Basgiath War College · Riders Quadrant
Riders Quadrant
The Riders Quadrant is organised as four wings. Each wing holds three sections, named Flame, Claw and Tail. Each section holds three squads of roughly fifteen to sixteen cadets. Open the tree to walk the structure from the top down.
Chain of Command
Open a wing, then a section, then a squad. Each level explains what it is and how many cadets it holds.
The structure in numbers
- Wings
- Four
- Sections per wing
- Three: Flame, Claw, Tail
- Squads per section
- Three
- Cadets per squad
- Roughly fifteen to sixteen
- Wing leader
- Wingleader
- Section leader
- Section Leader
- Squad leader
- Squad Leader
- Executive Officer
- Not yet establishedThe title is used; the duties and selection are not
- First-year allocation
- Not yet establishedThis site generates one as a game system
What is a Wing?
A wing is the largest permanent grouping in the quadrant, and there are four of them. They are numbered rather than named: First Wing through Fourth Wing. Whether they carry in-world names beyond the number is not established.
A wing is commanded by a Wingleader. In practice that is one of the most outstanding third-years, though an exceptional second-year can ascend to the role. A wing is large enough that its members do not all know each other, which is part of the point: the quadrant is built to sort people quickly.
What is a Section?
Each wing divides into exactly three sections, and the three names are fixed: Flame, Claw and Tail. A section is commanded by a Section Leader, again normally a third-year.
A section is the level where a cadet starts to be known. It is small enough for a leader to track who is holding up and who is not, and it is the level that matters when the quadrant is ordered to move.
What is a Squad?
Each section holds three squads, numbered within the section. A squad is roughly fifteen to sixteen cadets, which makes it the group a first-year actually lives inside: the people on the same training rotation, in the same dormitory, in the same part of the valley on Threshing Day.
A squad is led by a Squad Leader. Dain Aetos holds that rank in Fourth Wing as a second-year, which is early for it and says something about how the quadrant promotes.
Level by level
| Level | How many | Led by | What the books establish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wing | Four in the quadrant | Wingleader | Numbered First to Fourth Wing. Normally led by an outstanding third-year. |
| Section | Three per wing | Section Leader | Named Flame, Claw and Tail. No other section names are attested. |
| Squad | Three per section | Squad Leader | Numbered within the section, roughly fifteen to sixteen cadets each. |
| Executive Officer | Not established | Not yet established | The title is used in the series. The duties and the selection method are not sourced. |
The chain of command, upward
Cadet
Every first-year at Basgiath War College starts here. No command responsibility, and no say in which wing or squad they join, because the books never state how that allocation works.
Squad Leader
Commands roughly fifteen to sixteen cadets. Second-years can hold this rank, as Dain Aetos does in Fourth Wing.
Section Leader
Commands one of Flame, Claw or Tail inside a wing. Typically a third-year. Garrick Tavis holds a section leader rank in Fourth Wing.
Wingleader
Commands an entire wing. Typically the most outstanding third-year. Xaden Riorson leads Fourth Wing.
Names attached to ranks
Spoilers: Fourth Wing
This section contains material from later in the series.
Xaden Riorson is Wingleader of Fourth Wing. Garrick Tavis holds a section leader rank. Dain Aetos is a second-year squad leader. Amber Mavis leads Third Wing.
Violet Sorrengail is placed in Fourth Wing, Flame Section, Second Squad. The section and squad numbering is widely repeated by readers and rests on community reporting rather than a clean statement in the text, so treat the exact numbering as unconfirmed.
Sources
Questions people actually ask
It is the branch of Basgiath War College that trains dragon riders, based in its own citadel above the main college. Cadets there cross the Parapet to enter, and they train to bond a dragon and fight as aerial combatants.
Four. First, Second, Third and Fourth Wing are all attested, and each wing carries three sections.
Flame, Claw and Tail. There are exactly three sections in a wing, each led by a Section Leader, and no fourth section is established.
Three squads per section, each roughly fifteen to sixteen cadets, which puts a wing at a few hundred riders when it is full.
A Wingleader commands a wing, a Section Leader commands a section and a Squad Leader commands a squad. The senior posts usually go to outstanding third-years, though an exceptional second-year can hold one.
Not until they bond. First-years share quarters, and a bonded rider is given a private room along with riding leathers.
Not yet established. The title is used in the series, but no sourced definition of the duties or of how the post is filled has been published, so this site leaves it blank rather than guessing.
Ready to be chosen?
The dossier generator places you in a wing, a section and a squad.