Shorthand / Acronym reference Guide?

Is there a listing of the abbreviations that are used on the site?

As I stated in my introduction post I have never done PbP before and have only been playing for about a year now, I haven't yet found a public game to check out to see how a game would flow and what are the general expectations. But would love to at least get a handle on the abbreviations so I don't have to interrupt a game every time something comes up that I don't have a clue what it means.

These are just a sample of what I mean, I am sure there are dozens of terms that are common on the site. Serious Noob here!

Pathfinder 1e is the only game I know so if you have any that are specific to that system I would appreciate it.

RAW= ?
IC=?

I'm not aware of a list, but RAW means "Rules As Written" and describes the exact letter of the rules. Often used opposed to RAI - Rules As Intended.

For example, you might say "By RAW this game feature allows your character to do this, but clearly by RAI, your character shouldn't be able to do this."

IC means "In Character" and refers to writing from your character's point of view, such as: '"Argh" growled Grog as he swung with his axe.' OoC means Out Of Character and is usually meant for the players voice, like 'I can't wait to level up Grog so he can axe even better.'

Actually I found this is a glossary of RPG terms including acronyms. Might be helpful, although it is not specific to this forum or PbP (play by post, heh).

Of the top of my head:
LFP means Looking For Player(s). Sometimes it's used in the Games Tavern in a post where a Game Master is looking for new players to join a game.

Similarly, LFG means Looking For a Game and is sometimes used by a player looking for a particular type of game.

As you come across ones that aren't on lenpelltier's list, then post them here and someone will likely clarify for you.

Thank you for bringing it up. Personally, I hate it when shorthand becomes dominant, as it is exclusive to anyone who doesn't know the shorthand.
I could understand the use in text messaging and tweets, where there was a maximum amount of characters per post, but that is seldom the issue this day and age.
Now it is just sloppy writing.

It's just a thing that inevitably happens. Language evolves even inside a community and some terms become so commonplace that some people don't even think about them anymore (GM or RPG come to mind). Having an easily accessible guide is a great idea and so is trying to limit the use of terms that may be less familiar to newcomers. There are some subreddits for example where I just can't read any of the posts becaue they are so full of shorthand (that often isn't explained anywhere either) that it's impossible for new people to access them.

Try this list: Index of Public Games. While it isn't comprehensive (games are added in a volunteer basis only), there are quite a few in different styles.

I think the best way to figure out how games work is to join one. Make sure they know you're new, and if you have any questions, ask your DM. I can't speak for all of them, but I find most DMs have no problem working through issues or answering questions. They'll also tell you what their expectations for participation are.

The best trait I find a player can have is enthusiasm. Jump in with both feet into game, everyone will have a better time for it.

Yeah some of them are easy to figure out, others are not.
I played Everquest 15-20 years ago and had to learn L33t speech lol, some of the same abbreviations mean something else here.

Thanks for the info everyone

Whenever you have a specific question, feel free to ask it and someone will help you out. It's just hard to come up with a full list. I only ever remember those acronyms when I see them 😅

Will say do let me know if I ever use something you don't know and I will explain, and I think most will. I am used to occasionally using words that other don't . Most of us are happy to explain.

Man, I remember Everquest! I was there about 2000 or 2001, and yeah, the struggle to understand acronyms and lingo was quite real back then. It was my first MMO, so when someone shouted "TRAIN", I didn't know what that meant and got immediately flattened.

Ahh, memories...

Lol yeah I played 2000-2006 and a lot of memories for sure