Sidhe (CTD)

The Sidhe are the kith born of the dreams of kings and queens - both noble and otherwise. Regal, beautiful and graceful, they are power and coldness personified. They are tied intimately to the Dreaming and are new to the Changeling Way; most of the Sidhe on Earth are either exiles or escapees from Arcadia, unable to return home. As a result, they feel the cold sting of Banality far more harshly than commoner kithain, but they still command both the Seelie and Unseelie courts and are determined to survive the coming of Winter.

Overview


The year 1969 marked an event as momentous as the moon landing or the raging war in Vietnam: the return of the sidhe. The lords and ladies of the sidhe are unlike any others in the World of Darkness: untimely ripped from the bosom of the Dreaming and cast newborn into the cold, white light of what humanity calls "reality." They are a people of neither world.

Torn from the Dreaming where they once ruled, the sidhe passed through the Mists of Memory and do not remember their immortal past. Their myths and stories (both racial and personal) are tantalizingly, painfully beyond their grasp.

The dark and hostile world the sidhe find themselves thrust into is unlike any they dared dream of in the days of antiquity. The world has changed since they were last part of it, walking among the superstitious throngs of humanity as gods; from ehe simplicity of the farmer in his fields to a noisy horror show of supersonic transports, digital highways and nerve gas.

The newly returned sidhe walk a razor's edge between the worlds of past and present, fancy and reality, with nothing to depend on but themselves. A less worthy people may have crumbled in the face of such overwhelming adversity, but in the 25 odd years since their return the sidhe have not only survived, but have triumphed. Shipwrecked on a strange and alien shore, the sidhe drew upon their inner strengths, battling commoner and commoner noble alike to regain their place of leadership amongst the Kithain. What is remarkable is the degree to which, in 25 short years, they have succeeded. The earthbound fae, long resentful of the imperious nobility, nevertheless in large measure now concede them their historical place in Kithain society.

During their long absence many myths and superstitions grew among the commoners. Most Kithain have longed viewed the sidhe with superstitious awe and fear. The time since their initial return has done little to change this opinion in the minds of many changelings, who (consciously or subconsciously) view the sidhe to be their superiors. Beautiful yet terrible, the sidhe walk the streets among the teeming throngs of humanity, and the look in their eyes is one of proprietary disdain. Something about even the lowest among them gives pause to even the most radical commoner antimonarchist. At the same time, something unsullied and innocent about them touches even the most cynical human.

Many commoners whisper that the nobility protects itself from the reality of the world by living in palaces of spun sugar in the Dreaming. They laugh, knowing that the first strong rain will wash the intruders away. Perhaps this is true. Although the sidhe have fought many great battles with the other Kithain to regain their lost power, their mettle has yet to be tested by the other great powers of the world. Yet the time of this great testing quickly approaches. The great cataclysm that the vampires call Gehenna and the werewolves call Apocalypse gathers like a great storm. The Kithain call this time Winter, and the newly arrived nobility may soon find themselves battling forces beyond any they dared imagine.

The Time of Legends
In the beginning the world stood preformed. Every tree and rock and stream existed eternally, yet there was a silence upon the land. Neither birdsong nor breeze broke the silence. The world was without movement or life. Then a great light burst upon the world and from that light strode the first of our kind, the Tuatha de Danaan. Were they gods? You could be excused for thinking so. Certainly they were beings of power, and throughout the world they spread their noble light. From them humanity learned to dream. At first it was glorious, for the Tuatha de Danaan gave the power of dreams as a gift to humanity. Humanity, in turn, gave the Tuatha de Danaan that which they needed to create the Time of Legends.

The world and the Dreaming were one and all things were possible. Creatures found now in only the Deepest Dreaming (if at all) had everyday concourse with humanity. Harpies, griffins, dragons and all other manner of creatures now deemed impossible roamed the world and were part of its natural order. Yet don't look for them in the so-called "fossil records" of the scientist, for where there were dragons, they see only natural "evolution." The word comes hard to my lips; still, there arc places for divergent paths and dissimilar histories of the world. It is only the machinations of the Hidden Ones that makes one version preeminent over another. But to continue... In time this Golden Age gave way to Silver, for even "faerie tales" have their prime and their old age. From the Tuatha de Danaan came all other kith. There were the trolls, tall as mountains and like the thunder in their rage. There were the pooka, wild and prankish in their ways. There were the sluagh, who lived in caves and other secret places, and there were many more besides. Even in those days, before the coming of kings and queens, the peoples of the fae looked to the wise sidhe for leadership and counsel.

Seasons beyond counting passed and the Age of Silver gave way to one of Bronze. It may be mere coincidence that this was the age that man too called the Bronze Age, for that is when they first learned to smelt that metal. (A gift, no doubt, given to them by a wayfaring nocker.) Other creatures appeared, distortions and perversions of the fae. There were the vampires, children of the blood-mad faerie Lilith. Sundered too, from the fae were the skinchangers called Garou, who are related in kind to the Kithain pooka. The first cool breezes of Autumn blew, and change and death were in the wind,

Many of the Tuatha de Danaan became bitter and cruel. They fell to waring with each other. Other forces became involved, though who they were, our histories do not say. Perhaps the Prodigals, perhaps... but that would be speculation and is not part of our lesson for today. War tore asunder all that the Tuatha de Danaan had built. The Tuatha de Danaan departed this sphere, or perhaps they were all slain by their own greed. All that is left of them are their children: us, the fae; and first among them the sidhe. With the departure of the Tuatha de Danaan, a new age came upon the world.

The Sundering
This age might be called the Iron Age, for again it coincides with the forging of that metal by man, and iron has ever been anathema to our kind. The Sundering might be likened to the first cool days of autumn, when the leaves begin to die. Humanity turned its back on us, and we in turn did the same to humanity. Although humanity must bear much of the blame for this, we too are not without the stain of guilt. Proud sidhe and humble boggan alike turned from humanity, even as it turned from us. For the two were too haughty, greedy or foolhardy to live as one.

Humanity took to the cities. The reasons for this are many. Perhaps great canyons of steel and glass are their natural habitat. Perhaps they did so to protect themselves from the wylde creatures of field and stream, the fae and the Prodigal Garou, who had grown hostile to their kind. Perhaps it was the machinations of the Children of Lilith, who congregate in those man-made warrens. Whatever the reason for this change, humanity learned the ways of hierarchy. Great kings and queens and empires grew among them, and the fae followed in their footsteps. No matter how much you may hear the opposite, the fae followed them. The fae are creatures of the Dreaming, are reflections of humanity, and their fate intertwines with mortals. They are not their puppets, but must be ever mindful of their place in the scheme of all things.

Humanity created monarchies to rule over it and the fae followed suit. Great lords and ladies rose among the fae. Chief among them were the sidhe, who were ever counted Leaders among their kind.

Great battles were waged for the crown, and many good fae of noble and common stripe were destroyed in the name of king and queen. There were wise and benevolent rulers and there were tyrants; ever should you be mindful of the difference between the two. Great freeholds grew amid the mortal realms and in the Near Dreaming too. Great palaces of dreamstuff, far outstripping the works of mortal monarchs, were built; some approached the grandeur of fair Arcadia itself, or so it is said. Many a great song is sung about those days and rightly so. For while it was a time of growing darkness, so too was it a time of great heroism. Such legends as the Knights of the Red Branch spread throughout the lands, and their great kind are with us, even to this day.

Also in these days were the greatest clashes between the Seelie and Unseelie courts. Though that enmity has cooled somewhat, it is still a glowing ember, waiting to blaze to life again.

And still for some time, though the distance between Arcadia and the mundane sphere grew ever wider, there remained intercourse between the two realms. Faerie and enchanted mortal alike trod the Dreaming paths between the lands, and this was called the Age of Travel. Many of the great legends of humanity grew during this time. Cuchulainn and King Arthur were the results of this blend of human and faerie stories. Yet, ultimately, the greatest result of this age was the distancing between the mortals and the fae. Great battles raged over the dwindling trods and freeholds as more and more of the uasal sidhe left the lands of men for Arcadia. A great darkness fell upon the land, and that darkness was called the Shattering.

The Shattering
Perhaps the "Shattering" is not the best name for this period, since it evokes imagery of a sudden cataclysm, a window splintering to pieces in a fraction of an instant. Indeed, it was a long, drawn-out process, taking place over many human generations. It was the culmination of the Sundering, the crowning event in our ruination. Nobody knows when it began; perhaps when humanity first rifled the soil or marked the passing of the seasons. It doesn't matter. One by one the great noble houses returned to Arcadia, most of them never to return. The five Seelie houses that have come back were also the last to leave. Some speculate that it was their actions in the final days of the Shattering that caused their eventual exile from Arcadia.

Humanity was in the midst of so many changes. The wisdom of the ancients was lost in many places and then reborn again. As "rationality" was rediscovered in the Westerlands, so too was our departure from the mundane sphere accelerated. Perhaps it was different in the Easterlands; even in the best of times our contact with the fae of those lands was not strong. Certainly here, in the lands now called Concordia, the Shattering was not as severe. Along with the nobility, many commoners also departed for Concordia and few of them have returned. Of all the noble houses, only the mendicant House Scathach stayed in any numbers. Their ways are secret, though, and little is known of their actions in the centuries that followed.

A Black Death fell upon humanity. Untold masses died of sickness and starvation. Humanity, in fear and hatred, sought out those to blame. Demons and devils were the culprits most commonly named, but often the Kithain and the other Prodigals paid the price. Even today there are remnants of the time called "Inquisition" alive.

But the time of the final Shattering were terrible times in which to live. Hideous times... The strongest works of the Dreaming crumbled like sand castles before the tide of Banality that swept over the world. Kithain fell upon Kithain in those end days The few nobles who chose to stay warred over the remaining freeholds and trods.

The great portal of Silver's Gate was destroyed in a pointless, foolish battle between two sidhe brothers. The High King of those times, High King Falchion, was cut down in final battle at the World's End; a great, rushing darkness took his body. Feudal hedge lords, both sidhe and commoner, rose up in the wake of his death. These corrupt nobles collected tolls along the final trods to Arcadia, demanding dross and barter from the fae desperately seeking escape. Some of them even administered false trods, which led to the Nightmare realms. This practice did not last long, though. After the fall of Silver's Gate, even the secret trods closed. Soon there was nothing left of the noble houses of the sidhe on Earth and a new age was upon the remaining kith, a time called the Interregnum.

The Twilight Time / Interregnum
The final days of the Shattering are any Sidhe's last clear memories. After that, over 600 years of memory stolen! Earth, even the most dim images of it, was closed off from Arcadia, and few sidhe have more than hazy images of Arcadia at best. These years, which they call the Twilight Time and the commoners call the Interregnum, are a blank to all the sidhe. Six centuries — even to an immortal it is almost inconceivable. So much remains unknown about those years. So many changes on Earth. A Renaissance, art and science, the great stories. There was war and discovery, the rise of new forms of government. Two World Wars? So much lost. Nor, I fear, is there much I can tell you of the fae who stayed behind. The burgess are reluctant to share their secrets, accumulated over those centuries on Earth. Perhaps they can not be blamed.

Certainly many feel as though they were abandoned by the nobility. Trapped in a hostile world. Forced to wrap themselves in skins of mortal flesh and Banality. Each generation becoming more corrupt and severed from the Dreaming. Even the sidhe, who have forgotten so much of the Dreaming, know more of its secrets than they ever will. Still they survived. Can the sidhe not do the same?

This was the age of the commoner nobles. Burgess with no blood line came to power through craft or brute force. Some of them led as nobly as any sidhe; in truth, though, most of them were despots, Like ravening wolves, many of the burgess Kithain (though by no means all of them) hunted down remaining sidhe. There is no record of how many perished in the years immediately following the Shattering. Some of the remaining nobility retreated to hidden freeholds, and so survived. But they rarely ventured forth and some burrowed so deeply into their own private Dreaming that they do not yet realize that the five houses have returned. Beware the glens of these Lost Ones, for their inhabitants are often powerful and mad from their isolation. Nor is House Scathach of much aid in reconstructing the years of the Interregnum. Though they aided us when we returned from Arcadia, distrust remains strong between us.

The common nobility was never more than a loose collection of feudal states. They called this confederation the Empire of the Turtle, a name drawn from nunnehi legends (Some insist that it has its origins in Garou legends). They rarely made lasting alliances reaching beyond a single kith. Still, we can be grateful to them for a number of reasons. Many of them were worthy caretakers, tending the remaining freeholds in our absence, They also had the common sense to reach an accord with our Unseelie brethren. I pray that our current leadership has the wisdom to continue that peace. They kept the remaining races from completely fragmenting during those times. I have said it at court many times and it bears repeating: When the land is crownless it lacks a soul. When the land is soulless it lacks honor. When a land is without honor, beware the wolf at the door. Many of the burgess nobles were reluctant to relinquish their power when the sidhe returned. Ah, but I am getting ahead of myself. That belongs to our next chapter, a time called the Resurgence.

