Buff
A buff is generally a non-permanent attribute added to a character or minion, affecting it directly or indirectly for a period of time in a positive manner. The direct opposite of a buff is a debuff, that works similarly, but has direct/indirect negative effects on the recipient.
The word can also be used to describe how a patch changes stats in the game. If a monster get +1 damage, that is a small buff for that monster.
Examples
An example of a straight forward buff is the Barbarian's Battle Cry skill to strengthen himself and other characters. It applies to a single target (the Barbarian), or targets in an Area of Effect but it retain this buff even when they move around.
Other items, like potions or scrolls can also give the character a buff, as can shrines.
Buffs are generally applied by a character/monster of caster type, or some effect in the game like a shrine.
Visual Representation
Some buffs, are represented by visual effects on your character, Glowing arms, an orb over his/her head or a halo surrounding your torso. However, every game has its own approach to buffs, World of Warcraft displays buffs on the character, but not all. While some buffs give effects to the character, it is hard to keep track which ones affect what, and are they active at the moment. In World of Warcraft, Buffs are displayed in the top right corner, to the left of the minimap, in the form of icons. These icons can be customized in the options or by various addons that change the user interface (UI).
In Diablo II, buffs weren't represented by icons anywhere on the UI, they were represented on the character only. Diablo III, however, will have dedicated icons representing active buffs, their duration and their purpose. The icons will be located above the skill bar, next to the health orb. So far, only a limited selections of buffs are known.
Buffs Seen So far
- Fortune: A 60 second buff, given from a Shrine that increased the chance for a character to find magic items and gold.
- Ice Armor: A 3 minute buff, given by a Wizard, that slowed the attack and movement speed of anyone who attacked the Wizard (It is unknown if this buff can be given to allies).
