Griffon Guard

My dearest mother,
I hope my younger siblings are behaving now that I've left the house. Training went very well. My commander informed me I've passed with flying colors and made top marks. Our graduation ceremony is on the fifth of next month. I've included enough to cover skyship fare for you all to attend. I hope you can make it. I'm sure Vanya will absolutely love seeing my griffon.
With much love, Fallor.

If a resident of Phaiyon turns their eyes skywards there is a good possibility they'll catch sight of at least one member of the griffon guard. They are one of the primary military units who ride atop highly trained griffons.

Purpose

The griffon guard serves a handful of roles in keeping Phaiyon safe. Their primary task includes surveying areas to check on the integrity of islands while looking out for potential dangers. Skyships often hire them to provide protection and escort services, especially for longer journeys. In times of need, they are deployed to handle and assist with different conflicts.

Skilled Fliers

Each member of the guard is assigned their own griffon companion at the start of their training. They use a select species that can handle the tasks required of them. Everyone is responsible for taking care of their mounts and ensuring they stay healthy and happy. Members go through vigorous training to not only bond with their griffon, but to maintain their skills as well.

Ranks

Fledgling:

New recruits start off at this rank. They are paired with a griffon and put through a minimum of two years of training. Then fledglings are tested to assess if they can move up in rank. If they fail, the recruits are put through six more months of training before taking a retest. On a second fail they do not get to stay and are sent home.
Fledglings have basic duties and chores to do during their training period. The guard does not send them out into the field, but hey are responsible for cleaning the stables, basic janitorial work, running errands requested by their superiors, and any other small chores that no one else wanted to do.

Sparrow:

After graduating, fledglings move up to their first official rank. They are allowed a month vacation before settling into their new roles and responsibilities. By this point, sparrows should be better acquainted with their griffons and will be able to trust them during jobs.
Sparrows are assigned basic jobs with little to no danger. The guard only calls upon them for harsher assignments when there are no other options.Typical tasks include guard duty, search and rescue, checking on the land integrity in non dangerous areas, and assisting in fledgling training.

Hawk:

Sparrows move up to the hawk rank after completing a year of service with no complications or diciplinary issues. Supervisors assess issues on an individual basis to determine if a discharge is in order. At this level, members have superiority over new recruits and are put in charge of small groups to act as mentors. When hawks are not on individual jobs, they sometimes help sparrows with their assignments when needed.
Hawks are able to move from dealing with mundane chores and small jobs to more dangerous tasks. Jobs at this level include search and rescue, assessing land integrity in areas sparrows aren't assigned, low profile escorts, and dealing with low level monsters.

Eagle:

After two more years of service, hawks are allowed to take the high level test needed to become an eagle. At this rank, they are in a position of leadership and command. Eagles hand out jobs to the lower ranks. They are also the ones who assign hawks their group of sparrows and fledglings.
Jobs for eagles include higher level security, low and high profile escorts, sky patrols to watch out for crime and other dangers, dealing with tougher monsters and threats, and partaking in battles where troops need to be deployed.

Golden Eagle:

This is the highest rank of the guard. They hold command over every member below them and play a role in major decision making for the guard. Eagles only move up to this rank after an additional four years of service paired with reccomendation from at least three golden eagles.
These members oversee job delegation and have the final say in assignments. When requests come in, a golden eagle assesses it and decides which rank is suiteable for the task. Their own duties include tasks eagles are qualified for along with anything else too dangerous for the lower ranks.

Type

Airborne

Rank	Payrate
Fledgling	20SP / Week
Sparrow	40SP / Week
Hawk	65SP / Week
Eagle	85SP / Week
Golden Eagle	125SP / Week

Equpiment

Each member of the guard, no matter their rank, has these items at their disposal.

• Tack, saddle, and care supplies for their griffon
• Daily rations
• Leather armor
• A formal uniform for special events
• Longbow and arrows
• Spear
• Communication pendant
• Rope
• Camping gear for overnight assignments when needed

Special Weapons

Aside from the standard equipment, the griffon guard utilizes speacialized weapons as well. Typically only eagles and golden eagles have access to these, but in dire circumstances, the lower ranks can use them.

The Marooner:

This long ranged gun is the guard's primary weapon when dealing with pirate ships and other criminal sky vehicles. It does not use standard damage dealing bullets. The ammunition is blunt and releases a powerful EMP effect upon impact. This is meant to not only disorientate the offending crew members, but to disable the ship's flight tech to prevent furthur movement as well.

Net Arrows:

These are enchanted arrows members can use with both short and long bows. They look like normal arrows, but have white fletchings instead of gold to distinguish them from the standard arrows used by the guard. After firing, the arrows activate with a command word and transform into a magic infused net. This is ment to restrain someone at a distance and without using excessive force.