Ship Naming

[Steve]

I was wondering what sort of methods people used for naming military vessels in their campaigns. I was looking through Alien Wars and trying to think of ship names that would be appropriate for the United Earth Navy. Rivers or mountains are what I am considering now. Any other suggestions?

[Lowly Uhlan]

Rivers and montains are good ideas. In Star Trek the runabouts were all named after rivers.

Military leaders would be good, The Schwartzkof, the Kahn ,the Rommel.

Or your favorite fictional characters:the Kirk, the Wu, the Boromir.

Going a little further "out there" how about mythical places: the Numenor, the Melnibone, the Andrilhanka.

Or just think up dark, ominous names. The dropship in my Star Hero game is called "Black Providence".

[Edsel]

If you want alien-sounding names, what I do is get a couple of english to whatever dictionaries. You can then mix and match parts of words from differend languages.

[Outsider]

You could go with ship names from history, too.


In a Star Fleet Battles campaign, we had a player who was naming his ships after martial arts manuvers. Some were OK, but the USS Groin Strike was a bit odd...

[abalux]

Originally posted by Outsider
In a Star Fleet Battles campaign, we had a player who was naming his ships after martial arts manuvers. Some were OK, but the USS Groin Strike was a bit odd...

Bet no male enemy commander ever messed with that one

I like to use unusual occupations. Stuff like Hierophant, Wainwright, and Inquisitor.

[BobGreenwade]

In addition to the above, the names of historical heads of state is another source of ship names -- Presidents and Prime Ministers from the US, UK, Canada, Australia, Germany, France, Mexico, Brazil, Japan, Indonesia... Imagine a couple of Liberty-class dreadnaughts named the Karzai and the Musharraf.

[keithcurtis]

I named most of the fleet for my old Solar COlonies Game. I'll see if I can dig up the list.

Some suggestions:
Qualities: <I>Reliance, Honor, Mercy</i>
Battlefields: <i>Marathon, Waterloo, Agincourt</i>
Pantheon supreme deities: <i>Wotan, Zeus, Danu</I>
Weapons: <i>Katana, Wakazashi, Lance, Mjolnir</i>

Keith "You want names?" Curtis

[BlackSword]

Originally posted by BobGreenwade
In addition to the above, the names of historical heads of state is another source of ship names -- Presidents and Prime Ministers from the US, UK, Canada, Australia, Germany, France, Mexico, Brazil, Japan, Indonesia... Imagine a couple of Liberty-class dreadnaughts named the Karzai and the Musharraf.

And don't forget to throw in some 'future-history,' add American presidents such as the Schwarzenegger, the Trump (sorry don't know the black sheep for foreign nations)...the list is endless (and disheartening ). If you have a history that includes a few famous military figures, their names will at least be included in the class of ship.

[Outsider]

You could also have Dictator class dreadnoughts to name... it all depends on the politics of your future world-state

[TheImperialKhan]

So you want ship names eh?

Follow this link and you'll have more than you know what to do with:

http://www.cronab.demon.co.uk/INTRO.HTM

Want other nations? That's easy enough just translate these into the language of your choice over here:

http://babelfish.altavista.com/

How's that for service?

[BobGreenwade]

Originally posted by BlackSword
And don't forget to throw in some 'future-history,' add American presidents such as the Schwarzenegger...

Schwartzenegger cannot become the US President; the Constitution states that the President must be a natural-born citizen, and Arnold is naturalized. (Though your basic point is a very good one.)

[Starwolf]

Also IRL the US Navy follows a general policy of picking a naming convention by ship class and following it. For instance all Carriers are now named for Presidents or Admirals, all Cruisers could be named for famous battles, and all destroyers could be named for fallen heroes or important politicians. If I recall correctly all Battleships were named for states. I hope these examples give you some good ideas.

[BlackSword]

Originally posted by BobGreenwade
Schwartzenegger cannot become the US President; the Constitution states that the President must be a natural-born citizen, and Arnold is naturalized. (Though your basic point is a very good one.)

Just a poor reference to "Demolition Man."

