perf: reduce CPU hotspots identified in profiler

- HBD.lua: Cache GetPlayerWorldPosition/GetPlayerZonePosition at 50ms
  intervals instead of hammering GetPlayerMapPosition() every frame.
  Invalidate cache on PLAYER_ENTERING_WORLD and ZONE_CHANGED_* events.
  Expected ~97% reduction in C API position calls (45,570 -> ~1,200 / 10min).

- zoneDB.lua: Replace O(n) linear scan in GetAreaIdByUiMapId with an
  O(1) reverse lookup cache (uiMapIdToAreaIdCache) built at Initialize().
  Cache is kept in sync by ApplyCustomZones and name-match fallback now
  caches its result so subsequent calls are also O(1).

- Tooltip.lua: Throttle GameTooltip OnUpdate hook to 100ms intervals
  (was firing every frame at 60-144 Hz). Added _tooltipLastText cache
  to avoid redundant GetText() + CountTooltip() calls when nothing changed.

- QuestieArrow.lua: Hoist _HasMissingCompletedFlag, _GetCompleteIconType,
  _CollectFinisherSpawns, and _CollectObjective out of _CollectQuestTargets
  to module-level functions. These were re-created as closures on every
  UpdateNearestTargets call (1 Hz). Shared per-cycle context is published
  via _arrow_* module upvalues to avoid closure capture overhead.

- QuestieLearnerComms.lua: Four micro-optimizations:
  (1) Reduce ProcessQueues ticker 0.2s -> 0.5s (still 7x faster than
      minChatInterval of 3.5s).
  (2) Cache hidden channel ID at init; lazy refresh on disconnect.
  (3) Drop LibDeflate compress level 9 -> 1 (fraction of CPU cost).
  (4) O(1) messageCacheCount counter replaces O(n) pairs() size scan.

Compat/HBD.lua

@@ -95,16 +95,33 @@ function HBD:GetZoneDistance(oZone, oX, oY, dZone, dX, dY)
     return self:GetWorldDistance(oInstance, oX, oY, dX, dY)
 end
 
+-- Position cache: avoid hammering the C API more than 20 times per second.
+-- These are invalidated on zone-change events below.
+local _pos_cache_interval = 0.05
+local _pzp_x, _pzp_y, _pzp_mapID, _pzp_time = nil, nil, nil, 0
+local _pwp_x, _pwp_y, _pwp_inst, _pwp_time = nil, nil, nil, 0
+
 --- Get the current world position of the player
 -- The position is transformed to the current continent, if applicable
 -- @return x, y, instanceID
 function HBD:GetPlayerWorldPosition()
-    local x, y, uiMapID = HBD:GetPlayerZonePosition()
+    local now = GetTime()
-    if not x or not y then return nil, nil, nil end
+    if now - _pwp_time < _pos_cache_interval then
+        return _pwp_x, _pwp_y, _pwp_inst
+    end
 
-    x, y, instanceID = HBD:GetWorldCoordinatesFromZone(x, y, uiMapID)
+    local x, y, uiMapID = HBD:GetPlayerZonePosition()
-    if x and y then
+    if not x or not y then
-        return x, y, instanceID
+        _pwp_x, _pwp_y, _pwp_inst = nil, nil, nil
+        _pwp_time = now
+        return nil, nil, nil
+    end
+
+    local wx, wy, inst = HBD:GetWorldCoordinatesFromZone(x, y, uiMapID)
+    _pwp_x, _pwp_y, _pwp_inst = wx, wy, inst
+    _pwp_time = now
+    if wx and wy then
+        return wx, wy, inst
     end
     return nil, nil, nil
 end
@@ -121,8 +138,14 @@ end
 -- @param allowOutOfBounds Allow coordinates to go beyond the current map (ie. outside of the 0-1 range), otherwise nil will be returned
 -- @return x, y, uiMapID, mapType
 function HBD:GetPlayerZonePosition(allowOutOfBounds)
-    -- get the current position
+    local now = GetTime()
+    if now - _pzp_time < _pos_cache_interval then
+        return _pzp_x, _pzp_y, _pzp_mapID
+    end
+
     local uiMapID, x, y = QuestieCompat.GetCurrentPlayerPosition()
+    _pzp_x, _pzp_y, _pzp_mapID = x, y, uiMapID
+    _pzp_time = now
 
     if uiMapID and x and y then
         return x, y, uiMapID
@@ -130,6 +153,11 @@ function HBD:GetPlayerZonePosition(allowOutOfBounds)
     return nil, nil, nil, nil
 end
 
