The Chronicler last updated this on 30-May-2001 08:35 PM

The Amberian Year

Prior to Random's reign, the year in Amber was an even 365 days, with months of varying lengths. No leap years needed. But, when Random took the throne, he decided to modify things a bit. He reduced the calendar to 360 days, of an even 12 months. This totals 360 days.

The other 5 days you ask? They are now intercalary days. They are officially not on the calendar,but are between days. Four of the five mark the Solstices and Equinoxes and each has a celebration attached to it:

The Vernal Equinox:

Between March 19 and 20th. The Festival of Rebirth, also known as the Festival of the Unicorn. Thus, this holiday will happen 5 days after the start of the campaign, game time.

The Summer Solstice:

Between June 21 and 22nd. The Midsummer Celebration. Faires abound throughout Amber and it's environs. A common time for marriages and other less formal assignations.

The Autumnal Equinox:

Between September 21 and 22nd. The Festival of the Leaves, the traditional start of the changing of leaf colors, is held in the outskirts of Arden, presided over by Julian and Carl. There are games of skill and chance, and it was at this time, long ago, that Corwin bested Julian (it was, in archery, actually).

The Winter Solstice:

Between December 21 and 22nd. The Biggest Celebration of them all! The Midwinter Festival is held, and to not show up is rude in the extreme. A Prince and Princess of the Ball is chosen, and a good time is had by all. Flora long ago has removed herself from consideration as Princess. Her daughter, Asteria, on the other hand, is a frequent, although not certain, winner. Last year's Princess was PrincessNoys, and the Prince was Pollux. Rumor has it that Lorius' two sisters, especially Brandeigh unsuccessfully attempted to rig the balloting to throw the prize to him, considering Noys long standing interest in him.

New Years Day.

The Fifth Intercalary day is New Year's Day. Unlike our celebrations, it is a day of quiet contemplation, and reflection. Mostly because everyone is still hung over from Midwinter...

The Skies

The skies and Sun of Amber are slightly different than ours. Unlike the type G2 sun of our own skies, Amber's sun is a completely regular type G1 yellow dwarf. The Moon of Amber is retrograde relative to our own as well. It crosses the skies in the opposite direction. Also, the phases are reversed from our own. A waning crescent, for example, on Earth has the horns pointed to the right. A waning crescent in Amber has the horns to the left.

Thus, Deirdre's symbol, which is of a crescent moon with horns to the right, really represents a waxing moon, not a waning one. The Lunar cycle or month is 28 days, 1 hour, 50 minutes, 5 seconds long....and thus the lunar calendar year of 13 lunar months is exactly 365 days, the same as the solar. This means that the lunar positions are the same on any given day, from year after year. There is ALWAYS a full moon on the Vernal Equinox for instance.

The nighttime sky of Amber is different in other ways. The brightest star is Boetis, which at magnitude -4 makes it as bright as Venus is on Earth. It is the centerpiece of the constellation of the Eagle. It appears above the horizon for the first time on June 12, and sets for the year on October 5th. It is, thus, a summer star. The date of it's rising, by the way, is also noteworthy as being the birthday of Prince Lorius'. He is an astronomy buff exceeded only by Gerard and Castor(and Caine while alive). The most shocking thing is that he is supposedly even like able when viewing celestial phenomena.

The second brightest star is Eryx, the centerpiece of the constellation of the Unicorn. It appears in the skies for the first time on the Vernal Equinox, and it is for this reason that the Festival is named the Festival of the Unicorn.

Castle Layout

First of all, the Visual Guide: Sorry, I don't use it. Also, thanks to a little explosion, Random redid a good chunk of the castle anyway.

The basic shape of the Castle is, as you know, a pentagon, with the leading point being where the main entrance is.

On the First Floor are such sights as the Kitchens, access to the Treasury, the Great Hall (Throne Room), and quarters for servants, officials, guards and mundane guests such as Ambassadors.
On the second floor and above, a main hall runs around the entire castle, and side branches extend outward and inward from this main hall. Lining the main hall, on every floor, is fabulous art work. It is mostly depictions of Amber, Oberon, the Unicorn and so forth, but some more unusual pieces can be found.
One example, on the second floor, is a beautiful and terrifying depiction of an erupting Hawaiian volcano that Bleys brought out of shadow just after the War. Uncharacteristically, he just said that it reminded him of a person he had visited, and has revealed nothing more about it.

The Second Floor, and above, are exclusively the province of the Royals and their special guests. If you are caught here, and fit into neither category...
To get there, a magnificent marble staircase is at the back of the Castle, and there is usually a guard on the first floor landing, to ensure no one unauthorized "accidentally" walks up the steps.

Some of the third generation have quarters here, as well as the quarters of some of the elders such as Deirdre and Brand. (The latter of course not likely to use it anytime soon) A couple of areas have been set aside by King Random for quarters for "incoming" Amberites--Royals as yet unknown. The explosion gave his highness the perfect opportunity to do this. Also here are rooms for "special guests" of the Royals. The quarters here tend to be either cozy or cramped, depending on the person you are talking to.

Also on the second floor is the Dining Room and the Library, which includes a space for the various cacophonous instruments of Random, Martin, and the other music lovers.

The Third Floor is where most of the Royals have their quarters, excluding the fabulous suites of the King and Queen, and Flora's apartment

There is more room up here, and so the rooms are correspondingly bigger. Moving up to the third floor, as it were, is a big deal, although some Royals, such as Asteria, prefer their second floor quarters for their own reasons...

The Fourth Floor used to be mainly storage, although it is being opened up for use gradually--Fiona has one of her experiment rooms up there, and there is an art studio, and there is talk of adding a salles d' armes. There is also, finally, the spacious suites of Flora, and more importantly, the King and Queen of Amber here.

In the Basement is the Dungeons, the Pattern, and the magical laboratories, both generic spaces for anyone as well as the underground private labs of Lorius', Fiona, and Bleys.

Geography of Amber

Or, the Shadowwalker's Guide to Amber, if you will

Amber, like most of the worlds of the Golden Circle, are not really full planets in the sense shadows such as Earth are. Thus, walk far enough, and you will reach the end of the world...about 80 miles any direction from the Castle, in fact.

There, shadow starts..from the shadow paths to the rest of the Golden Circle, to the close shadows of Amber, and of Arden. Arden, being the major approach to Amber, is really a collection of shadows, centered around the purely Amber Arden. Combined all together, it makes Arden the largest Forest on the order side of Ygg, and Julian and his children are it's more than able keepers.

Outside of Arden, Amber includes Amber City, the archetypal city, a hemispherical shaped affair, nestled between Kolvir and the Sea. Amber City's one and only lifeline is it's trade. The port is easily the busiest in the Golden Circle, since it IS the place for Golden Circle members to meet and trade. The fleets of Prince Gerard make sure it is a peaceful trade. Needless to say, the Merchant's Guild has a long reach.

Estates such as the Bayles, places such as the famous Lighthouse of Cabra, and other miscellany comprise the rest of the mundane world of Amber. For information on Tir Na Nogth, and Rebma, please see City of the Sky, City of the Sea.

Return to the Strange Bedfellows Page