Rǫgnvaldr's participation in league with the Scottish Crown could have stemmed from his kinship with the Constable of Scotland, Roland fitz Uhtred, Lord of Galloway, or perhaps resulted from a shared enmity towards the Meic Somairle. There is much confusion surrounding two twelfth-century magnates named Máel Coluim. One was Máel Coluim mac Áeda, Earl of Ross, whilst the other was Máel Coluim mac Alasdair, an illegitimate son of Alexander I, King of Scotland. The latter Máel Coluim attempted to seize the Scottish throne earlier in the twelfth century, and appears to have been related in marriage to Somairle's family. If Hvarflǫð's father was this Máel Coluim, it could explain an alliance between Haraldr Maddaðarson and the Meic Somairle. Such an alliance with Rǫgnvaldr's rivals could also explain the Scottish Crown's use of him against Haraldr Maddaðarson.