"Two men burst into your room, followed by Reys."

In representing Chaos to the players, especially those with close ties to it (quite a few people), I used a layout I 'borrowed' and 'modified' from the information provided on the Chaos Courts by Astrid Tops for the Black Unicorn campaign, which can be found at the very handy AmberDRPG FTP site.
Obviously, I made a number of modifications, the main ones being that Merlin isn't King in Chaos... and in fact plays virtually no role in things (as far as the players are concerned.)... what follows is my version of The Courts of Chaos

Chaos is the point of the universe opposite to Amber in location, both physically, mentally, and spiritually, (though not as much as you'd think on those last two..) There is much more 'loose' energy in Chaos, and many more fluctuations of the same. Chaos is bordered by the Abyss, and the nature of the place is constant change.

A brief history of Chaos: (portions paraphrased from many places)
Chaos is loosely divided into separate houses, each with their own houses and estates known as Ways. Barrimenways was the birthplace of Dworkin the Mad, who stole the Eye of the Serpent and used it and his blood to create a Pattern--a balance of sorts against the Logrus (or was the Logrus a construct of the Serpent to balance the Pattern? Who can say...)

The importance of being head of house varies from house to house. In some, the head is a position of absolute authority. In others, it is a convenient lable for the person the members want to use as a scapegoat or liason.

Chaos, except in times of civil war, falls under the rule of one House. The recent times of change... painful even for the courts of the Chaos, made many unusual twists to the foundation of Chaos.

The Courts of Chaos, Houses and Politics

by Astrid Tops © -- (messed with by me).

The Courts of Chaos consists of 23 Major families, and a few hundred Minor ones. The First Counsel consists of the 23 Heads of the Major Families, the Second Counsel features the Heads of the Minor Families. In theory, the King can decide with or against consultation of the two Counsels, but he must be careful, because if he goes against the wishes of the Counsels often, a civil war could start. A strong king with coherent politics is usually respected, though.

Traditionally, the First Counsel works out the main lines of politics, the Second Counsel fills in the details. The First Counsel can overrule the Second. The King can overrule both Counsels. Head of the First Counsel is the First Adviser of The King. He stands between the King and the First Counsel. Apart from the Counsels there is the Serpent Church, who has a say in all religious matters. Not surprisingly, many matters seem to be religious these days. If the Counsel is at odds, or in conflict with the Church, the King should decide.

Titles

Every Head of a Major House is at least a Duke or Duchess. Some of them are Prince(sse)s. There are some very complicated rules for the prince title, but now that Despil is King, it means practically that only members of Sawall can call themselves prince(ss), or Despil's future descendants and their eldest children.

The Heads of the Minor Houses have the title of Baron. The title of Lord/Lady can be used to address all members of all houses, Major or Minor. Anyway, correct titles are a difficult subject, and touchy too. Some do not mind, but others are very, very sensitive about their titles and one does best to make inquiries before addressing a person.

Political factions

Bances of Amblerash, High Priest of the Serpent, seems to be in control of this faction (though some see Jaill of Helgram as the real power). The Conservatives accept their king, but are not too happy with Despil on the throne, as he tends to be "much too soft" towards the despicable Amber rebels, and seems to support moral degeneration. Amber is the Root of All Evil and should preferably be unmade, destroyed or at least brought under firm control of the Courts. Some of them would be happy to restart the Patternfall War, "and this time, we will win." Unfortunately for Despil, many houses think this way, and they have a lot of power. The religious forces of the Serpent Church are behind the Conservatives, and the Serpent Guard is their military extension.

First Advisor Mandor seems to be their most prominent member, though he himself doesnt like to be in the spotlight too much. The Mediators feel that the war is over, but that the Courts should look at their own weakness instead of Amber. Amber is dangerous and a constant adversary, but deserves respect. The current balance should be kept, "we should concern ourselves with our own problems, not with Amber". Despil can become a good king, but he is young and rash, and should hold back a little. Mandor, as First Adviser, is officially head of the Court Guard, and this Guard functions as an military extension for the Mediators.

