WoW glossary: A complete guide to in-game vocabulary
A complete WoW lingo to help you find everything from abbreviations and specialized terms to slang and jargon.
Table of Contents
While playing WoW, you’ve likely come across moments when you couldn’t fully understand what other players were saying—especially if you’re new to the game. Terms like Alt, EPL, LoS, Proc, OoM, PuG, and many others can be confusing. While veteran players may recognize these right away, it’s not always the case for everyone.
That’s why we’ve created this WoW dictionary to help you decode the most common terms and abbreviations in the game. In this guide, you’ll learn all the essential WoW lingo, from combat and characters to professions, guilds, loot, and more.
Note
Like any language, WoW’s terminology evolves over time. If you spot any new terms, changes, or missing words, please drop a comment below! We’ll update the list and give you proper credit.
Why you need to know WoW glossary
You need to know WoW glossary for several key reasons:
- Effective communication: Understanding the lingo helps you communicate clearly with other players, especially in group activities like raids, dungeons, or PvP. Misunderstandings can lead to mistakes and even get you kicked from a group.
- Better performance: Many WoW slangs, terms and abbreviations are key to understanding mechanics, abilities, and strategies. Knowing them helps you make quicker decisions and perform better in high-level content. Also, you can demonstrate your expertise, increasing your chances of joining top-tier groups.
- Social interaction: WoW has a large community. Being able to keep up with conversations, whether in chat or voice, helps you connect with other players easier.
- Time Efficiency: Instead of pausing the game to ask what something means, you’ll already know the terminology. Plus, knowing the correct terms helps you avoid typing out long phrases. Communication then becomes a lot quicker and more efficient.
Complete WoW glossary
Other than the “Roles” section, this WoW glossary is organized alphabetically by categories so you can easily find what you need.
Roles
DPS: Damage per second / Damage dealer.
- A role in World of Warcraft focuses on dealing with damage rather than tanking or healing. Players in the DPS role aim to maximize their damage output to defeat enemies as quickly as possible. This role can be filled by a variety of classes, such as Rogues, Mages, Hunters, Warlocks, Warriors, and more. DPS can be further categorized into ranged or melee, depending on the class and abilities used.
- DPS also means a measurement of how much damage a player or character can deal over time. (See DPS in Combat terms)
Healer: A role in World of Warcraft focuses on restoring health to players, typically during combat. Healers use abilities, spells, or talents designed to heal damage taken by teammates, ensuring their survival in dungeons, raids, and PvP. Popular healing classes include Priests, Druids, Paladins, Shamans, and Monks.
- Pocket Healer: A healer who focuses primarily on one player rather than the entire team. This term is usually used in PvP.
Tank: A role in World of Warcraft focuses on taking and absorbing damage from enemies to protect the rest of the group. Tanks use abilities to generate threat (aggro) and keep enemies focused on them, allowing damage dealers and healers to perform their roles safely. Common tank classes include Warriors, Paladins, Death Knights, and Druids.
- MT: Main Tank. The primary tank in a group or raid, responsible for holding aggro (threat) from the boss or major enemies. The MT usually takes the most damage and has the highest priority for tanking gear. They are crucial for ensuring the raid or group stays organized and that enemies are kept focused on them, allowing other roles like DPS and healers to perform their tasks effectively. Often, the MT is supported by an Off-Tank (OT) (see OT for more information).
- OT: Off-Tank. A secondary or backup tank in a group or raid. The off-tank is responsible for holding aggro on adds or helping the main tank (MT) with crowd control and positioning. While the main tank focuses on the primary boss or enemy, the off-tank handles other threats that arise during the encounter.
Combat terms
Adds: Additional enemies that join a fight, either as part of a boss encounter or through accidental pulls. Managing adds is crucial in group content, as they can overwhelm players if not controlled or defeated quickly.
Aggro: The attention of an enemy creature. A player with the most aggro is the one the enemy will target.
AgMag: Aggro Magnet. A low-level player who accidentally pulls high-level enemies due to their extended aggro range. Can also refer to a player who mismanages aggro in a group, drawing enemies away from the intended tank.
AoE: Area of Effect. Spells or abilities that affect multiple enemies within a designated area.
Aura: A passive or active effect that provides buffs or debuffs within a certain range. Auras can come from abilities, items, or NPCs and often affect the player, allies, or enemies. Paladins, for example, have various auras that grant defensive or offensive benefits to their group.
Body pull (A synonym for ‘face pull’): A technique where a player deliberately gets the attention of an enemy by running into it or getting close enough to trigger its aggro, instead of using ranged abilities or spells to pull. This method is often used in dungeon or raid situations where the tank needs to control the enemy’s positioning.
Burst: A period of high damage output over a short time, typically achieved through abilities, cooldowns, or buffs that temporarily increase a character’s damage. Burst damage is often used to quickly take down enemies, especially during critical moments in boss fights or PvP encounters.
Buff: A temporary positive effect that enhances a player’s stats, abilities, or overall performance. Buffs can come from spells, abilities, items, or other players, providing advantages like increased damage, healing, defense, or speed. Buffs can be self-applied or provided by teammates. These effects are often used to maximize performance, especially during critical moments in boss fights or PvP encounters.
Bubble: A term often used to refer to ‘Divine Shield,’ an ability used by Paladins that makes them immune to all damage and debuffs for a short period. It’s commonly used to avoid death or prevent incoming damage in tough situations, especially in PvP or raid encounters.
Camp: The act of staying in one location, often after killing an enemy or player, to wait for their respawn and kill them again.
- This is commonly done for farming, such as obtaining specific loot or completing quests.
- In PvP, it can also refer to players waiting near a particular area to kill other players, especially in open-world zones.
