What Does MCD (Major Character Death) Mean?
AbbreviationAn abbreviation for Major Character Death, one of AO3's four mandatory archive warnings. It tells readers up front that a central character dies in the story.
MCD (Major Character Death) in Practice
Because character death is one of the things readers most want to be warned about, AO3 made it a required disclosure: authors must either apply the warning, confirm it doesn't apply, or select 'Choose Not To Use Archive Warnings' to keep readers guessing. Fans abbreviate it to MCD in summaries, recs, and requests — both as a warning and as a filter term, since plenty of readers exclude it entirely while angst fans actively seek it out. Which deaths count as 'major' is left to the author's judgment, which occasionally produces spirited comment-section debates.
Example usage
"Heed the MCD warning, I am begging you — I went in blind and was not okay for a week."
Related Terms
Archive Warnings (AO3)
AO3's mandatory disclosure system for four major content types: Graphic Depictions of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, and Underage. Every work must address them — apply, deny, or decline to say.
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Angst
A genre label for stories centered on emotional pain — grief, longing, guilt, heartbreak, or despair. An angst tag warns readers to expect to suffer, at least for a while.
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Fix-It
A fic that repairs what canon broke — reversing deaths, redeeming wasted arcs, rescuing characters from endings fandom rejects. Written in the firm belief that the source got it wrong.
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