Random Ship Names & Maritime Songs to Game to

Put together a few more resources for any maritime themed D&D games; first a table to use to generate random D&D inspired ship names like: the Violet Wyrm, the Smirking Voyager, the Emerald Cockatrice, the Wand'rin' Mephit and the Rusty Siren. Easily works as a dockside tavern name generator too...

Antagonist Relations Random Ship Names

Also, here are a few Maritime themed songs that will fit well for when your party visits a dock side tavern...

from The Blasting Company's A History of Public Relations Dilemmae

• Princess Andy 
• Sinking Ships

from Shirley Inspired

• Stewart Lee and Stuart Estell - 'Polly On The Shore' 
• Stuart Estell - 'Just As The Tide Was Flowing' 

Finally, don't forget Thomas' fantastic Heroes of Waves and Wharves that I wrote trinkets and NPC spell lists for. 30+ pages of maritime themed material for your 5e D&D game.

Music to Game to: Shirley Collins - Lodestar

I listen to a lot of music (over 40 days worth in 2017 according to last.fm) and I find that few things help me keep the mood of a game foregrounded in my mind like a good soundtrack. Plus, I’ve discovered that when I’m playing music to a speaker via Bluetooth, I’m less likely to be on my phone, lest my players hear any stray sounds, letting me better model engagement during a game. To that end, I want to share some of my favorite music to game to; the albums that inspire and inflame my imagination and that I’ve found work well as background music for games as well. I’ll do a mini-review and cover the basics of what mood it helps me set.

SHIRLEY COLLINS – LODESTAR

Famed folk singer and song collector Shirley Collins first full album after 38 years, these songs are given profound and resonant backing by experimental musicians Cyclobe. A collection of traditional songs with one original composition, they draw on the British folk ballad tradition which lend them well to games set in a post-medieval, pre-20th century settings that draw on folklore. Moving seamlessly between dread, levity, sorrow and beauty, the songs provide a rich palate for any game master to draw upon to set the mood.

• Vocals?...Yes
• Music Genre(s)… Folk, Traditional
• Perfect for…Games with a folkloric or archaic feel that still have a vein of darkness running through them. 
• If you only grab one track, make it... The deceptively dark and rich “Cruel Lincoln”, where the birds sing as the murderer’s deeds and punishment are narrated.

Music to Game to: Eight Trails, One Path

I listen to a lot of music (over 40 days worth in 2017 according to last.fm) and I find that few things help me keep the mood of a game foregrounded in my mind like a good soundtrack. Plus, I’ve discovered that when I’m playing music to a speaker via Bluetooth, I’m less likely to be on my phone, lest my players hear any stray sounds, letting me better model engagement during a game. To that end, I want to share some of my favorite music to game to; the albums that inspire and inflame my imagination and that I’ve found work well as background music for games as well. I’ll do a mini-review and cover the basics of what mood it helps me set.

VARIOUS – EIGHT TRAILS, ONE PATH

A compilation album celebrating “the various styles, approaches, and concepts used by eight contemporary guitar masters.” The album is mostly solo acoustic guitar, lending itself naturally to an American Wild West feel, but there bits and pieces of other instruments as well. The album feels surprisingly unified for a compilation, with the focus on the guitar helping each song to sound as part of the whole.

• Vocals?...Distorted vocals low in the mix on “Stranded on Io”
• Music Genre(s)…Psychedelic Rock, Folk, Acoustic
• Perfect for…Wild West games or any game you want to add a Western flair to.
• If you only grab one track, make it... “Stranded On Io”, which adds a slight sci-fi ambience, for a melancholic explorer lost in space feel. Though if you were going to run a more straight-forward or authentic Wild West game, this might also be the track you skip.

Music to Game to: Ivar Bjørnson & Einar Selvik – Skuggsjá (A Piece for Mind and Mirror)

I listen to a lot of music (over 40 days worth in 2017 according to last.fm) and I find that few things help me keep the mood of a game foregrounded in my mind like a good soundtrack. Plus, I’ve discovered that when I’m playing music to a speaker via Bluetooth, I’m less likely to be on my phone, lest my players hear any stray sounds, letting me better model engagement during a game. To that end, I want to share some of my favorite music to game to; the albums that inspire and inflame my imagination and that I’ve found work well as background music for games as well. I’ll do a mini-review and cover the basics of what mood it helps me set.

IVAR BJØRNSON & EINAR SELVIK – SKUGGSJÁ (A PIECE FOR MIND AND MIRROR)

Commissioned for the 200th anniversary of the Norwegian Constitution, the album aims to tell the entirety of Norwegian history. Fans of the Viking TV show might recognized Einar Selvik from his work on that soundtrack, and like the music for that show, Skuggsjá makes use of many Norse folk instruments. Ivar Bjørnson is the lead guitarist and vocalist for the black metal band, Enslaved, so there are some black metal vocals, if that’s not your bag. I got the album to use as inspiration and soundtrack when I was running my (unfortunately) short-lived Jokilaakso saga, but it’s made its way into my wider rotation of gaming music as the mix of metal guitar and folk instruments provide an evocative Norse feel for any game and since the lyrics are in Old Norse and Norwegian your players are unlikely to be too distracted by following along to the words.

• Vocals?...Yes, Old Norse and Norwegian
• Music Genre(s)…Folk, Folk Metal, Nordic
• Perfect for…Viking Epics or anything with a strong Norse theme.
• If you only grab one track, make it…“Rop Fra Røynda – MæFra Minne”, which opens with a raven’s call and feels like the dirge Viking warriors sing as they gather their dead from the battlefield.