Commonly referred to as PvE by most online games and gamers. Simply put, it is the player-controlled character (you) competing against the game world and its computer-controlled denizens, as opposed to Player vs Player.
Additional notes:
- Player vs. Environment is the dominant form of MMORPG game.
- Blizzard refers to PvE servers as "Normal" servers.
- Also (incorrectly) known as "Player vs. Everything/Everyone".
- In some online games PvE is known as Player versus Monster (PvM for short).
PvE also refers to PvE Realms, which are Realms where "Consensual Combat" generally prevails. This means most players will only engage in PvP combat if they choose or do some action that enables their PvP flag. See PvP Flag for more information, or you can also see the official Realm Types page.
Pros and Cons of PvE servers
Some players feel that PvE (Normal) realms are too easy and don't go hard enough on players to compete. They think it's boring when there's no chance for random player vs. player combat and that PvP realms by conrast are much more exciting and risky. The term "carebear" is used for players on PvE servers and/or the PvE servers themselves by some players.
However, if you are a casual player who just wants to play the game and train with no interuption, then PvE servers may just be the server for you.