Requesting Key Binding Advice

[Kacho_Nacho]

Hello!

As I go thru more content, I'm realizing that my keybinds are awkward. 1 thru =, Shift and Alt is causing me to be slow and clumsy.

So, I'd like advice how I should have my keybinds set up. My main class is White Mage.

((As an aside, I've Googled several keybinding guides too. I'm just looking for practical advice from people who actually heal in FFXIV, in addition to the theoretical knowledge.))

[Semirhage]

I have an MMO mouse with side buttons that give me access to 7890=, etc. I don't usually need them, but they're nice to have. Otherwise, I want to keep everything within reasonable distance of WASD. 5 is the limit for my number keys. 5 and shift-5 are for buttons I barely ever use. My muscle memory just saved the number keys for GCDs and everything else for oGCDs. Not the way a lot of people do it, but it works for me.

My core abilities are largely on 1-4 and shift 1-4, with some lesser-used ones on ctrl 1-4 (since it's a more awkward button combo). oGCDs are on Q, E, Z, X, R, V, and occasionally Y (with shift keys doubling those binds). Binding healers from there is easy. All of their GCD kits are effectively identical, so you just set up the Nuke key, the DoT key, the AoE spam key, the Crap Cure 1 Equivalent key, the Cure 2/Adlo key, etc. Since all of the healers have ~roughly~ identical oGCD kits, settling them into those keybinds with minor differences becomes pretty routine. There's the Bubble (Asylum/Sacred/Collective/Kera), the TetraSsentiaLustratDruochole button, the WhisPhysisOpppsitionRapture key. With a small amount of mixing and matching you can set up your bars for easy swapping between healers.

Otherwise I do the lazy naughty thing you get crucified for in all-things-must-be-keybound circles- I don't have easy keybinds for buttons that don't need them outside of very deliberate casting. Summon Selene? Dance Partner? Sect choosing on old AST? Repose? It's mostly spells you use once and you're done unless you're doing some crazy optimization stuff, or abilities that don't require split-second use. It doesn't need to be on a quick-access key. It's off in the clickable can't-be-bothered-to-remember-the-key-combo dead zone of my hotbars.

[Sebazy]

I'm guessing you use WASD to move? If so try to make use of Q E R F etc as well. Basically putting rapid fire things on hotkeys around your movement cluster. MOBA style binds effectively. As Semi mentions, getting binds onto additional mouse buttons is also a good time.

One other big point is how you target people. I actually primarily still use 1 through = with Control and Alt modifiers, with 2 extra mouse hotkeys for specifics such as ground targeted stuff like Asylum/Lily/Soil/Star. However where I make up time over many is through being very rapid at targeting party members with F1 through F8. If you click to select, that's an area where you may likely have even more room for improvement, either through practicing mouse movements with something like Osu or trying to adapt to using F keys to target party members instead.

[fulminating]

I don’t know if it’ll be any use, especially as it’s my scholar binds but mine look like this with the useful buttons (bio and broil) being the most easy to absentmindedly tap away at when there’s nothing else to do. Ctrl modifiers for the top and shift for the bottom rows, middle being regular buttons.

[Rongway]

You definitely should not use all twelve keys from [1] to [=] if you don't have both hands on the keyboard. This is because of Fitts's Law, which states that the difficulty of pressing a button increases the farther you have to move to press the button. If you only have one hand on the keyboard, you have to move your hand an obscene distance to be able to reach the other end of the number row which will make accurately pressing those buttons difficult, and then you have to move an obscene distance back to your resting position which will then make pressing should-be-easy buttons difficult while you reposition.

If you play with left hand on keyboard and right hand on mouse, you should limit your controls to this green section of the keyboard, though you might need to extend into the yellow section on some jobs:

This minimizes left hand movement, which will increase input speed and accuracy.

Also if you're using a mouse that has web navigation buttons (navforward, navback) those and middleclick also count as bindable buttons, so you have some mouse buttons available even if you don't have a fifty button gaming mouse.

