I've been following this in all MMO games I've played since I first set it up in WoW, as a non-healer setup. I'm still mucking around with a similar version for healers.
Cardinal rule: A and D are changed to strafe instead of turn.
1-5: common offensive abilities
Shift+1 - Shift-5: some more common offensive abilities. For some reason Shift+3 ended up as Kick and now it's always my interrupt.
6-9: rare offensive abilites
-, =: potion cooldowns. Yes, I click these. It's the only hotkeys I actually click on.
`: Dispels or Feint like abilities
Alt 1 - Alt 3: offensive cooldowns
Q, E, R: rarer (stealth, cooldown, AoE, or common buttons when a cycle changes - IE Mutilate spams Backstab below a certain health) offensive abilities
Alt Q: mount
Z, X: CCs or AoEs, depending on how it fits the character and other abilities
Shift + Q/E/R: defensive cooldowns
There's some other random ones like Alt+E that aren't really defined, but I've used depending on the class. Some of those could be moved around, but it was kind of built up as I went when I restarted WoW late TBC and now I'm used to them. The main idea is to use as many keys around my left hand as possible, and help that with Shift and Alt modifiers.
Sadly, most games save Ctrl 1-# modifiers as pet abilities, and honestly Ctrl+# makes my hand hurt in excess anyway, so I avoid Ctrl.
Cardinal rule: A and D are changed to strafe instead of turn.
1-5: common offensive abilities
Shift+1 - Shift-5: some more common offensive abilities. For some reason Shift+3 ended up as Kick and now it's always my interrupt.
6-9: rare offensive abilites
-, =: potion cooldowns. Yes, I click these. It's the only hotkeys I actually click on.
`: Dispels or Feint like abilities
Alt 1 - Alt 3: offensive cooldowns
Q, E, R: rarer (stealth, cooldown, AoE, or common buttons when a cycle changes - IE Mutilate spams Backstab below a certain health) offensive abilities
Alt Q: mount
Z, X: CCs or AoEs, depending on how it fits the character and other abilities
Shift + Q/E/R: defensive cooldowns
There's some other random ones like Alt+E that aren't really defined, but I've used depending on the class. Some of those could be moved around, but it was kind of built up as I went when I restarted WoW late TBC and now I'm used to them. The main idea is to use as many keys around my left hand as possible, and help that with Shift and Alt modifiers.
Sadly, most games save Ctrl 1-# modifiers as pet abilities, and honestly Ctrl+# makes my hand hurt in excess anyway, so I avoid Ctrl.
Trade yourself in for the perfect one. No one needs to know that you feel you've been ruined!