Mottos, 7 (d100)

Whether they’re called adages, maxims, slogans or creeds, a motto by any other name will still sound as sweet. These simple statements are essentially promises made to oneself, family, clan, guild, order or institution. It is a phrase that can be proudly carved into a castle’s archway as a sign or wealth and power or muttered to oneself as a mantra against madness when all other hope is lost. A personal motto is a vow to oneself and a promise of intent (For good or ill) to others, while an institutional motto is a binding pact of like-minded peers. A character’s motto can be a goal in itself or a moral anchor that centers his life and guides his action. This table is a mixed collection of real life and fictional mottos that can aid a DM to quickly expand the history of the campaign or to aid a PC in a richer character creation. —Note: The phrasing for the mottos are copied from their original sources the way they were written (I, Me, We, Him, Man, etc), and a DM should change the tenses to best suit the situation.

d100 Result

1

A Life Lived In Fear Is A Life Half-Lived.

2

A Strong Man Stands Up For Himself. A Stronger Man Stands Up For Others.

3

Act Or Accept.

4

Always Watchful.

5

Be The One To Light A Fire.

6

Be Willing To Do That Which Is Needed

7

Better That One Man Suffers Than Ten.

8

Better Three Hours Too Soon Than A Minute Too Late.

9

Better Times Will Come.

10

Breathe In Courage, Breathe Out Fear.

11

By Book Or By Blade.

12

Cowards Die Many Times Before Their Deaths; The Valiant Never Taste Of Death But Once.

13

Death Is Preferable To Tyranny.

14

Do Not Delay The Necessary.

15

Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night. Rage, Rage Against The Dying Of The Light.

16

Do Not Shy Away From Difficulty.

17

Does The Walker Choose The Path, Or The Path The Walker?

18

Don’t Take Life Seriously, No One Gets Out Alive.

19

Done Is Better Than Perfect.

20

Dying For The Right Cause Is The Most Human Thing We Can Do.

21

Everything That Has A Beginning Has An End.

22

First Among Many.

23

Follow Your Friends To Hell And Your Reward Will Be A Place Beside Them.

24

Fortune Never Smiles On Those Who Say No.

25

Get Busy Living, Or Get Busy Dying.

26

Good Is The Enemy Of Great.

27

Good Men Do Not Need Rules.

28

Happiness Depends Upon Ourselves.

29

Hell Is Other People.

30

I Must Be Cruel, Only To Be Kind.

31

I Will Take What Is Mine.

32

If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It.

33

If You Don’t Fight, You Can’t Win.

34

In The End, Only The Soul Matters.

35

It Is Better To Be A Warrior In A Garden Than A Gardener In A War.

36

It Is Better To Be Alone Than In Bad Company.

37

It Is Better To Be Feared Than Loved, If You Cannot Be Both.

38

It’s Not Who I Am Underneath, It’s What I Do That Defines Me.

39

Justice Is Blind.

40

Keep Moving Forward.

41

Learn Something New Every Day.

42

Leave The World Better Than You Found It.

43

Let It Be Written. Let It Be Done.

44

Let The Past Die, Kill It If You Have To.

45

Life Is A Joke And Death Is The Punchline.

46

Live And Let Die.

47

Live, Laugh, Love.

48

Love Is Giving All Of Yourself And Expecting Nothing In Return.

49

Loyal To The Highest Bidder.

50

Man Is A Wolf To Man.

51

My Friends Will Not Die Alone.

52

My Honor Is My Life.

53

Never Compromise, Not Even In The Face Of Armageddon.

54

No Business But War. No Family But Death. No Mercy But The Grave.

55

No Killing Without Profit.

56

No One Gets Left Behind.

57

No Plan Survives Contact With The Enemy.

58

No Rivals.

59

Nothing Ever Ends.

60

Ours Is Not To Reason Why, Ours Is But To Do And Die.

61

Pain Is Weakness Leaving The Body.

62

Passion Rules Reason.

63

Remove The Head, Destroy The Brain.

64

Shared Pain Is Lessened, Shared Joy Increased.

65

Someday Never Comes.

66

Sometimes, Dead Is Better.

67

Souls Don’t Die.

68

Speak The Problem And It Will Be Solved.

69

Take The Path Less Traveled By.

70

The Child Who Is Not Embraced By The Village Will Burn It Down To Feel Its Warmth.

71

The Darkness Is Full Of Everything We Fear, Yet Everything We Seek.

72

The Dream Shall Never Die.

73

The Glory Of The World Is Fleeting.

74

The Needs Of The Many Outweigh The Needs Of The Few, Or The One.

75

The Only Fair Fight Is The One You Win.

76

The Only Thing Necessary For The Triumph Of Evil Is For Good Men To Do Nothing.

77

The Only Thing We Have To Fear Is Fear Itself.

78

The Price Of Freedom Is Eternal Vigilance.

79

The Road To Hell Is Paved With Good Intentions.

80

The Seeds Of The Future Lie Buried In The Past.

81

The Spirit Is Strong But The Flesh Is Weak.

82

The Weak Are Meat, And The Strong Do Eat.

83

There Ain’t No Such Thing As A Free Lunch.

84

There Is No Overkill. There Is No Cheating, Gentlemanly War Or Fighting Fair. There Is Only Absolute Victory Or Death.

85

There’s No Point In Living If You Can’t Feel Alive.

86

Throw Me To The Wolves And I Will Return Leading The Pack.

87

Tomorrow Never Knows.

88

Trauma Fosters Growth.

89

Two Plus Two Equals Five.

90

We Walk In The Dark Places No Others Will Enter. We Stand On The Bridge, And No One May Pass. We Live For The One, We Die For The One.

91

When You’re Presented With Two Options, Always Pick The Third One.

92

While We Live, Let Us Live!

93

Who Controls The Past Controls The Future; Who Controls The Present Controls The Past.

94

Who Profits?

95

You Are What You Do.

96

You Are Who You Choose To Be.

97

You Can’t Kill An Idea.

98

You Either Die A Hero, Or You Live Long Enough To See Yourself Become The Villain.

99

You’d Be Surprised What You Can Live Through.

100

You’re Either With Me Or Against Me.