As for use of foreign languages, I use:

http://www.freedict.com/onldict/jap.html

for translations. This is the japanese translator, but there are translators for several languages. I usually use it to make up last names for my characters. Expanding off of Imperial Khan's suggetion. Perhaps something like a Hawk Class of fast attack frigates, then find a bunch of translations for Hawk. Depending how space is colonized, if there are still strong pockets of various cultures, those on a particular planet may tend to name ships based on their original language.

[keithcurtis]

Here is the list I created for Book 4 of the Solar Colonies "Finrod's Fall". The models are simple Bomber-1 is an older one, Bomber-2 is a current ship, while Bomber-3 would be a state-of-the-art. And so on.

Panhandle, <i> Belter Prospector, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Sutter’s Creek, <i> Belter Prospector, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Boomer, <i> Belter Prospector, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Mao, <i> Bomber-1, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Confucious, <i> Bomber-1, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Huang Ho, <i> Bomber-1, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Yang-Tzi, <i> Bomber-1, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Hiroshima, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Nagasaki, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Campuchea, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Dresden, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Granville, <i> Charter, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Tradewind, <i> Charter, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Sirocco, <i> Charter, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Hammerhead, <i> Corvette-1, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Tiger Shark, <i> Corvette-1, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Skate, <i> Corvette-1, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Ming, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Han, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Chen, <i> Destroyer-1, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Black Lotus, <i> Destroyer-1, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Black Rose, <i> Destroyer-1, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Nightshade, <i> Destroyer-1, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Wu-Jen, <i> Destroyer-2, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Darkness, <i> Pirate Vessel-1, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Terminator, <i> Pirate Vessel-1, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Eclipse, <i> Pirate Vessel-1, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Revenant, <i> Pirate Vessel-1, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Umbra, <i> Pirate Vessel-2, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Shadow, <i> Pirate Vessel-2, <i> Black Fleet</i></i>
Katana, <i> Bomber-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Wakazashi, <i> Bomber-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Claymore, <i> Bomber-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Morningstar, <i> Bomber-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Sai, <i> Bomber-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Harpoon, <i> Bomber-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Tulwar, <i> Bomber-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Cestus, <i> Bomber-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Scimitar, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Excalibur, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Hammer, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Gungnir, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
New York, <i> Carrier-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
London, <i> Carrier-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Rome, <i> Carrier-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Moscow, <i> Carrier-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Paris, <i> Carrier-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Ronin, <i> Corvette-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Shane, <i> Corvette-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Marksman, <i> Corvette-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
John Wayne, <i> Corvette-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Parsifal, <i> Corvette-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Hero, <i> Corvette-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Tristan, <i> Corvette-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Yojimbo, <i> Corvette-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Crockett, <i> Corvette-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Daniel Boone, <i> Corvette-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Robin Hood, <i> Corvette-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Cyrano, <i> Corvette-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Ranger, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Mounty, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Pimpernel, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
D’Artagnon, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Lancelot, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Errantry, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Luna</i></i>
Gawain, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Luna</i></i>
Gallahad, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Luna</i></i>
Thunor, <i> Cruiser-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Heimdall, <i> Cruiser-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Herakles, <i> Cruiser-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Baldur, <i> Cruiser-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Lugh, <i> Cruiser-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Apollo, <i> Cruiser-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Thunderbird, <i> Cruiser-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Zeus, <i> Cruiser-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Tyr, <i> Cruiser-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Ramman, <i> Cruiser-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Wodin, <i> Cruiser-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Dagda, <i> Cruiser-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Huan, <i> Cruiser-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Baron, <i> Destroyer-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Duke, <i> Destroyer-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Satrap, <i> Destroyer-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Marquis, <i> Destroyer-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Viscount, <i> Destroyer-1, <i> Luna</i></i>
Padishah, <i> Destroyer-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Czar, <i> Destroyer-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Sultan, <i> Destroyer-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Emir, <i> Destroyer-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Khan, <i> Destroyer-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Malik, <i> Destroyer-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Rajah, <i> Destroyer-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Chieftain, <i> Destroyer-3, <i> Luna</i></i>
Pasha, <i> Destroyer-3, <i> Luna</i></i>
Colonial Products, <i> Spacestation-2, <i> Luna</i></i>
