Glossary of Amber
There exists a place, somewhere at the border of the Courts of Chaos, where
the known universe simply ceases to exist. This void, which is assumed to be contained by the
combined effect of the Logrus and the Pattern, appears as a huge bottomless pit, where material
land just stops and emptiness begins. The contents of the Abyss, that which falls in, would seem
lost forever. That may not be an absolute, since there is evidence that the Unicorn is capable
of retrieving items from the Abyss, and the Pit Divers that scour the edges of the Abyss to
find valuable items certainly live to tell the tale.
Amber is the one true world, of which all others are but shadows. It is the one real world,
casting infinite reflections of itself -- Shadows that can be manipulated
by those of Royal Amberite blood. Amberites, and Chaosians
can traverse infinite shadow to find places of their hearts' desires.
The major powers include Pattern, Logrus, Trump, Finndo's 'warped'
Pattern, Jasra's 'Broken' Pattern, Abyss, and a few other weird ones.
The 'lesser' powers, which usually don't allow direct manipulation of shadow-stuff (see
shadow), include Shape-shifting, Conjuration, Sorcery,
and Psionics. (links to be installed).
Shadows are entire universes (dimensions, whatever you want to call them) unto themselves. No one
is really sure whether these universes, which make up reality as we know it, exist on their own or
whether they are created dynamically when a person with the ability to mold shadow (using one of
the major powers) wishes to go to one.
Shadow-stuff is the general name for the material (basically, the entire reality)
found within a shadow; those having the means are able to mold reality around them to their heart's
delight.
Moving through Shadows (From pp. 99-100, Nine Princes in
Amber)
Now, it is written that only a prince of Amber may walk among Shadows,
though of course he may lead or direct as many as he chooses along such courses. We led our troops
and saw them die, but of Shadow I have this to say: there is Shadow and there is Substance, and
this is the root of all things. Of Substance, there is only Amber, the real city, upon the real
Earth, which contains everything. Of Shadow, there is an infinitude of things. Every possibility
exists somewhere as a Shadow of the real. Amber, by its very existence, has cast such in all
directions. And what may one say of it beyond? Shadow extends from Amber to
Chaos, and all things are possible within it.
Sections of this taken from
Amber Home Page revised 4/10/94
ACF