A Festive Romp in Castle Amber!

Countless eons have passed since the events described by Corwin and Merlin, and the details of the Patternfall War have faded into the realm of legend. The children of King Oberon, progenitors of the Major Houses, are beings of myth. Heroes out of legend. Some do not believe they ever truly existed.

The cities of Amber and Rebma have both expanded significantly. Amber covers most of Mount Kolvir. Rebma similarly sprawls beneath the waves, slipping into the dark of the pelagic depths. The ghostly city of Tir-na Nog’th has grown to match her solid sisters, becoming a vast island floating in the sky beneath the silvery light of the moon.

Correspondence and trade with the Courts of Chaos has allowed Amber to grow in thaumaturgical resources. Though few things rival the ancient artifacts of the City (the Pattern and the Trump Gates) magick is a thriving commodity in the Eternal Kingdom.

Assorted Aspects of Amber

The Pattern

This is unchanged from canon, except it’s less dank down there and some genius put in a pneumatic lift.

Trump Gates

The lasting legacy of the archmage Merlin, these gates provide easier access between Amber and Shadow. All gates are rings roughly 30 feet in diameter. Within the ring is where the gate proper manifests. There are two versions of these gates to be found in the city.

The first are the common gates, used by the general citizenry of Amber. Common gates are often used with Shadows too far from Amber to make a shadowpath feasible. They often change destinations on a regular schedule, allowing general access to more Shadows than there are gates.

The second are the royal gates. Each Major House has it’s own gate, and Castle Amber has several. When touched by a member of the royal blood, it allows the person to open a gate to anywhere they can visualize. This is very similar to teleporting from the center of the Pattern, except that it involves a lot less walking and you can bring friends.

The Major Houses

House Random

This is the ruling House of Amber. It has controlled the Eternal Kingdom for time out of mind. The current king (and head of the House) is King Jack III.

House Benedict

Originally a military house, the long years of peace have taken the martial edge off of this house. However, the long list of holdings, titles and honors that this House still controls makes it a very powerful and influential House.

The current head of the House is Lord August.

House Corwin

This House has, if nothing else, been prolific. It is a broad and meandering House with strong interrelated ties to House Sawall of Chaos. The three most prestigious knightly orders are tied to this House as well, though only one is still of a martial bent: The Order of the Silver Rose, the Order of the Crossed Swords and the Order of the Steel Roses. The last organization is an all-female organization dedicated to the martial pursuits.

The current head of the House is Lord Carlton.

House Bleys

A well-connected House in court, it is known for having its fingers in a number of pies. Social connections, magickal resources, and so on.

The current head of the House is Lord Brice.

House Fiona

Though one would not expect a scholarly house to have a good deal of clout in Amber, the fact remains that most Keepers of the Pattern are drawn from this House.

The current head of the House is Lady Sheridan.

House Llewella

Only loosely considered a Major House, this House has much closer ties to the Royal Family of Rebma. The lines have become so intertwined over the centuries that the two houses are almost indistinguishable.

The current head of the House is Lady Ceridwen.

House Gérard

As with House Benedict, House Gérard was once a military-oriented house, it’s resources tied up in the Navy. With increased peace, however, it retains many of it’s more honorary titles and mercantile connections.

The current head of the House is Lord Pierre.

House Caine

Much like House Gérard, this House’s naval connections have largely been converted to honorary titles and mercantile connections.

The current head of the House is Lord Jeb.

House Julian

The increased peace has turned Arden from a frontier wilderness to an exploitable resource. House Julian’s defense of the forest has turned inward, championing environmental causes.

The current head of the House is Lady Morgana.

House Florimel

Akin to House Bleys, this House dabbles in a wide variety of interests and has extensive social connections.

The current head of the House is Lord Davis.

Other Alleged Houses

There are several other noble families within the Golden Circle that claim some sort of lineage to the Royal Amber Line, but are not officially recognized by the Crown. Many of their claims are based off of references to the apocryphal “Books of Merlin.” These Houses include:

House Brand: A Kashfan noble line, at one time the ruling family of the kingdom. They claim descent from the Betrayer by way of King Rinaldo of Kashfa.

House Coral: An aristocratic line from Begma, they claim that their eponymous founder was an unrecognized child of Oberon.

House Dalt: A very small and rather inbred House that has persisted in the borderlands between Begma and Kashfa.

There are also historical references to people claiming descent from anyone from Osric and Finndo to Delwin and Sand.