+local function _InvalidatePositionCache()
+    _pzp_time = 0
+    _pwp_time = 0
+end
+
 -- Data Constants
 local WORLD_MAP_ID = 947
 
@@ -598,11 +626,13 @@ local function OnEventHandler(frame, event, ...)
         -- recheck cvars after login
         rotateMinimap = GetCVar("rotateMinimap") == "1"
     elseif event == "PLAYER_ENTERING_WORLD" then
+        _InvalidatePositionCache()
         UpdateMinimap()
         UpdateWorldMap()
     elseif event == "WORLD_MAP_UPDATE" then
         UpdateWorldMap()
     elseif string.find(event, "ZONE_CHANGED") then
+        _InvalidatePositionCache()
         UpdateMinimap()
         UpdateWorldMap()
     end

Database/Zones/zoneDB.lua

@@ -30,9 +30,12 @@ ZoneDB.private.dungeons = ZoneDB.private.dungeons or {}
 ZoneDB.private.dungeonLocations = ZoneDB.private.dungeonLocations or {}
 ZoneDB.private.dungeonParentZones = ZoneDB.private.dungeonParentZones or {}
 ZoneDB.private.subZoneToParentZone = ZoneDB.private.subZoneToParentZone or {}
+-- O(1) reverse lookup: uiMapId -> areaId, built from uiMapIdToAreaId at init.
+ZoneDB.private.uiMapIdToAreaIdCache = ZoneDB.private.uiMapIdToAreaIdCache or {}
 
 local areaIdToUiMapId = ZoneDB.private.areaIdToUiMapId
 local uiMapIdToAreaId = ZoneDB.private.uiMapIdToAreaId
+local uiMapIdToAreaIdCache = ZoneDB.private.uiMapIdToAreaIdCache
 local dungeons = ZoneDB.private.dungeons
 local dungeonLocations = ZoneDB.private.dungeonLocations
 local dungeonParentZones = ZoneDB.private.dungeonParentZones
@@ -59,6 +62,7 @@ function ZoneDB:Initialize()
     end
 
     ZoneDB:ApplyCustomZones()
+    _ZoneDB:BuildUiMapIdToAreaIdCache()
     _ZoneDB:GenerateParentZoneToStartingZoneTable()
 
     -- Run tests if debug enabled
@@ -75,6 +79,10 @@ function ZoneDB:ApplyCustomZones()
             -- skip non-numeric keys
         elseif _ZoneDB.areaIdToUiMapId[uiMapId] == nil then
             _ZoneDB.areaIdToUiMapId[uiMapId] = uiMapId
+            -- Keep reverse cache in sync
+            if uiMapIdToAreaIdCache[uiMapId] == nil then
+                uiMapIdToAreaIdCache[uiMapId] = uiMapId
+            end
         end
 
         if data and type(data.parentMapID) == "number" and _ZoneDB.areaIdToUiMapId[data.parentMapID] == nil then
@@ -83,6 +91,17 @@ function ZoneDB:ApplyCustomZones()
     end
 end
 
+-- Builds the O(1) uiMapId -> areaId reverse cache from the uiMapIdToAreaId table.
+-- Called once at Initialize() after all zone data is loaded.
+function _ZoneDB:BuildUiMapIdToAreaIdCache()
+    for areaUiMapId, areaId in next, uiMapIdToAreaId do
+        -- First entry wins (matches the original scan behaviour)
+        if uiMapIdToAreaIdCache[areaUiMapId] == nil then
+            uiMapIdToAreaIdCache[areaUiMapId] = areaId
+        end
+    end
+end
+
 function _ZoneDB:GenerateParentZoneToStartingZoneTable()
     for startingZone, parentZone in next, subZoneToParentZone do
         parentZoneToSubZone[parentZone] = startingZone
@@ -110,46 +129,36 @@ function ZoneDB:GetUiMapIdByAreaId(areaId)
     return nil
 end
 
