Nobles of Amber

Yoric, Quisar and Awen at dixsous.org

1  About

The Amber Diceless Role-playing Game1 offers great role-playing in the setting of the Chronicles of Amber, by Roger Zelazny, without any random agent (i.e. neither dice nor cards) and with little to no rules. Although this game offers a great deal of freedom to players and gamemasters alike, it also makes the Gm's jobs of keeping track of an ``objective'' difficulty scale quite difficult: let's face it, at 3 A.M., when you are focusing on the plot, it is quite easy to be overwhelmed by a power player, just because he can role-play a situation to his advantage and/or can argue the Gm to death, even when the character should definitely not be able to achieve such feats.

A more recent game, Nobilis2, offers equally great role-playing in a setting close to that of Sandman, by Neil Gaimann. The rules are also diceless and they provide a much more precise definition of characters, although they manage to leave much freedom to players and gamemasters alike.

The purpose of this document is to present a possible adaptation of the rules of Nobilis to the setting of Amber, as designed during a French Amber micro-convention, during the month of August 2004. They have not been thoroughly play-tested yet. If you have any remark or contribution, please feel free to send them to the authors. We believe that this document does not infringe on any copyright. Please let us know in case of any problem.

2  Core Rules

2.1  Actions

Any action has a Difficulty and a possible Resistance. Difficulty is related to the nature of the action, while Resistance is related to additional obstacles created, voluntarily or not, by either the character itself or other characters. Difficulties scale from 0 to 9 while Resistance is not bounded.

For instance, climbing a mountain has a Difficulty of 1. If a Prince has set a great number of traps on the mountain, the Resistance might be 2.

Characters are defined by a number of Attributes and Gifts. Supposing there is no Gift involved, in order to perform an action without Resistance, the character must be able to match the Difficulty of the action using an appropriate Attribute. If the action has a Resistance, the character (or the Gm) must split the appropriate Attribute between the Difficulty and the Resistance and match both.

If our character wishes to climb the aforementioned mountain (with or without traps), he could use his Aspect Attribute (explained later). If his total Aspect Level is 1 or more, he can climb the mountain without traps. If his total Aspect Level is 3 or more, and if the situation is appropriately role-played/if the player splits his Aspect correctly, he may match both the Difficulty (of 1) and the Resistance (of 4). If the role-play is inappropriate/if the player splits incorrectly or if the Aspect Level is not sufficient, then there may be a problem. If the Difficulty is matched but not the Resistance, the character has successfully climbed the mountain but has fell into a trap. On the other hand, if the Resistance is matched but not the Difficulty, the character has successfully avoided the traps but could not reach the top.

The rules are slightly different when a Gift is used. Each Gift is equivalent to an Attribute Level and, optionally, a Penetration Level. The equivalent Attribute Level of the Gift must match the Difficulty of the action while the equivalent Penetration Level must match the Difficulty (if any).

A character may also impose a Resistance to someone else's action. The rules are the same except for the fact that the Attribute Level must be split between the (counter-)action and the added Resistance. If a Gift is used, the equivalent Attribute Level and an equivalent Resistance Level may be used.

For instance, let us now consider the character who has placed the traps on the mountain in the first place. Let us assume that the method used to place traps on a mountain has a Difficulty of 3 and the character uses his Pattern Attribute to do so. With a total of 5 Pattern Levels or more, if the situation is role-played appropriately/if the player splits his points correctly, he may match both 3 Difficulty Levels and 2 Resistance Levels. He can achieve the same purpose with a Bobby-Trapping Mountains Using the Pattern Gift with an equivalent Pattern Level of 3 or more and an equivalent Resistance of 2 or more.

2.2  Confrontations

Confrontations, whether they mean fighting, playing chess, dancing, seducing, negotiating, running, betting...are only successions of actions. In general, the highest Attribute wins. Two characters with the same level in an Attribute are evenly matched and must be untied through role-playing. Unless there is a difference of one Level or more, however, the confrontation will probably not be decisive.

In general, two different Attributes with the same level are also considered balanced.

A confrontation is a role-playing opportunity and should never degenerate to a slug-fest of numbers. For more details on how to run a roleplay-based fight, see the Adrpg rulebook.

2.3  Attributes and Feat Points

Each character has a number of Attributes. The scale for each Attribute ranges from 0 to 9, although most Attributes are limited to 5. Each Attribute is linked to a number of Attribute Feat Points, ranging from 0 to 10, with the most common value being 5.

The Attribute Level itself represents the actions which the character can perform without having to exert himself. Whenever an action is too complex to be performed by the Attribute Level, the character can exert himself, by using 1, 2, 4 or 8 Feat Points for the related Attribute, hence increasing temporarily the total Attribute Level by as many Levels. Using 8 Feat Points is a way of pushing past the boundaries of one's body/mind and always causes a Fatal Wound, whether this wound is physical, mental or metaphysical.

Attribute Feat Points may be recovered eventually but never exceed their original value.

2.4  Cooperation

Whenever a second character wishes to help another perform an action, he must match the total Attribute Level produced by the first character. This will increase the effective Attribute Level of the group by 1.

Similarly, more characters may cooperate, by matching all the Attribute Level produced by the first character. Each additional character grants a bonus, within the limits of 1, 2, 4 or 8 Levels. In other words, a group of two persons has a bonus of 1, a group of 3 or 4 persons has a bonus of 2, a group of 5, 6, 7 or 8 persons has a bonus of 4 and a greater group has a bonus of 8. As usual, at level 8, something goes wrong.

If a character pretends to help but actually sabotages the action, this character must match the total Attribute Level, as the others, but he can also use additional levels to impose an opposing Resistance.

3  Character Creation

The process of Character Creation should start by a detailed description of the character and his background story. This is much more important than in most role playing games as the character sheet will reflect a number of subtle points. For example, a gifted youngster and an experienced artist who both can create Trumps of similar quality will probably not have the same Trumps attribute: while the beginner might draw with ease, the veteran might have more difficulties but know some more tricks which allow him to paint faster whenever the need arises, just as one of them might have a limited understanding behind Trumps and might not be able to draw Trump sketches.

We will use as running examples a possible Prince Corwin of Amber before his amnesia, a possible Julia before she became important to anyone but Merlin, and a possible Duke Merlin before the succession of events related by the second cycle of books. Note that these particular versions of Corwin, Julia or Merlin are by no mean canonical, these are just examples.

In most campaigns, beginning characters are expected to start with 30 Character Creation Points. Elder Princes will be created with 50 to 65 Character Creation Points.

Characters are defined by their background, their Attributes and their Gifts. Some creatures, on the other hands, are defined as if they were Gifts.

3.1  Attributes

The four Attributes are Aspect (human skills and super-human extension of these skills), Fortune (supernatural luck), Pillar (Pattern or Logrus) and Wizardry (Trumps, Conjuration, Sorcery...). Attributes range from 0 to 9 although there is a maximal level that Princes of Amber (or Chaos) cannot cross. Whether some other kind of creature can be more powerful than Princes in this domain is left to the appreciation of the Gm. Each Attribute point costs 3 Character Creation Points. The Attribute level of a character represents what this character can do without any difficulty.

With each Attribute comes a Level of Feats, ranging from 0 to 10. The Feats are used whenever a character attempts to perform difficult actions. If the character undertakes an action without having enough Feat Points to match the difficulty of that action, it just fails. More examples later. Increasing the maximal number of Feat Points costs One Character Creation Point per additional Level of Feats.

3.1.1  Aspect

Princes, both of Amber and of Chaos, are superior to human beings. They are no super-heroes, no mythological heroes or semi-gods (at least not on a daily basis). They are just better. That is the Aspect.

Aspect Level
Aspect governs everything a human being can do. Dancing, writing, playing chess, fighting, programming, running for President, playing music, you name it, creating a nuclear bomb. If a human being can do it and if it is not supernatural with respect to the place, your level is given by your background and Aspect (in that order).
0
Most humans can do this, on a good day.
1
Only a well-trained human can do this.
2
Only top athletes (or researchers, artists, politicians...) can do this.
3
It is technically possible for a human being but it has probably never been done.
4
It might be physically possible for a human being, but it is probably not.
5
Some creatures or machines can do this.
6
It is physically possible that some creature or machine, some day, might do this.
7
Physically impossible, with local effects.
8
Physically impossible, with distant effects.
9
Anything else.
Note
The scale is almost identical to that of Nobilis' Aspect. For more details, get a copy of the rules or Nobilis.
Figure 1: Mostly universal scale of difficulty.

A Prince cannot have more than 2 in Aspect.

Corwin
Aspect Level
Corwin is a top athlete, able to move a heavy car effortlessly with the help of his brother. He is also an musician whose melodies are remembered centuries after his disappearance. He is also a charismatic leader, an excellent lover and a competent strategist...However, none of this is superhuman. His Aspect is 2 (= 6 Points). He can do all of this without any effort. He never learnt mathematics, so he can't actually use mathematics at all. However, should he decide to, he could learn mathematics as fast as any human.
Corwin's Swordplay, on the other hand, is supernatural and will be treated later.

Julia
Aspect Level
Although she is smart and learns some magic, for most things, Julia is just a regular girl. Her Aspect is 0 (= 0 Points).

Merlin
Aspect Level
Merlin is well-trained in computer science, mathematics, physics, athleticism, swordplay...He is also charismatic, good at asking questions, at seducing every single girl he meets...On the other hand, he does not display a super-human intelligence, running at Olympic-level is not something he can do without being somewhat tired...His Aspect is 1 (= 3 Points).

Aspect Feat Points
 
A Prince starts with 5 Aspect Feat Points.

Additional Aspect Feat Points can be bought at the price of 1 Character Creation Point each. The Gm may allow young Princes and Shadow-dwellers to sell some or all Aspect Feat Points at the same price or to transfer them to their Fortune. Most non-Princes do not have any Aspect Feat Point.

While the Aspect represents things a character can do without difficulties and without getting tired, the Feat Points are used whenever the character wishes to undertake a more difficult action. The action might be quite short (running to the phone before it stops ringing, mimicking a voice...) or quite long (inventing a new technology). However, it is only one specific action.

A character can use none, 1, 2, 4 or 8 Aspect Feat Points to improve their level during an Aspect-based action. Using 8 Feat Points causes a Fatal Wound, either physical or mental.

No matter how many Feat Points a character uses, the maximal Difficulty an Aspect can match is equal to his Aspect Level+2.

Situation : Merlin runs for the Olympic title
 
Gm :
Okay, all the athletes are ready. How do you wish to play this ?
Merlin :
Am I able to run at Olympic-level ?
Gm :
(checks : Merlin's Aspect is 1. With 1 Aspect Feat Point, he can reach level 2, which is the Olympic level. With 2 Aspect Feat Points, he could beat the world record. Although he has more than 2 Aspect Feat Points, using them would not help him improve his speed past the level of a top athlete.) Of course you are. You're pretty sure you can beat the world record if you try as hard as you can.
Merlin :
(ponders a little) Nah, too much bother. I'll just go for the Olympic-level. Just tell me if Luke is faster than me. I might try and outrun him. (For instance, if Merlin had used 4 Aspect Feat Points, totalling a Level 6 Aspect, he could have split them between matching a Difficulty of 3 and adding a Resistance of 3 to prevent Luke from outrunning him.)
Gm :
(crosses one of Merlin's Aspect Feat Points) Okay, I'll do this. So far, you're somewhat tired but that's nothing a good night's sleep can't cure.



