Because Dan said so…

Well, I’m starting a new game. This is my first time as a game master in quite a few years. Quite a few, really. I guess when I start to count it really adds up. I had a brief Vampire (Dark Ages) game that I tried to run (it just didn’t work out logistically) in the fall of 2001. But other than that I guess I would have to go back to high school to when I last actually ran something…

So wow, it’s been a while. But okay, it really doesn’t feel like it, oddly enough. I guess I’ve spent enough time talking about games, thinking about them, having endless discussions with JP and Jason that actually getting to run one seems like more logical progression than anything else.

And yes, it’s an Amber game. I mean, of course it’s an Amber game. I suppose there are other options, but given that I’m really not too interested in mechanics at the moment, the idea of having somewhere wherein the mechanics are not at all a major factor is a huge selling point. Plus, the setting draws me back again and again. Why, though? That’s really a question for another post (assuming I start blogging again). In any case, this is going to be a game that is not so much based on the ADRPG rules style as it is based on the flavor of the Corwin Chronicles and borrows slightly from the ADRPG rules for inspiration. I’m chiefly using JP’s Infinite Amber rules for character creation, meaning eight attributes and partial powers, but there are a number of modifications, which I’ll write more about later.

The time period of the campaign is way back in the day, in the Golden Age of Amber (or possibly Silver, I suppose?). It’s set pretty shortly after the death of Faiella, so the cast of Elders are Davina (a non-canonical older sister), Benedict, Eric, Corwin, Caine, Deirdre and the PCs. Of which there are presently two, but may be more. The players are not familiar with Amber, which is one reason why I wanted to set it in a time period when things were simpler, in some ways. The family is smaller, and the PCs are a not-insignificant part of it. They are comparable in power to Eric, Corwin, Caine, Deirdre and Benedict. They are real people with real responsibilities. Not just insignificant younglings.

Amber is undergoing expansion in its base of power, with the Golden Circle still very much being established. Many Shadows have been brought into it, but there are many more yet to be fully incorporated, certainly. And Amber’s power over its neighbors is by no means absolute. Amber is certainly a powerful player, but some older siblings have been killed fighting wars in Shadow in the Golden Circle. Shadowlings are not to be underestimated.

The city itself is rather like a more beautiful version of renaissance Paris (with more Venetian architecture). And the Castle itself is very like the Louvre or Versailles. It relies chiefly on natural geography to defend it, rather than heavy castle walls, so it is mostly a palace for living in. And a beautiful on at that, being the residence of the Royal Family of the richest city in the known worlds.

I’ll be making a website for the campaign at some point, once I get around to it. So keep an eye out.