Silly RL names

Discussing all things Ravenloft
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ewancummins
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Post by ewancummins »

Gonzoron of the FoS wrote:
DocBeard wrote:What's wrong with plain ol'"King", for that matter?
Yup, that's what I use. fuhrer may be perfectly appropriate thinking of it's original meaning, but it's just become too culturally loaded with significance for me to touch. I mean, "Sieg Heil" just means something like "hail victory" but saying it will get you a few years in prison in modern Germany. King Vlad Drakov works fine for me.
He's King Drakov IMC.

He's also a native of Thenol or the nearby region, on Southern Hosk. I work in a little Krynn lore, as I think that a DL's homeworld should usually be reflcted to an extent in his domain.
Delight is to him- a far, far upward, and inward delight- who against the proud gods and commodores of this earth, ever stands forth his own inexorable self.

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The Giamarga
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Post by The Giamarga »

Drakov might prefer a more martial title to an aristocratic one. He's not a pampered courtier heir, he's a seasoned mercenary leader and a soldier. Thus i find the Kingführer makes some sense.
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Post by ewancummins »

The Giamarga wrote:Drakov might prefer a more martial title to an aristocratic one. He's not a pampered courtier heir, he's a seasoned mercenary leader and a soldier. Thus i find the Kingführer makes some sense.
Sure. I just don't like the Nazi baggage. To each his own.
Delight is to him- a far, far upward, and inward delight- who against the proud gods and commodores of this earth, ever stands forth his own inexorable self.

-from Moby Dick (Hermann Melville)
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The Giamarga
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Post by The Giamarga »

How about King-General then.
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Post by Rotipher of the FoS »

I use "Kaiser" within Falkovnia, because it's got the Germanic militant feel without the Nazi baggage. Plus, he's bound to favor a title that makes it sound like he out-ranks Azalin.

Outside of Falkovnia, foreigners usually just call him "King" or "Warlord", because they're not obliged to exaggerate his power. Yet another way Ravenloft conspires to rub his ego the wrong way...
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Post by Ail »

Rotipher of the FoS wrote:I use "Kaiser" within Falkovnia, because it's got the Germanic militant feel without the Nazi baggage. Plus, he's bound to favor a title that makes it sound like he out-ranks Azalin.

Outside of Falkovnia, foreigners usually just call him "King" or "Warlord", because they're not obliged to exaggerate his power. Yet another way Ravenloft conspires to rub his ego the wrong way...
Actually, this seems to be the solution I like the most in this whole thread. I just disagree with the Warlord part. I mean, he's lord of a country, anyway. I think that merits more than 'Warlord'. Even for outsiders
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Post by DocBeard »

Kaiser is a cool title, and a little more pulpy than furher.
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Post by ewancummins »

I like both King-General and Kaiser.
Delight is to him- a far, far upward, and inward delight- who against the proud gods and commodores of this earth, ever stands forth his own inexorable self.

-from Moby Dick (Hermann Melville)
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Post by Rotipher of the FoS »

Ail wrote:Actually, this seems to be the solution I like the most in this whole thread. I just disagree with the Warlord part. I mean, he's lord of a country, anyway. I think that merits more than 'Warlord'. Even for outsiders
Well, "Warlord" is mostly used by foreigners who consider his whole claim to rulership to be a fraud, on the grounds that he's a lowborn thug who just marched in and declared himself royal. Kind of like calling someone "King So-and-so the Usurper" because there's another (and, in your opinion, better) claimant to the throne.
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Post by Ail »

Rotipher of the FoS wrote:
Ail wrote:Actually, this seems to be the solution I like the most in this whole thread. I just disagree with the Warlord part. I mean, he's lord of a country, anyway. I think that merits more than 'Warlord'. Even for outsiders
Well, "Warlord" is mostly used by foreigners who consider his whole claim to rulership to be a fraud, on the grounds that he's a lowborn thug who just marched in and declared himself royal. Kind of like calling someone "King So-and-so the Usurper" because there's another (and, in your opinion, better) claimant to the throne.
Granted, but then who is that alternative to Drakov? (I just don't read enough about Falkovnia to know :!: )
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Post by Rotipher of the FoS »

No alternative in mind; I was just offering a parallel example of how those who dispute a ruler's legitimacy tend to downplay his or her title.

Presumably, the people whose nations are threatened by Drakov would be delighted if he simply disappeared one day, without a chosen heir, and Falkovnians went back to fighting each other like in the Bloodied Steel period of (false) history.
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Post by cure »

Elena Faithold . . . she was born to hold the faith . . . :roll:
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Post by Nathan of the FoS »

cure wrote:Elena Faithold . . . she was born to hold the faith . . . :roll:
Or she took the name as an adult--or, she comes from a long line of paladins.

Most "silly" Ravenloft names I like pretty well, actually.
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Post by ewancummins »

Nathan of the FoS wrote:
cure wrote:Elena Faithold . . . she was born to hold the faith . . . :roll:
Or she took the name as an adult--or, she comes from a long line of paladins.

Most "silly" Ravenloft names I like pretty well, actually.
Sounds like an epithet to me.
Delight is to him- a far, far upward, and inward delight- who against the proud gods and commodores of this earth, ever stands forth his own inexorable self.

-from Moby Dick (Hermann Melville)
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Post by Nevermorrow »

ewancummins wrote:
Nathan of the FoS wrote:
cure wrote:Elena Faithold . . . she was born to hold the faith . . . :roll:
Or she took the name as an adult--or, she comes from a long line of paladins.

Most "silly" Ravenloft names I like pretty well, actually.
Sounds like an epithet to me.
I agree. It very well could be a name she was given as praise.

It should also be noted that we come from a culture in which we have to look up what names mean, and rarely pay attention to the original meanings behind names even when we know them. Many, many other cultures are not like that; native Americans are not the only peoples whose names had direct meanings. And in some cultures, yes, a name like that could become a surname.
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