Glossary

Common Words

These are terms that most players will use and understand in game.

	Description
Botting	Term used for attacking large numbers of bots to gain experience.
Crackbotting	The practice of luring bots into "cracks" or other places in the VO universe where the bots are unable to maneuver, enabling you to kill them relatively easily.
Credit	The basic unit of currency in Vendetta Online.
Exploit	The purposeful use of a broken game element or bug, for gain. (forbidden)
Faction Hit	This occurs when a pilot suffers a (sudden) loss of faction level (not necessarily a significant amount).
Griefing	Deliberately making the game unpleasant for others. Largely subjective.
Ice, yo!	One of those shiny ice asteroids. With the old, smaller, denser sectors people used to absent mindedly smash themselves on these things all the time. The ice asteroids gave more collision damage due to a quirk with their shape. Rabid Panda suggested to the devs that ships give a collision warning for ice roids, hence the term.
Issue	To die in a collision, as with a roid, station, bot or other player, or with the /explode command. The term comes from the game's message for this type of death, "player is having issues."
Jump	The act of going from one sector to another via every ship's intrasystem jump drive. A player must be at least 3000m from any large object to initiate a jump.
log	The act of logging out of VO.
lua	Lua is a scripting language, used to program the bots.
NPC	Non-Player Character. Otherwise known as "bots."
Pie rat	Another term for pirate
Queening	The process of going to hunt for Hive Queens
Roid	The short name for an asteroid. Commonly found in nearly every sector. They will kill you if you run into them at high speeds. Roids will not explode if you shoot at them; they just sit there, acting as obstacles to the unobservant trader or fighter. Minerals can be mined from roids using mining beams.
Roid Warping	Warping into a system and promptly smashing into an asteroid.
Sectors	The squares on the 16 by 16 grid. You can freely travel to any sector in a system, except for the sectors located in and around stars. We're not sure about those sectors yet, but we will figure out soon enough if we can use them eventually.
Space Quake	How VO is referred to at times due to its FPS style of movement and combat. Not all people agree with this description. (This name was much more accurate before the new navigation system came to be.)
Station Mining	The act of dropping mines near stations, killing other players. This is no longer a good idea because the defense bots will destroy the mines, and if someone gets hurt the defense bots will be hostile and you will be labeled KOS.
Suicide Bots	Term for Aerna Seekers whose primary mode of attack is to self destruct near the target.
System	One of 30 named areas, each containing a 16 by 16 grid of sectors. The systems can be viewed by hitting "n" (or whatever is bound to the nav map) and pressing "Zoom to Universe."
Warp	The act of going from one System to another through a wormhole.
Widgets	The cargo available for sale in stations.

Common Abbreviations

These are abbreviations of some of the main events and items in game.

	Description
ALA	Average Level of Aggression.
ATM	At The Moment.
CTF	Capture the Flag. A long gone feature of the game; some vets still pine for it.
CtC	Capture the Cargo. Activity where Itani and Serco try to get the most Purified Xithricite Ore.
FC	Fast Charge powercell.
FF	Friendly fire (being fired on by another player of the same nation)
FM	Forum moderator. Also FiReMaGe, another player.
GF	Good Fight. It's good sportsmanship to commend your adversary for a good fight, whether you've won or lost.
GTG	Got To Go.
HS	Hive Skirmish, a type of mission.
IDV	Itani Defense Vessel.
j/m or jm	"Just a Minute." Often used when someone is in combat and cannot spare the time to write a coherent message.
KOS	Kill on sight.
LENB	Law Enforcement Neutron Blaster. A piece of equipment that is dropped from station guards.
MMOG/ MMORPG	Massively Multi(player) Online (Role Playing) Game.
NW	Nation War. Player event held twice a week in which the different nations fight as groups against each other.
OMW	On my way. If you need assistance from another player, OMW is a common response.
PK	Player kill. (If you have played many other video games, you should know what a PK is.) Player kills give large hits to factions if it happens in a sector where the player is neutral or above. Should the player be disliked by a faction, have fun destroying them over and over.
Prox	Proximity mines. These mines blow if a player gets too close.
rgr	Roger (i.e. "I understand").
rp	Role Playing. This is when a player acts as a character in the game, i.e. pretends they are actually an Itani or Serco. Players can earn respect if done well, but over-doing it can be annoying.
SMV	Serco Military Vessel.
UPK	Union Peace Keeper.
valkjock	A player with an over-sized ego that flies in a valk and kills n00bs.
Vet	Veteran. A player who has been playing for a long time, especially since the alpha testing phase.
VO	Vendetta Online. The game we all know and love.
wc	Wrong channel. Typically this happens when a player types some text into a channel, or chat mode that he/she did not intend to.
WH	Wormhole. These are the inter-galactic phenomena used to move from one system to another. At least two are located in every system, some with more.
Xith	Xithricite Ore.

Ships

These are the player given names to the ships in game. These are used as some names are long and not quickly typed. Please note that this list is not comprehensive of all the ship types in game (e.g. Hornet and Atlas are not included).

