AFK - Away From Keyboard. People will generally announce they are "afk" when they need to step away from the computer to take care of a personal matter of some type.
Auction House (AH) - A place where goods can be sold between players through an NPC automated merchant / auction system.
Bind on Equip (BoE) - This refers to items that "bind" to the first character to equip it or use it. Other games refer to this as the item being "attuned" or something similar. Once it has been equipped or used, it cannot be traded or given away.
Bind on Pickup (BoP) - This refers to items that "bind" to the first character to pick it up. BoP items cannot be traded or given to any other player. Similar to BoE (Bind on Equip).
Boss - Boss mobs are usually extra powerful beings that are very difficult to kill. Some boss mobs require 1 or more groups to take down. Bosses frequently appear in dungeons or instances, and they tend to have some of the better loot or rewards in an MMO.
Crafting - Game systems that are designed around the creation of goods. Crafted items generally include things like weapons, armor, potions, enchantments, dyes, food, drink, and the like.
Dungeon - A dungeon is a general term for a type of zone or area in a game that is self contained in some sort of structure. It might be a cavern complex, a fortress, a castle, or even an actual dungeon. The term is used in a manner that incorporates more than just "dungeons." Dungeon zones are frequently instanced (see below).
Freemium - A term that is the combination of FREE + PREMIUM. Games of this type are free to play but provide premium services or content at an extra, optional fee.
Grinding - Engaging in a repetitive activity to generate experience points, gold, or items in an efficient manner.
Instance - Instancing is the concept of creating an entire copy of a zone or area that only a specific individual or group of individuals can access at a time. The instanced zone is private to that person or persons, and cannot be accessed by other random players. This is frequently done so the story or scripted events can unfold in a logical manner and not be interfered with by outside players.
Mats - SEE: Materials.
Materials - This term is frequently used when referring to the materials used in a crafting recipe. SEE ALSO: Resources.
Microtransactions - This business model is commonly found in free to play games that offer additional goods or services that can be purchased for an additional fee. Generally, the customer purchases credits or units of token currency in large chunks which are then spent in smaller amounts on optional features, content, items, etc.
MMO - MMO is short for Massively Multiplayer Online, which sounds like a strange term on its own. It is basically a shorter, easier to type, and much easier to say acronym than MMORPG.
MMORPG - Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game. This mouthful of a term was coined early in the MMO industry, and unfortunately it stuck. Many people have tried to come up with alternate terms that were less cumbersome, but the best we have come up with is MMO (See: MMO).
