Pick-up group

From Guild Wars Wiki

PuG is an acronym for Pick up Group, used to indicate parties comprised of people not in the same guild formed to complete a specific goal (a quest, or a Heroes' Ascent team, for example), as opposed to "Guild groups" comprised of guild members.

Pick-up groups are so named because they are usually formed by a party leader entering an outpost and simply inviting players s/he finds there, "picking up" party members as they accept invites.

PuGs are often derided because of uneven player skill amongst the party members. A weak player can cause a party to fail in its goal, so elitism is prevalent in some areas. Elitist PuGs will look for rank, titles, elite armor or other indications of success and experience when deciding who to invite or accept into their party. Another possible weakness of a PuG lies in the fact that the players often are unfamiliar with each other's tactics and style.

A pug can also be an acronym for "Person unassociated with guild" where the recessive "w" is missed out. This returns to the point that this person or "pug" will not know the guild team's playing style or preferences and will be less preferable to play with as opposed to a fellow guild mate.