"Pressure Which Refines" Characters
Many of the characters from
the Merlin Series that appeared in Relative Difficulties are present in this list
as well, as are those unique to Relative Difficulties. This is due to Pressure
Which Refines being a "parallel universe sequel" to Relative Difficulties;
many of the characters and situations from that game may have occurred in the past of Pressure
Which Refines, and thus so may the characters involved in them. It is unknown which
actually do and which do not as the author is unaware as to the actual amount of
correlation between the two games; only the GM knows for sure.
The images used on this page are result of
hours of painstaking work by David Cooke, who scanned and altered them where needed so we
could make use of them. Thanks must be given to those players who sought high and low to
find just the right image for their character, and to Rachel Poxon who almost
single-handedly printed out, cut out, glued together and plastic-covered every single
"card" numerous times over to provide all the players with Trump props, bleeding
for the cause on several occasions.
No, we do not keep them in the fridge to make them cool.
Of course, all images used on this
page are the copyright and property of whoever they belong to. They are not used for
profit or anything like that; we just liked the look of them and made them into Trump
images and physical props. So if you see one of your images on this screen, thanks a bunch
for creating such a lovely piece of artwork.
If you wish either to complain about me using your artwork or to send me some kind of
copyright message you want me to put on this page, contact
me.
Amber
Old Ones and Elders
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Dworkin
Dworkin remains the mysterious and slightly
peculiar mentor of the family. His actions during the War were restricted fairly severely;
any help in overcoming Eric and holding back the slowly approaching forces of the Courts
of Chaos would be seen in Chaos as justification for an all out holy war against Amber.
This did not stop him helping in minor, internal matters however, such as helping exiled
family members get in contact with a besieged Corwin. |
Oberon
A figure of legend, the original king of
Amber remains either very quiet or very dead.
But never forgotten. |
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Benedict Benedict
remains the master of strategy in Amber. Driven out of Amber by the return of Eric following the loss of a hand, Benedict
remained hidden in Shadow until he had gathered enough forces to make retaking Amber a
real possibility, if not a certainty. He took Eric's
actions rather personally and was probably responsible for the majority of the planning
that led to the end of the War. He appears quite unaffected by the arrival of a son in the
form of Ulrich. |
Bleys
Bleys, as ever, worked closely with his
sister Fiona during the War. He also spent a lot
of time planning with Andreas, much to their mutual displeasure.
The exact nature of their enmity remains unknown. Since then he has probably been involved
in investigating the activities of the unidentified agency/agencies in Shadow. |
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Brand
Brand is thankfully dead and lost forever.
We have the GM's assurances of that too. |
Caine
Caine was another member of the family who
was driven out of Amber and yet left a part of himself behind. The discovery of a son, Joe, has not mellowed him; there is no
small amount of friction between them. He was missing for quite some time until, at a ball
celebrating the arrival of the engineers who had been brought in to remove the mines from
Arden and the land routes into Amber, he was unceremoniously deposited in the middle of
the ball by an enigmatic cloaked figure. He has since been in the care of Gerard and, surprisingly, Joe, having suffered some terrible
injuries. |
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Corwin
The world of Corwin's Pattern, a kind of idealised
nineteenth century France, was a popular retreat during the War. Being outside the
influence of Eric or his forces made it an ideal base of
operations. Corwin, with Bleys, led the attack up the well defended
western mountain road to Amber, timed to coincide with Benedict's attack up the famous Eastern
Stair. |
Dalt
Dalt put in an appearance just long enough
to receive the undying enmity of Victor. He probably beat him in a fight. |
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Delwin
Delwin is currently an unknown. His name has been
mentioned, regarding whether he would be putting in an appearance at a family get-together
during the War; this suggests that not only does he still live, but that he is not hostile
to Amber. However, his sister, Sand, refused to comment on his
whereabouts; the question may have been intended to be some kind of hurtful remark. |
Deirdre
To date, Deirdre appears to remain a sorry
loss to the family. |
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Eric
Somehow, he survived being killed at the height of
the Patternfall War to return to take Amber by force. His strategy suggested a mere