CC: Crowd Control. Abilities or tactics used to limit or prevent enemies from acting during combat. This includes stuns, snares, freezes, silences, and fears that temporarily disable or control enemy movements or actions, helping to manage large groups or dangerous foes.
CD: Cooldown. The amount of time a player must wait before using a specific ability or item again. Cooldowns prevent abilities from being spammed repeatedly and require strategic timing for maximum effectiveness. For example, a powerful attack might have a 30-second cooldown before it can be used again.
Clear: The process of defeating all enemies in a specific area or zone, typically in dungeons or raids.
Cleave: A melee ability that hits multiple enemies in front of the player at once, dealing damage to all targets within range. It’s commonly used by classes like Warriors and Death Knights to quickly deal with groups of enemies in both PvE and PvP.
Corner Pull: Once the puller grabs aggro of caster mobs, they run around a corner or behind an obstacle to break the enemies’ line of sight (LoS). The mobs will follow, bringing them within melee range.
Crit: Critical Hit. A damage or healing hit that deals more than the normal amount, typically double or more. Critical hits occur randomly based on a player’s chance to crit, which is influenced by the Critical Strike stat (See Crit in the “Stats” section)
Debuff: A temporary negative effect applied to a character or enemy that reduces stats, inflicts damage over time, or hinders movement. Debuffs can come from enemy attacks, player abilities, or environmental effects and are often crucial in boss fights and PvP encounters.
Despawn: When an NPC, enemy, or object disappears from the game world, either due to a timer, game mechanics, or player actions. Mobs may despawn if left unengaged for too long, while quest items or summoned creatures often have set despawn timers.
Dispel: An ability that removes buffs from enemies or debuffs from allies. Some dispels target only magic effects, while others can remove poisons, diseases, or curses. Essential for countering enemy abilities in both PvE and PvP.
DOT: Damage over Time. A type of ability that deals damage in ticks over a set duration instead of all at once. Common in classes like Warlocks and Shadow Priests, DoTs are useful for sustained damage, especially in longer fights.
DPS: Damage per Second.
- A measurement of how much damage a player or character can deal over time. It’s often used to describe a class, role, or player’s effectiveness in dealing damage, with higher DPS indicating better performance in combat situations.
- DPS also means the damage-dealing role in WoW. (See DPS in Roles)
Drop: An item or loot that an enemy leaves behind when defeated. Drops can include gear, crafting materials, gold, or rare collectibles. The quality and type of drop often depend on the enemy’s difficulty and loot table.
Effective healing: The amount of healing that actually restores a target’s health, excluding any overhealing. Effective healing matters most in tough fights where every heal needs to count, as excess healing beyond a target’s max HP is wasted.
Five-second rule: A mana regeneration mechanic where a caster’s passive mana regen is reduced for five seconds after spending mana on a spell. Effective mana management involves timing spells to allow natural regeneration when possible. This mechanic now only has in WoW Classic.
Farm (A synonym for ‘grind’): Repeatedly performing a specific action—such as killing enemies, gathering resources, or completing activities—to collect gold, materials, reputation, or specific drops. Farming is commonly done for rare items, crafting materials, or currency needed for upgrades and trading.
Facepull (A synonym for ‘body pull’): A technique where a player deliberately gets the attention of an enemy by running into it or getting close enough to trigger its aggro, instead of using ranged abilities or spells to pull. This method is often used in dungeon or raid situations where the tank needs to control the enemy’s positioning.
Fear: A crowd control effect that causes the target to run uncontrollably in a random direction for a short duration. Common among Warlocks and Priests, fear can disrupt enemies in PvE and PvP but may also pull unintended mobs if used carelessly.
Gank: The act of stalking and overpowering an enemy player, typically in a surprise attack. It often involves high-level players killing lower-level players, especially in open-world PvP zones. Ganking is usually one-sided and unfair, as the player being ganked is often unprepared or unable to defend themselves effectively.
GCD: Global Cooldown. The brief period of time after using an ability or spell during which most other abilities are temporarily unavailable. This cooldown affects all abilities that don’t have their own individual cooldown, preventing players from spamming multiple abilities at once. The GCD typically lasts 1.5 seconds, but it can be reduced by certain traits, talents, or gear.
Grief: The act of intentionally ruining another player’s gaming experience, often by causing frustration or hindering their progress. This can include actions such as repeatedly killing low-level players (ganking), camping respawns, or disrupting gameplay through toxic behavior. Griefing is generally considered unsportsmanlike and is frowned upon in the community.
Grind (A synonym for ‘farm’): Repeatedly performing a specific action—such as killing enemies, gathering resources, or completing activities—to collect gold, materials, reputation, or specific drops. Farming is commonly done for rare items, crafting materials, or currency needed for upgrades and trading.
HOT: Heals over Time. A healing effect that restores health gradually over a set duration, rather than all at once. HoTs are commonly used by healers like Druids and Priests to provide sustained healing during longer fights or to prevent damage spikes.
HPS: Heals per Second. A measure of how much healing a player or character can provide over time. It is used to assess the efficiency of a healer in combat, with higher HPS indicating stronger or more consistent healing output.
Inc: Incoming. In Battlegrounds, “inc” is a quick callout to warn teammates that enemies are approaching an objective, like a base or flag. For example, “inc LM 3” means three enemies are headed to Lumber Mill, while “inc FR” alerts the team to an attack on the friendly Flag Room. This helps everyone prepare and respond in time.
Interrupt: An ability or action that stops an enemy from casting a spell or using an ability. Interrupts are crucial in preventing dangerous spells or abilities from going off, especially in PvP or boss fights where certain casts can deal significant damage or debuffs.
