RCLootCouncil - Merit

Version 6.0 Major Update

(see below for addon introduction and information)

This is a massive feature update focusing on raid performance, chat clarity, and significantly improved UI ergonomics for standard raiders.

🌟 New Features

The Lite Loot Monitor (Raider UI)

Added a completely new, compact, and discrete viewing interface that replaces the massive default RCLootCouncil window available for those in observe only mode.

Displays a clean list of who rolled, their Merit Score (in green), alternative assignments like Offspec/Transmog (in yellow), and Magic Roll PUGs (in pink).

Features dynamic tooltips: Hover over any score to see the exact breakdown of their Merit calculation (Audit, Attendance, iLvl Boost, and Loot Penalties).

Window position is automatically saved and persists across sessions.

Note: This feature is automatically disabled for Master Looters and Council Members, who require the full native UI to vote and manage loot.

Merit Chat Suppression (Clean Rolls)

Added a new toggle in the Options menu for Officers: Suppress Standard /Rolls.

When enabled, the addon completely intercepts and hides the massive wall of yellow 1-100 raid rolls during a loot session.

The Master Looter's addon will silently calculate the math in the background and print beautiful, clean Cyan Merit Scores locally to your chat window.

Award announcements have been completely rewritten to output a single, unified string detailing the winner, the item, their final score, and their math breakdown.

Raid-wide Version Check

Officers can now instantly verify addon compliance across the entire raid team.

Clicking "Run Version Check" in the Options menu (or typing /merit version) will ping the raid and print a local report.

The report explicitly flags players who do not have the addon installed, or who are running an outdated version, preventing sync mismatches before the raid begins.

⚙️ Under the Hood & Bug Fixes

CPU Memoization Cache: Completely rewrote the core math engine to cache attendance and loot history calculations. This eliminates the exponential processor lag that could previously occur when calculating complex raid-wide averages, ensuring smooth 60+ FPS during loot distribution.

Strict Need/BiS History Filtering: The loot history scanner has been hardened. Winning items for "Offspec", "Transmog", or "Free" will securely bypass the Merit algorithm and will not apply a loot penalty to a player's future Main-Spec rolls.

Stack Overflow Protection: Fixed a recursive loop in the AceConfig locking script that could cause memory leaks or client crashes on login.

Wowaudit Import Clarity: Added explicit instructions to the Landing Page and Options menu reminding officers to select the prior raid week in Wowaudit before exporting their formula.

1. Introduction
   

   Target API: WoW Patch 12.0+ (Midnight)

RCLootCouncil - Merit is a comprehensive, officer-gated plugin module designed to eliminate human bias, loot drama, and "Loot Council fatigue" by introducing a transparent, math-based scoring engine. By integrating external performance metrics directly into the standard RCLootCouncil voting frame, it fully automates loot distribution priorities by adding modifiers to the base 1-100 roll—"The Merit Roll."

Unlike standard Loot Council systems, this addon contains a fully self-sufficient roster, alt-routing, and attendance engine. It specifically solves the friction of mixed-group raiding by introducing the "Magic Number System"—a specialized subroutine that guarantees fair, mathematically sound odds for Pick-Up Group members (PUGs) without requiring them to install the addon or be tracked in the guild database.

⚠️ Requirement Note: This addon requires an active Wowaudit Spreadsheet to generate the initial Audit Scores for the guild roster.

2. Key Definitions

Merit Score: The weighted numerical roll modifier representing a player's priority for a piece of loot. The highest Merit Roll wins the item.

Audit Score: A base performance metric (preparation, gearing, etc.) imported directly from the guild's Wowaudit spreadsheet.

Hot-Sync: A silent data broadcast that updates addon parameters (like Alt Penalties or Attendance Cutoffs) for the entire raid group in real-time without triggering intrusive UI popups.

PUG (Pick-Up Group): Any player not currently mapped within the addon's internal Merit roster database, or in the guild.

Magic Number:  Represented by the range from 1-N where N = the amount of needs on a single item. This number is utilized to simulate raw odds for PUGs to have a fair shot at winning bypassing the Merit System.

