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Archive-name: games/dnd/part5
Posting-frequency: monthly Last-modified: June 2002 URL: http://www.enteract.com/~aardy/faq/rgfdfaq.html See reader questions & answers on this topic! - Help others by sharing your knowledge
REC.GAMES.FRP.DND FAQ
Part 5
Glossary
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* designates topics which have been updated.
+ designates topics which have been added.
G1: What do those weird abbreviations mean?
G2: How do you pronounce...?
G3: How do you spell...?
G4: What is a "newbie"?
G5: What is a "Spoiler"?
G6: What is bandwidth? How does one waste it?
G7: What is "fluff?"
G8: Who's this "Monty Haul" character I keep hearing about?
G9: What is "munchkinism"? What does the Wizard of Oz have to do with
*D&D?
G10: What is "Spam"?
G11: When is a troll not green, rubbery, or regenerative?
G12: Are there any other terms I should be aware of?
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G1: What do those weird abbreviations mean?
A: Here is a guide to the most common abbreviations and acronyms found
on rec.games.frp.dnd. The first list is those terms which are
found almost exclusively in posts to rec.games.frp.dnd and/or the
entire rec.games.frp.* hierarchy. The second list is those terms
which are in general use on Usenet and the rest of the Internet.
Gaming-Related
*D&D Any version of the D&D game
AD&D, ADnD Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, any edition
AD&D1 Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, 1st edition
AD&D2 Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, 2nd edition
AD&D2R Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, revised 2nd edition
AD&D2.5 Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, revised 2nd edition
ADND-L AD&D discussion mailing list
AoE Area of Effect
AoO Attack of Opportunity
BD&D, BDnD Basic Dungeons & Dragons, as opposed to Advanced D&D
BoA Book of Artifacts
BR Birthright
C*HB Complete <class> Handbook series
Fighter's, Priest's, Thief's, Wizard's, Psionics,
Ranger's, Bard's, Druid's, Paladin's, Barbarian's,
Necromancer's, Ninja's
CB* Complete Book of <race> series
Elves, Dwarves, Gnomes & Halflings, Humanoids
CT, C&T Player's Option: Combat & Tactics
D&D, DnD Dungeons & Dragons, any version except Advanced
D&D3 Dungeons & Dragons, 3rd edition (the successor of
Advanced Dungeons & Dragons)
DDG Deities and Demigods
DL DragonLance
DMG Dungeon Masters Guide, any edition
DMG1 Dungeon Masters Guide, 1st edition
DMG2 Dungeon Masters Guide, 2nd edition
DMG2R Dungeon Masters Guide, Revised 2nd edition
DMG3 Dungeon Masters Guide, 3rd edition
DMO Dungeon Master's Option book(s)
DotF Defenders of the Faith
DS Dark Sun
FR Forgotten Realms
FRCS Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting (3rd ed.)
GAMA GAme Manufacturers Association
GH Greyhawk
GM Game Master
HLC Dungeon Master's Option: High-Level Campaigns
HW Hollow World
IC In Character
IMC In My Campaign
IYC In Your Campaign
L&L, LL Legends & Lore
LC Living Campaign (RPGA campaign usually found at cons)
LD, LDU Level-Drain, Level-Draining Undead
LG Living Greyhawk (RPGA campaign usually found at cons)
LK Lankhmar
MC Monstrous Compendium (usually followed by the appendix
number)
MM Monster Manual/Monstrous Manual
MMII Monster Manual II
MoP Manual of the Planes
MotW Masters of the Wild
MPGN ftp.mpgn.com, the Multi-Player Gaming Network site
MUD Multiple-User Dungeon
OA Oriental Adventures
OD&D, ODnD Old/Original D&D, as opposed to the later Advanced D&D
OOC Out Of Character
PBeM Play By E-Mail
PBWWW Play By World Wide Web
PH Player's Handbook, any edition
PH1 Player's Handbook, 1st edition
PH2 Player's Handbook, 2nd edition
PH2R Player's Handbook, Revised 2nd edition
PH3 Player's Handbook, 3rd edition
PO Player's Option books
PrC Prestige Class
