RPGs: Names and voice acting for charcters

One of my favourite things about GMing is the opportunity to play lots of different NPCs, for me they're often what make the story interesting as they interact with the Player Characters.  Over time I've picked up a couple of things which I find make life easier and bring NPCs to life more. Two of the main ones are character names and voice acting.

Names are important but easily overlooked in the midst of prepping a session.  It's unfortunate because Bob the blacksmith sounds lame. His Royal Highness Darren the Magnificent doesn't really work either and Julie the Jedi is going to be laughed at too.  Players just won't take these characters seriously.

It's good to think about names as part of your preparation for a game; always name important NPCs before the session and say the names aloud to check they don't have any unintended comedy value! It's often worth printing out a list of names to keep with you in case you need one on the fly.  YAFNAG is good source of fantasy names but there are tons of lists of baby names out there which are specific to different languages and cultures: Aztec, Roman, Spanish and a zillion others are all out there. Try to choose ones that are easy to say: Tathren'orienel may look good on paper but people will find it hard to pronounce - let alone remember.

Following on from character names is one my favourite techniques: voice acting.  Apart from the obvious benefit that it aids to immersion in the game there are a couple of more subtle advantages. When I voice a character I've noticed that players seem to listen more. I suspect part of this is due to the novelty factor since they're probably used to my normal speaking voice, but I think they also assume I'm saying something important because an NPC is speaking.  It certainly seems to help with keeping their attention.

Voicing characters differently also makes it easier for players to recognise who they are talking to, which is very helpful when they are interacting with several NPCs at once.  It can be confusing to talk to several NPCs who all share the GM's normal voice as it isn't always easy to follow who has said what.

However, even beyond these, the main reason for voice acting is to aid characterisation.  There are a couple of ways to achieve this.  An obvious thing to try are accents.  Some people are natural mimics and others are not, but it's always worth trying even if the thought makes your blood run cold at first! If your game is set in the real world then trying to do appropriate  accents is nice; the players will feel more like they are in Paris if everyone they meet speaks with a French accent.  In a fantasy world you can also associate different races with real world accents. The most notorious example is the Scottish Dwarf which has become so clichéd that it just irritates some people. Personally I quite enjoy doing dwarves with a Russian accent.  Like helping players to identify individual NPCs, this can also help players to quickly identify where a new character is from.

A word of warning however: do not do an accent that strains your voice! Or at least not for a prolonged period as you risk ending up with a sore throat.

Other things to try are varying your tone of voice and the speed of delivery  Soften your tone of voice for speaking the gentle Lady Allena and make it louder and brasher for the drunken barbarian in the tavern. Speak slowly and deliberately for the wise old monk giving them advice and quickly for the rogue who is trying to talk his way out of a failed con.  With non human characters, think about how they might speak or what other sounds they might make. For example, anything reptilian I tend to give a sibilant voice whereas giants and ogres usually get a deep voice.

Pet topics and catch phrases are also good and don't require any ear for accents.  They can be anything appropriate to the character and the setting and serve the same function as accents.  They can also lead to some fine comic moments!  A few examples include:

• "I love the marine corps!"
• "Are you still carrying that Colt? The Smith and Weston is so much better.."
• "I suppose you can't help it, you are an Elf..."
• "What you really need is a horse and lance..."
• "Have you heard the teachings of Isis?"

How to put all this together then?  Easy - it's all about practice! Pick a character who you want to voice and try out some of the ideas above until you are satisfied with it. I often do this when I'm driving as it helps to pass the time.  You'll probably feel silly to start with but practicing will help you to get over it.  You'll also find that in the midst of a session, when you've got five players and your plot to think about, that it's much easier to do a voice you are familiar with.  With a bit of practice you can build up a repertoire of voices to work with.

Practising voices before the session also gives you a chance to consider some of the things your NPCs might say and gives you an excellent chance to get a feel for their personality. You don't want to learn a script and it doesn't matter if you don't say the things you were practising in the actual session; the main thing really is getting a feel for the character and how they speak.  Even if you don't do any voice acting as such, time spent 'rehearsing your lines' is always well spent in my view.

A few final words of advice. If you're not sure about all of this then start small. Think of a minor character like a barman or shopkeeper and try one or two of these techniques. You can then work your way up to doing major villains of your campaign as you confidence grows.  Don't worry about getting the voices perfect, and don't be afraid to ham it up a bit.  No one is going to get an Oscar for this kind of thing and it's unlikely your players could do any better! Remember, the important thing is to make the characters interesting and memorable and above all, have fun!

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