Dear 4e, Please Stop with the Horrible Portmanteaus!

[Umbran]

See you in Scary Town.

Hey, that's right up the road from...

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izWRKl06XEY[/ame]

 

[Desdichado]

Would that be .... Fury -ondy OR Fur - yondy.

Y has two very different common pronunciations in this case where you put your emphasis? like whether you put your emphasis on understanding others or implying stupidity makes all the difference.

Say both of those out loud. Wow, hear that? They sound almost exactly the same.

 

[billd91]

Would that be .... Fury -ondy OR Fur - yondy.

Y has two very different common pronunciations in this case where you put your emphasis? like whether you put your emphasis on understanding others or implying stupidity makes all the difference.

Variations in vowel sounds probably fine to leave in and chalk it up to regional accents. There's plenty of that even in English that I'm not going to sweat it for names in an RPG.

 

[Mallus]

See the Penny Arcade strip below:

Penny Arcade! - In Search Of A Robust Cosmology
C.I.D.

I think "Double Hell" sounds awesome. It's like something translated from English into Cantonese and back again by a beta web translator.

Maybe I'm just a bit jaded. Most writing is bad. Thus the prevalence of bad writing in fantasy fiction, let alone fantasy-fiction based gaming products, let alone specific --and questionable-- naming schemes in gaming product lines with crowded release schedules --ahem, where was I, oh--- the prevalence of bad writing doesn't surprise me at all.

And there ain't much that's going to change it. As others have pointed out, good writing is hard. Some writers are Jack Vance, most are not. So take whatever good you find, name-wise, and forget the rest.

 

[Mark Chance]

Say both of those out loud. Wow, hear that? They sound almost exactly the same.

Furee-on-dee vs. Fur-yon-dee. Yeah, that's close, but it is different. Sort of like prog-ress and pro-gress. Close, but not quite, and not interchangeable.

I prefer foor-yo-Ən-dee myself, since that fits the Ancient Suloise better.

 

[Rechan]

Y'know guys, we still have wars over how to pronounce "Drow", and threads that ask how to pronounce "Eladrin".

 

[Mark Chance]

Y'know guys, we still have wars over how to pronounce "Drow", and threads that ask how to pronounce "Eladrin".

Drow rhymes with row, and ee-lad-reen, right?

 

[Garthanos]

Say both of those out loud. Wow, hear that? They sound almost exactly the same.

Really fureee ondee ... sounds like furr yondee... only if I really squish hard like some eastern folk... and dont pronounce the y in its consonant form clearly one time and sneak it in a little the other time. I am from "spell it like it sounds Nebraska" - have you had your ears checked recently (I know we are both pushing it in years but) <insert or delete additional silly not quite insulting things in retaliation here./> ... etc etc

Not sure if we got the patent in but I think nebraskans invented phonics.

 

[MrMyth]

Granted, some flavor text along the lines of "Arcanoloths, known to scholars as Raavasta" would be handy.

This sort of thing is actually what I'm all for. I've always been a fan of how the devils work - with having general names (Horned Devil) alongside the 'proper' infernal terminology (Cornugon). Having races that have both some more straightforward names that they are commonly known as, along with a more fantastical name for those who prefer such things, would seem a happy solution to many of these complaints.

 

[Set]

Heh... Even though I know it's pronounced Jeff, everytime I see the name Geoff, in my head I think "Hehe Gee Off."

I've heard Geoff's pronounce their own name 'Joff,' so it's probably confusing for some. Being a Queensryche fan, Geoff is not exactly on my list of 'exotic' names.

Drizzt, on the other hand? Funky, and it seems to get pronounced 'Drizzit' a lot, in my experience, since Z and T aren't generally rammed up against each other in that fashion.

Heck, I still grin when I hear 'Illithid' said out loud, since it sounds like someone with a lisp trying to say illicit.