Weapon Names

[Eli-kun]

Player characters are supposed to be heroes. I've noticed that heroes tend to have names for their weapons, either from when the weapons were forged or based on what the hero did with the weapon.

My Dwarven Drunken Master has a Greataxe named "Cleavey" or "Kuribu-chan"(Our game mixes in BESM). I plan on having a character with a bastard sword named "Compensation."

What other names have been used for weapons in games? There may be some interesting stories behind the names, or perhaps that character simply has a quirky sense of humor.

 

[Impeesa]

In one game, the rogue named her rapiers stabby and pokey, or something to that effect. Another guy, a fighter, had a bow, a falchion, and a longsword, named twangy, slashy, and other slashy (respectively). There may also have been a morningstar named bonky. At some point, I said that while my warmage didn't make much use of the weapon he carried, he would start referring to his left and right hands as pillage and burn.

On the more serious side, I had a (Warcraft) Naga with a greatspear that was an ancestral relic. Since he was large, the spear was quite massive, so I named it Jormungand's Fang.

--Impeesa--

 

[Torm]

Not quite what I think you're asking for, but we had one player who, in multiple modern setting games (Alternity, Call of Cthulhu, V:TM, and possibly others) wielded a chainsaw, and he always named it "Bob".

 

[Xombie Master]

My Dwarven Drunken Master has a Greataxe named "Cleavey" or "Kuribu-chan"

Cool, my Dwarven Drunken Master has a favorite weapon too, but he just calls it crowbar! On account of it's a crowbar!

I like naming my character's weapons in game. I think naming a weapon makes it special to the player and they treat it like it's less disposable. They take pride in their gear which shows in their roleplaying. My highest level 3.0 character was a Rogue named Clandestine, he used a throwing dagger he called Fate's Design. He ended up being chosen by Tymora. Alas a ragewind had more luck than he.

My current 3.5 character, Kurgash the Half Orc barbarian has a Weapon of Legacy greataxe named Slave Breaker.

 

[The Shaman]

The only paladin I ever played carried a bastard sword inscribed with the words, "Might Makes Right."

While the paladin couldn't be bothered with naming his cleaver, the party wizard called the paladin and/or the sword "Mighty Righty."

 

[Testament]

Ah, named weapons. AFAIC, if its a magic weapon, it needs a name. Here's some I've seen in games:

Holy Frost Longbow: "Bitter Tears"
Undead Bane Silver Waraxe: "Wraithslayer"
Sacred Fiend Bane Cold Iron Waraxe: "Fiendsplitter"
Construct Bane Flaming Adamantine Hammer: "Forgebreaker"
Keen Shocking Silver Longsword: "Argent Storm"
Keen Speed Silver Khopesh: "Flashing Tooth"
Keen Wounding Scythe: "Bitter Harvest"
Holy Flaming Silver Halberd: "Purity"
Anarchic Sacred Spiked Chain: "Liberator"

 

[carnivore]

Elven made intelligent +4 composite longbow named Cor Alu Shtasa aka "King of Rain"
+2 dagger named Backup
+2 icy burst heavy mace renamed Cormack's Folly - This was after a PC fighter was fighting the baddy evil cleric named Cormack who was weilding the weapon originally. The fighter fumbled an attack and dropped his bastard sword accidently off the bridge they were fighting on. Cormack attacks and does damage. The fighter, on next round, gets an unarmed disarm off and ends up with the mace and kills Cormack with it. It was a great encounter!
A PC barbarian was gifted by a chief with a newly made +1 Greataxe. The barbarian named it after the first thing he killed with it-an ogre. Ogre was it's name.

 

[Elder-Basilisk]

A few of my characters have named their weapons. My main Living Greyhawk PC has named his +1 holy adamantine guisarm of wounding (Unmasking--on account of the first foe he used it against: the ethergaunts or the masks) and a +1 ghost touch, undead bane longsword (True Death). He used to have another named weapon (Malthindor, Oblivion's Blade) but that came with a name on the cert so it doesn't really count.

My main Living Arcanis PC has a bunch of named weapons because most magic weapons come with names on their certs in that game, but the only one I think of by its name is his Tralian Hammer, Freedom's Price.

In a home game, my paladin named the +1 keen, shocking burst scimitar he took from the body of a swarmshaping mummy "Sandstorm." That's the only one I regularly refer to by name when playing though. (In living games, since you don't have the same DM all the time, you have to consider "will he know what I'm talking about if I say, 'I quickdraw True Death and slice at the dread wraith (Power Attack for 10, Arcane Striking my Banishment spell, and activating my boots of speed)).

 

[Anti-Sean]

My Karrn ex-Paladin of the Blood of Vol wields a bastard sword named Mercy. He's fond of wading into battle shouting things like "Come to me, wretched dogs of Aundiar! I shall grant you Mercy!" and the like as he hacks them into pieces.

 

[Immak Antunel]

In class yesterday I came up with a +1 keen rapier which allows use of true strike and expiditious retreat once per day each, which I'll insert in my upcoming campaign. It's called "Desperation," since presumably the true strike is saved for dire circumstances, and if that doesn't work, the character will probably have to make a quick exit from the battle...