Are the names set in stone?

[Archpaladin Zousha]

Ravingdork wrote:

I like "entropist" for the vanguard. "Dynamo" just sounds way too retro for my tastes, like something you'd find in a Flash Gordan comic.

You say that like it's a bad thing! ;)

Personally, I find "Entropist" kinda clinical, doesn't exactly fit the image of the class that formed in my head when I read it. I feel the name should sound a little more "brutal," if that makes any sense...

[Archpaladin Zousha]

Something else I forgot to mention yesterday is that I do like how the Vanguard's non-indicativeness carries an implication that Vanguards don't necessarily need to be Chaotic in alignment, which is something that gets conflated with the concept of entropy too often in my opinion.

[Gamerskum]

I'm still a fan of Axiom or Axian to me that says that they are some where on the Axis of Order and Chaos like entropy and not inherently one or the other.

[Archpaladin Zousha]

Only issue with that is that in Paizo's universe, Axis is the Lawful Neutral alignment plane, so it makes the opposite connection.

[whew]

Drugslinger
Mad Doc

Super Soldier

My names probably work better as nicknames instead of official names. Except for maybe Vanguard, if the existing names stick, I suspect I will not use them in my table tents or character intros.

PS I like both WarpWitch and WarpWeaver better than WitchWarper.

[Perpdepog]

Warpwitch fits a little better from a grammatical standpoint. Witchwarper sounds like someone who goes about warping witches.

Although warpwitch also makes me hungry to say.

[TheGoofyGE3K]

what about Witchwarp? no 'er' at the end I think makes it sound more concise, less "clunky".

[EltonJ]

I think QuantaWitch can work.

[ghostunderasheet]

Shisumo wrote:

DM_aka_Dudemeister wrote:

I’d really like to call the biohacker the Doctor.

Doctor who?

exactly.

[ghostunderasheet]

Elegos wrote:

I personally despise the "just call it quantum so it sounds future!" concept.

Unless the class gets an ability called Ultraviolet Catastrophe, it has no right to the word Quantum

oh man I hope the get an ability called that now.

[Perpdepog]

ghostunderasheet wrote:

Elegos wrote:

I personally despise the "just call it quantum so it sounds future!" concept.

Unless the class gets an ability called Ultraviolet Catastrophe, it has no right to the word Quantum

oh man I hope the get an ability called that now.

It's the name of their capstone, and the Pact Worlds' most popular all-witchwarper band.

[Fumarole]

Don't forget Paizo's (unofficial?) policy of not giving classes multi-word names when suggesting your own.

As for the current names, Warpwitch is a better name than Witchwarper I think. Witchwarper sounds like someone who warps witches, wheres as Warpwitch sounds like a psyker from the Warhammer 40k universe. The latter is much more preferable, not to mention badass.

[The Ragi]

How about: "Warper".

[BlueCatastrophe]

Fumarole wrote:

Don't forget Paizo's (unofficial?) policy of not giving classes multi-word names when suggesting your own.

As for the current names, Warpwitch is a better name than Witchwarper I think. Witchwarper sounds like someone who warps witches, wheres as Warpwitch sounds like a psyker from the Warhammer 40k universe. The latter is much more preferable, not to mention badass.

Love "Warpwitch". It has a more definitive quality than Witchwarper, which sound to me like it would be an anti-caster class (a class that warps witches).

[BlueCatastrophe]

Like a lot of people here, I'd really like to see the Vanguard's name reflect the flavor a bit more. "Vanguard" brings to mind images of valiant soldiers storming the front, which is very different from the darker, more mystical, flavor of the ability to understand and control entropy as a natural force. Entrophage or Dyamist work for flavor, but don't give you any indication of what the class does (something that "Vanguard" accomplishes pretty well). It should be possible to find a name that both describes the class and gives at least some oblique indication of its themes or style.

My first thought was "Driftguard", but it uses the same word as The Drift, so it's probably not the best idea to use it and not have it be tied directly to the major element of the universe. Here are a few ideas from out of left field.

1. "Energuard"
2. "Breaker"
3. "Warden"
4. "Warguard"
5. "Aegis"

[Corvo Spiritwind]

DM_aka_Dudemeister wrote:

I am not a fan of the “smoosh two words together to make a class name” method of class naming. However I know that Paizo in the past has been tetchy about criticism of their class naming conventions.

If the class names are not up for feedback, that’s totally fine, it’s paizo’s game. But humbly, may we offer some alternatives:

Vanguard - It’s actually great. I’m totes fine with redefining words that exist for new contexts.

Witchwarp:

• Weird
  
• Paradoxer
  
• Quantumancer
  

Biohacker:

• Biochemist
  
• Chemist
  
• Scientist
  

Feels like changing Biohacker into Biochemist is pretty much the exact same thing but you like the word chemist better. The result is pretty much the same, it's still just two words combined.

[saucercrab]

Count me in for changing vanguard to something more like entropist. Vanguard is too generic; it's not a standard class like most in the core rules. A name intimating the class's abilities, like solarian does, makes it just a bit more special, & not just run-of-the-mill. I'll enjoy more classes like this in SF, that draw upon cosmic forces.

For bio-hacker, I don't know if the name totally jives with what the class does. It's more like a bio-buffer, with how it implements it's abilities. But I can't think of anything better.

For witchwarper, I'd really, really like to drop/change the witch part. As is, it's too close to witchwyrd, which could be cause for confusion. (even if that looks to be the iconic race/class combo). I don't mind the alliteration, & warpweaver sounds cool to me.

Anyway, just my thoughts.