Situation : Julia learning Shadow-Earth's magic
 
Julia has found a master of magic. The Gm has decided that this magic will work on Shadow-Earth and nowhere else. As this is a human magic, learning it is an Aspect-based action. Only people with some training can learn this magic.
Julia :
I learn everything !
Gm :
After a few days, you start realising that it is not as easy as it looked at first. The language your master is quite arcane and he keeps referring to the Kaballah, which you do not know.
Julia :
I try as hard as I can.
Gm :
(crosses two of Julia's Aspect Feat Points -- she did not learn the Kaballah all of a sudden but for the task of understanding she is now as good as if she had mastered it) Sure thing. After a few months, you're as tired as you have ever been but it seems you have understood all the bases of his art.
Julia :
Only the bases ?
Gm :
Yes, only the bases. But that's something almost no human being could have done so fast. Are you complaining ?



A good night's sleep is sufficient to recover 1 Aspect Feat Point, without exceeding the number of Points bought during character creation.

Corwin
Aspect Feat Points Corwin keeps pushing further his limits. Considering the amount of human-like prowesses he performs without much rest, Corwin probably has 10 Aspect Feat Points (5 ``free'' + 5 ``bought'' = 5 Points).

Situation : Jasra vs. Merlin
 
Once again, Jasra is trying to kill Merlin. She knows that Merlin is supernaturally lucky which makes killing him very hard, but she does not know exactly how lucky he is. Actually, his luck is equivalent to an Aspect of 5 (cf. section ??) when it comes to preventing him from getting into harm. For this situation, we will assume that Jasra has an Aspect of 1.

Jasra :
I'll get him this time.
Gm :
Sure. How ?
Jasra :
I don't know. Let's say I hire a pair of cold-blooded killers to shoot him down from a distance. And I do choose them well.
Gm :
Let me think. (Jasra is probably able to find a pair of good killers. As she does not spend much time on Shadow-Earth, however, she probably does not know them yet. Let's see the total level of Jasra's attack.) Okay, could you detail the plan ?
Jasra :
I handle the strategy personally. I spend two weeks carefully monitoring the place and finding the best possible spots.
Gm :
(Two weeks ? Jasra's Aspect is 1, let's be nice and pretend that, in two weeks, she can invest 4 or 8 Feat Points. Let us say 4 Points as she has no reason to work herself to death. As Jasra used two weeks, it seems coherent to believe that she has already recovered these points so there is no need to cross them from her sheet. That's a total of 5 Points, which must be split between matching Merlin's luck -- which she cannot evaluate yet -- and actually beating Merlin. Jasra does not stand a chance.)
Jasra :
This time, Merlin dies.
Gm :
Of course he does.
Jasra :
Really ?
Gm :
(Seeing that Jasra spent most of her time trying to prevent Merlin from getting away through sheer luck, these 5 levels have been used to match Merlin's luck. Hence, the attack can proceed as planned. However, as there are no points left to beat Merlin's Aspect, he will be either smart enough or fast enough not to fall into the trap.) So far, the ambush proceeds as you have planned. Merlin comes right on cue. He seems suspicious, however. [description skipped] Eventually, he manages to run away.
Jasra :
Shit. Someday, I'll get him.
Gm :
Sure you will.



Situation : Fiona reading a book
 
For this situation, we will assume that Fiona's Aspect is 1.

Fiona :
I hide myself.
Gm :
What ?
Fiona :
I hide as well as I can to read that book.
Gm :
It's just a novel.
Fiona :
I know that. I just do not want people to be able to predict when I am doing something nasty.
Gm :
As you wish. Do you use any supernatural means ?
Fiona :
Let us not overdo it. They might want my head if they get too suspicious. But I do hide as well as I can within natural means.
Gm :
Can't say I understand your strategy but alright. You take so many counter-measures by having people believe you are just about anywhere that you can barely think straight and remember all your lies. Additionally, you read in a hall of distorting mirrors where people might looking at you might even believe you are not yourself. Is this sufficient to your taste ? (The Gm crosses 4 Aspect Feat Points from Fiona's sheet. As reading this book does not require any specific skill, with her Aspect of 1, she has a Resistance of 5 to being spied upon. For a spy to look at the book itself is not a difficult task, provided he can reach the book through this Resistance. The spy needs to use the equivalent of 5 Aspect Points against her Resistance, just to be able to look at the book.)
Fiona :
Exactly what I want. How is the book ?
Gm :
Boring.



More details on this in the section on confrontations ??.

Notes
Do note that the Aspect is not sufficient to explain Benedict's strategic skills or swordplay, Corwin's endurance or Gerard's strength. They will be treated as Gifts, in section ??.

Also note that some creatures might have an Aspect of 9, or some specialisation of this Attribute equivalent to 9. No sane Prince would want to cross the path of such a creature.

3.1.2  Fortune

Princes do not die in car accidents. They do not catch the flu. They do not die on Napoleon's battlefields. They do not even die of the Plague. They are, somehow, protected. Not totally immune to death but, well, of all the Princes who have died, none have met their fate in Shadow. All of this because of Fortune.

Fortune governs a form of supernatural luck that protects Princes in Shadow. Not the kind of luck that makes you win in a lottery. The kind of luck that saves your life when a truck tries to kill you somewhere in Shadow. The kind of luck that saves your life when a bomb explodes in your mailbox in Shadow. Not in Amber. Not in Chaos.

As a rule of thumb, if somebody wants to kill you while you are in Shadow, the total Level of the attack (whether Aspect Level, Pillar Level, or Wizardry Level) must exceed your Fortune Level just to have a chance of wounding you lightly. Even then, you (or, more likely, the Gm) may use some of your Fortune Feat Points to increase your Fortune Level against the attack.

A Prince cannot have more than 5 in Fortune.

A character may use 0, 1, 2, 4 or 8 Fortune Feat Points to increase his Fortune Level against the attack. If 8 points are used, for some reason, the character also receives a Fatal Wound, as fully escaping the attack is not physically possible.

Princes start with 5 Fortune Feat Points.

Additional Fortune Feat Points can be bought at the price of 1 Character Creation Point each. The Gm may allow old Princes and Shadow-dwellers to sell some or all Fortune Feat Points at the same price. Most non-Princes do not have any Fortune Feat Point.

Fortune Feat Points are recovered at the Gm's discretion, depending on campaign-dependent criteria. Some possible criteria are : Similarly, the Gm may decide to lower either the Fortune Level or the number of Fortune Feat Points of a character or of all Princes of Amber/Chaos. Some possible criteria are :
Corwin
Fortune Level
By sheer luck, Corwin survives being dumped dying in the middle of the Plague, the destruction of London by fire, as well as countless battlefields. Corwin's Fortune Level might be 3 (= 9 Points).

Julia
Fortune Level
If we consider that Julia is not a Prince, the Gm might decide that she has no Fortune. However, for some reason, although she does have extremely dangerous associates (Merlin, Luke, Victor Melmann, Jasra, Jurt) and she plays with dangerous forces (Wizardry, the Fountain, a Creature from Primal Chaos, possibly others), she seems to float above petty problems such as backstabbing, being branded enemy of the crown of Amber or that of Chaos. Julia's Fortune Level might be 3 (= 9 Points).

Merlin
Fortune Level
Merlin's behaviour could be considered a wish of death. He escapes assassination attempts due to sheer luck (including the incompetence of the would-be killer), he meets creatures only he can beat, his crazy creation ends up considering him a father...Merlin's Fortune Level is 5 (= 15 Points).

Situation : Corwin on a battlefield
 
The scene takes place on a Napoleonic battlefield.

Gm :
You just received the news that the section of your friend, Lieutenant Chanard, is being trapped not far from here.
Corwin :
I look quickly at the maps. Do they stand a chance ?
Gm :
(Corwin has an Aspect of 2, he can analyse strategic situations very well. However, he is not Benedict and he cannot turn such a disaster in a brilliant victory) They have been used as bait. The strategy is brilliant but they are going to be sacrificed if your army is to win the day.
Corwin :
Can I do something to help them out ?
Gm :
Without leaving your position, you mean ?
Corwin :
Yes, can I send, say, a dozen men to help them out ?
Gm :
You can send them to death, this will weaken your position but not help them.
Corwin :
I get it. I will go myself, guns blazing, and try and rescue Chanard. Can I do this ?
Gm :
Except for the blazing part, yes.
Corwin :
I give my orders and go.
Gm :
You do realise you are going to walk on a Napoleonic battlefield, do you ?
Corwin :
I have survived worse things.
Gm :
Sure you have. (Walking on a Napoleonic battlefield is comparable to an Aspect action. The Gm decides that, no creature can be sure to do this but that someday, some kind of armoured vehicle might be able to do it. This is a level 6 Aspect difficulty. The Gm decides that Corwin must match this difficulty with his Fortune. Since Corwin has 3 in Fortune and can use only 0, 1, 2, 4 or 8 points, the Gm crosses 4 Fortune Feat Points from Corwin's character sheet.) After almost half an hour of walking and running through smoke and charging lines, through craters and explosions, you do reach Chanard's section.
Corwin :
't wasn't that hard.
Gm :
Well...the part of you that still remembers about self-preservation might decide not to do such a stupid thing everyday. You do realise you should not have survived this, do you ?
Corwin :
Well...

3.1.3  Pillar(s)

Order and Chaos shape this Universe. Order itself is shaped by the Pattern, the power of manipulation, while Chaos is shaped by the Logrus, the power of swords and sorcery. Masters of the Pattern or of the Logrus can bend the Universe to their will. At a risk. At a price.

