Dungeons and Dragons players, like any hobbyists, tend to use lots of hobby-specific abbreviations. Below, I’ve included some of the abbreviations you’re likely to see on my blog and on other Dungeons and Dragons sites.
4e, 3.5e, 3e, 2e: D&D editions (4th edition, 3.5 edition, etc.)
AC: Armor Class (PC defense against normal attacks)
AD&D: Advanced Dungeons and Dragons (as I understand it, this is basically first edition)
AOE: Area of Effect (a spell that affects several squares on the board, often dealing damage to all enemies in that area)
DM: Dungeon Master (the person “running” the game)
DMG: Dungeon Master’s Guide (a WotC book that explains how to be a DM)
DMG1, DMG2: Dungeon Master’s Guide 1 and Dungeon Master’s Guide 2 (a third is on the way)
D&D or Dnd: Dungeons and Dragons
D&DI: D&D Insider (WotC’s subscription service for D&D tools and info)
DPR: Damage per Round (the amount of damage a character can deal in a round, or a character that focuses on dealing lots of damage)
DPS: Damage per Second (a term from World of Warcraft that some D&D players use to mean the same thing as Damage per Round)
FLGS: Friendly Local Game Store (retailers who carry D&D supplies and typically host games)
FRW: Fortitude, Reflex, Will (the three non-Armor Class defenses a character has)
GM: Game Master (the non-D&D specific version of DM)
HP: Hit Points (how much damage a creature or player can take before dying)
LFR: Living Forgotten Realms (a series of D&D games held in game stores)
Mini: Miniature (a small statue in real life or a small image online that represents a character or monster)
MM, MM1, MM2, MM3: Monster Manual 1, 2 and 3 (books that provide information on monsters for characters to fight)
NAD: Non-Armor Class Defenses (Fortitude, Will, Reflex – defenses against special attacks)
NPC: Non-Player Character (in-game characters controlled by the DM)
PC: Player Character (the in-game character that a player controls)
PHB: Player’s Handbook (a WotC book that explains the rules of D&D for players)
PHB1, PHB2, PHB3: The three different Player’s Handbooks
RPG: Role-Playing Game (such as D&D)
TPK: Total Party Kill (when all of the characters are wiped out in a battle)
WotC: Wizards of the Coast (the company that publishes D&D)
XP: Experience Points (the reward for progressing in D&D; when players earn enough, they level up)
what CMS mean on character sheet
It stands for “Comeliness” which is a stat for how attractive a hardcore is. I’ve never used it, personally.
http://www.dandwiki.com/wiki/Comeliness_(3.5e_Variant_Rule)
On a character sheet was does “cha”, “cr”, “mr”, “per”, “ren”, and “spd” mean?
CHA is Charisma
SPD is Speed
Unfortunately, I don’t know what the other abbreviations mean.
ASI is Ability Score Improvement, corrent?
I honestly don’t know! I haven’t personally played much D&D in the last few years, so I don’t know what abbreviations have become common more recently.
Great Idea! Acronym database for D&D only. I was hoping to find the meaning of “DCI” on your site. Can’t find it on WotC site or on acronymfinder.com.
DCI originally stood for Duelists Convocation International, which was the name Wizards of the Coast gave to the group they ran for organizing and overseeing tournaments (mainly for Magic: The Gathering, but I believe there was some involvement with D&D as well). Eventually they decided that they didn’t love the full name, so they made it into an abbreviation that doesn’t stand for anything officially.
Charter sheet trnd?
What does m stand for
I’m not sure – can you provide some context?
I just bought a 1979 mono B1 “In Search of the Unknown”… somebody has filled in the monsters and treasures with pencil. Each monster has a HP designation but then it also states “DM 27” or “DM 31” etc. I haven’t played since 1982 and can’t recall what that would stand for… help!
Ooh, that was before my time. My guess is that it might be a reference to a page in the Dungeon Master’s Guide, maybe where there’s information about how a particular monster ability works, but that is only a guess.
If someone has a wood gnome rogue with a short bow & long sword and ykphl? What does ykphl mean?
I have no idea, I’m sorry! I wonder if it’s either a typo (though for what I’m not sure) or an abbreviation.
On my magic item it says EQ and AT what does that mean?
I believe AT is Attunement – some magic items (often special artifacts) have to be “attuned” to the user in order to function well.
I’m not sure about EQ – perhaps a note as to whether it’s Equipped or not?
Thanks for this work.
Do you know what MWK means for a weapon ?
Hi, what does SV Fort +7; Ref +3 mean?
SV refers to a saving throw. Fort is Fortitude and Ref is Reflex.
What BR means? On my character sheet I see:
Ability Score Increase • BR 23
* Elf Weapon Training • BR 23
You have proficiency with the longsword, shortsword, shortbow, and longbow.
* Cantrip • BR 24
You know one cantrip of your choice from the wizard spell list. INT is your spellcasting ability for it.
thanks in advance!
I believe BR is a reference to the Basic Rules document for D&D 5th Edition. The number is likely the page on which you can find the information.