There is a griffin that is at war with a lord and planning to take over his castle as a new roost. The lord sends the majority of his men out to kill the griffin once and for all but they are led into a trap and all killed by golems who serve the griffin. With the army gone, the griffin and the golems head towards the castle. I'm having trouble thinking of how to write the next scene which is basically the griffin's big triumph and takeover of the lord's castle. I had a few ideas like nests being dropped onto the towers, banners being taken down, golems marching through the gates. Basically I want to create the feeling that this castle won't be the same again under the griffin. Can you help me? Thank you.
The ideas you have so far seem good! Also be sure to focus on the human cost of this defeat (the griffin's victory), too. Are families being forced out of their homes and livelihoods? Is anyone being killed or toyed with by either the griffin or the golems? Are there any livestock that the griffin will start gathering up to eat?
In a medieval setting, there would not have been a standing army. The lord's men would be the working men from the surrounding farms and villages which the lord owns. After the defeat, the lord decides to abandon the castle. The servants find refuge with friends and family while the lord travels further. When the griffin and the golems arrive, they find it deserted. The building is not designed for a creature the size of the griffin so there are major practical problems. The way the griffin and golems organize their affairs is totally different from what the lord was doing. Foreshadow this by making a point of describing relevant details during the lord's tenure to contrast them later with the griffin's.
Historically, this all might be more realistic. But this is a fictional world the OP is creating, I'm sure, so it doesn't need to be nearly so dry as this. There still are ideas you suggested that the OP could consider, of course.
I'm new here, but my question would be how do you want this scene to be communicated to the reader? Do you want them to see the actual action or witness the effects of the invasion? For example, if a family is viciously murdered, you could 1) describe the actual murder 2) describe someone discovering the dead bodies and being horrified or 3) describe what the person who discovers the bodies sees/smells, etc., and let the reader interpret it (e.g., they walked into the room, the smell of burning flesh, mangled bodies on the floor, etc.). If you want to do something like the aftermath, maybe something like: "Only the village crier was spared, but perhaps his fate was the worst. His eyes were forced to witness the indignity that followed: turrets became perches for hawk-eyed sentries, great halls hosted savage golems feasting on the most putrid victuals, tapestries chronicling the history of this fallen kingdom were shredded to pieces, reduced to rags for glistening the beaks of those winged beasts."
Ok, the griffin declares National Breeding Day, where the young women and twinkish men of the court get tied up to posts and their cheeks get clapped. Emperor Nero of Rome did this- that's where I got the idea. When you read this you probably woke right up and started listening. Your readers will too.
A lord would never send his main force into an enemy territory to be slaughtered. The lird would likely hire mercenaries and such to try and kill the Griffin. With that failing, the next logical step to to fortify the castle and prepair for a siege from the griffin. If it's just a lord, then the castle would be quite small compared to most fantasy versions. There may be villagers living near by, but they wouldn't be within the castle themselves. If the lord is a bad guy, then it's likely he would flee with his personal guard and all the contents of the treasury. As for the villagers, it would be dangerous to travel in a world with monsters. If the griffin is benevolent, it should helpbthe people somehow. If not, then it should try and slaughter everyone without exception.
There is a griffin who takes over a lord's castle as a new roost with the help of several golems handed to it by a wizard. After taking over it keeps the lord prisoner in one of the towers. Since it is looking at staying there for the long term, it needs to strengthen its position and to demotivate potential invaders, since it can't defend the castle from large armies. What do you think? Can you help me?