The Resurgence
There are some soothsayers who say that they can tell you all about the Resurgence. They claim special knowledge of the causes behind our exile and special insights into our "secret purpose" in the mundane sphere. I have but one thing to tell you about these "wise men." Avoid them. They are charlatans and scoundrels all. If one comes to your door begging a bowl of soup in return for the truth of your life in Arcadia, drive him from your door with sticks and hounds. Certainly there are honorable practitioners of divination, but no Art can pierce the veil between here and Arcadia. In uncovering the forces behind the Resurgence we have only two honest allies. The first is logical deduction. I know that such a "Banality-laden" practice is not a subject for polite conversation at high households, but it is a useful tool nonetheless. Certain things remain eternal, and one is constancies in the fae character, be it Seelie or Unseelie. Much can be gleaned by subjecting fae behaviors to rational scrutiny.

Our second ally is our own memories, hazy though they may be. My memories of the Shattering are clouded, but mostly consistent. It was so long ago. My memories of the final days in Arcadia, however, are fragile and infuriatingly contrary things. Only images, really. That is all that most of the Five can claim, though some seem to remember more than others. Still, if my memories have any truth in them at all, I can tell you plainly: All is not well in Arcadia. Again, images. Of them, four that seem the most true.

I remember a great conclave in a palace of jade, with windows cut from living emerald. Green balefire, unbounded by brazier and lantern, blazed wildly throughout the throng. Far hazier is an image of a red sea which wailed with tortured voices. Another image: a statue of a great queen, proud and imperious in bearing, but without a head. Finally there was a great dragon, scarlet red and rampant, inverted against a black sun. I do not claim to know what these images mean, but they fret at me and occupy both my waking and dreaming hours.

I do not remember much of the journey from Arcadia through the Dreaming, either. The Mists of Memory stay with you for some time after you pass through them. Even my earliest days on Earth are a haze. I remember walking freely through the Dreaming, yet a fae walking by my side was in chains. Some of us obviously departed Arcadia under more duress than others. If I left voluntarily, though, I cannot imagine why. I am a scholar at heart, yet when I first became aware of my surroundings on Earth, my hands were covered with blood and I had many wounds.

I heard the flapping and squeaking and rustling of a thousand darkling spirits on the ground and in the air around me. I don't know what they were, bur they came into this world with us, from the Dreaming, I fear. They quickly dispersed upon our arrival, before we had the wits to contain them. I fear that our arrival brought a great evil into this world and much deviltry has resulted from it, especially among the mortals of this world. This was inadvertent (I hope), yet I must ask myself: Would we not have had some inkling of this happening before we left Arcadia? What were we thinking? What kind of people were we?

Our time of arrival on this plane was dangerous and frightening, but it was also exciting. We arrived individually, or in small groups of two or three. There was no pattern to it that I could discern. We sought each other out. Some of us immediately recognized each other as friends or lovers from the other side. Others were old enemies or complete strangers—but friend or foe, we were all each other had. There were few incidents between us.

I fell in with two others, Lady Sierra and Lord Dyfell. I cannot begin to describe the joy that leapt in my heart as I first discovered that I was not alone in the world. First there were three of us, then 10, then 50, and still more of us drifted in. There was Sir Marx and Lord Dray and True Thomas the Rhymer. Now it may have been a testimony to our wisdom or our luck that we found each other so quickly, but I doubt it.

Instead, I believe we worked in accordance with some grand design, predetermined in Arcadia. (Predetermined by whom is another question.) At first we only met with others of our kind, the errant nobility. In the course of our wanderings we also met with the sidhe of House Scathach, which had thrown in its lot with Earth during the Shattering. Although they were suspicious of us (and we of them) they were invaluable in helping us acclimate to our new surroundings.

Soon after that, we encountered the commoners and the so called "commoner nobles," who had risen during our absence. I must confess (egalitarian though I consider myself to be) that I was quite shocked the first time I encountered a pooka in kingly raiment. (Though in truth, it was a poor parody of such.) We were met with friendship and with indifference. Many commoners, however, looked upon us with a jaundiced eye. In their minds we were a pampered class, untrustworthy and affected in our demeanor. They accused us of having abandoned them and then returning to reclaim our mantle of leadership as though nothing had happened. Many of their barbs have the sting of truth. Even now, it is up to us to prove ourselves worthy of our old place in Kithain society.

Unfortunately, some of our class did not see things this way. Their arrogance, combined with the natural surliness of many of the commoners, quickly led to several violent incidents. These clashes became increasingly frequent as more and more nobles exercised their ancient rights. Within a year we were at war.

The Accordance War
There are those who sing glowing ballads about this war. I am not one of them. As much as the human war that was unfolding in Vietnam, it was an unnecessary and despicable waste of life. Both sides were arrogant and intractable. For months tensions grew between the commoners and us. Many commoners gathered beneath our banner, while many others rallied against us. There was a general antipathy toward authority in those days, and I believe that our reception was in some measure colored by this. In any event, the violence between us increased. Several peace delegations passed between our two camps, but with little success.

Still, war might have been avoided, if not for... Forgive me. This is difficult. It was a Beltaine Eve, much like today. A delegation of the most powerful commoner nobles in the nation gathered for a final peace meeting. The stated purpose was to fairly divide the newly opened freeholds. I do not know the details, but when the last of them was in the great meeting hall, the doors slammed shut. A band of masked nobles and their retainers fell upon them with swords of iron. Not one of the commoners escaped and the Beltaine Night of Iron Knives Massacre quickly became a rallying cry for commoners everywhere. It also became a symbol of our treachery. War was upon us.

Much of the war is a matter of historical record and I will not belabor it. Lord Dyfell of House Gwydion, thereafter known as High King, led the war effort. He became the noble most hated by the commoners. The most foul of atrocities were laid at his door, including responsibility for the Beltaine massacre. Even now it suits the needs of many nobles to continue this obscene fiction. Since Dyfell is dead, his de facto guilt prevents fingers of blame from pointing elsewhere. For my part, I will state categorically that he was innocent of that crime. I knew the man well. He was stubborn, arrogant and infuriatingly brilliant, but he never would have killed ambassadors under a flag of truce. In fact he treated all his prisoners with the utmost respect. No few of them swore allegiance to him after meeting him.

My own suspicions for the Beltaine massacre fall upon House Eiluned, but I admit I have little evidence. I might also add parenthetically that the commoners were not without stain when it came to atrocities in the prosecution of the war. 23 noble children were tortured and slaughtered by boggans in Maryland. I could go on, but suffice it to say we treated our war prisoners far better than they treated theirs. But back to the war... House Gwydion spearheaded the war effort, sup- ported strongly by Houses Dougal and Eiluned. Houses Liam and Scathach stayed neutral throughout the conflict, while much of House Fiona is known to have sided with the commoners! At first the war went badly for us. The commoners outnumbered us considerably and they knew this world. Furthermore, they used mortal weapons, guns and the like, which afforded them great advantage.

I have read Thomas the Rhymer's dissertation on the war, Fields of Blood. While I agree with many of his assertions (he is a close friend), I must voice my disagreement with several of his conclusions. His conclusion that responsibility for the Beltaine massacre went no further than the so-called "Berkeley Three" is naive to say the least. Sir Thomas somehow manages to implicate Dyfell (indirectly) and three other conspirators (except for the Unseelie Lord Drummond, conveniently unnamed) without delving into the activities of the then-nascent Order of the Beltaine Blade. He also mentions "sidhe warriors mounted on motorcycles," an image that is (at least at that time) ridiculous. We were new to the world of man and avoided contact with modern technology at all costs. In fact the very act of using a motorcycle at that time would have involved an unacceptable charge of Banality. Our skins have toughened somewhat since that time.

Back to the war. Dyfell was our savior then. Soldiers from all of the Five (and many commoners too) gathered beneath his green griffin-escutcheoned banner. He turned the tables on the commoners, defeating army after army, most of which were many times his in size. Victory seemed to lead to victory, and the tide began to turn. The commoners were routed in a string of major battles. It seemed as though Dyfell was blessed, but then came the Battle of Greenwich. Dyfell broke the back of the famed Eastland Troll Army, under the command of the troll, General Lyros. Street-to-street fighting took place throughout the city of New York. Lord Dyfell's regiment was ambushed in the New York "subways" by the tattered remnants of the 4th Troll Commons Battalion. Some say Dyfell died in fair battle, but the general consensus seems to be that he was killed by treachery from within his own ranks.

I shudder to think what path the war may have taken after Dyfell's death. For all his military victories, Dyfell was a civilizing influence on the war. He conducted his campaigns with honor and often his foes replied in kind. Still, there were many Kithain on both sides of the conflict who wished for nothing less than the complete annihilation of the other side. These angry voices are with us still, hut they were much stronger in chose days. I truly believe that they may have gained control of the war if it were not for the appearance of your father. The High King was merely a boy in those days, just one of the many childling refugees from Arcadia. He was one of True Thomas's charges and I had met him once or twice before. My impression of him even then was that he was an extraordinary little boy, though, of course, I had no inkling of his true Dán.

Immediately following Dyfell's death, the commoners of Greenwich went on a killing spree. They were, in the main, redcaps, and even General Lyros could not control them. Several of them caught wind that there were noble children in the area and a hunt was decreed. True Thomas did all he could to protect his young charges, but even he could not be everywhere at once. Young David was separated from his friends, pulled by a siren song from beneath the streets. He was probably not aware of the danger into which he walked. The catacombs house a particularly loathsome band of Unseelie nockers, as well as many dreadful Prodigals. Still, I am convinced that he would have walked into the maw of the Doomsday Dragon itself, on that night.

The situation for Thomas's school went from bad to worse, and several sidhe children were butchered. As Thomas battled a unit of redcaps in final, desperate battle, David returned. In his hand, David held aloft Dyfell's great blade, Caliburn. The blade burned with a bright gold, where for Dyfell it had burned blue. "Turn and face your king," he is reported to have said. I have little doubt that the redcaps believed his word when they first looked upon him, for they turned and fled shrieking into the night.

When word of a new High King spread throughout the nobility, there were mixed reactions. Some rejoiced that they would not be leaderless, while others considered David an upstart, a boy playing the games of men. From New York, David went to Queen Mab's Kingdom of Apples. After initial doubts, she threw her weight behind him, as did Dyfell's consort, Lady Sierra. It was also at this time that I entered into his service as an advisor. With the combined might of these two royal women behind him, David was quickly able to enforce an end to the war. It was not an easy task, for there was much animosity between the two sides, but through diplomacy and arms, the war's ending soon became a foregone conclusion.

The Present
After the Accordance War, things quickly fell into their current state. In accordance with the conditions of the peace, King David named his lands the Kingdom of Concordia. The peace that David forged was a just one, though there are dissenters. The commoners were given a much-deserved voice in the governance of the kingdom and many commoner nobles have risen through the ranks through merit or lottery. King David is much loved by the commoners, as is his sister, the Lady Morwen. Yet there are radical commoner bands, such as the Ranters, which even now seek our destruction. The Ranters, led by that violent brute, Ravachol, have shed much innocent sidhe blood since the end of the war. The Five have consolidated their position and maintain control over the bulk of the freeholds and trods they took during the war. House Gwydion emerged as the leading house, though it controls no more land than any of the other houses. Seven great kingdoms have formed, each ruled by one of the Five. There are many other, smaller kingdoms (duchies, really) as well. These kingdoms are fluid in their composition and borders. Intrigue among the Five is rife. Many pretenders and would-be kings constantly test the rulership of Concordia, as do the machinations of the motleys and the Prodigals. House Scathach has all but disappeared since the war and controls no land. (Its members' true nature is still unknown.)

Noble society has divided into three "Impulses" since its return to Earth, There are the Traditionalists, who wish that all would return to the times before the Sundering, when the sidhe enjoyed unquestioned rulership of the fae. There are the Reformists, those who support the traditional institution of the monarchy but desire it to be a more egalitarian instrument. Lastly there are the so-called "Modernists." These fae believe strongly that the nobility must give up its power, becoming part of the modern world. Some who follow this impulse are honorable enough, even visionary; others are the worst sorts of rabble.

