Running out of good ideas for names? Here:
Old Norse Names
-------------------
Alvida
Asger
Asmund
Balder
Brandt
Calder
Colden
Eerikki
Einar
Embla
Erico
Fiske
Frey
Geir
Gosta
Gunilla
Hakon
Haldor
Halvar
Havardr
Hege
Hella
Hillevi
Inge
Ingolf
Inkeri
Iver
Jari
Jerrik
Jorunn
Keld
Kustaa
Latham
Olavi
Olle
Ove
Ragna
Rangvaldr
Runa
Saga
Sigfrid
Signe
Sigrun
Solveig
Solvi
Sveinn
Sylvi
Tait
Thora
Tordis
Toril
Trygve
Tyr
Ulf
Unne
Vidar
Welch
Arabian Names (these are all gods, probably not standard everyday names)
---------------------
Abgal
Aglibol
Al-Qaum
Astarte
Atargatis
Atarsamain
Athtar
Beelshamen
Bēl-Šamīn
Bēl
Bes
Dhul
Khalasa
Dushara
Ilāh
Hubal
Malakbel
Manaf
Manāt
Nabū
Nebo
Nasr
Nergal
Nuha
Orotalt
Ruda
Shams
Samas
Sīn
Nanna-Suen
Suwa'
Theandrios
'Uzzá
Wadd
Ya'uq
Yaghūth
Yarhibol
Yatha
Ever need help with a name? Just go look up some shit on League of legends and change a few letters and bam!
Totally isn't cheating.
Oh well.
I like names with random apostraphies and shit.
Rek'tar.
Rash'al
etc.
Quote from: Jihelu on June 23, 2015, 07:36:44 PM
Ever need help with a name? Just go look up some shit on League of legends
Oh, so you're the one that has been doing that.
Quote from: Nyr on June 24, 2015, 09:55:10 AM
Quote from: Jihelu on June 23, 2015, 07:36:44 PM
Ever need help with a name? Just go look up some shit on League of legends
Oh, so you're the one that has been doing that.
I've seen three League of Legends champ names in the last year that I can think of. The letters weren't even changed. Two times, they looked just like the champs in question.
They are all dead now to my knowledge, but, it hasn't been a year just yet so I can't, "call them out".
They never did anything wrong, it just made me laugh pretty good. :)
The black dwarf named Korath though. I saw this guy a few times. I have always wondered if that dwarf was supposed to be: (been over a year)
Korath the Pursuer - Guardians of the Galaxy(http://www.btchflcks.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/guardiansofthegalaxykorath.jpg)
Name character after random object or implement which describes their personality and/or appearance. These tend to be easier to remember, whereas names with extra vowels and the like are always hard to keep in mind. If I typo while furiously hammering out "rescue eerreekah" ten times, and you die, it's all on you. Yes, exotic is neat, it also makes things hard in tense situations, in the end, I'd opt for practicality with the syntax.
I always name my characters after common sdesc descriptors, so if anyone ever tries to contact me, they first have to fight through a dozen PCs with the word "Eyed."
I have pledged to myself that future characters will use recycled Zalanthan names.
I have a lot of characters with Armenian names. It seems fitting to name non-nobles in Zalanthas after the most often screwed over people in the history of earh.
I tend to use a lot of norse names.
http://www.rinkworks.com/namegen/ (http://www.rinkworks.com/namegen/)
Almost all of my names come from this. The advanced interface is especially useful if you want a name with a certain sound. I just refresh the page until something sounds good.
Quote from: The Silence of the Erdlus on June 23, 2015, 07:31:35 PM
Nasr
Nergal
Nuha
I see what you did there Nergal
and seidhr too, actually
It has been quite a few years, so I don't mind calling them out.
In the Byn, I once had to deal with a Runner named 'Khal Drogo'. This was before even the HBO series, IIRC.
I love naming my characters after old Armageddon characters or names from the history page.
Quote from: LauraMars on June 24, 2015, 03:20:08 PM
I love naming my characters after old Armageddon characters or names from the history page.
I've been guilty of reusing names of people in game I once knew (years after their death).
Quote from: John on June 24, 2015, 03:36:29 PM
Quote from: LauraMars on June 24, 2015, 03:20:08 PM
I love naming my characters after old Armageddon characters or names from the history page.
I've been guilty of reusing names of people in game I once knew (years after their death).
IT'S BEEN YOU
I usually name characters with a view of shortening it to a two or three letter nickname like Pi or Pho or Xo
Quote from: Synthesis on June 24, 2015, 10:55:19 AM
I always name my characters after common sdesc descriptors, so if anyone ever tries to contact me, they first have to fight through a dozen PCs with the word "Eyed."
That's a great way to get accidentally killed, too.
I like names that I can type quickly and smoothly, on the assumption that others are also needing to do that with "assist" or "rescue".
So far I've used Turkish(-derived) and Russian names.
Quote from: BadSkeelz on June 24, 2015, 04:48:46 PM
I like names that I can type quickly and smoothly, on the assumption that others are also needing to do that with "assist" or "rescue".
So far I've used Turkish(-derived) and Russian names.
That's the kind of initiative I like to see in my Runners. Runner Amos is definitely going to get a rescue from me. Runner Sifqo is fucked, unless he tightens that shit to 'Sif'.
The more K's in the name, the better.
Khae-Khanda the Khan'ibal Seik was my favorite.
Kakky-Kikky the half-giant and his inix named Kay.
Quote from: Nyr on June 24, 2015, 09:55:10 AM
Quote from: Jihelu on June 23, 2015, 07:36:44 PM
Ever need help with a name? Just go look up some shit on League of legends
Oh, so you're the one that has been doing that.
I haven't done it YET!
YET!
I just copy other forms of media.
....
You know which ones.
Quote from: Jihelu on June 24, 2015, 05:37:25 PM
Quote from: Nyr on June 24, 2015, 09:55:10 AM
Quote from: Jihelu on June 23, 2015, 07:36:44 PM
Ever need help with a name? Just go look up some shit on League of legends
Oh, so you're the one that has been doing that.
I haven't done it YET!
YET!
I just copy other forms of media.
....
You know which ones.
Pornhub?
I use a lot of Sanskrit and Arabic names for commoners, and Roman names for southern nobles.
