AMBER : THE ELDERS AND OTHERS
Note that those people who do not have pictures on this page look as they do in the ADRP rulebook.
Led the armies of occupation in Chaos for a time, and oversaw the re-defending of Amber upon his return. More recently he has been little seen in Amber, apparently preferring to spend his time out in shadow (mostly in Avalon). The only real exceptions to this have been his stopping the forces of Chaos in their uprising of 41 PPF, his part in rebuffing the attempted invasion of Amber in 71-72 PPF.
Previously polite, if not overly sociable, since killing Dara in battle in 41 PPF he has become much more cold and withdrawn than he was previously, avoiding contact with others of the family when he can.
Benedict did not try to regain his metal arm after Patternfall but instead lived without one arm for the five years or so it took to re-grow his flesh arm.
When he is in Amber, Benedict inhabits a small, Spartan suite of rooms in the castle keep on the floor below the Royal Suite.
Although he helped save the day at the battle of the Abyss, because of his connection to Chaos and the Black Road, after the war Bleys was kept under low-key, subtle observation to hopefully stop him repeating his earlier actions. Needless to say, this did not make him happy, and after a few years he vanished mysteriously, returning occasionally but never staying for long.
He has not been seen since he fled into shadow after his failed take-over attempt on the throne of Amber in 52 PPF. Even before that he had not been seen in Amber very much, as he seemed to become increasingly disillusioned with Random and his kingship. He took the unconscious Fiona with him when he fled. He is currently a wanted man, on the orders of the King; if he should return to Amber, or if someone runs accross him in shadow he will be arrested and tried (or forces gathered to have him arrested). However, Random has made it clear that any punishment done to Bleys will be more ... civilised ... than what was done to Corwin by Eric.
His quarters in Castle Amber, which were in a long, low building near to Fiona's, were sealed after being thoroughly searched following his attempt to take the throne. Also, no trace of him was found in his former shadow of Avernus.
|
|
Still dead in the Abyss as far as anyone knows. Has a very discreet tomb on Kolvir, erected on the orders of King Random.
Posthumous investigations, and a few fragments of Brands notes which were found, seemed to indicate that his powers were a result of his extensive studies into, and understanding of, Trump and the Pattern, rather than anything actually beyond them. However, the precise nature of his powers remain a mystery.
When he was alive Brands quarters in Castle Amber were a relatively small and Spartan suite of rooms on one of the middle floors of the keep. Although thoroughly searched and checked, they currently lie disused.
Note that Brand's Trump is the one here, which is a mirror image of the one in the ADRP rulebook. As far as I can tell, comparing the image in the ADRP rulebook with Corwin's description of Brand's Trump, which has Brand heading towards the dexter (right-hand) side of the card, the one in the rulebook is facing the wrong way. Thus this reversed image.
|
Nominally second-in-command of the Fleet, this is really just a cover for his real work as spy-master of Amber. He often disappears for long periods (to the extent that he spends the vast majority of his time out in shadow), returning just as rumours of coups and deaths surface from realms unfriendly to Amber. He has a son, Caleb, by Leonora, a daughter of House Kesht, one of Amber's major trading Houses.
Caine was the only known, functioning Trump Artist among the elders until Bleys' attempt on the throne. After Bleys' kidnapping of the comatose Fiona, Caine was prevailed upon by King Random and taught both him and Florimel the art of drawing Trumps.
Caine's quarters in Amber are a luxurious suite on the top floor of the main castle gate-house. He also has a townhouse on the outskirts of the city, on the coast.
For the record, the shadow of Caine which was used in an attempt to frame Corwin in 'Sign of the Unicorn' was essentially lost in the shuffle of major event following Corwin's return to Amber. The body was buried at sea by Gerard, with the full pomp and circumstance befitting a Prince of the Blood, within a week of the other elders going off the Chaos, and Oberon re-drawing the Primal Pattern. It was only upon the return of the other elders (including Caine) in 12 PPF, that Gerard was made aware he had buried a shadow.
After spending some time in Amber after the Elders returned there in 12 PPF, helping Random establish his kingship, and making sure of Ambers security, his interests turned back to his Pattern. In 16 PPF he walked it with Merlin to explore what lay beyond, and has not been seen since.
