a shadow of a shadow

ambercon 2010 :: the aftermath report

"(Martin's) got a bad case of 'God, Benedict is so awesome' and 'Dad, you suck.'" -- Gérard to Avia (from Changing Hands slot 7)

So a very nice Ambercon in Detroit, Michigan. Many thanks to all the GMs and Players who give of themselves so strongly. We win!

the brief reviews...

Agents of the Argent Rose (Arref game)
I note that this has become something of a family romp through a very broad canvas. Yet it satisfies in a way that a canon elder game through an earlier age in Amber might. We have the movers and shakers, the little games between the sibs and their pleasant conflicting motifs.

The asides and snarky wit of the cousins for each other is stronger than any plot.

Suffice, it may be that there is war between China and France coming, for the Imperial Princess returns to China, not chastened by the superior glory of France but inspired by the cousins to break her chains.

Oh, and Grandmama and Grandpere Corwin are speaking again. Separate bedrooms but very much in lust. Perhaps the world will be well, despite the loss of Cousin Max to vile Stigmatists. Farewell, Max, we shall all miss you.

Quotes at twitter #ambercons.


In the Lonesome October (Paul Vlamis game)
Full of win. Lovely reproduction of the original material with full props to Zelazny on charm and etiquette of the archetypes. I found the other Players full of wit and style with their unique sets of Hero/Villains. Smashing game. Yes, the Openers lost, just barely. Darn.

Major Hatreds/Petty Animosities (Madeline game)
Full of win. Random is a punk. Gerard is sly. Eric panics and kills Corwin on earth when the elders settle in to play family politics with Flora's plans in the middle east. Flora is dear. Fiona and Bleys are charmingly ruthless while Brand expounds and explodes in every direction.

Llewella: clueless as she misconstrues all events and tries an alliance with Random.

Oberon squashes Fiona/Bleys...and sets Eric on Brand's trail. Score one for Random and Flora and Gerard...the only ones to really come out well.

House of Midnight and Fire (Arref game)
Eric's plans to keep the throne surface twenty years after he is dead. Six very impressive scions of King Eric meet to discuss taking the throne back from Random. They bring secret weapons and plenty of guts.

But what's this? Instead of invading, they decide to personally scout the Amber situation. So they infiltrate and then charm their way directly to the Eternal City. They get sell-sword jobs and join guilds. They buy buckets. They get fed and get the inside scoop on the war with Chaos. They find out their father is a hero, who died defending the Realm.

They find out no one really understands how Random became king...but Gerard handed him the throne and there seems to be little conflict in peaceful Amber.

They pass through Random's security and at least one walks the Pattern. One gets thrown into the dungeon and quickly escapes. Finally they get an appointment with the King and have a dinner, meet the Queen and discuss current events.

Mordu (PC Paul Vlamis): "Worst throne war EVAR!"

Privately, the scions realize that they have a very very very good chance to kicking Random's ass right outta the country.

Then what? Very nifty game with good roles handled by all.

Clandestine Chronicles of the Cobalt Charter (Arref game)
Three new players came up to speed very well with my experimental premise that has now run some six times. A game completely at the mercy of the Players and their wit...this time around, three plots were handled well until Julia Barnes tripped into a trap of the Chaos Vendetta on her.

But the Players quickly regrouped to save the day. Kudos to those mad bad shadow folk in their defiance of the Poles of Reality. Maybe next year, Amber will have a reaction to Viral Unicorn Sightings?

Dashing Blades (Sol Foster game)
Ever wanted to swashbuckle in good ol' Amber before there was a Corwin? This game was a sweet play for me. Been hoping to see it play for a while. New guy (me) got a trifle enthusiastic and foolish trying to measure up to the Blades and their reputation.

Suffered minor wounds....a lot.

Changing Hands (Arref game)
Over fifty shadows essential to Amber's future well being? How do we know what Chaos might have done to them while Amber was under siege?

Send out the young amberites while the Elders wrangle a treaty. That's how.

Very awesome game with full PC wit on show. Infiltration. Shootouts. Magic. Poison. Cultists. Talking horses. Acres of flaming death. Shadows full of Black Grass. Beheadings. Science. Steam-powered tanks.

Lovely. Thank you for the great roleplay I saw in this game. I also appreciate the quotes listed at the link above.

Soft Cimmerian: Mirror Teeth (Arref game)
Quiet game of intrigue and relationships between 10 people (3 PCs this year).

Really indescribable here. My kudos to the Players. Very very cool.
I can say this: Guisels 3000 Amblerash 5

'Tis a fabulous way to end the convention.

I have un-retired 'Five Sides to Every Story'

Slot 2
ACUS 2009

2009 thoughts: slots and offerings

No seminar this year. Great fun, but poorly attended. My suspicion is that folks don't want to do such mental work on holiday.

