One last name poll: Warlord vs Marshal

[Sadrik]

They're goofy?

Marshal has the advantage of being a 3E class.

Ouch.

 

[Sadrik]

Names that represent what they 'do'
Fighter
Rogue

Names that represent what they 'are'
Wizard
Warlock
Cleric
Paladin
Ranger

Going by this it looks like the martial characters have the distinction of having a naming convention of lets name them after what they 'do'. In that same tradition all martial characters could be designed with a name that is based on what they 'do'.

So a Warlord is supposed to be a Strategist, a Tactician, a Commander, a Master, a Warrior, a Lord, a Leader, a Medic (I will only assume), a Planner, and a Martialist.

All of which could potentially be names.

 

[psionotic]

Names that represent what they 'do'
Fighter
Rogue

Names that represent what they 'are'
Wizard
Warlock
Cleric
Paladin
Ranger

Yes, but the ranger ranges and the rogue... steals? Is incorrigible? Crafty? I think that you have these two in the wrong category.

 

[Lurks-no-More]

At this point, I've taken to just voting Warlord in every poll out of spite.

You're not the only one. (Although I like the name, too.)

 

[ruleslawyer]

At least Marshal is the noun form of what the class is actually supposed to do.

Overwhelmingly my first choice.

 

[fuindordm]

A warlord sounds like a hero.

A marshal sounds like an NPC.

Cheers!

 

[Nifft]

A warlord sounds like a hero.

A marshal sounds like an NPC.

IMHO, a Warlord sounds like a BBEG, while a Marshal sounds like a class name -- PC or NPC, but potentially a good guy.

Cheers, -- N

 

[Kunimatyu]

"Warlord" sounds very BBEG, even moreso than "wizard". Think about it -- "evil wizard" and "good wizard" both make sense, but "evil warlord" and "good warlord"? Nope, not so much.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

So, the general name poll has been running for a while now, and so far Marshal is winning over all the other options, even Warlord, by a significant margin. It looks like, as far as ENworld polling is concerned, Marshal is the strongest alternative to Warlord we've got. So let's see what happens when we clear the also-rans off the board.

No "other" votes for this poll. If you absolutely can't stand either name, then don't vote.

As of today, Marshal is now more or less level with Warlord in the general poll, and was ahead of it earlier today, so you may want to edit this post, as it gives a misleading impression. Certainly there's no "significant margin".

What you get when you clear out the other alternatives is a "spite vote" too, not an accurate representation of how people feel about the names. A lot of people simply want "a name that isn't warlord", and thus will vote for anything that isn't warlord, but if Marshal was selected, I guarantee we'd still be having this poll, and we'd see Marshal in a similar position to Warlord, i.e. people voting against it en masse simply to vote against it.

Marshal remains probably the ugliest name of all the choices, and is perhaps the nerdiest/most wimpy-sounding D&D class name out there (albeit the Archivist gives it competition, I mean, what next? The Librarian and The Traffic Cop?).

I would also suggest that only an American could possibly think that "Marshal" is a good name. No doubt someone will leap out to disprove me, but christ-on-a-cross, what an idiotic name.

 

[Felon]

Marshal is lame.

First of all it sounds like "martial" which lends itself to endless puns at the game table. Then there is the fact it sounds like it belongs in the American Old West. It doesn't fit a fantasy feeling in my opinion and makes it seem like the Marshal is all about law enforcement.

"Well, golly little lady, I reckon I'll round up my deputies and take care of them thar gnolls up in the hills." -rides off shooting revolver in the air.

Sounds like you're penalizing the word "marshal" for the limits in your own vocabulary.