Although the nobility has come back into its own, times are not necessarily easy for us. This world is strange and hostile to us; many of us have not fared well here. Former dukes and knights wander homeless on the streets, often falling prey to roving bands of commoner brigands, the Prodigals, or Banality. Despite the games of intrigue played by the Five, things have been mostly calm since the rise of King David, but change blows on the wind. Since the disappearance of Duke Asterlan, there have been many changes among the nobility, and few have been for the better. Strange signs and portents have appeared of late, perhaps heralding a final change of season, the beginning of Winter, a Winter that Spring must inevitably follow.

Rank & Privilege
To the former nobility of Arcadia, power for power's sake is rare. Even the worst fae tyrant has a guiding vision. To the fae nobility, monarchy is the only right and natural state for the Kithain. Perhaps democracy, communism or fascism may work for the masses of humanity who, after all, have so many other strange ways, but not for the fae. With the exception of the Modernists, the sidhe consider any form except monarchy (with them on top) to be a dangerous aberration. Noble status among the Kithain carries with it many privileges. This is even true today, though many Kithain no longer acknowledge nobles as their leaders. Since returning from Arcadia the nobility has brought with it the old code of laws, many of which are long forgotten or ignored by commoners. Many commoners consider these old laws hopelessly archaic, even foolish. In many places, however, these laws are enforced vigorously. The nobility has control over such a disproportionate number of tracts and freeholds that noble strictures are almost impossible to ignore completely. Even the most radical motleys often find themselves paying lip service to the nobility, though they snicker about it later.

While many commoners grumble incessantly about the arrogance of the sidhe nobility, few are prepared to do anything about it. There are two reasons for this. The first is that the various kith are too divided against each other. While members of every kith dislike the sidhe, such malcontents are badly organized and often turn on each other before they can work against the sidhe. Many Kithain don't even associate with changelings other than their own kith and are just as distrustful of their fellows as they are of the nobility. The sidhe have taken full advantage of this situation and many sidhe nobles are adept at games of divide and conquer. Many changelings welcome the return of the sidhe, because incidents of internecine warfare between various kith have dropped precipitously since their return. Few rational changelings want to oust the local sidhe noble when a redcap band lurks nearby.

The second reason is that, despite their preening and posturing, the returned nobles have not enforced many really onerous laws upon the Kithain. Most changelings continue with their normal lives, largely unaffected by the change of leadership. To many commoners, the new sidhe hierarchy is no worse (and often better) than the commoner nobles who ruled before them. Besides, they just look more natural doing it. Few changelings can resist the juicy gossip of the doings of the high sidhe.

Appearance
The Sidhe resemble humans of unearthly beauty; their bodies are perfect, their features pleasing, and their hair richly colorful. They are ethereal and carry a hint of sadness even when they laugh. Tall and lean, they are fierce and regal, with tapering, pointed ears, angular features, and a commanding gaze. Their eyes are odd yet striking colors, such as violet or silver. They rarely wear anything but the finest clothes.

Seemings

 * Childlings know the blessings of their inheritance from an early age. The best of them act like perfect little gentlemen and ladies, but the worst of them are spoiled rotten and throw tantrums when things don't go their way.
 * Wilders know they have the opportunity to indulge their every whim outside of court. Although high spirited and presumptuous on occasion, they are watched carefully once court begins. Seelie wilders are overconfident that their chivalry and nobility will prevail; Unseelie wilders are rebellious and scheme for power.
 * Grumps fully realize the weight of their lofty positions. Many carry the burden of memories of years gone by. They pine for their glory days and grieve the mistakes they have made. The greatest release from this introspection is the intrigue of the court.

Birthrights

 * Realm Affinity: The sidhe have not spent enough time on Earth to acquire an affinity.
 * Awe and Beauty: Sidhe get two extra dots of Appearance during character creation, even if this increases their score above 5. They cannot help but stand out in a crowd. The fury of a sidhe scorned is a majestic and terrifying sight. When impassioned, all their Social rolls (especially Empathy or Intimidation rolls) are at a -2 difficulty. Anyone who tries to attack an angry sidhe head-on must make a Willpower roll; the difficulty ranges from 6 (for the average sidhe) to an 8 or 9 (for one of suitable high station). This birthright only affects other Kithain and the Enchanted, unless the sidhe calls upon the Wyrd.
 * Noble Bearing: Whether heroes or villains, all sidhe are dignified. Any cantrip that would directly make them look foolish immediately fails.
 * Sidhe cannot botch Etiquette rolls.

Frailties

 * Banality's Curse: Sidhe are not truly of this world. The taint of Banality affects them more strongly than it does other fae. Each temporary point of Banality that a Dream Lord gains becomes two points. If a sidhe character must make a roll at a difficulty equal their Banality (or a roll resisted by Banality), treat it as one level higher.
 * Sidhe are also prone to fits of depression. The weakest of them can overcome these fits by changing their Legacies back and forth. When this happens, the spell must last from moonrise to moonrise or sunset to sunset. Strong-willed sidhe escape this mania by retreating further into their Legacies; Seelie become impossibly idealistic and Unseelie sink to the very depths of villainy. Their great extremes can make them almost unendurable.

The Escheat
First among the laws of the Kithain is the Escheat. These laws have been the code of the fae for time out of mind. The commoners mostly followed the Escheat, even while the nobles were gone. Most changelings learn the Escheat when they are childlings and follow much of it out of habit (though some provisions are obeyed more slavishly than others). The fact that the sidhe have returned means little in connection to the Escheat, except that there is now a central authority to administer it. Contrary to the grumblings of many dissenters, the sidhe apply the terms of the Escheat to themselves, even more strictly than to the commoners. Even Unseelie nobles tend to follow it, though they often interpret it differently. Nobles who break the Escheat, for any but the best reasons, are ostracized by their fellows. The sidhe may be imperious and arrogant, but unlike many human leaders, they don't usually consider themselves above their own laws. The nobility has a slightly different view of the Escheat than most commoners and enforces its six terms accordingly.

The Right of Demesne
A lord is the king of his domain. He is the judge and jury over all crimes, large and small. His word is law. A noble is to be obeyed by his vassals and respected by all others. A noble is to respect his lords.
 * Reality: Obviously this right is important to the nobility, since it underpins the monarchical system by which they rule. The sidhe feel they have already done all that can reasonably be expected to "democratize" the institution and are surprised the commoners want more. It is difficult to run an absolutist monarchy when your subjects have access to C-Span. The nobility still strongly believes in the divine right of kings, but the subjects usually don't. Thus the nobility rules through a combination off force, guile, charisma and adherence to tradition.

The Right to Dream
Mortals have a right to dream unhindered by our needs. The Dreaming will die if we steal directly from the font. None are allowed to use Glamour to manipulate the creative process. Although you may inspire creativity in the mortal mind, it is forbidden to give direct instruction.
 * Sidhe24.pngReality: The sidhe come from a more civilized time, when Glamour was plentiful and Ravaging unnecessary. Despite the new realities of today, the Seelie nobility strongly enforces this provision of the Escheat. Unseelie lords, of course, do not have nearly the same moral compunctions about Ravaging. Exceptions are made to this rule, but only in the case of extreme emergencies. Included in this right is a prohibition against Dream-Rape.

The Right of Ignorance
Do not betray the Dreaming to Banality. Never reveal yourself to humanity. Not only will humankind hunt us for our wisdom, it will bring Banality upon us and destroy our places of power. The more humanity knows, the more it will seek us and the more Glamour it will destroy with its Hydra's gaze.
 * Sidhe13.pngReality: The nobility rarely needs to enforce this law, since the commoners follow it strictly out of habit. This law is a matter of survival. The only sticking point is the role of the kinain. To survive over the centuries the commoners introduced themselves into human bloodlines. These bloodlines often include relatives who learn something about the fae. Since, however, it is central to the survival of the commoner kith, this part of the Escheat is not strictly enforced in this instance. Many nobles still privately consider human kinfolk to be a technical violation of this rule. Many also consider the mixing of fae and human blood to be degrading to the fae. Some of the more reactionary nobility, like some Traditionalists and the Order of the Beltaine Blade, have even proposed killing any mortals who have learned too much.

The Right of Rescue
All Kithain have the right to expect rescue from the foul grip of Banality. We are together in danger. We must strive together to survive. Never leave anyone behind. Kithain are required to rescue other Kithain who have been trapped by Banality.


 * Sidhe59.pngReality: Both commoners and nobles respect this law, though for slightly different reasons. Despite their differences, the commoner kith have developed an "all-for-one" attitude when it comes to rescuing fellow changelings from Banality (and other dangers). The recently returned nobility share these instincts to a degree, but they also have more selfish motives. The sidhe are vastly outnumbered and are desperate to fill their ranks. (They are also more vulnerable to Banality.) This law, then, especially applies to very recent arrivals from Arcadia. These changelings are not yet acclimated to earth. They are often undergoing the Chrysalis and are thus very vulnerable and confused. Noble law (and most commoner tradition) dictates that a new arrival must be brought to the nearest sidhe house for fosterage and the Fior-Righ. The nobility often sweetens this deal by offering rewards to any commoners who safely bring in such a fledgling in a timely manner. Some radical antimonarchists like the Ranters consider newly arrived nobles an easy mark. They may take them hostage for ransom (often some political demand) or even kill them outright.

The Right of Safe Haven
All places of the Dreaming are sacred. Kithain cannot allow faerie places to be endangered. All those who seek refuge in such places must be admitted. Freeholds must not only be kept free of Banality, but free from worldly violence.


 * Reality: The sidhe are evenly divided on how they follow this right. While all of them pay lip service to it, many are leery of letting in strange Kithain. Those who deny free access do so because they fear that too many changelings in a freehold may deplete its Glamour reserves. There is also a "security" issue involved. Certain nobles, on the other hand, follow this right to the letter and allow entry to any changeling in need. Nobles who allow this free entry, however, insist that their guests obey the laws of comity. All household rules are strictly enforced. Since the nobility controls such a large number of freeholds, noble adherence to this law is of great import to Kithain society as a whole.

The Right of Life
No Kithain shall spill the life blood of another Kithain. No Kithain shall bring salt tears unto the Earth. No Kithain shall take from the Dreaming one of its own. Death is anathema.
 * Reality: This law is both strictly obeyed and vigorously enforced by the nobility. Penalties for breaking this law are severe, but in keeping with the right's intentions, rarely include capital punishment. The subtle minds of the nobility usually inflict far more imaginative punishments on criminal changelings. It is especially important to note that the penalty for killing a sidhe is far greater than for killing any other kith. The reasons for this are not completely selfish or arbitrary. According to tradition, a changeling of any other race is reincarnated as another changeling and has a chance to start again. What happens to the sidhe is unknown. (Some say they become commoners in their next life.) Of course, many commoners are suspicious of this flimsy justification.

Kithain Justice
As an abstract concept, most changelings, even the Unseelie, place a high value on justice. They are even more passionate in their insistence that justice be done than are most humans. Their concept of what justice is, however, is somewhat different. Much of this goes back to the old tradition of oathbonding. A promise is not something given lightly among the Kithain. Many changelings feel that if you don't have your honor, you have nothing of value. In fact, when a changeling's solemn word is given, the Kithain justice system rarely needs to get involved at all. Oaths are often backed by the power of Glamour. Even when they aren't, it is unlikely that a changeling will go back on her word. Kithain memory for oathbreakers is long and entails severe social penalties. It is rumored that the ancient High King Falchion broke a solemn vow and was utterly destroyed as a result.

Unfortunately, changelings sometimes take their insistence on justice to extremes. Sometimes "justice" becomes a euphemism for "vengeance." Not a single slight is forgiven or forgotten, and some of the reprisals Kithain take for wrongs (real or imagined) are truly barbaric. Other changelings can usually protect themselves, to a certain degree, from an aggrieved fellow faerie. The same cannot be said of most humans. Numerous tales abound concerning humans who have cheated or insulted a changeling in some manner. The reprisals for their misdeeds are often far out of proportion to the seriousness of the infraction. Kithain morality tales often end with dishonest humans being eternally covered with stinging insects or being boiled alive for the merest of crimes. These stories are inevitably told from the changeling's viewpoint. Little sympathy is spared for the human. Many Seelie changelings can be as thin-skinned about slights as their Unseelie cousins, sometimes even more so. Seelie Kithain can be very self-righteous if they imagine they have been wronged. Their "righteous anger" is every bit as petty and mean- spirited.

