Origins

[Infernal13]

Anyone happen to know the origin of the word 'twink'? As far as I know it's not a word in the dictionary, but obviously a common WoW term.

 

[Thor]

Read this & this & this.

[h=2]Etymology
[/h]
There are several possible etymologies for the word. It may not have been derived from a single source, instead evolving from multiple convergent usages. Its exact origin is unclear.
The gay-slang usage of "twink" has been suggested as a likely origin.[SUP][1][/SUP] One of the unofficial connotations of this usage is "a young/inexperienced person who can outfit himself fashionably because of financial benefits from an older/experienced sugar daddy." This parallels MMORPGs, where in-game money is a strong limiting factor in the virtual economy and gear is usually in the form of clothing and jewelry.
The word "twink" appeared in the Ultima Online: Renaissance playguide in the glossary of terms. It was asserted to have a meaning similar to its current one, but also included powerlevelling.

On the MUD Sojourn, which several creators of EverQuest played, "twink" was alternately used to refer to powerleveling and metagaming. As MUDs date to 1978, this use of the term may possibly predate later uses.

 

[Eetuonparas]

Twink (gay slang) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[Kiraush]

Etymology



There are several possible etymologies for the word. It may not have been derived from a single source, instead evolving from multiple convergent usages. Its exact origin is unclear.
The gay-slang usage of "twink" has been suggested as a likely origin.[1] One of the unofficial connotations of this usage is "a young/inexperienced person who can outfit himself fashionably because of financial benefits from an older/experienced sugar daddy." This parallels MMORPGs, where in-game money is a strong limiting factor in the virtual economy and gear is usually in the form of clothing and jewelry.
The word "twink" appeared in the Ultima Online: Renaissance playguide in the glossary of terms. It was asserted to have a meaning similar to its current one, but also included powerlevelling.

On the MUD Sojourn, which several creators of EverQuest played, "twink" was alternately used to refer to powerleveling and metagaming. As MUDs date to 1978, this use of the term may possibly predate later uses.

^The word was chosen because of the "a young/inexperienced person who can outfit himself fashionably because of financial benefits from an older/experienced sugar daddy." because (most) people use a higher level character (or Sugar daddy) to outfit their lower level character (or Twink) "fashionably"

But I have no idea who or why they chose it, aside from the loose relation between the two things.

 

[Imirak]

The MMO etymology of "twink" has nothing to do with the gay slang, afaik, but from the MUD community where a twink was someone who did not follow the normal rules of play. They were generally griefers, thus the pvp connection.

In RPGs, twinks would try to outgear people to further their griefing, becoming what used to be called "munchkins" back in the pen and paper days. Munchkins were low-level players who were granted lots of high-level gear, making them far more powerful than anyone at this level.

This was very common in Everquest, but they were generally called twinks by then.

 

[Infernal13]

So it originated from butthurt people calling well-geared players fags?

 

[Imirak]

So it originated from butthurt people calling well-geared players fags?

haha. No, but that's a funny way to think about it.

I am pretty confident there is no connection between the MUD version (which directly led to MMO usage) and what used to be an obscure gay slang that was shorthand for "twinkie" (blonde and full of cream... ick).

It doesn't seem obscure now, but back in the early 90s there was no internet to make everything common knowledge with just a few google searches.

 

[Lithogen]

The MMO etymology of "twink" has nothing to do with the gay slang, afaik, but from the MUD community where a twink was someone who did not follow the normal rules of play. They were generally griefers, thus the pvp connection.

In RPGs, twinks would try to outgear people to further their griefing, becoming what used to be called "munchkins" back in the pen and paper days. Munchkins were low-level players who were granted lots of high-level gear, making them far more powerful than anyone at this level.

This was very common in Everquest, but they were generally called twinks by then.

Actually, munchkins are people who build characters within the grey area of rules. Is it possible for a level 1 Fighter to have a +5 broadsword and +5 full plate? Yes. But is it logical and not completely absurd? No.

 

[Imirak]

Actually, munchkins are people who build characters within the grey area of rules. Is it possible for a level 1 Fighter to have a +5 broadsword and +5 full plate? Yes. But is it logical and not completely absurd? No.

Munchkin = low-level character with high-level gear. How you get the gear is secondary. It's an old D&D term.

 

[Lithogen]

Munchkin = low-level character with high-level gear. How you get the gear is secondary. It's an old D&D term.

Munchkin (role-playing games) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I know it's an old D&D term, I've DM'd for a long time as well as played. ( 17 years to be exact.) There's also a book called "Munchkin's Guide to Power Gaming." It really doesn't have anything to do with low level people having high level gear. In D&D there is no level dependency on gear, weapons, and items.

Typically munchkins come about when DM's/GM's hand out loot that the player wouldn't normally have. Not everyone has a Portable Hole or a Deck of Many Things. It's also called meta-gaming. Munchkins tend to min/max when it comes to stats and chew on DM's for every little thing. It ranges from having absurdedly powerful gear to not finishing a character sheet and filling in the blanks when the time is crucial; mysteriously having that specific skill at that specific moment.