The Ironborn Rebellion –Part 1
The Neck-288 AC
Harry stood in a small open field surrounded by trees with Ser Rodrick, Lord Howland Reed, Morna Snow and over a dozen of the more experienced warriors among the crannogmen. Among them were three skinchangers that Morna had managed to gather in the short amount of time before this meeting. She had another two going around The Neck gathering as many skinchangers and crannogmen as they could find to bolster the forces on hand.
Most of the people there were whispering harshly to each other, each throwing around ideas for what they should do. Some suggested they leave the Ironborn alone. Let Ned Stark bring an army and deal with them. Others thought they should harass them and attack them where possible to whittle their numbers down.
Harry himself was just waiting for more information. Other than the fact that the Ironborn were spotted sailing down the Fever River he knew very little. They had no idea about the numbers the Ironborn had. Their purpose though was very easy to decipher.
Moat Cailin.
He had already sent a bird controlled by a skinchanger to Moat Cailin with a letter for the men he had there. He instructed them to retreat South along the Kingsroad where they will be met by a group of crannogmen he sent to guide them in a few days. While he has no idea about the Ironborn numbers, he estimates there will probably be a lot of them. If their plan is to take and hold Moat Cailin then they would have made sure they had the manpower necessary to do so. Harry feels it would be a waste of lives to have them attempt to hold Moat Cailin with so few numbers against the Ironborn. He might have let the men do so if they were properly equipped for it, but as it stood less than half the men were archers and they didn't bring that many arrows. Trying to hold off such a large force from the North in those circumstances was an exercise in futility.
A short gasp instantly brought Harrys attention to the man sat on the floor a little way away from him. A small man in his early twenties with a scruffy brown beard opened his eyes and looked at Hadrian. "There were lots o' boats milord. I counted at least thirty."
Mutters broke out while Harry massaged the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes to think. Thirty Ironborn longships meant at least three thousand Ironborn. Possibly more if they crammed the ships. Harry doubts they did though. If they were going to Moat Cailin with such numbers, they were probably preparing to stay in the castle and fend off a siege. At least for a while. That means that much of the space in the ships is loaded with supplies.
Harry took a few moments to think about this move of Balon Greyjoys. On the surface it isn't a bad move exactly. But when looked at properly from all angles it looks more and more idiotic. Balon Greyjoy has fifteen to twenty thousand men. Losing three thousand of them might not be crippling for him but it was a big loss. How they even got that many Ironborn to go through with this suicidal plan was beyond him! He never considered the Ironborn very loyal, even to their own lord. Although, maybe they don't consider the plan suicidal? Or they aren't smart enough to see they are walking into a cage of their own making?
If those three thousand can be sacrificed to keep the North out of the war or at least delay them entering the war for a few months, then Harry could see why Balon Greyjoy was prepared to send them to the Moat. With three thousand men, majority of whom probably have some decent skill with archery and proper supplies, Moat Cailin could hold off a significantly larger force, even from the North.
He can still storm the Moat with the Northern army. He can split the army in two and have the crannogmen sneak one half south and attack from there while the other half attacks from the North. He would definitely win and take the stronghold, but he would lose thousands of men.
He would lose at least six thousand men, but probably many many more. The Moat was designed so that archers could easily defend against a larger force. While he has no doubt the Northern Army could take the castle, the losses make storming it a waste of lives. There are probably many lords who wouldn't even blink at sending their men into such a slaughter, but not only does Harry still have some morals from his last life but he knows it would be a waste of his most rare and valuable resource. People. People who he doesn't have enough of in his opinion. He would need to try and keep losses as low as possible for this war.
Harry can siege the castle and starve the Ironborn out. The problem is that it can take moons to work depending on how many supplies the Ironborn have. He really doesn't mind this fact though. If the Ironborn are all locked in the Moat then they can't cause chaos anywhere else. Those three thousand Ironborn will be trapped and slowly waste away and will surrender or fight in a futile attempt at escape. Harry was in no rush to move his army south and join the one the King is no doubt preparing now that the Ironborn have made their move. As long as the Northern coasts and settlements are secured against any future large scale raids, he would be happy to just stay in the North and wait for the war to finish. That would allow him to spare as many Northern lives as possible and conserve their strength.
There are issues with choosing such a path though.
The North has long been a very martial kingdom in which the people are proud warriors. Lords and smallfolk in the North respect strength. If Harry chooses to follow through on a siege and just waiting the Ironborn out, some Lords may lose respect for him by mistaking his caution for being a craven. They would still follow his orders but he could definitely see himself losing some respect from at least Umbers if he lets a group of Ironborn stop the Northern army from taking the fight to the Iron Islands.