Kite: A tactic where a player keeps an enemy at a distance by constantly moving away while attacking. This is typically used to avoid damage from melee enemies, allowing ranged classes to deal damage safely while preventing the enemy from closing the gap.
LoS: Line of Sight. The unobstructed path between a player and their target. In World of Warcraft, many abilities, attacks, and healing spells require a clear LoS to be effective. If there’s an obstacle between the caster and the target, the ability may fail or be blocked.
Mark: A symbol or indicator placed on an enemy or object to signify its importance, role, or priority. In group content, such as dungeons or raids, marks help coordinate tactics, such as focusing on a specific target first or avoiding certain abilities. For example, a tank might mark a boss, or players may mark enemies to indicate which ones to kill first. Players can also
Mob: “Mobile Objects,” “Mobile Object Block,” or “Monster or Beast.” A mob refers to any non-player character (NPC) in the game. The term is commonly used in PvE to describe neutral or hostile creatures that players engage in combat. Mobs are often fought for experience, loot, or quest objectives.
Ninja Pull: A term used when a player pulls enemies without coordinating with the tank or group, often resulting in a chaotic situation. This can happen by accidentally (or intentionally) attacking enemies too early, drawing aggro away from the tank, or pulling additional mobs that weren’t intended to be engaged yet. It’s typically considered disruptive to the group and can lead to wipes or other complications during encounters.
OOM: Out of Mana. A term used when a player has run out of mana, preventing them from casting spells or abilities that require it. This is commonly seen with casters or healers who rely on mana for their core abilities. It’s often used as a callout to let the team know the player is temporarily unable to perform their role.
Opener: The initial set of abilities or attacks used at the beginning of a fight or encounter. The goal of an opener is to maximize damage or effectiveness right from the start, often by using high-damage abilities, cooldowns, or debuffs to set up the rest of the fight.
Overhealing: Healing done that exceeds a target’s maximum health. While it doesn’t contribute to the target’s health pool, it can still waste valuable resources, such as mana or cooldowns. Managing overhealing is important for efficient healing, especially in long encounters where every heal counts.
Pot: Potion.
- Consumable items that provide temporary buffs or healing. For example, Healing Potions restore health, while Mana Potions restore mana. Players often use pots during combat or encounters to boost performance or recover quickly.
- A player has taken a potion. Saying “I potted” indicate they’ve used one.
Pack: A group of enemies that are typically fought together in a specific area or encounter. In some cases, “Pack” refers to a group of mobs that are grouped tightly and must be dealt with strategically, often requiring crowd control or careful positioning to avoid pulling additional mobs.
Pat: Patrol. Referring to enemies that move along a set path or route. These mobs can wander around specific areas, and players need to be aware of their movement to avoid aggroing them unintentionally. “Pat” is often used as a warning to be cautious of patrolling enemies while navigating dungeons or open-world zones.
Pull: The act of drawing enemies’ attention and leading them to a specific location, typically to engage in combat. In group content, pulling is done strategically to control the flow of the fight, avoid additional mobs, or position enemies in favorable spots for the team. Pulling can be done with ranged attacks, spells, or abilities that aggro enemies.
Proc: A special, often random, event triggered by certain actions, abilities, or conditions in the game. For example, a weapon might “proc” a bonus effect like extra damage or healing when it lands a critical hit. Procs can be passive or active and are usually indicated by on-screen messages or visual effects.
Purge: The act of removing buffs or debuffs from a target, typically through specific abilities or spells. Purging is often used to counter beneficial effects on enemies (like shields or buffs) or harmful effects on allies (like debuffs). It is especially useful in PvP and high-level PvE encounters to maintain control over the battlefield.
Rare: A term used to describe enemies, items, or resources that are uncommon and typically harder to find or defeat.
- In the case of enemies, rare mobs are often more powerful than regular mobs and may drop unique or higher-quality loot.
- Rare items are typically more valuable or powerful than common items and can be found through quests, world drops, or specific encounters.
Rage Starved: A term used when Warriors or Druids run low on Rage and cannot perform their abilities effectively. This situation can occur if a player is not generating enough Rage through attacks or taking damage, making it difficult to use high-damage or key abilities in combat.
Regen: Regeneration. The process of restoring health, mana, or other resources over time. For example, health regen refers to the gradual restoration of health outside of combat, while mana regen refers to the rate at which a player’s mana regenerates, allowing them to cast more spells. Different gear, buffs, or abilities can increase regeneration rates.
Respawn: The process by which defeated enemies, NPCs, or objects reappear after a certain amount of time. In World of Warcraft, respawns are common for mobs, especially in farming or questing areas, and can vary in duration. Players may need to wait for respawns to continue grinding for resources or quest objectives.
Rez: Short for Resurrect, referring to the act of bringing a dead player or NPC back to life. In World of Warcraft, players often use resurrection abilities, like those from Priests, Shamans, or Warlocks, to revive teammates during or after combat. The term “rez” can also be used as a verb, such as “Can you rez me?” to request a resurrection.
Root: A crowd control effect that immobilizes a target, preventing them from moving but still allowing them to attack or use abilities. Roots are often used in PvP to disable enemies, making it harder for them to escape or chase. However, rooted players can still take damage and cast certain abilities unless they are also silenced or stunned.
Rotation: A predefined sequence of abilities or spells that a player uses in combat to maximize damage, healing, or other effects. Rotations are essential for classes with complex ability setups and are often optimized to ensure that cooldowns are used effectively and resources are managed efficiently. Players typically follow a rotation to maintain high performance during a fight.
