Name That Group!

[Tahlvin]

Sounds like we have some interest in renaming the group from Troubleshooters to something else. So I'll start this thread for folks to submit their ideas. Once we have a reasonable list, we can post a poll and vote.

[Mike]

[Mike]

My formal nomination is the Order of the Song.

[Tahlvin]

There's eight of us, so Dothan and the Sihedrons (aka, DotS). Our logo is a unicorn rampant in font of a sihedron rune.

[Tahlvin]

On a serious note, I agree about avoiding specific place or person names. Acquisitions Inc is already used by another group, but something along those lines would be nice. Order of the Rusty Dragon comes to mind, although that ties back to Sandpoint, but at least avoids the word Sandpoint. Order of the Rune, while we're searching for the meaning of the sihedron rune. Order of the Rose (because so many of us are still the equivalent of romantic teenagers).

It's not like we're the Black Arrows, where we want to actively recruit members so we need a name that reflects a more homogenous makeup (rangers) or identifying feature (arrows). We can pick a name that just strikes our fancy or has meaning to some or all of us.

[Eliahad]

Ways and Means

[Tahlvin]

Monster Hunters, Inc.
League of Extraordinary Adventurers
Sound and Fury, Inc. (note: that's Fury, not Furry!)

Edit: I'm actually liking Sound and Fury, Inc. It gets at a couple of things the group is good at/known for: Dothan's songs (the "Sound") and Dwyn's enormous amount of splatty damage (the "Fury").

[Mike]

[bralbovsky]

I'd go along with any name change the group wishes, basically, but I have some questions:
Are we changing it because it's bland or because there are new members?
If because of new members, if we experience an episode with a lot of death and PCs get replaced with different PCs run by the same folks, will we want to change the name again?
Is this likely to be a problem if we choose a number integrated name and we lose or gain a new member?

Rusty Dragon fine, Sound and Fury clever, not really fussy, although I'm sure someone could invent names that would elicit a negative reaction too.

The campaign is tied to this sinhedron stuff. Is there any virtue to co-opting that somehow and claiming that tradition and power for ourselves as a new iteration of the ancient good guys who were the counterbalance to the evil runelords. No, I do not have a modern runelords, runelords 2.0 or other suggestion in this direction, mostly naming things is a struggle for me. I'm just trying to positively participate in the process.

[Tahlvin]

[Elle]

I like the Rusty Dragon and am persuaded that including 8-related things in the name wouldn't be handy if we add or lose any members. However, I don't like calling it an "Order" because that's an organizational indicator best suited to a different kind of group. Do we really have an "order"? Company and Legion sound too military. Something that reflects the voluntary assembly of a group of equals - like Band or League or Guild or Friends or whatever - would sound better to me. I like League because it reminds of the Justice League, and Band is good (BaRD acronym, anyone?) or Friends of (FORD? has a certain ring as a brand name...) since we've indeed come together as friends to defend the innocent?

To commemorate this iteration of our group and take it to the next level, I do think we need a symbol, which could be rather like the sihedron except with eight points instead of seven. It's like our way of seizing it back from the forces we keep encountering who are trying to tap into this ancient magic. I like the idea of using it as a symbol for the Fort (if we ever get back there for real) and leaving it behind as our "Mark" - you know, we send a letter to the Mayor of Magnimar and put our eight-pointed star on it. We destroy a lamia and leave behind our mark to let any visitors know who they're dealing with.

The downside is, of course, making ourselves known as a specific target. But I don't think we can avoid fame across this part of the world at this juncture. It's weird that such a thing (like our character advancements generally) would happen in the span of just a few months' game-time, but I just accept now that time in this world has to move differently - it's fantasy, after all. Anyway, one reason I liked the idea of settling at the Fort was that it allows us to develop a place and face some different kinds of challenges, including bringing other people in to work for us or advance various projects. I could just as easily see the benefit of remaining LESS settled and more elusive, though... a constantly moving target that remains an association of friends and doesn't put down particular roots or rely on anyone else, at least for the time being.

Another option I hadn't considered as much before, in the excitement of being handed control of the Fort, is continuing to put down roots in Sandpoint and its environs. Is there a reason the whole campaign began here, in the sense that we haven't really unlocked everything there is to know? Obviously bad ol' M knows there's something here that we don't know. Maybe this will mean what we really want is to operate the Fort as a satellite under V's command, but remain ourselves in Sandpoint until we can sort out whatever is attracting so many problems to the place. One nice thing about staying on THIS side of the world is that we remain closer to Magnimar, Thistletop, Foxglove Manor, Nybor, the farmlands between, such that if our membership each wanted to settle down long term in slightly different places, it would be realistic for us all to remain linked together. Someone could have a city life, in other words, while remaining close to the group. Someone else could reinhabit the Manor; someone else could live on a Farm, someone else could maintain relations with the Thistletop Goblins so they aren't co-opted by Sandpoint's enemies again. Etc.