Equus, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Draconis, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Centaurus, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Eridanus, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Cassiopia, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Capricorn, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Pegasus, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Taurus, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Canis, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Crux, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Pisces, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Aquarius, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Dephinus, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Sculptor, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Fornax, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Ursa, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Orion, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Scorpio, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Hydra, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Corvus, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Europa, <i> Carrier-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Australia, <i> Carrier-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Africa, <i> Carrier-3, <i> Mars</i></i>
Asia, <i> Carrier-3, <i> Mars</i></i>
America, <i> Carrier-3, <i> Mars</i></i>
Cassini Gap, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Agincourt, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Marathon, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Bosworth, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Concord, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Rubicon, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Normandy, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Anzio, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Cheng-Du, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Bunker Hill, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Hastings, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
New Orleans, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Lexington, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Omaha Beach, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
China Sea, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Jerusalem, <i> Corvette-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Bonaparte, <i> Cruiser-3, <i> Mars</i></i>
Alexander, <i> Cruiser-3, <i> Mars</i></i>
Sun-Tzu, <i> Cruiser-3, <i> Mars</i></i>
Pershing, <i> Cruiser-3, <i> Mars</i></i>
Washington, <i> Cruiser-3, <i> Mars</i></i>
Robert E. Lee, <i> Cruiser-3, <i> Mars</i></i>
Caesar, <i> Cruiser-3, <i> Mars</i></i>
Pompeii, <i> Cruiser-3, <i> Mars</i></i>
Rommel, <i> Cruiser-3, <i> Mars</i></i>
Pericles, <i> Cruiser-3, <i> Mars</i></i>
Beowulf, <i> Destroyer-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Gilgamesh, <i> Destroyer-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Hiawatha, <i> Destroyer-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Jason, <i> Destroyer-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Hercules, <i> Destroyer-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Theseus, <i> Destroyer-2, <i> Mars</i></i>
Blood, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Avenger, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Devastator, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Chaos, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Annihilator, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Maelström, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Hurricane, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Thunderbolt, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Lightningstrike, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Nova, <i> Bomber-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Wardog, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Typhoon, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Krakatoa, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Whirlwind, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Tora, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Quake, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Volcano, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Striker, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Holocaust, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Terror, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Relentless, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Flare, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Firestorm, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Armageddon, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Ragnarok, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Doomsday, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Apocalypse, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Gauntlet, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Impact, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Divine Wind, <i> Bomber-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Avalon, <i> Carrier-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Valhalla, <i> Carrier-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Atlantis, <i> Carrier-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Lemuria, <i> Carrier-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Zinj, <i> Carrier-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Creus, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Tethys, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Mnemosyne, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Prometheus, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Helios, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Kronos, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Ouranos, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Gaea, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Cronus, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Hyperion, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Theia, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Rhea, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Themis, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Phoebe, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Tethys, <i> Corvette-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Atlas, <i> Cruiser-1, <i> Titan</i></i>
Coeus, <i> Cruiser-1, <i> Titan</i></i>
Finn, <i> Cruiser-1, <i> Titan</i></i>
Polyphemus, <i> Cruiser-1, <i> Titan</i></i>
Antaeus, <i> Cruiser-1, <i> Titan</i></i>
Oceanus, <i> Cruiser-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Atlas, <i> Cruiser-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Paul Bunyon, <i> Cruiser-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Colossus, <i> Cruiser-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Behemoth, <i> Cruiser-2, <i> Titan</i></i>
Surtur, <i> Destroyer-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Goliath, <i> Destroyer-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Leviathan, <i> Destroyer-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Ymir, <i> Destroyer-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Polyphemus, <i> Destroyer-3, <i> Titan</i></i>
Cerberus, <i> Dreadnaught, <i> Titan</i></i>
Grendel, <i> Dreadnaught, <i> Titan</i></i>
Gorgon, <i> Dreadnaught, <i> Titan</i></i>

Take anything you can use.
Keith "Fleet Admiral" Curtis

[bcholmes]

Originally posted by BobGreenwade
Schwartzenegger cannot become the US President; the Constitution states that the President must be a natural-born citizen, and Arnold is naturalized. (Though your basic point is a very good one.)

"Damn constitutional amendment of 2012! I mean, heck, if the original restriction was good enough for Washington, it should be good enough for anyone!"