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What's in a name?
astrotiger5
Member Posts: 157 Arc User
As said before, I have 40 (or so) characters and scores of companions, and coming up which name for each character/companion is no small task! How do I do it ("let me count the ways"):
1) I play AD&D for seven year (40+ year ago) and can (bearly) remember my Characters name then such as Samm Took (halfing), Orcatan Toothslayer (1/2 Orc), Thorin Axehelm (Dwarf), Etc.
2) I can use family, friend and even pet while name character/companion. (one character name, I use a total stranger that I hear somewhere).
3) I have a piece of paper right be side my computer to jot down first and last name that I think of, I see that other player characters have and using place/things of Neverwinter itself to generate (last) name (Forgehammer). Hamster, I even spell name backword---Xonk (Knox), Drawob (Harper Boward), Nirggib (Biggrin), etc.
4) Use the phonebook: Pick out the name (first/last) that sound good to you and use it.
Tell me about how you name your character and hope that these help you....
1) I play AD&D for seven year (40+ year ago) and can (bearly) remember my Characters name then such as Samm Took (halfing), Orcatan Toothslayer (1/2 Orc), Thorin Axehelm (Dwarf), Etc.
2) I can use family, friend and even pet while name character/companion. (one character name, I use a total stranger that I hear somewhere).
3) I have a piece of paper right be side my computer to jot down first and last name that I think of, I see that other player characters have and using place/things of Neverwinter itself to generate (last) name (Forgehammer). Hamster, I even spell name backword---Xonk (Knox), Drawob (Harper Boward), Nirggib (Biggrin), etc.
4) Use the phonebook: Pick out the name (first/last) that sound good to you and use it.
Tell me about how you name your character and hope that these help you....
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Featured Foundry Quest: Whispers of an Ancient Evil [v3] - NW-DQ4WKW6ZG
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No, but seriously, picking names for (active) characters and their companions is hard as hell for me.
I usually end up with naming the companion their actual name, as in "Harper Bard" and so on...
/edit *what madness is this? we're allowed to say "hell" now? I was fully expecting a hamster there*
Names of characters in games like Neverwinter are a pet peeve of mine. If your name is a phrase, has numbers, is some type of joke, or basically anything that is something that your mother on Toril wouldn't name you, you're a idiot imo.
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Nocturnal (rogue)
Majestic (guardian fighter)
Prophecy (devoted cleric)
Just find words that are associated with your class that's my mentality anyway and I think first and last names are more suited to human race which i never use (DB 4 life) anyway so I just have the one name and I feel it just looks better than something that looks like it came out of a random name generator. If I had a zen for every time I saw the name Drizzt,Moonshadow,Wollfsbane or Darksbane I'd be rich by now. My advice is to try and be unique and creative but keep it simple.
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I use various sources for names. I've used other video games (Avernum, The 7th Saga, and Diablo so far), names from my own D&D games, names from my own fantasy world, names from The List*, and sometimes I just make something up on the fly. Most of my characters have first and last names, which makes things a little harder. I'll also take the race into account, so Dwarves tend to have the word "beard" somewhere in their name, Dragonborn tend to have lots of x's and k's, Halflings have slightly cuter names (often including "foot"), etc. I'll also take normal names and "race them up a bit", like Steve the Dragonborn would turn into Skivos, or Michael the Halfling would turn into Mickie.
* The List: Another trick I started doing a long time ago is making a text file with the letters A-Z on their own lines, then come up with a name for each letter. Then do it again. And again. And again. Repeat until sick of it. Then I'd pick out the better names and write them down separately for more important uses, then use the rest for companion and NPC names.
a disgrace.. put them in the stocks I say
unserious filthy casuals that they are!
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I can't really call most of mine original names, as they're often outright swiped or adapted from other source materials. I usually try to use a template theme for naming companions that plays off the character in some way, to spark ideas and make it easier.
