
There are two windows that you use in Power Auras. The first on that comes up when you type /powa will show all the different auras that you have created or important. Click on the one you want to edit and bring up the edit window from the options below.
On that window, the bottom half contains a bunch of checkboxes, and some of them are things like raid, party, etc. If you want the ES aura to always be active, just fiddle with those boxes and you should be able to make it show up in a 5 man or even while solo (although I’d find the solo use pretty distracting).
So I really like the way your aura’s appear on the screen and have found it confusing to set up my power auras.
to copy and paste your config: how would I go about doin that with the copy and paste method?
sorry for the noob question just never used the add on before.
Hello Nevah.
In the main window of Power Auras, there is an “Import” button, that opens a little window. You just have to copy the text on this page and paste it on that window (good old Ctrl+V since right-clicking doesn’t work).
Thanks for these codes by the way, I had to meddle with all this stuff to match my French version, but it’s been a great help !
Nice setup.
I also use an aura to detect spell casting when I have wind shear available.
Heya,
Just wondering if anyone can help. I can’t get Flow’s Earth Shield power aura working. I use the exact same string, but the ES warnings etc never shop up.
Any suggestions, does anything else need to change. The Water Shield and Riptide ones work well, just not the Earth Shield one, which I would like the most.
Settings are exactly as in the string, I have tried some fiddling but no difference..
Cheers
Good stuff, I wonder do you have a modification for cataclysm. It doesn’t seem to be working for me.
The Nature’s Swiftness does not seem to work for me. I’ve deleted and re-imported it with no changes, reloaded over and over -and the icon never shows up when Nature’s swiftness is available. Do I not understand when this should be popping up?
[...] Flow has a few words about Power Auras for resto shaman. [...]
[...] Flow has a few words about Power Auras for resto shaman. [...]
[...] Flow has a few words about Power Auras for resto shaman. [...]
[...] Flow has a few words about Power Auras for resto shaman. [...]
[...] Flow has a few words about Power Auras for resto shaman. [...]
[...] Flow has a few words about Power Auras for resto shaman. [...]
[...] Shield is not up, you are absolutely killing your regen, so make sure you can easily track this. Power Auras or another buff mod is key to making sure you always have your shields [...]