Surprisingly, most nobles are somewhat slower to anger than most commoners. Perhaps this is due to centuries of good breeding or noblesse oblige; maybe it's just their insufferable cool. Usually a noble doesn't need to resort to force or draconian legal methods to maintain order; a withering glare is often enough. However, in certain cases the nobility is called upon to administer justice. The nobility has reestablished its entire system of jurisprudence on Earth, and is not afraid to use it. This system is complex and arcane. Many commoners claim bitterly that it favors the nobility. The court system sanctioned by the nobility is divided into two tiers: Commoner Courts and Uasal (High) Courts. Changelings who choose to live outside the noble-administered system have their own system of justice, but that is a subject for another book. Of course, the nobility doesn't recognize these motley courts.

Commoner Courts handle many of the day-to-day functions of Kithain society. They deal with civil complaints and other "trivial" or local matters that the nobles do not wish to involve themselves in. Most of these courts operate out of commoner freeholds and are enforced by the local constabulary. By tradition a noble may not be tried by a Commoner's Court, though this has occurred on several occasions.

Uasal Courts are the instruments of the nobility and involve themselves in the most serious crimes and matters of state. They consist of seven nobles who stand in judgment of the accused. Their judgments are usually just, but they are also final. They were once far more autocratic, but this has changed, thanks to King David. The accused is granted counsel and has his choice between a summary judgment or trial by Fior. (for more on this practice, see the larger article Fior)

Enforcement
The laws of the nobility are enforced by Glamour and tradition. Despite the objections of some commoners, Uasal Courts are generally known for their fairness. Their findings are usually not disputed. When push comes to shove, however, the nobility is prepared to use force to back its laws. These laws are enforced by both noble knights and commoner thanes. There are strict rules to prevent the officers of the nobility from abusing their privileges, though they aren't often needed. Most knights of the court take their charge seriously and are not generally susceptible to corruption. The main problems occur when high-handed sidhe knights fail to take into account the feelings of the local commoners.

Noblesse Oblige
Being a king isn't all perks and reserved hitching posts. Implicit in the Right of Demesne is the nobility's responsibilities to its subjects. There are few nobles (commoner or sidhe, Seelie or Unseelie) who do not take their responsibilities seriously. A noble who does not care for their subjects risks a nasty rebellion, but there is more to it than this. From the time that they are childlings, nobles are instructed that it is their sacred duty to protect their subjects and to treat them justly. The nobility of the Kithain have a far better record in this department than most human (or Prodigal) leaders. Many nobles even have a romanticized view of "the common changeling" and have been known to disguise themselves to go among them. (It is considered poor form for a commoner to recognize their liege when they are so disguised.)

Despite the nobility's good intentions, noblesse oblige is a proprietary instinct. Many commoners rightly resent the nobility's paternalistic and patronizing ways. In general, the nobility looks at commoners as beloved, but unruly and somewhat backward, children. It is not that the nobility underestimates the commoners (there are many scholarly treatises on "low commoner cunning"), but few consider them equals. Sidhe nobles extend this judgment to the commoner nobles.

Good Deeds
When they are honest with themselves, even the most radical of antimonarchists admit that there have been certain improvements since the return of the noble sidhe.

During the long years of the Interregnum, Kithain society splintered into a thousand factions and small communities constrained by geography. Many Kithain would go their entire lives without meeting changelings from beyond their freehold or oathcircle. All this changed with the sidhe's return. The nobility provides a central, unifying factor in changeling society. Noble freeholds are often cross-kith affairs, whereas most commoner freeholds are more homogenous. Although sidhe contact with other races is in many ways superficial, they still, through the execution of their noble duties, come into a wider range of kith than many other changelings. This gives the nobility a great breadth of knowledge, if not a great depth. If nothing else, many commoners have united out of a distrust for the nobility.

Another positive achievement of the nobility is the opening and protection of the many new freeholds and trods. While the great surge of Glamour in 1969 was not caused by the sidhe, it was contemporaneous with the Resurgence and they usually get credit for it (along with the moon shot). Thus the sidhe's arrival is directly linked with the most positive event in living Kithain memory. Commoners who assert otherwise are usually accused of sour grapes.

Even if they didn't actually cause the Resurgence, the nobility has taken advantage of it to the benefit of all changelings. Prior to the Resurgence the few open trods, and the Near Dreaming in general, were dangerous in the extreme. Brigands and hostile chimera often hid along the Silver Path, waylaying travelers at will. Sidhe cleaned up the trods to a great extent, making the major ones quite safe. Of course their influence wanes the deeper into the Dreaming one goes. Some nobles have been known to charge tolls to travel trods under their "protection," while others allow free passage to all.

The nobility also guarantees the borders of all changeling freeholds under their protection. Noble tribunals negotiate territorial disputes between competing Kithain. Indeed, strife between changelings has quieted down considerably because of this. Additionally, the nobility acts decisively to protect commoners from incursions by the Gallain, the Unseelie Court and even the Prodigals. The one area where this situation is somewhat reversed is when humans are involved. The sidhe are particularly vulnerable to Banality and hence, do not deal with humanity as easily as most commoners.

Perhaps the greatest benefits reaped by the commoners from the nobility's return are not so tangible, however. The sidhe were always the heart of the Kithain, and when they abandoned the fae during the Shattering, a vital part of the Kithain spirit was severed. Although many commoners are suspicious and resentful of the sidhe's return, they also welcome them back because they are a missing part of the Kithain soul. Finally, as the kith most familiar with the Dreaming and most recently of Arcadia, the sidhe represent a great opportunity for the Kithain to grow. Many commoners feel that the sidhe's return affords all changelings an unprecedented chance to explore worlds long denied to them during the Interregnum.

Power Corrupts
It is a common misconception that high corruption is solely the province of the Unseelie Court. With the rhetoric of honor and duty forever on their lips, the Seelie nobility are often not suspected of deception, even when the finger of guilt points straight at them. Most of the Kithain nobility (Seelie and Unseelie) have a strong code of ethics. Within that code most of them are studiously honest. Their standards, however, are highly rarefied and not widely understood outside of the nobility. When their code conflicts with the rights of others, it is usually the outsider who suffers. A noble who is well within the code of the Uasal Sidhe may easily be acting immorally by another person's standards. Since their code is so cryptic and arcane to outsiders (especially humans), they are often accused of acting capriciously.

Apologists for the nobility often use the above arguments as a catch-all defense for any morally suspect actions by the nobility. Even the most inhumane of noble actions are deemed by many to have their roots in a strenuous moral code, different perhaps, but no less valid. Unfortunately this is not always the case. Some Kithain nobles are mad, evil or corrupt. These nobles adhere to a code of noble conduct only insofar as it fits their purposes, often only for appearance's sake. Such nobles usually fall into one or more of the categories listed below.
 * Ideologues: Many nobles have an ideal or a vision that they are moved by. In some cases, however, idealism becomes fanaticism and the noble loses sight of all other considerations. There are several factions among the nobility {e.g. the Beltaine Blade) that encourage this fanaticism. The fae are passionate creatures and none more so than the sidhe nobility. The legends of Arcadia, while forgotten, still loom large in their minds. Many sidhe are supremely confident that they know what is best for all.
 * Power Mongers: Power for power's sake. This stripe of noble is the personification of the old axiom about the corrupting qualities of power. Being a Kithain noble is a heady and exhilarating existence. Some nobles cannot help but be corrupted by the near-limitless power they wield over both the Dreaming and their fellow Kithain. In general, the higher the title, the greater the possibilities for corruption. Nobles who spend a lot of time in their freeholds or in the Dreaming are especially susceptible to this brand of corruption. There is nothing like a good dose of Banality to knock a power-mongering noble down a peg.


 * Dualists: As a rule the sidhe are more likely to switch allegiances between the Seelie and Unseelie Courts than other changelings. Some nobles bring this eclectic behavior to schizophrenic levels. For most Seelie nobles, the Unseelie side is treated as a one-night stand, an emotional safety valve. Some only let their Unseelie side show once a year, on Samhain Eve, yet a changeling's other nature is an integral part of her, whether she admits it or not. There are some changelings, however, who lose all distinction between the courts, sometimes switching between them moment to moment. Strangely, most of these dualist nobles are highly adept at concealing their true nature and appear as some of the most solid and dependable members of their respective courts.


 * The Insane: While an outside observer may consider a dualist insane, most changelings would not. There are, however, changelings who would be considered deranged by even the high standards set by the Malkavians (see Vampire: The Masquerade). The sidhe are particularly vulnerable to the ravages of insanity for a number of reasons. Their loss of memory and identity, the pressures of plunging unprepared into the modern world, and their undeniable connections with the Dreaming are but a few. Many sidhe spend most of their time in their freeholds, thus opening them to the ills of Bedlam. Insanity is not usually treated with the same stigma by the Kithain as by humans. Insane changelings are generally accepted and often even revered by changelings as Kithain who have escaped the dread weight of Banality. Most insane changelings are relatively harmless most of the time, but there are exceptions. Insane sidhe are some of the most dangerous Kithain alive. Despite the above, sidhe are less vulnerable to Bedlam than other kith who spend a comparable amount of time in a freehold.

The Burgess
Human faerie tales are full of stories about people who have run afoul of the fae, only to be ensnared and enslaved forever. These stories are true; Enchanted human servants are favored by the Kithain nobility, who never tire of their antics. Many modem and more egalitarian changelings view this practice as barbaric. For all their complaints it is still a common practice to employ human servants. Most such servants are very well treated (sometimes even spoiled) and may even rise to high positions within a royal household. Changelings are very careful to choose humans with the least amount of Banality possible (often artists or children) as servants.

Special Powers
The sidhe have forgotten much of their past and know little of the modern world. Still, there are reasons why they are the lords of the Kithain. Despite their many centuries of amnesia, the sidhe have memories far older than any other kith. There are sidhe lords alive today who remember Charlemagne, the fall of Rome and even the Time of Legends. (Such Old Ones are exceedingly rare, however.) They know little of computers or popular culture, but they know the old secrets, denied to all but the greatest scholars of the other kith. Theirs is the knowledge of the trees and the secret places, of the mountain roots and most especially of the Dreaming. Even the sluagh are jealous of the many old secrets known by the sidhe.

While in their freeholds, safe from the icy winds of Banality, they recreate the high magics of yesterday, unseen by other Kithain for centuries or even millennia. It is little wonder then that many commoners welcomed them back as the true leaders ofthe Kithain. Noble freeholds are magnificent affairs, sometimes approaching the grandeur of Arcadia itself. The sidhe have a special affinity for the Dreaming and are also known to live in time somewhat differently from other Kithain. As a result the sidhe wield the Arts of Chronos and Dream-Craft far more easily than any other kith.

Politics
The politics of the high sidhe are unlike any others in the World of Darkness. Born of a more subtle, civilized time, their politics are a model of mannerly comportment. This civilized veneer, however, conceals a hard-headed, often vicious culture of pitched political skirmishes and treacherous backstabbing. Only the immortal schemes of the vampires and perhaps the machinations of the Technomancers match it for subtlety and complexity.

With little memory of their lives in Arcadia and scant understanding of the modem world, the sidhe nobility still addresses the issues and petty grudges of half a millennium ago. Old house rivalries and medieval concerns are just as frequently debated as issues of modern import. As a result, many commoners consider the sidhe's gyrations archaic and irrelevant. With their monopoly over the trods and freeholds, however, the Dream Lords wield an undeniable power over Kithain society. Commoners ignore this power at their peril.

Within the boundaries of Kithain society, the policies of the nobility are strongly enforced. Both sidhe and commoner nobles have keen insights into the racial psyche of the Kithain and the philosophy of rulership. Commoner nobles, of course, differ from the sidhe in their methods of leadership. The sidhe's greatest weakness is their ignorance of the "real world." Their concept of monarchy doesn't extend beyond the Kithain, except in the most general terms. Like the Garou, they wield little power in the human sphere. Many commoners escape the edicts of the nobility by immersing themselves in the human world. Conversely, many sidhe escape the trials of rulership by escaping farther into the Dreaming.

Form
Few things can match the pageantry of a high noble's court in full session. Here is the heart and the power of the Kithain soul. The nobility has spared no expense in recreating its pre-Sundering glory. The commoners have literally watched the legends of yesterday spring back to life before their eyes. Kithain artisans (especially the nockers and boggans) are richly rewarded for their efforts and work tirelessly to build the greatest of wonders for the nobility.

Innovations in faerie architecture incorporate secrets from Arcadia and modern (human) construction methods to create a grand synthesis unlike anything else seen on Earth. A building boom has taken place over the past 25 years, with great structures being constructed all over the Near Dreaming.The grandeur of the nobility is not limited to architecture, however.

