Well, I've spoken of them enough in other chapters, so I suppose now is as good a time as any to discuss the Gryffs in further detail. From the day we first encountered these people of the north, we have been enemies to them. Even in times of peace, our forces and theirs have glared angrily at each other across the border separating our respective homelands. From the first war all the way to modern times, peace has usually only ever meant one thing; time to gather strength until the next conflict.

Our knowledge of their people is limited prior to our first meeting, but their land, Gryffstone, is a different story. A land of harsh cold and soaring peaks, it is little good for tending crops or growing lumber. As such, the Gryffs of the past were a people who knew little in the way of comfort or plenty, and often warred amongst their fellow tribes for basic essentials. This infighting kept them far from the eyes of our own peoples for many centuries, and while we did indeed know of them, we rarely, if ever, desired to know anything about them.

This all ended with the coming of a man named Grover. When it started, none can say, but there came a day when this young Gryff looked southward, to our own lands, and there, he saw riches, fertile lands and, most of all, opportunity. He realised that his people were nothing when fighting amongst themselves as they had been. But, if they were to unite, that would be a different matter. And so, unify them he did. Many promises were made, stories of the unimaginable riches that would flow through their lands if the southern kingdoms were taken. Some of his people listened, others did not. And these latter tribes were brought to heel by those Grover had already made alliances with.

In time, he'd forged his people into a single unified force, and so, for the first time in history, the Gryffs had become a legitimate threat to the realm. And it was a threat definitively proved when, in the days after their unification, they smash the first kingdom they came across, on what, today, is known as the barren plain. But, back then, it was the northernmost of the petty kingdoms of the Green Lands. The then King of the time laughed at the supposed threat of the Gryffs, and led his host to meet them on open battle. This proved a poor choice, and by the time the day was done, his forces had been surrounded and routed. The king and all his heirs died that day, and his land was left defenceless.

Pillage and plunder followed, as the Gryffs made their way from village to village, taking whatever treasures they found and burning the rest. If reports of the day are to believe, the raiders, men and women both, also took captive many a young boy or maiden, a prize often sought over mere gold or silver. As for why, well, I don't think I need explain the reason for such kidnappings. This was the moment that forced the rest of the Greenlander peoples to realise just how dire a situation they were in. Here, things progressed much as I have described in earlier chapters. Many of the kings of the day, including Solaris the Great, banded together to drive the invaders back. The Battle of the Border was fought soon afterwards, ending with not only the defeat of the Gryffs, but the death of Grover himself at the hands of Jack Apples.

With their forces crippled, they retreated back to Gryffstone, and were then set terms by the newly-empowered King Solaris. They were to remain within their own lands, never to set foot into Greenlander territory again, lest they invite war once more. For the most part, the Gryffs complied with this, although, as one would expect, it didn't last for very long. Every generation or two, some new Gryff leader would emerge, banding his folk together yet again with promises of glorious battle. And time and again, they are felled, driven back, and left to stew in their bitterness.

Many attempts have been made by Greenlander Kings and Queens over the centuries to bring them into the fold, to make a lasting peace. But, sadly, the Gryffs have usually rejected such attempts, preferring their own way. And their way, it must be said, is about as far from our own as one can get. Unlike our way, which emphasises unity and harmony, theirs has always been a reliance on the self. In battle, every Gryff warrior fights for their own glory, rather than to benefit their people as a whole. And even in times of peace, they will seek to out-do one another in whatever way they see fit. It is a brutal way of life, and one that has served them ill, both in the past and in the present.

However, for all their faults, one praise in particular can be said about them; their strength. They tower over even the tallest of Greenlanders, and are strong to a degree most of us cannot fathom. Such was how many of their early victories were achieved against us. I can scarcely imagine the fear a soldier of old must have felt staring down such a foe. A mighty Gryff, wielding two battle-axes at once, as was their custom, screaming angrily as they charged. It was a frightening thought to be sure, and yet, one thing has always given us an advantage against such strength; their people's lack of magic. None can say for certain why this is, but the Gryff peoples have never been blessed with mages amongst their number. Though, in hindsight, it is probably for the best that it stays that way.

On the rare instances in which a Gryff will stray to the south, it is usually to try and satisfy the battle lust that is so often lacking in their own homeland. Today, one will often encounter their people among mercenary companies, or hired on as personal bodyguards of lords or wealthy merchants. And in this, it must be said, they serve their roles well, for few have ever died under their protection. Yet, unfortunately, that is almost the only interaction between our peoples that we have going for us. On occasion, it is rumoured that some Gryffs and Greenlanders have even become lovers. But, according to those who observe them, such unions are often barren, giving rise to the belief that a mixing of our two races is fundamentally impossible. Though again, such talk is strictly hearsay at this point.

Whatever the case, it must be said that the Gryffs remain stubbornly clung to their older ways and lifestyles. They are a people angrily holding onto the bitterness of past defeats, while hoping in their hearts to one day achieve what their ancestors could not. The Gryffs forever look to the perceived glories of their past, while steadfastly ignoring or raging against the poverty of their present. It is a sad tale, to be sure, and yet, one must always remember one important fact; whatever hardships the Gryffs endure, it has always been their own doing that led them to it.