	Description
Bus	Bus, short for all ships in the EC series, is a name given due to the original variant's design. Originally from alpha, this term stuck around even after the new models were introduced. The EC-88 and 89 are also known as the "GovBus" or "Free Bus."
Cent	Short for Centurion. A small maneuverable fighter/scout with one or two small weapon ports. The term "IBG" stands for "Itani Border Guardian", the Itani variant. Other variants include the "Rev C" (Orion Centurion Rev C), and "SL" or "Superlight" (Centurion Superlight).
Connie	Short for TPG Constellation Heavy Transport - A large, heavily armored capital-class transport ship. Sometimes found among very large NPC convoys and as a support vessel in Serco and Itani fleets in Medium and Large Border Skirmishes. They also show up as part of the War Convoy Blockades in Ukari and Edras.
Rev	short for Revenant, the first trade ship that becomes available after the EC series. The abbreviation "Rev" is not commonly used due to its similarity to "Rev C", a special Centurion variant. In addition to being a trade vessel, the Revenant deploys a respectable balance of armor, firepower, and maneuverability.
Taur	Short for Centaur, a mid-level trading ship with a large cargo hold and some bombing capabilities. The "Tung Taur" or "Agresso" is a special variant (Tunguska Centaur Agresso).
Tera	Short for TPG Teradon Frigate. An anti-capital ship frigate with four powerful main guns.
Vult	Short for Vulture. Vultures excel in 1v1 combat due to their extremely thin profile, and are the de facto workhorse fighter of the galaxy. Special variants include the "SVG" (Serco Vulture Guardian), "Corvult" (Corvus Vulturius), and "XT" (BioCom Vulture XT).
Hog	Short for Warthog, a medium attack ship. Warthogs are the lightest ship type to deploy a Large weapon port, however mass is a key factor as the Warthog engine is not as powerful as that of an actual bomber. The Warthog mkII is a fast infiniturbo ship that becomes available early on. Special variants include the "TD" (Warthog Territorial Defender) and the "Hound" (Corvus Greyhound).
HAC	Short for Heavy Assault Cruiser: Commonly found among Serco and Itani fleets in the Border Skirmishes.
Valk	Short for Valkyrie, an advanced Itani fighter with superior maneuverability, armor/mass ratio, and firepower. Together with the Vulture, the Valkyrie is often considered one of the best fighters in the galaxy. Special variants include the "Rune" (Valkyrie Rune), "Vengeance" (IDF Valkyrie Vengeance), and the "X1" (Valkyrie X-1).
Tri-flare Valk	A valk with 3 flares (usually sunflares). There can also be a tri-flare of other ships, but the Valk is normally used since it is the best ship for such tactics.
Maud	Short for Marauder, the 48+ cargo trading ship produced for the UIT. Also called Pizza Cutter for its shape. Despite having a large cargo hold, the Marauder is a light ship with great firepower. However, with a full cargo load the Marauder cannot hope to go toe to toe against a dedicated fighter.
Prom	Short for Prometheus, the armored transport made for the Serco. Formidable when used correctly, the Prom resembles an armored slug. Did we mention that this ship is armored? The most feared variant is the "SkyProm" (Serco SkyCommand Prometheus).
Rag	Short for Ragnarok, a heavy bomber used by all needing heavy firepower.
MGC	Short for "Mobile Goliath Cannon", a tongue-in-cheek reference to the legendary guns defending Itani space from the backstory. The MGC is a special Ragnarok all-rocket loadout of 3x Sunflare Launchers and 2x Jackhammer Launchers, or 3x Sunflare Launchers and 2x Screamer Launchers, popularized in alpha.
Moth	Behemoth, The Propeller Group's latest creation. This monster of a ship is perfect for large cargo hauls and big mining ventures. Special variants include the "XC" (TPG Behemoth XC), "Light Moth" (Aeolus Light Behemoth), "Moth Miner" 2 and 3 (Behemoth Heavy Miner 2 and Behemoth Heavy Miner 3).
Frig	Historically: Short for Frigate (or officially the capital ship), this is a very large ship. The frig was previously an NPC, but has recently been opened for player use (see Heavy Assault Cruiser). The frig can kill anyone within a short distance. If you have several people, or work efficiently, you can take down the frig, getting very expensive cargo (called precious metals), which can be sold for upwards of 50,000 credits. The frig has awesome weapons, armor, and many cargo ports. See NPC Frigate for more information.
Hound	Short for Corvus Greyhound, a lighter and very fast variant of the Warthog. Most commonly used as an interceptor or scout.

Batteries

Terms involving batteries.

	Description
Bat	Short for Battery, the powercell for using energy weapons and boosting. There are Hvy (heavy), Med (medium), FC (fast-charge) cells, as well as the free and light cells. Note: the term Battery was originally used in alpha and has been replaced by the word Powercell in production
UC	Short for Ultra Charge Powercell, also called Ultracell. It combines the capacity of a Heavy Cell with the charge speed of an FC and can be equipped at zero licences. Requires 40 positive mentor reviews to buy but is often sold by veterans.

