Unsolved Amber Mysteries

[RPGPundit]

Yes, and Mandor doesn't particularly strike me as someone who'd end up playing for the Amber team.

RPGPundit

[boulet]

Funny, Mandor strikes me as a polished reflection of Brand in the court of Chaos. They're the among the most talented of their generation. They know the craft. They seem to have studied Machiavelli in details. They're eager to visit the opposite territory.The most visible difference is that Brand had an issue with his ego/psychosis/passion and couldn't keep it under control. I'd bet that given an opportunity to grab the jewel of judgement Mandor could temporarily switch team, waiting for the right  moment to accelerate and score a touch down, Brand style.

[RPGPundit]

I've always thought of Mandor as being closer in personality to Chaos' answer to Bleys or Caine.

RPGPundit

[weilide]

I've always thought of Mandor as being closer in personality to Chaos' answer to Bleys or Caine.

RPGPundit

Or Fiona, for that matter. Imagine what the children would be like...

[gabriel_ss4u]

Funny, Mandor strikes me as a polished reflection of Brand in the court of Chaos. They're the among the most talented of their generation. They know the craft. They seem to have studied Machiavelli in details. They're eager to visit the opposite territory.The most visible difference is that Brand had an issue with his ego/psychosis/passion and couldn't keep it under control. I'd bet that given an opportunity to grab the jewel of judgement Mandor could temporarily switch team, waiting for the right  moment to accelerate and score a touch down, Brand style.

I have always seen Mandor as a patriot of Chaos, well.. at least the throne, perhaps the Logrus.
But switch to Pattern? nahhhh.
I think he'd have to be positive that the Pattern was 'the answer' to reality and not the Logrus, and I don't see that. How could he adapt to it? I think many of us have had or seen a cross-bred child of Mandor & Fiona in a campaign.
That is where I think he may find the courage to shift, if it was his lineage in balance.
He is so close to the throne of Chaos (perhaps even the puppet master behind the throne), that I'd see him as always on the side of Chaos.

[RPGPundit]

Yes, Fiona and Mandor are made for each other...

RPGPundit

[Schattensturm]

I always wondered about Corwin meeting Dara and Benedict in Tir-Nan Og'th, when he hacks off Benedict's artificial arm. Dara is queen of Amber in this vision and Benedict defends her. There are also other doubts Corwin has about how much Benedict really knows about Dara. And what about Benedict's mother? Was she from the Courts? If so might Benedict's connection with the courts of Chaos be much more intimate than everyone suspects?

[Xenon]

One of the most important points of Amber, is that effects can and do precede causes. although this effect seems to be stronger in Tir-na-nog which allows prophecy.

The mystery that gets to me the most, however, is the question of Luke and his trumps of Sand and Delwin. He tells merlin, when rescued from Dalt via trump to the Bayle estate, that he had tried to talk to them and was refused(Blood af Amber, chapter 6). However, in the salesman's tale, he speaks with Delwin and it seems to be for the first time.

So- had he only talked to Sand before? that seems unlikely. Was he putting on an act for Vialle? that also seems improbable. Or did Rinaldo and Luke pull a fast one offscreen? It is not a simple confusion. Cards drawn by Brand, implied to have been used by Luke, but we only observe the later conversation with Delwin.

I wonder if the help Brand wanted was one of the Spikards?

[SunBoy]

One of the most important points of Amber, is that effects can and do precede causes. although this effect seems to be stronger in Tir-na-nog which allows prophecy.

The mystery that gets to me the most, however, is the question of Luke and his trumps of Sand and Delwin. He tells merlin, when rescued from Dalt via trump to the Bayle estate, that he had tried to talk to them and was refused(Blood af Amber, chapter 6). However, in the salesman's tale, he speaks with Delwin and it seems to be for the first time.

So- had he only talked to Sand before? that seems unlikely. Was he putting on an act for Vialle? that also seems improbable. Or did Rinaldo and Luke pull a fast one offscreen? It is not a simple confusion. Cards drawn by Brand, implied to have been used by Luke, but we only observe the later conversation with Delwin.

I wonder if the help Brand wanted was one of the Spikards?

Actually, Luke clearly states in "Salesman's" that he had spoken with Delwin before. That's what he doesn't want Vialle to know.

"Right," I said, not wanting to tell her that I had spoken--very briefly--with him before in seeking allies in my war against Amber. He'd dismissed me out of hand, but I didn't want to stir Vialle's memories of those days. So I simply said, "Okay. I'll give it a try."
     I decided to fast-talk him at first, to give him time to think, to realize that I was not alone, and not to let slip anything of our earlier exchange. My altered appearance should help in this, too.

[Schattensturm]

I hate the circumstance that I cannot seem to find a way to get my hands on the short stories, Amberzines and stuff in Germany. This is really making me sadmad. :mad:

[moritheil]

And what about Benedict's mother? Was she from the Courts? If so might Benedict's connection with the courts of Chaos be much more intimate than everyone suspects?

There was a thread here about Cymnea, his mother: http://www.therpgsite.com/showthread.php?t=10829

In any case, Lintra and Benedict met at Avalon, and she was conceived there, so there's nothing that demands that Benedict knew much about the Courts before Corwin gave him the Trump and he went to check them out.  He allows Corwin to think that he hasn't been there before: "You do not know what it would be like to carry a battle to that place.  It is - literally - indescribable."

Of course, if you choose to interpret it differently, he could have successfully fooled Corwin.

[SunBoy]

He knows the Courts, that's for sure. I mean, the greatest general in the universe would have taken a few minutes in gawd knows how many thousand years to gather at least a little intel on his worst potential adversary, right?

[RPGPundit]

I've always played Benedict as having spent considerable time in the Courts, but not recently; and he generally tries to downplay that part of his history as much as possible, keeping it all quiet.

RPGPundit

[Jason D]

I hate the circumstance that I cannot seem to find a way to get my hands on the short stories, Amberzines and stuff in Germany. This is really making me sadmad. :mad:

You might keep an eye on this site:

http://www.nesfa.org/press/Books/Zelazny-Project.html

The last of the six volumes is likely to have all of the Amber short stories.

[Jason D]

I think you have made a nice list.

The biggest mystery, to me, is simply where Roger was going with the short stories. I mean, he builds up plot threads with several characters and you wonder where he's going with the whole thing.
** Is there a master plan as far as protagonist goes? I understand that Roger was planning additional books, but the short stories are from the POV of Luke, Frakir, Merlin, and Corwin.
** Which of these characters would eventally emerge as the focus of the new storyline.

I don't know how reliable it is but I once heard or read a rumor––I can't recall where––that he was planing a final five series of books with a focus on either Fiona or Dworkin. It's kind of amazing to think about, if true.

I recall speaking to Wujcik about it, and he told me that RZ was planning on shifting narrators with each book for the next sequence, but that Luke/Rinaldo would likely be the protagonist throughout them.