Casting languages

[narphoenix]

What casting languages have you guys used for wizards in your game? Why?

Personally, I've used Sanskrit (Daniel Thresh) and Afrikaans (Alice Grace). I used Afrikaans for Alice because she was originally going to be African American (instead of the Chilean she is now), so it would have been a cheap laugh then. I kept it as a reminder of her development.

Thresh, on the other hand, uses Sanskrit because he's a giant snob.

[Hick Jr]

I typically stick to Dresdenian pseudo-Latin, mostly cause I'm pretty handy with Latin roots and I like the language. It makes it easy to describe the spells effects with a few words, and pretty much everyone has at least some faculty with Latin roots, so it's pretty accessible.

 I've made at least two angelic characters who should both be using Hebrew or Aramaic or some bastardization of either of those two, but it's not something I devote a ton of attention to.

[Haru]

Have not played that many casters, to be honest. I've had an NPC Warden in my game use ancient Greece instead of latin, cause he was supposed to be a bit of a rebel. Though a lot of the time, when my NPCs do spells, I am lazy and have them "shout something in a language you don't understand", especially if it is supposed to be something old and obscure.

[Belial666]

I usually use Sumerian or Aramaic. For one thing I know them a lot better than I know Latin so when one of my mages says LACHAM she's both declaring her intent to defeat you and uses a spell to devour you - literally. Plus, nobody else knows words in them at a moment's notice.

[Amelia Crane]

I have used Gaelic for my faerie-blooded wizard.  My Russian wizard used English (the common group language was German, so she didn't speak English).  And my Italian wizard used the various titles of Hecate to invoke rotes (mostly Greek).

[Locnil]

I just outright invent words. Sometimes I steal them from other fantasy series, like the power words from the Kate Daniels series. I haven't gotten round to Skyrim shouts yet, but well, you know.

[Belial666]

Some of the power words in the Kate Daniels series are pretty close to Sumerian. Given the series mythology, that's hardly surprising.

[Locnil]

Yeah, I suspected as much. Not that I pay much attention to their supposed meaning, though, so I suppose it's as good as making them up.

[CrimsonJoker]

I haven't played a PC yet, but my Wizard would probably use Gaelic and Celtic.

[Ulfgeir]

Never really specified a language for my little seeress, but given that she is a believer in wiccan stuff, it is quite likely that it would be gaelic.

/Ulfgeir

[InFerrumVeritas]

We had a neophyte apprentice in our group for a short while.  They used Tolkien Elvish, as the character was a total fantasy nerd who was continually surprised when monsters didn't mesh with their romantancised expextations.

We've also used Ancient Egyptian, Ancient Greek, Old English, and Gaelic.  Or, rather, heavily bastardizations of them.

[Taran]

Hebrew.  She has soul-fire and it just made sense to me.

[Belial666]

Wouldn't that be Aramaic? Hebrew is a rather modern language.

[narphoenix]

Wouldn't that be Aramaic? Hebrew is a rather modern language.

Modern Hebrew is. Ancient Hebrew is... Ancient.

[Taran]

Wouldn't that be Aramaic? Hebrew is a rather modern language.

Wikipedia

Hebrew is a West Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is regarded as the language of the Hebrews/Israelites and their ancestors, although the language was not referred to by the name Hebrew in the Tanakh. The earliest examples of written Paleo-Hebrew date from the 10th century BCE, in the form of primitive drawings.