PS Planescape
rgfd Rec.games.frp.dnd
rgf.* Rec.games.frp.* hierarchy
RL Ravenloft
RPGA Role-Playing Gamers' Association
S&F Sword & Fist
S&S Song & Silence
SP, S&P Player's Option: Skills & Powers
Sp&M, SPaM Player's Option: Spells & Magic
SRD System Reference Document, the rules of d20/3rd ed. D&D
3e Dungeons & Dragons, 3rd edition
T&B Tome & Blood
ToM Tome of Magic
ToVK Tome of Vast Knolwedge (computer program)
UA Unearthed Arcana
WoG, WG World of Greyhawk
WotC Wizards of the Coast
General
:-) Smiley (tilt your head 90 degrees); with endless
variations
AFAIK As Far As I Know
BTW By The Way
CFV Call For Votes
F2F Face-to-Face
FTR For The Record
FWIW For What It's Worth
FYI For Your Information
HAND Have A Nice Day
HTH Hope That Helps
IDH(T)*IFOM I Don't Have (The) <product> In Front Of Me
IIRC If I Remember Correctly
IME In My Experience
IMHO In My Humble/Honest Opinion (but rarely actually is)
IMNSHO In My Not-So-Humble Opinion
IOW In Other Words
IRC Internet Relay Chat (realtime text-based conferencing
system)
LOL Laughing Out Loud
Ob... Obligatory reference to... (e.g. ObD&D, ObCthulhu, in a
post otherwise about something else)
REQ Request
RFC Request For Comments
RFD Request For Discussion
ROTFL Rolling On The Floor Laughing
RTFM Read The F***ing Manual!
SO Significant Other (i.e. date/fiance(e)/spouse)
STFW Search the F***ing Web!
TANSTAAFL There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch
TPTB The Powers That Be
WRT With Regard/Respect To
YHBT You Have Been Trolled
YMMV Your Mileage May Vary
G2: How do you pronounce...?
A: Here are some commonly mispronounced words, with their dictionary
pronunciations, where available, and common practice/TSR rulings where
not. For more general pronunciation help, see the article "Ay
pronunseeAYshun gyd" by Frank Mentzer in Dragon #93 (Jan. 1985); for
help pronouncing Forgotten Realms-specific words and names, see the
Forgotten Realms box set; for help pronouncing the names of the
various Tanar'ri and Baatezu types, see MC8 Outer Planes Appendix
or the Planescape MC appendices.
Note: the "correct" pronunciation of Drow is taken from Page 9 of
_A Grand Tour of the Realms_ (2nd edition Forgotten Realms boxed set)
where it states, "Dark elves, also called Drow (pronounced to rhyme
with now or how)..."
Aarakocra = a-rah-KO-krah
Arquebus = AR-keh-bus (like "Masque of the Red Death")
Baatezu = bay-AH-teh-zu
Bardiche = bar-DEESH
Bulette = boo-LAY
Catoblepus = kuht-OH-bleh-puhs, also kah-TA-ble-pus
Chatkcha = CHAT-k-cha [Thri-keen throwing weapon]
Chimaera = ky-MAEE-ruh, or ky-MAI-ruh (rhymes with "care of")
Chimera = ky-MIER-uh, or kuh-MIER-uh ("MIER" rhymes with pier)
Chitin = KITE-in
Cuirass = KWEE-rass
Drow = DROU (as in drowsy), (however, DROH is often heard anyway)
Dweomer = DWEH-mer (rhymes with "hem her"), or DWIH-mer
Falchion = FAL-shee-on
FAQ = FACK, eff-ay-cue, or, as sometimes heard on
rec.arts.comics.marvel.xbooks, fuh-cue
Geas = GEE-ass, or GYASS (both with a hard "g")
Gygax = GY-gaks
Halberd = HAL-berd, (not HAL-bread)
Herb = ERB
Ioun = EYE-oon
Iuz = YOOZ, or EE-uz
Ixitxachitl = iks-it-ZATCH-i-til, or ik-zit-zah-chih-tull
Lich = LITCH (as in ditch), *not* LIKE or LICK
Lycanthrope = LY-kun-throhp, LY-kan-throhp (like lichen rope/my tan
rope)
Lycanthropy = ly-KAN-thruh-pee
Mage = MAGE (as in age), *not* MADGE (as in badger)
Mana = MA-nah (MA = as in cat), MAH-nah
Melee = Either MAY-lay (preferred), may-LAY, or meh-LAY
Otyugh = AHT-yuhg
Palladium = puh-LAY-dee-um
Sahuagin = sah-HWAH-ghin
Scythe = SYTH (rhymes with tithe)
Svirfneblin = svirf-NEB-lin
Tanar'ri = tah-NAHR-ree
Tarrasque = tar-RASK (like "Masque of the Red Death")
THAC0 = Either THAK-oh (preferred), or THAKE-oh
Wyvern = WIH-vern (as in did), or WHY-vern
Vargouille = var-GWEEL
Vrock = vrahk
Zaknafein = zack-NAY-fee-in
G3: How do you spell...?