---- Use with care, kind of slow.
 ---@param uiMapId UiMapId
 ---@return AreaId
 function ZoneDB:GetAreaIdByUiMapId(uiMapId)
-    --? Some areas have multiple areaIds, so we return the correct AreaId
+    -- Fast path: override table
     if UiMapIdOverrides[uiMapId] then
         return UiMapIdOverrides[uiMapId]
     end
 
-    local foundId
+    -- Fast path: O(1) pre-built reverse cache
-    -- First we look for a direct match
+    local cached = uiMapIdToAreaIdCache[uiMapId]
-    for AreaUiMapId, lAreaId in next, uiMapIdToAreaId do
+    if cached then return cached end
-        local areaId = lAreaId
+
-        if (AreaUiMapId == uiMapId and not foundId) then
+    -- Slow fallback: name-based lookup (only for unmapped IDs, result is cached for next time)
-            foundId = areaId
-        elseif AreaUiMapId == uiMapId and foundId ~= AreaUiMapId then
-            -- If we find a second match that does not match the first
-            -- Only print if debug is enabled.
-            if Questie.db.profile.debugEnabled then
-                Questie:Error("[ZoneDB:GetAreaIdByUiMapId] : ", "UiMapId", uiMapId, "has multiple AreaIds:", foundId, areaId)
-            end
-        end
-    end
-    if foundId then
-        return foundId
-    else
-        -- As a last resort we try to match AreaId and UiMapId by name
-        for areaId in next, areaIdToUiMapId do
     local mapInfo = C_Map.GetMapInfo(uiMapId)
+    if mapInfo then
+        for areaId in next, areaIdToUiMapId do
             local areaName = C_Map.GetAreaInfo(areaId)
-            if mapInfo and mapInfo.name == areaName then
+            if mapInfo.name == areaName then
                 Questie:Debug(Questie.DEBUG_DEVELOP, "[ZoneDB:GetAreaIdByUiMapId] : ", "Found AreaId", areaName, ":", areaId, "for UiMapId", mapInfo.name, ":", uiMapId, "by name")
+                -- Cache the result so we don't scan again
+                uiMapIdToAreaIdCache[uiMapId] = areaId
                 return areaId
             end
         end
+    end
+
     if Questie.db.profile.debugEnabled then
-            Questie:Debug(Questie.DEBUG_DEVELOP, "No AreaId found for UiMapId: " .. uiMapId .. ":" .. (C_Map.GetMapInfo(uiMapId) and C_Map.GetMapInfo(uiMapId).name or "nil"))
+        Questie:Debug(Questie.DEBUG_DEVELOP, "No AreaId found for UiMapId: " .. uiMapId .. ":" .. (mapInfo and mapInfo.name or "nil"))
     end
     return nil
-    end
 end
 
 ---@param areaId AreaId

Modules/Arrow/QuestieArrow.lua

@@ -45,6 +45,12 @@ local driverFrame = nil
 local sortedTargets = {}
 local hasManualTarget = false
 
+-- Shared context written by UpdateNearestTargets, read by hoisted helpers.
+-- Avoids closure allocation on every call.
+local _arrow_playerX, _arrow_playerY, _arrow_playerInstance
+local _arrow_usingAutoLogic, _arrow_playerZoneId, _arrow_playerUiMapId
+local _arrow_quest  -- current quest being processed by the hoisted helpers
+
 local lastPopulateByQuestId = {}
 
 local function _IsArrowEnabled()
@@ -373,6 +379,156 @@ local function EnsureDriverFrame()
     end)
 end
 
