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name: s-research description: > Research WoW addon development topics using CLI tools, Blizzard UI source, and documentation. Covers API discovery, pattern research, and Ace3 usage. Use when investigating unfamiliar APIs, finding Blizzard patterns, or learning. Triggers: research, find, search, API, Blizzard UI, documentation, Ace3.

Researching WoW APIs

Expert guidance for discovering and understanding World of Warcraft APIs and patterns.

Related Commands

• c-research - API research workflow

CLI Commands (Use These First)

MANDATORY: Always use CLI commands before manual exploration.

Capabilities

1. API Discovery — Search 5000+ WoW APIs offline using static definitions
2. Blizzard UI Research — Find patterns in Blizzard's own Lua source code
3. Ace3 Patterns — Guidance on using common addon libraries (AceDB, AceEvent, etc.)
4. Icon/Atlas Search — Find UI assets and textures by name

Routing Logic

Quick Reference

Search WoW APIs

Copymech call api.search -i '{"query": "GetItem*", "namespace": "C_Item"}'

Get Detailed API Info

Copymech call api.info -i '{"api_name": "C_Spell.GetSpellInfo"}'

Search Icons

Copymech call atlas.search -i '{"query": "sword", "limit": 10}'

Best Practices

• Search First: Use api.search before guessing API names.
• Audit Blizzard: Use ripgrep on local wow-ui-source to see how Blizzard uses an API.
• Namespace Awareness: Most modern APIs are in C_ namespaces (e.g., C_Timer, C_Spell).