His quarters in Amber (still kept ready for his return) are in a tower close to the main gate, overlooking a garden inside the walls, and looking down over the city outside the walls.
|
|
Still dead in the Abyss as far as anyone knows. Corwin erected a monument to her on the edge of the Abyss soon after Patternfall, but it was destroyed in the second Chaos uprising of 41 PPF. Another monument, in Castle Rosa, still stands. Her tomb on Kolvir, next to Corwins, is, of course, empty.
When she was alive, Deirdre inhabited the top few floors of a tall tower which abuts onto Kolvir at the west and rear of the castle.
Note that Deirdre looks like the picture here, which is intended to represent the Trump Corwin describes in 'Nine Princes in Amber', and bears no resemblance to the Trump of her shown in the ADRP rulebook, which, in my opinion, is entirely unlike the person Corwin describes.
|
|
|
Has not been seen since entering Chaos with Oberons funeral cortege, and no-one has been able to get to the Primal Pattern to check if he is there. But with Dworkin, who can tell, anyway?
In The Last Enemy game, it turns out that Dworkin had been imprisoned by the Unicorn in his madness. After being rescued he was able to 're-boot' his mind using a Trump of himself in some very strange fashion, becoming a younger, much less mad version of himself who has the appearance shown here. That is, a straight spine a younger appearance, eyes with vertical, cat-like pupils, and fingernails that are narrow and rather like blunt claws. This happened in 126 PPF.
|
Dead and buried. His tomb lies next to that of Corwin, on the other side to Deirdre's, on Kolvir.
Obviously, before his death he inhabited the Royal Suite in the main castle keep.
|
|
In The Last Enemy game, Finndo is the youngest full brother of Benedict, a son of Oberon and Cymnea. He appears to be highly skilled in the powers of Trump and Shapeshifting, to the point that he was able to successfully impersonate Caine for more than one hundred years, taking advantage of the death of the real Caine to do so and only being revealed as an impostor in 126 PPF. Indeed, he does seem to be a rather Caine-like figure.
There is also another version of Finndo who appeared in the "Now These Her Princes Are Come Home Again" game
|
Like Bleys, Fiona was not particularly trusted after the War, and was kept under subtle observation. However, she did seem somewhat more co-operative than Bleys, helping with the drawing of Trumps, and the investigation of Corwin's Pattern.
She remained catatonic since she attempted to disassemble a major Chaos realm in 13 PPF. She has not been seen since 52 PPF, when Bleys kidnapped her unconscious form as he fled after his unsuccessful coup in that year.
Her quarters in the castle, which are still kept maintained in case of her return, take up a whole tower near the centre of an otherwise unused section of the castle. As well as her living quarters the tower contains assorted laboratories and other facilities.
Rather surprisingly, she has become something of a stateswoman, and Randoms right hand woman (her official title is Chief Advisor to the King). She has acted as Regent on several occasions when Random has had to leave Amber, and also negotiated a number of the treaties which have brought new shadows into the Golden Circle. In addition to this she is Amber's Mistress of Ceremonies. She maintains holiday homes on shadow Earth.
She is also one of the three Trump Artists among the elders currently in Amber, having been taught the art by Caine (upon the insistence of King Random) after Bleys' attempt on the throne in 52 PPF. However, she is not a natural artist and so Trumps drawn by her look much more like the fashion drawings used by fashion designers than the Trumps drawn by Dworkin.
Her quarters in Castle Amber are now a huge, luxurious suite of rooms in the keep, one floor down from the Royal Suite. However, she also keeps up her old quarters, a large tower in the body of the castle, fairly near the keep, in case of need.
Was Regent of Amber for twelve years before Random was crowned, a post which he filled well during those troubled times, but which he seemed to give up with some relief. Apparently he, along with Vialle, who he recruited to advise him, spent much of that time trying to keep the Golden Circle together, and deal with the large numbers of Chaos stragglers who were left behind. After Random was crowned he spent some ten years as Random's chief advisor, showing him the ropes. Now spends most of his time at sea with the Fleet, of which he is the head, guarding the sea routes into Amber, and exploring out beyond the Golden Circle. Returns to Amber fairly often, and is still consulted by Random now and then.
Gerard's quarters in the castle are a suite of first floor rooms, facing the keep over a garden courtyard.
