character-naming
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Gamasutra examines character names in World of Warcraft
What does your character name say about you? Gaming website Gamasutra asked that question while performing a massive investigation on player names in World of Warcraft, and came up with some interesting answers. Obviously a game like World of Warcraft is going to have a ton of unique character names, simply due to the limits on names per server -- but WoW boasts a whopping 3.8 million unique names, which actually makes the game far more diverse than real-world names. As can only be expected, there was a much larger variety in names on RP servers -- while on average, 58% of names were unique, on RP servers that number jumps to a staggering 83%. But what is unexpected is the correlation between class, race, and name ultimately chosen to represent the character you play. Other information painstakingly investigated included represented regions, name origins, common threads between popular names, and an all-too-interesting look at the differences between negative, positive, and neutral names. It's a fascinating glimpse into one of those things that players tend to take for granted. While you may think you're creating a name that's completely unique and carefully chosen, there's a strong likelihood that somewhere out there in the far-flung reaches of the global playerbase, there's at least one person who's had the exact same idea as yourself. Take a look at the full article for more interesting tidbits about the curiosity of character naming on Gamasutra's site.
Breakfast Topic: Do you use proper in-character names for all your characters?
Confession: My very first healer, the one I made after discovering that I liked to heal but which I still very much considered an alt, had a joke name. This was in a game that allowed surnames. When I dinged the level at which I could finally choose a surname, I found myself overly dry on inspiration and overly moist with wine -- and it was thus that I burdened my stalwart cleric with "Bubuquisser." It wasn't 10 levels before I was petitioning a GM for a name change (which he magnanimously granted, thank goodness). I'd learned my lesson. Silly names are not for me. I'm not a full-on MMO roleplayer, but I do strive for a sense of immersion. Even something as common as naming conventions makes me uneasy at the character creation screen. I have a few patterns that I follow, and I keep things like race in mind, but I break away if I get even an inkling that another name might better fit my idea of that character's sensibilities. What's your naming style? Do you use a mix of in-character and out-of-game, real-world references? Would you find a tip of the hat to a fictional or historical character or reference off-putting? Are you cool with pun names?
Pandaren names and how to create one for roleplay
All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players. In World of Warcraft, that player is you! Each week, Anne Stickney brings you All the World's a Stage with helpful hints, tips and tricks on the art of roleplay in WoW. One of the hardest, most difficult things to do when you're creating a roleplay character is coming up with a name for your character. This isn't necessarily because it's difficult to come up with a name; it has far more to do with coming up with a name that isn't taken already. Let's face it, World of Warcraft has been around for so many years now that almost every iteration of every name out there has been used in one form or another. Mists of Pandaria is introducing the pandaren as the new player race. Unlike every other new race that came before, the pandaren are available to both factions, which means that finding the perfect pandaren name is going to be even trickier than usual. Pandaren names are filled with just as much tradition and history as pandaren culture, which makes names a little easier to muddle out.
All the World's A Stage: Common name conventions
Anne Stickney is subbing for a very busy Michael Gray. Anne enjoys roleplay and was delighted to fill in. This has nothing to do with any grand schemes involving Mr. Gray or the eventual theft of his puppy. Promise. One of the questions I'm asked most often in regards to roleplaying has nothing to do with lore, or story development, or character concept. Instead, it revolves around one of the first things you do when you create a new character -- naming it. RP servers run a little differently than your typical PvE or PvP server, and have their own set of unique guidelines for naming in addition to the policies that already exist. These additional naming guidelines are: Non-Medieval/Fantasy Character Names This category includes: Any Non-Medieval or Non-Fantasy names (i.e. Slipnslide, Robotman, Technotron). All normal naming rules (which can be found at http://us.blizzard.com/support/article.xml?articleId=20368). If a player is found to have such a name, he/she may: Be assigned a randomly generated name Be given the appropriate additional penalty if the name violates standard naming rules. Generally speaking, most people playing on an RP server will report a name that does not fall under these guidelines -- and if a case is made, your name can be changed. So how do you create a name that fits? Luckily, all of the races in World of Warcraft have a few particular naming conventions -- traits are common to the NPCs already existing in game. Today we're going to go over these conventions and suggest some ideas and resources you can use to get a name that is unique, and won't get you reported.
Where did you get your WoW name?
Ippy on LJ has been thinking names of late. He asked for people to tell him how they came up with the names for their characters. Coming up with a character name is always a challenge for me. It's not that I don't have ideas, it's just that for the most part, when I start a new alt, they are a blank slate on that character selection screen, and I find it hard to pigeon-hole someone I barely know with a name that might only allow them to play a certain way or take certain talents.As it turns out, there are all kinds of places that players get their names, from mythology to foreign languages to household pets. I currently tend to use two different types of naming conventions. I have those boring character names I have been toting from game to game with me over the years, and I have the "I should so name a druid Roflmeow" inspiration moments. Yes, I can be silly too on occasion.In any case, I extend this question to you, the reader. Where do you glean your inspiration for naming your characters? Or are you the brave type to choose names from the randomizer and have done with?