The faerie nobility are a regal and imposing assemblage and would be, even if met naked in a muddy field. (They do this sometimes, but that's another story.) The sidhe in particular seem to carry with them their own inner light. When they meet in royal concourse, this effect is greatly magnified. A train of nobles decked out in court finery is enough to take one's breath away. Political brinkmanship is considered a pleasure, as well as vitally necessary, by most nobles, especially the wilders. Even the gravest of proceedings are animated and punctuated by moments of levity.

Form is the key to content in a noble court. The slightest change of the troubadour's melody, the arch of an eyebrow, or the subtle wearing of a royal favor may indicate the most important of political shifts. Commoner observers are allowed in most royal court sessions. The political theater that this provides has become all the rage among commoners, as well as among the nobility. This is especially true since so many other aspects of Kithain life are reflected so vividly in the affairs of court.

Here there is intellectual stimulation, honor, intrigue, and romance. The sidhe, especially, have a way of making the most dry and prosaic of arguments burn with a passionate intensity. Those not used to these debates may find themselves completely swept up in the proceedings, becoming vehement proponents or adversaries of things they cared little about before the meeting. Duels have been fought over subtle historic points or the proposed color of the carpeting in the foyer.

Staying in Form
There is a rhythm to every court session and no two are exactly alike. Changelings who fail to make a Perception + Empathy roll (difficulty and number of successes needed vary; sidhe characters reduce difficulty by two) are out of sync with the proceedings (Increase the difficulty of all Social and Mental rolls related to the proceedings by two). Most noble conclaves are so subtle and fast that the uninitiated often miss the entire point of the proceedings if they blink. If there is one constant complaint that the commoners have of the nobility, it is that they seem to be more taken with form than with content. What they fail to realize is that, with the sidhe, the two are much the same.

Content
Despite their sometimes affected manner, the fae nobility are deadly serious when it comes to matters of survival. Great matters of the day include the negotiated settlements of territorial disputes (land disputes equal instability), the administration of trods and freeholds, and enforcement of the Escheat. Additionally, the nobility has its hands full trying to curb the excesses of the Unseelie Court, learning the ways of the mortals, and divining the intentions of the Gallain and the Prodigals. These matters weigh heavily on the minds of the nobility.

Structure
There are two official venues for political debate among the Kithain. The first is any royal court session, the other is the Parliament of Dreams. There are four types of royal court sessions, listed below in ascending order of secrecy. They are the open court, the closed court, the privy council and the reune. (For more information, see the larger articles)
 * Open Court
 * Closed Court
 * Privy Council
 * The Reune

The Parliament of Dreams
For more on this ruling body of the Kithain of Concordia, see the article Parliament of Dreams.

Political Impulses
For more on the political leanings of the fae, see the article Impulse.

Unseelie Nobles
Among the greatest concerns to the sidhe nobility are the activities of the returned Unseelie sidhe; the so-called Shadow Court. While the sidhe nobility went about the difficult task of usurping leadership from the commoner' nobles, the Unseelie Court seemingly disappeared. This is of special concern, because unlike the commoners, the two courts of the nobility never made peace. Indeed, many theorize that it was war between the two courts in Arcadia that led to the exile of the five Seelie houses. Many fear that the Unseelie Court is biding its time, waiting for an opportunity to strike. Recent signs indicate that they are reemerging.

Despite these concerns, the Seelie nobility recognizes that the Unseelie is an integral part of every changeling's nature. For this reason there are no rules preventing Unseelie nobles from participating in such governing institutions as the Parliament of Dreams. Actually this decision is not completely for unselfish motives. With the Unseelie Court mostly underground, such contact is one of the few ways that the Seelie Court can keep tabs on them. The number of admitted Unseelie Kithain in such institutions is very small (about 5 percent).

There are, of course, no true methods to discern whether a changeling is Seelie or Unseelie, except by their actions. Some fear that there are really far more Unseelie fae in positions of power (even kings and queens) than is evident. (It is rumored that both Queen Aeron of Pacifica and King Meilge of the Kingdom of Willows lean heavily toward their Unseelie natures.) It must be conceded that the Shadow Court may have the same concerns about Seelie spies in their midst. Since the Seelie nobility experienced great resistance and resentment when they returned from Arcadia, it is assumed that the Unseelie sidhe may have many of the same problems in reacclimating themselves to earth. House Ailil is the only Unseelie house that the sidhe know has returned, but there are always rumors of more. It is also rumored that the Unseelie nobility remembers far more about the exodus from Arcadia than they let on. Any Unseelie noble will, of course, laugh at this assertion.

It is generally believed that, like the Seelie Court, Unseelie political life consists of three political impulses. The Unseelie "Traditionalists" wish to return to the old ways, when the Seelie and Unseelie Courts took turns at power over the course of a year. Another impulse believes that the Seelie Court has ruled long enough and that it is time for the Unseelie Court to take complete power. Fae of this impulse believe that the current Seelie leadership has upset the natural order of things by ruling for as long as it has. The third Unseelie impulse believes that there should be no rulers at all. It is unknown which impulse currently holds the most power in the Shadow Court.

Houses
Most commoners see the nobility as a singular entity with monolithic goats and ideals. This is incorrect. The nobility is split along many lines. Divisions exist between Seelie and Unseelie Courts, political impulses, and especially among the various houses.

Seelie Houses

 * Sidhe60.png Beaumayn
 * House Dougal
 * House Eiluned
 * House Fiona
 * House Gwydion
 * House Liam

Unseelie Houses

 * House Aesin
 * House Ailil
 * House Balor
 * House Daireann
 * House Leanhaun
 * House Varich

And Two More

 * House Scathach
 * House Danaan

Rulership
The changeling nobility are indoctrinated in the ways of leadership from childhood. Whether born to the smallest of knightly fiefdoms or the high palace of Tara-Nar, the philosophy of rulership is as ingrained a habit as breathing air. Every sidhe (and most commoner nobles) knows instinctively what her role in Kithain society is. Sidhe live their role to its fullest extent. There are many levels of rulership within the nobility, and each has a very specific and different place.
 * Sidhe65.png Kingdom


 * The Duchy


 * The County


 * The Barony


 * The Fiefdom


 * The Household

The Nobility & the Dreaming
It is not known by what device the nobility affects the Dreaming. It is frequently observed, however, that the sidhe nobility have a much stronger effect than commoner nobles in this regard. Most Kithain historians trace the possible cause for this back to pacts made between the Tuatha de Danaan and the first sidhe during the Age of Legends, while more modern fae allude to the power invested to them by the collective consciousness. None can say for certain, though. The "control" over the Dreaming wielded by the nobility is neither conscious nor complete. Instead the long-term nature of the Dreaming in a given area conforms to its lord's general character (if the lord is calm and serene, so too are their lands). Short-term mood swings may be reflected in more temporary ways (i.e., a storm, or a plague of chimerical locusts).

This phenomenon has harmful as well as helpful implications. If the lord is in a dark mood, a chimerical storm may worsen this condition. Furthermore, chimerical beings tend to gather in places which are conducive to their basic nature. A territory ruled by a disagreeable noble is infested by all manners of chimerical monsters. These creatures may serve the lord of this territory, but they are just as likely to attack her. This is one of the reasons that Unseelie lands are rare. Lords of these areas spend much time and effort defending their home front. Nobles have a certain affinity for chimerical creatures attracted by their own moods and may dispel chimera within their realm through an expenditure of one point of Glamour (more in the case of truly potent chimera). Conversely, the lands of a benevolent lord may contain all manner of benign and wondrous creatures.

Secret Societies
Both the political and the social lives of the nobility are rife with secret societies. Whether these societies are deadly political cabals, or fashionable artists cliques, they have a profound effect on fae society. Some prefer to work their will through the dissemination of information, while others employ terror and assassination. Some are at least somewhat known of by the general Kithain populace, while others are truly secret.

For a complete list of such societies, see the article Changeling Societies.

Court Intrigue
Intrigue is an everyday fact of life in most noble courts. Gossip, secret treaties and treacherous back-stabbing are commonplace; even the most ordered courts have some intrigue. Intrigue is not necessarily a bad thing, if it doesn't get out of hand. A little of it keeps a noble on their toes and helps to maintain a high interest in the doings of the court. When intrigue gets out ofhand, however, it can tear even the strongest of courts apart. A wise ruler keeps a tight watch against the excesses of court intrigue.

In some courts, intrigue occurs on every level. Even the jester and the scullery maid are in on the action. An intelligent noble must learn to play the game at every Level at once. Spies and secret alliances must be skillfully woven throughout the court; allies cultivated among even the lowest of the palace's retainers. Indeed, allies of this sort are especially important, since they can go places without drawing the attention that other nobles always attract. Nobles who choose to play the game of court intrigue only at the highest levels (i.e., only among their fellow nobles) rarely succeed.

The Art of the Game
Intrigue, as with so many other aspects of noble life, is considered a high art form. The sidhe, in particular, view every minute of their lives in the Dreaming as being part of a living story. They savor every breath they take. A sidhe lord in search of an angle can bring far more imagination and perseverance to solving it than almost any other creature in the World of Darkness. (This is less true in the mundane world, where sidhe tend to become groggy and lethargic.) The sidhe are forced to be particularly innovative in lieu of their lost memories and lack of experience in the earthly sphere.

Sidhe versus Commoner Nobles
For many centuries, during the Interregnum, the commoner nobles held a monopoly on political power. The few sidhe remaining during that time were either hunted down or forced (like House Scathach) to live underground. The recently returned sidhe do not forgive the treachery of these commoner nobles. To some sidhe, the Beltaine Massacre was justified on this account alone. For their part, the commoner nobles feel that they have more right to rule by virtue of having "earned" their title and by having stuck out the long, hard years of the Interregnum. They, of course, bear a grudge because of the Beltaine Massacre.

The relationship between the two groups, since the Resurgence, can be politely described as "strained." Bickering between the two is constant, and occasionally flares into violence. The sidhe usually fare better in these skirmishes. Both sides have advantages against the other and try to utilize them, without exposing their weaknesses. The commoners have a home turf advantage, because of their familiarity with the modern world. They are also more resistant to Banality and have slightly more popular support from the people. The sidhe, on the other hand, are simply more adept at wielding power. They are better organized and not divided along lines of kith, like the commoners. The sidhe also enjoy more popular support among the commoners than one might, at first, suppose.

Despite their differences, there are also some areas of agreement. Common ground includes the need to cope with the Unseelie Court, the Ranters (who dislike all nobles), and the plots of the Gallain. Nobles, whether they are common or sidhe, are still nobles, after all. On many occasions they have more in common with each other than with the vast majority of commoners. They also realize the virtue of cooperation amid an increasingly hostile and Banality-filled world. Something of a rapprochement has been reached in recent years.

Courtly Love in Politics
When commoners mumble about "government by reune," they often mean the royal pillow talk of nobles in love. It is little secret that nobles of either sex enjoy political counsel from spouses, lovers or even royal concubines. The sidhe, in particular, are highly vulnerable to the swaying voice of amour. A love interest may either be a great and strengthening factor in a noble's life, or may drag them down to their doom.

At its best, courtly love provides a noble with a steady keel, a good wind, and a safe harbor on the choppy water of Kithain politics. At its worst, a noble's lover may be a power-mad sociopath, or even be an agent of a competing noble, sent to destroy her. While some nobles (especially those of House Gwydion) are difficult to fool in most matters, love blinds even the wisest of Kithain.

Wars are waged to avenge even the slightest of insults against an aggrieved lover. Even though most commoners may resent fighting in such a cause, they still recognize and share the emotions involved as common to all changelings. Even the most dour of nockers and brutish of redcaps have some inkling of what power love holds over the Kithain heart.

Mortal Life
Most changelings lead two lives, split between their faerie seemings and their lives as human beings. To many, the concept of going on a grand adventure and then "returning in time for supper" is a reality. Many nobles, however, do not have this luxury. Running a court, especially at higher levels, is a full-time job. Few nobles willingly leave their duties for any length of time to live a second life. The sidhe, in particular, spend as little time in their mortal seemings as possible. This leads to some problems.

A noble who lives wholly in the Dreaming may be puissant in that sphere, but even the most unearthly of nobles must occasionally come out and address the "real world." Changelings who live in the Dreaming full-time are almost completely unable to resist the ravages of the real world. While most higher nobles (counts and up) can afford to have many of their earthly needs (housing, money, food) taken care of for them, many lower Kithain must fend for themselves. It is not uncommon to find a sidhe knight living on the street, and great noble houses in the Dreaming may hide a dilapidated shack in the mundane world.

Kingdoms
For more on the Fae Kingdoms on Earth, see the article Kingdom.