+-- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+-- Hoisted helpers for UpdateNearestTargets.
+-- These were previously closures recreated on every call; now they are
+-- module-level functions that read shared upvalue state set each cycle.
+-- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+local function _HasMissingCompletedFlag(list)
+    if not list then return false end
+    for _, obj in pairs(list) do
+        if obj and obj.Completed == nil then
+            return true
+        end
+    end
+    return false
+end
+
+local function _GetCompleteIconType(quest)
+    local iconType = Questie.ICON_TYPE_COMPLETE
+    if QuestieDB and QuestieDB.IsActiveEventQuest and QuestieDB.IsActiveEventQuest(quest.Id) then
+        iconType = Questie.ICON_TYPE_EVENTQUEST_COMPLETE
+    elseif QuestieDB and QuestieDB.IsPvPQuest and QuestieDB.IsPvPQuest(quest.Id) then
+        iconType = Questie.ICON_TYPE_PVPQUEST_COMPLETE
+    elseif quest.IsRepeatable then
+        iconType = Questie.ICON_TYPE_REPEATABLE_COMPLETE
+    end
+    return iconType
+end
+
+local function _CollectFinisherSpawns(finisher, quest)
+    if not finisher then return end
+    local pX, pY, pInst = _arrow_playerX, _arrow_playerY, _arrow_playerInstance
+    local autoLogic, pZone, pMap = _arrow_usingAutoLogic, _arrow_playerZoneId, _arrow_playerUiMapId
+    local iconPath = ResolveIconTexture(_GetCompleteIconType(quest))
+    if finisher.spawns then
+        for finisherZone, spawns in pairs(finisher.spawns) do
+            if finisherZone and spawns then
+                for _, coords in ipairs(spawns) do
+                    if coords and coords[1] and coords[2] then
+                        if coords[1] == -1 or coords[2] == -1 then
+                            local dungeonLocation = ZoneDB:GetDungeonLocation(finisherZone)
+                            if dungeonLocation then
+                                for _, value in ipairs(dungeonLocation) do
+                                    local zone = value[1]
+                                    local x = value[2]
+                                    local y = value[3]
+                                    if not (autoLogic and zone ~= pZone and zone ~= pMap) then
+                                        local uiMapId = ZoneDB:GetUiMapIdByAreaId(zone)
+                                        if uiMapId and x and y then
+                                            local tX, tY, tInst = HBD:GetWorldCoordinatesFromZone(x / 100.0, y / 100.0, uiMapId)
+                                            if tX and tY and tInst then
+                                                local dist = HBD:GetWorldDistance(tInst, pX, pY, tX, tY)
+                                                if dist then
+                                                    if tInst ~= pInst then dist = 500000 + dist * 100 end
+                                                    table.insert(sortedTargets, {
+                                                        x = x, y = y, uiMapId = uiMapId, title = quest.name, questLevel = quest.level, iconPath = iconPath, distance = dist,
+                                                    })
+                                                end
+                                            end
+                                        end
+                                    end
+                                end
+                            end
+                        else
+                            if not (autoLogic and finisherZone ~= pZone and finisherZone ~= pMap) then
+                                local x = coords[1]
+                                local y = coords[2]
+                                local uiMapId = ZoneDB:GetUiMapIdByAreaId(finisherZone)
+                                if uiMapId then
+                                    local tX, tY, tInst = HBD:GetWorldCoordinatesFromZone(x / 100.0, y / 100.0, uiMapId)
+                                    if tX and tY and tInst then
+                                        local dist = HBD:GetWorldDistance(tInst, pX, pY, tX, tY)
+                                        if dist then
+                                            if tInst ~= pInst then dist = 500000 + dist * 100 end
+                                            table.insert(sortedTargets, {
+                                                x = x, y = y, uiMapId = uiMapId, title = quest.name, questLevel = quest.level, iconPath = iconPath, distance = dist,
+                                            })
+                                        end
+                                    end
+                                end
+                            end
+                        end
+                    end
+                end
+            end
+        end
+    end
+    if finisher.waypoints then
+        for zone, waypoints in pairs(finisher.waypoints) do
+            if not (autoLogic and zone ~= pZone and zone ~= pMap) then
+                if waypoints and waypoints[1] and waypoints[1][1] and waypoints[1][1][1] then
+                    local x = waypoints[1][1][1]
+                    local y = waypoints[1][1][2]
+                    local uiMapId = ZoneDB:GetUiMapIdByAreaId(zone)
+                    if uiMapId and x and y then
+                        local tX, tY, tInst = HBD:GetWorldCoordinatesFromZone(x / 100.0, y / 100.0, uiMapId)
+                        if tX and tY and tInst then
+                            local dist = HBD:GetWorldDistance(tInst, pX, pY, tX, tY)
+                            if dist then
+                                if tInst ~= pInst then dist = 500000 + dist * 100 end
+                                table.insert(sortedTargets, {
+                                    x = x, y = y, uiMapId = uiMapId, title = quest.name, questLevel = quest.level, iconPath = iconPath, distance = dist,
+                                })
+                            end
+                        end
+                    end
+                end
+            end
+        end
+    end
+end
+
+local function _CollectObjective(objective, quest)
+    if not objective or not objective.spawnList then return end
+    if QuestieQuest.ShouldHideObjective(objective) then return end
+    if objective.Completed == true or objective.Completed == 1 then return end
+    if objective.Needed and objective.Collected
+        and type(objective.Needed) == "number" and type(objective.Collected) == "number"
+        and objective.Collected >= objective.Needed then
+        return
+    end
+    local pX, pY, pInst = _arrow_playerX, _arrow_playerY, _arrow_playerInstance
+    local autoLogic, pZone, pMap = _arrow_usingAutoLogic, _arrow_playerZoneId, _arrow_playerUiMapId
+    for _, spawnData in pairs(objective.spawnList) do
+        if spawnData and spawnData.Spawns then
+            for zone, spawns in pairs(spawnData.Spawns) do
+                if not (autoLogic and zone ~= pZone and zone ~= pMap) then
+                    for _, spawn in pairs(spawns) do
+                        local uiMapId = ZoneDB:GetUiMapIdByAreaId(zone)
+                        if uiMapId then
+                            local tX, tY, tInst = HBD:GetWorldCoordinatesFromZone(spawn[1] / 100.0, spawn[2] / 100.0, uiMapId)
+                            if tX and tY and tInst then
+                                local dist = HBD:GetWorldDistance(tInst, pX, pY, tX, tY)
+                                if dist then
+                                    if tInst ~= pInst then dist = 500000 + dist * 100 end
+                                    table.insert(sortedTargets, {
+                                        x = spawn[1], y = spawn[2], uiMapId = uiMapId,
+                                        title = quest.name, questLevel = quest.level,
+                                        iconPath = ResolveIconTexture(objective.Icon) or ResolveIconTexture(spawnData and spawnData.Icon),
+                                        distance = dist,
+                                    })
+                                end
+                            end
+                        end
+                    end
+                end
+            end
+        end
+    end
+end
+
 -- Gather all objectives from tracked quests and sort by distance
 function QuestieArrow:UpdateNearestTargets()
     -- Don't override manual targets with auto-updates
@@ -399,34 +555,23 @@ function QuestieArrow:UpdateNearestTargets()
     local playerZoneId = QuestiePlayer:GetCurrentZoneId()
     local playerUiMapId = QuestiePlayer:GetCurrentUiMapId()
 