Weapons

This is a list of the names given to the weapons during alpha/beta testing, though some names have changed the terms have stuck around.

	Description
L-Port	Short for weapons:Large Port, which holds the more powerful, "large" weapons. Most rockets, all mines, and high-damage plasma weapons are large-port.
S-Port	Short for weapons:Small Port, holding "smaller" weapons, mainly rapid-fire plasma weapons. Sunflares are also small port, as well as some homer-type missiles.
AGT	Advanced Gatling Turret, the best gatling turret your money can buy, containing excellent auto tracking and high rate of fire. Advanced Gatling Turrets have been renamed to simply Gatling Turret. Despite the name they are large-port weapons, not for the turret port. The correct term would be "Gatling Cannon MkII" and the Hive Queen Gatling Cannon would be like a "Gatling Cannon MkIII"
Flares	Sunflares, Iceflares, or any other variant of unguided missiles fall under the Flares category. They are powerful unguided rocket weapons.
Gravs	Historically: Gravitron Blaster, another high-speed plasma weapon, more powerful than a Tachyon blaster. Gravitrons have been renamed the Positron Blaster.
Homers	Usually Geminis, but can be used for any homing missiles. Also known as Seekers or Heaters.
L-Mines	Lightning Mines.
Neuts	Neutron Blasters; also called "Neuts", "Neut IIs", or "Neut IIIs".
Nukes	BioCom Miniature Teller-Ulam Mines - 11000 damage mine launcher. Historically: Avalon torpedo launchers. 12000 damage/shot. These were removed in beta because there was nothing to use them on at the time.
P-Mines	Proximity Mines. Proximity Mines explode when a player flies within a certain distance of them. Most cause plenty of damage, so they're fairly useful.
Concapult	The practice of laying a large number of Concussion Mines in a ring or a cloud, then having another player set them off by shooting them or running into them. A form of entertainment some may consider a sport, concapultees can reach speeds over 10 km/s.
Popcorn Gun	Usually the nickname for the Flechette Cannon due to the shape and the sound it makes, but it can also be applied to the Gatling Cannon because both weapons are orange.
Posi(s)	Short for Positron Blaster, another high-speed plasma weapon, more powerful than a Neutron blaster.
Swarms	Locust or Chaos Swarm Missiles, homing missiles fired in clusters of 8, causing major damage.
Tachs	Historically: Tachyon Blaster, a high-speed plasma weapon. Tachyons have been renamed the Neutron Blaster.

Player Tactics and Dev Pilot Names

These are terms given by players to other players for their style of play; also included is a list of the developers ingame pilot names.

Player Tactic Description
Fighter	People who live for the chase, using fighter ships.
Pirate	A player who demands that another player drop their cargo or face death. Pirates are also notorious for griefing and sometimes using cheap tactics, such as rocket ramming.
Trader	People who trade cargo at assorted stations.
Guides	People who keep others in line with the rules. If you get a white message it is most wise to listen to it.
Ramming	Using a high proximity weapon up close so that the target cannot escape damage regardless of what they do. Using a proximity rocket at point-blank range, damaging oneself as well as the target.
Spamming	Blindly firing rockets or missiles in hopes one might hit. Looked down on by experienced pilots as ineffectual and wasteful.
Barrel-roll Waltz	Occurs when two pilots, usually of middle or low skill, engage each other using a continuous spin-strafe maneuver. A drawn out and uneventful fight.
Juggling	To 'juggle' a target is to repeatedly attack using stun weaponry, such as flares, before they can recover.
Rocket Netting	Firing two or more rockets in a pattern intended to trap or 'net' the target between the proximity fuses.
Jousting	Using turbo to accelerate weapons fire (usually rockets) in the direction of the target increasing the likelihood of scoring a hit.
Knife Fight	Engaging at extreme close distance, hoping to out-turn the target. An effective yet risky gambit against flares as staying within the safety fuse radius nullifies their usefulness, yet the target may suddenly pull back putting you directly in the firing solution.
Distance Control	Maintaining optimum distance to a target, ideally just inside the threshold where you can hit them but they can't hit you.
Dev Descriptions
Dev/Devs	Developer(s). Usually means one of the following individually, or all of them collectively:
incarnate	John Bergman, the Managing Director of Guild Software. He is in charge of product oversight, design direction, etc. John's account, forum, and in-game name is incarnate.
a1k0n	Andy Sloane, a programmer who wrote most of the network and server code among other things. Andy's account, forum and in-game name is a1k0n.
Vlad	Waylon Brinck, who created much of the artwork you'll see ingame. Vlad is Waylon's account and forum name. Waylon is no longer an employee of Guild Software.
El Guapo	Waylon's in-game name.
raybondo	Ray Ratelis, responsible for the bulk of the 3D engine, graphics APIs, and others. Ray's account, forum, and in-game name is raybondo.
Waylonics	Galactic Trade Standard (GTS). This is the strange writing you'll see in various places on the stations in space. They are named after the Dev who stumbled upon them while exploring deep space.
momerath42	Michael Warnock, the dev behind convoys, the Hive, and Greyspace pirates.