Gryphon Rider too weak/costly?

[PvK]

This is about Edi's post in the bug thread, which I didn't want to spam with OT discussion:

Originally posted by Edi:
...
The Garnet Amazon holy unit, Gryphon Rider has to be changed. Right now it costs 125 gold, 25 resources and it's very fragile. Yes, itturns into a gryphon when the rider gets killed, but after the battle ends, the gryphon dies (unlike in Dom-PPP where it stuck around like the Machakan Hunter Spiders do in Dom2). This makes it a completely worthless investment and quite frankly the worst sacred unit in the game bar none. It ought to be changed back to the previous status, or the cost significantly reduced.
...

I thought she was pretty good, even with gryphons that don't stick around. It also seems thematic that the gryphons do leave - I've read it is rather difficult to earn a gryphon as a mount.

Resource cost is 20, not 25, when I look at it.

It's a sacred flying unit with mountain and plains survival. Three attacks: Light Lance, bite, claw (16 and 18 damage, no penalties).

Rider is HP 10 and Prot 10, so yes that is the weakness, but the rest is rather good: Attack 13, Defense 16, Morale 14, Enc 4, Strat Move 3.

It is 2-3 times as expensive as the other holy Amazon mounted units, and I suppose not 2-3 times as good. It's the most deadly rear-striker, though, flying in with three good attacks (which could be flaming, for instance, with Fire-9 blessing).

However comparing to Machakan Black Hunters, which are very similar in terms of skills (the rider has practically the same skill levels but different equipment and a different mount (non-flying but nastier due to the web), they have exactly the same cost (125 gold) but 38 resources (presumably for the metal armor). BH's are expensive but definitely worth it if they can be afforded. I tend to think that Gryphon Riders would also be worth it but their value is in flying and attack strength rather than survivability. A nice unit rather than something to spend all gold on, but worth it in that respect, it seems to me.

Also seems thematically appropriate. Gryphon riders probably wouldn't be particularly economical in a real and consistent world. But they would be unique and dangerous. Which is how they are. So it seems about right to me, having only considered it this far.

Other opinions?

PvK