Pegasus Knight

"Breeding the foals of the Pegasi has proved exceptionally difficult. Well, that is to say, it's difficult to get them to fly. Let me explain. Several of the foals that we've reared have never learned to fly, their wings atrophying, as they grew older. Even those that had mothers who actively participated in their flying lessons didn't always take to it. I suspect that without the inherent danger of the high mountain nests that a more naturally reared Pegasus grows up with, they are smart enough to realise that they don't truly have a 'need' to fly. Thus, we are still at the mercy of the mountaineers and the Dwarf rangers who specialise in acquiring Pegasus foals. Something I find fascinating though, the Pegasus that never learn to fly are the swiftest runners that I've ever heard of outdistancing any other mount, save perhaps a Pegasus on the wing."

—Jean-Marc, Bretonnian Husbander.^[2a]

Bretonnian Pegasus — A Pegasus Knight flying into battle.

Pegasus Knights are a form of heavily-armoured aerial cavalry, often hailing from the great dukedom of Parravon, hard on the slopes of the Grey Mountains where many of their noble mounts can be found.

Overview

Their numbers are made up almost exclusively by Knights of the Realm, and even then only the richest and most influential of these mighty Knights can boast of owning a battle-trained Pegasus into combat, for the creatures are difficult to capture and even harder to train.^[1a]

Most knights who want to ride a Pegasus raise it personally from a foal. It takes around a year before the Pegasus is ready to accept a rider. However, it is not a full-time activity, as there is no problem with having other people to help raise it. Most Pegasus foals are bought very expensively, therefore hunters from both the Empire and Bretonnia brave the dangers of the mountain passes to secure Pegasus foals for many willing nobles. Several of the Knightly Orders of Bretonnia have become exceptionally fond of the Pegasi and a few lords have even begun to field whole squadrons of these Pegasi riding knights into battle.^[1a]

Accordingly, to own such a beast is the ultimate symbol of wealth and success for their owners, but in truth, a pegasus is also a great practical boon for any knight fortunate enough to acquire one. Unlike traditional mounted warfare, those Knights that can tame and ride the mighty Pegasus into battle are warriors without equal. Flying across the battlefield with wings of angelic appearance, the Pegasus Knights take to the sky and fight the flying monstrosities the enemy has unleashed upon them with lance and swords. The Pegasus is far stronger and faster than even the mightiest warhorse, easily able to crush a man's skull with its flailing hooves and cover great distances in a short amount of time. In the more wild and inaccessible domains of Bretonnia, there is real merit to a steed that is not prone to becoming covered in mud or entangled in thorns. On the battlefield, small groups of Pegasus Knights will band together, often outstripping the rest of the army as they search for honourable combat.^[1a]

Those superhuman Grail Knights, who own the greatest and most noble of Pegasi, are commonly gifted with the King's Royal Insignia. On the battlefield, these living saints will often band together as elite Royal Pegasus Knights.^[3]