Also also remember that modifier keys can be combined for additional chords. If you have neutral keys, alt keys, and shift keys, you can also have altshift keys. You will probably find an altshift chord awkward for keyboard buttons if you're only playing with one hand on the keyboard (e.g., thumb on alt, pinky on shift, middle finger on 3) but remember you can also chord with the mouse (e.g., left thumb alt, left pinky shift, right hand navforward click) and these keyboard+mouse chords may feel more natural. With navforward, navback, middleclick, alt, and shift, you have twelve more keybinds for actions (navforward, alt+navforward, shift+navforward, altshift+navforward, navback, alt+navback, etc).

Personally I like to put most heals on those twelve mouse chords because I mouseover my heals anyway, so basically I'm just using different kinds of clicks on party members in the list if I need to heal them. I save the keyboard keys for other things like attacks and self buffs that don't need a mouseover target.



Here the buttons to the left are neutral 1-6 and alt1-alt5 (avoid chording with 6; it's an awkard stretch unless you have XXXXL hands). The Rapture and Solace buttons in the altshift row are not for pressing; they're just a visual indicator so I can see if those actions are available. The 4x3 cluster to the right is mouse healing, with <mo> macros for single target actions and gtoff macros for ground placement (/ac Asylum gtoff places the bubble where your mouse is on the first click without waiting for a second click and without centering it on your target; this is useful when you want to place it under a very large boss but not center it on the boss because people are more to one side). The Sprint and Surecast buttons I can't really help you with; those are bound to my mouse thumb buttons, which you may or may not have. You should put those somewhere easy to reach in a panic since they're time critical buttons.

[AmiableApkallu]

As I go thru more content, I'm realizing that my keybinds are awkward. 1 thru =, Shift and Alt is causing me to be slow and clumsy.

So, I'd like advice how I should have my keybinds set up. My main class is White Mage.

That's exactly how I have my keybinds set up:



They work for me because I keep my hands on the keyboard ~95% of the time. I play on a laptop, so my thumbs are already near the trackpad, and I use the trackpad only for ground targetting.

[Kacho_Nacho]

Thank you all! Your posts have given me some insight into effective keybinding.

[Kacho_Nacho]

Thank you all! Your posts have given me some insight into effective keybinding.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Okay. I'm not feeling my best but I feel people deserve more feedback than what I initially posted.

I'm guessing you use WASD to move? If so try to make use of Q E R F etc as well. Basically putting rapid fire things on hotkeys around your movement cluster. MOBA style binds effectively. As Semi mentions, getting binds onto additional mouse buttons is also a good time.

One other big point is how you target people. I actually primarily still use 1 through = with Control and Alt modifiers, with 2 extra mouse hotkeys for specifics such as ground targeted stuff like Asylum/Lily/Soil/Star. However where I make up time over many is through being very rapid at targeting party members with F1 through F8. If you click to select, that's an area where you may likely have even more room for improvement, either through practicing mouse movements with something like Osu or trying to adapt to using F keys to target party members instead.

Actually, I don't use keys to move unless it's for gpose and screenshots. In WoW, it was a big no-no to use the keyboard for movement. You used the mouse to move. I've done so ever since even though I've been playing FFXIV for *mumble* years.

Like you, I enjoy using my function keys to target my party for heals. I also use macros for my ground targeted spells to be centered on a target instead. They're so handy. No ground cursors for this lalafell!

Also if you're using a mouse that has web navigation buttons (navforward, navback) those and middleclick also count as bindable buttons, so you have some mouse buttons available even if you don't have a fifty button gaming mouse.

Also also remember that modifier keys can be combined for additional chords. If you have neutral keys, alt keys, and shift keys, you can also have altshift keys. You will probably find an altshift chord awkward for keyboard buttons if you're only playing with one hand on the keyboard (e.g., thumb on alt, pinky on shift, middle finger on 3) but remember you can also chord with the mouse (e.g., left thumb alt, left pinky shift, right hand navforward click) and these keyboard+mouse chords may feel more natural. With navforward, navback, middleclick, alt, and shift, you have twelve more keybinds for actions (navforward, alt+navforward, shift+navforward, altshift+navforward, navback, alt+navback, etc).

