Irish

"They say God invented whiskey to stop the Irish from rulin' the world."

- Irish

 is a Major character featured in Red Dead Redemption.

With the addition of the Liars and Cheats DLC pack,  is also a Multiplayer character model that may be selected in the 'Damnation' section of the Outfitter.

Background
Irish is an immigrant to the American West, still possessing a thick Irish brogue. He is a dysfunctional alcoholic as well as armsdealer known to greatly exaggerate and tell tales of which he rarely remembers the finer details. When John works alongside him, Marston often does the dirty work with Irish nowhere to be found, further perpetuating his reputation as a bumbling drunk and coward.

Interactions
Irish is one of the supporting characters in the first chapter of Red Dead Redemption. His help was suggested to John by Nigel West Dickens as the man who could get Marston heavier firepower along with ammunition for the gun, as well. After saving Irish and doing him some favors, he will help John take over the last known hideout of Bill Williamson — Fort Mercer. To conquer the fort, Irish supplies Marston and his entourage with a Gatling Gun and the ammunition that goes with it. However, when the firefight starts in Fort Mercer, he is nowhere to be found until just before the mission is concluded. His excuse: "I awoke with my head in a pair of tits and I felt I should get reacquainted with them." Among the "favors" Marston does for Irish is the escort of a Stagecoach and a raft to Nuevo Paraiso.

Epilogue
After entering Nuevo Paraiso, is never seen again. In 1914, the "miscellany" section of the Blackwater Ledger states that an "Irish male, of unknown name" accidentally shot himself dead in an outhouse in Thieves' Landing; an extremely undignified death.
 * During the mission "We Shall Be Together in Paradise", Irish mentions he was born into the world fighting and he will leave it fighting, to which John replies that he thinks Irish will leave it pissing his pants, unknowingly predicting Irish's death in the future when his gun accidentally goes off in an outhouse in Thieves' Landing.

Mission Appearances

 * "A Frenchman, a Welshman and an Irishman"
 * "Man is Born Unto Trouble"
 * "On Shaky's Ground"
 * "The Assault on Fort Mercer"
 * "We Shall Be Together in Paradise"

Controversy
At least one news outlet has criticized the portrayal of Irish as the "town drunk" who attempts to talk his way out of situations as being the "Stereotype of the drunken Paddy."

Trivia

 * In multiplayer, he is placed in the Damnation section, most likely due to his crimes and attempts to get John killed, not to mention the nuns he's tried to rob.
 * If shot at before starting a mission, he may shoot back and possibly kill the player or simply run.
 * Irish's real name is never mentioned in-game.
 * Irish seems to keep his revolver tucked into the front of his pants compared to being in a holster. This is likely why his gun went off and killed him after it discharged in the outhouse.
 * When Irish puts his gun away after shooting in the mission "We Shall Be Together in Paradise", it uses the animation like he is putting his gun in a holster. If you look you will see his gun teleports to the front of his pants.
 * After the mission "We Shall Be Together in Paradise", it is possible to kill him. However, the player needs to be extremely quick and likely will have to use Dead-Eye.
 * Due to a comment Irish makes in "On Shaky's Ground", Irish may be from Dublin, Ireland.
 * He is one of the few original Red Dead Redemption Characters that does not appear in Undead Nightmare. However on occasion a Retcher may be encountered which has a striking similarity to Irish and next to the train station in Armadillo, there is a half eaten corpse, that if looked at carefully, has a resemblance to Irish, with a repeater carbine next the body.
 * He may slightly resemble Tuco from The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly as he is clumsy and has very unfriendly relations with the main character.
 * He appears to be very well travelled, having been to both Mexico and Canada, a majority of New Austin, and obviously, Ireland. These claims may be untrue, due to Irish's consistent dishonesty.
 * If the above is true, then Irish is one of the very few if not only character who has been to Canada. This may be where he met French; given that French is Cajun and many were sent back from Canada rather quickly.
 * Both of Irish's parents are referenced at one point in the game. His father's throat was slit by a Welshman, as said in A Frenchman, a Welshman, and an Irishman, and his mother was alive as of 1911, as said in Man is Born Unto Trouble.
 * In On Shaky's Ground, Irish claims to be "a good, Catholic boy," but this may have meant to be sarcastic, as he shows very little sympathy to the Church in later dialogue with Marston.
 * Irish justifies his thievery with ideals very similar in concept to Marston's, as told by his dialogue with Marston after being caught threatening a pair of nuns for money in On Shaky's Ground.
 * Nigel West Dickens' relationship with Irish remains fairly ambiguous, considering he is rarely seen using heavy firearms. However, in dialogue, Irish mentions selling morphine to a friend named Shaky; Irish's drug trafficking may explain their relationship.
 * He is only shown drinking once in Man is Born Unto Trouble.
 * Irish and the character Uncle are similar in many ways, considering they both have very prominent beards, stuggle with alcoholism, are fairly apathetic, only known by their nicknames, disliked by Marston, and have nearly identical facial structures.
 * In multiplayer, Irish's gun is not in the front of his pants, but in a holster on his waist.
 * Although throughout the game, John and Irish's relationship seems to be unfriendly, once Irish and John desperse the ferry in Mexico, before Irish rides off John advises Irish to not get himself killed. Irish responds by remarking that John is although a rash man, he is not a bad one. This notes that John may have had changed impressions of him after Irish helped him in his voyage.

Quotes
"They call me El Rato, 'The Cat', on account of my agility and cunning."

- Irish

"What's the word for 'cunt' in Spanish?"

- Irish

"Ain't you got some peckers to be suckin'?"

- Irish

"Oh, me virgin ears!"

- Irish

"You're an angry and a feck-ugly man, but not a bad one."

- Irish's last words to John Marston.

"It's the whiskey, sir... It gives me the memory of a newborn babe. Innocent as could be."

- Irish