holding action, however, with purely defensive tactics used to hold his vengeful family at
bay until his true plans came to fruition. These plans appeared to involve devices for
focusing energy, though only some of the family appear to have guessed what they were to
actually be used for. Eric is now a guest of Amber, in the dungeons. |
Finndo
Finndo remains a long dead mystery. It is
currently unknown if he and his descendants ever put in an appearance. |
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Fiona
For a time, Fiona was one of the driving forces of
the Resistance formed by the exiled family members. With her brother, Bleys, she directed much of the early
activities of the younger generation, once even going as far to say that anyone who was
not with them was against them. Faced with this apparent threat, many who had no real
loyalties to the family chose to join the Resistance. |
Florimel
Flora spent her time during the War under
house arrest in Amber, probably because Eric remembered how helpful she had been
to him in the past. Besides which, she seems to have the knack for being useful to just
about everybody. Since the War it has since come to light that she is the mother of Morianna. |
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Gerard
Much of Amber's fleet fled into Shadow under
Gerard's banner when Eric returned. Since then Gerard kept them
back, saving them for the return to Amber. Once normality was restored Gerard eventually
found himself caring for the severely injured Caine. |
Julian
Julian was terribly wounded and left in
Arden when the other members of the family evacuated Amber. He recovered and organised the
Rangers into a guerrilla force that harassed Eric's supply lines as they entered Amber.
He is in a relationship with Morianna at present, one that has survived
many (subjective) months of separation. |
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Llewella Llewella
remains a powerful figure in Rebma as well as being Andreas' beloved 'granny'. Andreas' wife Yvonne was in her care in Rebma, where
they both remained for the duration of the War. |
Osric
Osric, like his brother Finndo, remains an unknown at this time.
It is not even known if he is still Bethal's father. |
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Random
Although he was deposed by Eric apparently without direct bloodshed,
Random retained enough of the respect of his family to make them fight to get him back on
the throne.
Though they may have been doing it just to get Eric off it.
He has since got back into the swing of being king of Amber, issuing orders and the like. |
Sand
A face not often seen in Amber, Sand appears
only rarely. She is Andreas' mother by Martin. Whether there was a Spikard War
for her to be involved in is unknown at this time. |
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Younger Amberites
This Trump image is a
personal one, created
by Intruder |
Andreas
Raised in Rebma by 'Granny' Llewella, Andreas walked a Broken Pattern
and went into Shadow. Eventually he walked the real Pattern. He developed a friendship
with Intruder that has made them an excellent
team. The surprise son of Sand and Martin and something of a Rebman throwback
(he hides his green-tinged skin under a tan), Andreas has also trained under Benedict, becoming one of his most trusted
lieutenants. During a visit to Chaos he met Yvonne of House Channicut; after a brief
courtship they married.
During the War he was lost on a mission with Zatharuss; it is unknown whether he
survived.
(Andreas used to be played by David Cooke; now he is an
NPC) |
Bethal
Despite being from Chaos, Bethal
preferred to spend much of her time with her Amber relatives before her studies into
Logrus with Suhuy caused her to be named as a Sage, a
Logrus and magic advisor in the Courts Of Chaos. She appeared only rarely during the war,
as offering any overt assistance to those from the Amber side of her family would get
herself declared traitor in Chaos. She has never married and has not had any children.
(Bethal used to be played by Rachel Poxon; now she is an
NPC) |
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Intruder Known as a master of Trump, Intruder remains Andreas' staunch comrade and team-mate.
Sneaky and a little bit psycho, Intruder also created the construct known as 'Orthorian'
before it was forcibly evolved into Guinevere. His parentage remains a
mystery.
(Intruder used to be played by Karl Fordham; now he is an
NPC) |
Luke/Rinaldo
Luke is a complete unknown, as he has yet to
put in an appearance. |
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Martin
Martin, Random's son and Andreas' father, seemed to stay out if the
way for much of the War, only making a couple of appearances. |
Merlin
Merlin is said to still be king in Chaos. |
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Michael
Michael, a big native American, has turned
up on at least one occasion, but appears to have stayed out of the War. |
Rylan
Rylan remains a dark figure in Amber,
a rather ruthless fellow who no one trusts and is not liked by anyone.
