Choosing a New Name

I decided to take the plunge and join a new guild for Ulduar on a different server.
Doing this on a patch day probably wasn't the best of ideas, but as it turns out I probably wouldn't have gotten to play much anyway.

Amidst all the craziness last night as the servers popped up one by one, I found that the account maintenance page was down. I couldn't put my transfer through, but once I was finally able to log in to my old server I was able to transfer gold and items off my bank character, and make sure I had canceled my auctions.

As I wait for the account page to come back up - I check the armory for my name on the new server - taken! Uggghhh....

Choosing a name is always a big process for me. It is how people are going to identify me, so I want it to be memorable and meaningful.

How do you choose a character name? Well for me anyway I have to take into account the following things:

1. It has to be easily pronounceable on VoIP chat. Sometimes you think a name is pretty straightforward and simple only to find people struggling to pronounce it.
2. I'll avoid using special characters which make it impossible for people to type out.
3. It should at least somewhat sound like a "fantasy" name. This of course isn't as prevalent in WoW, but people are going to judge you by the name you chose. I can't take someone with a name like "Hawtsecks" seriously.
   
4. It should be somewhat unique. Are there 100 other characters with this name? Are there other characters of max level with this name? Luckily with WoW, the armory can help you determine how unique your name really is but it is getting more and more difficult to find one.
   
5. Finally, can I envision other people calling me this name in Vent?

I've had all day to think about this but my mind was just coming up blank. I decided to look the internet for help. Here's some of the resources I found.

Elven Name Generators and Translators:
I'd really like a name that fits a Night Elf, and there are tons of these Elvish name generators and translators out there. These names are quite beautiful, but they are usually quite long, and if I have no idea how to pronounce them I can't expect others to be able to.

If you want an Elvish name this site is pretty good: http://www.arwen-undomiel.com/elvish/names.html


Random Name Generators: These can help you come up with ideas, but I find it annoying to have to click endlessly in the hopes that a name I actually like pops up. Plus if I wanted that, I could just use the in-game one.

This generator stood out amongst the others, because you can save names you like in the box on the right and just keep clicking away. http://www.fantasynames.net/index.php


Name Lists: Like the books of baby names, there are lists of fantasy names out there too. I found one to be very extensive, with names that weren't too far fetched.

Scrolling through this list should at least give you some good ideas: http://www.lowchensaustralia.com/names/mysticalnames.htm


I've managed to come up with a list of about 5 names but still no real decision.
I need to get it over with so I can get myself all ready for Ulduar tomorrow night - my next post will be about my experience with the new content I promise!