Most real AddOns, even the simple ones, however can be difficult to read for getting started, with many moving parts.

Curse Forge or WoW Interface - Find a real but simple example of an existing AddOn.

World of Warcraft API - These are the functions and ways to talk to WoW with Lua.

WoW AddOn - These pages explain the basic structure of a WoW AddOn.

Lua - This is the programming language used by WoW for UI AddOns.

Do I know how to talk to WoW in my AddOn to do everything I want to do?.

Will I need to print messages to the chat box?.

Will I need to interact with Blizzard's windows or frames?.

Will I need to make windows (called 'frames' in WoW)?.

What information will I need from WoW for my AddOn to work?.

Writting software in general is often a never ending process because you can always think of something new to add or improve.Įxamples of good questions to ask yourself: After that works the way it should, and you have learned everything necessary to make an AddOn work at all, you can move on to adding one piece at a time toward your goals. It's often a good idea to just make an AddOn that only opens a window or prints a message to get started, especially when everything is new for you.

Pick a simple goal or idea for your AddOn. If you are mostly interested in what files and structure comprise a WoW AddOn, you can skip to WoW AddOn, and come back here or move on from there. Creating your own AddOns can be a difficult process at first, but can be very satisfying and is a great way to learn programming in general. The following is a guide for getting started with building WoW AddOns.

Wow where to addons