The Board Gamer’s Glossary - Board Game Terms Explained

The world of board gaming comes with its own crazy lingo. The terminology can be confusing to newcomers and veterans alike—if not entirely ambiguous at times. This will serve as a living, breathing glossary where I will attempt to define board game related lingo and buzzwords.

This living glossary is a collaboration between Paul Shapiro and BoredGameTable. We will continue to add definitions.

All | # A B C D E F G I K L M O P R S T V W | Submit a Board Game Term

There are 4 Board Game Terms in this directory beginning with the letter D.

D6-D20

[Game Term] This refers to various types of dice used in a game. "D" is a reference to a single die. The number after the "D" is a reference to the number of sides that the die has. For instance, a D6 is your standard 6-sided die. Sometimes, a number will precede the "D". This is a reference to a quantity of dice. For example, if you must roll 2D6 in a game, then you are rolling two 6-sided dice.

Submitted by: Paul Shapiro

Dexterity Game(s)

[Game Style]

A game where the major skill needed is a physical action, such as flicking (Crokinole), balance (Topple), or deft manipulation (Jenga).

Submitted by: BoredGameTable

Dice Drafting

[Game Mechanic]

A game mechanic where players acquire dice by selecting them from a common visible pool.

This mechanism is similar to card drafting, except that the dice pool is usually reset each round.

Submitted by: BoredGameTable

Dungeon Crawl(s)

[Game Style]

A type of scenario in fantasy role-playing games in which heroes navigate a labyrinthe environment, battling various monsters, and looting any treasure they may find.

Some bored games such as Gloomhaven and Descent have adopted the theme.

Submitted by: BoredGameTable/Paul Shapiro

Submit a Board Game Term