Silverjon - This is my D&D CRPG character that has been with me through Baldur's Gate and NWN, but he changed careers from bard to rogue in his old age. Losing his Bhaalspawn taint also seem to have metamorphosed him from a half-elf to an elf along he way, so he's pretty old by now. I don't play him actively in NW so much now, but imagine he quietly runs the thieves' guild populated by a large number of the rest of my characters, having mostly retired from the public eye. His name originally comes from the "Silver" John or "John the Balladeer" stories by Manly Wade Wellman, which makes sense as my SJ began life as a bard.
Guts, Judeau, Serpico - All transplanted from Kentaro Miura's excellent Berserk series. Approximately every third GWF in NW is named some variant of Guts, but I'd challenge anyone that mine is the best likeness. I've only made Berserk characters where I felt a solid thematic cosplay was possible. The other two are rogues.
Mizilca - My DC, and the closest thing I have to a main, as it turns out. Her name is taken from a fairly obscure Romanian folktale, which happens to be very similar to the story of Mulan (famously adapted by Disney), because folklore is like that. I just wanted a name that meant something brave and noble to me, so there it was. Picked up the nickname "Mitzi", but I dunno where people get the T from.
James Carstairs - Guardian Fighter with a name shamelessly stolen from the Shadowhunters universe and I'm still not sorry. I don't think there is a broad overlap between Shadowhunter fans and NW players (age and gender gap). It's a perfectly nice name for a human fighter even without knowing where I copped it from.
Chantal Ruine - Was born to be a mule for enchants and runes, get it? But I ended up playing her quite a bit and not using her for storage. She's got quite the attitude. Of all my TRs, she is the most predisposed to outright thievery, but it's just because things are so shiny.
Elliot Callas - I always insisted my Dragonborn character would be named in honour of Disney's Pete's Dragon. Charlie Callas was the name of the voice actor. My Elliot is a paladin and wants nothing but to protect people and help them heal.
There are more but that's enough out of me.
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Relmyna- DC -Elder Scrolls Oblivion : Shivering Isles DLC. I thought it would be funny to make a healer named after the wizard that heals people so she can keep doing experiments on them that hurt/kill them. The name stuck, though most people call me Rel and this is my main
Nadine-CW- Short for Nadine Cross. I took the name from Stephen Kings 'The Stand' and I made her with white hair ect for reasons
Jeska-GWF- AKA Jeska, Warrior Adept. Taken from a Magic the Gathering card.
Lena -TR- AKA Vladlena Romanov - An old WoD: Apocalypse Shadow Lord Ragabash Character I created. Total trickster and back stabber.
Buffy- GF- AKA Buffy Summers/The Vampire Slayer- I'm such a dork all of her companions are named after the cast members of the TV show. I wish I could kill Vampires in this game so I could get a Vampire Slayer Title.
Hrist- OP- One of the Valkyries from an old Playstation/ps2 game Valkyrie Profile. Easily my favorite character from that series.
I have a huge list of characters that I've played before in other games, books I've read or other such that I never really have a problem naming something.
--
I'll never retrace my steps.
Some of my best friends are Imaginary.
I like that folks are able to relate my characters to me without having to turn on @handles (which surprisingly few folks do... I guess it takes up valuable screen real estate).
(or something like that, it's been 4 years since I was forced to see "that" Shakespearean play).
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On topic:
Like Relmyna, my characters are all named after Fire Emblem characters, mostly after characters whose personality/backstory or statsitics is in tandem with the class.
Hector - GWF.
Like the lord of FE7, the GWF is strong, armored, decently fast, and can use a BFA. So, I thought it'd be a good fit.
Micaiah - CW.
Tbh, this isnt really a good fit for the lord of FE10, because she uses Light Magic and the CW is elemental magic. But, CW and Micaiah are both squishy glass cannon caster types and Ice Knife isn't Lightning Knife (which, if it was, I would swap character names instantly).
Saint Elimine - DC.
Like the legendary hero of FE7, the DC isn't well known for frontline combat prowess, but excels at supporting teammates.
Anri/Kris - GF.
The former is the ancestor of Marth of FE1 fame, the latter represents the player customizable unit of FE12. Unfortunate implications from a certain CW prompted the name change of the former to the latter.