Names are preferably around five characters in length as that is the proper length - more is too much, less is too little.
I particularly prefer names that start with B's, C's, F's, and S's.
I tend to go through the alphabet. ... if by tend, I mean that I prefer not to repeat letters until I've completed the entire alphabet (but not necessarily in order). Yes, I'm a little bizarre.
I just make my fucking names up. That's usually one of the hardest parts of my characters, coming up with a name.
One day, we will eventually run out of names to copy.
And then we'll just name our characters 'Dude, Man, Fella, Broad, Chick, Dame, Lass', ect.
I use a baby names website to get started, and then work my magic on a name that speaks to me.
Six of the ten PCs on my account have a name ending with 'n'. To name characters, I pick a trait, and find a name in a language I like, then alter it to my liking.
Arjuna is 'shining' or 'famous like silver' in Sanskrit. I modified the name to Arjaan and after watching Flight of the Conchords, I shortened it to Arj.
Huldr is a male version of an Old Norse name meaning 'secrets'. I modified the name to Hurlen based on a friend's last name, Hurley.
I can't remember any other names I'm allowed to talk about, but that's usually what I do. I sometimes will just pick a trait and google names that have that in their meaning.
163) <redacted> - Alive
I am out of names myself, I literally mash my hands on the keyboard for inspiration. Occasionally I faceroll. Not joking.
Quote from: Alesan on June 24, 2015, 12:52:57 PM
http://www.rinkworks.com/namegen/ (http://www.rinkworks.com/namegen/)
Almost all of my names come from this. The advanced interface is especially useful if you want a name with a certain sound. I just refresh the page until something sounds good.
Same here, but I tend to just use the Simple Interface sections.
Quote from: John on June 24, 2015, 03:36:29 PM
Quote from: LauraMars on June 24, 2015, 03:20:08 PM
I love naming my characters after old Armageddon characters or names from the history page.
I've been guilty of reusing names of people in game I once knew (years after their death).
And I'm the one who is guilty of reusing names from PC's long dead from clan forums or names from the player submitted logs.
Quote from: Barsook on August 07, 2015, 09:05:55 AM
Quote from: Alesan on June 24, 2015, 12:52:57 PM
http://www.rinkworks.com/namegen/ (http://www.rinkworks.com/namegen/)
Almost all of my names come from this. The advanced interface is especially useful if you want a name with a certain sound. I just refresh the page until something sounds good.
Same here, but I tend to just use the Simple Interface sections.
It's the only name place I've ever used.
I also keep an Smemo note on my phone of.names I come across that I like.
I tend to go through the alphabet or all of my characters have S-names. And I try to vary the endings, too, or I end up with a lot of -a.
Foriegn fruits words places and last names. I have a note pad on my phone where I write them down.
I seem to be able to think of names by just saying them and getting the ones down that sound good for me.
Names come easy to me, and I generally don't get hung up on them. Sometimes I even give my character two names, one that their friends call them or a nickname, and then their real name. But sometimes I like letting that happen naturally in game. Ya'll are great at giving people nicknames.
Moredaught
Quote from: The Silence of the Erdlus on June 23, 2015, 07:31:35 PM
Running out of good ideas for names? Here:
Old Norse Names
-------------------
Alvida
Asger
Asmund
Balder
Brandt
Calder
Colden
Eerikki
Einar
Embla
Erico
Fiske
Frey
Geir
Gosta
Gunilla
Hakon
Haldor
Halvar
Havardr
Hege
Hella
Hillevi
Inge
Ingolf
Inkeri
Iver
Jari
Jerrik
Jorunn
Keld
Kustaa
Latham
Olavi
Olle
Ove
Ragna
Rangvaldr
Runa
Saga
Sigfrid
Signe
Sigrun
Solveig
Solvi
Sveinn
Sylvi
Tait
Thora
Tordis
Toril
Trygve
Tyr
Ulf
Unne
Vidar
Welch
Arabian Names (these are all gods, probably not standard everyday names)
---------------------
Abgal
Aglibol
Al-Qaum
Astarte
Atargatis
Atarsamain
Athtar
Beelshamen
Bēl-Šamīn
Bēl
Bes
Dhul
Khalasa
Dushara
Ilāh
Hubal
Malakbel
Manaf
Manāt
Nabū
Nebo
Nasr
Nergal
Nuha
Orotalt
Ruda
Shams
Samas
Sīn
Nanna-Suen
Suwa'
Theandrios
'Uzzá
Wadd
Ya'uq
Yaghūth
Yarhibol
Yatha
Wow, just noticed this outstanding post. I had actually written something similar, and I'll post it below since it's already written, LOL.
Quote
Names
There's been an above-average level of Out-of-Game Reference (OOG-Reference) names lately in game. I don't personally have a problem with this. To me, if you're four RL hours into a Byn mission, and you finally find the cave where the mysterious elf-treasure is suppose to be stored, only to find out...
...the cave is completely empty, then I don't have a problem with someone breaking character and quipping:
OOC: These are not the droids you're looking for
LOL. To me that's funny. Granted, as funny as I find that, the staff may disagree, so you're stuck arguing with them at this point. And for what it's worth, I'm greatful for their intervention. After all if the staff didn't crack down on stuff like this, then everyone would be doing it. If everyone did it all the time, Arm would no longer be an engaging post-apocalyptic simulation, it would be a joke game.
That being said, I think that names specifically deserve some attention. Besides the frequency of American names appearing in game, I think the name system is problematic. Let's temporarily put aside my dislike of the policy of forcing people to have their character's name as a keyword.
For starters, the requirement to have a unique name for each character is pretty wonky. While I won't exactly call myself a world citizen, most cultures that I've a working knowlege of (e.g. Korean, American, British, Arabic, Russian, French, etc.) all tend to draw from a fairly small list of names. In fact, in the case of five of the above, they all draw from the *same* list of names, even though the pronouciation will vary across language groups.
I think it would be handy if we as players (not necessarily with staff involvement) could arrive at a list of common names. While I disagree that names say a lot about an individual, I think names say a lot about that person's parents, and to a lesser extent about their upbringing. It's mildly disruptive to me to meet someone in game and have zero etymology about their name.