In most campaigns, only descendants of Dworkin can walk the Pattern and only shape-shifter Princes of Chaos can cross the Logrus. In most campaigns, the Pattern kills those who are unfit, while the Logrus renders mad all those who attempt it. As always, the final decision rests on the Gm.
  Pattern Logrus
* 1 Minor Pattern Survival Focus
*
Walking the Pattern is a dangerous task, deadly sometimes even for those who have already walked it.
At this level of skill, the Initiate has a chance to survive walking the Pattern. If the Initiate has used or lost Pattern Feat Points, either before walking the Pattern or during the ordeal, Aspect Feat Points are converted during the walk to refill the Pattern Feat Points. If the Initiate does not have enough Aspect Feat Points, he fails and, most likely, dies.
At this level, the Initiate has survived the Logrus and may have been granted a gift. This gift is usually an intelligent artifact which serves also as Focus. Artifacts creation will be detailed later.
2 Minor Travel Minor Sign
*
At this level, the Initiate can walk Shadows from a known place to another known place, by modifying visible details, one at a time.
At this level, the Initiate can summon the Sign of the Logrus in front of his eyes. The Sign extends perceptions and makes the invisible visible -- including magic spells. The Initiate can also recover a Magic Spell previously stored in the Sign.
3 Minor Research/Alteration Minor Manipulation
*
By moving in Shadow, the Initiate can now search for generic objects, animals, people or events in Shadow. He can now find ``one horse'' or, with more time, ``a war-trained horse'' but not ``my horse'', unless the horse has been specifically bound to him (i.e. if the horse is a Gift). He can find ``a good brawler'' but not ``Gerard''. He can also find an event such as ``I win the lottery'' or ``I have euros in my back-pocket''.
As a rule of thumb, when looking for something important which could be considered equivalent to a Gift, during the search, the Initiate will need to ``invest'' as many additional (i.e. higher than 3) Pattern Points as the price of the Gift. More details on the investment in examples and in confrontation rules. As another rule of thumb, in case of doubt, investing a Pattern Point takes about as much time as recovering a Pattern Feat Point.
Many Gifts cannot be found at all. As always, the Gm decides which ones. In many campaigns, ``a Trump'' cannot be found. In most campaigns, ``a Jewel of Judgement'' cannot be found -- unless it is an impure reflection of the Jewel, and even then, it is probably well-kept.
At this level, the Initiate can extend Tendrils and use them to manipulate distant objects as if they were arms or weapons -- Tendrils cannot reach into Shadow (yet).
The strength, speed and resistance of a Tendril are roughly equivalent to an Aspect of 3, while the dexterity and fighting skill is equivalent to that of the Initiate. Tendrils can be destroyed by physical force equivalent to an Aspect of 3 or by supernatural means. Tendrils are physically visible.
4 Major Survival Minor Protection
* At this level, the Initiate will survive the Pattern for sure, short of external problems.
In terms of points, the Initiate can convert Aspect Feat Points into Pattern Feat Points but does not have to.
At this level, the Initiate can summon Chaos into his mind as a (Level 4) protection against Trump contacts, mental attacks or Sorcery but not against physical attacks.
  Minor Protection
*
At this level, the Initiate can summon Order into his mind as a (Level 4) protection against Trump contacts, mental attacks or Sorcery but not against physical attacks.		  
5 Major Travel Major Sign
*
At this level, the Initiate can control his Path in Shadow, making travel without danger.
The Initiate can now use the Sign of the Logrus to store a spell for future reuse. Spells stored in the Logrus decay in about one week unless they are carefully monitored and fixed every day. On the other hand, when the need arises, they can be triggered almost instantaneously.
  Minor Path Mastery Minor Roads
* Leading Shadow-dwellers in Shadows without accidents or preventing them from following you by accident are difficult tasks, grouped under the name of Path Mastery, as they require altering the Shadow Path behind the Initiate. The Initiate is now able to use the Logrus as a mean of transportation -- one that does work in Chaos but not in Shadow yet. To move, the Initiate must, somehow, extend a Tendril to his destination, anchor the Tendril and turn it into a form of road. From that moment, and until it is destroyed by decay or some external intervention, the road is a supernatural shortcut, which can be used by anyone, unless it is somehow hidden or protected.
The Road may be destroyed by physical or supernatural means and its robustness of the Road is roughly equivalent to an Aspect of 5. The owner can also remove the Road easily by a Minor Manipulation.
6 Major Research/Alteration Major Manipulation
*
At this level, the Initiate may find specific persons, concepts, places or events. He can now look for ``Caine'', ``A battle initiated by Benedict'' or ``A better brawler than Gerard''. If the target actually exists and if it is not somehow hidden, the Initiate will find it. Specific persons and places can usually be found in a matter of days. Locating more complex concepts, such as ``A better brawler than Gerard'', takes more time, on the same scale as that of Minor Research.
All sorts of possible events can also be triggered by Major Research/Alteration. For instance, a gifted Pattern Master may use the Pattern to improve the efficiency of an army or cause a sudden coup d'état in a Shadow.
At this level, the Initiate can extend the Tendrils in Shadow and use them to search generic persons, concepts, places or events, to place Roads, to catch the target, to manipulate it and/or to bring it back to him.
Although the Tendrils cannot ``see'' or ``hear'', they can ``touch'' and they can be used for some forms of spying. As they are visible, however, and as their touch can be felt, this use is limited.
Although the strength and robustness of a Tendril are roughly equivalent to an Aspect of 6, the fighting skill of the Tendril is still equivalent to that of the user. Finding in Shadow takes an amount of time comparable to a Minor Research with the Pattern.
  Minor Sign3 Minor Chaos
* The Pattern may also be used as a mean of observation. At this level, the Initiate can use the Pattern to guess what happens in another Shadow. Typically, this involves some form of divination, such as looking in a pool of water and having the water reflect a distant discussion between Princes, or scrying -- not necessarily with Trumps.
Whenever the target is actively trying to hide, whether through physical means or using some form of magic, this observation is more difficult and requires a confrontation.
Just as the Sign of Chaos can be used to protect the Initiate, it can serve as a channel to summon the uncontrollable force of Primal Chaos. Although Primal Chaos, by essence, is almost impossible close to Amber, where it is summoned, it will bring a terrifying force, made of pure, insane, destruction. Depending on the proximity to Order and on the possible intervention of Masters of Logrus or Pattern -- quite likely close to the Pillars or in the Domains of the Major Families of Chaos-- this storm may consume a whole Shadow or reach some balance point.
At this level, the Initiate can attempt to prevent Primal Chaos from expanding but cannot even hope to banish it alone.
7 Major Protection Major Protection
*
At this level, the Initiate can summon Order into his mind as a (Level 7) protection against Trump contacts, mental attacks or Sorcery but not against physical attacks.
In addition to protecting the Initiate, Order also imposes its mark on the attacker. When the attacker is unaware or when the confrontation indicates he is on the losing side, he will receive a Level 7 wound from the shock on this shield.		 At this level, the Initiate can summon Chaos into his mind as a (Level 7) protection against Trump contacts, mental attacks or Sorcery but not against physical attacks.
In addition to protecting the Initiate, Chaos also imposes its mark on the attacker. When the attacker is unaware or when the confrontation indicates he is on the losing side, he will receive a Level 7 wound from the shock on this shield.
8 Major Path Mastery Major Roads
*
Through Major Path Creation, an Initiate of the Pattern can create or alter paths for other Initiates. This skill may be used to put car-eating monsters on the way of a Pattern user, to defend the entry in a given Shadow (including the Golden Circle) as well as to meet someone ``by accident''.		 Through Major Roads, an Initiate of the Logrus can create the equivalent of the Black Road: a Road reaching into Shadow, wide enough to get an army marching on it, strong enough to reflect itself on other Shadows so as not to be destroyed should some part of it be cut, chaotic enough to convey the willpower of its creator and make it, effectively, a little bit of personal Shadow split among many Shadows.
Roads do not have to be black or destructive. As far as the rules are concerned, they are created just like any other Shadow. Of course, it is quite hard to create a Road reaching to Amber, as long as Amber is protected by the Pattern.
9 Major Sign4 Major Chaos
*
The strongest Initiates of the Pattern can see the imprint of the Pattern everywhere in the universe. Through their training and their willpower, they can make this image stronger, strong enough that they can walk it as they would with the real Pattern, and use it for reaching through Shadow. Indeed, alert witnesses may notice that grass and the water, more than one hundred yards around the target of the Initiate, change subtly, forming an interwoven path leading to the heart of this Pattern.
As the Pattern itself, this path may be quite deadly. As the Pattern itself, it can lead you anywhere you want it to. Or anywhere your subconscious dictates you shall go.
The strongest Initiates of the Logrus can master Primal Chaos. They can summon it at will, in a matter of seconds, give it form or banish it. Primal Chaos can can be used as a Shadow-destroying typhoon, as a swarm of man-eating creatures, as a contagious mind-disease or as an all-powerful barrier.
Primal Chaos can also be forged in terrifying artifacts by those who are crazy enough to attempt binding it within matter and strong enough to achieve this feat.
Primal Chaos is the ultimate weapon, be it for destruction or self-destruction. Whenever a fool who thinks he can control it dies, few waste any tear on the madman. He had been warned. In term of rules, whenever an Initiate who cannot actually reach level 9 by summing his Logrus Level and his remaining Logrus Feat Points, expect a major catastrophe.

Feat Points
 
Princes start with 5 Pillars Feat Points which must be split between Logrus and Pattern during the creation process.

Additional Logrus/Pattern Feat Points can be bought at the price of 1 Character Creation Point each. The Gm may allow young Princes and Shadow-dwellers to sell some or all Pillars Feat Points at the same price. Most non-Princes do not have any Pillars Feat Point.

Of course, a character who has not crossed the Pattern cannot have any Pattern Level. Similarly, a character who has not crossed the Logrus cannot have any Logrus Level. For a character uninitiated to Pattern, surviving the Pattern requires at least 1 Pattern Feat Point.

The matter of Logrus survival depends on the campaign but could be considered free for characters who have already had some level of Shape-shifting and that none can cross the Logrus more than once. Logrus Feat Points, on the other hand, may be used to make the journey through the Logrus less mind-breaking, hence reducing the time spent recovering afterwards. Each Logrus Feat Point spent walking the Logrus divides by two this amount of time. The base amount of time is of the order of 10 years.

Note that a character who has not crossed the does not have 1 Pattern Feat Point cannot

Recovering 1 Pillar Feat Point requires spending 1 week near the corresponding Pillar.

Note that the time spent recovering Pillar Feat Points is spent without protective Fortune. Also note that Princes who wish to spend time using the Pattern in Shadow must practise their social skills every so often.

Corwin
Pattern Level and Feat Points
The most complex feats that Corwin seems to achieve using the Pattern seem to be creating an army to take the throne of Amber, leading this army to Amber and, later, erasing a bit of the Black Road. Assembling the army is little more than a Minor Research, leading the army is a complex Minor Path Mastery, while erasing the Black Road is a Major Protection. This indicates that Corwin can achieve at least a level 7. As Corwin seems quite exhausted by the fight against the Black Road (not physically, though), it seems quite likely that he used 4 Pattern Feat Points. Our Corwin has a Pattern Level of 3 (= 9 Character Creation Points) and 5 Pattern Feat Points (=0 Character Creation Points).

Merlin
Pattern Level and Feat Points
Merlin uses the Pattern only for some Minor Travels. Pattern Level 2 (= 4 Character Creation Points) and 2 Pattern Feat Points (=0 Character Creation Points) seem sufficient.

Merlin
Logrus Level and Feat Points
In Blood of Amber, Merlin explains how Suhuy taught him how to summon Primal Chaos but it is unsure whether he can completely control it without Suhuy's help. On the other hand, he summons the Sign for Minor Protection quite often. His Logrus Level is 4 (= 12 Character Creation Points), which means that he can benefit the Minor Protection as much as he wants but that he cannot control Primal Chaos without Suhuy's help. He also has 4 Logrus Feat Points (= 1 Character Creation Point).

An action can be undertaken when the character does not have the number of points. It will fail.