+    -- Publish context for hoisted helper functions (avoids closure allocation every call)
+    _arrow_playerX, _arrow_playerY, _arrow_playerInstance = playerX, playerY, playerInstance
+    _arrow_usingAutoLogic = usingAutoLogic
+    _arrow_playerZoneId, _arrow_playerUiMapId = playerZoneId, playerUiMapId
+
     local function _CollectQuestTargets(quest)
-        if not quest then
+        if not quest then return end
-            return
-        end
 
         -- Avoid spamming QuestieQuest:PopulateQuestLogInfo (it can trigger marker rebuilds and flicker).
         -- Only populate when objective completion flags are missing, and throttle per quest id.
         if QuestieQuest and QuestieQuest.PopulateQuestLogInfo and quest.Id then
             local needsPopulate = false
-
             if not quest.Objectives and not quest.SpecialObjectives then
                 needsPopulate = true
-            else
+            elseif _HasMissingCompletedFlag(quest.Objectives) or _HasMissingCompletedFlag(quest.SpecialObjectives) then
-                local function _HasMissingCompletedFlag(list)
-                    if not list then return false end
-                    for _, obj in pairs(list) do
-                        if obj and obj.Completed == nil then
-                            return true
-                        end
-                    end
-                    return false
-                end
-
-                if _HasMissingCompletedFlag(quest.Objectives) or _HasMissingCompletedFlag(quest.SpecialObjectives) then
                 needsPopulate = true
             end
-            end
-
             if needsPopulate then
                 local now = GetTime()
                 local last = lastPopulateByQuestId[quest.Id] or 0
@@ -438,21 +583,10 @@ function QuestieArrow:UpdateNearestTargets()
         end
 
         local isComplete = quest.isComplete or (QuestieDB.IsComplete(quest.Id) == 1)
-        if isComplete then
+        if isComplete then quest.isComplete = true end
-            quest.isComplete = true
-        end
 