Sometimes that's a good thing. In any naming system, some people will deliberately eschew conventions, and some will do so accidentally. Moreover, in a fantasy video game filled with elves and dwarves there is no concrete reason to completely standardize on anything.
But I myself would like a list of common names, and think that Pre-Islamic, Persian, Turkish and Byzantine might make excellent sources. Obviously if this is to be non-compulsory, other sources might be okay as well with staff approval.
Just one word about style - shortish names are kind of an American thing. Bill, Joe, Bob - Americans, particluarly mid-Westerners like short names, but this doesn't really fit Zalanthas. If you feel the need to shorten names, at least please don't treat longer names as strange, longer names are the norm. Three syllables may be a comfortable minimum.
Quote from: ibusoe on September 22, 2015, 03:19:54 PM
stuff
This feels awfully authoritative to me. Where are you getting the assertion that names of Zalanthas should be several syllables? Why do you feel we should be using names that have some basis in real life culture so you can ascertain meaning from them?
I agree, at least, that there should be such a thing as a "common" name, and not just Amos or Malik.
Quote from: Alesan on September 22, 2015, 05:29:25 PM
Quote from: ibusoe on September 22, 2015, 03:19:54 PM
stuff
This feels awfully authoritative to me. Where are you getting the assertion that names of Zalanthas should be several syllables? Why do you feel we should be using names that have some basis in real life culture so you can ascertain meaning from them?
Good question! Well very few cultures appreciate short names. Short names relate to like American Cowboy culture, which is an almost quintessentially American thing. I think American game designers sometimes have a skewed perspective because America is so very different from the entire rest of the world in a few odd ways. It's odd when Arm is like America in those specific ways, because it makes the game feel weird. People are welcome to debate whether Allanak is more like Byzantium, or whether Tuluk is more like Cairo, or whether Red Storm is supposed to be like Timbuktu...I'd value people's thoughts on this. But the short name thing is just flat out wrong.
...however the game is mostly played by Americans. And sometimes shorthand is just plain handy. The popular phrase, "Tek's balls!" needs to roll off the tongue, it doesn't have the same ring as "Tektolones testicles!" But if you want to use shorthand, at least giving a nod to longer names is appreciated. Tektolnes is a longer game. Muk-Utep is...at least proper. Bill and Joe and Bob are just too short. It doesn't *feel* right. Quetzelquatl and Narolethotep are much more appropriate.
Should the game use a synthetic language rather than a real one? Possibly, I just doubt personally that the game has the resources to pull it off correctly. At best we could mimic Esperanto or something, but even Esperanto sounds a lot like Spanish. I'd just rather have Spanish at that point, if you see what I mean. I don't think Spanish would be universally acceptable, because a lot of people would be thinking Cheech Marin rather than the Conquistadors or the Inquisition. Spielberg did about the best of anyone at constructing fantasy languages for Star Wars, but he's also a creative genius who had linguists on staff. Arm doesn't have anything like that.
I tried playing with some of the synthetic language in the game, i.e. the SLK language, and it was a wash. I've avoided calling too much attention to this because I'm aware of the hard work that went into this, it just isn't working out though.
Are there times when shorter names and terser communications are appropriate? Sure. I'd imagine that in-game military commands and codes and nicknames would be shorter because of the nature of the communications. I have real life sailing experience, and sailing terminology (which comes from Old English) is terse because a lot of things need to happen at once.
...and sometimes Old Fashioned names are just plain short. If I recall, the Egyptian sun god is Ra. Simply Ra. Why is it so short when a King's name is Tutenkamen? It just simply is.
Names should tell a story. I want to understand the story.
I tried throwing a bit of French into my last character...which I wasn't happy with because I felt that for your average player won't be aware of the brutality associated with things like the French Legion, the gritty parts of French Colonialism, French piracy or colonial-era French prisons. French will likely be too floral for a modern audience. I'm glad that I tried but I don't think French is the way to go.
Lots of in-game references reference the Levant of antiquity, which might be the way to go, not that I think FW's suggestion of Norse names is bad at all. I just wanted to see what other people thought because I'm aware of the fact that some of the playerbase are soldiers returning from Arabic countries, and might not be all that happy with Arabic references. At one time we had a strong Turkish contingency of players, and they might not be happy with a casual treatment of Turkish. Other players opinions are important to me.
The unique name thing is bothersome but can be easily corrected. It's not that Bill and Joe and John are terrible, but it should probably be more Vilhelm and Yoseff and Yonas.
And what about players that have a different idea? Fine, if it passes staff approval it's okay with me. How about people who don't have the time or interest to learn a smattering of Arabic? That's fine too. This would be meant to improve game atmosphere for people who are interested in playing it, not to ruin the experience of people who weren't feeling it.
Quote from: Beethoven on September 22, 2015, 05:47:11 PM
I agree, at least, that there should be such a thing as a "common" name, and not just Amos or Malik.
Yes. This. This is mainly what I want. Maybe the staff wouldn't be happy with Noah as a common name? Okay. But maybe like Abrahim would be pre-approved as a common and acceptable name.
I'd really be okay with a synthetic language, I just don't think we could do one well. And I'd rather be learning. Armageddon has challenged me to learn a lot, I learned RL horseback riding so I could play more accurately.
Maybe we could put this to a vote? I would be totally okay with a synthetic language I just think a real life language would be better.
EDIT: ...and like maybe there could be a list of names that are common in the north while being rare in the south? I'd rather have my character picked on for having a Northie name than a northie accent, with all respect for the accent code.
I'm just not understanding the requirement that we equate Zalanthan culture with IRL culture. So short names are an American thing. So? Names in earth culture are also based on written language, not primarily spoken language. It seems like a completely different ballgame to me. I can't claim to know how a culture would develop their naming system without written language, but I feel like it might play a part, and you seem to be asserting a lot of your own opinion as if this is the way it should be in the game. It's not necessarily true, and I admit it's not necessarily untrue, either. It's a discussion of opinions.
Having a sense for common names with a flavor for region wouldn't be a bad thing, though. I'm just not sure we need to police name length... at all.
