The Kingdom of Alban - The Knights of Airgid'Na'Gealaich

Prior to the coup by Duke Hevrin Bànach the Knights of Airgid'Na'Gealaich were an order of knights similar to what you would find in any kingdom. However, following the Duke’s betrayal they slowly turned into something else. Over time the blue cloak and silver moon emblem of the knighthood became a symbol of hope to the humans of Alban.

The death of the old king meant that the alliance between man, dwarf, wildling, and fae was broken. The magical races of Alban turned upon the humans. The dwarves simply snubbed them. But the fae and the wildlings took to hunting the weaker race. Slowly over time humanity was driven back to its last bastion, the city of Avelius.

It was five years after his coup that Hevrin Bànach fell. The blue cloaks took arms against the usurper king, killing him and those loyal to him in the hopes that an Arach heir would return to his lands once the man who stole his throne was dead. Unfortunately, it would be another fifteen years before such a man appeared.

During those years the Knights of Airgid'Na'Gealaich remained as defenders of the city their order turning into something different than what it was. They became the city's elite guards, trained to fight against Wildings and Fae,given what blessings could be provided against their terrible magics. Yet even with these provisions they still died. Not often, but frequently enough that their membership had dropped by half in two years.

A knighthood is supposed to be an honor that can only be bestowed by a king. The order, however, decided that to survive they must ignore such restrictions. Not only that, they waved away the tradition that said only a noble could be inducted. Instead, the order inducted any man who showed sufficient talent into their ranks.

The Knights of Airgid'Na'Gealaich became the city's best, indeed often its only defense against attacks by the other races. Its popularity swelled and many young men trained tirelessly to join their ranks. Sadly, this wasn’t enough. The city's population slowly declined and with it so did the ranks of the order. By the time King Averin Arach retook the city there were less than three hundred blue cloaks. A far cry from their numbers which had once been in the thousands.

Still, they celebrated to have their king returned, though many in the order feared what would become of it. After all, it had changed so much from what it once was. These fears though were unfounded. Averin granted true knighthoods to all current brothers and allowed them to keep current recruitment policies. The order is now looking to grow and expand, hoping to one day reach its former glory and perhaps even eclipse it.