The Kingdom of Alba is a Changeling Kingdom in Caledonia, what mortals know as Scotland.
Overview[]
Alba includes the regions known as Aberdeenshire, Central, Tayside, Fife, and Grampian, basically the lowland areas extending from the Tay and wrapping around the eastern slopes of the Highlands. The largest cities in the area are Inverness, Perth, Dundee, and Aberdeen, where King Niall resides.
Most of the sidhe of Caledonia regard King Niall of Alba as the only ruler who could seriously challenge Ross for high king. He's tough and he has hundreds of nockers working for him, making his army the best equipped in Caledonia, if not on the Isle of the Mighty. Although Alba has few sidhe compared to the other two kingdoms, it has powerful resources. The commoners will fight for him. Many seasoned warriors who fled the kingdoms forming around Glasgow and Edinburgh found refuge with Niall. The nockers of the Contrivancy created a boar spear tor Niall, called Schiltron, which equips his allies with a potent copy of itself. And, Niall has formed strong friendships with Asa, the most powerful troll jarl of the Isles. Her forces turned the tide in several of Niall's early battles with Ross and old King Baird of the now-defunct Kingdom of Dew.
Niall's realm is not without problems. Niall has lost his voicebox to cancer. His nocker engineers invented the Collar of Command for him. This treasure fits over his throat and lower jaw, giving him the power of speech.
The northern reaches of his realm also suffer under the depredations of the Stoorworm, a chimerical dragon of fantastic size and hunger. But the most insidious danger comes from the Contrivancy itself. Many times the clockwork chimera produced there go mad and have to be hunted down. Niall's love of machines has infected the day-to-day operations of his kingdom. Late courtiers are not admitted to court. Kithain can only use the trods with permits duly stamped and sealed by countless bureaucrats, and the pathways operate on a strict schedule.
Cities & Sites[]
Aberdeen[]
The third-largest city in Scotland, Aberdeen now controls a sizable portion of the country's wealth due to oil interests. Aberdeen is either loved or hated by its visitors. Most of the city is made from granite and this, mixed with the near-constant rain, gives the city a dreary feel. Yet when the sun breaks through, the wet stone bursts forth with color. The citizenry has attempted to make up for the city's relative drabness by cultivating some of Britain's most wonderful gardens.
Nockers make up an large percentage of the fae of this area, and the sidhe are dominated by House Dougal.
Norrie's Law & Largo Law, Balman & Largo, Fife[]
Largo Law is a grass-covered knoll named after Largo village. Nome's Law is located nearby at the village of Balmain. Norrie's Law was a part of Largo Law, supposedly moved there by Michael Scot's hobgoblins: Prig, Prim, and Pricker. They were given the task of excavating Largo Law. The three buffoonish demons built a giant shovel and had thrown one spadeful off Largo Law when Scot suddenly gave them another task. Norrie's law was formed as a result. Largo Law is said to contain a mine filled with enchanted gold, guarded by a warrior in silver armor. Many shepherds believe that sheep left to graze and sleep on Largo Law will turn yellow thanks to the magic of the gold. The warrior is said to have appeared to a shepherd saying:
If Auchindownie cock disna craw
An Balmain horn disna blow,
I'll tell ye where to gowd mine is in Largo Law.
An alternate history of Norrie's Law states that a stranger, hearing this tale from the shepherd, killed all the cocks in the village of Auchindownie and paid off the herdsmen of Balmain not to blow their horns to summon their cattle. He stood on Largo Law and, at sunset, the silver warrior appeared. At that instant, a herdsman, Tammie Norrie, who wanted the gold for himself, blew his horn. The warrior grew angry, drew his sword and said:
Woe to the man that blew the horn,
For out of the spot he shall ne'er be borne!
With that Tammie Norrie was struck dead, and the silver warrior vanished. True to his word, Tammie Norrie's body could not be moved from the spot. In desperation, the townsfolk covered him with earth, creating Nome's Law.
Scone Palace & the Fatale Marmor, The Stone of Destiny, Scone[]
This fantastic Gothic palace is the third castle to stand at this site. As the last resting place of the Stone of Scone, the coronation stone for Scottish rulers, it is one of the most beloved sites of Scottish nationalists. It is believed that the stone was carried over from Ireland by the Scotti, or possibly by a Fae princess. Thirty-four Scottish kings were enthroned upon it, and with the stone went the rulership of Scotland. It was stolen from Scone by Edward I and placed in Westminster Palace, beneath the British coronation chair, where it has been used in the coronation rituals of British monarchs.
Culcross Abbey, Fife[]
It is said that a man seated in a golden chair dwells in a maze of tunnels beneath the abbey. If found, he will offer great treasures. A blind piper and his dog are supposed to have entered the tunnels, and it is said they found the man in the golden chair. A few days after they entered, only the dog returned. Even now the sounds of the man's pipes can be heard up to a mile from Culcross Abbey.
Glamis Castle, Tayside[]
Glamis is a large mansion with fanciful towers and battlements atop its walls.
Besides being the setting of the murder of King Duncan in Macbeth, Glamis houses other mysteries. It is said that there is one more window in Glamis than can he accounted for. Popular legend holds several reasons for this imperfection. One legend has it that Earl Beardie, a laird of Glamis, was losing badly at cards. When asked to desist, he exclaimed that he wanted to play cards until doomsday. A demon responded by causing the room to disappear, but only from the inside of Glamis. Sometimes the window reappears, revealing the earl and his demonic poker mates.
The most famous legend is that the room holds one of the true heirs of Glamis; born misshapen, it was walled up in a secret room. As each of the heirs of Glamis comes of age, they are shown the undying monstrosity and told of its true identity.
Other Sites & Such[]
- The Sterling Institute for Folklore Quantification
- Tuath Glas Cu
- The Tuath of Chronos
- The Contrivancy
References[]
- CTD. Isle of the Mighty, pp. 101-104.