They are right behind Despil and his percieved new politics. Amber and the Courts are built on different principles and have been enemies in the past, but there is no reason why that should lead to War; mutual respect, friendship, trade, etc., is possible. "all that hostility is something of the past. There are two new kings, lets begin a new era of trust and friendship." Needless to say, the other two factions regard this view as impossibly overidealistic. The Royal Guard, personal force of the King, has had an infusion of enthusiastic youngsters lately who would be glad to give their lives for Despil and his politics--which is somewhat ironic, as it's not at all clear that Despil would do so himself: his views are only thought to lie along these lines, his actually loyalties are as yet undetermined.

Despil is King of Chaos. He is not too happy about it, as the different factions are all powerful and trying to influence things. It is very difficult to trust people; some of the ones he trusted have already had unfortunate accidents. He wants to take charge, but he cannot do it too radically, as it might lead to a civil war, something he wants to prevent at all cost. Luckily his mother Dara avoids him lately. According to rumor, she is busy with some personal revenge. But knowing Dara, she will be back soon.

Despil has struck a deal with Mandor and asked him (nearly forced him) to be First Adviser. Mandor didn’t really want such an official position, but he wasn’t really in a position to refuse either, so he capitulated gracefully and accepted the job.

Despil had to ask him, as Mandor was one of the few persons who was capable of doing it (the even worse alternative would be Dara). Mandor turns out to be extremely competent and is always uncannilly well-informed. He spends some of his time outside the Courts, usually to dig up new information about the Powers or Amber.

Social factions

As the elder part of the Courts is divided in political factions, the youth of the Courts have their own groups, usually consisting of a lot of Minor family members and a few Major family members:

Under Swayvill, some young Chaosians who were fed up with talk of war, moral justness and the like, started to dress, shape shift and talk in an absolute shocking and unprotocolarian way. Neglecting their studies and duties, their main concern was to have fun and shock their parents. They keep on finding new ways to amuse themselves, many of them quite illegal. One of their most prominent members is Ska, of House Thareston

This faction consist of a kind of ultra modern avant-gardists, many of them Trump Artists. They too are not interested in conservative politics, and flee politics in art. They usually do not get along well with the House of Doom, as they regard many of the activities of this group childish. Also, the two groups do not share the same views on fashion. In spite of this, elder Chaosians often do not distinguish between the two groups. Many artists are promiment in this groups, notable the Trump artist known as the 'The Angel' Michael.

Named after the former hated secret police of Swayvill, the Scales consist mainly of young Chaosians with ultra conservative views. They often are at war with the House of Doom and the House of Fashion, and are always busy bullying and intimidating others. The leader of the scales is a psychopath by the name of Darian.

The Major Houses

There are always 23 Major Houses. When one of them dies or is obliterated, a minor family will be promoted to Major House. Which one is decided by the King. Usually this occasion is accompanied by a lot of politics, i.e. assassinations and the like. It is said that when one Major House goes down, others will follow. A description of the Major Houses is given here. A * means the House was a Major House, but is now extinct. Most are detailed here.

The House of Amblerash is lead by Lord Percy, younger brother of Bances of Amblerash, High Priest of the Serpent. Contrary to his brother, who is a major force in Courts politics, Percy himself is not a very public figure. He supports his brother and the Conservatives. His House is often mentioned in Court gossip, which has to do with the outrageous behavior of his youngest daughter Gris, a very unconventional person and Trump Artist.

Old and honored House, conservative in politics. Borac Ascan, head of the House, also leads the Serpent Guard. Most members of the house pursue a military career and have absolutely no sense of humor.

The House of Baccaran is well-known for its politics of supporting whoever seems to have the power. They are experts in survival and dealing with anyone at any time. Many members seem to have what is referred to as the Power of the Golden Tongue: anything they propose sounds reasonable and profitable for both sides. According to some unidentified gossip, Jasra, widow of Brand of Amber, was the illegitimate result of the dallying of one of its male members with a pretty serving maid. At the moment the House and its head, Jostin, support First Adviser Mandor and the Mediators.

