Irish Nation Status

[neondt]

Do you really want to try unify Ireland while either trapped as a march (and having to fight England to be free first) or with half your necessary lands under England (and again, requiring fighting England for the sake of a couple of tiny provinces)?

Additionally, they nominally owed allegiance but it was hardly enforced and none of them actually paid any lip service to England. Eu4 lacks a system for "Acknowledges you kicked their face in the past but wouldn't so much as move to hand you water while you're dying of thirst" so independence is fine.

Lastly, Kildare only became the undisputed power by the end of the 15th century. Game starts mid-15th century.

This is essentially why Ireland is the way it is in EU4. Even a tributary relationship would be excessively formal to represent English "rule" over Ireland in 1444.