Strigon Team

"Talisman, it's the reapers' emblem! Let's pay 'em back once and for all!"

- Shamrock

The Strigon Team was an elite fighter squadron of Estovakia that participated in both the Estovakian Civil War and the Emmeria-Estovakia War.

Civil War
Part of the 370th Aviation Regiment of the Estovakian Air Force's Central Forces Precinct, the Strigon Team was an elite air unit formed by the Eastern Faction during the civil war, along with the Vampire Team, with Victor Voychek as its leader. His formation included Ilya Pasternak as his second in command, along with Karlo Bogdanovic and Cvitko Dudic. Despite being created after its inception, the Vampire Team soon overshadowed Strigon in prominence, leading it to struggle with a small pilot roster.

As the war progressed, the unit increased in size with Vampire transfers and exceptional rookies, as did its fame. The skill of the squadron's pilots were a major asset of the Eastern Faction, and proved essential in its victory at the end of the war, when Voychek's party rose to power in the newly created government in 2014.

Invasion of Emmeria
"Engage the enemy at will following Nimbus impact. Finish them off."

- Victor Voychek During the invasion of Emmeria in August 2015, the Strigon Team were deployed on the P-1112 Aigaion heavy command cruiser in the siege of Gracemeria, where they attacked the Emmerian Air Force in conjunction with the Aigaion's Nimbus missile strikes.

While attacking Emmerian fighters in the midst of their retreat from the city, Voychek was shot down by Talisman of the Garuda Team, leaving him with a crippled leg that would put an end to his flight career, causing his wingman Darijo Kovac to temporarily assume the role of Strigon's leader. After the occupation of Gracemeria, the unit worked with the Aigaion in a series of operations named "King & Balloon" to foil attempts of recapture.

When the Emmerian military launched their counterattack from Khesed Island, Bogdanovic and a wingman were deployed to assist in the defense of Bartolomeo Fortress, but were killed by Garuda as the site was being overrrun by ground troops. After the start of operations in western Anea, a similar outcome met Dudic and three other pilots in the siege of Silvat Town.

In February 2016, Kovac and a detachment of other members stationed at the Aigaion over the Fuscum Sea were shot down while attempting to defend the Aerial Fleet from a surprise Emmerian attack, along with the aircraft and their creator, Lorenz Riedel. To compensate for the excessive number of fatalities in the unit, Vampire Team was dissolved and merged with Strigon. During the battle of the Moloch Desert, Nino Ljubek, Franz Lenko and an unnamed pilot were killed by the Garuda Team.

Dissolution


During the events of Operation Free Gracemeria, Ilya Pasternak led a flight of several Strigon pilots in a futile effort to defend the city from the Emmerian onslaught. Flying a CFA-44 Nosferatu, Pasternak ordered his wingmen to escape from Gracemeria before committing a suicide attack on the Emmerian forces, giving them a chance to flee. The remaining Strigon members fled to Estovakia, where they collaborated with Gustav Dvornik in his plan to attack Emmeria with the Chandelier railgun. The survivors were briefly stationed at Chandelier's internal airfield for the rest of the war.

On April 1, 2016, the Garuda Team and several Emmerian Air Force squadrons attacked Chandelier to destroy it, but were intercepted by two separate squadrons, led by Aleksei Chesenko and Yaroslav Deryagin. Many of the remnant's members died or disappeared during the operation, except for Toscha Mijasik, who surrended in Gracemeria.

Pilot roster

 * 1) Victor Voychek (Strigon 1)
 * 2) Ilya Pasternak (Strigon 1 NEW)
 * 3) Darijo Kovac (Strigon 2/Strigon 1 from the Invasion of Gracemeria to the Destruction of the Estovakian Aerial Fleet
 * 4) Aleksei Cheshenko (Strigon 2 NEW)
 * 5) Karlo Bogdanovic (Strigon 3)
 * 6) Yaroslav Deryagin (Strigon 3 NEW)
 * 7) Cvitko Dudic (Strigon 4)
 * 8) Franz Leko (Strigon 4 NEW)
 * 9) Frederiko Jarni (Strigon 5)
 * 10) Nino Ljubek (Strigon 5 NEW)
 * 11) Stepan Feigin (Strigon 10 NEW)
 * 12) Toscha Mijasik (Strigon 12)

Trivia

 * The "Strigon" name is derived from the strigoi, undead vampiric beings from Romanian mythology, which is reflected in their choice of colors. The hooded figure in their emblem led them to gain a reputation as "Reapers".
 * In Ace Combat: Joint Assault, the Su-37 Terminator can use the Strigon livery, as is the team's emblem for all aircraft through the Emblems system. As well, a Terminator ace named "Storigon" appears in the extra mission "Ace of Aces". Their livery also appears as Color 4 of the Su-33 in Ace Combat: Assault Horizon, being available after achieving a certain online score.
 * Noticeably, the description of the color describes the hooded figure in the squadron emblem as a "magician", as opposed to a reaper.
 * Stepan Feigin is interesting as the assault record lists him as a replacement for "Strigon 10" even though no "original" Strigon 10 appears on the assault record unlike other original members.
 * The serial number on the front of all the Strigon Aircraft is '009', this is because they are part of the 9th Tactical Fighter Squadron and not the serial of 'Strigon 9' as originally thought.
 * The Strigon team could be considered a sort of spiritual successor to the Yellow Squadron. Both fly Sukhoi aircraft with canards, both are enemy aces that are part of the story, and both are rivals to the player team; Strigon rivalling 28th Fighter Squadron "Garuda", and Yellow rivalling 118th Tactical Fighter Wing "Mobius". They also have nicknames associated with them (Yellows with the Yellow Squadron and Reapers with the Strigons), and pilots in their squadron (Victor Voychek and Ilya Pasternak for Strigon and Yellow 04 and Yellow 13 later) are shot down during the course of the game.
 * It is possible, though difficult, to shoot down the entire Strigon Team in the first mission. However, this is considered non-canon, as all Strigon members excluding Victor Voycheck and Ilya Pasternak will still appear in their respective missions.