Anri in the background of FE1 is best summed up as a heroic figure whom fights his enemies head on and protects those he loves. In addition, the titular Emblem was actually a shield, so I always imagined him holding the Falchion in one hand and the Fire Emblem in the other. An overall good fit for the GF.
Kris in FE12 is interesting choice because I loathe Kris as a character (ie, role in the story, personality, etc.), but love the statistical unit (ie, the character you command whose good stats rekts enemy legions). I know that Fighter/Cavalier/Wyvern Knight Kris are probably the best statistical options, but my favorite class to put Kris in is in Hero, which uses a sword and shield. I guess that's why I chose Kris to represent my GF after the name chance, mostly because my characters have no personality...
Mark - OP
This one involved some imagination. Mark is the default name for the tactician character in FE7. Mark would probably be better tuned with the GF style, but I had already created my GF, and I couldn't think about any character in the FE series which can protect and heal and fight on the front lines at the same time. So, I sort of pretend that my version of the FE7 Tactician can use magic and fight physically and ignore the whole faith based thing of the Paladin.
Volke - TR
An assassin type character who is mysterious, expensive to field, and won't do as much damage as characters with bigger/stronger weapons. Obvious comparisons to the TR.
Arvis - SW
A guy who summons demonic/evil entities and partially sells his soul to gain more power? Yeah, obvious comparisons to the SW.
Lyn - HR
I only picked the lord of FE7 for HR since the HR can swap between blades and bow, and Lyn eventually gains the ability to use a bow and swords once you progress through FE7 enough. Otherwise, the mad gardener properties of the HR doesn't line up with how Lyn fights in FE7.
> I took all the names of my characters from spider Web software game called Avernum!!!
>
> LOL! My main GWF is named "Grah-Hoth"! I've thought about using other names from Avernum, but never got around to it. I almost named an Elf CW alt Erika, but it didn't sound Elf-ey enough to me, so I named her Elara.
>
> ---
>
> I use various sources for names. I've used other video games (Avernum, The 7th Saga, and Diablo so far), names from my own D&D games, names from my own fantasy world, names from The List*, and sometimes I just make something up on the fly. Most of my characters have first and last names, which makes things a little harder. I'll also take the race into account, so Dwarves tend to have the word "beard" somewhere in their name, Dragonborn tend to have lots of x's and k's, Halflings have slightly cuter names (often including "foot"), etc. I'll also take normal names and "race them up a bit", like Steve the Dragonborn would turn into Skivos, or Michael the Halfling would turn into Mickie.
>
> * The List: Another trick I started doing a long time ago is making a text file with the letters A-Z on their own lines, then come up with a name for each letter. Then do it again. And again. And again. Repeat until sick of it. Then I'd pick out the better names and write them down separately for more important uses, then use the rest for companion and NPC names.
I have 3 toons:
Solberg as a cw even if in Avernum he was cleric
Erika Redmark is my cleric but she was mage on the game
and now I am playing X the Dark as SW, the name was just X and he was a dark magician.
I'm currently playing avernum 5, I'm near the end tho
Dang it, now I want to make a Solberg, buy a Cat, and name it Cheeseball!
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Well, since others are listing characters...
Asteron Gregoth (Primary, Tiefling CW) - In my own fantasy world, the last emperor of the ancient Draconic Imperium was named Aster. Centuries later, after the gods disappeared, Asteron happened to be the name of a young mage of a newly rising magus empire who ultimately turned against them and helped the rest of the world avoid domination, becoming a hero. Asteron also became the name of my magic user in my brother's 1st Ed. AD&D campaign. My NW character Asteron is kind of a cross between those last two Asteron's and my 4E Tiefling Bard/Wizard, Khassix.
Valsara Saizer (Secondary, Human DC) - She is named after the healer Valsu Saizer from The 7th Saga. In my mind, she is his daughter that managed to find her way from Ticondera to Toril. She was originally trying to find a way home, but now considers this her new home.
Olvan Firebeard (Dwarf GF) - First name is also from The 7th Saga, and while there is some thematic connection, there is no RP connection. I just always thought Olvan was a great Dwarf name. Firebeard is from myself and a friend of mine having red beards and referring to ourselves as members of "The Firebeard Clan"! It also goes without saying that Olvan has a red beard too!