Quote from: Alesan on September 22, 2015, 06:31:43 PM
I'm just not understanding the requirement that we equate Zalanthan culture with IRL culture. So short names are an American thing. So? Names in earth culture are also based on written language, not primarily spoken language. It seems like a completely different ballgame to me. I can't claim to know how a culture would develop their naming system without written language, but I feel like it might play a part, and you seem to be asserting a lot of your own opinion as if this is the way it should be in the game. It's not necessarily true, and I admit it's not necessarily untrue, either. It's a discussion of opinions.
Having a sense for common names with a flavor for region wouldn't be a bad thing, though. I'm just not sure we need to police name length... at all.
Thank you. Disagree that it's an opinion based issue.
But yeah, that's one of the things I was worried about, was the idea that somebody would be policing. In fact, staff are already policing names but they're doing so based upon decade-old policy.
I think that if a standard would be developed, it should be opt-in only. Like if there were a list of pre-approved names, you'd be
completely free to use one of those names, but if you had something more creative in mind, you just submit your idea to the staff (hint: you already have to do this).
So if anything, it would streamline things and create less policing.
Please, keep the criticism coming - my last two ideas were kind of bombs so I'd be happy if this one got off the ground.
As ever with people trying to bring history in on their side, I want to note that short names really aren't some kind of special American thing. Not even short full names are. Chinese names, for example, have regularly been bisyllabic for millennia now.
Yeah, what Patuk said. Don't try to foist your own opinion and tout it as fact please. Vietnamese names are also often extremely short.
I will just use keywords with long or unusually spelled names. The same argument could be made why isn't every name phonetic due to basically non-existant literacy? Because it's a fantasy game.
Here are a list of Dark Sun names, they are mostly between one and three syllables.
http://www.twinmooncircus.net/n_official.htm
Quote from: Patuk on September 23, 2015, 08:02:13 AM
As ever with people trying to bring history in on their side, I want to note that short names really aren't some kind of special American thing. Not even short full names are. Chinese names, for example, have regularly been bisyllabic for millennia now.
That's a good point. It's funny, I caught the same thing when I was on my way home from work, but you beat me in.
...looks like something got by you as well , though. I specifically mentioned Korean as a culture that I have passing familiarity with, and they also tend to favor short names, at least for people. Juche!
But I have no excuse either. I'd actually gone for beers with a guy named Lee this weekend. Lee. Which could be shortened to Le, in theory. Two letter word. LOL.
Armageddon as a game has to reference something from Earth though, unless we were playing a *really* abstract game like Tetris. But even Tetris references gravity. Maybe chess? Other than the piece names the game is really abstract. Armageddon isn't that Abstract, it's essentially like a chunk of the Byzantine empire got dropped into the middle of a desert on a bad day in the middle of a drought, plus dinosaurs plus racism plus monsters plus evil mages. Not really that abstract.
I got permission from the staff to explore the issue further, so I'll be making a poll so that everyone can have a say that wants to.
Serious question, though: Do you think people would be happy if I actually made a Mongolian type warrior? I've been wanting to make one for a while but I always assumed it would bother people.
I name a lot of my characters after nouns or phrases - A bounty hunter named Mercy, a Whiran named Chance, a rinthi ruff'n'tumble named Crass.
Others are made up, with a middle-eastern flair, that I want to end up with a certain sound. I want names that resonate with who the character is. I've taken translated words and modified them, too, for names, that works well.
Take League names and turn them around.
I probably already posted that.
Do it anyway.
I've used Baphet, I remember that. Opal, Flower, Stabby (a rinthi), Dayna, Biri, Gunir, Col, Corin, Tahlini, Siko, Johan, Kaga, Ibermund.
My favourite one I thought up is still Sjante Chases Falls (Sun Runner).
Quote from: Bogre on November 12, 2015, 02:54:00 PMa Whiran named Chance,
I had a character named Chance too! Not a whiran though.
I have a lot of names that I feel are Armenian-ish. If you're going to play a game where everyone's life is hell, name your characters after earth's most screwed-over people.
I tend towards middle-eastern names lately, but I used to use norse names.
Most of the time, I straight up faceroll the keyboard (sometimes literally) and then stair at the letters until something inspires me to a name, or the letters make a name. I wish I was joking.
Sometimes though, I think of a name that I like and it carries enough personality to sort of shape the pc I make around it.
I have based at least one of my NPC's names off the length of a previous PC in the clan.
Quote from: Akariel on November 18, 2015, 04:16:45 PM
I have based at least one of my NPC's names off the length of a previous PC in the clan.
Thank you. Can we please have a list of (game historical) names that are appropriate for players to use?
I suppose reusing any former PC names you can think of (or deriving inspiration from them) would be a good start.
Be forewarned, if you name your guy Samos and then show up claiming to be a soldier, you might get thrown in jail. (Sorry Talia)
I started off with more mundane names, then went a little abstract. Now I like to name my characters something memorable, I had a character a couple months ago, and when he introduced himself, every time, the other person would pause, or blink, or even just outright say, that's a weird fucking name. Most importantly, I like naming my characters in a way that sounds like the concept. If I'm playing a low life scummy rinth-rat, I'll pick a simple name and make sure it rhymes with something lewd/disgusting.
Wait, so naming a character "Samos" would be bad?
In real life, most names are re-used. A great many (most?) names are even those of kings, saints, and other prominent historical figures.
Being a Red Robe that was unusually popular with the common people, I'd think there would be a lot of baby Samos's out there. (Actually, Samos's time was about 60 years ago, so probably by now there could be adult characters named after grandpa baby Samos...)
Yeah, I don't understand why it would be uncool to name your PC after a famous PC from the past. I'd like to see that, actually.
Full disclosure: I threw Samos II in jail because he showed up in suspicious circumstances and kept giving all the "wrong" IC answers.
In retrospect I should have killed him.
I have seen other PCs with notorious or famous names encounter various reactions (up to and including being renamed on the spot).
Commoners naming their kids after famous templars and nobles still seems entirely sensible to me.
I use famous Zalanthan names all the time for my characters. I've had several named after templars (As an example, I had one pc named Sathis, after Sathis Valika the Red who has a statue on Templar's Way. That was Halaster's templar. I also had a Borsail noble named Ellandris, after Ceylara Ellandris Borsail, a famous Borsail PC of the past). I know other players who have done this too. There's been at least one other player named Samos and one named after Eunoli (a famous Lirathan templar). The fact that there's been a commoner npc named Samos means someone on staff must have been ok with this behavior at some point too.
