Jean I, Count D'Armagnac

Jean I, Count of Armagnac

In September 1346, following the French defeat at the Battle of Crécy and the beginning of the English Siege of Calais, Armagnac was appointed royal lieutenant in the south-west. However due to the overall worsening French situation he was left with few troops and little money. He was therefore unable to stop Lancaster neither from consolidating English gains in the south nor from launching a major raid into Poitou. (Wikipedia)


Axioms

• Count of Armagnac
• Castle in the fortress of Auch
• Fiefdom in Quercy
• Fiefdom of Rouergue
• Fiefdom of Gerivan
• Experience field commander
• Royal Lieutenant of South-West France
• underfunded by the King of France

Jean II the good, King of France

King Jean II "The Good"

King Jean is second sovereign of the House of Valois. His main claim to fame is that he lost the Battle of Poitier and died a prisoner in England. But this has not happened in this game yet, so there is not much to say. Why was King Jean "the good"? Because he sure knew how to live the good life.

Axioms

1. Big spender
2. Poor administrator
3. At odds with his coursing Charles of Navarre (Potential ally of England)
4. Overconfident as a diplomat

08/15/55 -- Sir John Griffyn

Situation
Over 2000 Cheshire men responded to the call to arms. This was definitively more than expected, but it didn't turned out to be a curse for the unit. The upside is that the few men selected to sail first were the most experiences and well equipped that the Shire could produce. Although bows and strings were short earlier in the summer, the men who made the cut were well equipped, smartly dressed, armed appropriately with short swords and large daggers. Many are wearing armors dating back from the glory days of Crecy. There are grosses of arrows everywhere, but the steel-headed kind had to be procured from the King's store. This is ironic since the King's purveyors were responsible for doing their job too well in the first place: leaving nothing behind for the regional units. Most archers simply can't carry horses oversea, for the lack of shipping is even greater than the lack of suitable horses. The Cheshire commanders will be on horses, maybe a few scouts will be on light horses, but the unit will be on foot.

The really bad news is that only one eight of the unit will be able to sail to France with the Prince of Wales. The fleet is supposed to come back in a month, but by then it is likely that most men will have abandoned their billet and returned home. During the weeks of riots, Sir Griffyn steered the fine line between making the men busy and getting them angry. He disregarded a few requests to execute trouble makers, but the unit is overall still mainly loyal to the Prince of Wales. The unit leaving for France is rated as trained, and has suitable discipline.

This concludes Phase 1 of the game for the Cheshire Archers. See you on the private site for new situation updates and more mayhem.

Narbonne

Location
Narbonne is another good-sized city near the Mediterranean cost. It was the turning point of the 1355 raid.
Population : 15,000 (size 14)

Directions

• West : Carcassonne, 3 days, farmland.
• North-East : Montpelier, 6 days, along the coast, farmland.
• North : Rodez, Mende, 12 days, farmland.

Axioms

• Fortified city.

Carcassonne

Location
Carcassonne, dubbed the twin-city is the main bridge over the Aude. It is said to be very hazardous to use its bridge without controlling the fortress first as it is in a cross fire zone.
Population: ~15,000 (size 14)

Directions

• North-West : Toulouse, 4 days, farmland.
• East : Narbonne, 3 days, farmland.

Axioms

• Bridge over the Aude river
• A fortress and the city are separate.
• Commercial city.

Mende

Location
Mendez is a small walled town that acts as the  economic center of Gerivan, and the easternmost fiefdom of the Count of Armagnac. It is bordered in the East by the Cevenne forest, and is a gateway to major centers such as Lyons, Avignon and Clermont-Ferrand.
Population : ~5,000 (size 12)

Directions

• West : Rodez, 4 days, farmland, Mountains.
• North : Clermont-Ferrand, 10 days, farmland, hills.
• South-East : Avignon, 8 days, forest.
• South : Narbonne, 10 days, forest, farmland.

Axioms

• Minor Agricultural Economy.
• Xenophobic population base (well, more than usual).

Rodez

Location
Rodez is the capital of the County of Rouergue, which is under the feodal tutelage of the Count of Armagnac.
Population : ~10K (size 13)

Routes

• South-West : Albi, 4 days, farmland.
• West : Montauban, 7 days, farmland, forest.
• East : Mende, 4 days, farmland, mountain.

Axioms

• Weak economy of goods.
• Agricultural.
• Considered backward by Southern-France standards.