Casting Order Algorithm
 

I've been spending a lot of time with algorithms and sorting on relative goodness-of-fit for non-EQ2 related stuff. Returning to the game and having to reset all my hotbars got me thinking about casting order.

If you were to write a program that would analyze abilities and sort them for a casting order, what criteria would you use?

Lots of factors can be considered:

• each abilities (min, max or average) potential damage
• each abilities potential DPS
• each abilities damage / time to cast (cost) ratio
• weight for casting time (longer recast earlier)
• for DoTs when is it worth writing over them vs. letting them tick
• what about debuffs
• what about procs
• what about short term buffs
• number of targets
• human efficiency (how fast can you click those buttons?)
• - This last one opens up other questions of hotbutton layout and Fitt's Law issues... but I digress.

This is really just a thought exercise, the dynamics of eq2 combat make a magic-bullet, one-size-fits-all casting order unfeasible at best. I'm really looking for ideas to help me look at problems in different ways.

Thanks in advance!

Someone on the SK forums at eq2flames did this for SK abilities:
https://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?...5RFZ3REE&hl=en

I never really messed around with it to plug in my own data, but always thought it'd be interesting to makeup a spread sheet with my skills and stats to figure out what would be best in single target, and multi-target situations.