Grah-Hoth (Half-Orc GWF) - Named after the big, bad Demonlord from Avernum, I've used this name for Barbarian characters in various games, most notably in Diablo 2.
Mickie Skaggs (Human TR) - Named after a henchman of my brother's character in my 2nd Ed. AD&D campaign.
Alyssa Moonchaser (Wood Elf HR) - First name is the name of a character in my fantasy world, an unknowing granddaughter of a demonlord that ends up rebuilding a lost order of paladins. The last name was similar to a pre-gen name, I just altered it some.
Vis (Half-elf(Drow) SW) - The name of an arch-villain wizard from my fantasy world. He managed to charm the leader of an order of Paladins and forced him to commit unspeakable crimes. It was all so bad it led to the collapse of that order. Once he was finally rescued by friends who hadn't abandoned him, he dared not ask for forgiveness. Instead, he set about studying arcane magic and created a new order of arcane knights whose purpose was to slay evil wizards by neutralizing their powers. He ultimately got his vengeace on Vis, but at the cost of the lives of some of the same loyal friends who had rescued him, including his own brother, causing his brother's son to turn against him. It's all very tragic.
Tera Angiris (Human OP) - First name was made up on the fly, but last name was from the angelic council from Diablo.
Elara Lorvienne (High Elf CW) - First name was originally Erika from Avernum, but changed to the more elf-ey sounding Elara. Lorvienne is the name of a country/sub-continent in my fantasy world.
Aurum the Purifier (Dragonborn DC) - Aurum means Gold, and he's a gold dragon-descended dragonborn. And he's also a purifier.
Sherman Proudfoot (Halfling GF) - Sherman as in the tank, lol, and Proudfoot because Halfling. I use him as my "cute" character. With his chef's outfit and kitchen utensils, he's quite adorable! He's currently waiting for the Summer Festival and its non-euclidian volley-soccor!!
Vyth Darastrix (Dragonborn GWF) - It's draconic for "Steel Dragon". As in the band from the movie Rock Star.
Trixx (Halfling TR) - I dunno, because why not?
Boone Woodwind (Dwarf HR) - This was the name of my favorite D&D character of mine from playing 2nd Ed. back in the 90s. His clan was destroyed by orcs when he was a small child, and he was the only survivor. A human woodsman investigating the carnage found him and raised him, teaching him everything he knew.
Red Vex (Tiefling SW) - Named after the unique succubus from the first Diablo. I use her mostly as an evil succubus fashion mannequin.
Really
Urlord
From a book but the story/history dates from the same year when I was playing empire of the petal throne with my Frat brothers.
Urlord
My naming conventions vary depending on the mood when creating a character, and have little to nothing to do with a desire to maintain some sense of continuity within the game.
Some are inspirations of coolness (Ghash Throatslitter...now there's a name for a Dark Hunter Ranger!)
Others are the result of a juvenile desire to see NPCs call me by a ridiculous name.
Everytime Lord Neverember or the guards in the River District holler out "Kung Pao Chicken!" to my Draconic GWF, I can feel a stupid smile cross my face. And since having fun is the whole point of the endeavor, that's all that matters to me.
current grab list is my cats names (tiberius rex is my profile picture, cause he doesn't want to be fed he wants to hunt lol), douglas adams books, firefly, sometimes robert asprin books.
companions are too much bother I'd rather not have to name them. they end up with random names. for awhile I thought I'd name them all binky but it's wayyyy to easy to summon a companion with no stones lol. so instead most of them end up with a shortened name of what they are with an ie at the end. or a silly comment on what they do or are. my dread warrior is dinkymcdinkytoes.. cause he's totally dinky. (like a bulldog named princess)
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As for companion names it's either something related to how the companion may be named by area it's from, or translated into Elven/ Draconic/ other. My other method is just something funny like my companion pig named Tofu.
"Why is it dragons only use ketchup? I'd like a little wasabi please. Us silvers like a variety of condiments."