-        local function _GetCompleteIconType()
+        -- (hoisted) _GetCompleteIconType, _CollectFinisherSpawns, _CollectObjective
-            local iconType = Questie.ICON_TYPE_COMPLETE
+        -- are module-level functions; no closures created here.
-            if QuestieDB and QuestieDB.IsActiveEventQuest and QuestieDB.IsActiveEventQuest(quest.Id) then
-                iconType = Questie.ICON_TYPE_EVENTQUEST_COMPLETE
-            elseif QuestieDB and QuestieDB.IsPvPQuest and QuestieDB.IsPvPQuest(quest.Id) then
-                iconType = Questie.ICON_TYPE_PVPQUEST_COMPLETE
-            elseif quest.IsRepeatable then
-                iconType = Questie.ICON_TYPE_REPEATABLE_COMPLETE
-            end
-            return iconType
-        end
 
         local function _CollectFinisherSpawns(finisher)
             if not finisher then
@@ -549,53 +683,6 @@ function QuestieArrow:UpdateNearestTargets()
             end
         end
 
-        local function _CollectObjective(objective)
-            if not objective or not objective.spawnList then
-                return
-            end
-
-            if QuestieQuest.ShouldHideObjective(objective) then
-                return
-            end
-
-            if objective.Completed == true or objective.Completed == 1 then
-                return
-            end
-
-            -- If the objective is numerically fulfilled but the server hasn't sent the Completed flag yet
-            if objective.Needed and objective.Collected and type(objective.Needed) == "number" and type(objective.Collected) == "number" then
-                if objective.Collected >= objective.Needed then
-                    return
-                end
-            end
-
-            for _, spawnData in pairs(objective.spawnList) do
-                if spawnData and spawnData.Spawns then
-                    for zone, spawns in pairs(spawnData.Spawns) do
-                        -- Auto Logic: Hide distant quests (different zone)
-                        if not (usingAutoLogic and zone ~= playerZoneId and zone ~= playerUiMapId) then
-                            for _, spawn in pairs(spawns) do
-                                local uiMapId = ZoneDB:GetUiMapIdByAreaId(zone)
-                                if uiMapId then
-                                    local targetX, targetY, targetInstance = HBD:GetWorldCoordinatesFromZone(spawn[1] / 100.0, spawn[2] / 100.0, uiMapId)
-                                    if targetX and targetY and targetInstance then
-                                        local dist = HBD:GetWorldDistance(targetInstance, playerX, playerY, targetX, targetY)
-                                        if dist then
-                                            if targetInstance ~= playerInstance then
-                                                dist = 500000 + dist * 100
-                                            end
-                                            table.insert(sortedTargets, {
-                                                x = spawn[1], y = spawn[2], uiMapId = uiMapId, title = quest.name, questLevel = quest.level,
-                                                iconPath = ResolveIconTexture(objective.Icon) or ResolveIconTexture(spawnData and spawnData.Icon), distance = dist,
-                                            })
-                                        end
-                                    end
-                                end
-                            end
-                        end
-                    end
-                end
-            end
         end
 
         -- Main Logic Route for this quest target
@@ -608,7 +695,7 @@ function QuestieArrow:UpdateNearestTargets()
                     finisher = QuestieDB:GetObject(quest.Finisher.Id)
                 end
                 
-                _CollectFinisherSpawns(finisher)
+                _CollectFinisherSpawns(finisher, quest)
             end
             -- If the quest is complete, do not add normal objectives to the arrow!
             return
@@ -616,12 +703,12 @@ function QuestieArrow:UpdateNearestTargets()
 
         if quest.Objectives then
             for _, objective in pairs(quest.Objectives) do
-                _CollectObjective(objective)
+                _CollectObjective(objective, quest)
             end
         end
         if quest.SpecialObjectives then
             for _, objective in pairs(quest.SpecialObjectives) do
-                _CollectObjective(objective)
+                _CollectObjective(objective, quest)
             end
         end
     end

