Schmooples' Den! The DA News Discussion Thread

John Epler @eplerjc
Time to name a character.

Do you
A ) Dig deep into history and mythology, looking for the perfect name?
B ) Hit the 'generate name' button a dozen times until you find one that looks good.

To be clear, I am 100% B. Calling myself out. Naming things is hard, why -can't- a character be Elfy McElferson?

Bit o' both for me as well.

I also have a *ton* of old PnP RPG campaigns that I'll occasionally pull names from. That is... if I feel masochistic enough to wade through stacks upon stacks of paper. 

Pffffft... paper. So old-school ;P I do recall mentioning my Name File months ago

I usually have my names picked out months in advance of when I know I may want to play the game. I already am 99.9% sure what the name of my male rogue character is going to be for DA 4 and have a couple of solid ideas for a female warrior/ mage and I think I already have a male character name picked out for Greedfall and I don't even know if I am getting that one or not.

John Epler @eplerjc
And for the record, I told @patrickweekes about this and he made a face.


Janine Hawkins @bleatingheart
Referencing, but also just sounding things out & combining until I find a name with the right 'rhythm'. Which is how I got to my most bullshit character name so far, "They marked scars of light in pitch; born in fiercest purpose, and beheld as the signet sealed upon our pact,".

John Epler @eplerjc
I get a list of names, and then I sound them out until I find one that has the right mouthfeel. In this case, saying their name in conjunction with the character who already has a name.

I remember the memorable ones!   But I was the GM, so there's been a... substantial number of NPCs over the years.

See, that's way too sensible an approach for me.

In my GM days, the muse could strike at any time... usually when I was hanging half off the couch/bed. Then I'd just scribble stuff awkwardly into a notebook while upside down.

All of the above, but especially lots of staring. Does this mean DA4 will have a name generator included? I must roll that thing as many times as I roll for better stats.

My personal favorite is looking around the room going what the hell sounds like a name? “hmmm...*spots a McD’s coffee cup* Arabica?......sure, ok.”

David Gaider @davidgaider
May as well make this its own thread. First, the Laws of Naming Things, written after many long years during which naming *anything* in the game was the most contentious thing the team could ever do.



Example 1: "Qunari". At first, everyone hated it. "It sounds too much like canary". "The Qun is way too difficult to pronounce." Etc. etc. 6 months later, no-one wanted to change it. That's what they were called... what else could they be?

Example 2: The DA world was not supposed to be called "Thedas". That was a temp name: "THE/DA/Setting". But we left it too long, and when we sat down to give it a proper name... nothing else sounded right. In our minds, the name had stuck.

Eventually the laws led to my Rules of Naming Things, which was how I made naming stuff not make me want to tear out what little hair I had left.



My favorite is #2. We can't agree on a name? Okay, let's leave it with the one you hate... just for now. We'll revisit it in 6 months. Worked every single time.

Example? "Grey Wardens". Some of the team bosses HATED that name. It didn't drip with enough blood. Sadly, for them, they brought up their objections six months too late. Brent Knowles, knowing my laws, wisely said "let's put it to a team vote" and they agreed.

Brent had the result of the vote posted above his office door for YEARS.

"Blood Knight Brotherhood" - 1 vote
"The Lords of War" - 1 vote
"Disciples of Pain" - 0 votes (!)
"Grey Wardens" - literally everyone else on the project

Brent knew: the name had already stuck.

Just one caveat: for the love of God, don't use temp names that you don't want to risk sticking. Name it "Purple Monkey Screwball", something you CAN'T POSSIBLY use. Because if it can, it will. This is the Side-Rule of Thedas. 😉

I really missed the DA team banters

I've resolved most of my "naming" problems once I've found the Sindarin dictionary otherwise the last stuff I've played, watched, read came to help...

Idris the Tired (TM)🇮🇱 @ladyofthelabir1
Gotta say, all the other suggestions sound absolutely ridiculous, I'm glad you went with Grey Wardens 😂😂😂 Because really, Disciples of Pain? That sounds like a name for a cult, not a noble order of warriors protecting the world.

David Gaider @davidgaider
For years, the writing team couldn't say "Disciples of Pain" without doing it in the voice of the German nihilists from the Big Lebowski.

The Enuvaris are(were) pretty much D&D gods though...