Player vs. Environment

Player vs Environment, commonly referred to as PvE by most online games and gamers, is the player-controlled character (you) competing against the game world and its computer-controlled denizens, as opposed to Player vs Player (PvP).

"PvE" can be used to refer to any type of play that does not include PvP; dungeons, raids, scenarios and questing are all types of PvE. A "PvE player" is one who focuses on these types of play, with guilds oriented towards PvE (such as high-end raiding) known as "PvE guilds". Since numerous customisations are more beneficial for one type of play than another, talents, enchantments and gear may be referred to as PvE choices. Gear that is optimal for PvE is often lacking in PvP, leading to terms such as "PvE weapon".

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.

Additional notes:
 * Player vs. Environment is the basic form of World of Warcraft.
 * 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).

Pros and cons of PvE realms
Below are some of the pros and cons of playing on a PvE realm. For more information on each type of realm, and advice on choosing the right type for you, see Picking a Server.

Pros

 * Some players consider being able to play with no risk of random player vs. player combat a pro. You can level and train skills without interruption. If you are a casual player who just wants to play the game and train with less interruption, then PvE realms may just be for you.
 * If you prefer Alliance-favored population imbalance, research has shown that the population of PvE realms are much more prone to be Alliance weighted, with population ratios often hovering around 2:1.
 * Such distasteful practices like corpse camping, ganking, and griefing tend to be less prevalent.

Cons

 * Some players like the thrill and risk of random player vs. player combat, and would consider PvE realms to have a difficulty that is too low.
 * Less motivation for grouping, since solo play is much easier. Contested territories in PvP realms encourage group play since guarding and holding farming, questing and resource sites requires more coordination.
 * If you prefer more population balance, research has shown that the population of PvE realms are much more prone to be Alliance weighted, with population ratios often hovering around 2:1.
 * Any player can quest / grind their way to 85, without learning many of the fundamental skills of their class or gameplay, and arrive at level 85, with little to no clue of how to run an instance, raid, or PvP (see Huntard, Loladin, or Death Knoob).