Acronyms

 A list of acronyms I tend to use. Pretty much all of them are pretty standard. However I do not want to assume that all my readers are fully immersed in OSR and D&D culture.

BB - Big Bad. See BBEG, they are synonyms usually used interchangably.

BBEG - Big Bad Evil Guy/Gal. A term to describe a major recurring adversary, usually the chief villain or antagonist.

D&D - Dungeons and Dragons. If you don't know what this is, you are definitely in the wrong blog.

DM - Dungeon Master. A person who organizes and oversees the playing of the fantasy role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons, in particular by narrating the details of the story that are not controlled by the players. Other games might call that role Storyteller, Game Master, Referee.

DMPC - Dungeon Master Player Character. A Dungeon Master controller Player Character. Note that the difference between a Non Player Character and a Dungeon Master Player Character is a fine line. Usually a DMPC is part of the party, or plays a very central role in adventures that the party engages in.

GM - Game Master. See DM entry. They are synonyms depending on the tabletop game.

NPC - Non Player Character. An NPC is any character in a game that is not controlled by a player. Almost always NPCs are controlled by a Dungeon Master. However there are occasions that an NPC is controlled by a player or an actual person that is not the DM. NPCs usually play auxiliary roles tabletop games. Usually their importance will vary, from the farmer passing by the party with his donkey to the main villain of the campaign, or the patron protector of the party.

OGL - Open Game License. A legal agreement with Wizards of the Coast about being able to use game content...without getting sued.

OSR - Old School Renaissance or Old School Revival depending on who you ask.  It's a trend in tabletop role-playing games which draws inspiration from the earliest days of tabletop RPGs in the 1970s, especially Dungeons & Dragons.

PC - Player Character. A fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player.

RAI - Rules are Intended. The intended use of the rules instead of the literal wording of the rules. See RAW.

RAW - Rules as Written. The literal wording of the rules. See RAI.

XP - Experience Points. A way of measuring progress in roleplaying games. Not all games use XP, and not all games even call it XP. For example Shadowrun calls it Karma Points. XP is usually used to level up or increase the Player Characters overall power.