18 replies to this topic

[Tanaga Matabushi]

I know that somewhere the Devs have posted the rules on this topic yet in my early morning fugue I cannot find it, and believe me I have been searching for 2 hours...

Are there restrictions on naming your in game character a Canon Name?

If you know where the post is, please let me know.

[Daiichidoku]

devs missed the boat on this one

should have just made EVERY player name "Alex Kerensky(X)" by default and save all the tears

[Viper69]

Yes, and why would you want to name your character after someone famous? I mean that is not you in the books they talk about is it?

[Egomane]

http://mwomercs.com/...developer-qa-1/

Your Forum name is your ingame name as well. There will be no differnece between the two.

[Dymitry]

I dunno. I might have killed half of the Liao dinasty, several Kai-Allard and Galen Cox a couple of Wolf. I could single handedly be responsible for the death of the whole Pryde bloodname, but the saddest moment of them all was when I dreamed of killing the Aleksandr Kerensky himself once. I am therefore dezgra.
I will end on the rememberance, but not for my heroic deeds.

I have to say, though, none of this legendary MechWarriors were particularly good. The books are all hype, I guess.

OP, to answer your question, use the "search members" function.

Edited by Dymitry, 04 September 2012 - 06:46 AM.

[Egomane]

Would be great if the players that try to give themself a big name would actually live up to the name. But I agree with Dymitry: Most of them die by my guns, just as fast, or often even faster, then everyone else.

[Viper69]

Reminds me of all the Boba Fett and Darth Maul ripoff names I have killed in any Star Wars game ever made. Also how many Rommel/ Whittmans and Pershings I have killed in WOT.

[Strum Wealh]

Here is the go-to posting that deals with unit names (including citations and links to Dev statements).
The short version is: one may not name their unit after a canon BT unit.

Here is another thread that deals with individual canon chatacters' names (e.g. Victor Steiner-Davion, Phelan Kell, Natasha Kerensky, etc.).
The short version (mainly from this post, this post, and this post) is: it seems that canon character names may follow a similar verboten policy to those of unit names...?

[Fezzwig]

How about a name like..Stackpole or Keith or Thurston? Who needs characters when you can name yourself after the authors?

[John Norad]

I hope the devs will stay course on the canon name topic and disallow it to spare us all the fake Kai Allards, Kay Allards, Phelan Kells, Phellan Kells, Phelan Kellls, etc. and stupid discussions like "We are the Kell Hounds", "No! WE are the real Kell Hounds", etc etc.

Otherwise it will happen and it will be annoying up to the point of many players not even caring about background, fluff or anything.

Yes, I can ignore it. But it's even better if I don't have to ignore it in the first place.

Imho every tiny bit of immersion that sets the game apart from your average shooter is a good thing, since there is such a strong background and so many hardcore fans.

Edited by John Norad, 04 September 2012 - 11:50 AM.

[Joseph Mallan]

Quote

3067

Redfield Renegades (Regiment/Veteran/Reliable)

• Command Company
  
  • CO: Colonel Edward Redfield
    
  • Aide: Captain Gail Piazzi
• Alpha Battalion: Major Alan Earker
  
• Delta Battalion: Major Robert Pigeon
  
• Omega Battalion: Major Hunter Adams

Lone Star Regiment (1 Regiment/Veteran/Questionable)^[1]

• CO: Colonel Meschach Granger

• Aide: Captain Peter Fahrbach

• Ranger's Battalion /XO: Major Isaac Howard
  
• Dragoon's Battalion: Major Brian Lim Yen-Yang
  
• Light Horse Battalion: Major John LaVigne

Except for the CO of these two units, These names belong to the players who earned them in the World Wide Event Lawyers, Guns & Money. Captain Gail Piazzi is my Daughter, a longtime BattleTech player, and a known force in the Michigan BattleTech circles. She is also Now a force to (hopefully) be respected in the MMO. At the ripe old age of 10 she won a Trial of Bloodname for the Kerensky name. So I understand that many of the "Names" in BattleTech should be off limits, but there are a few hundred names that have been earned in the lore that the owners have every right to wear.

