It seems fine. I guess the light load/easy terrain speed is a strain depending also on how you interpret “easy terrain”. I can imagine doing it on a well maintained road.

Also choosing to go light/easy looks like a statement from a player “We gotta make it on time”. It deserves extra speed. And without load of food/water/tent they need to do it in friendly and inhabited areas.

you try making a potion of sleep… and it is regular beer

oh, I see, then case dismissed

I usually take a look at names from one language and choose those I like the most. Recently I held the game in another random fantasy world where PCs were new and I made sure my players don’t have a lot to do with French and gave every NPC a French name. But they can be hard to pronounce and to note by players if you don’t know it.

Good picks are Nordic names - Norwegian/Danish/Swedish - because of popcultural references. I’m thinking of making repository of semi-Polish fantasy names for all those who like Slavic themes but there is a long way before me.

yeah, I know, but I wanted to contribute somehow

I don’t have anything of my own at the moment but recently I recalled this post:

http://riseupcomus.blogspot.com/2023/02/making-magical-items-feel-magical.html

I haven’t played over half of the games I own. And I won’t play them probably because it is so hard to find willing players. But I have so much fun just reading some of them I don’t worry about it.

As long as it is fun for you, don’t worry.

There is also some old AngryGM rant about biological and cultural traits of starting characters https://theangrygm.com/why-race-isnt-broken/

maybe try making the mechanical part of lifepaths as short descriptive abilities rather than stats? Something very narrow yet helpful. Check out this blogpost too http://riseupcomus.blogspot.com/2023/08/pointcrawling-character-creation.html?m=1