I guess then his accepting your name was a fortunate turn of events.

Quote from: Turanil;824143I agree with this.

People would only go for a kill wearing a ritual mask, possibly with an appropriate enchantment on it (i.e. non-detection). Of course all masks look the same! So you don't recognize the wearer by his mask!

Three side effects:
1) Someone wearing a mask is an indication he is up to no good, so people will react adversely (or at least warily).
2) Since all killers wear the same mask, learning who killed someone becomes more difficult.
3) Killers whose masks are removed, are afraid (because the superstition) to kill you, hence they will probably abandon an attempt at murder.

I had a bunch of dwarves whose god commanded them not to kill, so to get around this, their warriors put on faceplates before battle. I only did it because I needed a way around the religious law so they could actually protect themselves, but the players really seemed to like it. I don't know, something about masks.

Pretty interesting idea, and pretty workable as a cultural thing.

A lot of West African cultures had frequent name changes, as well: upon gaining adulthood, upon marriage, upon a major elevation of status, that sort of thing.

In gaming terms, it can be tough.  As an experiment, one of my parties decided to go homogenous Gypsy, and I ported it pretty straight from central European Rom culture.  Among the cultural bits involved use-names, to be revealed to outsiders, while true names were used only within the tribe.  It turned out to be cumbersome enough that I dropped it.

That being said, a large factor in me dropping it is that it was just an added layer of detail that didn't appear to add anything to the immersive  experience.  Pundit's notion would have a material effect on plot.

Close friendships or familial relationships would be impossible.  As a "new" member of the tribe, one couldn't just waltz into one's "predecessor's" family dwelling and start treating he female occupant there like his wife.  And I didn't know Lothar had so many brothers.  Those poor kids have had no less than three different fathers.  Who does that Aurelius think he is, working Marcus' fields like that?

Quote from: Ravenswing;824256Pretty interesting idea, and pretty workable as a cultural thing.

A lot of West African cultures had frequent name changes, as well: upon gaining adulthood, upon marriage, upon a major elevation of status, that sort of thing.

In gaming terms, it can be tough.  As an experiment, one of my parties decided to go homogenous Gypsy, and I ported it pretty straight from central European Rom culture.  Among the cultural bits involved use-names, to be revealed to outsiders, while true names were used only within the tribe.  It turned out to be cumbersome enough that I dropped it.

That being said, a large factor in me dropping it is that it was just an added layer of detail that didn't appear to add anything to the immersive  experience.  Pundit's notion would have a material effect on plot.

Psst! I'm not Pundit.

Yeah, yeah, I was on an allnighter.  Bleh.

(And I only got a 2-hour nap after I got home from work, so it's REALLY interesting now.  I expect to see pink elephants any time now.)

There are a lot of cultures that use name-changes, or that have secret names that are carefully guarded so as to avoid having evil spirits or 'witches' (or the equivalent) cursing them.

There are some pretty interesting rules for using True Names for characters, and also for demons and spirits, in Beyond the Wall. Inspired in part by the use of that idea in Ursula Leguin's Earthsea. The idea is that finding out the true name of an entity, which is usually only shared with one's most intimate friends and family, can give you power over that individual.

Quote from: One Horse Town;824081Anyway, my dream thought was that the people of this culture believe that unless they take steps to hide their identity, the vengeful spirits of defeated enemies will seek them out and haunt them.

I like it, although I envision the idea as a "hearth name" and a "war name". That way, the vengeful dead can only find you on the battlefield. There, however, you are prepared to face them along with any other foe. The shamans help you put away the other persona and bring out the other with chants and dances before the battle.

This would make raids very interesting, since you are attacking someone when they don't have the right name active. They might even fight worse since they aren't in the frame of mind, and the blood spilled will be tied to the wrong name. A hearth name might have to be shifted to a war name if someone leads the defense particularly well. The old war name would have to be retired, or even have a funeral for it..

What if the warriors took on a new identity before they left for war and then resumed their primary identity when they return.

Warriors preparing to go on a raid, go through a ritual where they take a new name and identity. The warrior picks a war name and some very clear visual identifying features. Maybe this includes creating a mask or war paint to hide their visual identity.

After they return they destroy their assumed identity during another ritual and return to their primary identity resuming their normal life.

Quote from: Melichor;825692What if the warriors took on a new identity before they left for war and then resumed their primary identity when they return.

Warriors preparing to go on a raid, go through a ritual where they take a new name and identity. The warrior picks a war name and some very clear visual identifying features. Maybe this includes creating a mask or war paint to hide their visual identity.

After they return they destroy their assumed identity during another ritual and return to their primary identity resuming their normal life.

I like the cut of your jib!

Welcome to the site BTW.

Quote from: One Horse Town;825693I like the cut of your jib!

I think I'll have to use this in a new campaign I'm throwing together.
Elves with Kiss face paint and GWAR personalities when they go to war.

QuoteWelcome to the site BTW.

Thanks.
I'm thinking this might be a cool place to hang out and actually talk about games.

Nah, not face paint.  Wooden masks.  The skill at which you carve them is held to be a factor in how successful you are to be in battle wearing them, and ceremonially burning them (suitably marked with the enemy's blood, and ritually scored with a weapon you took from your foe) is the key to the closing ritual.