[The Ragi]

Biomedic.

[saucercrab]

The Ragi wrote:

Biomedic.

As opposed to... robomedic? ;)

I'd say medic implies a biological component.

[The Ragi]

saucercrab wrote:

As opposed to... robomedic? ;)

I'd say medic implies a biological component.

Biomedicine (i.e. medical biology) is a branch of medical science that applies biological and physiological principles to clinical practice. The branch especially applies to biology and physiology. Biomedicine also can relate to many other categories in health and biological related fields.

It includes many biomedical disciplines and areas of specialty that typically contain the "bio-" prefix such as molecular biology, biochemistry, biotechnology, cell biology, embryology, nanobiotechnology, biological engineering, laboratory medical biology, cytogenetics, genetics, gene therapy, bioinformatics, biostatistics, systems biology, neuroscience, microbiology, virology, immunology, parasitology, physiology, pathology, anatomy, toxicology, and many others that generally concern life sciences as applied to medicine.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biomedicine

[8-Bit Rabbits]

While Biohacker is a real world, I think it's important to take modern language into consideration. Most people who hear the world "hacker" when applied to Biohacker are not thinking about the do it yourself biology presented in the technical definition. Some new options:

Grinder (what real life Biohackers call themselves)
Bio-Engineer
Geneticist

For the Vanguard, while it's a cool name and fits the mechanics, it doesn't fit the flavor. Maybe the following:

Axiom
Determinist
Entropist

Witchwarper is just something that doesn't make a lot of sense. I couldn't find anything tied to witches that made sense in the context of this class other than being a spell caster. I honestly think "Warper" would b just fine, or maybe "Jumper."

[saucercrab]

The Ragi wrote:

saucercrab wrote:

As opposed to... robomedic? ;)

I'd say medic implies a biological component.

Biomedicine (i.e. medical biology) is a branch of medical science that applies biological and physiological principles to clinical practice. The branch especially applies to biology and physiology. Biomedicine also can relate to many other categories in health and biological related fields.

It includes many biomedical disciplines and areas of specialty that typically contain the "bio-" prefix such as molecular biology, biochemistry, biotechnology, cell biology, embryology, nanobiotechnology, biological engineering, laboratory medical biology, cytogenetics, genetics, gene therapy, bioinformatics, biostatistics, systems biology, neuroscience, microbiology, virology, immunology, parasitology, physiology, pathology, anatomy, toxicology, and many others that generally concern life sciences as applied to medicine.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biomedicine

That's interesting, but I don't think that level of detail would apply to the game. Medic, as a noun, has certain connotations separating it from medical, an adjective. I'll qualify my previous statement ;-)

In the setting & rules, medic would already imply a biological component.

[Ascalaphus]

I'm fairly comfortable with Vanguard as a name because you can totally play them as really tanky dudes who are quite comfortable plowing forward into enemy ranks.

But if another name was sought after, I like Harbinger.

I also like Warpwitch - a witch who does something with warp, as opposed to someone who, well, warps witches.

For the current, really injection-focused biohacker, Drugslinger doesn't sound inaccurate, but it might not be a good marketing name. I'd rather like to see the biohacker live up to its name with some more non-injection based treatments (pills, scanners, mutation beams, ...)

[Archpaladin Zousha]

Ascalaphus wrote:

But if another name was sought after, I like Harbinger.

Not bad, though that might bring with it a bunch of ASSUMING CONTROL jokes. :P

[BlueCatastrophe]

Archpaladin Zousha wrote:

Ascalaphus wrote:

But if another name was sought after, I like Harbinger.

Not bad, though that might bring with it a bunch of ASSUMING CONTROL jokes. :P

Throwing out a vote for Harbinger here. It also obliquely references the entropic nature of the class.

[Drewg]

The names of these classes don't fit aesthetically with any of the core classes. No core class name is a compound-word. Vanguard is one single word, but it doesn't do a good enough job describing what the class is. Vanguards are essentially a different flavor of Solarians. Look at how Mysticism is a class skill for them. Look at how their class features use words like "embodiment" and "insight". And they should have a similarly made-up name to describe them.

Biohacker : Xeneticist
Sounds like Geneticist. The "Xeno" prefix does three things. It gives it a sci-fi vibe. It is close enough to "Gene" to tell you that they mess with DNA. Finally, "Xeno" means "foreign", which fits perfectly, since they specialize in introducing foreign elements into others' bodies.

Vanguard : Atomite
I feel like this name has a few things going for it. For one, using the "mite" suffix mirrors the "ian" suffix of the Solarian. Both suffixes give you the impression that the class is a member of an order. For two, this name is just one letter off from "atomize" which is exactly what Entropic Strike does. For three, hey look, it kind of has the word "might" in it.

Witchwarper : Esper
They possess the extrasensory perception necessary to see alternate realities. The name "Esper" has taken on several new meanings in pop culture over the years, which blurs the lines of how it can be used. Examples include Final Fantasy and a certain anime I don't care to mention the name of.

[Charlatan]

Just throwing my 2 cents in.

"Reality Weaver" is an alternate for Witchwarper, or possibly a sub class.

Bio-hacker I'm fine with, it's unexciting as a title but it communicates the job perfectly.

Vanguard is likewise awesome, it sounds like a meat head with a connection to "otherworldly abilities" who will get in your way, which is exciting as a reader.

[Metaphysician]

Honestly, I feel like most of the suggestions offered in this thread have reaffirmed the wisdom of the original names. They tend to be either notably un-euphonious and awkward as names to use, or else they depend on overly specific and literal interpretations of what a name is supposed to mean.