Stun: A crowd control effect that completely disables a target, preventing them from moving, attacking, or using abilities for a set duration. Stuns are powerful tools in both PvP and PvE, used to neutralize threats, interrupt enemy actions, or give the player’s team a strategic advantage.
Tag: The act of claiming a mob, resource, or objective as your own, often by interacting with it or dealing the first damage. In PvE, tagging a mob means it becomes aggroed to the player, and other players will need to wait for it to respawn if they want to fight it. In PvP, players may tag objectives like flags or nodes to gain control or score points.
Threat: The level of attention a mob or enemy gives to a player, typically based on the damage dealt, healing provided, or other actions that attract the enemy’s focus. When a player has high threat, the mob will target them and may attack until the threat is reduced.
- Aggro is often used interchangeably with threat, but the term “aggro” specifically refers to the mob being actively focused on a player. In group content, tanks are responsible for managing aggro to keep enemies focused on them, preventing other players from drawing too much threat and becoming the target.
TPS: Threat per Second. A measure of how much threat a player generates over time, typically used to evaluate a tank’s ability to maintain aggro on enemies. The higher the TPS, the better the player is at keeping enemies focused on them. In group content, tanks aim for a high TPS to ensure they maintain control of the fight and prevent damage dealers from pulling aggro.
Trash: Non-boss enemies that are encountered on the way to a boss. These enemies are often defeated in groups. Trashes may drop loot or provide experience, but are generally not the main focus of the encounter.
Character terms
Action Bar (A synonym for ‘Hotbar’): A UI element in World of Warcraft where players can place and organize their abilities, items, and spells for quick access during gameplay. Players can customize the action bar by assigning abilities to specific slots, allowing them to activate skills or use items with a simple click or keybind.
Alt: Alternate character. A secondary character created by a player who already has a main character. Alts are often used for trying different classes, professions, or factions, and can serve as storage, crafters, or backup characters.
Attunement: A quest or series of tasks required to gain access to specific high-level raid dungeons or areas in World of Warcraft. Attunement typically involves completing certain storylines, defeating specific bosses, or gathering key items. Once attuned, players can enter the raid or dungeon without restrictions.
Avatar: A player’s in-game character. It interacts with the in-game world, including all aspects like appearance, gear, and abilities.
Bank Alt: A secondary character in World of Warcraft primarily used for storage purposes. Bank alts are not typically used for combat but serve to hold extra items, gold, or materials that a main character cannot carry. This helps players manage their inventory space more efficiently and can be used to facilitate trading or auction house activities.
Boost (A synonym for ‘Carry’): WoW boosting is the act of stronger or higher-level players helping weaker players complete difficult content, such as dungeons, raids, or PvP activities. This can include carrying the player through challenging encounters or helping them farm specific loot, achievements, or experience. The goal is to make the process easier for the boosted player.
Build: A pre-planned combination of gear, talents, and abilities designed to optimize a character’s performance for a specific role or activity. A “build” determines how a character is specialized, such as focusing on damage, healing, or tanking, and can also refer to how a player customizes their playstyle, whether for PvE, PvP, or specific raids. For example, “He’s going for a hybrid build” refers to a character designed to balance multiple roles or functions.
Caster: A character or player in World of Warcraft who uses spells or abilities that deal damage, heal, or provide utility from a distance. Casters typically rely on mana or other resources to cast their abilities. Common caster classes include Mages, Warlocks, Elemental Shamans, Balance Druids, and Shadow Priests.
Clicker: A player in World of Warcraft who uses the mouse to click on ability buttons rather than assigning them to keybinds. This playstyle is often associated with newer players or those who prefer a more casual approach to gameplay. While it is possible to play effectively as a clicker, using keybindings is generally considered more efficient for faster and more precise execution of abilities.
Comp: Composition. Refers to the classes and specializations that make up a party or raid group. A well-balanced comp takes into account the strengths and weaknesses of each class and role (tank, healer, DPS) to ensure the group can handle various encounters effectively. For example, a comp might include a mix of tanks, healers, and DPS classes suited for a specific dungeon or raid.
HS (Hearth): Hearthstone. Using a Hearthstone to teleport back to your home location, usually an inn or capital city.
Key: An item required to access certain dungeons, raids, or locations in World of Warcraft. Keys are typically obtained through quests, drops from specific bosses, or achievements. They are used to unlock locked areas or gates
Keybind: The assignment of specific game functions, abilities, or actions to individual keys on the keyboard. This allows players to activate abilities quickly without needing to click them on the screen.
- For example, a player might bind their Immolate to the “2” key, Chaos Bolt to the “Q” key, strafe to “A” and “D,” and their Map to the “M” key. Keybinding is a common practice for improving efficiency and reaction time, especially in fast-paced gameplay.
Log:
- To exit the game or switch characters.
- The action of recording gameplay or events, such as “log of the raid” or “activity log,” which tracks a player’s actions, damage, healing, or other in-game statistics.
Meme spec: A character specialization in World of Warcraft that is considered suboptimal, niche, or often humorous. These specs are usually not ideal for high-level gameplay but are chosen for fun, novelty, or to create funny situations. For example, choosing a spec that is weak in current content or using unconventional builds that are more for entertainment than effectiveness.
Main: The primary or most-played character that a player uses in World of Warcraft. This is typically the character a player focuses on for raiding, PvP, and other major activities, often with the highest level and best gear. The main character is generally the player’s main focus and investment in terms of progression.
Min-Max: The practice of minimizing inefficiency and maximizing effectiveness in World of Warcraft. This involves optimizing a character’s build, gear, stats, and abilities to perform at the highest level in a specific role, whether it’s DPS, tanking, or healing. Min-maxing often means making choices that may not be the most fun or flavorful but are the most efficient for maximizing performance in raids, dungeons, or PvP.