Kithain

 * Boggans: If there is any kith the sidhe may depend on in these dangerous times, it is these gentle and trustworthy fae. The boggans still observe all the old traditions of hospitality. Their lodgings and fare are plain and wholesome. They are a curious, industrious people; eager to please, if you meet their (usually) reasonable price. Most support the king. They are strongly traditional and their trade guilds thrive under sidhe rule. They do not part easily with their secrets. Fair treatment, respect and a kind word go farther with this kith (even the Unseelie) than anything else.
 * Eshu: The eshu are more widely traveled than any other fae people. They know secrets denied to even the sluagh. They also travel farther into the Dreaming than most other commoners, though not so far as the sidhe. Still, if there is any kith that could aid them in finding Arcadia, it is they. They are admirable in many ways. They are fiery, passionate and wise, but they are also dangerous. Their travels make them too independent and they often simply ignore any royal edict that they find inconvenient. Many of them consider themselves to be "nobles of the road," answerable to only their own strange codes. Their greatest strength and weakness is their addiction to experience. They prize knowledge for the experience gained in gathering it, not for its more utilitarian purposes. They use it well, nonetheless. The best way to befriend the eshu seems to be by sharing a dangerous experience with them. This is their way of bonding.
 * Sidhe40.pngNockers: Except for, perhaps, the redcaps, the nockers are the least popular of the changeling kith. This is predominantly because at their outward demeanor, which is admittedly brusque. In the case of Seelie nockers, this reputation is largely undeserved. Seelie nockers are studiously honest in matters of their craft, which is, after all, their main venue for dealing with other kith. Few other kith are as divided between their Seelie and Unseelie natures as are the nockers. While Seelie nockers are dour but honest, Unseelie ones are a horror. There are few things more dangerous than an Unseelie nocker's craft. Ultimately, the best way to approach a nocker is through their art.
 * Pooka: Despite their reputation for pranks and deception, the pooka are, at heart, an open and honest kith. It is a common misconception, however, that the sidhe are immune to their pranks. Certainly any cantrips employed by them toward the ends of making them look foolish are bound to fail. They know this and rarely use their Arts against them, instead employing more mundane trickery. The sidhe are a tempting target tor pooka trickery. This is partially because of the challenge they represent to them and partly because they feel sidhe need to be "knocked down a peg or two." If they get you dead to rights with one of their minor pranks, the best thing to do is to laugh along with them. It's not so hard and even monarchs do it. Do not hesitate to punish their more churlish or damaging pranks, however. Despite their protestations to the contrary, the pooka are well aware of the risks implicit in playing their games with the nobility. The most effective punishments against the pooka are not too draconian and involve an ironic twist on the original prank.
 * Recaps: Despite a recent cry to "exterminate the brutes," the redcaps are useful if properly approached. They respect only one thing: strength. If the sidhe remain true to their nature and command (rather than appease) them, they will not become a major problem. Beware treachery, however. Most of them have little honor. Even the Red Branch Knights have special conditions governing the sparing of surrendering redcaps. Their "Hell Night" festivities, every Samhain Eve, are despicable orgies of violence and must be stopped.
 * Satyrs: Lovely creatures, misunderstood as worthless hedonists by the fae at large. Satyrs are far more complex than they are given credit for being. Their carnal excesses are, to be sure, a major portion of their character, but they also have a scholarly, introspective side, which is often overlooked. Although they deny it, they are far more fascinated by the sidhe than by any other kith. This fascination can be very useful to the nobles, though it is admittedly not without its risks. Satyrs can be very possessive. Satyrs are also highly sentimental and usually have good intentions, though their passions often override all other considerations. Meetings of their tragos are glorious, frenzied affairs, capable of temporarily lifting the pall of Banality from the fae heart. They are worth knowing for far more many reasons than the usual "tryst or two" cited by many sidhe.
 * Sluagh: The sluagh appear from nowhere and could slit throats, if such was their intention. They are jealous in guarding their subterranean layers and have many allies there. Most sidhe think they have far more contacts among the Gallain Prodigals than they admit. Perhaps the most deadly thing about them are their divided loyalties. The line between the two courts is blurred for them. Some fear that even they do not always know which court they serve. They are far more dangerous to the sidhe than anyone realizes. Treat them with guarded respect and take nothing for granted when dealing with them. Despite the secrets that they keep, the sidhe have just as many from them, especially in their knowledge of the Dreaming. They have shown an indecent interest in sidhe secrets — they must sell them dearly when dealing with this kith.
 * Trolls: Whether as foe (as during the Resurgence) or more recently as allies, the trolls have proved themselves the most honorable of Kithain. They are more like the sidhe than even they realize and the sidhe's fate is more tied to theirs than with any other kith. They show great loyalty in council and in battle. Their aid was particularly needed in the Greens Rebellion of the late 1980s. Some Sidhe "traditionalists" have recently worked to undercut the trolls' traditional system of chieftains. If they continue this arrogant disrespect of troll sacred customs, they could drive the giants straight into the service of the Shadow Court. It is time for the sidhe to forget the long shadow of the 4th Troll Commons Infantry and Dafyll's death. The recent "Troll Reclamation Proclamation" (an obvious euphemism for the theft of troll fiefs), made by Dray and his ilk, is a stain on the honor of all sidhe.

Gallain

 * Nunnehi: Perhaps some of the nunnehi are less unfriendly toward the sidhe, but obviously most fae advise caution. The only consolation in the whole affair is that the Shadow Court is even less popular with them. If the sidhe are to have any luck dealing with them, continued negotiations with Chief Greyhawk is probably the best idea.
 * Inanimae: The inanimae were Kithain once, but no longer. Each inanimus must be dealt with on an individual basis. Use caution, but try to communicate with them whenever possible. Some are dangerous, while others are friendly. Many ofthem are far more afraid of the sidhe than the sidhe are of them. Some clearly have fallen under the sway of the Shadow Court, while others are friendly toward sidhe overtures. Most, however, showed little interest in the growing conflict between the two courts. The Mannequin People have ceremonies that match ours for depth and complexity. The golems are slow to anger, but fearsome warriors when roused. The most difficult of the inanimae to communicate with are the Ignis Fatuus (known more commonly as will o' the wisps, or vulgarly as "foobars"). These creatures of foolish fire (also called electricity) are sometimes allied with the nockers. There are doubtless many other types of inanimae yet to be discovered. There are rumors that the boys in the Glass Circle have information on several inanimae races.
 * Nymphs: These female spirits of river, glade and breeze are strong potential allies to either side in the coming conflict. They seem to be divided in their sympathies to the two courts, though most of them seem to be allied with the Seelie Court. When dealing with them, always remember to invoke the ancient pacts made between them and the sidhe.

Prodigals

 * Sidhe17.pngVampires: It is nice to see that some things do not change. The Children of Lilith continue their games of old, as though we never left. It's not something to jest about, but they are the only"living" link to the sidhe's time before the Shattering. Blood, both good and bad, passed between them in days of yore. The sidhe passed out of time and memory for 600 of their years. Their games have become, if anything, all the more bloody in that time. Vampires the sidhe knew as neonates are now ancient and so weighted with Banality that it is painful to stand near them. There are a few, however, who remember the old alliances. To the Malkavians, the sidhe might as well have never left. The Toreador Prince of Paris, Villon, is also friendly to the fae, though he takes no side in the conflict between the two camps. While the sidhe still know these elders, there is a younger generation of vampires who do not remember them. Perhaps the common kith know more about them. There is a commoner myth that the Kindred are somehow descendants of a blood-mad redcap. This assertion is ridiculous but it has somehow gained great currency among the common kith.
 * Garou: If the Kindred are virtually unchanged since the Shattering, the opposite is true of the shapeshifters called the Garou. In many ways they degenerated during the sidhe absence. While always ferocious, there is a desperation to their actions today that was not there in centuries past. Some are friendly toward the common kith, but few, if any, know of the sidhe. Yet in many ways, their fears are sidhe fears. The same forces that spread Banality through the world and make it so inhospitable to the nobility are also behind the Garou's decline. At least the Garou are not inherently hostile toward the sidhe as they are toward the Kindred. Despite the initial problems involved in re-establishing contact with them, the effort be made, especially with the Fianna tribe. The sidhe have many old pacts with them.
 * Wizards: Human Wizards battle each other to reshape this world in their image. Some are our allies of old, but many others manipulate the human masses, filling the world with cold, gray Banality. It is asserted that there is a hidden enclave of sorcerers whose sole trade is in Banality. If true, they are more dangerous to all fae than any other source. It is further maintained that they are hostile to several of the common kith. If this is indeed the case, the nobility have a sacred responsibility to put an end to their perfidy. The sidhe's closest allies among the wizards of old were the Verbena and the Dreamspeakers. With the aid of the satyrs, the sidhe have reestablished many of their old ties with them both since the Resurgence. It is vitally important to continue to reweave the fabric of these historically important alliances.
 * Ghosts: Humans experience the termination of their physical existence in a very different manner than the fae. It is generally well accepted that the commoner kith are "reincarnated," shunted up the karmic wheel, so to speak. Some sidhe what happens to them when they die, but nobody's offered them enough stuff to spill the beans. Some humans, however, turn into ghosts. Forget the traditional image of solitary Wraiths haunting a single location. While this image may have some validity, the majority of ghosts are every bit as militant and hierarchical as they were when alive. There's a lot of politicking going on among the dead. These affairs are their own and best steered clear of by the sidhe. The borders between Earth and the Shadowlands are not as thin as they were before the Sundering, but they are thinning. The barriers are demonstrably at their thinnest on Samhain Eve.

The Shadow Court
The sidhe of the Seelie Court never made peace with the Shadow Court as the common kith were forced to do during the Interregnum. Many fear that they may be trying to influence the commoners against them. There is also evidence that they have an unwholesome alliance with the vampire clique known as the Sabbat. It must be remembered that the Shadow Court probably encounters many of the same problems reestablishing their ties with the Unseelie commoners that Seelie sidhe have to the Seelie. (Unseelie commoners are a willful and antiauthoritarian breed.) Ultimately, if the fae are to survive, the sidhe must end this internecine struggle between the courts, but it must be on Seelie terms. They fear that the Shadow Court feels much the same way.

The Lost Ones
Are they poor, pitiful changelings, sundered from the main body of the Dreaming? Are they mad gods of their own, private universes? A personal experience with a Lost One can be disturbing in the extreme. The Lost Ones lie in wait to ensnare the sidhe: feeding upon their Glamour, their dreams, and ultimately their lives. They are masters of guile and trickery. Although they are powerless beyond the borders of their private freeholds, they are known to employ agents.

The Lost One that Lady Sierra encountered first appeared as a lost, human girl-child. She contrived to keep her in her realm until night, the time of their greatest power. A profound ennui fell over Lady Sierra and she felt her life ebbing away. When she at last revealed her true nature, Lady Sierra was powerless to resist her. Only the timely intervention of Count Chronos saved her life. Perhaps some Lost Ones are benign, but I have heard no account of them to support this hope. Beware.

The Sons of Adam & Daughters of Eve
Lady Sierra traveled much of Concordia, that which the humans call North America. She was consistently, and often pleasantly, surprised by the nature of humanity. Perhaps humanity has changed fundamentally in the years since the Sundering, or perhaps the lady has at last acquired the common touch. True, they are often childish, brutish and cruel, but they also carry within them the seeds of greatness. Their beliefs, en masse, are responsible for the horrific state of Banality in this world, but this is not their natural state. Cast your mind back to the time before the Sundering if you can, back to when there was great love between our peoples. It has long been Sierra's position that the great bulk of humanity is manipulated by hidden forces. These Hidden Ones are bent on making the world as inhospitable for the fae as possible.

When encountered individually, most humans are found to be honest, loving and decent: the virtues that those of the Seelie Court find most virtuous in themselves. There is a hardness to them, however, for the world they live in is harsh. They kill each other in greater numbers every year. If the Cat's Cradle accomplishes nothing else, it should strive to aid humanity in finding its way back to its true nature.

(Some sidhe find this an overly-romantic view of mortals. Most feel they must deal with humans realistically, as opposed to seeing them in the ideal terms that Lady Sierra does. Unlike Lady Sierra, few of them remember the Age of Legends.)

The Fomorians
From the letters of Lady Sierra.

"As instructed, I have been searching for any sign, no matter how faint, of Fomorian activity. I believe I have found some. The creatures, that I discovered at the border 'twixt Sun and Serpent greatly resemble the Fomorians of old. They are hideous beasts, worse than any chimera.

