How to Name Your D&D Character
There’s so much to consider when creating a new character. What’s their history, their goals, their flaws? Who is this person, and what is their name?
A lot can be tied up in a name, and finding one that feels “just right” can be an exercise in pounding your head against the wall.
Kicking off our Character Creation toolkit series, Erik explores different methods and resources to help you pick a character name that fits.
How to Name Your D&D Character Index
Is Your Character Name Important?
If you're like us you’re constantly creating new characters. Some are fully fleshed out with backstories, motivations, and character voices. And others are simply a concept.
When it comes to creating characters, one of the hardest parts can be choosing a name. Some people take days, even weeks, to come up with the perfect name. Others are happy to use a random name generator and call it a day.
Picking the right name is important because it’s the alias you’re assuming while you play. For those who want to come up with a meaningful name quickly, we have some tips and resources for you.
Naming Your Adventurer’s League Character
If you are playing in Adventures League you have the ability to change everything about your character as many times as you want until you hit level 5, except your name.
You can change your class, subclass, race, really just about anything, but not your name. So make sure it's a good one!
D&D Character Naming Tips
Consider your character's background. What region are they from? Are they from far away or are they local? Are they upper-class, middle, or lower?
What race, class, and alignment are they? These things matter. Naming an Orc fighter from the far north Aramis will sound a bit off.
The Players Hand Book gives a few examples of names for every race, but you absolutely do not have to stick to their suggestion.
Be original. Don't use easily recognizable names like Drizzt or Gandalf. This character is yours, make sure the name is personal and something you're going to be comfortable using for potentially years.
Keep it simple. You don't want to make your name hard to pronounce. Think of your tablemates that are also going to have to say this name over and over again. One way to get around an overly complicated name is nicknaming.
If you have a complicated character name and don't give your character a nickname, your tablemates will. Don’t let them choose this for you!
D&D Character Naming Resources & Inspiration
Here’s a list of resources you can use to help name your stack of roleplaying characters.
Heavenly Bodies
The sky's the limit...literally. Heavenly bodies are a great resource for great character names.
This works especially well for good-aligned characters but there are some cool neutral or even evil names floating around in the abyss above us. Stars, planets, moons, clusters there is almost an endless supply of cool-sounding names in the sky above.
Examples:
Rigal the Asimer Paladin
Sirius the Wolf Druid
Io the Gnomish Wizard
Foreign Languages
Foreign languages are a treasure trove for exotic-sounding names.
Want a Purple Dragon Knight from Cormyr? Look up some Polish baby names. Is your barbarian a Dothraki rip-off? Mongolian names sound very cool and no one at your table has ever heard them.
The foreign words don’t necessarily have to be proper names in their native language. They could be regular nouns, verbs, or anything really.
Have a Tortle Monk but don’t want to name him after a renaissance painter? Turtle warrior in native Hawaiian is “Honu Koa.”
These can add a lot of flavor to your character. Depending on the vibe you want, choose a language. Go to Google translate and start typing in character traits until it spits out something that works for you.
D&D Name Generators
Fantasy name generators are a quick and easy way to come up with a name for your character. Some are better than others, but many allow you to plug in different parameters to get a name.
They are also great for brainstorming names or coming up with NPCs on the fly. However, they can also a little impersonal or give so-so results. Use at your own discretion!
Wizards Of The Coast D&D Name Generator
Pharmaceuticals
Erik’s personal strategy for naming his characters is to look at a list of the most popular drug names.
They sound foreign but familiar. Cool, but not like they’re trying too hard. And it’s just funny enough to be amusing without being a total joke.
“Crestor the Totem Barbarian fought valiantly alongside Plavix, the Hex Blade Warlock. Their Cleric, Bayer, did all he could to guide the team into the light. But, Zizal the Bard wanted nothing to do with it.”
Use Passive Perception
Be observant about the world around you. Anything can be a resource for inspiration. Street names, music, geology really anything.
Keep a list handy on your phone to capture new name ideas and you’ll hardly ever be pressed to come up with a new name. This is also helpful if you are DMing, as you’ll have an endless list of NPCs to pull from.
We hope this guide to naming your D&D character helps you come up with a cool and original character name for your next adventurer.
