Daryn Foote

Marshal of the Marches

The Stormlands

Kevan Foote - Brother - b. 380

Ser Elys Foote - Uncle - b. 352

Lord **Daryn Foote** is the eldest son of the late Lord Tywin Foote, and has held the position of Lord of the Marches and Lord of Nightsong since his father's death in 383 AC, and the position of Marshal of the Marches since the death of Ser Symon Bluntsword in 389 AC.

## Appearance

Daryn Foote's youth is visible, but even without the grim, experienced appearance of his father, the young lord's similarity to the late Tywin Foote is noticeable. Thick black hair falls from the top of his head to his shoulders, and the very beginnings of a beard are forming upon his chin, the signs of things yet to come. Always clothed in riding leathers, Daryn's lean figure can be seen on display in the training yards, the product of a near-lifetime of training to emulate his late father.

## Biography

### Lost in Another Man's War

Daryn Foote was born in 372 AC, as the eldest son of Lord Tywin Foote and Lady Corenna Swann, during one of his parents' rare visits home to Nightsong. During his young years, Daryn spent a large amount of time at the home of House Baratheon, Storm's End, due to his father holding the post of a high-ranking commander on Lord Davos' council, keeping him from seeing his home for years on end. However, Storm's End had its benefits, with the young heir to Nightsong receiving an education from the castle's maester, and sitting in on council meetings as his father's page, along with his younger brother. When able, Daryn would go riding with the other boys at the castle, including Lord Baratheon's son, Rodrik, who was five years older than the heir to Nightsong. Daryn showed great skill on horseback from a young age, often outrunning the older pages and squires. For nine years, the heir to House Foote lived at Storm's End. And then, news came north from Dorne, of the armies of the Three Daughters running rampant through Dorne. As one of the Stormlands' great commanders, Lord Tywin headed south, gathering his levies and knights at Nightsong, and headed south to Skyreach, to meet with his fellow Marchers, and the Lords of the Boneway and the Prince's Pass. Before he rode forth, Tywin gave his son a tender goodbye, promising that he would return to Storm's End when the Archon's men had been dealt with.

When the united army marched south to the Tor, they engaged in fierce battle with the Triarchy's forces, fighting tooth and nail to push them back from House Jordayne's holdfast. Many sellsword companies valued their lives over gold, and fled the battlefield into the desert, whilst the professional soldiers under direct command of the Archon returned to their ships, and sailed back to a safer castle, abandoning their siege. News sparingly reached Storm's End, but all of it gave the young lad great confidence in his father. However, for moons, nothing more came to the Stormlands, and Daryn grew worried. However, his worry was soon dispelled twofold, with news of the retaking of Sunspear, led by the combined armies of the Marcher Lords and the Dornish, forcing a full retreat from Dorne on behalf of the Three Daughters. And, within the next few months, Rodrik Baratheon, the sixteen-year-old knight, returned from war in the Riverlands. Ser Rodrik would take on the young Foote as a squire, riding south at a breakneck pace to join up with Rodrik's brother Gawen, and Daryn's father, at Blackhaven. At Hangman's Hill, the army, now one-and-a-half-men stronger, engaged a force besieging Gallowsgrey, pushing them north. Further onward the army pushed, onward to catastrophe. There, Lord Tywin, Lord Dondarrion, and Lord Blackmont plotted an assault, to confuse and shock the men of the Three Daughters. Daryn and Rodrik rode with Gawen Baratheon's vanguard knights, the young squire showing off his skill with lances, and were able to escape the chaos. His father was not so lucky. Stuck between the Archon's lines and a second army, marching south from the holdfast of House Errol, the main host was torn up and scattered, and whilst many were able to retreat, Lord Tywin was not one of them. In the muddy fields of Bronzegate, Daryn Foote began to weep, kneeling in the grass as the death toll was reported. Eleven years old, Daryn Foote, Lord of Nightsong and Lord of the Marches, wept.

When King Edmund Baelish's force arrived, Daryn was thankful, but he could not be happy. So much had been lost, and for what? However, Rodrik's drive to continue on raised his spirits, and so when the King declared his invasion of Myr, Daryn followed his young knightly master across the Narrow Sea. Rodrik and Daryn were assigned to the main host, and so only fought for a small while, consigned to stand and watch as Prince Petyr Baelish's army was destroyed by the Archon's forces. When the Pact was signed, the young Lord of Nightsong was furious. Was that what his father had thrown his life away for? White peace? Was that what the Crown Prince fought for in his final moments? And yet, he knew it was peace. *That* was what Lord Tywin had fought for. And it had come, at the greatest sacrifice.