Typically, the Logrus misused in Shadows of Order will somehow be caught by the rules, whereas the Pattern misused in Shadows of Chaos will become uncontrollable.

Using additional Pillars Points
As with Aspect, a character might wish (or have) to use additional levels of a Pillar to create or beat a Resistance in addition to beating a Difficulty. The mechanism is the same as the one presented for Aspect. Do note that places resist some uses of the powers.

Order and Chaos resist many actions.

Achieving success requires beating the resistance of Order/Chaosto that action. In a Universe with more than one Primal Pattern, each Order Realm may either accept or resist actions of the other Pattern, depending on the cosmology. Here are a few Resistances :
Using or drawing a Trump in Amber 0
Using the Pattern in Amber 10
Using the Logrus in Amber 20
Using Conjuration in Amber 0
Using the Pattern near Amber 0
Using the Logrus in Shadows of Order 5
Using the Pattern in Shadows of Chaos 5
Performing an action twice faster 1
Marching against Amber 2
Using technology in Amber 9
:  

More details on this in the section on confrontations ??.

Broken Patterns
The rules can be applied to the Primal Pattern and the first circle of Patterns (Amber, Rebma, Tir). For the following circles of Patterns (Broken Patterns), the use of the power is more dangerous. Each usage of a Broken Pattern of the first circle bring dangers equivalent to an Aspect of 1, hence making it difficult to use. Each usage of the Broken Pattern of the second circle brings dangers equivalent to an Aspect of 2, hence making it almost impossible for a human being to survive, and so on. Though some Princes could probably survive using Broken Patterns of the Fourth Circle, few Shadow-Dwellers can use the Second Circle.

The same system could apply to a Logrus equivalent of Broken Pattern (typically, Frozen Logrus). The Broken Pattern is considered a Limitation (see section ??) and grants free Pattern Feat Points to the character.

Julia
Broken Pattern Level and Feat Points
Julia is an Initiate of the Broken Pattern. Though we know she uses the Sign of the Broken Pattern to design and hang spells -- a form of Broken Pattern Sorcery -- we do not know how strong she is with the Broken Pattern. Let us suppose she is a more than competent user of the Broken Pattern with 3 Levels (= 9 Character Creation Points) and 5 Broken Pattern Feat Points (= 0 Character Creation Points).

Situation : Corwin assembling an army
 
Corwin :
I need an army.
Gm :
Possibly.
Corwin :
Well, I go and fetch it. How long does it take ?
Gm :
Slow down. What kind of an army ?
Corwin :
Decent fighters. I do not need much more.
Gm :
(As per the rules explained in section ??, an army of decent fighters is equivalent to a 4 points Gift. It can be found in a succession of Minor Researches -- that's a level 3 Difficulty. With Corwin's level 3 in Pattern, he can't find anything complex ``for free''. For Corwin, investing 4 points in this Gift is equivalent to spending 4 Pattern Feat Points.) Well, you could get a decent army in a matter of days. But this would leave you exhausted and ripe for a Shadow attack by Eric.
Corwin :
I see. What can I do ?
Gm :
Well, rather than finding an army, you can assemble one.
Corwin :
What is the difference ?
Gm :
Instead of finding a Shadow with an army waiting for you, you choose a Shadow with a decent army and then you proceed with propaganda and small-scale manipulations to convince people to follow you. There are many Princes-friendly Shadows with decent army, more than there are Shadows containing your army.
Corwin :
I like that. Let's do propaganda !
Gm :
(The Shadow is equivalent to a Gift of level 1. The Gm crosses one Pattern Feat Point from Corwin's character sheet.) After a few days, you find a suitable Shadow. How many men do you want and how long do you give yourself ?
Corwin :
Let's say I want a few hundred thousands in two weeks.
Gm :
(That's mostly a question of Aspect. Using a few Pattern manipulations to appear as a hero, this is ``only'' Level 4 Aspect Difficulty. Well, that's two Aspect Feat Points points crossed from Corwin's sheet.) You do have a high opinion of yourself, don't you ?



Situation : Merlin looking for a Power Source
 
Merlin :
I start working.
Gm :
Wait a minute.
Merlin :
What ?
Gm :
Are you sure you have not forgotten anything ?
Merlin :
Such as ?
Gm :
Where to plug your miracle computer.
Merlin :
Well, in the Shadow I'm going to put it in.
Gm :
Which means you have to find the appropriate Shadow.
Merlin :
Can't I do this later ?
Gm :
Not if you wish to know how to design the alimentation.
Merlin :
I see what you mean. Well, I go into Shadow, to find a Power Source.
Gm :
Where and how ?
Merlin :
What do you mean ?
Gm :
Shadows of Order or Chaos ? Logrus or Pattern ?
Merlin :
Let's say Order and Pattern. Should be faster.
Gm :
As you wish. You do realise this is going to take time, do you ? (A Shadow with a cross-Shadow Power Source and protected against intrusion is a 12 points gift. As Merlin can have a total Pattern level of 4 for this search, and as the Difficulty of Minor Research is 3, he can invest at most 1 point before having to return to Amber for one-week reloads. That's 12 trips which the Gm dictates to be about one-week long and 12 one-week stays in Amber, resulting in 28 weeks, rounded up to 7 months.)
Merlin :
Yep. Tell me if I have not found after one year.
Gm :
Actually, it takes you more than six months to find such a Shadow but you are rather happy with the result.
Merlin :
I know what ! I should have walked the Pattern to get a better result, faster.
Gm :
And possibly die trying.
Merlin :
Well...You would not kill me, would you ?
Gm :
Sometimes, I wish I could.



3.1.4  Wizardry

While Initiation to the Pillars is reserved to Princes, Wizardry is a relatively common practice in Shadow. Between Chaos and Order, many a mage can draw Trumps or conjure Shadow beasts, mold blood into creatures or forge powerful swords. In some campaigns, wizards exist only in Chaos. In some, they have fortresses in the very Golden Circle, if they are not advisors to the Court of Amber. After all, it is rumoured that the mad painter Dworkin has been a wizard in a distant past. Or was he a psychoanalyst ? Or a priest ?

The three main Ways of Wizardry are Trumps, Conjuration and Sorcery. While Trumps and Conjuration are typically in the style of Corwin's Chronicles, Sorcery is closer to what can be witnessed in Merlin's Chronicles. Also note that the following rules describe the effects which may be achieved through Wizardry but not necessarily how these effects can be achieved. Quite likely, different Wizards use different styles: think Dworkin engraving Trumps while Vialle my quite possibly cut them as statues, Corwin summoning birds while Merlin uses electricity and electronics to power its creations...
  Trump Artistry Conjuration
* 1 Trump Sketches Grotesque Conjuration
* A Trump Sketch is a powerful but fragile link between an image and a mind. As any Trump, the Sketch may take many forms, depending on the style of the artist. It can be a pencil-drawn representation as well as a poetic description, a clay doll, a statue, a wooden mask or a tune.
As any Trump, a Trump Sketch may be used to touch the mind of the person or a place. At this level, personal knowledge of the person or place is important to create the Sketch.
The base time to create a Trump Sketch is a few hours. A typical Trump Sketch, even handled with precaution, cannot withstand the will necessary for a mind-to-mind confrontation or to force contact. Additionally, the effectiveness of a Trump Sketch will not last much longer than a few hours. As usual, one additional point divides by two the time it takes to complete the Sketch or increases by one the Resistance of the Sketch.
A Grotesque Conjuration is a powerful but fragile expression of the will of its Master. As other Conjurations, it may take many forms, depending on the style of the Master. It can be assembled from bits of metal or folded as Origami, summoned from the nearest forest or animated from wool cape.
Grotesque Conjuration can create objects or creatures of any form compatible with the style of the Wizard. Although these Grotesques will lack intelligence, resistance and longevity, they can be useful, say, to provide the key to open this door, the rope to climb down this precipice or the block of ice to keep that body intact.
The base time to create a Grotesque Conjuration is a few hours. Even used with precaution, the Grotesque will not resist the slightest exposure to the Pillars or Princes. Additionally, after a few hours, the Grotesque will return to an inanimate state. As usual, one additional point divides by two the time it takes to complete the Grotesque or increases by one its Resistance.
2 Minor Expertise Minor Expertise
* At this level, a Trump Artist is able to recognize that an object is a Trump, as well as the style of the author, if he is somewhat familiar with that style.
Making sure that an object is a Trump is the matter of a few minutes of attentive examination while asserting the style of the author takes typically a few dozens of minutes.		 At this level, a Conjurator is able to recognize a conjured object or creature, as well as the style of the author, if he is somewhat familiar with that style, and the "source" of the object or creature (another Shadow, paper, wood...), provided he know that source.
3 Minor Craft Minor Craft
* At this level, the Artist can start working on a Trump. Although he cannot create a proper working Trump yet, he can facilitate the work of another Artist, by creating better Sketches, or by preparing part of the Trump. He can also rework Sketches or broken Trumps to restore their efficiency.
Typically, the task of repairing a broken Sketch or Trump requires giving it some Resistance, which requires additional levels. Adding one point of Resistance takes about as much time as recovering one Trump Feat Point. Note that an Artist can succeed in this task only if he is somewhat familiar with the style of the Trump he is trying to repair.
With a Minor Craft, the Conjurator may infuse additional power in a conjured creature or object so as to keep it in existence. He can also try to repair broken artifacts/creatures even when they have not been created through conjuration.
This task typically requires giving some Resistance to the target, which requires additional levels. Adding one point of Resistance takes about as much time as recovering one Conjuration Feat Point. Note that the Conjurator can succeed in this task only if he is somewhat familiar with the technique which was used in the first place to Conjure the target. Also note that any attempt at resurrecting a non-conjured object is likely to produce an abomination rather than what was intended.
4 Minor Artistry Minor Conjuration
* Through Minor Artistry, an Artist may create a Trump of a person or a place, provided the Artist has enough knowledge of that person/place.
Additionally, the Trump may be designed so as to have or channel one (and only one) Gift-like property (i.e. "weapons cannot pass this Trump", "I can use the Pattern through this ...) In this case, the equivalent Gift must be "bought" with additional levels of Trump Artistry. The Artist must comprehend that property before he can try to give it to the Trump. As usual, adding one point of Gift takes about as much time as recovering one Artistry Feat Point.
Note that the indestructibility of a Trump is a Gift-like property equivalent to a high Aspect, which the Artist must decide to give the Trump. Also note that Trumps created with Minor Artistry do not have any scrying power.
The base time to draw a Trump is one week.		 Through Minor Conjuration, a Conjurator may create or summon actual objects and creatures.
These objects may contain one (and only one) Gift-like property. In this case, the equivalent Gift must be "bought" with additional levels of Conjuration. As usual, adding one point of Gift takes about as much time as recovering one Conjuration Feat Point. The Conjurator must comprehend that property before he can try to embue an object with it.
The base time for a Minor Conjuration is one week.
5 Minor Disruption Minor Disruption
*
Through Minor Disruption, an Artist can disrupt the weakest workings of Trump around him. This allows him to destroy a Trump Sketch by looking at it or touching it, to render inoperative a Trump drawn by oneself or to block a contact attempted by someone close to him. If the Sketch/Trump/contact has additional levels of Resistance, these levels must be matched by additional levels of Trump Artistry.
Through Minor Disruption, a Conjurator can banish or destroy the weakest conjurations around him. Each Conjurator has a different Disruption style. Some utter secret names, while others brandish sacred symbols, some shed their blood while others draw swords and rush at their target.
No matter what style they use, they can destroy a Grotesque without effort, or one of their own conjurations, and they can deactivate other conjured objects -- at this level, they cannot destroy them yet.
If the conjured object has additional levels of Resistance, these levels must be matched by additional levels of Conjuration.
  Major Expertise Major Expertise
* A Major Expert of Trump can recognize Trumps of any style, understand if any property has been given to the Trump, and intuitively understand the style one person would adopt if drawing a Trump. He can also recognize foreign Trumps in a Trump Deck.
If Gift-like properties have been given to the Trump, the Expert can understand the properties only if he has enough knowledge of that specific field.
For a Major Expert, recognizing a Trump is nearly instantaneous. Understanding properties, however, requires in average one day per Gift level for the property. If additional levels of Resistance have been given to the Trump to avoid detection, these levels must also be matched by additional levels of Trump Artistry.		 A Major Expert of Conjuration can recognize conjured objects of any style, understand if any property has been given to the object, and intuitively understand the style one person would adopt if conjuring an object. Among a forest of conjured trees or a museum of conjured artifacts, he can also sort the sources of the objects and pinpoint intruders.
If Gift-like properties have been given to the object, the Expert can understand the properties only if he has enough knowledge of that specific field.
For a Major Expert, recognizing a conjured object is nearly instantaneous. Understanding properties, however, requires in average one day per Gift level for the property. If additional levels of Resistance have been given to the object to avoid detection, these levels must also be matched by additional levels of Conjuration.
6 Minor Alteration Minor Alteration
*
Major Alteration allows the Artist to rework Trumps of any style and any author so as to add or remove properties. At this level, the Artist is still limited to one property.
Major Alteration allows the Conjurator to rework objects of any style and any author so as to add or remove properties. At this level, the Conjurator is still limited to one property.
  Major Craft Major Craft
*
Just as a Minor Craftsman can help an Artist with one Trump or repair one Trump, a Major Craftsman can handle whole Decks. For instance, if a complete Deck is damaged, he can repair it or draw a Sketch to replace the missing cards, the time of one scrying. He can also draw a whold deck of scrying sketches for his own use.
A Major Craftsman can also draw Trumps from memory.
Just as a Minor Craftsman can help a Conjurator with one Conjuration or repair one object, a Major Craftsman can help with or repair great numbers of objects, such as forests or armies.
7 Major Artistry Major Conjuration
*
A Major Artist can create whole Trump Decks, Trumps with any number of properties and/or Trumps of several persons at once.
Note that scrying is a Trump Deck property equivalent to the Minor Sign of the Pattern, hence not accessible to non-Pattern users.
A Major Conjurator can create whole armies in one conjuration, as well as embue objects with any nomber of properties.
8 Major Disruption Major Disruption
*
Through Major Disruption, an Artist may destroy Trumps, have scryings misfire and jam or block contacts.
Through Major Disruption, a Conjurator may destroy conjured objects or neutralize whole armies of conjured objects.
9 Major Alteration Major Alteration
* Through Major Alteration, the Artist may change the way he creates and uses Trumps. With Major Alteration, one can use any image as a Trump or any memory, one can draw the Trump of one person with the face of another...
Uses of Major Alteration should be negociated with the GM.		 Through Major Alteration, the Conjurator may change the way he creates and uses objects. Create artifacts linking several Shadows...
Uses of Major Alteration should be negociated with the GM.