Mp5: Mana per 5 seconds. It is a stat that increases a player’s mana regeneration, providing a fixed amount of mana restored every 5 seconds, both inside and outside of combat. This stat is particularly valuable for healers and casters who rely on sustained mana regeneration during long encounters.
MS: Main Spec. The primary role or specialization a player uses for their main character, typically chosen for endgame content like raids or dungeons.
Multibox: The practice of playing multiple accounts or characters simultaneously. A player uses several accounts to control more than one character at the same time, often using software or hardware to assist in managing all the characters. This is commonly done for farming, dungeons, or even raids, where a player controls multiple roles (e.g., tank, healer, DPS) without needing others.
Ninja: A player who takes loot unfairly, typically by need-rolling on items that are meant for another player or class. This behavior usually occurs in dungeons or raids.
NPC: Non-player Character. A character that is not controlled by a player. NPCs are typically part of the game’s world and include quest givers, merchants, enemies, trainers, and other characters that provide services, information, or interact with players in various ways.
OS: Off-Spec. A secondary specialization that a player can switch to, often used for flexibility in different situations, such as PvP or backup roles in raids or dungeons.
Reagent: An ingredient required to cast certain abilities or craft items in World of Warcraft. Reagents are often gathered from the environment, purchased from vendors, or crafted.
Reroll:
- To start a new character, either by creating a new main or switching to a different spec.
- Change roles or classes, often to try something new or improve performance.
- In the context of gear: The act of rolling again for loot in group content, typically due to mistakes, ties, or agreements among players to redistribute an item fairly.
Role: The function of a character in a group, typically categorized as DPS, Healer, or Tank. Each role has a specific responsibility during combat, such as dealing damage, healing teammates, or absorbing damage from enemies. (See the “Roles” section for more details)
Spec: Specialization. A character’s chosen talent or skill path within a game. In WoW, for example, a player can choose a spec that focuses on specific abilities, such as a Frost Mage, Holy Priest, or Destruction Warlock, to focus on a particular role or playstyle.
Tourist: A player who is new to the game or temporarily exploring it without a long-term commitment. Often refers to someone casually playing without fully engaging in the core aspects of the game, like endgame content or PvP.
Twink: A character specifically built and optimized for PvP at lower levels, usually around level 19, 29, 39, or 49. Twinks are equipped with the best gear available for their level, making them highly effective in Battlegrounds.
Stats terms
AP: Attack Power. A stat that increases the damage dealt by physical attacks. It directly boosts the effectiveness of melee and ranged abilities, making it essential for classes like Warriors, Rogues, and Hunters.
AR: Armor Resistance or Arcane Resistance.
- Armor Resistance: A stat that reduces incoming physical damage. Higher armor means better damage mitigation against melee and ranged attacks.
- Arcane Resistance: A stat that reduces damage taken from Arcane spells. Often used in encounters with Arcane-based enemies.
AS: Attack Speed. The rate at which a character’s attacks occur, usually measured in seconds per hit.
Crit: Critical Strike: Chance to Land a Critical Strike. A higher Critical Strike stat increases the chance of landing a critical strike. Damage and healing over time effects cannot trigger critical strikes.
Crit Cap: The maximum effective Critical Strike chance a character can achieve before additional Critical Strike rating provides no further benefit. Exceeding this cap results in wasted stats.
Def: Defense. A character’s ability to reduce incoming damage through armor, resistances, or defensive stats. Higher defense helps mitigate damage and avoid critical hits from enemies.
Def Cap: Defense Cap. In World of Warcraft, the defense cap is the threshold that prevents a raid boss or high-level enemy from critically striking a player with a physical attack. Once a player reaches this cap, further increases in defense provide diminishing returns, but they still contribute to overall damage mitigation.
DR: Diminishing Returns.
- In terms of stats: DR refers to how certain secondary stats lose effectiveness as they are stacked higher. This system is most commonly applied to stats like Haste, Critical Strike, and Mastery. It makes players balance their stats rather than just stacking one stat endlessly.
- In terms of effects: DR refers to a mechanic where the effectiveness of certain debuffs or crowd control effects (like stuns, snares, and silences) decreases if used repeatedly on the same target in a short time. This prevents crowd control from being overpowered and spamming abilities. For example, a second stun will be less effective or shorter than the first.
FR:
- Fire Resistance: Reduces the amount of damage taken from fire-based attacks. It can be increased through gear, buffs, or consumables and is especially useful in encounters where fire damage is prevalent.
- Frost Resistance: Reduces the amount of damage taken from frost-based attacks. It can be increased through gear, buffs, or consumables and is particularly useful in encounters where enemies deal significant frost damage, such as in raids like Naxxramas or against certain bosses like Kel’Thuzad.
Hit: The chance that a character’s attack will successfully land on a target, as opposed to missing. For physical attacks, Hit is crucial to ensure that your character’s strikes connect with the enemy.
Hit Cap: The point at which you reach a 100% chance to hit, meaning your attacks will no longer miss. Additional points in Hit beyond this cap are wasted. For spellcasters, Hit works similarly but applies to spells, and some spells have their own hit caps, particularly when casting against higher-level enemies.
NR: Nature Resistance. A character’s ability to resist damage or harmful effects from nature-based attacks, such as those from enemies using spells or abilities that fall under the nature school of magic. Nature Resistance can help reduce the amount of damage taken from specific abilities, such as poison, disease, or elemental nature attacks.
SP: Spell Power. A stat that increases the effectiveness of a character’s spells. It adds to the damage dealt by offensive spells or the healing done by healing spells. The higher your Spell Power, the more damage you can deal with offensive spells and the more healing you can provide with your healing spells. This stat is primarily important for casters, such as Mages, Warlocks, Priests, and Druids.