Personally I am surprised nobody took Nin-Ten-Do (A commander in House Laio) Or any of the other Gag names in the house books!

[Alistair Steiner]

My character is "technically" named after a canon character, but one that existed in the 2400's, so it's more an homage than me trying to be this guy, obviously. I'd have gone with something other than "Steiner" as a last name, but I was also holding onto some RP history within my own character (simply named "Steiner" for years), so there's that. And hey, the Archon who planned the successful capture of Mackie plans, thus creating the spread of BattleMechs throughout the Inner Sphere? I can live with that.

[Arturus]

Personally, I used a fictituous name but tied it into the lore via family relationships/character backstory...close but not too close

...good hunting!

[Dymitry]

Alistair Steiner, on 04 September 2012 - 12:00 PM, said:

My character is "technically" named after a canon character, but one that existed in the 2400's, so it's more an homage than me trying to be this guy, obviously. I'd have gone with something other than "Steiner" as a last name, but I was also holding onto some RP history within my own character (simply named "Steiner" for years), so there's that. And hey, the Archon who planned the successful capture of Mackie plans, thus creating the spread of BattleMechs throughout the Inner Sphere? I can live with that.

I guess I have to like your approach then. Heck, that guy probably even deserve his bloodname, for once.

[Lerzpftz]

I simply named myself after the famous mercenary group "Lerzpftz laughing llamas", that was active in the MegaMek-Net online tabletop for a while. Hope that is ok. ^^

[Strum Wealh]

Fezzwig, on 04 September 2012 - 11:31 AM, said:

How about a name like..Stackpole or Keith or Thurston? Who needs characters when you can name yourself after the authors?

I would imagine that the Devs would also "protect" their own names (e.g. "Paaul Inouyee" and such not being allowed) as well as those of notable BT/MW-related real-world personalities (such as the above-named BT authors).

Given how sensitive the Devs have been with regard to the copyright concerns for player and unit emblems (e.g. not wanting people putting Mario on the side of their 'Mech), I would imagine that they would take action with regard to any names that could cause legal issues (e.g. naming oneself "Piranha Games", "Harmony Gold", "Apple Computer Inc", and so on) as well.

Though, I don't currently know of any posts or threads where they've been as clear and thorough on the subject of player names as they have been on emblems and unit names...

Joseph Mallan, on 04 September 2012 - 12:00 PM, said:

Except for the CO of these two units, These names belong to the players who earned them in the World Wide Event Lawyers, Guns & Money. Captain Gail Piazzi is my Daughter, a longtime BattleTech player, and a known force in the Michigan BattleTech circles. She is also Now a force to (hopefully) be respected in the MMO. At the ripe old age of 10 she won a Trial of Bloodname for the Kerensky name. So I understand that many of the "Names" in BattleTech should be off limits, but there are a few hundred names that have been earned in the lore that the owners have every right to wear.

I would expect (and hope) that the Devs would include such "inducted into BT canon" names among the "protected" names, with the real people behind them able to provide some form of credentials (scanned State ID or Driver's License?) in order to claim exclusive use of their own names.

Though, what should happen if someone who shares a name with a more-prominent canon character (e.g. a real-world Adam Steiner or a real-world Thomas Marik or a real-world Jamie Wolf) wants to use their actual name and can submit the same credentials?

-----

Also, 1000th post!

[JeremiahRose]

I've been using this name for over 20 years now, so I'm sorry for the lack of imagination.

I share initials with him, and my own name is actually canon as a mechwarrior... but I prefer Jeremiah. *shrug*

[AlexEss]

To be honest i do not care, in regular matches it does not matter jack and if you try to pull something like that in a RP session i will simply ignore you or if it suits the setting laugh 'til i fall over. And honestly i do not care if you "earned" your name in some league... You do not walk a canon character in to a RP setting without the GM's consent, that is my firm belief. But ymmw depending on the setting and GM.

But sadly i am sure we will 400 Kai's and 3000 Phelan and more Justin's then anyone care to count... It is just part of the life on the internet. What will be even more fun is when the people who see them self as "owning" a name will try to get people "copying their name" or have "taken their name" to give it up.