"Don't call them foolish mortals. One, they don't learn from it. Two, It just ticks them off." - An Ancient Red Dragon
In this game, the names of my two Pallies are from Cormyr. Veton Wyvernspur, the first character that I reached 70 with, and Drana Marliir, level 70, she was made to assist my sister and a friend during leveling. I have read a few books about the land and know the history pretty well, which is why for the two I used names that are known to have Paladins (Yes there are many others). I thought about going with Obarskyr, and may do one sometime. I did a random name generator, Mika Urthadar, a level 70 SW. Naleese Bragg, a level 63 DC, I just wanted to come up with a name and this is the result. Naleese is the first character that not only did I get to the max level (When it was 60), but I soloed her (Do not try this until you know what you are doing).
One of the names that I used to use for RPG was the first D&D Character that I first played. Caugnleigh, I originally going to use Kahn Leigh, but decided to change it up and wrote it out like it is. I may one day bring him back, but he is retired for now.
one of my favorite characters is siara of chult, her actual name is wanotreyxkaiv'ithnsiari (she's a half-dragon human), siara is her alias and it is slightly modified from a name i found on a list of chultan names. her true name is draconic and it means princess writher, she also has a formal title, uvelucalsvitraniv it means acid priestess.
drathir baenre- drathir means moon in drow, baenre is a drow house and its name comes from baenrae meaning blessed by fell powers, his alias is kaldaka meaning wolf and valdruk meaning shadow master , he is a shadow assassin devoted to shar, his other alias is drathir d'aerthe as he is a member of the bregan d'aerthe and doesn't care much for using his last name.
t'rissia veladorn - from the drow name t'rissiara , t'riss means blade/sharp and iara means lady (noble) veladorn is from her grandmother taking the name in honor of qilue veladorn and passing it down, she is not related to qilue
chaoxing of shou lung - chaoxing means morning star in mandarin which the shou language is based on
lyria dlardrageth - she is a chaotic neutral fey'ri of the dlardrageth family who fled and is a wandering merchant
xiara shadowdancer - first name was kinda random, the last name is a title as she is a orphan raised by shadowdancers in anauroch, she is a shadow adept.
Ama'eth - elvish name meaning eternal beauty
heremon of chult - got it from a list of dwarf names, it was the only one that seemed to fit for a wild dwarf as their subdialect of dwarvish is slightly harsher sounding than regular dwarvish, he's a wild dwarf from chult.
shezagzi the exile - i forgot what this means but its based on an orcish word for something to do with war, she is a many-arrows exile who seeks to create her own kingdom of orcs, half orcs, and the strong.
knight of eilistraee - its her name that she took after being exiled and joining the darksong knights, her name used to be isinessia do'urden , do'urden is a drow house it means walkers in the darkness
isis sahoni - isis is named after the mulhorandi goddess (based on the egyptian) because she is a storm domain goddess, isis is a demigoddess and also shares the storm domain. sahoni is from my actual people's language in real life it is a clan name and it is a dark-blue sabretooth panther, in the lore of my characters her father the half-drow demigod son/construct of shar, diablos kalkana changed his name to ukunaka sahoni after converting to eilistraee worship in 1353DR.
Knight of Eilistraee - Darksong Knights Leader
T'rissia Veladorn - The Sword Dancers of Eilistraee Leader
Iraedril Mel'lyl - Church of Eilistraee Leader
Siara of Chult - • Mergandevinasander Leader / •
Baevyrae Ss'blis•The Bregan D'aerthe Leader
Ty'ali Kalkana • The Black Blades of Shadow Co-leader
Xun'tana H'tithet - Sword Dancer of Elistraee
Xiara Shadowdancer •TBD•
Chaoxing of Shoulung
I just think of some names I like, including recycling names of characters from my days of playing PnP D&D or whatever.
For companions the rules are different.
Mythology, comics, favorite novels.... All are fair game for companion names, and even original (or semi-original) names are possible there, too.
And if someone wants to name their female hunter or archer companion "Artemis" or "Diana", well, those aren't the worst names in the world even if they're not original.
I did elect to name one of my characters using a mix of known characters though. I named my ranger Will Dixon and that was a blending of William Tell and Daryl Dixon. I just wish I could give him a Cross-Bow though.