Personally I like to put most heals on those twelve mouse chords because I mouseover my heals anyway, so basically I'm just using different kinds of clicks on party members in the list if I need to heal them. I save the keyboard keys for other things like attacks and self buffs that don't need a mouseover target.



Here the buttons to the left are neutral 1-6 and alt1-alt5 (avoid chording with 6; it's an awkward stretch unless you have XXXXL hands). The Rapture and Solace buttons in the altshift row are not for pressing; they're just a visual indicator so I can see if those actions are available. The 4x3 cluster to the right is mouse healing, with <mo> macros for single target actions and gtoff macros for ground placement (/ac Asylum gtoff places the bubble where your mouse is on the first click without waiting for a second click and without centering it on your target; this is useful when you want to place it under a very large boss but not center it on the boss because people are more to one side). The Sprint and Surecast buttons I can't really help you with; those are bound to my mouse thumb buttons, which you may or may not have. You should put those somewhere easy to reach in a panic since they're time critical buttons.

This is what I'm trying to decide. What keys would be quickest and most convenient for me to click and which keys should I avoid. I guess it depends on where I want my left hand to rest. The gtoff macros are interesting!

[Rongway]

Actually, I don't use keys to move unless it's for gpose and screenshots. In WoW, it was a big no-no to use the keyboard for movement. You used the mouse to move. I've done so ever since even though I've been playing FFXIV for *mumble* years.

That's not a real rule, and may even be a horrible rule depending on a person's controls. For example, if someone uses mouseover targeting or click targeting, mouse movement is a bad idea. Remember Fitts's Law. If you're moving around with the mouse, and then you have to mouseover target someone, you're not going to have an easy time acquiring all your targets and also moving because your mouse will be back and forth traveling greater distances than it would if you were just keyboard moving. It's also possible to do combat in this game without a mouse at all. It's incredibly unusual to need the level of precision camera control that a mouse gives you, and the keyboard works fine. To date I can name one fight where I've needed the mouse to aim my character precisely (E12S's Shiva phase, for a precision ice floor slide). Every other fight keyboard movement and camera controls are good enough.

[Kacho_Nacho]

That's not a real rule, and may even be a horrible rule depending on a person's controls. For example, if someone uses mouseover targeting or click targeting, mouse movement is a bad idea. Remember Fitts's Law. If you're moving around with the mouse, and then you have to mouseover target someone, you're not going to have an easy time acquiring all your targets and also moving because your mouse will be back and forth traveling greater distances than it would if you were just keyboard moving. It's also possible to do combat in this game without a mouse at all. It's incredibly unusual to need the level of precision camera control that a mouse gives you, and the keyboard works fine. To date I can name one fight where I've needed the mouse to aim my character precisely (E12S's Shiva phase, for a precision ice floor slide). Every other fight keyboard movement and camera controls are good enough.

*emphasis mine*

Ah, I see you may not have played WoW to know why keyboard turning was a Bad Thing.™ WoW features quite a bit of PvP and for technical reasons using keys to turn was much slower than turning by mouse. And when I say much slower, I really mean it. Someone using a mouse could stay behind an opponent with no effort and enjoy a free kill. Since I played WoW for around ten years, it's become an ingrained habit. It'd take too much effort to change my ways, especially since there is negligible benefit for making the switch.

As for mouseover targeting, I never do it. Like Sebazy, I use my function keys to target party members. It works really well when your abilities are on the top number keys.

That's not to say that your way is wrong or my way is better. It's just different ways of doing things. As someone one once said, there are a hundred ways to make a lei and every way is the right way.

BTW, I love your HUD layout! I'm going to check it out and see if it works for my style or against it.

Have a great day!