They seem to congregate in the worst places in human society: places where the ground is poisoned and the air lies black. I am not sure that they are responsible for the destruction of those three freeholds, but it seems likely. Although their powers are fantastic, they are heavily laden with Banality. My Arts were greatly reduced in effectiveness against them. Fortunately, many of them seemed to be dull-minded. If these are the Fomorians of past ages, they have lost much of themselves in recent times. They seemed to be allied with Count Vogon, as well as a pack of dark-hearted Garou and some human 'corporations.' I theorize that they are also weaving an alliance with the Shadow Court."

Sidhe Perceptions
There are two major factors which distinguish the sidhe from all the other fae. These are their impaired memories and their strange sense of time.

Memory
Although they seem confident, serene and even arrogant to the common fae, the sidhe bear a great and injurious scar. The period between the Shattering's apex (approximately 1349 CE, the height of the Black Plague) and the Resurgence (1969), 620 years, are erased from the sidhe's collective memory. In comparison they have had only a few decades to reconstruct their entire lives in a world that is changed and hostile. Some of them adapt remarkably well, while others are emotional cripples in some respects. As a rule childlings and wilders adapt better than grumps. Grumps, however, often have a serenity that allows them to transcend this lack of memory. Graybeards and Grandams form the bedrock of sidhe society on Earth.

When Magellan burned his ships behind him to urge his men onward, he unknowingly mirrored what the Twilight Times did to the sidhe. The sidhe are in many ways a tabula rasa. Since they cannot go back, they must go forward. In many ways their lost memories have brought out the best in them. Some even consider their exile from Arcadia as a good thing. There are many other, less benign, effects as well. First among them is their glaring unfamiliarity with the modem world. The alien nature of the earthscape is a constant and often frightening challenge to them. It is greatly to their credit that they have succeeded in so many ways.

Almost all sidhe have a deep, abiding desire to return to Arcadia, which they consider their rightful place. Yet none can remember it in any detail. Arcadia is like a fond, but rapidly fading dream. This desire obsesses some sidhe to the point of madness. There is some real anger felt by these imperious nobles. Their anger is primarily directed toward the remaining houses in Arcadia (whom they blame for their exile).

Time
The sidhe's relationship to time is unique in the World of Darkness. Time, as a quantifiable, linear phenomenon eludes the sidhe as a concept. The sidhe are more aware of every moment of their existence than any human, yet at the same time they relive the past. The sidhe have an unfocused air about them and are sometimes hard pressed to address imminent issues in the "real world." Past events crash in upon their psyche. They often cannot distinguish these memories (far more real and immediate than any human memory) from the present. This is espe- cially true of sidhe who do not have the Ability: Temporal Sense. Sidhe without this Ability have a difficult time distinguishing past from present. While this disadvantage doesn't cause any penalties in game terms, it should be roleplayed.

The sidhe's unique perception of time is of great aid to them in rebuilding their lost history. Without a past, the sidhe are forced to reconstruct their history, legends, and traditions whole cloth. Since the Resurgence the sidhe have lived through several distinct eras, each lasting no more than a few years. Often, when the sidhe talk about a relatively recent event, they speak of it with the reverent tones usually reserved for ancient history. An occurrence like Duke Asterlan's disappearance in 1976, for example, is already a part of sidhe mythology. This telescoping of time allows the sidhe a sense of history where there was none before. Tradition is hugely important to the sidhe, who would be greatly diminished in spirit without it.

As a rule, time for humans accelerates as they grow older. The sidhe are the exact opposite in this regard. More than anything, they have the time sense of a child, yet they are immortal. A sidhe often sees the morning, noon and night of the same day as different eras. Commoners often remark that the sidhe's greatest nostalgia is for breakfast. This truism is, in many ways, accurate. As night falls a sidhe may be painfully nostalgic about a just lived glorious midafternoon. They feel this more deeply than any human or common kith, because they live in all moments, past and present, at once.

The time discrepancies experienced by the sidhe are not measurable by any science known to humanity. The mage Sphere of Time may allow the mage some insights into the sidhe condition, but even it encounters great obstacles in discerning this time paradox. (The mage Time Sphere operates in a completely different paradigm than the sidhe's.) Most commoners consider the sidhe's temporal nature to be a psychological condition more than anything else. Often they read it as aloofness or aristocratic boredom. Some know better, however. The Chronos Art was lost to all but a handful of commoners during the Interregnum. Even now, any commoner who wishes to learn this Art is usually compelled to seek out a sidhe teacher. Many sluagh have an obsession with obtaining this Art.

The sidhe's perception of time colors their every action. If a sidhe acts, or doesn't act, in a certain manner, it is in large measure because of their relationship with it. Although many sidhe are disinterested in humanity, there is great curiosity about humanity's theories and perception of time. Some sidhe have greatly expanded their knowledge of time's doings by reading treatises on the subject written by human scientists and philosophers. Some of these have practical applications to wielding the Art of Chronos.

As a culture, the sidhe are also affected by their time sense. Many have learned to make time their servant, hence their spectacular successes in reasserting their authority since the Resurgence. Their ability to manipulate time gives them a great advantage over the other kith. It is a jealously guarded secret by most sidhe and there are laws regulating under what circumstances it may be taught. Sidhe of the Shadow Court also possess these secrets and are every bit as wary of teaching them to commoners.

Imagine a hodgepodge between the ancient Egyptian and Indian concepts of time, add a sprinkling of Relativity and you have a rough idea of the sidhe's philosophy of time. The turning of the eternally reoccurring Seasons (also observed by the commoners) is analogous to the Indian concept (and the Entropic Big Bang model) of the universe as something which destroys and recreates itself. Like the ancient Egyptians, however, most sidhe have a very serene, unhurried view of time.

Unfortunately, not all sidhe can readily control their relationship to time. Unless the sidhe has at least one level in Temporal Sense, she is buffeted about by her natural state, unable to manage time effectively in any but the most limited fashion. Only sidhe with the Chronos Art are able to manipulate it actively.

Courtly (& not-so-courtly) Love
The sidhe, like all fae, are an inherently romantic people. They feel love (or its absence) far more profoundly than most humans ever do. It is at once their crowning glory and their greatest weakness. It is the foundation of all that is good in them, yet it can also drive them to madness and perdition. Love among the fae nobility is highly ritualized, with a thousand years' tradition behind it, yet it is no less passionate for all of that.

Much of the sidhe's time and energy is spent in the contemplation of love. The formalized structure of sidhe courtship, with its hundreds of prohibitions and bylaws, is often criticized as "passionless" by outsiders. What they fail to realize is that sidhe passion is so powerful and elemental that a romantic framework is required, lest the sidhe lose all their moorings in a maelstrom of passion. The formalized element of noble romance also adds considerably to the experience of love, building a sense of suspense and desire before more physical encounters take place. Certain romantic taboos also guard against the darker aspects of fae love.

A review of sidhe literature, poetry and song reveals a preoccupation with romance unmatched by any kith, except for the satyrs (and perhaps the eshu). Noble freeholds are extremely conducive to romance. The court of a romantic sidhe is filled with delicate melodies, warm amber light, and smells and tastes to tempt and excite the sensual pallet. House Fiona is especially romantic in character. With its natural predilections for the common kith, Fiona courts are multi-kith affairs, brimming over with life and love (and court intrigue). In the game of love, those of House Fiona are unparalleled.

For more information, see the article Courtly Love.

Romantic Legacies
For more information, see the article Romantic Legacy.

Romanticists
For more information on Romantic Societies, see the article Orders of the Heart.

Sex
The act of making love among the fae is a varied and pleasurable pursuit. The nobility, untethered from human prohibitions for over 600 years, are especially free of human sexual taboos. Lovemaking between fae may be traditional or experimental. Some sexual encounters amongst the sidhe are comparatively chaste in appearance (though appearances can be deceiving), while others are truly alien and bizarre to most human eyes.

Due to their relationship with time, sidhe lovers are usually very much "in sync" with each other. Fae of all kith may use their Arts to heighten both the emotional and the physical act of love. The act of love may be carried on at many levels at once. Two changelings who seem (to outside eyes) to be merely facing each other, perhaps holding hands or stroking each other's cheek, may in reality be exploring unbounded realms of pleasure. Partners in the act of love making combine cantrips to weave dream tapestries of sensation. The level of pleasure enjoyed in these encounters is undreamed of by humans (or by most Prodigals).
 * On Satyrs: Of all the commoner kith, the sidhe have the most romantic encounters with the satyrs (and vice versa). Despite their many readily apparent differences, the two kith have a unique (and sometimes overpowering) attraction for each other. Most sidhe find satyrs to be both strangely repelling and compelling. Many satyrs, on the other hand, are both aesthetically and emotionally attracted to the sidhe. Both kiths often deny this dangerous, star-crossed attraction. There is a strong "moth to the flame" element in this love affair and many of these two kith end up burnt by it. Satyrs are widely considered to be the only kith more romantic in outlook than the sidhe.

Morpheas Sabinis
For more information on this taboo sex act, see the article Morpheas Sabinis.

Arranged Marriages
Arranged marriages are relatively common among the sidhe. These marriages are usually arranged to cement treaties between the houses. Many commoners look askance at this "archaic" tradition, but even they must admit that it is successful at promoting stability among the nobility. The practice is now slowly gaining popularity among certain common kith. The vast majority of arranged marriages take place among Seelie houses. There are, however, several strategic marriages between the Seelie and Unseelie Courts. It is an interesting footnote that, unlike arranged marriages in human history, many fae marriages of this nature are quite successful from both a political and marital standpoint.

Cross-Cultural Romances
The vast majority of noble romances take place within the noble power structure. Occasionally, however, a noble leaves the carefully drawn borders set by tradition and loves an outsider. This is often frowned upon, not just for proprietary considerations (sidhe are very class-conscious), but because of the great dangers inherent in such affairs. Still, sometimes a noble will risk societal censure, danger, and even death for the sake of love. Aside from sporadic, torrid affairs with the satyrs, the sidhe very rarely engage in love affairs with the common kith. The reasons for this are many, and sometimes not too pretty. Many sidhe, in their heart of hearts, consider themselves to be superior to the common kith. An affair with a commoner will often (though not always) reduce a sidhe's standing in the noble community. This prejudice is also shared by many commoners, who distrust sidhe motives. Commoners who "marry upward" are often ridiculed as social climbers, or worse. (There is some jealousy involved here.) Despite this, sometimes a love of epic proportions may blossom between the classes. Ironically, it is often easier for the sidhe to violate noble strictures than it is for commoners to break this taboo. Commoner stories are filled with examples of commoners who fail in love with a sidhe, only to meet a horrible (and well deserved) end. This mythology is particularly enforced by female grump commoners.
 * Common Kith

As individuals, many commoners are hard pressed to resist the advances of a sidhe suitor. The beauty and glamour of such suitors are often overwhelming to most commoners, who are often swept off their feet. While many such advances are genuine, some are merely flings for the sidhe suitor. Some sidhe (especially Cerenaics) consider it a thrill to go romantically "slumming" among the commoners. Many a commoner heart is broken in these trysts. Only the satyrs have a greater record at this. Sometimes the reverse situation occurs and a sidhe noble is crushed by the callousness of a commoner love. Next to the satyrs, the eshu are the most usual recipients of sidhe attraction (followed distantly by trolls and pooka).
 * Humans: Both human and fae lore are filled with tragic examples of love affairs between humans and the fae. From the Lady of Shallot's unfulfilled love for Sir Lancelot, to the dangers of the Ganconer and the Melusines, the dangers of such dalliances are told in great detail. The dangers inherent in such affairs affect both Kithain and burgess alike. For the fae (especially sidhe), the danger of acquiring unwanted Banality through immersion in the human world is great. There are tales of changelings visiting their in-laws' house, never to return. For the human, the risk is even greater. Humans are comparatively fragile creatures. A love affair with a supernatural creature, such as a changeling, is dangerous in many ways. Enemies of a changeling may attempt to harm or manipulate their human lover to get at them. Far more dangerous to most humans is the danger to their psyche posed by exposure to the Dreaming. Many humans are driven mad by its revelation. On rare occasions, however, a love between fae and human works, to the betterment of both parties.
 * Prodigals: Of all sidhe affairs, the rarest are those with the Prodigals. There are strict laws forbidding such contacts in both the Seelie and the Unseelie Courts, due to the dangers posed by such encounters. The risk involved in these love affairs is not exaggerated and they rarely end up in anything besides complete disaster for both parties.
 * Kindred: Vampires (especially older ones) are heavily laden with Banality. Their very presence can be painful to the fae, especially to the sidhe, who are so vulnerable to it. The sidhe nobility still has old contacts with some elder vampires (from before the Interregnum), but has little contact with the younger generation. A love affair between a sidhe noble and a vampire would be a tempting target for political manipulation by both sides.
 * Garou: Although rare, changeling affairs with the Garou are still more common than affairs with any other kind of prodigal. The sidhe nobility is attempting to reinvigorate their ancient pacts with the Garou. Sidhe attendance at Garou moots is slowly increasing, thus leading to some interesting dalliances. Encounters between such lovers often tend to be whirlwind affairs: powerful, but short lived. The majority of sidhe contacts with the Garou are through the Fianna tribe. Most Garou are devoid of Banality.
 * Mages: Affairs with human mages are perhaps the most dangerous of all, because of the threat posed by the Technocracy. Commoner fae long ago learned the dangers implicit in such affairs, but the sidhe have yet to learn any hard lessons. The mages most commonly approached romantically by the fae are the Verbena and the Dreamspeakers. There are also several legendary affairs between Cerenaics and Cult of Ecstasy mages. Unfortunately, even brief encounters with such mages increases the likelihood of Technocratic involvement.
 * Wraiths: From a purely logistical standpoint, romantic liaisons between fae and wraith are highly unlikely. There are several unconfirmed stories of such affairs, but they are exceedingly rare. Such stories usually end up with the fae pining away to oblivion, to join her dead love. Some say that Banshees are created in such a fashion.