(Rylan used to be played by Robin Richards;
now he is an NPC) |
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Tim
Tim is well known for his unluckiness; he
always seems to come off the worst in any encounter. He is a skilled sorcerer, though, and
has been helpful on a number of occasions. |
Player-Characters
Achilles
(played by Mat Henry)
Achilles remains a name not heard for a
great many years, if he ever existed at all. |
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Ansalom
(played by Robin Richards) Ansalom
has so far done little to endear himself to his peers. The fact that he was a god or
demigod of some kind before arriving in Amber may have something to do with it. He seems
to spend much of his time in his rooms or off in Shadow.
(Robin Richards began to play Ansalom after discarding
Tristan) |
Danan
(played by Karl Fordham)
Danan was an elite mercenary in his home
Shadow. He found his way to Amber mostly by accident. He became friendly with Andreas and even more friendly with Bill Roth's daughter, Fiona. He remained
out of sight during the War, probably involved in commando raids with his comrades from
back home.
(Karl Fordham played Danan before pushing
him aside in favour of Ulrich von Bek) |
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Helkin
(played by Chris Duke)
Helkin of House Hendrake is an unknown
quantity, as is whether nor not there was a Saron Incident for him to be involved in. |
Joe McClane
(played by Chris Tomkinson)
A one-time fighter against the minions of
the Great Old Ones in his Shadow, Joe was taken to Amber by Julian. He later got on Julian's bad side;
only Morianna's joking insistence that he not
kill Joe saved his life. Not long after arriving in Amber he began courting Florence, a member of one of Amber's noble
families. They married a few months later, but he was forced to leave her behind when he
fled Amber when Eric returned. When she was rescued from
Amber during a reconnaissance mission he elected to remain out of the War by training
medical personnel in Corwin's Paris. He has since returned to
Amber.
(Chris Tomkinson first played Joe, then
Zatharuss, and then Joe again) |
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Lyasin
(played by James Rose) Lyasin,
son of Corwin's daughter Elizabeth and Julian, is another face not seen in Amber
for a long time. |
Lomax
(played by Chris Duke)
The shapeshifter known as Lomax has not been
heard from for a long time. |
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Morianna
(played by Rachel Poxon) Morianna
has been a scholar in her time, as well as a tracker and a hunter. Since arriving in Amber
she has become involved with Julian and has all but joined the Rangers. She is known to be a highly
skilled shapeshifter and Florimel's daughter. She is accompanied
almost everywhere by Bernard. |
Syrex
(played by Glen Elliot)
Syrex is another figure from legend; he may
even have existed once. |
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Tristan
(played by Robin Richards) Tristan
had lived many lifetimes before going to Amber. He displayed a tendency towards
unnecessarily extreme actions. He is most well known for the sudden appearance of his
supposedly dead wife; she was apparently resurrected somehow. Fortunately for them both,
no one knew this act of apparent necromancy had occurred. |
Ulrich von Bek
(played by Karl Fordham)
A member of the Revolutionary movement in
1790s France, Ulrich fled the country when it became clear all their ideals had been
brought down by hatred and greed. He encountered Andreas, Intruder and Guinevere on his way to Switzerland, and
thus was caught up in the War. He walked the Pattern in Rebma after the Defence of Rebma.
It was later revealed that his father was Benedict. He is a surprisingly pleasant
gentleman, given to worrying people by making social Trump calls; they keep expecting him
to want something from them.
(Karl Fordham dumped Danan to play Ulrich) |
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Victor
(played by Justin Parker) Victor
is a loyal, reliable, stalwart warrior. Sometimes he can be impetuous; he frequently
charges into a fight without any forethought. He is, however, a steadfast friend to those
who do not abuse his friendship. He recently got engaged to Julie. |
Zatharuss Jones
(played by Chris Tomkinson)
Zatharuss was a mercenary and occasional
raider of tombs. He joined up with Ulrich, Morianna and Victor while they were investigating a
strange disturbance in Shadow. Ulrich hired him for the duration of the
War, hoping to convince him in the meantime that he really was a member of their family.
