| Author |
 Topic  |
|
|
Wandering_mage
Senior Scribe
688 Posts |
 Posted - 23 Mar 2006 : 22:49:15
|
I have the worst time thinking up names for my games that I DM, and yes I do use the random name generator ever so often but how do I get authentic FR names. This might be an exercise in futility but hey, if there is some sort of ryhme or rythm to FR names then why not know it?  Please help.
|
Illum
The Wandering Mage |
|
|
George Krashos
Master of Realmslore
Australia
6680 Posts |
Posted - 23 Mar 2006 : 23:04:05
|
There are lists of names for various regions in the FRCS. Some of them are a tad too 'real-world' analogous for my liking (like the Russian sounding names for Rashemen) but my simple solution is to read lots of realmslore by Ed Greenwood. You'll soon notice naming patterns and trends and can implement them accordingly. The hardest names to come up with are for dragons - believe me, I know!
-- George Krashos
|
"Because only we, contrary to the barbarians, never count the enemy in battle." -- Aeschylus |
Edited by - George Krashos on 23 Mar 2006 23:04:27 |
 |
|
|
Kuje
Great Reader
USA
7915 Posts |
Posted - 23 Mar 2006 : 23:19:57
|
You could also look through my 1e and 2e canon NPC file. It's got over 4,000 FR names, course some of them are to close to RL names, but eh. :)
The link is in my sig. |
For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet and excite you... Books are full of the things that you don't get in real life - wonderful, lyrical language, for instance, right off the bat. - Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium |
|
|
|
The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31799 Posts |
Posted - 24 Mar 2006 : 00:48:55
|
quote:
Originally posted by George Krashos
There are lists of names for various regions in the FRCS. Some of them are a tad too 'real-world' analogous for my liking (like the Russian sounding names for Rashemen) but my simple solution is to read lots of realmslore by Ed Greenwood.
I would agree with that... also including his novels. They are great source for specific Realmslore-based names. Some even feel (or sound) as though they are period-specific to past eras of the Realms... which is just grand if you're looking to base your campaign prior to current events in the Realms.
|
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium -- Volume IX now available (Oct 2007)
"So Saith Ed" -- the collected Candlekeep replies of Ed Greenwood
Zhoth'ilam Folio -- The Electronic Misadventures of a Rambling Sage |
Edited by - The Sage on 24 Mar 2006 00:52:07 |
|
|
|
Faraer
Great Reader
3308 Posts |
Posted - 24 Mar 2006 : 01:00:18
|
You say you use the random name generator, but if you use the right one -- Sami Pyörre's Everchanging Book of Names, with the Forgotten Realms 'book' add-on -- you can synthesize authentic Realms names.
Name patterns vary with region, social class, era and other factors, and you get to intuit the patterns, as George says, but they're too complex to easily spell out, in the main. (Though we can say that the rich, the self-important and mages have longer names than farmers and labourers.)
This is one of my ongoing Realms interests and projects. |
Edited by - Faraer on 24 Mar 2006 01:01:45 |
|
|
|
Wandering_mage
Senior Scribe
688 Posts |
Posted - 24 Mar 2006 : 02:51:32
|
| Thanks for the great advice every one. The wandering mage was wise to come to Candlekeep seeking knowledge. |
Illum
The Wandering Mage |
|
|
|
Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36877 Posts |
Posted - 24 Mar 2006 : 03:14:12
|
As an aside... Sometimes names come to me out of the blue. This often happens when I'd not doing anything Realms-related... I write them all down, even if I have no current use for them. Eventually they make it onto a spreadsheet full of names I keep handy.
Not all of the names are good; some are kinda lame, and many are minor variations of other names on the list. Still, this list has come in handy a time or two. When I need a name, I sometimes hit the list and search until I find a suitable one.
I know that doesn't help you come up with the names. But my point is to simply write down any names you do think up. You may not need them now, but you might need them later -- or one of those okay names could inspire a really nifty one.
Never let an idea pass without writing it down, even if it's just a name or a brief scene. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen!  |
|
|
|
The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31799 Posts |
Posted - 24 Mar 2006 : 03:56:42
|
Good advice Wooly... and a technique I practice as well.
You never know when an idea will strike... As it is, I always keep a notebook with me at all times... useful for jotting down campaign ideas, Realmslore for my own games, NPC/PC themes, character names, spells... it can all be potentially helpful at some point in the campaign creation process.
Names are an especially important consideration for me... place names, character names... alternate race names used by others. It's all good. I'm also a strong proponent of the "name-splicing" method of character-name generation... if only to provide further ideas to work with. To put it simply, you take two names (not limited to two of course, but it's somewhat easier) and experiment with jumbling them around cutting a piece here and adding it there. You don't always get a great result... but if it helps you generate new and interesting names... or even allows you to expand on something you thought up earlier... it can be a real treat.
|
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium -- Volume IX now available (Oct 2007)
"So Saith Ed" -- the collected Candlekeep replies of Ed Greenwood
Zhoth'ilam Folio -- The Electronic Misadventures of a Rambling Sage |
|
|
|
Alaundo
Head Moderator
United Kingdom
5696 Posts |
|
| |
Topic |
|
Forgotten Realms Names
