Addon API Question: Destination GUIDs and UnitDebuff Tracking
Posted: Wed Aug 19, 2026 12:30 am
Hey! I’m building and testing a personal nameplate addon for Octo called YogiPlates with help from ChatGPT/Codex, which is helping me write and debug the Lua based on my in-game testing. I’m very new to addon development, so apologies if my terminology isn’t completely correct.
We can reliably track targeted abilities that deal immediate damage, but aura-only abilities such as Insect Swarm, Faerie Fire, Rip, and Demoralizing Roar are sometimes delayed or missed. This becomes noticeably less reliable when fighting multiple identical mobs.
The apparent problem is that Vanilla-style aura and combat events sometimes seem to provide only the destination’s name. We can assign each visible nameplate its own internal identity, but without a destination GUID or unit token, we can’t always determine which physical nameplate owns an aura. Interestingly, the normal target frame can display some auras that our UnitDebuff scan fails to identify correctly.
Does Octo expose a supported Lua API for any of the following:
Destination GUIDs in spell or aura event arguments
A GUID or unit token associated with native nameplate frames
Octo’s exact UnitDebuff() return format
A reliable success event for instant-cast abilities
The expected timing of PLAYER_COMBO_POINTS
Any custom Octo or SuperWoW API intended for per-unit aura tracking
Thank you!
We can reliably track targeted abilities that deal immediate damage, but aura-only abilities such as Insect Swarm, Faerie Fire, Rip, and Demoralizing Roar are sometimes delayed or missed. This becomes noticeably less reliable when fighting multiple identical mobs.
The apparent problem is that Vanilla-style aura and combat events sometimes seem to provide only the destination’s name. We can assign each visible nameplate its own internal identity, but without a destination GUID or unit token, we can’t always determine which physical nameplate owns an aura. Interestingly, the normal target frame can display some auras that our UnitDebuff scan fails to identify correctly.
Does Octo expose a supported Lua API for any of the following:
Destination GUIDs in spell or aura event arguments
A GUID or unit token associated with native nameplate frames
Octo’s exact UnitDebuff() return format
A reliable success event for instant-cast abilities
The expected timing of PLAYER_COMBO_POINTS
Any custom Octo or SuperWoW API intended for per-unit aura tracking
Thank you!