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Marchen Too hot (Hot damn) from Somewhere Out in Space (Experienced, Not Yet Jaded) Relationship Status: It's not my fault I'm not popular!
Too hot (Hot damn)
#9551: Dec 12th 2024 at 9:52:17 AM

[up] Or just "clip" if phone is to be avoided.

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erazor0707 (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: Wishfully thinking
#9552: Dec 12th 2024 at 11:30:44 AM

I can gel with those suggestions. Thanks again, folks!

MorningStar1337 The Encounter that ended the Dogma from 🤔 Since: Nov, 2012
The Encounter that ended the Dogma
#9553: Dec 12th 2024 at 4:02:27 PM

okay thanks to MegaTen, I found about a Zoroastrian figure named Sarosha, who name transalted to Observer.

I bring this up because I want to ask any Avestan experts how to change the name so that it means "Observatory", as I've an idea for a space research facility that is also alive and specifically one that wants to traverse space in search of a certain pale blue dot.

Edited by MorningStar1337 on Dec 12th 2024 at 4:03:13 AM

Discar Since: Jun, 2009
#9554: Dec 13th 2024 at 6:29:54 AM

Trying to find a good name for animals mutated by magic into monsters. Currently, I'm thinking "__ beast," but I'm not sure about even that. I guess ideally I'd be looking for something that can be shortened to one word.

So far, I've got arcane beast, sorcerous beast, mystic beast, horrid beast, dire beast, and grim beast. None are really grabbing me.

Writing a post-post apocalypse LitRPG on RR. Also fanfic stuff.
Marchen Too hot (Hot damn) from Somewhere Out in Space (Experienced, Not Yet Jaded) Relationship Status: It's not my fault I'm not popular!
Too hot (Hot damn)
#9555: Dec 13th 2024 at 6:44:59 AM

Hmm... Personally I'd probably go with just "monsters" for a simple justification.

For variations of the "____ Beast" thing... It's a collective thing, right? "The Blank Beasts, such as the whatever dragon or fell tiger or whatever" or something like that? First that comes to mind is "Cursed Beasts"

Just looking at that blank space and the singular form of the word breast, I kinda wanna give each individual a "____ Beast" name, and make them all collectively just "Beasts". Kinda like Megaman.

Back on topic, how about "Troll Beast" which has bonus points, because the nordics has "troll" as a root word for magical things (Trollmann=Wizard, for example) which is a total coincidence, or something completely different like "nightmares"? Or something silly like "Monster Beasts"

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MorningStar1337 The Encounter that ended the Dogma from 🤔 Since: Nov, 2012
The Encounter that ended the Dogma
#9556: Dec 13th 2024 at 7:54:07 AM

Maybe Yaoguai would suffice?

Still looking for answers on my Sarosha question btw.

Marchen Too hot (Hot damn) from Somewhere Out in Space (Experienced, Not Yet Jaded) Relationship Status: It's not my fault I'm not popular!
Too hot (Hot damn)
#9557: Dec 13th 2024 at 8:13:42 AM

So, I'm not an expert in Avestan, but why could it not simply be called "Sarosha"? Surely a living observatory would itself be an observer?

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ArsThaumaturgis Since: Nov, 2011 Relationship Status: I've been dreaming of True Love's Kiss
#9558: Dec 13th 2024 at 10:41:56 AM

@Discar: Hmm... I might throw "warped" into the list of potential prefixes for "beast".

Looking at a thesaurus, "marred" catches my eye. Perhaps "Marred Beast" might be shortened to "Marring", or just "Mar".

There's also the option of "Grotesque", which has the advantage of already being both an adjective and a noun.

@MorningStar1337: I mean, you may have few replies there simply because you asked for experts on what I gather is an extinct language. I fear that such experts might not be all that common in general, and this community is a fairly small pool of people in which to seek.

I'm not saying that you shouldn't ask such questions—just understand that there may not be people here in a position to answer them.

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Starbug Men of Letters Field Agent from Variable (Seven Years' War) Relationship Status: What is this thing you call love?
Men of Letters Field Agent
#9559: Dec 16th 2024 at 2:47:08 AM

Urban fantasy setting. A bracelet worn by a character has a few settings (standard “magic missile”-type blast, flash-bang, “shadow beam”, and magnetic tractor beam).