A: Some tricky spellings from the world of fantasy roleplaying:
aarakocra dispel medieval rogue
Baatezu dweomer mythoi Tanar'ri
Cthulhu falchion paladin tarrasque
deity/deities ixitxachitl rakshasa thief
G4: What is a "newbie"?
A: A newbie is person who is new to the Internet, to Usenet, or just to
the newsgroup in question, and makes all of the silly mistakes many
people make when they first began using the Internet. Its use on the
Internet originated in the MUDs, and has spread from there. One can
avoid many of these mistakes by reading through the files listed in
the Note to New Users at the beginning of this FAQ and taking their
advice to heart, and by reading this group for several weeks before
making your first post, in order to get a feel for the atmosphere of
the group as well as for what is and is not allowed here. The
opposite of "newbie" is "dino" (as in "dinosaur," not as in the
Flintstone's pet).
G5: What is a "Spoiler"?
A: When someone tells you how a movie you haven't seen before is going to
end, he has "spoiled" it for you; your ability to enjoy a good
surprise has been severely impaired. The same idea works in the
gaming world. If you wish to post any details about any TSR products,
please include the word SPOILER in the subject, and leave a full page
of blank space, either by inserting a form feed character (which does
not display correctly on most machines) or by hitting Return about 20
times. This is especially appropriate for descriptions of modules
("We just finished S4; had a dickens of a time opening those pesky
doors, but here's how we did it..."), because there will always be
people on Usenet who have not played that module, or who are currently
running through that module. Most DM's do not enjoy it when someone
else gives their groups all the details of their next few adventures.
So no matter how old a module is, always include spoiler warnings if
you are divulging any vital details.
Including spoiler warnings is also appropriate when discussing
novels, movies, some sourcebooks, and such. In general, use your best
judgement; if there is a detail that could affect others' games ("Iuz
gets killed by Rary in the latest GH box set, _Good Triumphs At
Last_!"), then be sure to include spoiler warning, whether or not you
think that everyone must have already read the item you are
discussing.
G6: What is bandwidth? How does one waste it?
A: Bandwidth is the amount of information that can be moved over a cable.
The transfer of information over the Internet is limited by the
physical limitations of the cables the information is transmitted
through; thus, a post to Usenet which, for example, merely quotes back
the entire 300 lines of a previous post and adds "I agree" to the
bottom takes up space in the cables which could better be used by
other posts. If enough bandwidth is wasted, no other posts can get
through, as the cables would already be transmitting their maximum
amount of data. New technology in cable manufacture has made it a
challenge to even come close to using up all the bandwidth in most
areas, but that still doesn't make it a good idea to take up lots of
space with frivolous posts. In fact, the ever-increasing number of
posts to Usenet has resulted in some systems reducing the expiration
times on posts to only a couple days; thus it is not all that
difficult for an increase of "worthless" posts to push "worthwhile"
posts out the end of many servers before people on those sites have a
chance to read the good posts.
G7: What is "fluff?"
A: Fluff is a term used for stories written and distributed on the
Internet. In the case of rec.games.frp.dnd, it takes the form of
stories based on the results of role-playing sessions. Some people
like reading fluff, some don't mind it, and some rabidly detest it.
