The NeoPets Naming Guide by jennatar |  |
Has it ever happened to you, that sinking feeling right before you create a
pet, that you'll never ever find an unused name? That is, without having to
add a string of numbers to it. With over 27 million NeoPets, finding a cool
name (without random numbers) can be difficult, but it isn't impossible. Below
are three strategies to making a great name -- or finding a way to get a name
that was taken.
1) Method One: Play with Spelling and Capitalization
If you have a perfect name in mind, but someone has already taken it, consider
this alternative. For an example, lets say you want the name Trinity (which
has been taken for 653 days) for your pet. Fool around with the spelling --
what sounds like Trinity, but is spelled differently? Two answers are
Trinitea and Trinitee, both of which were free when I wrote this.
Now, capitalization. Not only is Trinitee open, but so is trinitee (lowercase
't'). Because NeoPets is case-sensitive, playing with the capitalization of
the first letter of the name can sometimes solve the entire problem.
Want another example? Lets try Gabriel. Playing with spelling and capitalization,
all of these similar sounding names are open: Gabreall, gabreal, gabriell, and
Gabrayel. Have the hang of it yet? Good – on to method number two.
2) Method Two: Combine Words
If you want a name that sounds pretty cool, but that no one would ever name
their child, try combining two words to create a name. Prime example are Wingsigh
and Darkchime (my pets), but I think it’s best to show you how to make one on
your own.
First off, the coolest combined word names are made with words containing only
one syllable (if not, the name becomes a mouthful! Ex: Winterwarrior *untaken*).
Keeping this in mind, you need to begin brainstorming for words to make up a
name. For this example, let’s brainstorm elemental things and random adjectives:
Ice, Fire, Flame, Wind, Water, Dark, Light, Dawn, Dusk, Black, White, Blue,
Shadow, etc. Some of those are pretty neat, right?
Now, to find something to combine it with, I suggest verbs or verbs made into
adjectives (add a –er, usually): Strike, Fall, Rise, Runner, Stalker, Seeker,
Flyer, etc. Also, you can use nouns: Wing, Knife, Stream, Cloud, Angel, Halo,
Seer, etc. Now that you have some word banks, begin to combine.
Mix and match. At the time I wrote this, all of the following examples weren’t
taken! Firewing, Fireseeker, Windrise, Shadowstalker (yes, long, but nice!),
Dawnflyer, Stormangel, Whitestrike, Icerunner, etc. And those are just with
the few words we brainstormed!!
Oh, and it is really easy to play the capitalization game with combined word
names. Firewing isn’t taken, but firewing and FireWing are. Because you can
play with the capitalization of the two words that make up the name, you can
always find a great one!
3) Method Three: Creativity?
The hardest method yet is to, off the top of your head, think of name that isn’t
taken! Whoa there, it’s not impossible, just unlikely. To prove it, my friend
just thought up the name Dishenta a week ago, and it wasn’t taken! For all that
this relies more on your own creativity than the other methods, there is a way
to help you out.
Take a look at a taken name (one with several syllables). For our example,
we’ll use the name Kalend (yes, odd - all original names will be odd!). Actually,
Kalend isn’t taken, but let’s pretend it is. One way to make up an "original"
name is to add a few letters to it: Kalendel, Kalendium, Kalendial, Kalendent.
But what if you don’t like huge names? Take off a letter or two of the name
you’re looking at, and add a new ending! So, turn Kalend into Kale, and add
letters: Kaletel, Kalean, Kaleanth.
Still dissatisfied? Try adding a different beginning: Dalend, Tralend, Lilend.
Done! You now have several ways to make up an "original" name from existing
ones!
Ready to try out your new naming skills? Or do you already have a few ideas
for your new pet’s name? Hopefully, because it really isn’t that hard to throw
together a great name without the extra, silly numbers! |
