How do gamers go about naming characters and countries in their non-historical solo campaigns? For the medieval and dark age periods, I find the Oxford Book of Saints a goldmine of suitable names. If you are stuck for a Chinese warlord, then look no further than 'The Water Margin' by Shih Nai-an (remember the television series on BBC2 about twenty years ago?). My edition, published by Tynon Press, 1992, lists the names of all 108 'Heroes of the Liang Shan Po'.

As for naming countries, a popular method is to use suitable words spelt backwards (like 'Eriatilos'). Being a fan of old movies and film stars, one of my campaign worlds included the following countries : Monroevia, Leighvia, Bergmandy and the Grand Duchy of Dietrich! The writers of Star Trek often name star ships in honour of people involved in the series, either directly or cryptically. My Starfleet contains two 'Gussie Class' assault carriers : the 'USS Featherstone' and 'USS Bennett' (the latter being commanded by Admiral Baxter P. Ferris). However, be warned: too many 'in-jokes' tend to jade the pallet after a while. Would anyone else like to offer their favourite method of selecting names?