If you feel you must post your fluff, please put STORY: at the
beginning of the subject line so that is can be easily found or
avoided, as the case may be. This is ok for one-shot short stories,
but if you are writing longer works, such as stories based on entire
campaigns, then please do not post the chapters to rgfd. Instead,
if you feel you must post them to Usenet, post them in
rec.games.frp.archives, wait for the moderator to post them, and then
post a note in rgfd stating that anyone who wishes to read your story
may find it in rec.games.frp.archives. A much better solution these
days is to get yourself a web page (<http://geocities.yahoo.com> is
one place that provides free web space), put your chapters there, then
add a line containing the URL of your web page to your Usenet signature
file.
G8: Who's this "Monty Haul" character I keep hearing about?
A: Monty Hall was the host of the 60's & 70's, and 90's American game
show _Let's Make a Deal_. People would dress up in silly costumes,
then be chosen out of the crowd to play the game. Monty would give
the lucky contestant a handful of money, then talk them into trading
the money for whatever was behind door number one, door number two,
door number three, or what was in the box, or they could just keep the
money. Each time they traded, he would give them another choice.
After they decided to stick with a choice, Monty revealed what had
been won. Prizes could be anything, good or bad, such as money, cars,
jewelry, a years supply of auto wax, goats, inner tubes, exotic
vacations, a pound of confetti, etc. Gary Gygax named the style of
play where game masters hid treasures behind some doors, monsters
behind others and then let the players choose their fate "Monty Haul"
gaming, making a pun on the game show host's name.
The term has come to be used to refer to sessions where game masters
encourage munchkin players; basically any game can be considered a
Monty Haul game where the game master sets up unfathomable amounts of
treasure and earth-shattering magic items guarded by weak and wimpy
monsters, thus giving enormous amounts of power to beginning-level
characters.
G9: What is "munchkinism?" What does the Wizard of Oz have to do with
*D&D?
A: Munchkinism is often confused with Monty Haul gaming in that both
involve incredibly high power levels with a minimum of risk. However,
where Monty Haul is usually the fault of the GM, munchkinism is
usually the demesne of players, although one can encourage the other.
Munchkin players often view the game as a contest which can be won,
and done with a minimum of struggle and uncertainty. The player is
winning when he defeats everything the DM throws at the character and
does so without breaking a sweat. Thus, having a character who can
deal out large amounts of damage every round is more pleasurable, as
it gives the player a better chance of "winning." Some DM's foster
this "them vs. me" type of atmosphere (especially Monty Haul DM's),
but it is usually not the DM's fault. Well, it somewhat is, as the DM
has to allow the character in the first place, but it is the player
who has the real problem here.
Munchkin characters are created by "min/maxing," or rather, "rules
rape," wherein the player finds any and all advantages the rules (and
especially any loopholes contained therein) allow the character, with
few, if any drawbacks. They are also outfitted with the equivalent
magic items of an entire party of many, many more levels of
experience. Such characters tend to be ultra-powerful, and can
destroy whole armies in one round. Any such character choices are
made solely from a power-level standpoint, and not from a role-playing
point of view.
This is not to say that all "power gaming" is munchkin and bad, as
it is possible and common for a group to decide to run a campaign with
incredibly high amounts of power, yet have it contain just as much
challenge and roleplaying as any other campaign. The enemies are
usually as well equipped as the players, and are played extremely
intelligently, to boot. With this kind of game, there is actually
some question as to whether or not any or all of the characters could
survive a given encounter, but the point is not basic survival, but a
balance of power and role-playing. Characters also tend to have
character flaws of some sort which balance out the power level in some
meaningful role-playing-based way. In addition, most of the
characters in a "power game" environment actually have to work (and
role-play) for each and every powerful item they gain, instead of
turning into a walking magic shop when "my two rich uncles just willed
all of their magic items to me," or some such. A stress is put on
role-playing, so that the game isn't just all "power" and no "game."
However, it is easy to fall into the trap of treating such a game like
an arcade game--blast all the baddies into oblivion and you win! It
is at that point, when the power, and not role-playing, is all that
matters that a power game becomes munchkinism.
