Amber: WTF?

[hgjs]

It's not "fake" as such, since the two perspectives are equally comprehensive and valid, but it does lose many of the nuances.

I call it fake because every time something happens in the mythic world the entire prosaic world is re-written to match it, and the opposite is not true.

Personally, I've always kept open the possibilities that the Excrucians really are the Gnostic saviours which they claim to be

The book itself keeps that possibility open.  Aside from being androgynously beautiful with starry eyes, maybe they're really the misunderstood good guys!

For the vast majority, there's no hope of any happiness in the afterlife.

For the vast majority there's no afterlife, period.  They just keep reincarnating.  (I suppose I could be wrong about this, but I don't think I am.)

[The Yann Waters]

I call it fake because every time something happens in the mythic world the entire prosaic world is re-written to match it, and the opposite is not true.

Sorry, but that's not quite how it works. Everything that happens in the Mythic also happens in the Prosaic and vice versa, and those things are the same. They are not two distinct events in two separate worlds, only two slightly differing views on a single event.

There's only one Earth. In the Prosaic view, you dial 911 on your cellphone after seeing a car accident, and the hospital receives the call. But if you looked at that same situation from the Mythic view, you might notice how a telesprite nesting in the phone hears your fingers rapping out an address on its door and begins streaking back and forth carrying messages between the accident site and the hospital. Both of these things are true simultaneously. In the Prosaic, that call might get blocked by sophisticated jamming equipment. In the Mythic, you could intercept the call with a butterfly net and quick reflexes.

The book itself keeps that possibility open.  Aside from being androgynously beautiful with starry eyes, maybe they're really the misunderstood good guys!

At least some of them might be that, always considering that there really aren't any objectively "good" or "evil" forces in the game. In any case, they do want to tear the Imperators apart and unmake Creation.

For the vast majority there's no afterlife, period.  They just keep reincarnating.  (I suppose I could be wrong about this, but I don't think I am.)

From page 41: "Every soul reincarnates until it reaches one of three fates: destruction at the hands of some transcendent force; damnation; or an ascent to Heaven. Given that the angels turn away the vast majority that arrive at Heaven, all but the brightest souls face eventual destruction or damnation. The situation is essentially hopeless, but the world is only eight thousand years old, and things may yet change." That destruction might involve getting eaten by a god, for example.

[RPGPundit]

Once again, I would like to please ask that Nobilis-cheerleading not take place in this forum, its outside the purview of the forum.  

Grimgent, if you really want to talk about how wonderful Nobilis is, please don't derail an Amber thread to do it; go start your own thread, and not here; on the main forum or the theory forum, which are the two places (depending on subject matter) where Nobilis could be relevant.

Finally, I will note that Amber is not so much "North american soap opera" as it is like a Greek Tragedy, or a TV drama about a really dysfunctional family (ie. I, Claudius); or, if played for laughs, like Arrested Development.

Except if played by a bunch of south americans, in which case it is remarkably similar to a Venezuelan Soap Opera.

RPGPundit

[RPGPundit]

So its not the goals, or the techniques, or the approach, or the focus, or anything else but that you think they haven't done it WELL?

*even more baffled*

Its that they haven't done anything (of substance) AT ALL, and that they have the gall on top of that to be pretentious about it.

RPGPundit

[The Yann Waters]

Once again, I would like to please ask that Nobilis-cheerleading not take place in this forum, its outside the purview of the forum.

Still, it would be a mite difficult to address questions such as...

Isn't the Amber background a bit nastier than the flowery Nobilis one?:confused:

...Without actually mentioning details from the backgrounds in question, wouldn't it?

[RPGPundit]

Still, it would be a mite difficult to address questions such as......Without actually mentioning details from the backgrounds in question, wouldn't it?

You aren't required by law to answer such questions, especially if you do so with such a volume and quantity of posts that you derail an entire thread to do so.  Had you just answered "no", and maybe posted a link or offered for people to PM for more info, that would have been fine.

RPGPundit

[Otha]

It's not like the thread really had much direction in the first place.

[Casey777]

Spotted some Amber books at a used book store recently but somebody'd bought the first book. :mad: Have found some other sites on the rpg, but likely won't get to them (and this thread) in depth until this weekend. Thanks for so far though.

[Sargon]

As I recall the PDF is available for digital delivery fairly cheaply. ( like 12 bucks).  it's not he same, and I don't know what sort of DRM is has( if any), but hopefully you could take it to Kinkos and make a hardcopy for yorself  and stick it in a 3 ring binder for about the original price, which is hopefully still legal as long as it's a personal use thing.

Assuming that you don't want it digital and are unable to make a hardcopy for personal use that way, you can still find copies on amazon.com and ebay.  I nabbed a couple of "very good" mainbooks for 15 each and a shadow night in "brand new" condition for 20 on amazon and ebay respectively.