Neutral ground in Ireland

[Noytary]

Sir Humphrey Talbot, with a small force of bodyguards and servants, rides to a neutral ground between the loose kingdoms of the irish kings and mother england. They ride with white flags signaling a non-hostile force and settle there. He tries to gather as much of those petty kings and lords as he can for a meeting.
OOC- +3 charisma

[Jokern]

10/20 roll for each petty king to see who shows up.
-3 from being a mere knight
+3 from charisma
-2 for being English

Total: 9/20 chance of success

1. MacDonnells - 13
2. Magennis - 2 (success)
3. O'Neill - 2 (success)
4. O'Donnell - 14
5. O'Reilly - 2 (success)
6. O'Farrell - 15
7. Dempsey - 15
8. O'Rourke - 11
9. O'Connor - 13
10. Burkes - 6 (success)
11. MacMurrough - 7 (success)
12. Mayo - 19
13. O'Flaherty - 3 (success)
14. O'Brien - 19
15. MacCarthy Mor - 10

Results: out of 15 petty kings, only 6 show up to Talbot's meeting.

The Irish kings have always been suspicious of the English, the lords who have come from the west and are trying to assert their authority over Ireland. Most of the petty kings simply ignore Ser Humphrey Talbot's summons, though a few actually show up. The banners of Magennis, O'Neill, O'Reilly, Burkes, MacMurrough, O'Flatherty and MacCarthy Mor can be seen all around the small English force, weary eyes looking at the foreign knight. They stood there silent, waiting for Talbot to make his move.

[Noytary]

Sir humphrey looks around in disappointment. He had hoped more will answer his summons. No matter. One irish king could influence the course of war to york's favor, and his nephew wants support them. Hopefully after this meaningless squabble we can return to the real war. "Gentelman" he said "i thank you, those who answer my call. I came here as a representative of house talbot, and england with it. We, and i mean house talbot, are more then a decade on this lands and i am proud to say irish blood is in my veins. I always felt i was a bit irish, and my lord neglected the course of war on you, the independent kingdoms of Ireland, several times. But, now a storm is coming. A french faction claims the crown of england and are about to launch a campaign on this lands. And by this lands, i mean england and you. They plot to conquer, burn and pillage our lands with mercenaries" he put an emphasis on this word, playing on the common disdain of mercenaries "foreigners" another word the irish hated "and scotts" which was more of rivals but still not liked. "Now, the most intuitive response of many of you is to support them in order to topple the english regime. But that will do you no good. They seek to control all england, including Ireland. I came to offer another way. Support king Edward. Send your troops to stand between this fair isle and the invasion, and aside ftom glory and honor, you will be rewarded. Instead of fighting each other like terrified chickens,we can work together, as proud nobles and men, and ensure the peace in ireland. Furthermore, if you come to the king and request house talbot to be put as lord of english ireland, my lord would personally enforce peace. I am sure you had enough blood and war. We all wish to prosper and tend to our lands. And i wish to remind you, this will not escape the king's gaze. He is fair to his allies as he is fearsome to his foes. You heard of the battle of towton, i presume. So, will you stand beside me, defeating this strangers that want to claim our lands and ending this meaningless conflict in ireland?" his face like shining and his words imbued with strong belief and determination, he faces the lords.

[Jokern]

The Irish kings looks around at each other in silence. They had heard of the wars in England by had paid it little heed. They had their own lands, power struggles and wars to deal with, it was only when the English tried to meddle in Irish affairs that they united against a common foe. One of the kings, large and broad with long unkempt hair, strode forward. His eyes narrowed at Humprey Talbot.

"And why should we care who sits on some English chair and calls himself king? No matter who it is, they all crave our lands and treasures, trying to impose their will on us. We are a proud people and though we squabble we come together in our hate for you, Englishman. You all burn and pillage what is ours, no matter the king you serve. So who are you to think you have some authority here? We do not know you, no matter how much Irish blood runs in your veins. What promises can your king give us, and how do we not know he will not just break his word? It would be much easier for us to just sit out the war and let you dogs across the sea kill each other. We'd get the upper hand at least."

The man grinned and got approving chuckles and laughs from the crowd. The Irish kings did not seem convinced by Talbot's words. There was much bad blood between the English and the Irish, and what did the Irish care for who sat on the English throne?