Extinct house, that is, officially extinct. After Dworkin Barimen fled the Courts and made the Pattern, Swayvill, former king of Chaos, ordered that the name should never be mentioned again. Of the three brothers Barimen, Dworkin fled, Suhuy was adopted into the house Sawall (a rather brave act, but the lad was so talented they took the risk) and Galoran disappeared. All possessions were confiscated and destroyed by the Crown.

Recently promoted house. Chartin is known as very conservative House. Rumor has it that their selection had something to do with a few not-to-be-mentioned activities the House had taken care of for the late king Swayvill. The current head of the house, Vrand, is known as quite ruthless and is always meddling in politics to achieve greater glory for his house. He is on rather friendly terms with Bances of Amblerash.

Former house of Swayvill, king of Chaos, now extinct. The last members, except for Swayvill himself, died in the Patternfall War (two daughters, Nimua and Nes). No direct descendants from Swayvill survived. The succession continued with the sons and daughters of his nephews and nieces.

This House was one of the victims when late king Swayvill grew more and more suspicious and paranoia, seeing Amber spies everywhere. Thron Escallwyn, head of the House, grew embittered by all the false accusations, and removed himself as far from politics as he could, especially when his eldest son Grendel, a talented Trump Artist, disappeared after disagreeing with Swayvills politics in public. When Despil became king, Thron returned, supported Despil and sending him his second son Frewar to become a member of the Imperial Guard.

Old Horvat Fardell (supporting Mandor) is currently busy trying to raise the offspring of his deceased children (they all died in the Patternfall War). His grandchildren are a stubborn and unruly bunch. Frake, the next in line, has absolutely no sense of duty and spends all of his nights drinking and wenching. Thrills, his sister is radically progressive and is leading a pressure group of young nobles who feel that revolution in the Courts would be a good thing. The twin sisters Dinat and Chi are, together with Gris of Amblerash, into frightfully unconventional art and have a notorious reputation for throwing very wild parties.

Ancient major house with a long conservative tradition. Helgram was one of the Houses that strongly advocated the politics that lead to the Patternfall War. The current head of the house, Jaill, is the father of Dara and grandfather of the king. As such he is respected; but he still loudly voices his opinion that Amber should be destroyed at all cost, and as such is at the moment rather an embarrassment to King Despil. Of course he is behind a lot of scheming on the conservative side. Some think that Jaill is the real power behind the conservatives.

The current head of the House, Belissa Minobee, is still supporting conservative politics. The Hendrake House is well-known for its devotion to warfare, battle and honor, even more since the blood of Benedict of Amber is said to run in the family (through Mayal, daughter of Lintra Hendrake). They are not very good at scheming and limit themselves usually to active tactics, which makes them an easy ally for more scheming houses on the conservative side (Helgram and Ysarn). As a matter of fact, members of the Hendrake family can be found in all political factions. Some of the younger cousins (like Gilva of Hendrake) are devoted followers of King Despil. Belissa doesnt mind. As long as they remain honorable.

Imdros is an ancient Major House. Recently the head of the House, Swaun, has decided to give King Despil his full support. Despil can use it, as Imdros has a lot of influence. The price he has to pay is to clear: many important positions flow towards the Imdros family recently. The relation between Imdros and Despil is clearly a bit reluctant, but it works. Other Houses have not been so happy with Imdros manipulations recently, and some predict the last word hasnt been said about it. The Imdros are reputed to be sneaky and manipulative, i.e. good politicians.

Many members of the Locklann family have negotiated the Logrus. Also, they tend to be adept sorcerers. Usually, they have little time to dally in politics, but as they are very happy with a fellow Logrus-initiate like Despil on the throne they support him whatever he stands for (as long as he doesnt propose any limitation to the use of or experiments with powers). The current head of the family is Marna (the only one who wanted to spend some time on the boring politics - all her elder siblings declined the honor). She was one of the youngest persons ever to negotiate the Logrus.