[Zen]

While I don't see a driving reason to change the name, I don't mind it either. Using "Rusty Dragon" in the title also suggests a convenient method for people to get in contact with us, especially if we arrange for regular "Sendings" with Ameiko when we are not in Sandpoint.

My suggestion:

Fellowship of the Rusty Dragon

(yeah, it's corny, but... Brotherhood doesn't work with as many women as we have... and sisterhood would be a bit rude to the men and siblinghood just sounds weird.)

[Mike]

Focussing just on the Rusty Dragon, I like it and want to go with it. Order is perfect as far as I'm concerned. No one would mistake it for a religious or chivalric or monastic order with a name like Rusty Dragon. Its clearly tongue-in-cheek, which I think sets the perfect tone.

However, if Order is an issue, I'm okay with Fellowship of the Rusty Dragon, Rusty Dragon League, The Rusty Dragons, The Rusty Dragon Company, The Rusty Dragon Cooperative, Friends of the Rusty Dragon... whatever. They're all good.

As for why we should update the name: I'm afraid of offending whoever came up with it, but Troubleshooters has never worked for me. I chose not to be in on that conversation, so I felt no justification for complaining afterwards. But it just has no real panache to it. I think troubleshooter, I think Paranoia or tech support. Troubleshooter just feels like a modern term to me. Meh. It's not a name that gets spoken about in hushed tones. It's not a name that gets shrouded in myth and legend. We are working hard to become legendary. We need a name to suit that purpose.

[Bluedevyl]

I'll put forward Company Of The Rusty Dragon, as I'm just not as high on the name Brotherhood personally.

[Tahlvin]

Fellowship of the Rusty Dragon
Order of the Rusty Dragon
Company of the Rusty Dragon
Association of the Rusty Dragon

I think any of them would work. Like Mike, I think Order or Company can be used without coming across as too militaristic. They can be seen as either tongue-in-cheek, or I'm sure there are plenty of other commercial adventuring companies in the land that have similar names that it wouldn't be seen as too out of the ordinary. Besides, there are the multiple meanings of the words that come into play: Order not only meaning a monastic or military group but also the order that you place at a restaurant, and Company likewise meaning not only a military group but also someone coming to visit. OOC, Fellowship does seem to connote Lord of the Rings, but in-game that wouldn't be a problem. Association seems a trifle on the formal side (akin to Corporation or Incorporated), but again, the multiple possible meanings of the word leave a bit of room for interpretation.

As for changing the name, I also was never overly fond of Troubleshooters. I went with it because that was the name that won the vote at the time. But besides the Paranoia factor Mike mentions, it just never "felt" right to me. I guess perhaps it's Mike's comment that it felt too modern, and didn't fit the typical fantasy pattern of "The [noun] of the [adjective] [noun/place name]". "Heroes of Sandpoint" arose naturally based on our actions; Troubleshooters seemed forced, since it was a name we tried giving to ourselves. "The (Order/Company/Fellowship/Association) of the Rusty Dragon" seems to fit more naturally because we do spend so much time at the Rusty Dragon when we are in Sandpoint, and we're on good terms with Ameiko.

[Zen]

I think we could go with "Order". I could see Ameiko giving us hell about it saying, "What would that be... Two meads, four ales, two wines for the elves, and all the food I can scrounge up and I'd better send for more if Dwyn just came from battle?"

[Elle]

OH MY LORD YES, for me at least THAT SETTLES IT. We should in fact be the Order of the Rusty Dragon, but where ORDER is interpreted as a FOOD and DRINK order.

[Eliahad]

I actually like The Company of the Rusty Dragon the best, I think. The word Company absolutely has to come first in my mind, as that makes me think "A Company of Players" as opposed to a business. "The Order of the Rusty Dragon" is okay, but I feel as if that has a certain amount of indoctrination that I don't want. It works for "The Order of the Stick," but I'm not sure it works for us. I, too, was not overly fond of Troubleshooters, but the name of the group never worried me that much. And Illian had far more serious things he was concerned with than the name. I would also be okay with the term Fellowship...or...this just came to me:

The Band of the Rusty Dragon

Or not, I don't like it as much written down.

[Elle]

I'm okay with Company too. Even tho... restaurant order! tee hee!!! Seriously, all this sounds good to me, I'm happy with whatever is hashed out.

[Mike]

Company of the Rusty Dragon is cool with me.