Since I'm sure that some people don't know what I mean by the word "munchkin," I'll explain.
In Amber, there is very little focus on a character's Attributes, items, and powers. Past the obvious, that most of them will need some way to get around Shadow. Sure, a character may have a piece of armor that can stop everything, will bring them back to life, warn them about any danger that will happen to them days in advance... but do you think they'll really have fun playing? Or will the people around them enjoy playing with that character?
The best characters to play have room to grow and expand. All of the characters I used for examples had their own little personality quirks. Some of them were open, outgoing, and optimistic about their look on life. Over the course of a game, they may lose their rosy outlook, become embittered with their relatives, and drive away their friends. Or they might keep an optimistic view, while still learning experience on how to deal with the vicious strikes life (and the Game Master) throw their way. Characters who start off with the rebel viewpoint might learn how to value their friends, how to work with others, and become friendly, though no less suspicious than is healthy for Amber. Or they might keep their bad outlook, treating everyone as an enemy, and blaming their relatives for all the bad breaks they get.

Characters that can (and do) change are the best. Munchkins tend not to change. They are always looking out for the next big power, or magical item, that they can add to their sheet of 'goodies.' Munchkins don't care if other people have fun playing their character, they just want to see who can collect the most treasure and kill the most monsters.
But yet, Amber makes that pretty hard. Simple treasure is really easy to come by. Just use a little focus, walk around the corner, and look, someone dropped a wallet with $10,000 in it! Most Shadow denizens can't match an Amberite in strength, skill, or speed. So how are there still munchkins around?
The key is in the attitude. One of the worst munchkins I have ever met was an Amberite named Nicole. Most of the Keep knows, and hates, her. In her storyline (which has been mostly ignored or disavowed by others), she has destroyed the Primal Pattern (which not even Brand accomplished), convinced her uncle Julian that he is someone named Duncan, had children with him, and drawn not one but at least a dozen seperate Patterns. She has created duplicates of the Jewel of Judgement from Shadow, and at one point had sworn to destroy the Logrus.
Is it any wonder everybody hates her? While it is possible to destroy the Pattern, as Brand proved, it would be incredibly hard. The Pattern, thanks to Merlin's (involuntary) efforts, is stronger than before, and is (probably) actively guarding against anyone else trying the same thing. It is possible to create one Pattern, but every GM I have ever met would have killed her or had another reason for her to fail before inscribing a second one. Creating real, functional duplicates of the Jewel of Judgement is flat out impossible, since the real one is nothing less than the left eye of the Serpent, the embodiment of Primal Chaos. She also was saying that Oberon's soul was trapped in Duncan's (Julian's) body. That is also impossible, since Oberon was wiped out of existance in his attempt to repair the Pattern. Even assuming that Oberon did somehow survive, he certainly is not inhabiting the body of his son. Knowing Oberon, if he were alive, he'd be somewhere close to Amber where he could keep manipulating his children and keep an eye on the country. And knowing Oberon, I don't think Julian, brainwashed or not, would be able to keep screwing his neice for very long before Oberon would do something about it.

Plus, there's a constant disadvantage to acting like you own the universe. Your aunts and uncles are almost always going to be one step ahead of you. They have millinia more in experience of backstabbing, secret swapping, and backroom deals than you can pick up on. And they're still learning. Not to mention, the more experience you get, the rougher they're going to play with you, treating you closer to an equal and not a kid.

That, I think, is the fact, that most munchkins never learn. No matter what they do or where they go, somewhere, watching them, is somebody who's a whole lot better than they will ever be.
Welcome to Amber. Please pass the excitement, danger, and a side of paranoia.


DISCLAIMER:
Many quotes were taken from Roger Zelazny's Chronicles of Amber series. These are used only for their reference to enhance the gaming experience. The game system explained here was created by Erick Wujick and Roger Zelazny, and is published by Phage Press. It is horribly short, and possibly confusing and inaccurate, and anyone wanting more or better information should go order the book. 1