Stats: The primary attributes that affect a character’s performance in combat or gameplay. These include:
- Strength (Str): Increases attack power for physical damage dealers and enhances the effectiveness of certain abilities.
- Agility (Agi): Increases attack power for some classes, boosts critical strike chance, and enhances dodge chance.
- Intellect (Int): Increases mana pool, spellcasting abilities, and certain spell effects, especially for spellcasting classes.
- Stamina (Sta): Increases health pool, allowing a character to take more damage before dying.
- Spirit (Spi): Primarily affects mana regeneration, useful for classes that rely on spells over time.
Gear terms
BiS: Best in Slot. The best possible piece of gear available for a character’s specific role, spec, or item slot (e.g., head, chest, legs) at a given point in the game. This gear offers the highest possible stats or effects that are optimal for a character’s performance, often used in endgame content like raids. BiS gear is highly sought after and is often the goal for min-maxing a character’s stats.
Equip: A passive effect on an item, written in green text, that activates when the item is equipped. These effects can include stat bonuses (e.g., Critical Strike, Haste), procs (e.g., chance to deal extra damage), or unique abilities (e.g., reducing cooldowns or restoring resources).
GS: Gear Score. A numerical value representing the overall strength of a player’s gear, calculated by summing the item levels of all equipped items. It is used to assess gear quality, especially for group content like dungeons and raids.
ilvl (ilevel): Item level. A numerical value that represents the overall quality and power of an item, based on its stats and effects. It helps determine the effectiveness of gear for a character.
Itemization: The allocation and distribution of stats and effects on an item, determining its overall usefulness and power for a character.
On-Use: An item effect that must be manually activated by the player, such as trinket abilities or potions.
Pre-Raid BiS (or Pre-BiS): The best gear available for a character’s spec before entering raid content, often considered the ideal setup for progressing in dungeons and early game content.
Set Bonus: Special bonuses gained by wearing multiple pieces of a specific armor set. Bonuses typically activate at 2, 4, 6, or 8 pieces, depending on the tier (e.g., T1, T2).
Tier: A set of powerful, class-specific armor that is typically designed for PvE progression. These sets are often earned through raids and offer special bonuses when multiple pieces are worn together.
Each tier has specific items for each class and is numbered (T0, T1, T2, etc.), indicating its place in progression, typically tied to a specific expansion or raid tier. Tier sets provide set bonuses when multiple pieces are equipped.
Trading, Professions and Crafting terms
AH: Auction House. A system in the game where players can buy and sell items to other players through a bidding process. Items are listed with a starting price and a duration, and other players can place bids to purchase them.
Alch: Alchemy. A crafting profession. Alchemists can create various consumable items like potions, elixirs, flasks, and transmutations. These items provide various buffs, healing, and utility effects. Alchemy also allows players to transmute materials, such as turning lower-tier ores into more valuable metals or gems.
Bid: In World of Warcraft, a bid is the amount of gold a player offers to purchase an item in an auction. Players can place bids to try and win an item at the Auction House (AH). The highest bid wins, unless another player places a higher bid before the auction expires.
BoE: Bind on Equip. BoE items can be traded with other players as long as they have not been worn or used.
BoP: Bind on Pickup. BoP items are permanently bound to your character once you pick them up, meaning they can never be traded or sold to other players.
BS: Blacksmithing. A crafting profession. Blacksmiths can create armor, weapons, and other metal-based items. Blacksmithing requires mining to gather materials like ores, which are then smelted into bars for crafting.
CoD: Cash on Delivery. A feature in World of Warcraft that allows a seller to require payment before delivering an item. The buyer sends gold to the seller via the in-game mailbox, and once the payment is received, the item is mailed to the buyer. This system is commonly used for items purchased from players outside of the Auction House, ensuring that the seller is paid before sending the item.
Craft: The act of creating items, such as weapons, armor, potions, or other consumables, through the use of a profession in WoW. Players use resources and materials to craft these items, often for personal use, trading, or selling in the Auction House. Examples include crafting potions with Alchemy or creating gear with Blacksmithing.
DE: Disenchant. The process of breaking down green or higher-quality items (usually armor or weapons) into enchanting materials. These materials are used for enchanting gear, which provides enhancements like increased stats or buffs. This is typically done by Enchanters in World of Warcraft.
Eng: Engineering. A crafting profession. Engineers can create a variety of gadgets, explosives, mechanical devices, pets, and tools such as repair bots and jetpacks. This profession also includes the ability to craft items like guns, scopes, and ammunition for ranged weapons.
Ench: Enchanting. A crafting profession. Enchanters can apply enchantments that improve stats, such as strength, agility, or stamina, as well as various other effects like increased attack speed or enhanced resistances to weapons and armor. Enchanting also allows players to disenchant items to create valuable reagents used for enchantments.
Flask: A powerful and expensive consumable item crafted by alchemists in World of Warcraft. Flasks are always in high demand for dungeons and raids since they provide long-lasting buffs that significantly enhance a player’s stats or abilities.
Flasks can help increase damage output, healing power, or overall survivability. They require rare ingredients, such as Black Lotus, and are typically used for raiding or high-level content where maximum performance is needed. Common types of flasks include Flask of Supreme Power, Flask of Distilled Wisdom, and Flask of the Titans.
FPP: Fire Protection Potion. A consumable item crafted by alchemists in World of Warcraft. When consumed, it grants the player temporary protection against fire damage. This potion is often used during encounters with fire-based bosses or in areas with heavy fire damage, such as Molten Core.
