"It's a joke name, sir."

[The Green Adam]

I find this subject fascinating...

I've been gaming for 30+ years and only first encountered this problem about 5 or 6 years ago and never with my regular group. Its always when I sit down to run with groups I'm not as familiar with. The new/current group I'm going to be gaming with seems to create silly or common names to a fault...as a sort of badge of honor.

Now we're not talking totally silly like Pinky for a Barbarian or Scott the Wizard but not too far off either. Being named after a popular magaine or alchoholic beverage is not out the question.

I am about to run for this group and I'm really not sure what to do. I'm kind of against telling them they can't do this but names like that really throw off the atmosphere I'm trying to build in a 'serious' game universe.

Also, though this maybe a different question altogether, why do people have so much trouble generating names? When I was 8 and played my very first D&D red box game ever my Halfling was named Gobo Pepperthorn (TM). I can pop out 20 names right now if I need to and if I'm playing a known universe I've played before its even easier. Just make up naming conventions and run with them.

Let's say all the Wood Elves in the northern part of the continent are named for the local weather/climate and so on (maybe their Snow or Winter Elves). First names sound like...let's see...breathy, lots of 'H's and 'Th's and 'F's. Ok, how's this...

Hathroh IceFeather
Theteleth ChillingBlade
Fothirith ColdHollow
Hafreph NorthWind

Naming is like the most fun and easy part of making up a PC or NPC(though as I GM I'm biased. I don't really like to play as a player so one of the few parts I do really enjoy is coming up with a name).

Never understood it and probably never will.

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[The Green Adam]

I should make a point that I'm addressing character names in 'serious' games. I run a lot of comedic games where funny names are not so out of the place. At the same time, most of the names in our Ghostbusters, Galaxy Quest and even Teenagers from Outer Space games were largely normal or relatively serious. Your name wasn't the joke, the situation was. To put it another way, if you look at the names of characters in a lot of situation comedies they're not overly funny by themselves. Some are but for the most part the humor comes from a ridiculous circumstance or character dynamic.

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[Jeff Wilder]

We don't currently have any "silly names" players, but one of our core players -- going back many years -- is apparently incapable of creating an original name. He rips off pop culture, fantasy/SF, whatever. The names themselves are fine, except that it's jarring to recognize them.

(I take that back, to some extent: his spellthief in our Age of Worms game was named "Alf." Pretty silly.)

As DM, I flat out don't allow silly names, and I look hard at deliberately derivative names. If a player doesn't care enough to choose an appropriate name for the setting and tone of my game, he doesn't care enough to play in my game.

 

[SlyFlourish]

I just go with it. It's the players' game as much as mine. If they want a funny name, they get one. I think WoW showed that you can have a good mix of humor and drama without breaking the overall story. WoW can still have scenes like the Fall of the Wrath Gate with NPCs named Haris Pilton.

 

[Mallus]

I find the notion of a completely serious D&D game kinda, well, silly. But that's just me.

 

[Cryptos]

Lately I've been tempted to make a halfling named Emmanuel of the Plains.

I'm sure it'll pass eventually.

Generally I don't play characters with joke names.

 

[Mercule]

I don't have a problem with a character saddled with an unfortunate name, when that name in unfortunate in character. But, when someone creates a character with a goofy name, it sometimes comes off like the player who brings their needlepoint or DS to the table, and I deal with it the same way.

The archer named "Bodewhin" was fine, but when it became apparent the the long name was just a way to name an archer "Bo", I shuddered some (though I allowed it). I did nix the psychologist named "Luna Sai", though. I knew one player who had a dwarf with the first name of "Shith" and the last name of "Ead", and I would have banned that name from my game.

 

[Mallus]

I did nix the psychologist named "Luna Sai", though.

That's the perfect name for a psychologist who moonlights as a ninja.

 

[The Green Adam]

That's the perfect name for a psychologist who moonlights as a ninja.

I was thinking the same thing - especially in a Superhero game. See it all depends on the game you're running. Somehow names that would be silly in a grim and gritty story can be natural in another genre.

Case in point...I ran a SciFi/Action game that became almost a superhero or at least Superspy game. Set in the far future, maybe the 25th Century, the characters were special agents of the interstellar government who all had some special abilities/powers that helped them thwart the government's rivals and enemies. I can remember 4 out of the 6 of them...

Hailing from one a planet orbiting the star that forms Capricorn's eye in the constellation, one was a stealth and espionage specialist with psionics, possessing impressive telepathic and esper abilities. He was the best friend of...

A young man who suffered terribly debilitating side effects from his father's attempt to duplicate a long lost super soldier serum. Most of his body was replaced by highly advanced cybernetics. He was the team tank. His hero was...

A 21st century marine who had been a successful receipient of the aforementioned super soldier formula. He was found in the 25th century in a suspended animation chamber (imagine a cross between Capt. American and the Movie/TV version of Buck Rogers). Master of weapons and tactics, he became the team leader. His best friend was man's best friend...

Genetically uplifted by a secret military program, this scout had the hearing, sense of smell and animal instincts of a dog...which he was! A hyper-intelligent German Shephard.

Now their names...Capricorn, Counterfeit, Battle Royale (Real Name Roy Allen and Shephard (aka Max).

Silly? Maybe...did it fit the over-the-top, tongue-in-cheek scifi/space adventure we were running? Definitely.

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[Mercule]

That's the perfect name for a psychologist who moonlights as a ninja.

It depends on the genre. In a Champions game, I'd let it fly. In a gritty Mage: the Ascension game, not so much.