1

Before parties embark on missions or quests, they often check to see if every member of the party is ready to go. Instead of saying "ready" (or "rdy") players often type the number "1" to indicate their readiness. This custom probably owes its origin to another popular scheme where the party leader asks the members of the party to "type 1 when ready," though it is now common to respond to any call for readiness with "1," even if the party leader did not ask the members to type "1." This may confuse players who are not familiar with the shorthand, who may believe they are being asked to wait one minute.

In some parties, members may be asked to indicate readiness by typing the number corresponding to their position in the Party List in order to make it easier to keep track of who has not responded.

Use of 1 as "ready" may be a carry-over from the Age of Empires series where typing 1 produced a verbal "yes." Often Age of Empires games are launched after the leader asks the group "Everyone ready?" The customary reply is to press 1 for "yes" or 2 for "no."