Proposed addition to the <st> commands
<stnpc> is nice for choosing an npc as a target and <stpc> is nice for choosing a player character as a target, but what about the npcs that we can perform a beneficial action on? And what about the PCs that we can perform a harmful or non-beneficial action on?
Some cases and examples:
Case 1) A party member of mine is charmed. I would like to sleep that character to prevent damage to the rest of the party, but my sleep macro is on <stnpc>.
The current solutions are as follows:
a) Do not lock on to a target and use the main cursor to select the player and use a <t> macro instead. This is a problem for some players who like to lock on to a target.
b) Use an AoE sleep on a nearby enemy. This is not reliable because the charmed player is likely a moving target and will probably exit the range of the spell before it goes off.
c) Utilize the in-game menu to select a sleep spell and target the player that way. This is cumbersome and will likely get players killed.
d) Use a <st> command instead, allowing anything that can be targeted as a target. This is cumbersome if in a big group of players or enemies as it becomes increasingly difficult to target the charmed player, especially if they and everyone else is moving.
My solution:
Add a <st> command to target enemy characters. This includes all monsters that can be attacked by the player. Note that this does not include peaceful NPCs. The command could potentially be named <stec>: short for Select Target Enemy Character.
Case 2) I have my Adventuring Fellow out. She's hurt pretty badly, and I'd like to heal her. But my cure macros use <stpc> to select player characters.
Current solutions:
a) Stop fighting, target her with my main cursor and use a <t> macro. This is obviously slow and overwhelming. Especially for a Paladin who is trying to regain hate before his fellow dies.
b) Use a <st> command instead. This is also a solution for dealing damage to undead. However, it does allow me to select any character as a target making the selection cumbersome if in a big group of enemies and players. It is increasingly difficult if the targets are moving.
c) Have a separate macro with <stnpc>. Similar to <st>, it will allow the selection of many npcs that are not the target of the desired spell or job ability. Also, it wastes a macro slot.
My Solution:
Add a <st> command to target friendly characters. This includes all npcs that are assisting the player or are performing beneficial actions towards the world (Campaign, etc) as well as all player characters. The command could potentially be named <stfc>: short for Select Target Friendly Character. This solution has options that the developers would have to discuss. Such as whether to include non-party members and non-alliance members as well as peaceful npcs that are not able to battle.
Something more complicated, however more useful could be a <st> command that uses the spell or action's normal selection range. For instance: Spells that are single-target or party-target only would only allow the player to select single or party targets.
I hope that the developers find this a useful tip. I've enjoyed the game for the many years that I've played, and I only wish for it to continue getting better.