Other Ways follow the same schema.

Sorcery is the art of learning the names of Effects so as to invoke them later as Spells. An Effect can only be invoked in a place where it is possible. Hence, it is easy to recreate the Effect light a cigarette in Amber but next to impossible to recreate the Effect cannon ball in Amber, as the True City resists technology. It is up to each Gm to decide which effects can be applied in Amber, Shadow and Chaos, noting that, in Corwin's chronicle, Effects with special effects (i.e. fireballs, earthquakes ...) seem unheard of.

Glamour is one example of a non-standard Way, based on the evocation of emotions, and which might be given to Fiona or Flora or to Faerical creatures such as the Unicorn.

Here is a short summary
  Sorcery Glamour
* 1 Spell Sketches Grotesque Emotions
* Incomplete spells. Use the circumstances (i.e. a song, a performace...) to evoke the carricature of one emotion.
2 Minor Expertise Minor Expertise
* Recognize spells. Recognize Glamour.
3 Minor Craft Minor Craft
* Help writing spells. Help with someone else's Glamour.
4 Minor Sorcery Minor Glamour
* Actually create a spell. Unless the wizard has a way of storing the spell, it is cast at once. The spell may have at most one Gift-like effect. The base time to create a spell is one day. As usual, adding one Gift point takes about as much time as recovering one Feat Point. Actually create one emotion. It lasts until removed or until the death of the target. Base time is one hour.
5 Minor Disruption Minor Disruption
*
Remove one of your own's spells or a Spell Sketch.
Remove one of your Glamours or a Glamour Sketch.
  Major Expertise Major Expertise
* Recognize and understand spells and spell effects. Recognize and understand glamour and glamour effects.
6 Minor Alteration Minor Alteration
* Rework spells -- not necessarily yours -- to add or remove properties. At this level, only one property. Rework Glamours -- not necessarily yours -- to add or remove properties. At this level, only one property.
  Major Craft Major Craft
* Help with an array of spells. Remember one spell. Help with an array of emotions. Prepare one emotion in advance.
7 Major Artistry Major Conjuration
* Create lots of spells and spells with any number of properties. Create emotions for lots of people and deep emotions with memories.
8 Major Disruption Major Disruption
* Destroy or delay any spell. Destroy any Glamour.
9 Major Alteration Major Alteration
* Modify spells on the fly. Do anything with spells. Play with emotions on the fly. Do anything with emotions.

Wizardry Ways do work on Princes, provided their Fortune can be countered !

If a player wishes to add one or more Ways, do negotiate the exact possibilities of each Way during character creation.

A character can be initiated to several Ways. His level in his secondary Ways cannot exceed his level in his primary Way.

Each Level of a secondary Way costs only 1 Character Creation Point.

Corwin
Conjuration
Corwin can summon simple Beasts from Shadow -- namely, birds -- and attempts to banish Strygalldwir, the Thing from Chaos. This seems ton indicate a Conjuration Level of 4 (= 12 Character Creation Points). Corwin does not seem to have any other Way.

Julia
Sorcery
Julia can create spells (Minor Sorcery) and understand the Fire Fountain (Major Expertise). A level of 2 (= 6 points) is sufficient to explain these tricks. We will ad a Gift so as to allow her to remember the spells.

Merlin
Merlin knows everything
Merlin is a Master of Trump Artistry (4 Levels = 12 CCP, with a classical style), a Master of Conjuration (4 Levels = 4 CCP, with a technological style) and gifted in Sorcery (2 Levels = 2 CCP).

As usual, investing one point into a Gift (or equivalent) takes about as long as recovering one Feat Point. This is true for artifacts, Trump, spells, creatures... As for Pattern or Logrus, it is possible to invest additional points to act faster : one additional point divides by two the time it takes to complete the spell/artifact/...As we will see later, not all characters recover Feat Points at the same speed, depending on Gifts.

A character starts with 5 Wizardry Feat Points, which must be split during creation between the various Ways the character is Initiated to.

As usual, additional Wizardry Feat Points can be bought at the cost of 1 Character Creation Point for each Wizardry Feat Point.Gms may decide to allow old Princes to sell these points and reuse them as Gifts.

Any Wizard can recover Wizardry Feat Points at the rate of 1 per month of study of the appropriate Way. Close to a Power Source, a Wizard recovers Feat Points at the rate of 1 per week. For Shadow-dwellers, Princes are power sources.

These sources may be extremely varied and are considered Gifts.

Merlin
Merlin has no experience
Merlin does not do anything extraordinary when compared to common Wizards. That's 1 Trump Feat Point, 4 Sorcery Feat Points and 4 Conjuration Feat Points (for a total of 4 Character Creation Points).

Situation : Merlin's Flower Spell
 
Merlin wishes to create a Flower Spell to unload the contents of a florist shop on Mask. To do so, he must first visit the corresponding florist shop, so as to analyse the Secret Names of these flowers. The Gm decides that this is a trivial step.

The Flower Spell is equivalent to a level 1 Gift and can be created using Minor Sorcery (level 4). Hence, Merlin needs to match a Difficulty of 5. As Merlin has 2 levels of Sorcery and 4 Sorcery Feat Points, Merlin must use 4 Sorcery Feat Points (remmeber that it is not possible to use 3 Feat Points).

Additionally, for a level 1 Gift, creating this spell takes about as much time as is required to recover 1 Sorcery Feat Points. As Merlin regularely goes to Amber, Chaos and other Places of Power, the Gm decides that this equivalent to one week's work. Being nice, the Gm also decides that, since Merlin has spent 4 Feat Points where 3 would have been sufficient, he can divide that time by 2. Say 4 days.

After these 4 days, Merlin summons the Logrus to hang the Spell (his Level 4 in Logrus + 1 Logrus Feat Point). At a later stage, he can summon the Logrus to trigger the spell (his Level 4 in Logrus is more than enough for this Level 2 action).


Situation : Corwin's messenger birds
 
After years of imprisonment, Corwin has now escaped from the gaols of the Castle and is heading into Shadow.

Corwin :
I'm free at last ! Okay, can I do a divination ?
Gm :
What kind of divination ?
Corwin :
Well, something on the lines of ``where should I go ?''
Gm :
That's a bit fuzzy. What are you going to do if your divination answers ``back to the gaols'' ?
Corwin :
You're right. So, let's rather find a nice place to stay.
Gm :
Define ``nice''.
Corwin :
Somewhere safe, in a place where I can rest and find allies.
Gm :
Okay. how do you do this ?
Corwin :
I'll send a bird and I won't stop in Shadow until I have found it.
Gm :
Wow. (That's not exactly how the rules are meant to work but, hey, rules are meant to be broken !)
Corwin :
I summon a bird of my desire and I tie a note to its leg.
Gm :
What kind of note ?
Corwin :
``I'm coming !''
Gm :
The bird arrives. (This is a Minor Conjuration with a Minor Research, in other words 4 Levels of Conjuration with 3 Levels of Pattern. With Corwin's Conjuration Level of 4, it would require 4 Conjuration Feat Point, which might be a bit too much. The Gm ponders one second.) Say, how much effort to you put in this divination ?
Corwin :
Why, is it difficult ?
Gm :
Well, precise divination is always difficult.
Corwin :
I'll keep my strength for Eric, in case he spots me.
Gm :
The white bird carrying your message flies away in Shadow. (The Gm could decide that, just for this time, a slower conjuration would only require 2 Levels of Pattern, but this would create a precedent. Instead, the Gm decided that Corwin failed, lacking practice after years in the gaol, and that he only invested 2 Conjuration Feat Points, without any tangible result. The Gm crosses these 2 points from the character sheet.)
Corwin :
Just for the style, I also summon a black bird to send a message to Eric.
Gm :
Anything special ?
Corwin :
No, an ordinary bird.
Gm :
Well, not exactly ordinary.
Corwin :
You understand what I mean. (A messenger bird ? Well, this is not much of a Gift. Let's grant it as a 0 points Gift.)
Gm :
Okay. Pretty fast, the bird arrives. What's in the message ?
Corwin :
I'm the king of the world !

