How do you name them?

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Dudel
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How do you name them?

Postby Dudel » Tue Oct 14, 2008 6:05 am

My question is mainly this. How do you come up with a name for your char. I dont have a problem with getting basic personality traits or the feal of the char. My main problem is the name. Not that it matters much what their name is.

It is more for you the player really. I'm not good in RL with people's names eithor that includes remembering them. I do however remember faces and behaviors. It becomes a problem when I want to create someone new. I just don't know what to name them. It angers me!
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Miri
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Postby Miri » Tue Oct 14, 2008 6:20 am

I'm usually borrowing names :oops: from some fictional characters, from my own original characters from the times I was still practicing in-drawer graphomany, from some animals / mythical beasts this character traits resemble... and finally, when I'm really out of clue (when the character wasn't really intended to be made, for example :roll:) from anything that he sees when he looks around for the first time.
In one case I've seen a birth anouncement in the local newspaper and I've liked the names so much (they were twin brothers, both names quite uncommon, but fitting to each other) that I've decided that the next two charries I make will be named like that :lol:

btw, I'm horrible with peoples names IRL as well :oops:
Last edited by Miri on Tue Oct 14, 2008 9:31 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Dudel
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Postby Dudel » Tue Oct 14, 2008 6:54 am

Miri wrote:I'm usually borrowing names.........from some animals / mythical beasts this character traits resemble.


Now that Idea I like! I'm stealing it. Seems so simple too.
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*Wiro
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Postby *Wiro » Tue Oct 14, 2008 9:26 am

I use existing words and names and change them a little.
Or I randomly think up some name. Don't ask me how I do it, I must be blessed. =P
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tiddy ogg
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Postby tiddy ogg » Tue Oct 14, 2008 11:04 am

There are name dictionaries, but I, too, have mixed first and last names from fairly obscure novels if I can't find my own. But I think using well-known people's names is frowned upon.
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Rebma
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Postby Rebma » Tue Oct 14, 2008 12:34 pm

I usually just think of a word or sound in my head, and alter it to be a respectable name. One you have the first name, the last name seems so much easier(IF you use one).

I'm not above other methods. I wanted a charri name that started with a certain letter so I "baby names book"ed it, and changed it a bit. Also, not above asking someone else to make up the name.
kronos wrote:like a nice trim is totally fine. short, neat. I don't want to be fighting through the forests of fangorn and expecting treebeard to come and show me the way in
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Doug R.
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Postby Doug R. » Tue Oct 14, 2008 12:44 pm

I just name them - conjure it out of my head. I've been giving charries unique names since I played dice and pen games in middle school.
Hamsters is nice. ~Kaylee, Firefly
Vazalco
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Postby Vazalco » Tue Oct 14, 2008 12:58 pm

I use a fantasy random name generator that I found online once.
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SekoETC
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Postby SekoETC » Tue Oct 14, 2008 1:12 pm

I think up some features like intelligent, charming, short-tempered etc. Then I go to babynamesworld.com and search for names that have a meaning corresponding to the planned characteristics. In the past I used to just type a string without looking, then extract a part of it that's phonetically reasonable. I think that's how I got Gahak, Pharap and Rapothraw.
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BarbaricAvatar
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Postby BarbaricAvatar » Tue Oct 14, 2008 2:39 pm

I extract the names from my twisted imagination.
rklenseth
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Postby rklenseth » Tue Oct 14, 2008 2:50 pm

There are some very good naming generators out there that can be explored. Here are two that I use:

This one is cool because of the all the diversity of cultural and ethic names:
http://www.behindthename.com/random/
This one creates more fantastic names like you would see in a fantasy novel:
http://www.rinkworks.com/namegen/
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DylPickle
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Postby DylPickle » Tue Oct 14, 2008 2:53 pm

If I can't think of one, I use a name generator. I only give them first names though. Giving them last names just doesn't make sense to me. Last names should come through game play, not through preface.
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Razorlance
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Postby Razorlance » Tue Oct 14, 2008 3:06 pm

I just use regular names or alter existing names, usually ending up sounding somewhat Tolkienish.

Rebma19 wrote:I usually just think of a word or sound in my head, and alter it to be a respectable name.


Good to know it's not just mens brains that work like that. :wink:
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notsure
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Postby notsure » Tue Oct 14, 2008 3:25 pm

I use names I'd always wanted to name my own children.

notsure :?
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ceselb
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Postby ceselb » Tue Oct 14, 2008 4:27 pm

I try to do unique and somewhat short names mostly. Things that sounds like it could be a name.

I have two dead chars, they were named "Rostov Ladok" and "Dayo Nagir". I mostly collect nice sounding syllable fragments and mix and match them.
"I'll start with who, what, where, and when, followed by whither, whether, wherefore and whence, and follow that up with a big side-order of 'why'." -- Zaphod Beeblebrox

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