So I'm a GM, a newer one at that, I played D&D a lot a few years ago and GM'd a few times here and there, and I'm just getting back into it. I play with a small group of friends, and I was wondering about what I should do to make the campaign a little fair, seeing as it's on two PCs at the moment. I have made several characters to help them, but I was wondering what the specific term for PC would be...like is all the character played by people who aren't me (The GM) PCs? And all those I control are NPCs?
Another thing is that since there is so few of them, it is quite hard for them sometimes (Skulls and Shackles). Should I make some of the characters I've made just become part of their party by role playing it out, or should I adjust the creatures so they aren't as powerful, like throwing a CR 6 at a couple of level 3 and 4s seems a bit overwhelming.
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"PC" is abbreviation for "player character", meaning the characters played by the players. As the GM, you are in control of all of the "NPC" "non-player characters."
Paizo adventure paths are balanced for a party of four PCs, so if you only have two PCs, you need to adjust all of the written encounters down by -1 CR. You can give them an NPC or two to help them out but I wouldn't recommend giving them more than one. The game is about what the PCs do, not about what all of the NPCs helping them do.
So, if you're running an encounter for your group that is written as CR 6, you need to adjust it down to CR 5. This is most easily accomplished by taking away some of the minions or reducing the numbers of the larger creatures. It's an inexact science and takes some practice. Only you understand the capabilities of your group of PCs and have to make a best guess how to handle it.