Zatharuss refused to believe it, however, was disappeared into Shadow after the conclusion
of the War.
(Chris Tomkinson played Zatharuss after
leaving Joe in Corwin's Paris, before abandoning Zatharuss and bringing back Joe) |
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Other Characters
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Bernard
Bernard is Morianna's faithful and almost constant
companion. He is a hellhound, given to her by Julian for her protection. He has proved
to be helpful almost as often as he has been a hindrance. |
Bill Roth
Bill Roth appears to act as something akin
to 'personal legal advisor and secretary to the crown'. He frequently acts as a buffer
between Random and those who would speak with him,
passing information and messages both ways. He has remarried and has one daughter, Fiona,
who is involved with Danan. |
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Florence Florence
belongs to an important noble family in Amber. They have been favoured by the royal family
for many years, especially since the time Florence's sister was involved with Gerard. Since then the family's standing
has been improved further by Florence's marriage to Joe. |
Guinevere
Guinevere is the final incarnation of a
Trump construct created by Intruder using a computer based on his own
neural patterns. It was enhanced and modified on a number of occasions and for a time went
by the name 'Orthorian'. After a brief shutdown period, during which much of it's
autonomic routines were stripped from it, it returned in female guise as 'Guinevere'. Some
time later the source of the construct was destroyed. It is rumoured Dworkin was
responsible; he destroyed it because it was getting too powerful, or so they say. However,
it's mentality lived on the 'Guinevere' manifestation. She retains some of its powers,
though limited to 'Trump-like' teleportation to any place she can see or has been to. Her
greatest achievement was moving two floors of a hotel to another Shadow to save those with
her from attack, though she was out for days afterwards. |
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Jasra
The mother of Rinaldo and wife of the infamous Brand, Jasra has remained out of the
limelight to date. |
Julie
Julie is a scion of one of Amber's noble
families. They have been in a slight decline since the last years of Oberon's rule, but since Julie got engaged
to Victor their prospects have no doubt been
improving. |
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Marcus
Marcus is a Ranger officer, known as red coats because
of the red waistcoats they wear under their cloaks. He had the difficult task of training Morianna in Ranger skills. He has a wife,
Susan, and a young son rather unsurprisingly called Julian. |
Mossy
Mossy is an Ent, a form of sentient, walking
tree. They 'farm' Arden's trees and also act as another of the forest's defences. Several Rangers spend their time among them and
are typically referred to as 'Ent farmers', despite the fact that they look after
themselves very well. Mossy is the most well known of the Ents; how such a massive
creature (he is as big as a very old oak) can move so soundlessly is a mystery. |
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Muffin
"Muffin" was the child name of one of
the Dragonfolk. A very young blue dragon, she
was put into the care of Bethal after she did such a good job with
" Swampy". |
Swampy
"Swampy" was the child name of a
red dragon who happened to be one of the Dragonfolk. Being a red dragon, he was also
royalty. He spent much of his early years as Bethal's pet, running around like a
Labrador in a dragon's body, chasing small coloured balls and the like. When he eventually
matured he grew from dog sized up to full size (a good six hundred yards long or more)
practically overnight (actually it was about a week), becoming fully sentient in the
process. |
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Trix
Trix was a talking 'prism cat' sent to act as a
kind of bodyguard for Bethal after " Swampy" left her care. She was a
fair-sized black housecat with white feet and appeared to be generally useless except for
good conversation until the prism cat ability of absorbing and redirecting energy saved Bethal's life. |
Vialle
Random's wife and Queen of Amber, Vialle
is a quiet, gentle woman who is usually held responsible for the mellowing of her husband
in recent years. |
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William
William is an intelligent, talking cat, possibly a
prism cat (see Trix) or similar breed. He acted as a scout
for the Dragonfolk during the War of Usurpation. |
Yvonne
Yvonne is the daughter of the head of House
Channicut in the Courts of Chaos. She met Andreas and Intruder during an official Amber visit to
Chaos; Yvonne and Andreas became close during this time;
they announced their wedding sometime later. Her parents in Chaos retain control over
their House; it is unknown at what point in the line of succession to the position of
House head Yvonne is. She and Andreas have yet to have children,
something that has worried them for some time. Since her husband was lost she has taken to
residing in Rebma in the company of Llewella. |
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Groups
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The Dragonfolk The
Dragonfolk of "Wildshadow" are creatures from that part of Shadow where the
'normal' laws begin to break down and matter and energy run riot. They somehow feed in
this rampant source of energy. They have two forms; their natural form is a massive dragon
(usually six hundred yards or more long) while they can also take on human form. Long ago Oberon signed a treaty with them; Amber
would not encroach on their domain as long as the Dragonfolk did not violate Amber's
territory illegally. Since then the two groups have remained on cordial terms, their
alliance strengthened by occasional meetings in Amber or a more neutral location.
