Abbreviations and Jargon

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RP-Related

    • GM: Short for gamemaster. The person who runs an RP. Synonyms include DM (dungeon master), storyteller, or referee.
    • PC: Player character. The characters that players roleplaying. Any character within the story that is not played by the current GM is technically a PC. Some characters may be PCs at certain times and NPCs at others depending upon who is GMing.
    • NPC: Non-player character. A character who is not controlled by a player, like a shopkeeper, old man, or villan. RPed by the GM. Some NPCs may eventually be used as PCs, but most are not.
    • RP, RPing: Roleplay, roleplaying. Roleplaying involves assuming the role of a character within a fictional story.
    • IC: In character. In character actions are actions that a PC would feasibly take. As an example, most evil characters are not going to be sweet and loving to everyone they meet; to do so would be OOC. It also refers to acting like a character instead of acting as yourself, as in "that was my character--I was speaking IC."
    • OOC: Out of character. Actions which a character would not take realistically, or things that the player would do and not the character. Talking about EXP, hit points, or other game terms is OOC dialogue. It also refers to acting as yourself when you are predominantly assumed to be acting in character, such as breaking character briefly to deliver a joke or comment.
    • Twink: A player who tries to cheat the system in an RP somehow. Numerous synonyms exist, including min-maxer, godmoder, and powergamer, though individual terms might have their own connotations. Twinks are missing the point of RP by trying to "win" and often make the faulty assumption that RPing is a competitive game as opposed to a social storytelling activity.
    • XP: EXP, XP, experience points. An abstract measure of a character's power, experience points are awarded to PCs for achieving their goals, excellent roleplaying on the part of the player, or for other appropriate actions. The GM of an RP is responsible for distributing experience points. When a player has amassed enough experience points to reach certain benchmarks, he or she may gain a level.
    • Level: An abstract measure of a character's power. Characters that are higher in level than others are generally more proficient in their respective skills.
    • Checks: Die rolls used to determine success or failure of an action. The nature of a check varies based on the system used to structure the RP.
    • Metagaming: Referring to game mechanics while IC or using player knowledge to make character decisions. To make reference to an enemy's hit point total is an example of metagaming; another example is taking an action because the player thinks the GM wants the player to do so instead of considering the character's motivations.
    • &: Used as an abbreviation for "Elemaer"; this practice started because on Spleen's Trillian buddy list, buddies with Elemaer characters are sent to the top of alphabetical order with an ampersand before their screenname. Thus, an &CIRP is an Elemaer Character Interaction RP, and the &CT is the Elemaer Character Thread.
    • CIRP: Character interaction RP. These RPs are primarily for conversation or social interaction between characters outside of more dramatic adventures. CIRPs are organized spontaneously by users who wish to participate. Sometimes called "bar RPs" because of the frequency with which they occur in eating or drinking establishments.

Other

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