Anyway, it's something I've seen a lot in the past and personally I wish it happened more, since it's a nice little tribute to players that have gone before. I don't really think there's a problem with it, and it makes perfect IC sense. Maybe seidhr doesn't like it, but based on my pretty extensive experience I don't think that means it's against the rules?
Of course, when I say "there haven't been problems" I mean OOC problems, not IC problems. My commoner named Sathis nearly had her arm broken by a templar (part of the reason was her name, the other part was that she tripped and spilled some salad).
I think IC problems are ok to have when it comes to names. I like them.
IG I have recommended to parents that when they name their kids after nobles or templars, they change the name a little bit so as to avoid potential IC consequences.
OOCly, I would hope people can name their PCs after IC "celebrities," whether the name is an exact copy or altered slightly, and get them approved!
I'm fine with people outright taking names from other PCs, celebrity or not. If a character was named with a name, that name must come from somewhere in the world. People by and large don't just invent names for children.
Heck, I bet Amos, Talia, Malik, and Sadira were all members of the Old Council of Kings, though long forgotten.
We also have a good variety of Zalanthan plant life that a fair number of people have taken advantage of for PC names.
Quote from: Marauder Moe on November 19, 2015, 12:05:47 PM
We also have a good variety of Zalanthan plant life that a fair number of people have taken advantage of for PC names.
Though sometimes I wish it was considered "bad luck" in game to name your kids after animals. Just to explain all the assist and rescue related mishaps that tend to come from it.
Ya... don't name your PCs after animals. At least not after large/aggressive/hunted animals.
Quote from: Marauder Moe on November 19, 2015, 01:43:09 PM
Ya... don't name your PCs after animals. At least not after large/aggressive/hunted animals.
Plantlife is generally safer I think, but I've played a character with the same keyword as a large creature. Luckily the crowd I was with payed attention.
Naming your child after an animal should make them not attack it for they are kin.
Quote from: Jihelu on November 19, 2015, 06:04:11 PM
Naming your child after an animal should make them not attack it for they are kin.
But what about the poor little 'rinth kid name Rat who is tasked with bringing food home for his starving family?
He'll probably get accidentally killed by some more sensibly named Rathunter before the age of six.
Here is a list I decided to ditch
Thorvalder
Kareem
Hrollag
Hazel
Halvor
Egil
Gunvor
Ulfei
Aslog
Abida
Cradling her twin infants, looking from one to the other, the slender, busty woman says, in sirihish:
"...and you shall be Beetle."
The blue-eyed infant says, out of character:
"veto"
Quote from: CodeMaster on November 19, 2015, 08:36:58 PM
Cradling her twin infants, looking from one to the other, the slender, busty woman says, in sirihish:
"...and you shall be Beetle."
The blue-eyed infant says, out of character:
"veto"
The blue-eyed infant shakes its head in displeasure
Humans get african names. Breeds and elves get Gloranthan names. Dwarves are named after funny things, like foreign hats.
Sometimes you break the mold though.
Sometimes I enjoy just really common names that don't fit in at all.
I wouldn't mind seeing a John.
I would be straight up flattered if I found another PC named after one of mine. This can't be against the rules, plz.
Someone named their pc Fulmini after one of mine.
I don't think there should be IC consequences for naming yourself after a famous templar or noble. It's adoration, after all. What's the most popular name for Muslims? Their number one guy. And no one stops and accuses some lowly peasant named Mohammed of trying to pretend that he's the prophet. There are Hindu children given the name of a god or goddess from the Hindu pantheon. And when has anyone been offended because someone was named after the Christian mother of their god, Mary? What we're talking about here is the equivalent of naming a child Tektolnes or Muk Utep in Zalanthan terms, so I don't see how anyone could take issue with naming someone after a noble or templar (the real world equivalent of a famous politician or even policeman).
Unless nobles/templars are meant to practically be a different race, such that their names even are seen as separate and unacceptable for commoner use, I don't think there should be any IC consequences. Naming your child Sathis, or whoever, should be seen as flattery of the highest order (I actually had a gemmed Krathi named Sathis once and templar PCs playing in those days were totally on board with it). Of course, if a character selects the name of someone who was known to have been very unpopular and despised, that's a different story, but I don't see that a commoner being named after a famous noble/templar should at all be considered some sort of breach of protocol. Quite the opposite. The common class throughout the ages in the real world have strived to mirror their "betters" by copying noble/royal fashion. This was not discouraged by the nobles/royals. On the contrary, it was practically what they wanted the commoners to do. The class distinction between upper and lower was still very evident, but that did not stop the adoration and even imitation.
Maybe it's more of a code issue that bugs staff? I remember when I staffed at another MUD, it could be hell when there were multiple characters of any name, whether they were dead, living, or whatever there were inventory problems, trying to track things belonging to the character were a pain... eugh.
I don't think that otherwise it would be so odd, for the reasons Suhuy mentioned.
I DO WHAT I WANT
addkeyword Ysania
addkeyword Pearl
addkeyword Sargax
addkeyword Elithan
addkeyword Shatuka
addkeyword Serilla
addkeyword Rokov
addkeyword Quick
addkeyword Gin
addkeyword Samos
addkeyword Raleris
addkeyword Mukutep
addkeyword Tektolnes
emote drinks hard liquor
emote lights a cigarette
emote kicks over a stool and breaks a window on the way out
addkeyword all
Used to be that beetles had the keyword "it" for some reason. forgetting the 'say' in "say fuck it" ... man.
Quote from: LauraMars on December 12, 2015, 10:59:59 PM
I DO WHAT I WANT
addkeyword Ysania
addkeyword Pearl
addkeyword Sargax
addkeyword Elithan
addkeyword Shatuka
addkeyword Serilla
addkeyword Rokov
addkeyword Quick
addkeyword Gin
addkeyword Samos
addkeyword Raleris
addkeyword Mukutep
addkeyword Tektolnes
emote drinks hard liquor
emote lights a cigarette
emote kicks over a stool and breaks a window on the way out
Awww... none of mine made the list. I need to try harder.
