Unstructured Archetypes: The Father

He is Oberon of Amber. He is Abraham. He is Odin.

The Father is always a man. This may seem obvious, but it is not.

The Father is distant. The Father loves his children, but he is not close to them.

The Father children can be Heroes or Villains. When they are Villains they betray him and may murder him. When they are Heroes, they serve him and avenge him if he dies.

The Father is wise, powerful and frightening.

If the Father dies, he lives on in memory.

The Father does not intervene in the affairs of his children other than to express pride or disappointment.

The Father may bequeath a Treasure to a deserving son. That treasure may take the form of a Legacy.

All legitimacy flows from the Father.

The Father must not be questioned. To question the Father is to betray him.

The Father is not weak. If a father is weak, he is merely a parent.

It is possible for a Father to be fallible, but it is improper for a Son to point out his Father’s failings.

The Father is old. He is as old as time.

A Good Son will love his Father. Only Good Sons can become Heroes. Bad Sons who do not love their Father are doomed to become Villains.

A Father only has one Good Son. He may have any number of Bad Sons.

He may have daughters, but they are largely irrelevant except as items that his Good Son must protect.

The Fathers only overt expression of love is in the form of pride for his sons, which is reserved for those times when they have performed heroically and virtuously.

The Father does not believe in God. The Father is God.