It’s basically a magic equivalent of Captain Mar Vell’s “Uni-Beam” from his early days as a hero.

Nothing too fancy in the design; just a metal wristband with a couple of gemstones.

Edited by Starbug on Dec 16th 2024 at 5:47:47 AM

I’ve faked death under many names. Carswell; Trelawney; Marcato; Haddo; Gallion; Felton; Riddle…
ArsThaumaturgis Since: Nov, 2011 Relationship Status: I've been dreaming of True Love's Kiss
#9560: Dec 16th 2024 at 3:20:55 AM

[up] Hmm... Well, you could always go with the standard "Band of <insert name here>", where the name refers to the creator of the band, or someone that it reminded someone of, or a figure from legend or history that is in some way associated with it.

Otherwise... Looking at the powers, it feels like it might be a self-defence item? So maybe simple "The Band of Defence"?

If not, then could you tell us somewhat of the (in-universe) thought behind its creation? Why did whoever crafted and/or enchanted the thing make it, and why did they include those specific powers?

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Marchen Too hot (Hot damn) from Somewhere Out in Space (Experienced, Not Yet Jaded) Relationship Status: It's not my fault I'm not popular!
Too hot (Hot damn)
#9561: Dec 16th 2024 at 3:23:21 AM

[up][up] So, does the bracelet have a creator, or is it associated with a certain god or famous individual? Because my first instinct would be a variation "Tenser's Floating Disk", like... "The Perseus Band", "Merlin's Marvelous Armlet", or "The Bracelet of Hlkarjajajaskrrlf"?

[down]Weirdly enough, I actually put a lot of thought into it. "hlkar" was pretty keymashy, "jajaja" is intentional silliness, and "skrrlf" is just a favourite vowel consonant cluster with an extra r.

Edited by Marchen on Dec 16th 2024 at 1:03:01 PM

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Starbug Men of Letters Field Agent from Variable (Seven Years' War) Relationship Status: What is this thing you call love?
Men of Letters Field Agent
#9562: Dec 16th 2024 at 3:55:49 AM

Did you just scatter birdseed on your keyboard and let your pet out again for that last one? grin

At any rate, I’m thinking “Sunstone Band”, since it can generate an eclipse (darkness), flares and blasts of energy.

Edited by Starbug on Dec 16th 2024 at 7:15:10 AM

I’ve faked death under many names. Carswell; Trelawney; Marcato; Haddo; Gallion; Felton; Riddle…
Nukeli Since: Aug, 2018
#9563: Dec 26th 2024 at 6:17:45 AM

Throw me names of poisonous plants (preferrably flowers?) originating from Europe or commonly cultivated. I'm trying to find a good name for a poison-using assassin/supervillain.

I'm not at the top of the game when it comes to random plants' english names.

Edited by Nukeli on Dec 26th 2024 at 4:55:30 PM

~*bleh*~
Marchen Too hot (Hot damn) from Somewhere Out in Space (Experienced, Not Yet Jaded) Relationship Status: It's not my fault I'm not popular!
Too hot (Hot damn)
#9564: Dec 26th 2024 at 6:50:28 AM

Nightshade? Hemlock? Those were the first two I came up with. Checking wikipedia... Wolfsbane/Monk's hood or foxglove maybe?

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TMH-Sir-Iron-Vomit The clown of STEEL from Ichnusa Since: Mar, 2024
The clown of STEEL
#9565: Dec 26th 2024 at 7:18:08 AM

"Mandrake" is also an option, even if people may associate it the mythological plant creature, or the proto-superhero.

Oo oo ah ah
RLH4 Cool Loser from Midgard Since: Sep, 2019 Relationship Status: [TOP SECRET]
Cool Loser
#9566: Dec 26th 2024 at 7:42:36 AM

Belladonna's a classic. Means "pretty lady" because women would poison themselves with it just a little to make their cheeks paler. Good for a Femme Fatale.