GFPP: Greater Fire Protection Potion. A more powerful version of the Fire Protection Potion. It provides a larger amount of fire damage protection and is typically used in high-level raids or encounters where significant fire damage is a threat, such as Molten Core. Crafted by alchemists, it is a key item for surviving challenging fire-based encounters.
Have Mats (A synonym for ‘My Mats’): The poster has the necessary crafting materials but needs a player with the corresponding profession to craft the item. Often used in trade or crafting communities, where the person providing the materials may offer a tip or additional payment for the crafting service.
LW: Leatherworking. A crafting profession. Leatherworkers can create armor, armor enhancements, and bags from leather and hides. Leatherworkers can specialize in different areas, such as Tribal, Dragonscale, or Elemental Leatherworking.
Mats: Materials. The ingredients required to craft items in professions. Mats can also refer to reagents needed to cast spells.
My Mats (A synonym for ‘Have Mats’): The poster has the necessary crafting materials but needs a player with the corresponding profession to craft the item. Often used in trade or crafting communities, where the person providing the materials may offer a tip or additional payment for the crafting service.
OBO: Or Best Offer. It indicates that the seller is willing to accept the highest bid or offer.
Port: Portal. It refers to the Mage’s ability to create a portal that transports players to a specific location, typically a capital city. Players often pay a nominal fee for this service.
PST: Please Send Tell. A common way to ask someone to send a direct message or Whisper the player, typically used in trade or social interactions.
Shard (A synonym for ‘Disenchant’): The process of breaking down green or higher-quality items (usually armor or weapons) into enchanting materials. These materials are used for enchanting gear, which provides enhancements like increased stats or buffs. This is typically done by Enchanters in World of Warcraft.
WTB: Want to Buy. Used by players to indicate they are looking to purchase a specific item or service.
WTS: Want to Sell. Used by players to indicate they are selling a specific item or service.
WTT: Want to Trade. Used by players to indicate they want to exchange one item for another instead of selling or buying.
Xmute: Transmute. Refers to an alchemist’s ability to convert certain materials into more valuable ones. Some transmutes have cooldowns.
Guild terms
DKP: Dragon Kill Points. A loot distribution system where players earn points by participating in raids or other guild activities. These points are then used to bid on items that drop during raids. Players with more points have higher priority when claiming loot.
EPGP: Effort Points, Gear Points. A loot distribution system. Players earn:
- Effort Points (EP) for participating in raids or contributing to guild activities.
- Gear Points (GP) when players receive loot.
The ratio of EP to GP determines loot priority, with players having a higher EP/GP ratio given priority for loot.
GM: Guild Master. The leader of a guild, responsible for overall management, decision-making, and authority within the guild. The GM typically handles guild policies, recruitment, and major guild events or actions. They have the highest level of control within the guild.
Guild Bank Alt: A character within the guild whose primary role is to store and transfer guild resources, such as items, gold, and materials. This character is typically not actively involved in gameplay but serves to manage and move the guild’s inventory.
Loot Council: A loot distribution system in which guild leadership decides how items are assigned based on various factors, such as raid contribution or need. There is no set order or priority system for receiving loot; decisions are made on a case-by-case basis by the council members.
Officer: A guild member with special permissions and responsibilities, often overseeing specific aspects of guild management such as class roles, raid coordination, or member management. Officers assist the Guild Master in maintaining order and organizing guild activities.
Raider: A guild member who regularly participates in guild raids, signing up for and attending raid events. Raiders are trusted to perform their role effectively during raids and contribute to the progression of the guild’s raid goals.
SK: Suicide Kings. A loot distribution system in which players “bid” for items by putting themselves at the bottom of the loot list each time they win an item. The system continues in a rotating fashion, with players moving up the list as they receive items.
SLS: Shroud Loot System. A loot distribution system where players earn points for contributing to guild progression. These points can be spent to roll for items in raids. Players can also choose to “shroud” their points, spending half of their total points instead of a fixed amount, with the highest bidder winning the item.
Social: A guild member who primarily participates in casual interactions, such as chatting in the guild, without regularly engaging in guild activities like raids or dungeons. They contribute to the social environment but are not expected to be active in more structured guild events.
Treasurer: A guild member responsible for managing the guild’s resources, including finances, materials, and any in-game assets. They often oversee the distribution of funds or items, coordinating sales, and maintaining the guild bank.
Tryout: A new or potential guild member who is being evaluated for their ability to contribute to guild activities, such as raids.
Group terms
LF: Looking for. A term used to indicate that a player is seeking a specific role, character type, or item. It is typically followed by the requested role or item, such as “LF healer” or “LF DPS.”
LFG, LFM, and LF#M: Looking for Group, Looking for More, and Looking for a Certain Number More. Terms used by players to either seek a group for a task, find additional members for a group, or specify the exact number of players needed, such as “LFG dungeon,” “LFM raid,” or “LF2M DPS.”
GTG: Good to Go. A phrase used to indicate readiness to begin an activity or task, such as a dungeon run or raid. It confirms that a player is prepared and available to start.
PuG: Pickup Group. A group of players formed for a dungeon or raid that includes non-guild members or players invited from outside the guild.
Premade: A group of players who are pre-formed and typically familiar with each other, often for activities like Battlegrounds or World PvP. The group is assembled before the event to ensure coordination and effectiveness.
Loot and items terms
+1: A term used to indicate that a player has already won an item and has lower priority in subsequent rolls or bids compared to players who haven’t won anything yet.
Bid: Players offer a form of currency, like gold or raid points, to compete for loot, with the highest bidder winning the item.
FFA: Free For All. A loot system where all group members have equal rights to loot items from slain enemies, with no restrictions on who can take the loot.
