- BG: Battlegrounds
Battlegrounds were added by Blizzard in order to give players a good environment to compete against the other faction. There are four battlegrounds: Warsong Gulch, Arathi Basin, Alterac Valley and Eye of the Storm.
- bur
To speakers of Orcish, "lol" will appear as "bur" when it is spoken in Common.
- FTW: For The Win
Used to cheer on factions or concepts: “Horde FTW!” or “Pallies FTW!” indicate that the player wants the Horde or Paladins to succeed. Compare against FTL, “For The Loss.”
- gank: gang kill
Ganking is the act of attacking a player who is unable to defend themselves, whether because they are of substantially lower level, they are already in combat with a monster or another player, or because you attack them with a group of people. Although ganking is fun, it is also one of the most frustrating things to do to a player, and can immediately sour a newbie on Warcraft.
- HK: Honorable Kill
An honorable kill earns a player honor, which can lead to promotions. Honorable kills result from killing members of the opposite faction within a reasonable level range of the player. Killing people far below the player’s level are dishonorable kills, and cause the player to lose honor.
- kek
To speakers of Common, "lol" will appear as "kek" when it is spoken in Orcish.
- pally: Paladin
A holy warrior, playable by humans, dwarves, Draenei, and blood elves; originally, the Alliance complement of the shaman. The only healer class that can wear plate mail. Paladins are better suited for raids than shamans.
- PK: Player Kill or Player Killer
A player kill is when a player kills another player.
- PvE: Player versus Environment
In PvE play, players focus on killing computer-controlled enemies and completing quests, rather than competing against other players. Some servers are specifically PvE.
- PvP: Player versus Player
In PvP play, players focus on competing with other players. Some servers are specifically PvP. On other servers, players must specifically “flag” themselves for PvP combat before members of the opposite faction can attack them. On PvP servers, players are constantly flagged.
- red
The other side. So called because the enemy faction's names will appear in red, while the friendly faction's names appear in blue.
- RP: Roleplaying
In roleplaying, players attempt to immerse themselves in the game world. They have their character speak authentically, profess worldviews and beliefs that their character would have, and in other ways try to act realistically for their role. Roleplaying servers are the only servers on which players will walk everywhere instead of running.
- shammy: Shaman
A mystical spellcaster, playable by trolls, Tauren, Orcs, and Draenei; originally, the Horde complement of the paladin. Shamans wear mail, and have an enormous variety of abilities, though they may be weaker than other classes'. Shamans are better suited for PvP play than paladins.