List of StarCraft terminology

As StarCraft pertains to the internet gaming subculture, gamers and patrons use some unique words and to describe things, situations, and events. Often it is used to shorten and acronym words so that a message can be delivered more easily and rapidly. This list includes terms unique to StarCraft utilized by its gamers and excludes common internet slang (such as noob, lol, ownage, etc.)

#

 * 0-12 - Numbers given like on a clock to state the enemy position
 * XvX / XvsX - (X = player number on team. E.g, [X = 3, 3v3])
 * Xs' - XvX
 * X before building (E.g. 8 sd 10 rax) - Order in build

A

 * ac - Allied chat
 * ac on - Ally Chat your teammate(s)
 * apm - Actions per minute
 * arb - Arbiter
 * arc - Archon
 * av - Allied victory
 * ae - Allied end

B

 * bat - Firebat
 * bay - Engineering bay
 * bc - Battlecruiser
 * BGH - Big Game Hunters
 * bioball - a cluster of terran biological units
 * bling - Baneling
 * bm - Bad manners
 * bnet - Battle.net
 * bnetx - B.net:X, the 'private' PGTour server
 * bo - Build order
 * bs - Backstab
 * bser - Backstabber
 * bw - Brood War

C

 * cc - Command center
 * Cannon Whore - Used to refer to a player who masses large amounts of static defense, particularly photon cannons
 * car - Carrier
 * ceptor - Interceptor
 * choke - the narrow entrance to ones base
 * chon - Archon
 * compstomp - A game name to describe a situation where the human players outnumber and are against the computer player(s) for easy wins
 * cr - Cannon Rush
 * crackling - Zergling with both spawning pool upgrades

D

 * D - Defense
 * da - Dark archon
 * def - Defense / Defiler
 * depot - Supply depot
 * dra - Hydralisk
 * drop - The act of a shuttle, dropship, or overlord unloading units inside an opponents base, mainly to get one's mins.
 * dt - Dark templar
 * Doom Drop - Special type of drop in which a zerg player loads 50-60 zerglings/cracklings inside 8-9 overlords, then performs the drop
 * dd - Don't die

E

 * east - USEast
 * eco/econ - Economy
 * expo - Expansion
 * ebay - Engineering bay
 * eyes - detector

F

 * fact - Factory
 * fast/fastest - Fastest Map Possible
 * fbat - Firebat
 * fmp - Fastest Map Possible
 * fort - Planetary fortress

G

 * gas - Vespene gas
 * gate - Gateway
 * GG - A term meaning "Good Game" it usually means surrender in StarCraft tournaments.
 * gols - Goliaths
 * goon - Dragoon
 * gosu - Superior StarCraft player.
 * guards - Guardians
 * gl hf - good luck have fun (typically said at match start)

H

 * hasu - StarCraft player of below-average skill.
 * hatch - Hatchery
 * High Temp/HT/Temp High templar
 * hydra - Hydralisk

L

 * ling - Zergling
 * lot - Zealot
 * lurk - Lurker
 * LT - Lost Temple

M

 * M3/MMM - Marines, Marauders, and Medivacs
 * M&M - A combination of medics and marines
 * macro - Macromanagement
 * main - Starting nexus, hatchery, or command center
 * mball - marine/marauder "ball"
 * mc - Mind Control
 * mech - Factory-built units
 * micro - Micromanagement
 * mins - Minerals
 * MS - Mothership
 * muta - Mutalisk

N

 * natural/nat - Closest expansion to a player's main
 * noob - Unskilled StarCraft player
 * nrX - No Rush X Minutes (X can be mm [map max])
 * nuke - A nuclear missile / Nuclear strike
 * nuker - ghost

O

 * obs/obz - Observer. Can refer to the actual unit (can be extended to include any detector) or a player observer who spectates on a game without participating.
 * orb - Orbital command
 * ore - Minerals
 * ovie - Overlord
 * oj - Orange (color)

P

 * PF - Planetary fortress
 * pool - Spawning pool
 * port - Starport
 * pub - Noob
 * Purp - The player color purple
 * PvP - Commonly used in internet gaming to refer to a 'Player vs. Player' situation. More commonly used in StarCraft to refer to a protoss vs. protoss game or a Pick vs Pick game
 * Ppl - People, mostly used in Roleplaying Maps
 * PvT - Protoss vs. Terran
 * PvZ - Protoss vs. Zerg

R

 * ran - Terran
 * rax - Barracks
 * rine - Marine
 * rine whore - someone who masses only marines
 * rj - Rejoin
 * rm/re - Remake
 * robo - Robotics facility
 * rvr - Random vs Random
 * rp - A Roleplaying map

S

 * Sair - Corsair
 * sc - StarCraft
 * scd - Starcraft Dream
 * Sci/SV - Science vessel
 * sd - Supply depot
 * simcity - Building your base so that the buildings are in extremely close proximity for strategic purposes
 * sink - To morph a creep colony into a sunken colony
 * speedling - Zerglings with speed upgraded
 * speedlot - Zealots with speed upgraded
 * sunk - A sunken colony
 * sunk up - Get a lot of sunken colonies

T

 * t - Terran / "top" in a shared base map (Such as Zero Clutter)
 * toss - Protoss
 * tower - xel'naga tower
 * TvB - Top v/s Bottom, a gametype.
 * TvZ - Terran vs Zerg
 * TvP - Terran vs Protoss

U

 * ultra - Ultralisk
 * UMS - Use Map Setting

V

 * Valks - Valkyries
 * vanilla - Original StarCraft (not StarCraft: Brood War)
 * vessel - Science vessel
 * vgt - Vile Gaming Tour
 * Vikes - Vikings
 * vis - Vision, mostly referring to Allied
 * VR - void ray
 * vults - Vultures

W

 * west - USWest
 * worker Any basic worker unit

Z

 * zling - Zergling
 * zlot / lot / zeal / zs - Zealot
 * ZvT - Zerg vs Terran
 * ZvP - Zerg vs Protoss