### A Tide of Regents

For the next two years, Daryn continued his training under Ser Rodrik in the halls of Storm's End, and still studied under the castle's maester. However, his days were no longer spent assisting the Stormlander council, but poring over battle reports from the Dornish-Triarchy War, in an attempt to see where they had failed, what could have been different. And yet, he could see *nothing* he could change. Every strategic decision made sense, and yet they had failed. Every man who had died was a strong leader, a great tactician. His father, and Prince Petyr, both were experienced and willing to take risks, and yet every risk they had taken was a failure. Daryn had expected his studies to enlighten him, but all they did was confuse him further, and infuriate him. Everyone who asked him what was wrong received a stern glare, giving him an intimidating reputation with everyone, everyone except Ser Rodrik. To the knight of House Baratheon, Daryn felt confident sharing his problems, and his insecurities. However, in 387 AC, his knightly master stated his intent to head to the Vale to visit Lord Andar Royce, and assist the Valemen in their efforts against the Mountain Clans. It was a hard decision to make, but the young Lord of the Marches knew he could not stray too far from his lands. And so, the two parted ways, with Daryn explicitly refusing a knighthood from his master. With nothing tying him to Storm's End anymore, the young Foote knew it was time to return home.

His arrival at Nightsong was as expected. He was welcomed cordially, but the people did not know him, and as soon as the shock of their lord's return ended, the castle's regent explained the situation. All three of his siblings were held hostage, and Daryn, even in his sixteenth year, would not be permitted to rule in his own right. It would fall to Ser Matthos Wagstaff, the lord regent, to rule in his stead, along with a council of *his* choosing. Matthos was the fourth regent to serve since Lord Tywin's death, and the second who did not come from the late lord's own dynasty. Unfamiliar with the castle's court, Daryn was forced to accept, and reluctantly acted as a figurehead. Every single member of the lord's council was Wagstaff's toady, chosen by the regent upon his ascension. Every single member apart from the master-at-arms, Lord Tywin's old second-in-command. Ser Meryn Goldtongue was of a house of landed knights founded by a singer who impressed a Lord of House Caron hundreds of years ago. Ser Meryn's inclusion on the council was an empty concession, a show of faith in previous administrations. But it was enough.

Matthos' regency fell apart in 389 AC, upon the man's death from a failing heart, and it was then that Daryn and Meryn planned to overthrow the corrupt council. Whilst the entire regency council was loyal to Matthos, his successor Ser Symon Bluntsword did not inspire that same loyalty. Symon was not cunning, not of an old line, and not particularly competent in his own position, that of the seneschal, causing many of his fellow councillors actively worked against him, allowing the young Lord to find allies at his own court, and to investigate Matthos' plans. Whilst the majority of the late regent's possessions were innocent, the discovery of a plan to assassinate Lord Daryn and spirit his siblings away forced the master-at-arms and the Lord of the Marches to act quickly. Many of the guards held Lord Tywin in high regard, and both Lords Wagstaff and Herston had met Daryn during his squirehood under Ser Rodrik, and had recognised his skill. It was Ser Meryn who formed the plan, having control over the guard patrols. Unlike his predecessor, Bluntsword was not astute enough to limit the master-at-arms' authority, and so every guard at the monthly council meeting was fiercely loyal to House Foote.

When Ser Symon presented the meeting's schedule, Daryn raised his hand, and asked the regent to be quiet. As he spoke, the councillors were arrested, skilled and loyal men being raised in their place. Ser Meryn retained his position, whilst both Lords Wagstaff and Herston were placed in positions of their choosing, and Daryn's uncle, Ser Elys is elevated to the position of steward. As he was carried away, Symon ranted and raved about "treacherous Westermen" and "Lannister toadies". In response, Baratheon banners were raised above those of House Foote, and similar banners were hung all around the courtyard. In that same yard, a gallows was erected, upon which Symon Bluntsword was hanged. When he pleaded to be executed like a noble, Daryn gave a cold reply. "You ruled like a common criminal, Ser. You will die like one too. It is only fair." Whilst Bluntsword was executed for his major part in the plot against House Foote, the other corrupt councillors were simply exiled, with their lands and incomes confiscated if they possessed any.

One year has passed since Daryn Foote assumed full control of Nightsong, with the death of Ser Symon Bluntsword. With news of King Edmund's illness, the young Lord of the Marches heads to King's Landing, to compete in the tourney, and to mayhaps earn his knighthood.

## Family Tree

* **Lord Tywin Foote** - Father - b. 351 AC, d. 383 AC
* m. Lady Corenna Foote, nee Swann - Mother - b. 350
	+ **Lord Daryn Foote** - b. 372 AC
	+ Lyonel Foote - b. 374 AC
	+ Dorna Foote - b. 375 AC
	+ Kevan Foote - b. 380 AC
* Ser Elys Foote - b. 352 AC
* m. Joy Wagstaff - b. 354 AC
	+ Edric Foote - b. 374 AC
	+ Tion Foote - b. 380 AC
	+ Eldon Foote - b. 386 AC

## Household

* Ser Meryn Goldtongue - Master-at-Arms - b. 351 AC - Archetype: Warrior (Swords)
* Ser Elys Foote - Uncle & Seneschal - b. 352 - Archetype: Trader
* Lord Gawen Wagstaff - Lord of Wagstaff & Chancellor - b. 340 AC - Archetype: Negotiator
* Lord Myles Herston - Lord of Hen Hall & Second Marshal of the Marches - b. 364 AC - Archetype: General