Quote from: LauraMars on December 12, 2015, 10:59:59 PM
I DO WHAT I WANT
addkeyword Ysania
addkeyword Pearl
addkeyword Sargax
addkeyword Elithan
addkeyword Shatuka
addkeyword Serilla
addkeyword Rokov
addkeyword Quick
addkeyword Gin
addkeyword Samos
addkeyword Raleris
addkeyword Mukutep
addkeyword Tektolnes
emote drinks hard liquor
emote lights a cigarette
emote kicks over a stool and breaks a window on the way out
I made the list! Woot!
I agree with the naming after Templar thing, but don't care for PCs that are named after famous PCs that aren't Templars. Especially if they've got a similar story.
My god, those names brought back memories.
If your Pearl was the black-haired crazy girl sister of a Byn sargaent then I made someone's list?!
Pearl in this case was a long-lived and notorious aide to various high-rolling nobles, who ended up founding House Terash and - yep - the Atrium.
Holy shit.
I am using the Eight primary siddhis as the names of my characters. I stumbled across them and really liked the way they sounded. A lot of my more recent names have come from mythology and religion, although if I ever roll an assassin, I already have a name picked out.
Quote from: ibusoe on September 22, 2015, 03:19:54 PM
(Removed lists of names written in the first post of this thread.)
Names
There's been an above-average level of Out-of-Game Reference (OOG-Reference) names lately in game. I don't personally have a problem with this. To me, if you're four RL hours into a Byn mission, and you finally find the cave where the mysterious elf-treasure is suppose to be stored, only to find out...
...the cave is completely empty, then I don't have a problem with someone breaking character and quipping:
OOC: These are not the droids you're looking for
LOL. To me that's funny. Granted, as funny as I find that, the staff may disagree, so you're stuck arguing with them at this point. And for what it's worth, I'm greatful for their intervention. After all if the staff didn't crack down on stuff like this, then everyone would be doing it. If everyone did it all the time, Arm would no longer be an engaging post-apocalyptic simulation, it would be a joke game.
That being said, I think that names specifically deserve some attention. Besides the frequency of American names appearing in game, I think the name system is problematic. Let's temporarily put aside my dislike of the policy of forcing people to have their character's name as a keyword.
For starters, the requirement to have a unique name for each character is pretty wonky. While I won't exactly call myself a world citizen, most cultures that I've a working knowlege of (e.g. Korean, American, British, Arabic, Russian, French, etc.) all tend to draw from a fairly small list of names. In fact, in the case of five of the above, they all draw from the *same* list of names, even though the pronouciation will vary across language groups.
I think it would be handy if we as players (not necessarily with staff involvement) could arrive at a list of common names. While I disagree that names say a lot about an individual, I think names say a lot about that person's parents, and to a lesser extent about their upbringing. It's mildly disruptive to me to meet someone in game and have zero etymology about their name.
Sometimes that's a good thing. In any naming system, some people will deliberately eschew conventions, and some will do so accidentally. Moreover, in a fantasy video game filled with elves and dwarves there is no concrete reason to completely standardize on anything.
But I myself would like a list of common names, and think that Pre-Islamic, Persian, Turkish and Byzantine might make excellent sources. Obviously if this is to be non-compulsory, other sources might be okay as well with staff approval.
Just one word about style - shortish names are kind of an American thing. Bill, Joe, Bob - Americans, particluarly mid-Westerners like short names, but this doesn't really fit Zalanthas. If you feel the need to shorten names, at least please don't treat longer names as strange, longer names are the norm. Three syllables may be a comfortable minimum.
I really appreciate this post. I don't know what the gamewide acceptance is, but if I had my own game, this is a system I would likely play around with. I like the idea of city- or region-specific common names, not-so-common names, and so on. A structure for commoner names, one for nobility could be interesting.
I'm way too new to Arm to feel comfortable sharing what I did while naming my character, but over the years, on other games, I've often looked at baby name sites, picked various regions, and then written down the names I liked. Once, I sat down and wrote a list of made-up names, tweaked the letters, rearranged things.
Mostly, when I look at name websites, I pull from a specific linguistic background--Greek, Norse, Hebrew, Arabic, Gaelic, Egyptian, to list a few. It's fun seeing the differences and similarities within each set of names--the structure tends to stay the same within each. Of course, I find languages fascinating, though I only know a smattering of maybe two others besides English. :( I wish I knew a lot more.
Fun topic. I personally think names should have meaning, but I've become more accepting of made-up names over the years. I prefer meaning, though, that can be traced, just not blatently taken from well-known books/movies/TV. Those kinda ruin the immersion for me.
I usually pull from latin/stupidity that comes out of my mind but I may have posted this already.
Now whatever name you come up with run it through the wu tang name generator and get a name like....Violent Swami or Bittah Contender or Vizual Worlock. These definitely won't be rejected.
Protect your fuckin' necks.
...With gorgets or collars, y'all.
Quote from: amyandthepup on July 09, 2016, 05:57:06 PM
I'm way too new to Arm to feel comfortable sharing what I did while naming my character, but over the years, on other games, I've often looked at baby name sites, picked various regions, and then written down the names I liked. Once, I sat down and wrote a list of made-up names, tweaked the letters, rearranged things.
Mostly, when I look at name websites, I pull from a specific linguistic background--Greek, Norse, Hebrew, Arabic, Gaelic, Egyptian, to list a few.
That's what I do too. Usually some play on Celtic because I like it.
.
I think I've posted here before, but I don't feel like looking for it. Usually my names come from random stuff I have on my desk or in my office. Sometimes just from my imagination alone. Once in awhile it'll be an acronym of a word or someone else's name.
There's a lot you can do with word lists from your own desk, like:
air in a can
cheese nips
desk fan
beewax candle
skull candy headset
Just move the letters around til you get something that sounds like it'd make a cool name.
All my names rhyme with "Conan". Because he's the ultimate desert badass.
Childish Gambino came from Wu Tang Clan's name generator.
I'm just saying, it CLEARLY works ;)
Quote from: Lizzie on January 17, 2017, 07:15:14 AM
I think I've posted here before, but I don't feel like looking for it. Usually my names come from random stuff I have on my desk or in my office. Sometimes just from my imagination alone. Once in awhile it'll be an acronym of a word or someone else's name.
