ALL NOVEL Debating changing Samarael’s name in the edit. Poll to check opinions.
I have been looking at the Christian-reflecting lore in my story, and I have found a name that would reflect exactly what this antagonistic evil angel figure really is supposed to be.
I used 'Samarael' originally because it really is supposed to key off anyone with the more than a shallow bit of knowledge in angelology and demonology that Asaren's take on the guy actually is spot on and he's bad news.
However, a recent re-thinking of the lore has brought up an opportunity for a name that would be a little less 'slap you in the face' with the evil aspect of the character but would also be a lot more on-the-nose about exactly what this entity is, while at the same time sounding completely innocuous to the average reader. In order to see through this one, one would need not just the mid-level angelology and demonology of the current name, they'd need to know the Hebrew language, the meaning of several angel names in Hebrew, and also cross-reference this name with the name of another figure in this story in order to realize what's going on here.
Overall, I like this new name a lot better. But the problem is that I've already dropped the name "Samarael" for this figure, and it's likely to create confusion if I were to change it at this point, even if there is a full series edit in progress that would change every single reference for future readers.
BTW: The new name I have in mind for the character is 'Mitchel.' Yes, Mitchel. Like I said, it sounds fairly innocuous. And, except for the 'El' part at the end of it, it doesn't even sound like an angel name at all. This is actually part of what makes it work for what I have in mind.
(I am sorry, but I really would rather not explain my full intentions behind the name, there are spoilers involved. Just know that the name, as ridiculous as it sounds, actually has quite a bit of thought and meaning behind it. However, the edit does have some new lore information on the Archangel Michael that can help figure it out rather early. I'll just say that Mitchel is a name that sounds close to but is not quite Michael, and that's an important part of my ideas for the new name.)