GBid: Gold Bid. A loot system where players place gold bids to compete for items, with the highest bidder winning the item and paying the designated treasurer.
Greed: Rolls for items that the player won’t use but would sell.
Group Loot: A loot system where looting rights rotate between group members, with each member receiving loot from slain enemies in turn. It’s the default method in parties and dungeons.
Need: A loot roll option where a player rolls for an item they intend to equip and use. This roll has higher priority than the “Greed” roll.
Master Loot: A loot distribution system where only the group leader or designated loot masters have the authority to assign loot to players. It is commonly used in raids, allowing loot to be distributed based on the leader’s decisions.
MS>OS or MS/OS: Main-spec rolls take priority over off-spec rolls, ensuring players get gear for their primary role before others claim it for secondary roles.
Pass: A loot roll option where a player forfeits the opportunity to roll for an item, meaning they will not compete for it in the roll.
Prio. Priority: An advantage in loot distribution, giving certain players or roll types precedence over others. For example, “Need” rolls have prio over “Greed” rolls.
Res. Reserved: A system where a specific player gets priority for a chosen item if it drops.
- Hard Res. Hard Reservation: A loot rule where a single player, usually the group leader or a guild member, has exclusive rights to a specific item if it drops.
- Soft Res. Soft Reservation: A loot rule where players can reserve an item in advance, but they roll against others who also reserved it instead of having guaranteed priority.
Roll: A method used in loot distribution where players use a random number generator (RNG) to determine who receives an item. Each player rolls a number, and the highest roll typically wins the item.
Roll Threshold: Group leaders can decide the drop quality for loot distribution.
RR: Round-Robin. A loot distribution system where looting rights rotate among group members in order, without separate rolls for higher-quality items. It is typically used when there is no roll threshold for loot.
VT. Vendor Trash: Low-value items that don’t serve any real purpose and are best sold to a vendor for gold.
Wishlist: A list of desired items submitted to the group leader for soft reservation, helping prioritize loot distribution.
Locations terms
FP or Taxi: Flightpath. Refers to the NPC who sells flights, allowing players to travel between different locations in the game.
BB: Booty Bay, Stranglethorn Vale
Darn: Darnassus, Teldrassil
EPL: Eastern Plaguelands
IF: Ironforge, Dun Morogh
LHC: Light’s Hope Chapel, Eastern Plaguelands
Org: Orgrimmar, Durotar
STV: Stranglethorn Vale
SW: Stormwind City, Elwynn Forest
TB: Thunder Bluff, Mulgore
UC: The Undercity, Tirisfal Glades
WPL: Western Plaguelands
Xroads: The Crossroads, The Barrens
Content terms
AB: Arathi Basin. A 15v15 PvP battleground in World of Warcraft where two factions compete to control key resource nodes. Players capture and defend bases to earn points, with the goal of reaching the victory point threshold before the opposing team.
AV: Alterac Valley. A large-scale, 40v40 PvP battleground in World of Warcraft where two factions fight to capture objectives, defeat opposing NPCs, and ultimately conquer the enemy base. Players can engage in PvE boss progression while battling enemy players, making it a dynamic and strategic experience.
BG: Battleground. An instanced PvP zone in World of Warcraft where players face off against opposing factions to complete specific objectives, like capturing flags or controlling bases, in exchange for honor points and rewards. Each battleground offers a unique map and set of rules.
Instance: A location in World of Warcraft that is isolated and accessible only by a specific group of players. Instances are often dungeons, raids, or special areas that provide unique content and rewards, separate from the open world. They reset periodically to allow for multiple groups to experience the content.
Phases: Stages of content progression in World of Warcraft, typically tied to expansions or events. Each phase introduces new features, quests, dungeons, or raids, and often alters the game world in some way. For example, in classic WoW, content is released in phases, with each phase unlocking additional raids, battlegrounds, and other features as players advance through the game’s timeline.
PvE: Player versus Environment. A game mode where players engage with non-player characters (NPCs) or AI-controlled enemies. PvE content typically includes quests, dungeons, and raids where players team up to battle enemies controlled by the game. The focus is on overcoming challenges set by the game’s environment, rather than competing against other players.
PvP: Player versus Player. A game mode where players compete against each other in combat, either in organized settings like battlegrounds or in open-world zones. PvP focuses on direct competition between players, where the goal is often to defeat opponents or complete objectives while dealing with other players as adversaries.
Raid: A large-scale instance designed for a group of more than 5 players, typically requiring coordination and strategy to defeat powerful bosses. Raids usually involve multiple bosses, mechanics, and significant rewards, often being the most challenging content in the game.
Raid on [Location]: A large-scale PvP event where players from opposing factions battle each other at specific locations, such as flightpaths, towns, or capital cities. These raids typically involve multiple players and can result in intense World PvP combat, with the goal of controlling or disrupting the targeted location.
Reset: The process of restoring an instance to its original state, usually after it has been completed or cleared. All group members must be outside of the instance for it to reset, and this is typically done to allow the group to attempt the instance again, often with fresh loot drops and respawned enemies.
WSG. Warsong Gulch: A 10v10 PvP battleground where players compete to capture the enemy’s flag while defending their own. It’s a capture-the-flag style game, with factions divided into the Silverwing Sentinels and Warsong Outriders.
World Boss: Powerful outdoor bosses that spawn randomly in the world, often requiring large groups or even multiple guilds to defeat. These bosses are highly contested, and their fights often trigger World PvP as players from opposing factions compete for the kill.
World PvP: Player-versus-player combat that takes place in open-world zones, outside of structured battlegrounds or arenas. It often occurs in contested areas or near objectives, where players from opposing factions can engage in spontaneous fights.
Comments