Richard Follywit enters with his cohorts, Mawworm (intestinal worm), Hoboy, and other hangers-on. He jokes with his companions about their wild ways and sarcastically repents and says he is now a man who "swears without number, gulls without mercy and drinks without measure." He tells his cohorts of a plan he has hatched to get some more money: His grandfather, Sir Bounteous Progress (a rich old knight) has left him everything in his will, but refuses to give him as much as ten pounds while he is still alive. Despite his frugality concerning Follywit, Bounteous loves to entertain noble guests with extravagant feasts. Follywit therefore plans to disguise himself as a great lord so that he can capitalize on his grandfather's hospitality.