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MorningStar1337 The Encounter that ended the Dogma from 🤔 Since: Nov, 2012
The Encounter that ended the Dogma
#9567: Dec 26th 2024 at 7:44:53 AM

If you're into YGO the Trickstar theme is an idol group themed after poisonous plants. Meaning there is a ready made list for your purposes.


Looking for names for bear kemonos. Either sourced from mythology or terms for bears.

Allisterarch Water-Breathing Human from Ridiculous Procrastination zone (Striking Back) Relationship Status: love is a deadly lazer
#9568: Dec 26th 2024 at 8:28:12 AM

[up] Callisto and Arcas may be a bit too on-the-nose, but they're the first that came onto my mind. You could consider other names associated with Ursa Major and Ursa Minor as well. Boötes is another consideration as it's also sometimes associated with bears and Callisto's myth.

Fun fact: the most prevailing theory for Arthur as a name is it's derived from Arktouros which means "Bear Guardian". It's possible the whole motif of Arthur as the King in the Mountain was inspired by hibernating bears.

If Aquaman is "Nobody's favorite superhero", then I am Odysseus. (They/Them) (Troper Wall)
Marchen Too hot (Hot damn) from Somewhere Out in Space (Experienced, Not Yet Jaded) Relationship Status: It's not my fault I'm not popular!
Too hot (Hot damn)
#9569: Dec 26th 2024 at 8:46:44 AM

[up][up] So, most famous that comes to mind is "Beowulf". Also, what do you mean by "terms for bears"? Like, I could call a bear Winnipeg, does that count? There's that common story of bear meaning something like "the brown one" because saying its name was considered a bad sign. And just to offer something extra, one of the four great Norwegian poets is "Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson", which translates to "Bear-star, son of Bear".

Edit: I remembered that the stories of Reynard the fox ad other animals in them, and there was a bear named Bruin, apparently.

Edited by Marchen on Dec 26th 2024 at 5:49:00 PM

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MorningStar1337 The Encounter that ended the Dogma from 🤔 Since: Nov, 2012
The Encounter that ended the Dogma
#9570: Dec 26th 2024 at 9:02:06 AM

[up] synonyms, translations and etymological cognates basically.

Nukeli Since: Aug, 2018
#9571: Dec 26th 2024 at 1:10:59 PM

[up]x5

Actually, they did it to make their pupils bigger

Edited by Nukeli on Dec 26th 2024 at 11:11:20 AM

~*bleh*~
MorningStar1337 The Encounter that ended the Dogma from 🤔 Since: Nov, 2012
The Encounter that ended the Dogma
#9572: Dec 26th 2024 at 3:39:24 PM

okay I think I have a name thanks to Alister's suguesstion. Arkturos (refereeing to the star and meant to portmanteau the transliterated Russian Arktúr with the -ros part from the greek)

Problem is I have no idea how to pluralize it, as I'm assuming that "Arcturus" and "Arktoûros" are both singular (especially with the context). So I have to ask for help there (pluralizing the greek/latin here, not the russian).

Edited by MorningStar1337 on Dec 26th 2024 at 3:40:37 AM

Allisterarch Water-Breathing Human from Ridiculous Procrastination zone (Striking Back) Relationship Status: love is a deadly lazer
#9573: Dec 26th 2024 at 4:53:53 PM

[up] The plural here would be "Arcturi" (Latin)/"Arktouroi" (Greek) (but still pronounced Ark-TOO-ree) if I recall correctly

If Aquaman is "Nobody's favorite superhero", then I am Odysseus. (They/Them) (Troper Wall)
MorningStar1337 The Encounter that ended the Dogma from 🤔 Since: Nov, 2012
The Encounter that ended the Dogma
#9574: Dec 26th 2024 at 5:07:41 PM

thank you.

With that my bear-related name questions come to a close.

AdeptGaderius Otaku from the Anime World Since: Nov, 2018 Relationship Status: Anime is my true love
Otaku
#9575: Dec 28th 2024 at 2:57:49 AM

I'm creating a list of employees of a fictional video game company for a story. The names of the employees are based off real-life obscure or minor video game development staff from the 1990s, which are mixed-and-matched similar to the names of the players in the SNES video game Fighting Baseball.


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