Munchkin characters usually come to light when a player wishes to
bring in a favorite character who was "allowed" in a previous GM's
campaign, one with the maximum ability scores, proficiencies,
abilities, and enough magic and special items to take out both Death
Stars simultaneously from across the galaxy.
No one seems to know exactly how such characters have come to be
identified with the tiny folk from L. Frank Baum's books, but it
probably has something to do with the sheer annoyance factor such
characters exude. Another theory is that, since it seems that most
munchkin players are the younger set of players, say pre-teens and
down, that someone's term for people younger than themselves morphed
into a term for the type of players described above, and has since
changed meaning to also include the characters created by such
players.
G10: What is "Spam"?
A: Spam is a meat-like product (the word is an abbreviation of "SPiced
hAM"), rumored to contain a mixture of ham and pork, made popular
when it was distributed to soldiers on the fronts during World War
II. It was also the focus of a sketch on _Monty Python's Flying
Circus_ involving a diner which featured meals such as "spam, egg,
spam, spam, bacon and spam" and "spam, spam, spam, spam, spam, spam,
baked beans, spam, spam, spam, and spam". Also in the diner were
several Vikings, who would break into "The Spam Song" whenever
someone mentioned "Spam". Trying to find anything in that diner
which was not Spam quickly became quite difficult.
This idea has been carried over onto Usenet, so that when someone
posts the same thing in thousands of newsgroups, or when one person
(or a group of people) fill up a newsgroup with off-topic posts or
many copies of the same off-topic post, it is called "spamming the
net"; the individual posts are called "spam".
G11: When is a troll not green, rubbery, or regenerative?
A: When someone is posts a message to a Usenet newsgroup with the sole
intention of inciting anger. This comes from a fishing term;
a fishermen who pulls a hook through the water is said to be trolling
for bites. Usenet trolls are usually messages which contain no
content except for crass insults and flames of the topic of a
particular newsgroup and the people who frequent that group, or which
intentionally raise touchy topics in insensitive ways.
Some trolls are more insidious, especially when the person behind
them actually puts some thought into his actions. These trolls aren't
as blatant, and tend to take the form of someone who appears on a
group, posts a few on-topic messages, then begins posting things which
the group has made known are not tolerated there. Eventually the
person starts throwing in little jibes and insults at the people who
try to inform him that such posts are inappropriate, trying to see if
he can really make people mad, then leaving to do the same to other
newsgroups just as the entire group explodes into a flamewar.
Trolls will not be tolerated in rec.games.frp.dnd. If you see a
post which appears to be a troll, ignore it. If you see a poster who
consistently seems to do little else but try to get on people's
nerves, ignore him. Don't bother wasting your breath, sanity, and
connect time on such drivel. These people are often just looking for
attention, and will usually eventually move on to other groups if
they don't get it.
G12: Are there any other terms I should be aware of?
A: Here are a few quick looks at some other potentially mystifying terms:
kill file: A file usable in several popular newsreaders which allows
one to filter out disliked topics or posters. Also, "to killfile"
lurker: someone who reads a newsgroup but does not post. Also, "to
lurk"
Real Soon Now(TM): Anytime between right now and a decade from now.
Came into use because products which are running late are always
mentioned as being ready to ship "real[ly] soon now"
September: This is the time of year when the net experiences a large
influx of newbies due to college freshmen getting internet accounts.
The term is also used whenever a large access provider, such as AOL,
Compuserve, or Delphi, first allows Usenet access for its users.
signal-to-noise ratio: On Usenet, this is the proportion of useful
articles to useless ones. In order that the most people might
enjoy reading this group, please try to keep the signal as high as
possible and the noise as low as possible.
If you've gotten this far and still haven't found an explanation
for a particular word, phrase, or acronym that you just can't figure
out, try the Jargon File (of hacker slang and net.speak), at
<http://www.tuxedo.org/~esr/jargon/index.html>, or see the NetLingo
Internet dictionary at <http://www.netlingo.com/>; chances are good
that one of those pages lead to the answer you are looking for.
***End Part 5***
--
Aardy R. DeVarque
Feudalism: Serf & Turf
Rec.games.frp.dnd FAQ: http://www.enteract.com/~aardy/faq/rgfdfaq.html
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