Then there would be the reaction of the king and those in the south. He knows some southern lords would use it as an opportunity to dirty his name. While normally Harry wouldn't be bothered by such a thing, he knows politics are always going to be important in this life and that it would be best to have an image of being unstoppable. Unbeatable. That way he is less likely to get challenged in the first place. The Kings reaction is harder to determine. He may send reinforcements North in order to help, which will make Harry look weak for not being able to handle his own kingdom or he could just as easily decide Harry is too young to be in charge and would make his uncle restrict him more in his role as regent. He might even ignore it completely and just let them sort out the problem at their own pace in their own way. Harry truly doesn't know.
Another option that he considered was having a small part of the Northern army stay to siege the Ironborn in Moat Cailin, while having the rest of it moved around the fortress through The Neck by the crannogmen. That way a smaller force could starve the Ironborn out while the rest of the army moved south to join up with the King.
It was the best plan out of the three. Moving that many people through the swamps would be tiring work that would no doubt take weeks but it could be done. It would neutralise the Ironborn in the Moat as a threat and would mean that those Ironborn didn't really make much of an impact on the war at all, besides delaying the North for a few weeks.
In all honesty this is why he thinks Balon Greyjoys plan in sending the Ironborn to Moat Cailin was not a bad plan on paper but was definitely an idiotic decision when taken in real world context. Looking at all the facts though, Harry was starting to suspect that Balon Greyjoy wasn't exactly a smart man. This war would be mostly decided in navel battles. The Greyjoys need to destroy the fleets in the south if they want any hope of victory and even then the most they can do is delay until the south builds more ships and whittles their forces down.
The mainland has the wood and the men to replace ships at a much faster pace than the Ironborn can. They will be defeated eventually no matter what. If the realm was more divided that might be different, but as it stands, the Iron Islands simply do not have the numbers to win a war with the rest of Westeros and it was stupid of them to even try.
No, if Balon Greyjoy was smart he would have waited until Robert died or tried to arrange an accident for him. That would definitely destabilize the realm and if it becomes unstable enough then he might have had a shot of declaring independence.
As it is, sending Ironborn to hold Moat Cailin was a waste of resources for him. The North doesn't really have a navy, at least not one that can do anything to the Ironborn for the moment. The actual men that the North can call to war won't really make much of a difference in the first place. The Ironborn are already very outnumbered without including the North and the actual length of the war will be determined by the fleets in the south, probably before the Northern army even reaches wherever the King is mustering his army. If the fleets in the south manage to defeat the Ironborn at sea, then the war will be over in a matter of months, most of which will be time spent travelling to the Islands and laying siege to Pyke. If the fleets in the south lose against the Iron Fleet then the war can go on for much longer and the Greyjoys will have a slightly better chance of victory. Still not a very good chance but a better chance than they had in the beginning. The Greyjoys really can't afford to throw away so many ships and lives like they are doing at Moat Cailin when they are already so outnumbered.
Despite this, Balon Greyjoy decided to sacrifice a decent amount of his fleet to attempt to prevent a kingdom that wouldn't even make much of a difference in a naval battle from joining with the main army. Hell, apparently he didn't even consider that there might be a way around The Moat available to Northerners. That speaks of either stupidity or some other plan going on in the Lord Reapers mind.
Harry decided he needs more information before he decided exactly what his response towards the Ironborn would be.
He opened his eyes and looked at the skinchanger that had been patiently waiting for his orders. "Good job. I would like some more information though. Do you think you could get your sparrow close enough to the Ironborn to find the captain of this fleet? Once you have found him, try and spy on him to see what more you can learn."
The skinchanger nodded his head determinedly. "Aye. I can do that milord." The man didn't even wait to be told to begin before he was closing his eyes and entering the mind of his partner to do as he asked.
Harry nodded back. "Excellent. While we are waiting on that, Lord Reed, can you please organise all the fighters who will be going and their equipment? Make sure to pack as many potions and poisons as possible. I have a feeling they might be useful. As it is, there is no point in making proper plans until we are near Moat Cailin and have a better idea of what we are dealing with. For now, everyone just make sure to get as much rest as possible. I am going to write a letter to my uncle to inform him of the situation. Get ready, we leave at first light."
Before Harry left the clearing he decided to check in with Morna about the progress she was having tracking down skinchangers and warriors in The Neck. He just opened his mouth to speak when she cut him off. "We've found another skinchanger and twenty more warriors since you last asked. I will keep looking all night boy. It's not like I will be able to join in the march anyway!"