3. The Core Algorithm: "The Merit Score"

The defining feature of this plugin is the Weighted Roll Formula. Instead of subjective officer votes, every candidate generates a transparent Merit Score that mathematically balances historical player performance against recent loot acquisition. *The higher merit score DOES NOT guaranteed a win, —you still must outroll your competition—watch out for the loot penalty* 

The Formula:

Final Score = [ ((Audit + 40) * 0.4 * UpgradeBoost * Attendance%) / LootDivisor * BaseRoll ] * AltPenalty

Audit Score: The player's imported Wowaudit score.

Upgrade Boost: The relative power gain of the item based on item level difference (+0% to +12% multiplier).

Attendance%: Internal raid attendance percentage (0.0 - 1.0).

Base Roll: A standard 1-100 random roll executed within RCLootCouncil to preserve the excitement of chance.

Alt Penalty: A globally controlled, dynamic percentage reduction applied to characters flagged as Alts.

The Loot Divisor (The "Allowance" Mechanism): We utilize a Factorial Decay on recent loot history (14-day rolling window) with a "Greed Allowance" modifier (0.6 deadener) for subsequent wins.

Result: Players can win one item without penalty. The aggressive decay ensures gear is distributed evenly among the core roster over time. As more players catch up the effective penalty deminishes.

4. The PUG Protocol: "The Magic Number"

To support PUGs without forcing them to download the addon or injecting them into the guild database, the addon utilizes an automated, chat-based server-side gambit hosted by the Master Looter.

Phase 1: The Auto-Greeter: When a non-guild player joins the raid, the plugin automatically whispers the Rules of Engagement, explaining the Magic Number system.

Phase 2: The Magic Roll Logic: When an item drops and one or more PUGs select "Need" or "BiS", the addon identifies N total Need/BiS responses across the entire raid.

Phase 3: The Selection & Execution: The addon announces a 45-second window in Raid Chat. PUGs must type a number between 1 and N. The addon selects one PUG to be the "Designated Roller," who types /roll N in raid chat.

Result A (Win): If the roll result matches a number picked by a PUG, that PUG wins the item immediately.

Result B (Merit Default): If the roll lands on an unclaimed number, the item bypasses the guests and falls to the standard Merit Score calculation for the guild members.

5. Database Management & Synchronization

This addon relies on strict 12.0 API fidelity and modern UI privilege gating.

Officer Privilege Gating: Using the Midnight 12.0 API, the addon automatically detects Guild Officers and Raid Leaders. Only these players can access import, alt-linking, and slider controls.

Wowaudit Import Frame: Officers extract a custom Lua table from their Wowaudit spreadsheet and paste it directly into the in-game UI.

Robust Sync Protocols: Standard roster syncs require users to click "Accept" to prevent accidental overwrites, while officer-adjusted sliders utilize "Hot-Sync" payloads to update raid clients instantly and silently.

6. Alt Character Routing & Penalties

To allow players to swap characters for the benefit of the raid composition without destroying their Merit standing, the addon features a robust Alt Engine.

Identity Routing: Officers link Alts to Mains in the UI. When an Alt rolls on an item, the addon dynamically routes the math to use the Main's Audit Score.

Combined Histories: Attendance and 14-day Loot Histories are universally combined across all linked characters.

Global Alt Penalty Slider: Officers have access to a dynamically color-coded slider (0% to 100%) to apply a global reduction to the final Merit score of all Alts.

7. Internal Attendance Engine & Thresholds

RCLootCouncil - Merit completely detaches from external attendance tracking APIs, opting for a highly customizable internal engine tracking "Boss Pulls."

The "First Seen" Mechanic: New recruits are not penalized for raids that occurred before they joined.

Global Cutoff Dates: Officers can select a specific date to act as a "hard reset" (e.g., the launch of a new raid tier). All attendance prior to the cutoff is mathematically ignored.

Blackout Dates: Instantly toggle specific calendar days as "Blackouts" to remove them from the math, allowing for optional holiday raids.

Guild Run Threshold: A safety-capped slider (50% to 80%) determines if a raid qualifies as a guild run. If the percentage of guild members falls below the threshold, automated attendance tracking is disabled.