Turjan said:
I'm really curious whether you are able to describe Amber, besides the fact it doesn't use dice.
Ok.. here it is, with the presuppositions that things like "RPG" and "statistics" are known jargon (ie. that people reading this are already roleplayers):
Amber is a game based on the Amber novels by Roger Zelazny. The novels describe a family of powerful immortals who can travel between infinite dimensions. They are the rulers of Amber, the one true dimension of order. Despite this, they are anything but orderly as they fight among themselves over ancient vendettas and for political position to take the throne.
In the game, you play one of the children of the Amberites, a new generation of immortals who, despite having immortality and incredible physical and magical abilities, have to deal with the plots of their far more powerful parents and uncles/aunts, not to mention their own brothers and cousins.
You also have to concern yourself with the demonic beings that exist at the other end of reality, in the courts of absolute chaos; and the infinite possible adventures to be found in the infinite dimensions that exist between chaos and Amber.
The game is different from other RPGs in that the players are not together as a "team", instead they are usually encouraged to compete and struggle with each other, to plot against each other for position, and to betray each other for the sake of personal advancement.
The system is diceless, it uses no random elements, instead you determine your abilities by an auction where you bid points to get top, middle, bottom, or non-existent ranks in each ability. If you are higher-ranked than the other player, you will beat them in a fair contest of that ability, every time.
Smart players have to therefore find ways to make sure they use their best abilities, and "cheat" by using advantages of terrain or situation to get the best of a superior opponent.
There's a pretty fair description of the Amber RPG, without resorting to a single new piece of jargon other than the word "Amber" itself.
Nisarg