Closing Con with a Rebman game maybe not wise. Was so terrific the first time I wanted to offer followup... and good chance on cast not returning. Always the culture rp to bring up to speed with Rebma. Con organizers advise: "do not make Players do work"

otoh.... Players often do work for my games


web site does not offer GM advantages for game preferences, wondering about that


Argent Rose looks like solid for slot one
Cobalt Charter should not move for slot five

have retired 'Five Sides' as I would think most have had chance to play it (ambercon only gets 100 people a year and I've done that game with at least 10 groups). Yes! Veterans of Five Sides now allowed to chat same.


all else subject to change




* lord, been so long that I've done manual html, I blew the link above

Registered.
Will be at Ambercon 09. Go me.


Now games? Gods. What might that list look like?


So here are the game sparks so far for 2009:


1. The Soft Cimmerian: 'Go Ask Alyse'

A team of the Rebman Aoife (Gallants of the Glass) enter the Afanc Glass to question Alyse, find the resting place of Lir's bones (stolen by the Chaosi several centuries past) and steal back the Vorpal Blade from a cunning guisel. Once in the Labyrinth, the Aoife find the Cheshire Puss in the midst of exploring R'lyeh to wake the Great Ones to destroy the Fomoire, but this waking will undo a balance 1600 years old.

Once more, the clever Aoife act to save the foundations of Rebma!

...she opened the brass lid to tap and mix the sand, and an icy draft swirled around the inside of the craft until she closed the thing again. The draft had a sea scent to it, salty and sharp.

"All mirrors lead to Rebma," she said, as though it were an axiom.


2. Changing Hands

The war is over and Gerard is no longer regent. Random is restoring the Golden Circle. His elder sibs are in Chaos hammering out the Patternfall Treaty.

Your team takes shadow rutters from key family members and explores the shadows Chaos has handed back to Amber after occupation.

How dangerous is that? Find out.


3. Cobalt Charter

Still more daring exploits of the secret charter.


4. Argent Rose: City of the Dead

Still more adventure of the Corwin cousins.

Grandma has fled from Corwin's displeasure to the City of the Dead. This cannot be allowed to stand.


5. Stairway Perilous!

According to the oldest children of Oberon, the Faiella-Bionin was constructed in a single night.

No one knows how this monumental engineering feat was accomplished by Queen Faiella, except that she had secret relationships with strange allies in Shadow. Now the land bridge to Rebma is failing.

Only thirty percent of Rebma's inhabitants are actually able to survive the watery depths because of their Athanor heritage. If the bridge fails, it is expected that almost seventy thousand people could perish.

Evacuation has started. There may be nine hours before tragedy fully strikes. The PCs must discover the secrets of Faiella and her phantom engineers as quickly as possible or join the almost impossible task of saving the strongest allies Amber has.

Mechanics/Restrictions: Pre-gens, system varies from Amber DRPG standard. GM prefers Players select Elders before game start and e-mail request to include 'why' that Elder.

Oberon is King. Lora is Queen. Delwin and Sandmorel are teens. Elders chosen are all those older than Delwin and Sand. Finndo and Osric are dead.

Character Generation: Pregenerated



Please, anyone knows of slots that they are not available, post herein.
Thanks and looking forward to see you.

:)

January 6, 2008 - Deadline for game submissions

c'mon folks, you know you want to

disclaimer: i haven't signed up yet for ACUS

Right.
So in the very now I need to think of 4 games I could run.
If one was
Cobalt Charter
and one was
Agents of the Argent Rose


what else do you want to see this year?


this question is also open to those over age 18 not going to ACUS, void where prohibited by local law

Post ten things that recently made you happy, ganked from mtfierce 

finally innocence dies on screen



"so what if we have to kill all those people to save them?"

"that means we take charge from a morally corrupt throne"

"oh, the future is a kinder-gentler tyrant, which is us?"


now how cool is that?

Texorami: Last set     2007

'Red Hot' Ryerson: "Old man, do you perform marryin'?"
Grandpa (who turned out to be Dworkin): "Oh? Well! Yes, I suppose I have done that."
'Red Hot' Ryerson: ~Nods~ "Yep. I figgered an old geezer religious type like you would be one of those fellas that officiates weddings. It's the end of the world and if we aren't gonna play poker-- I'm fixin' to marry a gal."

What a great finish.

Heart.
Ache.

What good will come of seeing her? The steps to this meeting have been
full of warnings and omens. My mind is full of lies. Even now aren't I
lying to myself?

How exciting and ironic to imagine the healing explanation she'll have
for all this pain.

And when she invites me to join her again, how can I not agree? Could
I be that strong? Our gazes will caress each other. We'll touch. The
memory of pain will burn away and I'll fall into her arms. Twining in
her arms, I'll feel everything was worth the journey.

Ache.
Heart.

My chest: too small even now to contain the need that is pounding away
behind my ribs. I want her. And I want all this intrigue to go away. I
want someone to say they loved me for myself.
Not for who I was born of.
Not for the sparking spiral in my blood.
Not for politics.

How young and stupid is love.

How to make a young girl biddable? Soothe her. Groom her. Stroke her
heart and ease the chain 'round it while she dozes.

And still I love her. I need love that badly. I disgust myself.

Heart.
Ache.

I wonder if Merlin will like her?