Sissy Jupe, Jonas Chuzzlewit and Charity "Cherry" Pecksniff- The Edge of Believable Names

We’ve just finished the longest series we’ve done to date, so this week we have a nice fun simple topic: How silly should names be in Victoriana? I hope this fun little post broadens the possibilities.

I’ve heard many players grip over the difficulty of naming a character. While I love coming up with names, as GM it can be difficult to come up with a good name on the spot, or a whole bunch of names while preparing an adventure. Fortunately for you and me, Victoriana is very forgiving when it comes to names. If you look into the history and literature of the time, hilarious, on-the-nose, and sinister names abound.

The true founder of this feast of names is Charles Dickens. All through his stories, Dickens titles his characters with wit, charm, and a gift for foreshadowing, often giving his readers a glimpse of the character’s inner life and their place in the plot. Here are just a few examples of his skill:

Dickensian Names

Female                                                    Male

Affery Flintwinch                                 Adolphus Tetterby

Anastasia Veneering                            Augustus Snodgrass

Betsy Prig                                               Bayham Badger

Charity "Cherry" Pecksniff                Clarence Barnacle

Clemency Newcome                           Ephraim Flintwinch

Cleopatra Skewton                              Hamilton Veneering

Fanny Squeers                                      Hannibal Chollop

Henrietta Boffin                                   John Peerybingle

Jemima Bilberry                                  Jonas Chuzzlewit

Lucretia Tox                                          Luke Honeythunder

Malta Bagnet                                        M'Choakumchild

Peg Sliderskew                                    Montigue Tigg

Polly Toodle                                         Newman Noggs

Sophronia Lammle                             Paul Sweedlepipe

Mrs. Spottletoe                                    Rogue Riderhood

Volumnia Dedlock                              Theophile Gabelle

If the PC’s meet an NPC named Augustus Snodgrass or Betsy Prig, they should already have some idea of the NPC’s place in society. Rouge Riderhood has to be a thief; he just can’t be anything else. So much can be said in a name, and in Victoriana, Gamemaster’s have the opportunity to say a lot. At least according to Dickens.

In Victorian education the classics are essential, so it should be no surprise well educated parents pulled names from the ancient world into their family tree. Triumphant generals, Roman wives, and Greek poets loaned out their weighty names to a new generation.

Classical Names
Female                                 Male

Vesta                                      Evodius

Vipsania                                Dignius

Dolabella                              Alfenus

Agrippina                             Albinovanus

Albina                                    Euphemius

Alpha                                     Spiculus

Delphia                                 Carpophorus

Electa                                     Dulcitius

Fidelia                                   Ennodius             

Parthenia                              Erasinus

Sophronia                             Flaccus

Azura                                     Frumentius
Delbora                                 Quintus

Paltith                                    Maximian

Tharbis                                  Iddo

One of the most ubiquitous sources of names is the Bible. Mary, John, Sam, David, Paul, Hannah, Ruth, and Peter are just a few examples of common biblical names, but there are a ton of interesting names left to play with. Biblical names also have the added prestige of holiness, foreshadowed consequences, and hidden meanings.

Biblical

Female                                 Male

Sula                                        Eliphaz 

Mahala                                   Ephraim

Adah                                       Reuel

Gomer                                    Kenaz

Acsah                                      Magdiel

Bilhah                                    Tubal

Dorcas                                   Togarmah

Euodia                                   Arphaxad

Haggith                                  Uzal

Junia                                       Nimrod

Keturah                                  Hakkoz

Matred                                   Hamor

Naamah                                 Melzar

Orpah                                     Molid

Syntyche                               Ozem

Going back a couple hundred years, the puritans used evocative and colorful names that literally make a statement. While these names are old fashioned by the 1800s, the streak of Puritanism runs strong in Victorian England and old fashioned names have a way of coming back.

Puritan Names

Replenish                              Liberty

Approved                              Placidia

Clemency                              Creedence

Consider                                Desire

Delivery                                Increase

Diligence                               Forsaken
Discipline                             Tace

Continent                              Honesty

Experience                            Donation

Humiliation                          Refrayne

Abstinence                            Vanity

Reformation                         Lively

Obedience                             Submit

Lament                                  Meek

Silence                                   Steadfast

Diffidence                             Thurgood

Tenacious                             Troth

Honour                                  Original*

*Please, please name somebody Original Jr.