3.2  Gifts, Artifacts, Followers and other units of measure...

A number of specificities of a character are represented as Gifts. Gerard's strength, Caine's backstabbing skill, Benedict's supernatural strategical feats, but also Corwin's Sword, Julia's attunement to the Fire Fountain or Merlin's Strangling Cord are Gifts.

Some are found with Pattern or Logrus, enchanted, created or conjured. Some are birth-given or are the product of centuries of training. They make you special. They are your Gifts. Even if they are artifacts, pets or followers, they are part of you. Even if you lose them, you are bound to them -- preventing you from recovering them is a difficult task, if possible at all.

Gifts are also used to measure the difficulty of finding objects and Shadows or creating Spells and artifacts.

3.2.1  Rules

Even more than Attributes, Gifts should be concepts put into numbers rather than complex optimisations.

Base Level
Each Gift does something that some Attribute could do. Some Gifts will be related to Aspect, some to Pattern or Logrus, some to Fortune, and some to a Way of Wizardry.

Describing the effect of a Gift using an Attribute Level does not mean that the Gift can do everything that this Attribute Level could do, nor that it can do anything that a lower level of the same Attribute could do.

Note that, just as in the resolution of regular actions, it is possible to create a Gift with additional levels of the Attribute, for instance to increase the Resistance of the Gift, its Penetration, or its speed.

When using a Gift, Additional Feat Points of the appropriate Attribute may be used to increase Resistance, Penetration or speed, but not to match a higher Difficulty.

Activation
Permanent
A Gift which is always activated or activates automatically when needed costs 1 additional point.
Voluntary
A Gift which can be activated easily costs 1 point less.
Impractical
A Gift which must be activated by an action which, in turn, requires 1 Feat Point, costs 2 points less.
Hard
A Gift which must be activated by an action which, in turn, requires 2 Feat Points, costs 3 points less.
Reach
Limitless
A Gift which is not influenced by the distance to its user or container costs 1 additional Point.
Shadow-bounded
The price of a Gift whose effects alter up to one Shadow is not modified.
Local
A Gift whose effects are local costs 1 Point less.
Targetted
A Gift which can only affect one person at a time costs 2 Points less.
Self-bounded
A Gift which can only affect the user costs 3 Points less.
Flexibility
Flexible
A Gift which can do everything the Attribute can do at its Base Level costs 1 additional Point.
Adaptable
A Gift which can perform a number of the actions possible at this Base Level costs 1 Point less.
Limited
A Gift which can perform several of the actions possible at this Base Level costs 2 Points less.
Trick
A Gift which can perform only one trick costs 3 Points less.
Note that even a Gift with maximal Flexibility cannot be used to perform actions corresponding to lower Attribute Levels.

Rarity
If such a Gift is rare, it costs one additional point.

Minimal cost
No Gift costs less than 1 point, unless the Gm considers it as trivial.

Number of Powers
Each Pillar and each Way of Wizardry is considered a distinct Power. If a Gift is based on a Power and affects the working of more than one Power, its cost is multiplied by 2 -- even if the Power is affected only for the owner of the Gift. If it affects all Powers, its cost is multiplied by 3.

Multiplicity
Binding
All Gifts are part of their owner. Julian's Morgenstern is no less part of Julian than his hunting skills, just as Grayswandir is no less part of Corwin than his knowledge of Gunpowder or his Swordplay.

But some Gifts are not inside your body or your mind. Sure, you can carry your sword with you but you can lose it or it can be stolen and used by anyone. They may use it against you or your loved ones. They may not even know that they are using a Gift taken away from mythical world-walking creature. They will not be lost forever, mind you, as they are bound to you. But you will definitely not be able to use them as long as you do not have it.

In terms of game, these Gifts, called Foci, contain their own points. For every 3 character points invested in them, they also contain one Feat Point, which anyone can use, provided that person is the current owner of the Focus.

Logrus Foci
Logrus-given Foci are a special case as they may contain a part of the soul of their owner. In terms of game, a Logrus-given Focus can also contain any of the points used to create the character himself.

3.2.2  Examples

Corwin
Swordplay
Base level
Corwin's skill with a sword is governed by Aspect. His highest feat is the ascension of the Kolvir against an army. As it is physically possible that some creature or machine, some day, might do this, the Aspect Level of this Gift is 6.

Corwin's Swordplay does not have any additional Levels, which means that, should Corwin meet an enemy protected by Fortune in some Shadow, his Swordplay will be useful for defence but not for offence, as it will not penetrate the enemy's Fortune. During such an encounter, however, Corwin can provide Penetration from his Aspect Feat Points.

Note that Corwin can either fight using his Aspect, at levels 0, 1 or 2, using Aspect and Feat Points, at levels 3 or 4, or using his Gift, at level 6. He cannot fight at level 5 -- which is not much of a problem -- nor at levels greater than 6.

Activation
Corwin's sword is always on the ready. Although he might be taken by surprise, if he has a sword at hand, he will be able to unsheathe it by the time the first blow comes.

That's an Always Activated Gift: +1.

Reach
Corwin's Swordplay influences Corwin's skills, but also people Corwin around Corwin, at the scale of a whole battlefield: -1.

Flexibility
Far from allowing everything a Level 6 of Aspect could do, Corwin's Swordplay is limited to several actions: -2. Whenever Corwin uses his Swordplay Gift, he can't help fighting brilliantly, better than any human being.

Rarity
Although Corwin's swordplay is brilliant, Benedict is stronger than him, Bleys and Eric have a similar level, Borel is probably not inferior...
Total
4 points.

Corwin
Grayswandir's Robustness
For the sake of this example, and as Corwin does not seem to use Grayswandir as a Spikard, we will consider Grayswandir's Robustness as its sole particularity.
Base level
Grayswandir does not age and does not break. Let's go further: Grayswandir is impossibly robust. Say, as robust as an Aspect of 8. In other words, to destroy Grayswandir, it is necessary to match an Aspect with Difficulty of 8. Which is probably impossible without an appropriate artifact or a custom-tailored Spell.
Activation
Grayswandir is always robust, without any intervention from Corwin: +1.
Reach
Grayswandir's Robustness influences only Grayswandir: -3.
Flexibility
Grayswandir's Robustness only helps Grayswandir staying sharp and unbroken: -3.
Rarity
There are only few swords comparable to Grayswandir: +1.
Total
4 points.
Grayswandir is bound to Corwin but is not physically part of Corwin. During his imprisonment, Grayswandir was taken away from him and he could not use this Gift.

Grayswandir cost Corwin 4 points. Which means that it also holds 1 Feat Point. Say one Pattern Feat Point, as Grayswandir is bound to the Pattern.

Corwin
Gunpowder
Base Level
A competent soldier armed with Corwin's Gunpowder will be much more efficient. In the right circumstances, he will perform way better than any creature of the Golden Circle. It is actually Physically Impossible (Aspect Level 7) to shoot that fast or that often or that far without Gunpowder. Its Base Level is thus 16: Physically Impossible (7) + matching Amber's resistance against technology (9).
Activation
Corwin's gunpowder is just a tool: -1.
Reach
Corwin's gunpowder can be used in firearms, which includes cannons. As it is not an atomic bomb, the effects are local: -1.
Flexibility
There are many things one can do with Gunpowder: -1.
Rarity
Corwin is the sole owner of gunpowder: +1.
Total
14 points

Corwin
Survival
Base Level
Corwin's endurance and regeneration prowesses are simply impossible for a human being. On the scale of Aspects, this would be equivalent to a level 6.
Activation
Corwin's survival skill is always active: +1.
Reach
This skill affects only Corwin: -3.
Flexibility
This definition of Survival is quite broad but not enough to match all possibilities of an Aspect of 6: -1.
Rarity
Princes did not expect Corwin to survive all his ordeals. We can deduce that this skill is quite rare +1.
Total
4 points

Julia
Storing spells
We do not really know how Julia manages to store spells. Let us assume that she is just gifted.
Base Level
Storing one spell is a Major Craft in Sorcery: level 6.
Activation
To cast a spell, Julia must concentrate: -1.
Reach
A spell can theoretically reach anywhere in one Shadow: +1.
Flexibility
This Gift allows Julia to remember any spell. Hence a cost of -1.
Rarity
Let us assume that many Shadow-dwellers can remember one spell.
Total
5 points

Merlin
Limited shape-shifting
Merlin can adapt his body to numerous deadly situations, as he has proved by surviving the Logrus. On the other hand, we assume that he is only able to perform a few adjustments to his shape. At a later stage, we will add one more specialized form.
Base Level
This is equivalent to an Aspect of 6. He cannot turn to something completely different, such as fire or glass. Note that these other forms are merely different, not faster, or stronger, more intelligent, or magic.
Activation
Merlin's shape-shifting is not an easy task. Even when he does not try to accelerate the process, it is the matter of 1 Feat Point: -2.
Reach
Merlin's Shape-Shifting affects Merlin only: -3.
Flexibility
Shape-shifting does not alter Merlin's abilities (except for the Demon Form), only give him a few tricks up his sleeve, which help with survival: -2.
Rarity
Most Princes of Chaos can shift shape.
Total
1 point

Merlin
Demon Form
One of Merlin's forms is his Demon Form.
Base Level
Merlin's Demon Form is stronger, faster and more resistant than any human being. On this, it is equivalent to Aspect of 3.
Activation
While Merlin is changing form, he can simply decide to take the Demon Form: -1.
Reach
Shape-shifting into a Demon Form is enough to open many physical doors but also to be accepted in Chaos social circles, not to mention that it may be used in fight, with a limited effect: -2.
Flexibility
Although turning in a Demon does not increase Merlin's charm or guitar skills, it improves many of his Aspect-related skills. That's a -1.
Rarity
Demon forms are common in Chaos.
Total
1 point

Merlin
Frakir's Intelligence and Danger Sense
Frakir is intelligent enough to negociate with Flora and sensitive enough to notice most of what escapes Merlin (i.e. everything).
Base Level
Frakir's intelligence is that of an intelligent human being, while its Danger Sense is comparable to the intuition of a reasonably trained human being. This is an Aspect of 1.
Activation
Frakir's Intelligence is always active, even when Frakir has been tied to a bed and needs to find a way back to Merlin: +1.
Reach
Frakir can think ahead and comprehends the notion of Shadows: +1.
Flexibility
Frakir can use its intelligence as a human being. That's -1.
Rarity
Intelligent items are common in Chaos.
Total
2 points

Merlin
Frakir's Fighting Skills
Frakir's Fighting Skills -- including intelligence, movement, and the ability to understand orders such as ``stand guard'' -- make it able to take Suhuy by surprise on his own domain.
Base Level
Surely, these skills cannot be less than an Aspect of 3. It has no Penetration, though, which means that it would not be dangerous against a Prince protected by Fortune, in Shadow.
Activation
Frakir does not seem to fight or to stand guard without Merlin's order: -1.
Reach
Frakir's Fighting Skills can actually influence people and creatures around Frakir, by killing them for instance: -2.
Flexibility
Frakir's Fighting skills are limited to a few tricks: -2.
Rarity
Fighting artifacts are common in Chaos.
Total
1 point

Merlin
Frakirs' Invisibility
Last but not least, Frakir can quite convincingly turn invisible at will.
Base Level
This is equivalent to an Aspect of 6 with an additional Resistance of 1, which means that actually spotting it by any mean must match this Resistance of 1. Total: 7 Levels.
Activation
Frakir becomes invisible whenever needed: +1.
Reach
As Frakir's Invisibility can be used for fighting or spying, it does influence its surroundings: -2.
Flexibility
It can be either on or turn off: -3.
Rarity
Invisible items are common in Chaos: 2.
Total
2 points.

