I've got a new character, a female high elf illusionist.
My problem is that elf names tend not to stick in the mind and since I don't want to be stuck as "Elf" or "Mage" or whatever, I want a catchy nickname or honorific that I can introduce myself as to the group and maybe have them remember.
Any ideas?
How about "Lunadiéloniella", shortened to just "Lu" which is easy for humans to say but also alludes to i-llu-sionist making it easy for them to remember.
You could just grab a couple of phonemes, slap 'em together, and have your character explain its the elven word for illusionist, "Though it literally translates as architect of the senses," or some such fluff.
I also like Kalissa's choice of word, glamour. You could also tack it onto the front -- Glamourist ElfName
Mirage
Semblance
Playing off a previous poster's suggestion...
Glamaerys <Given Name> <Surname>
Has an elfish tinge (IMHO) while still hinting at its purposeful magical titlery.
Related: I like playing off words for non-human names (sometimes human too). My current character is a half-(high)elf assassin named Leth'ael.
In the Kalevala, Louhi was the queen of Pohjula and a powerful sorceress. It can be pronouned a bit like "Loki, but with an "h" rather than a "k." A more precise pronunciation has the "ou" as a dipthong though.
Mirror, echo, basically anything that reflects (heh) a reproduction of the original. A thesaurus can be a big help too.
Nothing says you can't be known by an attribute rather than a name. "the Artful Dodger" was a character in a Dickens novel. He could talk his way out of anything - especially being arrested.
So: "the Unseen Seer", illusionist.
FuelDrop wrote:
I'm partial to the name Vision for this character.
I like using existing words that are not typically names as my fantasy character names.
I've used Brazen, Savannah, and Onyx as past characters and they just have an awesome ring to them.
You could make it part of her story that she never willingly reveals her identity, and introduces herself as Haldanin, which anyone fluent in elvish would recognize as "The Veiled Lady" (at least in Tolkien Quenya elvish). Maybe she could even wear masks or disguises, so not even her party knows her real appearance.
Lots of great names given, I personally would go with Shadow, Mirage or Umbra. Possibly her true name is easily mispronounced by non Elves. So she could say, "Just call me Shadow".
I could see an Illusionist taking a few levels in Warlock for a couple of Invocations, such as "at will Disguise Self and Silent Image.
Another idea for names, maybe due to the subtle and deceptive nature of her power. You could work with words such as Real, Reality ( not Realtor (Estate Agent in the UK) lol), Nature, Earth, World ( daughter of the worlds truth), Truth.
Let us know what name or names you've chosen.
Titles such as The Mage of Silence (thank you Misty), Mistress of the Veil, The Shadow Sorceress, Mage Guardian, there are more.
I've come to the realization that giving yourself a honorific is liable to come off as pretentious, and with them comes the risk of sounding like a try-hard.
"Just call me shadow."
"Sure, whatever. Just go slit your wrists and write your emo poetry in the corner over there."
As a result, I'm thinking that I'm going to need to talk to my GM and have an NPC give me the honorific, which means it'll need to relate to something I do in the game or my backstory. Will let you know how it develops.
Is your real name FuelDrop?...
Seriously though, I think I misunderstood you from the beginning. I thought you were asking for ideas on an honorific. Not nicknames. Honorifics generally being titles, ranks, or formal marks of respect.
My half-elf holy assassin, for example. His name is Leth'ael. He is an Unseen Hand (an honorific) within the elven church. That is his position within his Order. He has also earned the additional honorifics of Queen's Shadow and Whispering Blade. Both bestowed distinctions and marks of accomplishent. On the streets he's known as the Pale Ghost (a nickname). Some have refered to him as the White Raven (just another nickname). Derogatorily he has been called the Half-blood Hand by those in his (normally pure-blooded elven) Order who disapprove of his acceptance among their elite ranks. Though not often to his face.
Anyways... I digress. Hope you and your DM come up with something cool. Come back and let us know when you do.