He gladly escorts the four main protagonists Dorothy, the Scarecrow, Tin Woodman and Cowardly Lion through the streets of the Emerald City upon their first visit.

The Soldier with the Green Whiskers is the one who tells the King Scarecrow that Glinda the Good Witch might know of a way for Dorothy to get back to her homeland in Kansas.

When attacked by General Jinjur's all female Army of Revolt, he admits that his gun, which was usually drawn containing flowers, is not kept loaded for fear of accidents.

This private, Omby Amby, proves to be the only brave soldier in the Army, so Princess Ozma promotes him to Captain-General and makes him her personal Body Guard.

He has a fierce moustache (not noted in the text until The Emerald City of Oz, but shown in the illustrations from the beginning), but is capable if gentle-natured, unlike the pompous officers, who come up with excuses not to fight and act very cowardly when facing the Giant with the Hammer.

Omby Amby gets inadvertently flung onto the arm of the Giant and must jump down onto the soft body of the Scarecrow, and the officers more outwardly show their fear than the private.

When the Wizard returns, he recognizes Omby Amby, who greets him accompanied by Jellia Jamb, but wonders what happened to his "green whiskers."

In Ozoplaning with the Wizard of Oz, author Ruth Plumly Thompson constructed an elaborate family history for him under the name Wantowin Battles.

[4] He notes that he does not seem to have any real friends, although Haff does not note that he is shown playing checkers with Pastoria in The Yellow Knight of Oz, and in Neill's books he appears to be good friends with the Guardian of the Gates, and is even shown waltzing with him in The Scalawagons of Oz after getting up from a game of marbles when the music begins to play and having no one else around.