Modules/Network/QuestieLearnerComms.lua

@@ -65,7 +65,10 @@ local rateLimitQueue = {}
 
 -- Deduplication & Quarantine
 local messageCache = {}
+local messageCacheCount = 0  -- O(1) counter; avoids pairs() scan on every message
 local incomingMessageQueue = {}
+-- Cached hidden channel ID (avoids GetChannelName every ProcessQueues tick)
+local _hiddenChannelId = 0
 
 -- Sender Trust System
 local senderTrust = {}
@@ -124,10 +127,11 @@ local function IsDuplicateMessage(serializedData)
 
     if messageCache[hash] then return true end
 
-    local count = 0
+    -- O(1) size tracking via explicit counter
-    for _ in pairs(messageCache) do count = count + 1 end
+    messageCacheCount = messageCacheCount + 1
-    if count > 500 then
+    if messageCacheCount > 500 then
         messageCache = {}
+        messageCacheCount = 0
     end
 
     messageCache[hash] = true
@@ -149,9 +153,11 @@ function QuestieLearnerComms:Initialize()
         ChatFrame_RemoveChannel(DEFAULT_CHAT_FRAME, hiddenChannelName)
         DebugLog("CRITICAL", "Joined hidden data-sharing channel: " .. hiddenChannelName)
     end
+    -- Cache for use in ProcessQueues (avoids GetChannelName every tick)
+    _hiddenChannelId = GetChannelName(hiddenChannelName) or 0
 
     -- Process incoming/outgoing queues 
-    QuestieCompat.C_Timer.NewTicker(0.2, function() _QuestieLearnerComms:ProcessQueues() end)
+    QuestieCompat.C_Timer.NewTicker(0.5, function() _QuestieLearnerComms:ProcessQueues() end)
 
     -- Start Reinforcement Loop (every 60 seconds)
     QuestieCompat.C_Timer.NewTicker(60, function() _QuestieLearnerComms:ProcessReinforcement() end)
@@ -209,7 +215,7 @@ function QuestieLearnerComms:BroadcastLearnedData(op, entityType, entityId, data
         return
     end
     serialized = err
-    local compressed = LibDeflate:CompressDeflate(serialized, {level = 9})
+    local compressed = LibDeflate:CompressDeflate(serialized, {level = 1})
     local encoded = LibDeflate:EncodeForPrint(compressed)
 
     -- 3. Broadcast (Token Bucket logic handled in QueueMessage)
@@ -224,28 +230,30 @@ function _QuestieLearnerComms:ProcessQueues()
     -- 1. Refill Tokens
     local now = GetTime()
     local elapsed = now - lastTokenUpdate
-    currentTokens = math.min(bucketCapacity, currentTokens + (elapsed * tokenRefillRate))
+    currentTokens = math_min(bucketCapacity, currentTokens + (elapsed * tokenRefillRate))
     lastTokenUpdate = now
 
     -- 2. Drain Outgoing Queue
-    if table.getn(rateLimitQueue) > 0 and currentTokens >= 1 and (now - lastChatMessageTime) >= minChatInterval then
+    if table_getn(rateLimitQueue) > 0 and currentTokens >= 1 and (now - lastChatMessageTime) >= minChatInterval then
-        local msg = table.remove(rateLimitQueue, 1)
+        local msg = table_remove(rateLimitQueue, 1)
         currentTokens = currentTokens - 1
         lastChatMessageTime = now
         
-        -- Send via Hidden Channel (Global reach)
+        -- Use cached channel ID; refresh lazily if 0 (e.g. after disconnect)
-        local channelId = GetChannelName(hiddenChannelName)
+        if _hiddenChannelId == 0 then
-        if channelId > 0 then
+            _hiddenChannelId = GetChannelName(hiddenChannelName) or 0
-            SendChatMessage(msg, "CHANNEL", nil, channelId)
         end
-        DebugLog("DEVELOP", "Broadcasted message. Tokens left: " .. math.floor(currentTokens))
+        if _hiddenChannelId > 0 then
+            SendChatMessage(msg, "CHANNEL", nil, _hiddenChannelId)
+        end
+        DebugLog("DEVELOP", "Broadcasted message. Tokens left: " .. math_floor(currentTokens))
     end
 