Their old king now leaves much of the governing of their people to his eldest son, the
plainly named Colin, who is known as one of the few entities capable of beating Gerard in an arm-wrestling contest.
They start off life as small, unintelligent dragons the size of a dog, until they rapidly
increase in size upon reaching maturity. |
The Rangers
The Rangers of Arden are, in effect, Julian's personal army; they guard the
main land route into Amber. Some have other responsibilities; they oversee the breeding of
the hellhounds and the more normal hawks and eagles used as Julian's eyes throughout Arden, while
others may serve as scouts and spies for the regular army.
There are several Rangers of note, including Marcus and Big Bob (a large fellow who cares
for Arden's Ents and drinks the infamously potent 'Ent Juice' neat).
During the War they spent much of their time attacking the supply convoys entering Amber
and harrying Eric's troops. They may also have provided
a great deal of useful intelligence used by the forces gathering to retake Amber. |
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The Courts of Chaos
Much of the information regarding Chaos
is supposition, as there has been little contact with that part of the universe as yet.
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Dara,
House Sawall Dara was at one time some
kind of queen in Chaos, though most histories describe her as a regent, holding the throne
until the ascendance of her son, Merlin. These days she appears to live in
seclusion, possibly acting from behind the scenes and manipulating the players of the
political game in Chaos. |
Despil, House Sawall
The youngest of Dara's sons by Lord Gramble, the previous
lord of Sawall, Despil is said to be a face not seen much on the political scene in Chaos. |
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Gilbert,
House Gilgamesh House Gilgamesh is
a 'Mercenary House, one that sells the services of it's soldiers to other Houses (and
possibly to others as well). Gilbert is a relatively member of the House, and one of Joe's contacts in Chaos. |
Gilva, House Hendrake
A warrior maiden of this most martial of
Houses, Gilva is a childhood friend of Merlin. She is rumoured to be a close
friend of Chaos' king. |
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House Barimen It is said that House Barimen was Dworkin's House before he created the
Pattern.
Whether the House has been reformed since the Purge is
currently unknown. |
Incertes
Incertes is a 'professional duellist'. That
is to say that he picks fights or acts as a champion for people who want someone dead. He
appears to have no affiliation with a particular House, though no one would own up to him
being in their House. He is said to be on good terms with Andreas. |
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Jurt,
House Sawall Once said to be the
dire enemy of his older brother Merlin, Jurt has not been seen in Chaos or
anywhere else for a long time. |
Mandor, House Sawall
Mandor is presumed to still be the primary
political force in Sawall, rivalled only by Dara, his step-mother. |
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Morris,
House Nalveer Morris is alleged to
have been responsible for a major coup in his House. By arranging to be protected from his
rivals by Rylan he was able to bring his schemes to
fruition while appearing to have nothing to do with them. |
Naomi, House Channicut
Naomi may or may not be Yvonne's older sister. As such this would
put her before Yvonne in the line of succession within
the House. |
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Pavell,
House Sawall Pavell could be politely
described as personal secretary to King Merlin. Most of the time he seems to be
little more than an over-worked and neurotic 'gopher'. |
Suhuy, Keeper of the Logrus
Suhuy is the head of the Sages of Chaos as
well as Keeper of the Logrus. He advises Merlin on important matters regarding the
Powers and spends much of his 'spare' time on personal projects. Bethal is said to be his personal
assistant. |
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