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// The Griffin Diaspora 
// Story: Places of Power Within the Pony Wars 
// by Wings of Black Glass 
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The Griffon mercantile republics were once powerful economic forces.  Their coastal cities were hubs of trade networks that crossed continents and linked far away nations.  Nearly incalculable wealth passed through their borders, and they leveraged that to give almost their entire population a high standard of living and education.  They should have heralded the rise of a golden age of prosperity.
But success breeds jealousy, and the states found themselves on the losing side of conflicts with larger and more militarized enemies.  Heavily outnumbered in nearly every engagement, the Griffons relied on mercenaries and on their few natural advantages.  A Griffon is slightly larger and more robust than a Pony and possesses grasping claws to use weapons Ponies are physically incapable of manipulating.  The Griffon states were able to hold off threats for decades, but there was one force they could never compete with.
The development of magic was becoming more advanced, and no Griffon has even been shown to directly use it themselves.  Although they could hire a few magic-using Unicorns, it was costly, and they were too few to make a difference.  In the Sunbound Kingdom, magic was a significant element of political power, and the Kingdom itself was undergoing a period of rapid expansion under the rule of King Golden Corona.  When he set his sights on the wealth of the Griffon states, they were rapidly overcome.
Falling to the Sunbound armies, Griffons scattered.  Refugees flocked to the remaining cities at first, then they too were best by the Sunbound.  Lost in a haze of greed, Sunbound armies looted the Griffon cities and slaughtered much of the population.  Those that could tried to escape to any safe harbor, including the Lumahina Empire or places even farther away.
It was clear to the few remaining Griffon states they could not compete against magic or the larger nations, and they begged for aid from anyone who would listen.  Only the Changelings agreed to send assistance, but at a dire cost.  As well as massive monetary debts, they would be subjects of a foreign power, handing over most of their governance and rights to the Changeling guilds and their Quorum leadership.  The Changelings weren’t able to defeat the Sunbound in the field but disrupted their armies until the Sunbound decided they had taken enough land and finally turned back.
As an independent nation, the Griffons were destroyed.  Those who couldn’t escape or wouldn’t leave became lesser class citizens of the Sunbound, looked down on for being unable to keep their homes or for an inability to use magic.  In the Lumahina Empire, the Griffon refugees were often forcibly settled against their will, and families were sometimes split up.  Unable to assimilate into the repressive culture, most Griffon refugees ran from the cities and into the wilds.
Scattered across continents, they nearly lost their culture and history.  Only due to their eldest recording everything they knew into what would become sacred texts detailing the history and rituals of Griffon life before the invasions is it still remembered.  Some make a living by selling their skills with money management, others turn to thievery and banditry, many sell themselves as mercenaries fighting the wars of others.  Now the remainders of the Griffon mercantile republics are lost across whole continents, struggling just to survive in a harsh world that’s about to get much nastier.