     -- 3. Process Incoming Queue (Combat Aware)
     local processCount = InCombatLockdown() and 2 or 6
     for i = 1, processCount do
-        if table.getn(incomingMessageQueue) == 0 then break end
+        if table_getn(incomingMessageQueue) == 0 then break end
-        local rawMsg = table.remove(incomingMessageQueue, 1)
+        local rawMsg = table_remove(incomingMessageQueue, 1)
         _QuestieLearnerComms:ProcessRawMessage(rawMsg.text, rawMsg.sender)
     end
 end

Modules/Tooltips/Tooltip.lua

@@ -34,6 +34,12 @@ QuestieTooltips.lookupKeysByQuestId = {
 }
 
 local MAX_GROUP_MEMBER_COUNT = 6
+-- Throttle: limit the OnUpdate object-tooltip check to 10 times per second.
+-- Without this, the callback fires every frame (60–144 Hz) and hammers GetText()
+-- + CountTooltip() even when the tooltip hasn't changed.
+local _tooltipUpdateInterval = 0.10
+local _tooltipLastUpdate = 0
+local _tooltipLastText = ""
 
 local _InitObjectiveTexts
 
@@ -491,28 +497,34 @@ function QuestieTooltips:Initialize()
         end
     end)
 
-    -- Fired whenever the cursor hovers something with a tooltip. And then on every frame
+    -- Fired whenever the cursor hovers something with a tooltip. And then on every frame.
+    -- Throttled to _tooltipUpdateInterval (100ms) to avoid per-frame C API pressure.
     GameTooltip:HookScript("OnUpdate", function(self)
         if QuestiePlayer.numberOfGroupMembers > MAX_GROUP_MEMBER_COUNT then
-            -- When in a raid, we want as little code running as possible
             return
         end
 
+        local now = GetTime()
+        if now - _tooltipLastUpdate < _tooltipUpdateInterval then return end
+        _tooltipLastUpdate = now
+
         if (not self.IsForbidden) or (not self:IsForbidden()) then
-            --Because this is an OnUpdate we need to check that it is actually not a Unit or Item to think its a
+            -- Only fires for non-unit, non-item, non-spell tooltips (i.e. object/world tooltips)
             local uName, unit = self:GetUnit()
             local iName, link = self:GetItem()
             local sName, spell = self:GetSpell()
-            if (uName == nil and unit == nil and iName == nil and link == nil and sName == nil and spell == nil) and (
+            if (uName == nil and unit == nil and iName == nil and link == nil and sName == nil and spell == nil) and (not self.ShownAsMapIcon) then
-                    QuestieTooltips.lastGametooltip ~= GameTooltipTextLeft1:GetText() or
+                local currentText = GameTooltipTextLeft1:GetText()
-                    (not QuestieTooltips.lastGametooltipCount) or
+                if currentText ~= _tooltipLastText
-                    _QuestieTooltips:CountTooltip() < QuestieTooltips.lastGametooltipCount
+                    or (not QuestieTooltips.lastGametooltipCount)
-                    or QuestieTooltips.lastGametooltipType ~= "object"
+                    or _QuestieTooltips:CountTooltip() < QuestieTooltips.lastGametooltipCount
-                ) and (not self.ShownAsMapIcon) then -- We are hovering over a Questie map icon which adds it's own tooltip
+                    or QuestieTooltips.lastGametooltipType ~= "object" then
-                _QuestieTooltips:AddObjectDataToTooltip(GameTooltipTextLeft1:GetText())
+                    _QuestieTooltips:AddObjectDataToTooltip(currentText)
                     QuestieTooltips.lastGametooltipCount = _QuestieTooltips:CountTooltip()
+                    _tooltipLastText = currentText
+                end
+                QuestieTooltips.lastGametooltip = currentText
             end
-            QuestieTooltips.lastGametooltip = GameTooltipTextLeft1:GetText()
         end
     end)
 end