Griffon

A proud predator that fuses the front of a giant eagle to the body of a lion. Golden feathers cover its hooked head, broad wings, and taloned forelimbs, while tawny fur clothes its muscular hindquarters and lashing tail; full-grown it stands shoulder-high to a tall man, with a wingspan over twenty feet. Griffons nest in cliff-side caves and hunt the open country below, driven by a fierce craving for horseflesh that brings them into bloody conflict with travellers and herders. They are bold, loyal to their pride, and savage in defence of their young. Taken as a chick and patiently trained, a griffon becomes a peerless flying mount, though the rearing is dangerous, slow, and ruinously costly.