Shortly after the public demonstration of ether in 1845, a generation of new parents named their baby girls Anesthesia. With Anesthesia as an acceptable name, we can have all sorts of fun with medical terms, particularly if we need to name evil magicians, body snatchers, and charlatans:

Medically Inspired Names

Female                                 Male

Coprolalia Purfle               Malcam Cozzard

Angina Rictus                     Ashima Fettle

Rubella Gorman                 Measle  Peck

Melena  Numbles               Glossitis Sallic

Herpangina Quean            Augrey Quidnunc

Eczema Slaut                       Litotes Fugax

Dystonia Swell                    Pyrosis Stangury

Syncope Gait                        Epistaxis Bruit 
Nocturia Pallor                    Rash Stridor

Sadly that’s all the room we have in this post for name ideas. Naming a character shouldn’t be a dreadful chore. Look at Fanny Squeers and Bayham Badger. Dickens had fun with it, you should too.

Their Finest Hour- Dragons in the Blitz

Today, we’re wrapping up our examination of Victoriana during World War II with an example of the monstrous magical forces attacking Great Britain. What better way to end the series than combining the most iconic villains of the century with the most iconic monster?

Lindworms

After 1939, new terrors fly over Europe, bringing flaming death to the Allied forces. Tightening the Luftwaffe’s grip on the skies are the lindworms, massive 30-50 foot reptiles with strong leathery wings holding their limbless slithering bodies aloft . Thick scales deflect small arms fire and teeth big enough to take bites out of fighter planes fill their mouths.

Although more might exist, Allied intelligence identified three distinct lindworms and designated each with codenames: “Manny”, “Moe”, and “Black Jack”. “Black Jack” remains in Berlin as symbol of the Reich and as a defender of the Capital, “Manny” and his rider remind Frenchmen in Paris of Germany's might, and “Moe” is a part of Luftflotte 2, the Luftwaffe air fleet tasked with bombing southern England.

Each lindworm wears a small armored platform in front of its wings for its rider and some sort of radio communication device wrapped around its head. Allied intelligence does not know whether they controlled by their rider’s commands through the radio, how smart the lindworms are, or if they willingly follow orders.

Moe’s rider is Hanna Reitsch a former test pilot for the Luftwaffe. Her death-defying daring and incredible flying skill made the 27 year old aviatrix a perfect match for the lindworm’s power and aggression. The Luftwaffe deployed Moe and Hanna to the Battle of Britain as a weapon against the moral of the British people. Moe’s fiery breath and sharp teeth bring nightly devastation to the RAF fighters and civilians below.

Speculation surrounds the awakening of the lindworms. A Belgian refuge claims the restorations at Wewelsburg castle uncovered the creatures, intercepted radio messages suggest the Thule Society brought them back to life from a glacier in Norway, and a captured German spy seems convinced the Lost Ring of Solomon controls the lindworms.

Hanna Reitsch (Test pilot and lindworm rider)

Physical: 8            Initiative: 8

Mental: 6               Health: 14

Social: 7                 Quintessence: 18

AV: Flight Suite (2)

Damage: Pistol (10), Punch (3)

Possible Special Traits:

Fearless Aviatrix+4, Fanatically Devoted to Hitler+3,

Hanna is a small enthusiastic blond woman with blues eyes and pleasant features. Sometimes her singing can be heard above the cacophony of engines, explosions, and gunfire.

Moe (Serpentine death from the sky)

Physical: 20          Initiative: 12

Mental: 9               Health:   42

AV: 8

Damage:

Bite (14, Armor Pierce 4), Fire Breath (11, Intensity 8), Smashing or Squeezing Serpentine Coils (17)

Qualities:

 Flight- (see page 292 of Victoriana 3^rd Edition)

Regeneration- (see page 293 of Victoriana 3^rd Edition)

Greedy- If an immediate chance arises to eat gold or a fresh corpse; either the lindworm or its rider must pass a Mental test with 6 black dice or the lindworm spend a round gorging.

Huge 5- (Health and Physical modifiers are already reflected by stats, for other effects see page 293 of Victoriana 3^rd Edition)

That wraps up this eleven week series. I hope you’ve enjoyed this examination of Victoriana in a more modern setting. I know I’ve had a lot of fun writing it. This won’t be the last post about Their Finest Hour, but next Friday we return to the welcome waters of the 1850s with a very simple silly post about names.