Griffon Culture

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Griffon Government


The Griffon body of government was up until the recent year a strict patriarchal monarchy. Though there existed a military council, it was still headed by the King who possessed the power to deny or overrule any decision the council made.

The military council was made out of several representatives - each of the Admirals of the Griffon Armada, meaning 7 in total. The governor of Royal Rocks, the Governor of the Hollow and the King himself, all in all an even 10 members in the council.

On the surface, it seemed fair, any large section of the Griffon population received fair representation in the council. However, the Hollow were often intentionally misinformed of Council meeting times and in some cases were blatantly not allowed to participate. The interests of Royal Rocks always took precedence in the council meetings and even the fleets suffered somewhat in the wake of this selfishness. Such uneven representation has caused the Hollow, with little or no governmental support, to collapse into terrible living conditions.

Traditional Wing vs Advanced Wing

What ponies would consider the conservative vs liberal argument, the traditional and advanced mentality can be seen in all aspects of Griffon life. From blacksmithing to military training, from bazaar to store. These two wings believe in almost the exact opposite of each other.

The Traditional Wing claims that the Griffon Kingdom should not forget its roots and culture, they preach that honor, trust and brotherhood are what made griffons powerful and what would keep them powerful. The Traditionalists do not like to rely on machines to do their work for them and deny many fields of progress in the forms of mechanization, architecture, mercantile and other fields. The more extreme Traditionalists believe that progress is wont to lead to corruption. They would use the late King Whitefeather and his advisor Loci as an example of this.

The Advanced Wing claims that sticking to honor and tradition was their main downfall in the Dragon Wars and that progress is necessary to keep up with the world. They believe mechanization would help eliminate poverty and low living conditions and that taxable free trading would allow the government to support the poorer population. They claim that the old ways are barbaric and that without progress, ledgering, supervised industry and taxable trading, corruption is just as existent, but is unknown to the public.

Of course there are many from both sides who accept the advantages of both wings, many Traditionalists value the power of the airship and agree that many aspects of progress are good for the Kingdom. The vast majority of Griffons believe that at the very least, the honor system is an important aspect of Griffon Culture and must be preserved.

The Honor System

The Griffon social elite are usually not what you'd expect, not the wealthiest or the children of nobles, but rather the hard working and the honest. To the wide griffon public, it is integrity above all that defines a good ruler, how honorable are my neighbors, my friends? How honorable am I? Do I deserve respect? These are questions often asked by griffons. Griffon honor is always the talk of the day, being seen as honorable can raise even the poorest griffon up, but even the most powerful griffon can fall if deemed dishonorable by his peers.

This concept has shifted greatly within the isolated bubble of Royal Rocks. Under the late King Whitefeather's influence, the rich and the wealthy accumulated more and more power within the city, until the Honor system has all but died out.

The Honor System, despite its simple and tribal origin, has helped griffons in selecting quality leaders and officers to its service for millenia. For example - any Griffon who has been deemed dishonorable can never become an Admiral or public official. It is an unspoken rule, but all adhere to it. This has been very effective to prevent corruption and a shining example of that is Hijrat of the Hollow who has been able to greatly lower violent crimes within the dilapidated city and bring some order to the chaos within.

Griffon Castes

Griffons have no castes per-se, they divide into trade skills and guilds. Crafters, blacksmiths, merchants, architects, chefs and bakers, chemists and inventors... There are no differences between them as far as the Griffon eye decides. Griffon view their craft as nearly sacred. Never will a blacksmith sell a low quality blade, he would sooner throw it out than tarnish himself by bestowing a low quality craftwork. The griffons' keen eyes allow them to scrutinize their own work and others' constantly, leading to a very competitive market in all fields. Every imperfection is noticed, every dent, miscalculation and asymmetry is immediately spotted. This is true for everything from builders to warriors. Perfection of form is something many griffons aspire to and in order for any craftsman to take on apprentices, they must first create a masterwork item to be acknowledged by their craft's guild.

Rocs

Rocs are gigantic and majestic birds, their feathers a sunlight gold in color that often reflects the sunlight in a dazzling display, which even griffins who are used to it, tend to find breathtaking.

Griffins and Rocs have always been companion spirits, working together to shape the sky and mountains to be habitable. The Rocs would never find themselves disloyal to the Griffin cause, no matter how wrong they feel it is.

Rocs manage the heavy weather and winds one may find in the high summits of the Griffin Kingdom, under strict supervision of the Griffins. These Golden Birds have earned the nickname Sun Birds for their glistening golden feathers. However, despite being very gentle birds, in combat they are devastating. And but a few of them working together can take down a fully matured dragon.

In the Dragon Wars, the elite Thunderbirds were made, these Rocs were the most powerful and fierce, wielding power over lightning and electricity. These Rocs are the elite of their kind, and respected by all.