The Marall family has been on the verge of extinction, as many of them pursued a career in the military and at the same time didn’t want to raise a family. Old Thoron Marall, who didn’t fight in the Patternfall War himself, called after the event the surviving members of the family together and after a heated debate he ordered them all to marry and raise a few kids. It was successful; they even started to like teaching their kids: there are now some fifteen Marall youngsters running around, who are obsessed with weaponry and will likely pursue a military career again. One place to go for them is the Court Guard: Flin Marall, only surviving son of Thoron, leads it. The family usually supports Mandors politics.

Prominent family, into which king Despil was born. At the moment, Duke Gramble is head of the house. He will be followed by his son Mandor (by his first marriage to Rhinna of Jesby). As Mandor is currently holding the position of First Adviser to King Despil, it is possible that Despil, son of Gramble and his second wife Dara of Helgram will be the next head of the house, or if he declines, his younger brother Jurt--though Jurt is currently missing. As the King's House, members of the Sawall family meddle a lot in politics, but all on different sides. Gramble keeps himself away from politics, spending all his time on his fabulous art collection. Dara supports the Conservatives, Mandor the Mediators and Merlin the Progressives for obvious reasons.

Of the Talisters, Juran Talister is the most prominent member as head of the Royal Guard. His younger sister Norna is Head of the House. The family is on pretty good terms with the king, and they support him politically as well. Juran and his sister are open minded people, who strongly believe that different isnt the same as dangerous, and that peace must be pursued.

Members of the Thilzy family tend to be impulsive and adventurous. They usually have a flair for Powers and magic. The House has been promoted quite recently, and Ura, the Lady of the House, who is notoriously direct in her language, supports the Progressives. Her eldest daughter Sarana is a member of the Royal Guard.

Reys Thursthon, current Head of the family, is usually described as a charming scoundrel. Those who do not look beyond his flippant behavior might be in for a surprise, however, as Reys is not a person to be trifled with. Just the fact that he survived a number of assassination attempts in the latest throne war says enough - which probably has to do with his uncanny abilities in the Arts. Politically Reys flirts with any side. Personally, he gets along with the King and the First Adviser really well, although he often supports different points of view. At the moment Reys is unmarried (his fifth wife ran off with a minor Trump Artist) and he is getting a lot of social visits from unmarried ladies and their mothers lately.

The members of the Vangrast family are real powerhouses. Many of them have negotiated the Logrus, nearly all of them are competent sorcerers. They are, as a rule, serious and studious, and frown upon the frivolities often practiced by other families. Karm Vangrast, the Head of the House, takes his political duties nearly as serious as his studies and is firmly convinced that the conservative point of view is the only right one.

A quiet and inconspicuous House this would be, lead by Nill Welldon, who supports the Mediators, if it weren’t for his son Quay (now calling himself Ambro), a real disgrace to the family, who is at the moment head of the House of Doom, which he 'co-rules' with Ska Thurston..

The Wisternion family has always been adventurous and headstrong. Some say it has to do with the family ties to Amber: Cymnea Wisternion once married Oberon of Amber. The family was for a long time mediating between the newly formed Amber and the Courts. When Oberon divorced Cymnea, she returned to the Courts; her two sons Osric and Finndo lived with her for a while. The family indignantly ceased their attempts to create peace between Amber and Chaos. Oberon negotiated for a while, but relations became especially difficult after the "deaths" of Osric and Finndo. Cymnea made it her task to raise the two little girls of Osric, Jordane and Felicia, who were accepted into the family, as was Finndo's less family-mined son Kethos, known as 'the Hunter', a man for hire in the Courts. The only Amberite the family kept contact with was Benedict. At the moment, the head of the family is Jordane Wisternion. She kept herself out of the Patternfall War as much as possible, and doesnt want to be involved with politics towards Amber at all. She supports the Mediators. Her sister Felicia left the Courts during the war and nobody knows what has become of her. Kethos is rarely seen about the family Ways, as his various 'projects' keep him quite busy.

Conservative House, that was associated with Helgram and Hendrake during the Patternfall War. The current Lady of the House, Tirga, is very close to Dara. The House is rumored to have sworn revenge on Caine of Amber after he killed Tirgas sister Rega during the War. Tirga has children, as had Rega, but they never appear in public. Unidentified gossip tells it has something to do with a breeding project.

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