On re-naming characters

[Methinkus]

I’m not sure how to handle this, but I really dislike my characters name. I didn’t dislike it so much at first, but it’s grown to be more and more irritating for me each session, until at this point I just cant stand to introduce my poor character to NPCs anymore.

I just don’t like the name. I pulled it randomly out of the Hero Builders Guidebook and stuck with it. We don’t really get to choose our own names anyway.

I would enjoy playing the character more with a different name, but to just change it now would be awkward because we have developed a lot of history with our characters at this point and we’ve been using them for a while. Has anyone else had similar problems? Any advice? I know it’s a little thing, but it really bugs me. How would you go about changing your characters name in character?

 

[Orco42]

Go to the colosseum bet the elixer and beat Chupon. Then you get the Rename Card.

 

[333 Dave]

Whats his name now?

 

[Zerovoid]

Well, I don't think changing your name would unbalance the game, so you might as well just ask your players and DM if you can retroactively change your character's name.

Other ideas would be for your character to pick a new name, or to find out that their parents aren't who they thought they were, and go on a quest to find out their true name or something.

 

[Paul_Klein]

I would make it something that happens in-game, absolutly. Don't just say "guys, the DM does not mind, so I'm changing my character's name".

At the very least, go to the town hall in your city and get it legally changed.

*shrug*

 

[Bendrig]

1) Get and use a nickname... allows for some annoying situations when you /do/ have to use your real name.

2) Your char doesn't like his name anymore either and asks everybody to call them by his second name. I got several family members who do this.
Hey, tastes change, and most people officially have more then one name.

3) Change it to reflect a change in your life. One of my characters went from "mapmaper" to "bluehand" when his hand got burned of and replaced with a magic, glowing, blue replica.

Good thing too, since I thought the name mapmaker was too bland anyway. I'm sure dad won't care about the change, since it's a racial tradition anyway...

Whatever.

 

[frankthedm]

just say that the old name was somthing you were traveling under, and that you are going to stop the deception.

The current caracter I am playing is a sorta human {with the innsmouth taint].His Real name is BllllaaKrlll but I go by Blake to reduce questions: Priests of Tawil at Umr are not the most honest after all.

 

[Buttercup]

Does this character worship any deity? If he does, then he could have a dream in which the deity appeared and told him that his true name was _________ and that he should be known by it from this day forth.

He could get hit in the head and have a personality change which would include a new name.

As someone else suggested, he might reveal that he had been traveling under an assumed name all along.

Does he have any enemies? If he does, he could start using a new name to throw them off the trail.

 

[Dagger75]

I would go with the nickname. My friend had an elf named Joyleaf Willowwinter. Oh we rag him hard, but he came up with the nick name Archer cause thats what he does. And over the course of the weeks of him calling himself Archer it slowly stuck in my little groups minds and we started calling him Archer. So go with the nick name.

 

[Hand of Evil]

Name changing could be cultrual, at periods of time a persom changes there names due to some special event. Such as from a child to a man/woman, then there is marriage, or just fitting in a new place.

You also have the true name thing, where is someone or thing gets that name they have power over you, so you use a fake name. This could be a interesting plot tool in D&D.

I say talk to your DM.

One I did to a player (more of a player unhappy with character) in a game was to be a look-a-like, this was the old prince and the pauper story. I let the player have a new character and replace the old one. After a few adventures the party found out, he gave them a fake name because he could not go back, the replacement prince had a hunting mishap.