New to StartPlaying? This glossary covers the key terms you'll encounter as a player or Game Master on the platform.
A
Active An Adventure status meaning the game has reached its minimum player count, has been started by the GM, and sessions can be scheduled. Players in Active games are charged 1 hour after each session starts. See What is Active vs. Pending?
Adventure A live game listing created from a Game Template. Adventures are what players see and book on the Find Games page. An Adventure contains the schedule, dates, times, and player slots for a game. Adventures can be Campaigns or One-Shots. See How Do I Create and Schedule an Adventure?
B
Batch Scheduling A feature that lets GMs schedule multiple sessions at once — up to 10 sessions at a time. Available for Weekly and Bi-weekly games only. See How Do I Batch Schedule My Sessions?
C
Campaign A series of connected sessions set in the same world. Players who join a campaign are automatically signed up for all future sessions and charged per session they attend. See What is a One-Shot? What is a Campaign?
Content Warnings Information provided by the GM in their game listing that describes potentially sensitive themes in the game. All games on StartPlaying are required to include content warnings.
Cut-Off Time A setting on an Adventure that determines how many hours before a session the listing stops appearing in the Find Games page search results. Players can still join directly after the cut-off time but will be warned they may not have enough preparation time.
F
Find Games Page The main search page on StartPlaying where players can browse and filter available game listings. Games appear here once they are publicly listed and — for Active games — have at least one session scheduled. See How Does the Find Games Page Work?
Frequency How often a game meets — Weekly, Bi-weekly, Once a Month, or Custom. Set when creating an Adventure and visible to players as a search filter on the Find Games page.
G
Game Master (GM) The person who runs and facilitates a tabletop roleplaying game on StartPlaying. GMs create game listings, manage players, and run sessions. GMs are paid per session by players through the platform.
Game Master Search A directory on StartPlaying where players can browse GM profiles directly. Appearing in GM Search requires meeting five specific requirements including 5 reviews, a completed Payouts profile, and an approved Game Template. See Getting Listed on Game Master Search.
Game Style Tags Tags added to a game listing that describe the tone, style, or focus of the game — such as Heavy Roleplay, Combat Heavy, or Beginner Friendly. Help players find games that match their preferences.
Game Template The blueprint for a game listing. Contains all the important details about a game — description, system, safety tools, content warnings, pricing — except dates and times. Adventures are created from Game Templates. See How Do I Create a Game Template?
GM Discord A community Discord server for Game Masters on StartPlaying. GMs can collaborate, share advice, and get platform updates. See How do I join the GM Discord Server?
GM Superlatives Tags that players can assign when leaving a review to describe a GM's strengths — such as Great Storyteller or Welcoming to New Players. The top 3 superlatives across all reviews are displayed on the GM's profile. See What are GM Superlatives?
I
Instant Book A setting on an Adventure that allows players to join a game immediately without waiting for GM approval. Games with Instant Book enabled have a 30% higher conversion rate than games without it. See What is Instant Book?
L
Lines and Veils A safety tool used before a campaign begins to establish content boundaries. Lines are hard limits — topics that cannot appear in the game at all. Veils are soft limits — topics that can exist in the game world but must not be described in detail. See What Are Safety Tools?
Listings Page The GM dashboard page where all Game Templates and Adventures are managed. GMs use this page to create, edit, and delete their games.
N
New What players see on the Find Games page when a game is in Pending status — meaning it is still recruiting players and has not officially started yet.
O
One-Shot A self-contained adventure that takes players through a complete story arc in a single session. Players are charged once. See What is a One-Shot? What is a Campaign?
P
Pending An Adventure status meaning the game has not yet reached its minimum player count, or the GM has not yet clicked Start Adventure. Sessions cannot be scheduled and players are not charged while a game is Pending. See What is Active vs. Pending?
Play by Post (PBP) A style of play where the game is conducted asynchronously through text rather than in live sessions. Players and GMs post their actions and responses in their own time, typically through a platform like Discord.
Player Anyone who signs up to play in a game on StartPlaying. Players browse listings, book sessions, and are charged per session they attend.
Prep Materials Information provided by the GM that is only visible to players who have joined a game. Typically includes links to join the session (Discord, Zoom, VTT), character creation instructions, and any other details players need before the first session. See What are Prep Materials?
R
Ready to Play What players see on the Find Games page when a game is in Active status — meaning it has enough players to start or has already started.
Recruiting Notes A short 1–2 line addition to a game listing where GMs can share current details like party composition, current level, or a target start date.
Referral Link A unique link GMs and players can share to invite new users to StartPlaying. When someone creates a new account using the link and uses their $10 welcome credit, the referrer also receives $10 in site credit. See How Do Player Referrals and Credits Work?
S
Safety Tools Techniques used by GMs and players to establish and maintain boundaries during a game. All GMs on StartPlaying are required to use at least one safety tool. Common examples include the X Card, Lines and Veils, and Stars and Wishes. See What Are Safety Tools?
Session A single instance of a game. An Adventure can contain one session (One-Shot) or many sessions (Campaign). Players are charged 1 hour after each session starts.
Session Zero A pre-game session used to discuss expectations, establish character backstories, and set content boundaries before the campaign begins. Session Zeros are typically free. See What is a Session Zero?
Site Credit A balance on a player or GM's StartPlaying account that can be applied toward the cost of future games. Earned through referrals or issued as refunds. Cannot be cashed out.
Stars and Wishes A safety tool used at the end of each session. Players share a Star (something they enjoyed) and a Wish (something they'd like to see next session). See What Are Safety Tools?
Stripe The payment processor StartPlaying uses to handle all player charges and GM payouts. GMs must set up a Stripe account to receive earnings. See How Do I Add My Bank Account as a GM?
T
Table An informal term for a game or group of players. "Running a table" means running a game session.
TTRPG Tabletop Roleplaying Game. An umbrella term for games like Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, Call of Cthulhu, and hundreds of others. StartPlaying supports over 200 TTRPG systems.
U
Unverified Review A review left by a player who played with the GM outside of StartPlaying, or in a free session. Unverified reviews do not show a blue checkmark or session count but still appear in full on the GM's profile.
V
Verified Review A review left by a player who paid $5 or more for a session with the GM on StartPlaying, or sent a custom payment or tip of $5 or more. Displays a blue checkmark and the number of paid sessions played together.
Virtual Tabletop (VTT) Software used to run tabletop games online — such as Roll20, Foundry VTT, or D&D Beyond. GMs can specify which VTT they use in their game listing, and players can filter by VTT on the Find Games page.
X
X Card A safety tool that any player or GM can use at any point during a session to signal that content needs to be removed, changed, or skipped — no explanation required. See What Are Safety Tools?