300 AC
CROWNLANDS
KING'S LANDING
TYRION LANNISTER
"We must march against the Starks immediately," Mace Tyrell, Lord Of Highgarden, Lord Paramount Of The Reach and Warden Of The South declared and the Master Of Laws in the Small Council declared, as if daring anyone to contradict him.
"We must?" Tyrion asked. "What has the Young Wolf done now?" Flippant as his answer was, Tyrion felt a little anxious "Has he harmed Jaime or Myrcella?" He thought.
"We must indeed," Lord Randyll Tarly, Lord Of Horn Hill answered coldly. "The Stark boy has marched south. He crossed the Blackwater Rush at Stoney Sept near a tenday past with the vast part of his strength. Now he is burning and looting throughout the Reach."
"He has already burned Goldengrove, Bitterbridge, and Longtable," Lord Tyrell added. Where Tarly was cold in his anger, his suzerain waxed hot. "And now his riders are looting and pillaging all along the Mander."
"Even more refugees are flooding the city," Lord Baelish added.
"So while we have sat here, plotting a wedding, our enemy has been plotting a war. Is that about the size of it?" Tyrion asked.
"That is Enough" Tywin said coldly effectively silencing everyone in the small council "Don't jape, if didn't have any useful advise to give Tyrion". The Hand Of The King said to his youngest son.
"Forgive me, my lords. You are right, of course. This is a grave matter indeed" Tyrion apologised to the Reach Lords and he really meant it.
After the Battle Of Blackwater Bay the remainder of Stannis's men under the command of Alester Florent had retreated to the Island of Dragonstone. Which could have caused a serious problem in the future as Dragonstone is really close to King's Landing, so his father Tywin and Mace Tyrell, send the Redwyne Navy under the command of Lord Paxter Redwyne and Ser Loras Tyrell to attack the fortress Island, to destroy rest of Stannis's men and bring them to heel.
Unfortunately, for Lord Tyrell, removing the Redwyne fleet from Arbour was a big mistake as it left the Reach utterly defenceless, and the Greyjoy Navy, which was lurking in the waters of Sunset Sea pounced on the opportunity.
The Iron Fleet under under the command of Victorian Greyjoy first attacked and sacked the port city of Arbour, just like they did to Lannisport during the Greyjoy Rebellion, before commencing an invasion of the Shield Islands.
Lord Tyrell had wanted to take his host south to deal with Greyjoys, but his father had put a stop to that as it would have left King's Landing defenceless as most of the soldiers defending the Capital are Tyrells.
But now he was not so sure, if his father could stop the Reach Lord from marching back to his home to face Robb Stark. The attack by the Greyjoys was nothing but an over glorified raid, but the Northmen have commenced a full fledged invasion on their home.
"What is the strength of the Tyrell forces present in the Reach" Tywin asked Mace Tyrell.
"Highgarden can muster an army of 100,000 strong" Mace Said "I took at least 60,000 men with me when we marched to the Capital, so that leaves 40,000 men guarding the Reach".
"Lord Hightower the commander of our forces present in the Reach sent at least 5,000 men to the Shield Islands to stop the Greyjoys" Lord Randyll Tarly started where Mace left "So that brings his total fighting force 35,000 strong give or take".
"More than enough to kick Robb Stark from our home, last we heard the Stark forces attacking Reach is only 25,000 strong, Lord Hightower's forces will outnumber Robb Stark by 10,000 men" Mace said proudly before turning towards Tywin "My Lord Hand, let me write a letter to Lord Hightower, he will bring Robb Stark to heel".
Tyrion couldn't held his laughter anymore, so he laughed a loud humourless laughter.
Every set of eyes turned towards him. Lord Tyrell turned red with anger while the others especially Cersei and Randyll Tarly looked at him in disgust.
"Why are you laughing" Tywin asked calmly.
"Forgive me, but I found that quite hilarious" Tyrion said looking at Mace "Lord Tyrell every opponent Stark has faced has outnumbered him. My own father had outnumbered him two to one, and we all know what happened" He said causing Tywin and Kevan to shift a little awkwardly, no doubt still embarrassed about their defeat at Green Fork "Now what makes you think that Lord Hightower will be successful in defeating him in the field, where my father have failed".
"So what you want us to do" Mace asked angrily "You want us to do nothing while Stark burn my villages, loot my castles and kill my smallfolks".
"I never said that we do nothing" Tyrion said narrowing his eyes "I am urging you to avoid battle, there is no way in seven hells that Lord Hightower will defeat him in open field".
"You'll have to pardon me," answered Mace Tyrell "But I think you are overestimating Robb Stark too much, yes he has won a few battles, but his luck will run out soon".
"And You are underestimating him" Tyrion countered "And most importantly you underestimate the Northmen" he looked at Mace "Tell me lord Tyrell what is the biggest advantage of the Northern army".
Mace opened his mouth then closed it, thinking hard how to answer Tyrion's question.
The room was silent, as everyone tried to think Tyrion's question.
Lord Randyll Tarly, seeing that no one can answer, said "Their mobility".