There's a lot you can do with word lists from your own desk, like:
air in a can
cheese nips
desk fan
beewax candle
skull candy headset
Just move the letters around til you get something that sounds like it'd make a cool name.
Arcan Chesnips, Deskfin Becandle, and Skandy Sethed.
Hrm, you might be on to something.
Lately I just mash letters together and say fuck it.
My foolproof name generation strategy when I'm really stuck is to find a random sentence and take the first syllable or few letters from the beginning (or end) of some of the words. Then I string them together and tweak it until it looks/sounds like I think it should and call it a day.
Quote from: RogueGunslinger on January 20, 2017, 08:48:40 AM
Quote from: Lizzie on January 17, 2017, 07:15:14 AM
I think I've posted here before, but I don't feel like looking for it. Usually my names come from random stuff I have on my desk or in my office. Sometimes just from my imagination alone. Once in awhile it'll be an acronym of a word or someone else's name.
There's a lot you can do with word lists from your own desk, like:
air in a can
cheese nips
desk fan
beewax candle
skull candy headset
Just move the letters around til you get something that sounds like it'd make a cool name.
Arcan Chesnips, Deskfin Becandle, and Skandy Sethed.
Hrm, you might be on to something.
Lately I just mash letters together and say fuck it.
I go by brand names. The air in a can is made by "Perfectdata." So a name for my character might be Peferda. Cheese Nips are made by Nabisco. Lots you can do with that: Bisco. Nabi. Scona. Sibna..
Desk fan is an O2Cool. But if I don't wear my glasses it looks like it says OZCOOL. Coza, Lozca. Colza, etc. etc.
Beeswax Candle isn't branded, so I'd make up something with just the thing that it is. Candlee, Sebwel, Nedwalba.
SkullCandy headset - Dyska, Landy, Kul (woah - makes ya wonder right?)..
My sprinkler system was from the brand 'Rainbird'
So I named my 40th something char 'Rainbird'.
I died to a half-giant named 'The pepsi challenge'.
One of my friends from my Ancient Anguish days had a character named "Morex" because at the time, he was looking around the room and found some Memorex pens.
Names certainly aren't hard. Being interesting and important enough for people to REMEMBER your name?
... I'll get back to you.
I typically just roll my forehead across the keyboard, and then pick letters out of the series until a name appears.
That, or I look in the mirror to see which keys left a mark on my forehead..
Your application for character named "Nyarlathothep" has been denied.
Your application for character named "Shub-Niggarath" has been denied.
Your application for character named "Cthulhu" has been denied.
Damn it. Why is this so hard?
Quote from: Riev on January 22, 2017, 06:36:23 PM
One of my friends from my Ancient Anguish days had a character named "Morex" because at the time, he was looking around the room and found some Memorex pens.
Names certainly aren't hard. Being interesting and important enough for people to REMEMBER your name?
... I'll get back to you.
Whoa, you played Ancient Anguish? Who were you ?
For the last 18 months I've been using names that sound like a good warrior's name in Claymore. I'm saying this because I'm running out of things to make up.
Quote from: Bogre on January 24, 2017, 10:08:37 PM
Quote from: Riev on January 22, 2017, 06:36:23 PM
One of my friends from my Ancient Anguish days had a character named "Morex" because at the time, he was looking around the room and found some Memorex pens.
Names certainly aren't hard. Being interesting and important enough for people to REMEMBER your name?
... I'll get back to you.
Whoa, you played Ancient Anguish? Who were you ?
Legit NOBODY, but I had a rogue and a shapeshifter back in 'the day'. My next door neighbor, actually, was some three letter name that had like top 5 highest combat skills in the came, but I don't remember who he was. This was like... almost 20 years ago now.
I could still go to the Weapons Trainer, with a two handed sword, and go kill that thing in that quest just for the initial skill bump. Or grab that axe out of that dream world. But by far, the coolest was broiling someone's head with spellaimed magic missiles.
Unfortunately, most of their names don't fit here. "PowerTower" the rock shapeshifter calling himself the "Tower of Power" just doesn't work... unless.. Rukkian...
This is what I've used for sheesh, since I started Arm. I've tried other sites but they don't work as well for unusual names. I tweak spanish names and americanise their phonetic spelling a lot of times too. (http://www.rinkworks.com/namegen/)
Not sure if this was posted before but...
http://www.twinmooncircus.net/n_official.htm
So many names!
I usually start with the last 5 letters in the alphabet, and make a name from there. I'd had both z and x characters, v as well. Something about the other 21 letters I'm not a fan of.
I almost always try to come up with a bastardized synonym for WHAT the character is.
The girl with the big boobs - Setta
The bookish (erudite) boy - Ehrude
The got-hit-in-the-head-with-a-tree woodsman - Hew
The half-giant with multi-coloured tattoos as cammo - Daub
Got a million of 'em.
I've been using words from the ethnic groups I come from. Yes, white is in there. I think I'm third generation American on my furthest back side so I actually know which ones I come from.
I'm notorious for using short four letter names.. eg:
Flay
Thea
Rold
Hefe
Tigs
Soup <--- (yes I had a character named soup)
Kave
Mika
Just to name a few lol
Quote from: perfecto on December 23, 2018, 03:31:46 PM
I'm notorious for using short four letter names.. eg:
Flay
Thea
Rold
Hefe
Tigs
Soup <--- (yes I had a character named soup)
Kave
Mika
Just to name a few lol
Me too, but not listing my characters names.
Quote from: Culinary Critic on December 15, 2018, 09:22:52 PM
I almost always try to come up with a bastardized synonym for WHAT the character is.
The girl with the big boobs - Setta
The bookish (erudite) boy - Ehrude
The got-hit-in-the-head-with-a-tree woodsman - Hew
The half-giant with multi-coloured tattoos as cammo - Daub
Got a million of 'em.
Hew was bae. <3
Google Translate is my new best friend for names.
We should start naming ourselves after food, like that one series.
I will list the vegetables their names are based off of and you tell me which anime series it is.
vegetable, cabbage, radish, carrot, nappa, burdock, broccoli
Eh, since I think no one's going to figure it out, I'm going to post them.
