Griffin

Griffin

Griffins were created in the Mythic Age from the spontaneous magical fusion of lions and eagles. At that time the surface of Ashan was irrigated by dragon-veins, remnants of the Dragon Gods' wars, and animals that drank of these untamed rivers of dragon blood and magic were permanently altered by it. It is said that an act of compassion by an eagle who rescued a lion being carried away by the current of a dragon-vein gave rise to this formidable species.

Griffin Stats:

Name	Griffin	Might Defense	12
Size	2	Magic Defense	10
Attack Type	Might	Hitpoints	75
Damage	14-18	Morale	8
Basic Growth	3	Initiative	35
Upgrade Growth	1	Movement	6
Max Growth	7	Movement Type	flyer
Luck	7	Range	none
Passive Abilities	Unlimited Retaliation
Active Abilities	Diving Attack
Generic Abilities	Living

Imperial Griffin Stats:

Name	Imperial Griffin	Might Defense	15
Size	2	Magic Defense	10
Attack Type	Might	Hitpoints	85
Damage	14-20	Morale	8
Basic Growth	3	Initiative	40
Upgrade Growth	1	Movement	6
Max Growth	7	Movement Type	flyer
Luck	7	Range	none
Passive Abilities	Unlimited Retaliation
Active Abilities	Diving Assault
Generic Abilities	Living

Ability Descriptions:

Diving Attack: The Griffin flies off the combat map and dives on his target at the end of the turn dealing its normal attack damage.

Unlimited Retaliation: The Griffin may retaliate unlimited times.

Living: Can be healed and resurrected. Susceptible to morale.

Imperial Griffin Only:

Diving Assault: The Imperial Griffin flies off the combat map and attacks all enemies in line at the end of the turn dealing its normal attack damage to each target.

Tactics:

Griffins, a classic in the Heroes series for a long time, are a relatively weak Elite unit statistically, but they have decent hit points and a knack for avoiding combat except for when the situation is suited to keeping them alive. Their Diving Attack takes them out of combat to avoid damage, can hit anywhere on the battlefield, and has no retaliation. In addition, Griffins have shed their drawback of previous installments and can no longer miss with their attack because a unit vacated the area; they now target a stack when they take off rather than a space. But like all Might abilities, Diving Attack can only be used once every three turns, so they will need to stay relatively protected when they are not in the air. The Unlimited Retaliation ability can make it tempting to bring them directly into the fray since they can dish out massive amounts of damage the more they are attacked, but be cautious with this tactic even with the tougher Imperial Griffins, as they are not plentiful, take damage quickly and easily, and are not easily resurrectable via your Sisters because of their high hit points. The Imperial Griffins' Diving Assault ability is both tactical and surprisingly effective, hitting every stack in line with the target when they come down.