Princess Amore

Princess Amore was a princess of the Amore dynasty and last ruler of the Crystal Empire before the Reign of Sombra.

Overall, very little of Amore was ever really known. She appeared to be a similar ruler to, as she was very kind, but appeared to be more detached from her society. She was eventually turned into stone by King Sombra as he took over the kingdom under his own regime.

Biography
Remember as the first Princess/Queen of the Crystal Empire, Amore led the Crystal Ponies in battle against the various menaces that threatened their homeland, including the monstrous Umbrum. In order to combat such threats, Amore developed various spells and artifacts of power, most of which she later hid away to prevent them from being misused. Her best known tool was the Crystal Heart, which was found in the Crystalline Mountains, and which amplified Amore's own Love magic to serve as protection for the Empire. By its power, the Umbrum were sealed away within the Shadow Prison, the only escape from which was a door located beneath the Crystal Castle Amore herself is presumed to have inhabited. The castle also sat above the Crystal Caverns, a maze of underground chambers where Amore secreted many of her powerful defensive items.

After the founding of Equestria, Amore welcomed Princesses Celestia and to the Empire, establishing ties of friendship between the two kingdoms. This would later prove a boon to Amore, as the Crystal Heart was stolen by a who considered it a part of his hoard, having lain asleep in the Crystalline Mountains when the artifact was found. Amore attempted to continue protecting the Empire without the Heart, but her magic alone was swiftly depleted by the effort. The Two Sisters responded to Amore's cry for help by bringing an army of and Griffons under Commander Hurricane and Gregor, as well as their friend Melvin the Manticore, though it was Celestia herself who compelled the dragon to surrender his plunder. The Heart soon restored Amore's magic and the well-being of the Crystal Ponies, who celebrated by holding the very first Crystal Faire.

An unknown amount of time later, a young colt named Sombra was found in the Frozen North by the Crystal Guard, and brought back to the Empire. Amore recognized Sombra's true nature as a transformed Umbrum, but chose to allow him to remain in the hopes that he could rise above his dark origins. Unfortunately, she withheld what she knew about Sombra from the young Unicorn, merely encouraging him in a path of good. After witnessing a vision of his possible future within the Crystal Heart, Sombra grew afraid, but Amore asserted that his fate was his own to choose.

Sombra eventually learned the truth about himself and, his Umbrum magic unleashed, came to steal the Crystal Heart. At this point, Amore confronted him, urging him to abandon his wicked path. Furious to learn that she had known the truth about him, and the reason the Crystal Heart caused him pain every year as the Crystal Faire approached, Sombra rejected her pleas and cast a spell that turned Amore to stone. Radiant Hope, a friend of Sombra's, tried to persuade him to restore her, but Sombra responded by shattering the statue and scattering the fragments across the Earth. He then proclaimed himself King of the Crystal Empire, usurping Amore's throne for a time before being defeated by her friends Celestia and Luna. However, Sombra's defeat was not complete, as he succeeded in causing the Crystal Empire to disappear for a thousand years.

According to one account, after the Empire had returned and Sombra had been first defeated, and then redeemed, he revealed that Princess Amore had not in fact been killed by his actions. Were the scattered fragments of her statue form to be collected and reunited, she could be restored to life. With Hope, who had survived the thousand year absence of the Empire by entering the Shadow Prison, by his side, Sombra set out to find the shards so that he could extend the forgiveness he had received to Amore.

Legacy
Despite Amore's fall, at least one member of her family apparently escaped Sombra's rule, leading to a bloodline that would eventually produce her distant successor. Parts of Amore's history would be recorded in at least three books: The Journal of the Two Sisters, History of the Crystal Empire, and Amore: The First Crystal Princess. The latter book would lead Cadance's husband,, into the Crystal Caverns in search of Amore's magic as a means of combatting a Changeling invasion. Having anticipated that there would be those who would seek for her collection, Amore prepared a test, which manifested as an illusion of appeared to Shining Armor in need of his help.

By refusing to leave "Fluttershy" despite the urgency of his own mission, Shining Armor passed Amore's test, and a magical recording of the princess herself appeared to him. Commending him for his choice, she blasted open the vault where her treasures lay, though Shining Armor found that time-2000 years by his estimation-had ruined everything but a vial containing a potion. When delivered to, the potion proved to have the ability to create magical armor for ponies. However, its true purpose and greatest power was the ability to cause a Dragon to reach their massive adult size, complete with armor, in an instant. This was used on, making him much larger and more powerful than the invading Changelings, who were forced to retreat.

Personality
Unlike Princess Platinum, one of her contemporaries, Amore was not in any way threatened by the ascension of the Two Sisters, recognizing that they were were meant to protect the united Pony Tribes and not replace their current leaders.

Appearances

 * The Journal of the Two Sisters
 * Guardians of Harmony
 * Siege of the Crystal Empire
 * My Little Pony: Magic Princess
 * My Little Pony: Magic Princess