Still Warden of Arden, guardian of the land-ward approaches to Amber, a duty he performs from Castle Arden, the centre of a web-work of defences and fortifications through the whole of Forest Arden. Still the same extreme, emotionless, almost psychotic person he was before Patternfall. He has two children, Margot (the older) and Esmée both by Princess Felicia of Aretskaya, a Golden Circle shadow which abuts on Arden. Parenthood does not seem to have mellowed him though, and he is still the same slow-speaking, rigidly self-controlled man he was before the War.
His quarters, on the fairly rare occasions when he stays in Amber, are a Spartan suite of rooms in the isolated westernmost tower of the castle.
Now the Queen of Rebma, after some largely unclear events which took place about 80 PPF. Because of her royal duties in Rebma she is not seen in Amber very much.
When in Amber unofficially (which is very rare these days) she has a small suite of rooms looking onto the same garden courtyard as Gerards.
In The Last Enemy game, Llewella is the daughter of Oberon and Queen Moins of Rebma, the twin sister of Oberon. She was conceived as a counterbalance to the perceived power of the redheads Fiona and Bleys.
Llewella has a Primal Pattern imprint, but disguises this as an Amber one using her skill with the Pattern. She is also in possession of the Rebman Pattern Blade, Vigilant.
In The Last Enemy game, Moins was the twin sister of Oberon, and the sibling associated with the Rebma and its Pattern. She disappeared at about the same time as Oberon (a reflection of Amber events in Rebma). In reality she was overthrown in a coup, crippled, and imprisoned in a dungeon under Castle Rebma.
In appearance she was a tall, thin, woman with short pure white hair (though an otherwise youthful appearance) and a distinct resemblance to Oberon.
The former queen of Rebma, who was replaced as Queen by Llewella in about 80 PPF, under circumstances which still remain unclear. Her current whereabouts and status are unknown.
"A woman sat upon the throne in the glassite room I almost recalled, and her hair was green, though streaked with silver, and her eyes were round as moons of jade and her brows rose like the wings of olive gulls. Her mouth was small, her chin was small; her cheeks were high and wide and rounded. A circlet of white gold crossed her brow and there was a crystal necklace about her neck. At its tip there flashed a sapphire between her sweet bare breasts, whose nipples were also a pale green. She wore scaled trunks of blue and a silver belt, and she held a sceptre of pink coral in her right hand and had a ring upon every finger, and each ring had a stone of a different blue within it ... her voice was a lisping, soft flowing thing."
'Nine Princes in Amber', Chapter V
In The Last Enemy game, Morgana was the twin sister of Oberon, and the sibling associated with the now-destroyed Pattern of Ht'gon-An Rit. She was killed by Finndo on the orders of Oberon, when she objected to the sealing (that is, the destruction) of her Pattern to prevent the Ordnung gaining access to the Amber universe. Part of Finndo was also killed in this fight.
Her body is entombed in a small rock-cut pyramid, twenty feet tall, carved from the local rock and located in the trees at one end of where the Ht'gon An-Rit Pattern used to lie, outside the wall around it. From the outside this is featureless and bears no identifying marks other than a door-less opening into the interior with the unicorn of Amber carved into the stone above it. The opening faces out onto the Pattern. Inside is a single unadorned chamber, in the centre of which is a large stone sarcophagus with the Unicorn of Amber carved on the lid. Inside this her un-decayed body lies. A second pyramid nearby contains the remains of part of Finndo.
In appearance she was young-looking, elfin, with a slight build and a distinct resemblance to Oberon (hard as that may be to imagine). Her hair was darkish red (the same colour as that of Oberon). Her body wears a long court dress in a very old style, and some jewellery in the same style as the Crown Jewels of Amber.
|
|
Dead, according to Gerard, who saw the body when he helped Dworkin bring it through to Amber after Oberon had redrawn the Primal Pattern. Likewise, many of the elders saw Dworkin cast the body into the Abyss. Of course he's dead.
Oberon's Trump is by Wendi Strang-Frost. As such it is © 1993-2004 Wendi Strang-Frost, used with permission. One can see the Trump in context, along with lots of other fine artwork, at her site, www.sfpro.com. This picture was taken from The Trump Gallery.
|
|
|
In The Last Enemy game, the second son of Oberon and Cymnea, and full (younger) brother of Benedict. He is the King of Girasol, ruling the place jointly with Sandrine since its founding tens of thousands of years ago. He is tall, thin, and old-looking (apparently from the effects of using his own blood to destroy the Girasol Patterns), resembling Benedict somewhat, with quite long white hair and grey eyes [he looks rather like Sean Connery in 'First Knight']. He wears black clothing with a golden honeysuckle emblem on the lapel.