Merlin
Frakir as a Focus
As Frakir's intelligence and skills could never be used against Merlin, they are out of the Focus equation.

However, Frakir also contains a part of Merlin's survival instinct: 2 levels of Fortune and 3 Fortune Feat Points. This brings Frakir's Focus cost to 9 points. In turn, these 9 points mean that Frakir contains 3 additional free Feat Points, which the Gm assigns to Fortune.

If Merlin loses Frakir, he will also lose 2 level of Fortune and 6 Fortune Feat Points (including the 3 free Feat Points). Any Prince or Shadow-dweller finding Frakir will then be granted 2 level of Fortune and 6 Fortune Feat Points to use as he wishes.

Merlin
A Shadow for Ghostwheel, with a Power Source
Although, technically speaking, it is not a Gift, Merlin must find a Shadow in which to build Ghostwheel.

The first requirement for this Shadow is that is must contain a generic enough Power Source which can be used for Ghostwheel.
Base Level
The Source itself is a Major Craft of Conjuration (or Trump), with Base Level 6. How the Power reaches into Shadow will be another problem, which Merlin will solve without our help.
Activation
The Power Source is useless as long as Merlin is not here to use it: -1.
Reach
How Merlin manages to tap in the Power Source for Ghostwheel is a problem which Merlin will need to solve without our help. However, the Power Source he needs to find in Shadow must already have some predisposition for Cross-Shadowness: +1.
Flexibility
Ghostwheel's Power Source can only power Ghostwheel: -2.
Rarity
There are only few Power Sources in Shadow: +1.
Total
5 points

Merlin
A protected Shadow for Ghostwheel
The Shadow must be protected.
Base Level
This protection a Major Alteration with two additional levels of Resistance, thus with a Base Level of 8.
Activation
The protection itself is useless as long as there is nothing in the Shadow: -1.
Reach
The effect of this protection extends to the borders of the Shadow and no further: +0.
Flexibility
Although this Shadow is well-protected, if someone finds a way to bypass the protections once, that person will not be surprised during his next visit, as the Shadow has only a few tricks: -2.
Total
5 points

3.3  Health & Wounds

Princes are very solid. It is difficult to fight them, more difficult to to wound them and nearly impossible to kill them. Nearly impossible, but not completely.

Characters have a number of Health Levels divided between Light Wounds, Heavy Wounds and Fatal Wounds.

A character cannot sustain a Light Wound or a Heavy Wound as long as his Health Level contains one or more Fatal Wounds. In these circumstances, a character sustaining a Light or Heavy Wound will only have been inflicted mere scratches or bruises.Similarly, a character cannot sustain a Light Wound as long as his Health Level contains one or more Heavy Wounds.

On the other hand, a character who sustains a Fatal Wound while his Health Level contains no more Fatal Wounds, dies. A character who sustains a Heavy Wound while his Health Level contains no more Heavy Wounds dies. A character who sustains a Light Wound while his Health Level contains no more Light Wounds dies.

Health Levels
Aspect 0
2 Light Wounds, 1 Heavy Wound, 1 Fatal Wound
Aspect 1
2 Light Wounds, 2 Heavy Wound, 1 Fatal Wound
Aspect 2
2 Light Wounds, 2 Heavy Wound, 2 Fatal Wound
Corwin
Health
Corwin's Aspect is 2. He has 2 Light, 2 Heavy and 2 Fatal Wounds.

Julia
Health
With her Aspect of 0, Julia has 2 Light, 1 Heavy and 1 Fatal Wound in her Health Level.

Merlin
Health
Merlin's Aspect of 1 grants him 2 Light, 2 Heavy and 1 Fatal Wound.

Wounds
When attacked, an undefended character will typically sustain the following injuries:
Equivalent Aspect Equivalent Weapon Typical wound type
0 Bare hands None
1 Knife, claws Light Wound
2-3 Heavy Sword, Firearm Heavy Wound
4-5 Fire, Automatic weapon Fatal Wound
6 Heavy Artillery Fatal Wound
7+ Nuclear Explosion Fatal Wound

4  Additional rules

This section covers additional rules and variants which you might find interesting.

4.1  Handicaps

Corwin begins his journey with amnesia. Julia, as a human, will grow old. Benedict cannot take the throne. Julia's Way of the Broken Pattern can be quite deadly for her. Vialle is blind. These characters all have limitations. These limitations do not only make their life more difficult : they completely change the way the character relates to the Universe.

A character with a Limitation will have 1 to 3 additional Feat Point Levels, which he must add to the number of bought Feat Points for an Attribute of this choice.

Julia
Broken Pattern
Each use of Broken Pattern or Broken Pattern Sorcery by Julia brings about a danger equivalent to 1 Aspect Point. On the other hand, this is worth 1 additional Broken Pattern Feat Point.

Note
Nobilis' rulebook introduces a category of flaws known as Restrictions (a.k.a. Kryptonite). As the Restrictions are We have not found any satisfactory way of implementing Restrictions in Amber, as these do not seem compatible with the ``way the universe works''.

4.2  Codes

Corwin cannot live without being a epic hero. Benedict must defend Amber. Brand is a cursed artist...These Codes of Conduct are both weaknesses, as they force the character's behaviour, and strengths, as they give purpose to the character's life. They are the Myth behind the Prince.

A typical Code of conduct consists of three rules. Typically, elder Princes may have two Codes of Conduct, while younger Princes only have one. Non-Princes often do not have any Code. Codes may contradict.

Actively working towards the goals of one's Code permits recovering 1 Fortune Feat Point. Breaking one of the rules of one's Code costs 1 Fortune Feat Point.

Here are a few codes:

Code of the Hero
(Suggested for Corwin, Merlin...) Note that ``epic'' does not apply only to fighting. Your loves must be passionate and transcend time, your hates must be rooted deeply into your soul...

Code of Amber's Defenders
(Suggested for Corwin, Benedict, Eric, Oberon...) Note that Amber does not mean the Amberites.

Code of the Artist
(Suggested for Brand, Dworkin, Mandor ...)
Code of the Snake
(Suggested for Caine, Fiona, Brand...)
Code of the Light-Headed
(Suggested for Florimel...)
Code of the Gambler
(Suggested for young Random, Bleys) Feel free to create your own codes and remember that a character can go against his Codes -- at a price. Remember that a character may change Code if an event has radically changed his way of seeing the world.

4.3  Experience

After each adventure or session, if a character behaves correctly in terms of role-playing and/or success, the Gm rewards the character with one to three Experience Points. Success is usually measured not how well the scenario was solved but by the Conduct Code of the Character.

During the following sessions, each Experience Point may be used as an additional (temporary) Fortune Feat Point. Otherwise, four Experience Points may be used as if they were one Character Creation Point.

Most Gms will prefer watching what the characters have been working on during the sessions or asking the players to write down some specific list of things they want to work on, and apply the possible improvements without actually letting the player know about the mechanisms involved.

Backstabbing variant
``Today's session will be played for Improvement Points. There are ten points to be earned today. That is a total. Success will be measured according to your Conduct Code. Good luck.''

And good luck to the Gm, too.

4.4  Using Tarot

This additional rule requires at least basic knowledge of Tarot or enough imagination to interpret Tarot cards to your liking. The idea is to use Tarot cards instead of Feat Points, and to draw inspiration from the result, all in a mostly randomless fashin. Feel free to add or remove cards, invent your own interpretation of Tarot or replace some of the Arcanae with Amber/Chaos Trumps.

Each Feat Point reserve is replaced by a pile of Tarot Cards. Whenever a character recovers one Feat Point of any nature, instead of writing this on a character sheet or having the Gm write it down, the player picks one random Arcane (i.e. Tarot card) and puts it on the corresponding pile.

Whenever a character uses one (or more) Feat Points of any nature, instead of writing this, the player discloses as many Arcanes as he spends Feat Points. The cards must originate from the corresponding pile, but the player can decide exactly which of the cards of the pile he uses.

As usual, the action must match some Difficulty and, possibly, some Resistance. Success or failure of the action is independent of the value of the cards. However, the nature of the success or the failure is.

Whether the action is a success or failure, its outcome is influenced by the face of the cards and how they are placed (i.e. Action, Opposition, Reinforcement or whichever rules you decide to use for this "scrying"). The Tower will bring some form disaster, Death will bring change, the Chariot is a form of Victory, the Six of Cups introduces an element related to childhood or innocence...If the card is actually a Trump, the element will somehow be related to that person, even if it is not visible.

Note that these elements are only here for inspiration and bring no obligations. If the Gm has an idea of if the player has an interesting interpretation, the Gm may wish to take it into account when deciding of the consequences of the action.

5  A few more examples

Situation : Eric vs Corwin's Army
 
As Corwin marches on Amber with an Army, he meets constant resistance from Eric, using the Jewel of Judgement. For this example, we will assume that the Jewel can alter weather in Shadow and Amber, as a Major Alteration of Pattern Sorcery with an additional Penetration of 11 and an Activation cost of 2 Pattern Feat Points per action.

