Griffin

Guardians of Yesterday

A griffin is a creature with the back half of its body appearing as a lion while the head and forelegs are that of an eagle. An avian creature, the griffin has two great eagle like wings on its back.

Originally native to the western mountains of Anbar when Karasaanu covered the land, griffin have spread throughout Ethae and beyond through the ages. The griffin were the mounts and guardians for the Elf during the reign of the Areian Nations and as the influence of the elves spread, they took their mounts with them. Females were the mounts, while the larger more agressive males were trained to guard cities and castles across the continent. In the modern day, though their numbers have dwindled over time, griffins can still be found nesting on the rocky peaks and cliffs of mountains throughout Ethae. Their numbers are highest in the central Cutting Mountains, far from the civilized world.

It is rare in the modern day to find a griffin that is domesticated as a mount. The process of training a griffin is time consuming and deadly, one cannot just buy a mount like a horse. A griffin must be trained from its hatching. They are not naturally subservient and even elven experts can be killed by a rebellious young griffin. A prospective master to a griffin must work with the griffin handler for the years to bond with the creature before every trying to ride it. Once it has bonded with its master, however, a griffin will be fiercely loyal for life.