What's in a Name?

"Greetings, Princess. It is I, Carlos the Dwarf. The dragon has been slain and you are free to rule your kingdom." -Daniel Desario Freaks and Geeks (Disco and Dragons)

Huh? 

Storyteller, in a 2009 post on Behind the Screen, said it best when he offered advice on the Top 10 New DM Mistakes. His #1 mistake?

Names Don't Matter.
(link to full article) 

"Why this is wrong: Names are small but important building blocks which maintain the consistency of the world your characters are playing in. Obviously, names of characters, NPCs, and locations add up to a large amount of rather random information, but keeping track of these names and encouraging your players to do the same will keep the reality of the world alive.

Solution: Take notes. This is generally a good idea, but especially useful for names. Have a whole page or two devoted to names that you can refer to. I suggest referring to your players by their character's names, even in combat, and encouraging your players to do the same. Small name-plate note cards can be used initially to help this along, or "Hello. My Name is _____" stickers.

Also, in terms of NPCs, nothing makes NPCs seem more insignificant then the DM having to take five minutes just to create a name for them. Use a name generator or your own creativity to come up with a bank of 10 male and 10 female names that you can have on tap for just such scenarios. If your players have their characters walk into a random shop and you have the shopkeeper ready with a name, your players will suddenly give the encounter much more attention, assuming that it's important. Trust me, it works!"

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Behind the Name Categories

The same stands to reason with PC names. Check out these Random Name Generators the next time you face the wrath of Carlos the Dwarf...

Random Name Generator  (filter by obscurity and gender- creates first and last names)

Behind the Name- Random Name Generator

Rink Works- Fantasy Name Generator

Dim Future- Star Wars Name Generator