He appears to know many powers, particularly Pattern, Magic and Trump, learnt collectively with Sandrine. This is because he and Sandrine are the only ones who can use them in the Girasol universe, as they are the only ones with Pattern imprints. He seems to have a very powerful mind. He also has a Pattern Blade (actually Oberon's, but which he 'borrowed'), which is named Galendrath.
|
In The Last Enemy game, Ossian is the only actual inhabitant of Tir-Na Nog'th. He is the twin brother of Oberon and is the King of Tir-Na Nog'th.
He can sometimes be found in the throne room of Castle Tir-Na Nog'th. When he is present the doors to the throne room seem paper-thin, gossamer-like, and the room itself insubstantial. Gothic arches and columns are visible to each side of the room, and a thirty foot long bed stands on the dais where the throne should be. In it lies Ossian, a thirty foot-tall, thin, beardless man with a distinct resemblance to Oberon, sleeping peacefully, his long white hair spread out on the pillow. Above him is a huge stained-glass window showing an hourglass about half spent. Two normal-sized ravens sit on the bedposts, looking directly at visitors in that way that Tir-Na Nog'th visions tend not to.
Still King, something of an enlightened dictator. He has managed to reform Amber considerably since he came to power, cutting abuses and red tape, plus a lot of court formality. This has made him popular with the people, though there have been grumblings from the other members of the family.
Due to Randoms efforts (and, some think, his not being Oberon), Amber city has expanded to nearly twice its size prior to his taking the throne, and the Golden Circle has nearly two-thirds more members than it did before.
Although he still likes a drink and a gamble, Random is a serious and attentive King, and as a result looks considerably more careworn, and older, than he did before taking the throne.
He is also one of the three Trump Artists among the elders currently in Amber, having been taught the art by Caine after Bleys' attempt on the throne in 52 PPF.
As yet he and Vialle have had no children, and with the disappearance of Martin in 23 PPF there is no official heir to the throne.
Random and Vialle occupy the Royal Suite, which takes up a large percentage of the top floor of the main castle keep. Needless to say it is a huge, luxurious set of rooms which as well as the normal facilities also includes a number of conference and meeting rooms.
|
|
In The Last Enemy game, daughter of Oberon and Harla, full (older) sister of Delwin, and Queen of Girasol which she rules jointly with Osric since its founding tens of thousands of years ago. She has dark hair, brown eyes, and wears grey and black clothes with brown and gold trim, usually in the form of trousers rather than skirts. In terms of personality she seems cool, calm, dutiful, and loyal to Girasol.
Like Osric, she appears to know many powers, particularly Pattern, Magic and Trump, learnt collectively with Osric. This is because she and Osric are the only ones who can use them in the Girasol universe, as they are the only ones with Pattern imprints. She seems to have a powerful mind, too. She also carries a number of Empowered items.
|
The Queen of Amber, a job she seems to have adapted to remarkably well, considering her relatively lowly position in Rebma before she was married to Random. She and Random seem to be as happily married now as they were a hundred years ago. She often advises Random on matters of policy, social policy in particular, and has arbitrated more than a few disputes between the elders, and some of the Amber noble houses.
When Gerard was regent she was recruited as an advisor by him, an experience which seems to have prepared her quite well for the role of Queen.
She has little to do with Rebma, and doesn't really speak of her life there before she was married to Random by Moire.
Vialle still sculpts, and examples of her work can be found in various places about the castle.
In The Last Enemy game, it was found, in the course of Phoenix's curing of Vialle's blindness, that apparently a very long time ago (hundreds of years, probably) Vialle was the victim of a cocktail of toxins which made her 'multiply-blind'. That is, the poisons seem to have attacked the retinas of her eyes, the optic nerves and the visual cortex of her brain, burning out all of them and effectively making her blind in several different ways at the same time. This must have hurt a lot at the time. However, Phoenix was able to cure her.
Go to the Younger Amberites Page
Back to my Amber Page
The pictures on this page all belong to people other than me. They are used here, without permission, for personal game use only and not for profit or commercial gain.