Tyrion nodded in confirmation "Correct" he said " The Northern army is highly mobile, and can march large distances in a very short amount of time. Take an example, during Robert's Rebellion it took my father at least a month to march an army of 20,000 men from Casterly Rock to King's Landing, but it took Robb Stark and the Northmen only a single week to cover the same distance as my father's army, can you believe that, a single week" Tyrion commented "If Stark wants he can let Lord Hightower chase his army in a wild goose chase all along the Reach while he attacks key points and pick the Reach army apart one by one"
The council was silent, as everyone registered Tyrion's words before Tywin asked "What should we do?".
"Avoid battle" Tyrion said simply "Tell Lord Hightower to position his army and entrench themselves at Rose Road and Bitterbridge, cut Robb Stark's escape and trap him in The Reach, cut off his supplies and use a scorch Earth policy" He said "Without supplies and his escape route from Reach blocked, his army will quickly starve and start abandoning him".
"So you are telling me that we should destroy our own crops and villages, set fire to our lands instead of fighting him" Mace asked angrily.
"Yes" Tyrion said simple "Burning your own crops means, denying supplies to our enemy, with it he will starve, that I promise you".
The room was silent before Randyll said "If this course of action will help us defeat Stark, then I see why not" The lord Of Horn Hill said "Stark is already burning towns and villages, will it matter if we do the same to stop him".
Mace Tyrell hesitantly nodded "Very well if that will protect my home, then I consent".
"All in favour" Tywin asked and everyone at the Small Council nodded "Then it's decided, Grand Maester, send a raven to Lord Hightower and inform him of the action we have decided, that he should take to deal with Stark" He said to Pycelle causing the old Maester to nod.
"My Lords what about the Greyjoys" Mace asked worriedly "They still plague the Shield Islands".
"It will not be much of a problem" Varys said "My Little birds bring news that Balon Greyjoy has died just recently, no doubt the Iron Born will soon abandon their attacks in The Reach and will return to Iron Islands soon to hold a Kingsmoot to elect the new King Of The Iron Islands"
"Good riddance" Cersei murmured.
"Very well, the meeting is adjourned" Tywin adjourned the meeting and everyone except Cersei, Tywin and Tyrion left the council.
"Well" Tyrion said casually "That went really well".
"It did" Cersei surprisingly agreed "With Balon out of the equation it's only Robb Stark who is our enemy, after we have dealt with his forces, we can take our home from the Starks".
"Really" Tyrion raised an eyebrow "And who will take it".
"Our Soldiers" Cersei said Stupidly.
"You think House Lannister has the manpower to take the Rock". Tyrion shook his head "It will be the Tyrells who will take the Rock for us".
"So" Cersei said still not understanding "What is the matter, if they take it".
"Tell me sweet sister" Tyrion began "Do you think the Tyrells will just give the Rock back to us, after they have used their own soldiers to capture it?".
"They cannot keep it. It belongs to House Lannister by right!"
"As it used to belong to House Casterly before Lann The Clever won it" Tywin who was silent until now, spoke "If the Tyrells declare it a wedding gift from Joffrey to his bride's kinsmen, what do you propose we do about it?"
"Then what should we do?"
"We don't have to do anything" Tyrion shrugged "Stark is doing that for us".
"What?" Cersei asked confused.
"Every hut that the Northmen burn in the Reach, every grain of wheat they pluck, every blade of grass their horses trample, makes the Tyrells and their bannermen more their enemies, and thus more our leal friends. There is no blood feud between Highgarden and Winterfell, but Stark is doing just that" Tywin explained.
"Would that have persuaded the Tyrells to return Casterly Rock to us?"
"No, but we would not need them. Joffrey and Tommen are as much a Baratheon as they are Lannisters and right now, with Renly and Stannis gone, the Stormlords are leaderless. For now, they are following the Tyrell's lead, but not out of any sense of obligation. In time, we could remind them that their oaths are to the rightful heirs to House Baratheon, and we could eventually install Tommen as Prince of Storm's End. Then we would no longer be at the mercy of the Tyrells". Tyrion explained where his father left.
Cersei seemed to understand it as she nodded in satisfaction.
Tywin looked at his son "Hopefully your plan to stop Robb Stark will bear fruit" he said, his voice grim "Otherwise there will be grave consequences".
"Hopefully it will" Tyrion thought, praying that the gods will stop favouring Robb Stark for once.
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The Reach and Highgarden, can muster an army of 100,000 strong. Mace Tyrell took 60,000 with him when he marched at the Capital, leaving 40,000 men under Lord Hightower, who further sent 5,000 men to stop Greyjoy attacks in Shield Islands.
The Greyjoys have attacked The Reach as the Redwyne Fleet is besieging Dragonstone, leaving the Islands vulnerable.
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And Done!
So as you can see Robb had attacked the Reach and had taken number of Castles.
Now Mace Tyrell is so overconfident because he cannot understand the danger that is Robb Stark. But Tyrion, Tywin and even Randyll Tarly, who were all experienced military commanders, understood that and want to avoid battling Robb in open field. (You don't want to fight someone, who can take the most heavily fortified castle in the continent without breaking a sweet, no matter how much you outnumber him.)
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