📖 Glossary

Common terms and abbreviations used in World of Warcraft file formats.

File Format Terms

ADT

Azeroth Data Terrain - Map tile files containing terrain mesh, textures, and object placement data.

BLP

Blizzard Picture - Proprietary texture format supporting DXT compression and mipmaps.

DBC

DataBase Client - Client-side database files storing game data in a tabular format.

M2

Model Version 2 - 3D model format for characters, creatures, and doodads. Includes animations, bones, and particle effects.

MPQ

Mo’PaQ (Mike O’Brien Pack) - Archive format for storing game assets with compression and encryption. The wow-mpq implementation has 98.75% compatibility with StormLib (the reference C++ implementation).

WDL

World Data Low-resolution - Low-detail terrain for distant rendering and minimaps.

WDT

World Data Table - Map definition files that reference ADT tiles and define map properties.

WMO

World Map Object - Large static models like buildings, dungeons, and cities.

Technical Terms

Chunk

A data block in a file, usually identified by a 4-character ID (e.g., MVER, MHDR).

Doodad

Small decorative objects like trees, rocks, and furniture (stored as M2 models).

FOURCC

Four-Character Code - A 32-bit identifier used for chunk types (e.g., ‘MCNK’).

Heightmap

2D array of elevation values defining terrain height.

Listfile

Text file mapping file hashes to filenames in MPQ archives.

Mipmap

Progressively smaller versions of a texture for efficient rendering at different distances.

Skinning

Process of binding mesh vertices to bones for animation.

UV Mapping

Texture coordinate system mapping 2D textures to 3D surfaces.

Vertex

A point in 3D space with position, normal, texture coordinates, and other attributes.

Compression Algorithms

ZLIB

Standard compression library used in MPQ archives.

PKWARE

PKZip compression algorithm, also used in MPQ.

BZip2

Block-sorting compression algorithm for better ratios.

LZMA

Lempel-Ziv-Markov chain algorithm for high compression.

Game-Specific Terms

Expansion IDs

• 0: Classic (Vanilla)
• 1: The Burning Crusade (TBC)
• 2: Wrath of the Lich King (WotLK)
• 3: Cataclysm
• 4: Mists of Pandaria (MoP)

Map IDs

• 0: Eastern Kingdoms
• 1: Kalimdor
• 530: Outland
• 571: Northrend

Coordinate System

• WoW uses a Y-up coordinate system
• Maps are divided into 64x64 ADT grid
• Each ADT is 533.33 yards square

Common Patterns

Magic Numbers

File signatures used to identify format:

• MPQ: MPQ\x1A (0x1A51504D)
• BLP: BLP2 (0x32504C42)
• M2: MD20 (0x3032444D)
• WMO: MVER chunk at start

Byte Order

Most WoW files use little-endian byte order.

String Encoding

• Filenames: Usually ASCII or UTF-8
• Localized text: UTF-8 with locale-specific DBCs