Harry just nodded to the woman before making his way back to the castle and to his chambers while being escorted by Ser Rodrick. Once there, the knight stood vigil outside of his chambers while he proceeded to write a letter to his uncle informing him of the situation and giving some instructions.
He asked him to send five hundred cavalry to the Western coast to patrol for any Ironborn excursions and to send another five hundred men to reinforce Bear Island. They had always been haunted by Ironborn raids, he doesn't want to take the chance it will get worse during the war. He was also instructed to then raise two thousand troops quickly and to send them to start sieging the Ironborn at Moat Cailin, where the rest of the banners must be mustered. His uncle was also told to raise another thousand men that will be kept on guard at and around Winterfell throughout the war, just in case. Harry decided the North would only raise twelve thousand men to march south in total from all the bannermen. While he could easily raise more, he doesn't believe those men will be needed for a war against the Ironborn. Not when they are so outnumbered.
Once his letter was written, he wrote another to Lord Manderly instructing him to send two thousand men as quickly as possible to Moat Cailin to help reinforce the siege. Afterwards he decided to have his dinner before going to sleep. It was going to be a long few months, so he would take whatever chance he could get to rest while he could.
He was awoken by the sound of knocking. He called to Ser Rodrick, giving his permission to enter.
Ser Rodrick and one of Lord Reeds guards was escorting the same skinchanger he ordered to spy on the Ironborn earlier. Ser Rodrick spoke while bowing his head briefly. "You ordered to be notified when there was any new information my lord."
Harry suppressed a yawn and gestured for the skinchanger to speak. After a moment of shifting uncomfortably from one foot to the other, he did. "I found the leader milord and got old Feathers close enough to listen to 'im speak I did. He mostly just talked about the glory of being an Ironborn and what 'e will take with the Iron Price. Speaking about how many salt wives he will claim in the war. I did hear what their plans in the North are though."
Harry barely restrained himself from asking the man to just get on with it already. He was tired, cranky and he didn't need to hear every detail. Before he could snap though, the man continued. "It seems they aren't here to hold Moat Cailin. They are here for you Milord."
Harry was wide awake now, he was leaning forward on his bed towards the skinchanger in clear interest. "Oh?" He questioned leadingly.
The skinchanger nodded vigorously." Aye milord. The leader is Rodrick Greyjoy. 'e was speaking to one of 'is men. Braggin' bout how 'e would bring the North to heal once 'e captured you. That they would force the North to sit out the war. An' maybe even give them wood for ships to keep you alive."
Well, Harry guesses that answers the question of what exactly Balon Greyjoy was thinking when he decided on this course of action. It wasn't even that terrible of a plan all things considered. Rather than just having the Ironborn foolishly hold the Moat against the North, their plan is probably more along the lines of quickly overwhelm The Moats defences with numbers and capture him before fleeing back to the Islands. There was only one thing that was bothering him.
'Why do they think I'm at the Moat?'
When Harry first left Winterfell to come South, he purposefully gave off the impression to those who weren't his family that he was going to Moat Cailin to inspect it for rebuilding purposes. He never mentioned Greywater Watch or House Reed to anybody but his uncles. He mostly just did that so that he wouldn't have to put up with all of his bannermen suddenly demanding he visit their castles next. He knew that they would want him to, once they found out he spent so much time at Greywater Watch, but at the time he figured he would put that off for a while so that he could get some of his other projects off the ground first. So as far as anybody that wasn't his family or a part of the group of soldiers he took to Moat Cailin is concerned, he really is inspecting Moat Cailin.
Harry is happy he made that decision not to tell anybody where he really went now. He highly doubted that Balon Greyjoy or any of the other Ironborn had spies in Winterfell that could tell Balon he left Winterfell for Moat Cailin. The Lord of Pyke didn't seem like he had the cunning or skill to set up a spy network. Not one so successful at least. Which meant that he found out about Harrys journey to Moat Cailin from other sources.
Somebody in the South was playing games.
Still, three thousand men seems a little excessive in this scenario.
Either Balon really wanted to make sure he was captured to keep the North out of the war and cause a strain between Robert Baratheon and his uncle Ned, or he had a serious grudge against him. Upon thinking about it further, Harry decided it was probably a mixture of the two.