Creatures of Love
Several dangerous creatures are created by (or prey upon) the emotions of fae love. Two of the better known creatures of this nature are the Ganconer (a.k.a. the Geancannah, or Love-Talker) and the Bean Sidhe (Banshee).
 * Ganconer
 * Bean Sidhe

Preternatural Beauty
The sidhe are perhaps the most beautiful creatures in the World of Darkness. In game terms, they receive an additional two points of Appearance, even if this raises their total above the human maximum of 5. Few people appreciate what this really means. Imagine the most beautiful person you have ever seen. Now imagine what it would be like if their beauty insinuated itself into your heart and soul every time they were around. That is how most humans react to an Appearance of 6 or more. Even the most numb of humans become elevated in the presence of such beauty. It is a beauty that can raise the soul to great heights, inspiring works of poetry, honor and love— or it can kill.

A sidhe character with an Appearance of 6 or 7 (some have even more) is not "merely" breathtakingly beautiful. Few individuals, human or fae, are able to grasp an attribute above the allowed human maximum of 5. A person with a 5 Intelligence is as hard pressed to fathom the mind of a person with 6 as a person with an Intelligence of 1 would be to fathom the person with 5. This is why vampire elders are so dangerous.) The sidhe are well aware of how useful their beauty can he, and often use it as a powerful weapon. There is also a downside, however. An appearance of 6 or more can also inspire powerful negative emotions (possessiveness, jealousy, etc.).

Few creatures in the World of Darkness can compare with the sidhe in beauty. Several vampire elders and, perhaps, the fomor Enticers are among the few who can. Creatures with such legendary beauty often become, slowly, aware of each other. They often circle each other like sharks. Beauty comes more easily to the sidhe than to any of the above groups. Numerically the sidhe have far more collective beauty than all of the above groups put together. Some Prodigals view this rapturously. The vampire Prince of Paris, Villon, and his daughter are strong allies of the sidhe. Other Prodigals consider the sidhe a threat. This list includes Madame Paris, the CEO of Siren Cosmetics.

Romantic Theatre
To the sidhe, love is often a high-risk game, filled with danger, passion and high theater. Nobody does pageantry like the sidhe nobility. Their chimerical freeholds are enchanted wonderlands. To get a general idea of what they're like, watch Kenneth Branaugh's version of Much Ado about Nothing (in peace time), or Akira Kurasawa's Ran (at war). The sidhe have a high sense of fashion and theater. Romantic trysts often reach near-epic proportions amongst them. Games, both dangerous and comedic, are played out regularly in sidhe society. These games are many-tiered, highly complex affairs that may involve everyone from the king to the downstairs maid. Most commoners know to get out of the way when these games start, but sometimes they join in.

This high Romantic Theater is not planned by the sidhe, but generates spontaneously. There are always low-level games going on among them, but occasionally a high-level drama explodes in their midst. While dazzling in their scope and glamour (Glamour), these episodes can be highly dangerous. Kingdoms can fall in these legendary dramas.

If the Storyteller wishes to run one, they should plan it well in advance. They should be sweeping dramas (or comedies, or tragedies) that cut across many levels of fae society. These pageants should have recognizable theatrical types. Heroes and villains, both high and petty, should play out their roles with swagger and bravado. High lords and ladies play out their roles with wit and nobility. Greater dramas also drag in most of the commoner kith in the area.

Mortality
Although long lived, most fae are not immortal in the sense that vampires are. While in their freeholds, Kithain are shielded from the ravages of both Banality and old age. Some fae spend most of their time within their freehold retreats, thus aging little. This is particularly true of the sidhe, who fear Banality above all other things. Most commoners are more "of the world" than their rulers. Many live their lives, traveling between their human and faerie seemings, with little thought of denying their mortality. To most commoners, life, death and rebirth are a natural cycle. To most sidhe, however, death is an unnatural and frightening thing. In Arcadia, if the stories are to be believed, natural death is almost nonexistent.

The sidhe fear death like no other kith. Yet, it is natural death that they fear more than any other. A sudden, violent death while in the prime of their life is sometimes an unavoidable reality of existence. It is a reality that they accept. Death by the slow diminution of what they are, however, is horrifying to them. Unlike the common kith, the sidhe do not know what awaits them beyond death. Tradition has it, that in Arcadia they went to a place called Spring as they finished their autumn years. This is not thought to be possible from earth. It is only the sidhe's inherent courage in most other aspects of life that allows them to face death with their accustomed, imperious stare. They'll be damned if they let the commoners know that anything rattles them.

Although there are some extremely old commoners, few compare in age to the oldest sidhe. In one respect, the apparent ancientness of the sidhe is illusory. Sidhe who lived before the Shattering may remember the Crusades, but they don't remember the intervening years between then and the present. Although most commoners understand this intellectually, there is still a strong aura of age around the sidhe that is hard to ignore. Even though the sidhe who lived through the Interregnum may not clearly remember those years spent in Arcadia, they still, presumably, lived them. There is something of a generation gap between sidhe who remember the Sundering and those born since the Resurgence. Some sidhe (like Lady Sierra) are truly ancient.

Assassination
Assassination as a means of attrition is all too common among the sidhe nobility since the Resurgence. The first and greatest assassination since their return was that of the Warlord Dafyll. Some say that it was his murder that paved the way for the three high-profile assassinations (and a fourth attempt) since that time. The first regicide to rock Concordia since Dafyll was that of Queen Andalura of the Kingdom of Grass. Queen Andalura was a steady-handed monarch of House Dougal. She was cut down in 1985 while defending her realm against an incursion of particularly malign chimera. She is succeeded by her cousin, Queen Mary Elizabeth. Although there are rumors that her assassination was planned by those within her own house, most discount this. (House Dougal is not known for backstabbing.)

The same year as Queen Andalura's death, King Sean of the Kingdom of Pacifica was murdered by commoner revolutionaries of the Radical People's Front (an ally of the Ranters). Sean was succeeded to the throne by his niece, Queen Aeron. Aeron ascended the throne at age 16. She directly led a raid that avenged her uncle's death, which reportedly resulted in the death of all of his assassins. Few, if any, suspect Queen Aeron of complicity in Sean's death, though her recent decadence and flirtations with her Unseelie nature are creating grist for some ugly rumors.

Far more suspicious is the death of King Barabas of House Eiluned. Barabas was the wildly unpopular despot of the Kingdom of Willows. He took the region by force during the Accordance War, ruling it in a capricious and unjust manner until his death during a commoner revolt in 1990. The revolt ended in a direct assault on Barabas' freehold. The assault finished in stalemate and a flag of truce was raised. It is unclear which side violated the parley, but at the end Barabas lay dead. Barabas' former general and distant cousin, Duke Meilge, was proclaimed king by royal lottery. Although many suspect that Meilge somehow instigated the fight that lead to Barabas' death, few object to the act. High King David evidently turned a blind eye to the assassination since Barabas was a political enemy and an unjust ruler. Many consider Meilge to be only nominally better.

The most recent assassination attempt was against Queen Laurel, of the Kingdom of Northern Ice. While considered unassailable in her wintry stronghold, the queen was less guarded as she traveled to meet with King David at his court of Tara-Nar. Kithain assassins, aided by powerful Arts, descended upon her caravan. She barely survived the episode and her assailants disappeared without a trace. The identity of these assassins is a subject for wild speculation by all changelings. Everyone has a theory. Some Modernists in the Parliament of Dreams accuse the Beltaine Blade, though many write their accusations off as Ranter propaganda. Most of the blame for this attempt is cast against the Shadow Court.

The Chrysalis
The Chrysalis is, perhaps, the most dangerous time for newly arriving sidhe. Unlike the commoners, who, through their blood ties to humanity, have something of a cushion during the emergence of their fae seeming, the sidhe have no such protection. During the early years of the Resurgence, sidhe were forced to "possess" adult humans in order to protect themselves (The human is taken to Arcadia, hence the name changeling). Many liken the experience to that of being born. Thrust without preparation into the cold, Banality-saturated realities of the modern world is a painful and disorienting experience, one not softened by years of life as a mortal (like most commoners). The experience drives some sidhe slightly mad, though this madness is almost always temporary.

As the sidhe psyche emerges, it often experiences flashes from the human's receding memory. These "psychic jolts" can be both painful and disorienting. In the end, however, the human memory becomes faint and distant. Just enough remains to allow the sidhe to begin exploring their new world. Often the sidhe will meet the friends and family of the person they change places with. This can be an excruciating experience for both parties. The loss of this second set of mortal memories just after losing their Arcadian identity is a devastating blow to the sidhe. It is a credit to them, as a people, that they are able to bear this burden.

It is generally believed that most sidhe do not know where (or as whom) they are going to "splash down" when they arrive on earth. Despite this, it has been observed (somewhat snidely) by many commoners that they always manage to "take over good-looking people." Whether this is by design or just an example of "sympathetic magic" is unknown. It is obvious, however, that the sidhe's psyche exerts some influence over the body that it assumes. (Human imperfections often fade away as the possession takes place.) This might be one reason why the Technocracy considers the sidhe to be alien invaders. During the early years of the Resurgence many sidhe also found wounds on their human bodies when they came through. It is believed that these injuries are caused by wounds inflicted on the sidhe as they battled their way from Arcadia.

Now that the sidhe are somewhat better established in the Waking Lands, they usually start their lives as children. Adult sidhe protect their newfound childlings (many of whom were probably adults in Arcadia) with a passion. As a rule, the transition is much easier for childlings, who retain most of the memories of their mortal seemings. In general, the younger a sidhe changeling is, the more she remembers of her human life. At earlier ages, the area where the Kithain persona begins and the human persona ends is nearly indistinguishable. Some believe that very young sidhe are not true changelings at all, but symbiotes. Sidhe childlings regain their pre-Interregnum memories very slowly, often not until adulthood. The sidhe (presumably) don't believe they are doing anything wrong when they assume a human body. The human's soul is taken to Arcadia, where it is well treated, even pampered. Most sidhe consider the switch to be tantamount to sponsoring an exchange student.

Ancient Pacts
One potential advantage that the sidhe have is in a series of ancient pacts, alliances and blood-oaths from before the Shattering. The sidhe know many of the old secrets, long lost to the common kith. Some of these alliances have atrophied from lack of use. Others may still work, but the sidhe have not managed to find all of their old allies since the Resurgence. Some of these ancient pacts are merely prescriptions for etiquette when dealing with other creatures, while others may be devastating words of power. The Storyteller should be inventive, but prudent in allowing these old pacts to play a roll in his campaign.

A Cavalcade of Nobles
Most sidhe characters will be listed under their respective Houses. The following are those sidhe from unspecified houses.
 * Dark Tom
 * Enoch Brandywine
 * High King Falchion
 * Lady Rona
 * Lord Peregrine
 * Nalath Owlsbane

Version Differences
While all Sidhe were originally presented the same, C20 introduced two different variants. Arcadian Sidhe are those that only returned during the Resurgence, while Autumn Sidhe are those few that remained in the Autumn World. Autumn Sidhe in theory existed beforehand in the form of House Scathach.

Autumn Sidhe differ from regular Sidhe through their frailty. Instead of being more vulnerable to Banality, they instead are uncanningly attractive to mortals. Autumn Sidhe can rarely hide in a crowd, and people tend to remember every word of them or develop unhealthy affections towards them.