Vegeta, Cabbe, Raditz, Kakarrot, Nappa, Bardock, Broly
I would have figured it out but I'm a dork like that..
Krathis named Vegeta..
Squirrely Squirrel? Beary Bear? Deary Dear.. Oh wrong series.
"Now don't be down Mya'll"
Woodland Critters Forever!
I've been taking names from my nerd media, turning them backwards, and adding a letter or two to the beginning or the end. Usually misspelled, obviously to make them shorter. Techniques like this create names you wouldn't have normally thought of by yourself.
I just steal names from the PB, write them down, wait a year.
Most of my characters name's come from this https://www.fantasynamegenerators.com/
I think I said this before but Rinkworks is my go to place.
I make random vowel and consonant sounds out loud until a name I enjoy saying happens.
I do all kinds of things to find a name. Like:
Look up words in other languages. I had an Elkrosian named Saetta (Italian for lightning bolt) and a Whiran named Adieri (Romanian for wind). Somebody started calling the latter Eri and it stuck which was cool. Cool and airy.
Sometimes I look at lists of names from different ethnic groups and maybe change a couple of letters. Or take common names and change a letter like Susan becomes Jujan.
I also like to have a little joke in the name. I had a dwarf bard named Noh which was short for Noholds.
Quote from: only_plays_tribals on August 21, 2019, 02:03:58 AM
I make random vowel and consonant sounds out loud until a name I enjoy saying happens.
I do that too and sometimes what Medena does.
Is it just me or have more and more earth-like names been making it thru the application process? I could be wrong but I remember when using popular earth names was a big no-no.
"Valentine"
* headshake *
Quote from: kahuna on August 21, 2019, 01:06:04 PM
Is it just me or have more and more earth-like names been making it thru the application process? I could be wrong but I remember when using popular earth names was a big no-no.
They have indeed been making it through, as have some weird Sdesc words for both players and items.
According to my extreme record-keeping ability, Earth-like names have always been around in game.
Been around, for sure. It just seems like there has been an uptick in approved characters with odd Sdescs and Earth like names. It could just be bias, but it seems that way.
Quote from: valeria on August 22, 2019, 07:58:32 AM
According to my extreme record-keeping ability, Earth-like names have always been around in game.
Yep. They always have. People just like to vaguebook I think. Bad people.
I dont think its always been around. I've had applications denied in the past for it when I was new but this is just my experience.
I'm not quite sure what you mean. The top 3 generic names are Amos, Malik, and Talia, which are all real world names.
You probably won't get a Joe in though. Unless it is a GRRM-style Joh or something.
Quote from: valeria on August 25, 2019, 10:46:33 AM
I'm not quite sure what you mean. The top 3 generic names are Amos, Malik, and Talia, which are all real world names.
You probably won't get a Joe in though. Unless it is a GRRM-style Joh or something.
I'm not saying no earth-like names find their way into the game, I'm saying that I've rarely seen names that are popular even today. Of course you're going to see some stuff here and there but no one can deny that immersion can be broken when you hear someones name is the same as your own IRL.
Quote from: kahuna on August 25, 2019, 11:05:56 AM
Quote from: valeria on August 25, 2019, 10:46:33 AM
I'm not quite sure what you mean. The top 3 generic names are Amos, Malik, and Talia, which are all real world names.
You probably won't get a Joe in though. Unless it is a GRRM-style Joh or something.
I'm not saying no earth-like names find their way into the game, I'm saying that I've rarely seen names that are popular even today. Of course you're going to see some stuff here and there but no one can deny that immersion can be broken when you hear someones name is the same as your own IRL.
Get over it.
It sucks. If someone had my name in game, it'd be difficult. But its a fantasy game, and I've seen people who literally were roleplaying League of Legends characters.
If its a real problem, complaint it and explain to staff your side. Otherwise, all this does is make people feel bad for not living up to your standard of naming conventions. Staff allowed the name.
Quote from: Riev on August 25, 2019, 11:37:34 AM
Quote from: kahuna on August 25, 2019, 11:05:56 AM
Quote from: valeria on August 25, 2019, 10:46:33 AM
I'm not quite sure what you mean. The top 3 generic names are Amos, Malik, and Talia, which are all real world names.
You probably won't get a Joe in though. Unless it is a GRRM-style Joh or something.
I'm not saying no earth-like names find their way into the game, I'm saying that I've rarely seen names that are popular even today. Of course you're going to see some stuff here and there but no one can deny that immersion can be broken when you hear someones name is the same as your own IRL.
Get over it.
It sucks. If someone had my name in game, it'd be difficult. But its a fantasy game, and I've seen people who literally were roleplaying League of Legends characters.
If its a real problem, complaint it and explain to staff your side. Otherwise, all this does is make people feel bad for not living up to your standard of naming conventions. Staff allowed the name.
Get over what? I'm simply stating my opinion about a game on the discussion board in a thread about names.
What Riev said.
Personally I go one of two ways, take a character I met IC a bit ago and change it up a bit.
Or I just think of a cool sounding word, make it fantasy and boom.
Seems we can argue about anything. Character apps used to get denied for alternative fantasy and real life earth names that were super common in our era, there were exceptions.
I know specifically northern tulukis would kinda go with egyptian derivatives or root words which I thought was cool, especially amongst the nobility.
Allanak kinda has its own flavor too.
Chacha
Puns
I like to take ancient words (read: spell words) and sometimes add a vowel or so to make them seem like they're delineated from old world speak, I've played Eena, Yuqa, Kral, etc. (of course usually these PCs are mundane and wouldn't know the meaning of their name, just like a lot of people in real-life)
Spice words make great names (Thodeliv, Tho for short, Qel, etc)
Zalanthan days of the week make great names. I played a Terrin.
I like taking names from Hindu texts, i.e. Bhagavad Gita, and altering them a bit so they aren't really google-able: Dristhu, Kuntiboje, Dhuryadana, Dhritara, etc.
Actually, adding 'h' after consants never feels wrong. Khet, Phet, Bakh. Sometimes hard 'kt' sounds great: Shikt, Krillikitekt (oooh he's probably a wiggler) etc, sort of an egyptian vibe.
Obviously in-game plant & animal names are great.