Legion of the Dragon

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General

The Legion of the Dragon is a military formation, composed of men sworn to Rand al'Thor, originally formed from those who failed the test to see if they could learn how to channel. Taim initially suggests this, claiming Rand needs his own army as the Aiel and Bashere can't be relied upon (LoC, Ch. 11), but it is Bashere who Rand gets to train them as crossbowmen, using principals Bashere worked out with Mat (LoC, Ch. 42; ACoS, Ch. 41). This training goes reasonably well and Rand is able to use cavalry formations from the Legion when he attacks Illian (ACoS, Ch. 41) and fights the Seanchan (TPoD, Ch. 21). They weae a blue coated uniform, with red and gold dragons painted on the chest (TPoD, Ch. 22).

Their first engagement was during Rand's attack on Illian, where they followed the Saldaean cavalry through gateways directly into the city. There were fifteen thousand of them at that time, though Bashere stated he had hoped for more time to train them (ACoS, Ch. 41). They are again used in the defence of Illian against the Seanchan, by which time they are under the command of Jak Masond and have acquired shortswords, though there is no cavalry or even pikes in the Legion; every man is armed the same way (TPoD, Ch. 21; Ch. 22).

Quotes

Bashere was making what he could of them, he understood, in a camp somewhere west of the city; what he could considering that they were, as the Saldaean put it, a ragtag collection of penniless farmers, runaway apprentices and failed craftsmen who had never held a sword, ridden a horse with a saddle or been more than five miles from where they were born (Lord of Chaos, Chapter 42).