The North is a major ally of the Baratheon Dynasty, if Balon Greyjoy manages to form some cracks in that alliance, he might hope it emboldens some other Lords around the continent that have an issue with Robert Baratheon to take up arms against him while there was an opportunity. Harry doubts it will work, as while there are plenty of lords who hate Robert Baratheon, most of them probably hate the Ironborn more. On the other hand, assuming Balon was told about his location from someone in the south, then that means he was probably informed that Harry had already warned the king, and by consequence the realm, about his Rebellion before it could even begin.
He could see why the Lord Reaper of Pyke would be pissed at him in that scenario.
Harry decided he would think about it more once he had gotten some more sleep and was fully rested. He dismissed the skinchanger and Ser Rodrick before succumbing to bliss.
Line Break-
The next morning found Harry walking though The Neck back towards Moat Cailin with three hundred crannogmen and Ser Rodrick. Ten of the crannogmen were skinchangers of varying power and skill. Eachof them had a bonded partner that they could easily use for scouting purposes.
Harry had been contemplating how to deal with the Ironborn at the Moat the entire time he walked. It would take his party about four more days to reach Moat Cailin while the Ironborn would reach Moat Cailin in about two days. He isn't sure exactly what the Ironborn would do once they found out he wasn't there though.
There was a decent chance they would just leave once they found out they wasted their time but there was also a chance they would be stubborn and would stay to either slow down the army or look for him if they believed he fled, as it was quite likely they would find the tracks of his soldiers that he instructed to retreat south.
If they flee back to the Iron Islands before he can get to them then problem solved. The army can move south without any issues.
After having a good night's sleep and thinking about everything more. Harry came to the conclusion that he hopes the Ironborn don't flee Moat Cailin straight away. Something he never considered before, is that the Ironborn appearing where they have in the numbers they have, has given him a few unique opportunities that he could take advantage of if he was very careful.
The Ironborn brought many ships that would greatly help to bolster the Norths growing navy. Saving Harry a lot of time and resources that would be needed if he were to build those ships himself. Capturing those ships would be a great boon and would definitely be the first thing he will look at doing once he arrives at Moat Cailin, assuming the Ironborn are still there. Capturing the ships would also mean that the Ironborn are trapped. Leaving them to his mercy. If they try and scatter over land before the army arrives then they will be hunted down.
Harry will have around five hundred soldiers once he links up with the guards that had originally travelled with him to Moat Cailin. He isn't sure if they would be able to capture all of the ships even if the Ironborn weren't paying attention, but he will make sure to take what he can and burn the rest.
Harry has also been thinking about reputation a lot since he heard about the Ironborn sailing on the Fever River. For many of the lords and smallfolk of Westeros, reputation is very important. It helps set the tone of all future negotiations and a strong reputation can help him immensely in other ways as well. This would be his first time making decisions in a war setting since he was reborn and he decided it was important that he makes sure he cultivates the right reputation from doing so.
If he starves the Ironborn while keeping the army back he will be known as cautions almost to the point of being a craven. If he keeps them pinned with a small siege and sends most of his army south he will be known as a practical commander but not very dangerous one if he left enemies alive in his own lands. If he assaults Moat Cailin he will be seen as either reckless or be known for not having any care for his soldiers.
Everything he does when it comes to dealing with the Ironborn will be judged by lords all over the realm. With all the changes the North is going through and with the balance of power slowly shifting, it is important that he makes sure those lords get the right impression. If he has a proper reputation then many of his plans would probably be a lot easier in the years to come. Harry thought about what type of reputation he should cultivate for hours while he was walking, before coming to answer.
He wants the lords to both respect and fear him. He wants them to respect his prowess and his intelligence while they fear going to war against him.
It was after he had decided on what type of war type reputation he wants to cultivate that Harry started to fully settle in with a plan to defeat the Ironborn. Assuming they don't leave the Moat before he gets a chance.
Harry decided he was going to crush them. Completely and utterly. He decided he was going to turn the Ironborn into a lesson for the other lords of Westeros on why they shouldn't fuck with the North.
He had five hundred men, less than a dozen of which were skinchangers. There were at least three thousand Ironborn that he would have to go up against that had the advantages of probably being better armed than the crannogmen in his force but also had a very strong defensive position.
Harry decided that he would make it his mission to make the lives of the Ironborn hell. So that when the first part of the Northern army arrives with his uncle Ned, they would be all but ready to destroy the Ironborn who were left or there would be none left at all.
He figures if he can break them when severely outnumbered then it will give all his future enemies second thoughts when it comes to challenging the North and House Stark.
As always criticism is welcome as long as it's constructive.
Next chapter Thursday 6 April 2023.
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