Corwin :
Inconspicuously, I march with my army through Arden.
Gm :
Anything I should know ? (Corwin's Aspect is 2, just as Eric's Aspect. It seems quite likely that Corwin.)
Corwin :
Such as ?
Gm :
Such as trying to hide your advance from Eric's agents ?
Corwin :
Yeah, well, I do what I can to stay inconspicuous.
Gm :
Let me rephrase : do you attempt to use any supernatural means to hide your army ? Or just strategy ? And then what is your priority : speed or discretion ?
Corwin :
Could I ? I mean, could I use any supernatural mean to hide my army ?
Gm :
Maybe. (This should be a Minor Protection, with a Difficulty of 4 and any number of additional Levels to provide Resistance. Corwin has 3 Levels in Pattern and 5 Feat Points. He should be able to perform this kind of action.) Not without difficulty but you should be able to perform some tricks so as to make yourself more stealthy.
Corwin :
Let me think...Okay, I'll do some Pattern-based tricks -- nothing too fancy. Of course, I also put my brilliant mind to work and make the army difficult to spot.
Gm :
Okay. (Combining actions ? There is no rule for this. Well, let us adapt the rules on cooperation. The Difficulty of Leading the Army is 1.) How much effort do you put into this ?
Corwin :
I try hard.
Gm :
Okay. (Let's say 2 Aspect Feat Point to bring Corwin's Aspect to 4, hence freeing 3 Levels for Resistance or speed. Doing the same thing with Pattern would require increasing Pattern Level to 7 -- Difficulty 4 for Minor Protection and 3 additional Levels for Resistance. As Corwin does not want to put too much Pattern-based efforts on the task, he will actually use 1 Pattern Feat Point, which is not sufficient to actually improve the Resistance. Well, tough luck for Corwin. All in all, the Gm crosses 2 Aspect Feat Points and 1 Pattern Feat Point from Corwin's sheet, for a total Resistance of 2.) Using a number of tricks you have learnt from your experience with the Pattern, you divide your troops, try to move them in small groups, using clothes they get from the locals.
Eric :
Well, does my early warning system spot him ? (Eric had taken the necessary time to put numerous agents in many Shadows. With 2 Aspect Levels and 4 additional Aspect Feat Points, he could easily match a Difficulty of 0 and a Penetration of 4. That's more than enough to spot Corwin's army.)
Gm :
Yes.
Corwin :
Hey, that's unfair !
Eric :
I was always better than you at this games, little brother. You can still surrender, you know ?
Gm :
Wait a minute. Are you in some kind of Trump contact ?
Eric :
No.
Gm :
Just to be sure.
Eric :
Well, I will try and have some fun with Corwin's little toy army.
Corwin :
It's not a toy !
Eric :
Anyway. How long do I have before the army arrives ?
Gm :
At least one week.
Eric :
That's nice. Well, let's use that little babble of mine. I'll first make weather miserable on the way of the army, so as to slow them down to a crawl.
Gm :
(That is a relatively simple Minor Alteration, which will cost Eric 2 Pattern Feat Points to activate the Jewel. As Eric himself does not have any Pattern Sorcery Feat Points, he cannot use any to provide additional Penetration. As the Jewel already contains 11 Levels of Penetration against Amber's resistance to Pattern Magic, this is more than sufficient.) Corwin, after a few days, your army is pinned down by blizzard, hurricanes and thunder. Not many losses but this is terribly annoying.
Corwin :
I defend myself as best as I can.
Gm :
Well, you can advance, but extremely slowly.
Corwin :
I push myself and my men further.
Gm :
After more than two weeks, you manage to get out of reach of the storms. Due to your small groups strategy, you have lost contact with many of your men but you can hope they will find a way. Not too much hope, though, as you are not in the Golden Circle yet.
Eric :
How comes they got out of the storm ?
Gm :
Well, you can't spend all your time with the Jewel of the Judgement around your neck, can you ?
Eric :
Well, yes, but I have placed the storms strategically so as to make advance impossible.
Gm :
Firstly, you told me you only wanted to slow them down, not to stop them, and secondly, whenever you stop actually managing the storms yourself, it becomes a contest of strategy, at which Corwin and you are rather balanced. (The Gm takes this opportunity to cross one of Corwin's Aspect Feat Points to increase his Aspect/strategy to 3, hence making Corwin's Aspect better than Eric's. Note that if Eric had chosen to involve himself as much as he could, he could have Level 4 Aspect to be at least as good as Corwin, as well as 2 Levels of Resistance, to make things more difficult for Corwin.) In this case, Corwin won.
Corwin :
Gotcha !



Situation : Merlin vs Luke, part II
 
Gm :
(Luke has an Aspect of 1 and is using 1 Aspect Feat Point to run at Olympic-level). You and Luke are almost at the same level. He start slightly more slowly than you but he is catching up. He might end up beating you.
Merlin :
Gasp ! Damned Luke. Okay, I'll go faster.
Gm :
How much faster ?
Merlin :
Not world-record yet. Just faster than Luke.
Gm :
(crosses one of Merlin's Aspect Feat Points just for the confrontation) Ok. You put more of yourself in this, still careful not to attract attention. You are going to be tired after this.
Merlin :
No problem. I don't think there are any Amberites around, I'll get as much sleep as I want during the next few days.
Gm :
Sure.



Situation : Caine spying on Fiona
 
For this example, we assume that Caine can spy using Trumps and has 1 ``Trump Spying'' Point left which he can use against a Resistance.

Gm :
Is this all ?
Caine :
No, I haven't checked on Fiona yet.
Gm :
Well, you do not know where she is.
Caine :
Well, I know that.
Gm :
So ?
Caine :
So I take her Trump and I try to spy on her.
Gm :
(Fiona hid with a Resistance of 5. Caine needs to match this score in order to be able to spy on her. If he does, this will include the ability to read her book. Yeah.) You get nothing.
Caine :
What ? How ?
Gm :
You do not know. You have not felt any disturbance on the Trump, which might mean that she is not doing anything supernatural, or that she has found a new way to counter being spied upon.
Caine :
The witch ! I try harder !
Gm :
(Between Caine's 1 ``free point'' and the Wizardry point that the Gm just crossed, Caine now has 2 points to counter the Resistance.) Still nothing.
Caine :
Nothing ? At all ?
Gm :
Well, you do see things to the Trump, but you cannot make any sense of the images.
Caine :
She's in the Logrus ?
Gm :
In the what ?
Caine :
I give up. I'll just rat her to Julian. He will feel compelled to investigate.
Gm :
As you wish.



6  Misc. Questions

How long do the effects of a Feat Point last ?
Conceptually, one action, as long as it seems reasonable. If Aspect Feat Points are used for a fight, they may last as long as the fight, or possibly less time if the character totally changes strategy during the fight. If they are used to plan a guerrilla warfare -- an action which may take weeks -- they last as long as it takes to complete the plans.

What about the Unicorn ? What are her Attributes ?
In various campaigns, we have seen the Unicorn being Dworkin's Pet, a reincarnation of a future descendant of Oberon, a whole race of supernatural beings, a cursed ancient deity, a shape-shifted alcoholic dog, not to mention a player character. Why don't you choose your Unicorn and create her Attributes corresponding to your version ?

What about Dworkin ?
Truth is, we consider Dworkin out-of-rules by any standard. Hey, the guy created half of the Universe ! On the other hand, if your Dworkin is just a lucky (or unlucky) wizard, feel free to create it with as many Character Creation Points as you like.

What about the Younger Dworkin ?
Oh, that Dworkin. Well, we might see when the Dawn of Amber series is more advanced. So far, it is much too early to deduce anything from the books. It is not even sure that the Pattern does not exist yet !

What about the Logrus-less Logrus ?
We have no idea what this is. Possibly Logrus Magic ? Frozen Logrus ? Something way too complicated for Merlin to comprehend ?

What about Exalted Pattern ?
Exalted Pattern is an invention of Eric Wucjick. With this version of the rules, Exalted Pattern would be something like Pattern + Pattern Sorcery, both at high level.

What about the Jewel of Judgement ?
Once again, that's something quite campaign-specific. With our rules, the Jewel might be ``just'' a source of Pattern Feats and Pattern Magic Feats. Or a third Pillar, quite similar to the Pattern, but with more permanent effects -- Major Path Mastery being a way to create a Pattern. Or a ``bank'' you can use to store Pattern Feat points and to recover them later. Or a Spikard. Your decision.

I want a Nobilis-Amber crossover !
Exercise: considering that Nobles and Amberites are Creatures of Power relatively to each other (i.e. Nobles are not Real and may be influenced directly by Pattern or Logrus, not to mention Wizardry, white Amberites have no Auctoritas and may be influenced directly by Domains or Realms), how many Character Creation Points does it take to create a Noble who could wipe out the entire Amber Family ? Or, more likely, who would take Spirit+1 Amberites as Anchors ?

Answer: provided this Noble has found Amber, not many. A well-chosen Virtue would provide an overwhelming force, as would 21 Points (Aspect 5 + Immortality). Remember that there are several thousands of Nobles on Earth alone, and that a decent portion of these will definitely want a Shadow-walking Anchor.

Nevertheless, I want a Nobilis-Amber crossover !
Sure. You can have Order be the Imperator of Amber, while the Unicorn, the Pattern, the Castle, the Hall of Mirrors and Dworkin are its Nobles and the Princes are their Anchors or agents. That's the ``Nobles rule Amber'' strategy.

You can also make Nobles actually be the agents of Fortune, somehow bound (by the Jewel ?) to protect them all.

Or you can pit the Amberites in a desperate struggle against an almost all-powerful enemy. Which would make Amberites choice candidates for an alliance with Excrucians.

Magic is too expensive !
Well, Magic is difficult. But feel free to give more points to the characters if you want to run a more magical campaign. You can also reduce the number of Wizardry Ways and improve their potential.

What about dreams ? Mirrors ?
Sounds like new Ways or Gifts. Feel free to design them.

You didn't give a Ghostwheel Gift to Merlin !
We believe that Ghostwheel is more a (47 Points) character than a Gift.

Could you provide the characteristics of the other Princes ?
Maybe later.

Who wins ? The Hulk or Gerard ?
Who cares ?

Why is shape-shifting not an Attribute ?
We did not think it was necessary. But feel free to make Shape-shifting either a Pillar or a Wizardry Way. Please send us the result !

What about allies ?
We have not found any consistent idea to account for Allies into the rules. Be sure to tell us if you do.

Your work is riddled with bugs, typos and spelling mistakes
Yeah, well, we suspected so. Please point us to our mistakes so that we can fix them !

A  Changelog

A.1  Version 1.1

General
Lots of repagination.
Codes
Modified the code of the Defender.
Wizardry
Rewritten the section. Less Ways, more concise, more consistent, more thoroughly explained.
Gifts
Rewritten the section. The rules stay the same but the examples are handled differently, partly because of the changes in Wizardry. Added Corwin's Survival. Both Julia and Merlin now require less points.
Character sheets
Removed. I'm currently working on a clean way to create Character Sheets in both Html and Pdf.
1
written by Eric Wucjick, previously edited by Phage Press, and now bought by Guardians of Order.
2
written by Rebecca Sean Borgstrom, previously edited by Hogshead Publishing and also bought by Guardians of Order.
3
This power is non-canonical. Feel free to replace it with something equivalent -- possibly the summoning of the Pattern Sign for magical sight and storage, as described by Jasra.
4
This power is non-canonical, as is its counterpart in the Adrpg rule-book, Walking the Mind Pattern. Once again, feel free to replace it with something more adapted to your campaign. It might be a bad idea to let players customise this level of power, as customisation is more adapted to Wizardry or Gifts.
This document was translated from LATEX by H EVEA.