[Noytary]

Sir Hunphrey frowned "yes, you will sit on the fence. And then after the war will be over some amitious noble will get permission from the king to conquer your lands. To burn and pillage, as you put it so nicely. I am trying to put an end to the english-irish conflict. We should be able to live in relative peace with each other. And pece is build on gestures. Friendly gestures. And bringing troops to help is a very generous gesture, one that will secure the king's favor. I know there is bad blood between us, but we should no longer be bound by our ancestor's actions. Not anymore. Until now, lord exter told my king all about your wickedness and how you must be subdued. If you offer an alternative course of thinking, you will break the boundaries of old and show the king of england your honorable and peace-seeking side, he will not turn on his allies. And you will become allies. Also, there will be a reward like troops to conquer lands that do not wish peace " he decided to play on their ambition, in their endless power struggles royal troops could tip the scales in their favor "Edward is a honorable man. He does not break promises" he let's his tone become a little harsh on that one. A carrot and stick, if you will "i did not come here to extract authority. I came here searching for proud irish lords that wish to gain glory, honor and peace."

[Jokern]

The Irish king who had spoken before answers Talbot with a great laughter.

"Ha, peace! Peace with an Englishman is the same as having peace with a raging storm. There will be no end to our conflict unless the English leave forever and your king stops calling himself 'Lord of England', and none of us is foolish enough to think that. And you tell us to forget the blood of our ancestors, the blood that has been spilled on this land countless times fighting against invaders? Then you are a fool as well. You can keep your men at home, for we will keep ours at home."

However, a few of the petty kings were mumbling among each other about the offer. All knew the English were strong, and their king was said to be strong and honorable as well to those who aided him. Another king steps forward, an old man with a long white beard.

"If we were to agree to aid your king in his war, can he guarantee us the right to rule the land of our ancestors, to let us rule by our laws and customs? Can he guarantee to not force us away from what is ours and has been ours for generations? We would need him to come here personally and put his seal on this agreement, next to ours as equals. Only then would we consider supporting your king."

[Noytary]

Sir Humphrey bluntly ignores the laughing king and answers the king with the white beard "your words are true, wise one. Your kin will be right to listen to them. If he could, my king would surely come here and seal the agreement himself. However, he is preparing the kingdom for an onslaught. Traitorous englishmen aided with french and scot armies plan to march on england and ireland and plunder it. Your support is needed now. If you will send it, ican assure you my king is not idle to those who stand with him, and he can guarantee your right to rule your land by your laws and customs."

[Jokern]

Talbot's words may yet sway the crowd, but will his promises be enough to guarantee their support?

D20 roll, 10/20 chance of success. This will be rolled for each king individually.

-2 for not being the King of England
+3 from Charisma
-2 from the small amount of lords that have gathered to meet Talbot
+1 for his promises

Total: +1 bonus, 10/20 chance of success for each lord.
Magennis - 6 (success)
O'Neill - 14 (fail)
O'Reilly - 19 (fail)
Burkes - 8 (success)
MacMurrough - 4 (success)
O'Flaherty - 12 (fail)

Magennis, Burkes and MacMurrough agree to Talbot's offer, while the rest refuse.

---

To determine what troops they will be sendning, a roll will be made. The composition will be as follows:

2/6 Heavy Footmen
4/6 Light Footmen

A D20 will be rolled, without bonuses, to determine the percentage of the troops sent. The maximum will be 3,000 men, as each lord can bring 1,000 men.

Result: 13 = 65% of 3,000 men

Irish Kings (Yorkist)
650 Heavy Footmen
1,300 Light Footmen

Total: 1,950 men

-----------

After discussing among themselves once more, this time rather livelier and more heated. In the end, half of the men that had come to the meeting left without a word to Ser Talbot. Three kings remained - Magennis, Burkes and MacMurrough stood with their companions. One of them spoke up.

"We will agree to your terms, knight of Talbot, but we do this at a great risk. The wrath of the rest of the Irish clans against us will be fierce for allying ourselves with your king. However, you can be certain that if your king does not hold up his end of the bargain, it will send all of Ireland into a rage to challenge God himself before drowning the world in the Flood. The clans of Ireland united will bring death and destruction to all in its path."

[Noytary]

Sir Humphrey bows slightly "i thank you for your trust. You can be certain my king will honor the bargain. We are planning to march at dawn. Gather your men. If you will, we will march together to assist the king."