An attempt to organize those funky little badges on the War for Cybertron packaging. Most of the info is extrapolated from the Siege website and Hasbro Pulse's article, neither of which provide complete guides...
This is how they work:
And these are the known variants:
* The idea seems to be that Decepticons have their own terminology, but it’s inconsistent. Not everything has a unique Decepticon name, and some sources use Autobot terms instead. I've opted for all the unique terms, 'cause honestly it's more interesting that way.
* Concept art mentions 8 Units (including Recon and Intelligence), though it appears only 7 have been put to use.
* The other Factions do not get their own ranking system
* Aside from the Netflix series, sub-lines like Selects and Galactic Odyssey don’t include badges
* The card game uses these too, but someone else is gonna have to cover that one...
And here is what everyone's badges translate to:
SIEGE
Autobots
WFC-S1 Firedrive — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S2 Lionizer — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S4 Roadhandler — Ground [Unknown] Private
WFC-S4 Swindler — Ground [Unknown] Private
WFC-S6 Topshot — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S6 Flak — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S7 Sideswipe — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-S8 Cog — Ground Artillery Sergeant
WFC-S9 Hound — Ground Infantry Sergeant
WFC-S11 Optimus Prime — Ground Infantry General
WFC-S13 Ultra Magnus — Ground Infantry Major
WFC-S15 Greenlight — Ground Special Ops Private
WFC-S15 Dazzlestrike — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S16 Pteraxadon — Air Artillery Private
WFC-S19 Red Heat — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-S19 Stakeout — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-S20 Chromia — Ground Special Ops Sergeant
WFC-S21 Ironhide — Ground Infantry Captain
WFC-S22 Sixgun — Ground Infantry Sergeant
WFC-S23 Prowl — Ground Infantry Major
WFC-S26 Covert Clone Sideswipe — Ground Special Ops Private
WFC-S26 Slamdance — Ground [Unknown] Sergeant
WFC-S26 Trenchfoot — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S28 Jetfire — Air Engineering Captain
WFC-S29 Omega Supreme — Space Transport Captain
WFC-S29 Countdown — N/A
WFC-S31 Smashdown — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S33 Powertrain — Ground Special Ops Private
WFC-S33 Highjump — Ground Special Ops Private
WFC-S34 Ratchet — Ground Engineering Private*
(Ratchet's rank is a nightmare to figure out. The instructions show him as a Private, a downloadable poster uses Sergeant, the Siege webpage says it's "Specialist" which seems like a mistake, while the front of the box actually uses a weird symbol that only shows up one other place that's clearly an error. UGH)
WFC-S35 Red Alert — Ground Medical Private (and yes, Ratchet’s an engineer and Red’s a medic; lord only knowns why)
WFC-S38 Springer — Air Special Ops Sergeant
WFC-S40 Galaxy Upgrade Optimus Prime — Space Infantry General
WFC-S42 Impactor — Ground Special Ops Captain
WFC-S43 Mirage — Ground Special Ops Sergeant
WFC-S45 Rung — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S49 Crosshairs — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S55 Holo Mirage — Ground Special Ops Sergeant
WFC-S56 Aragon — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-S58 Road-Police — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-S58 Wheel Blaze — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-S59 Ground Shaker — Air Infantry Private
WFC-S59 Overair — Air Infantry Private
WFC-S60 Ricon — Ground Transport Private
WFC-S60 Irontread — Ground Transport Private
WFC-S64 Bluestreak — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S65 Classic Animation Optimus Prime — Ground Infantry General
Nemesis Prime (Takara) — Ground Infantry General (Nemesis is a Decepticon, but his packaging is just Optimus' with the name swapped out)
Decepticons
WFC-S3 Blowpipe — Air Weapons Raider
WFC-S5 Storm Cloud — Air Infantry Raider
WFC-S5 Visper — Air Infantry Raider
WFC-S10 Skytread — Ground Black Ops Raider
WFC-S12 Megatron — Ground Infantry General
WFC-S14 Shockwave — Space Applied Sciences Major
WFC-S17 Aimless — Air Weapons Raider
WFC-S18 Laserbeak — Air Espionage Raider
WFC-S18 Ravage — Ground Espionage Raider
WFC-S24 Starscream — Air Infantry Captain
WFC-S25 Soundwave — Ground Espionage Major
WFC-S27 Skywarp — Air Black Ops Sergeant
WFC-S27 Fracas — Air Weapons Raider
WFC-S27 Shrute — Air Espionage Raider
WFC-S27 Terror-Daxtyl — Air Espionage Raider
WFC-S30 Caliburst — Air Weapons Raider
WFC-S32 Blackjack — Ground Infantry Raider
WFC-S32 Hyperdrive — Ground Infantry Raider
WFC-S36 Refraktor — Ground Espionage Raider
WFC-S37 Brunt — Ground Weapons Raider
WFC-S39 Thundercracker — Air Infantry Sergeant
WFC-S41 Barricade — Ground Infantry Sergeant
WFC-S44 Singe — Air Weapons Raider
WFC-S46 Rumble — Ground Espionage Raider
WFC-S46 Ratbat — Air Espionage Raider
WFC-S47 Direct-Hit — Ground Weapons Raider
WFC-S47 Power Punch — Ground Weapons Raider
WFC-S48 Spinister — Air Infantry Raider
WFC-S50 Apeface — Ground Espionage Private
WFC-S50 Krunk — N/A
WFC-S51 Astrotrain — Space Transport Captain
WFC-S52 Acid Storm — Air Infantry Raider
WFC-S53 Ion Storm — Air Infantry Raider
WFC-S54 Nova Storm — Air Infantry Raider
WFC-S57 Decepticon Impactor — Ground Infantry Sergeant
WFC-S61 Nightflight — Air Infantry Raider
WFC-S61 Slyhopper — Air Black Ops Raider
WFC-S62 Cratermaker — Ground Weapons Raider
WFC-S62 Fireline — Ground Weapons Raider
WFC-S63 Soundblaster — Ground Weapons Sergeant
WFC-S66 Classic Animation Megatron — Ground Infantry General
Refraktor Reconnaissance Team
Spectro, Spyglass, Viewfinder — Ground Espionage Raider
Kremzeek — N/A
Selects
WFC-GS01 Combat Megatron — Ground Infantry General
WFC-GS03 Galactic Man Shockwave — Space Applied Sciences Major
(Selects generally don't have badges, but these two do, presumably because they got mainline counterparts)
EARTHRISE
Autobots
WFC-E1 Soundbarrier — Air Engineering Private
WFC-E2 Smashdown — Air Artillery Private (transferred from Ground to Air Command apparently)
WFC-E3 Trip-Up — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-E3 Daddy-O — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-E5 Hoist — Ground Medical Private
WFC-E6 Wheeljack — Ground Engineering Sergeant
WFC-E7 Cliffjumper — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-E8 Ironworks — Space Engineering Captain
WFC-E10 Grapple — Ground Engineering Captain
WFC-E11 Optimus Prime — Ground Infantry General
WFC-E14 Rung — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-E16 Fuzer — Space Special Ops Private
WFC-E16 Blast Master — Space Special Ops Private
WFC-E17 Arcee — Ground Special Ops Sergeant
WFC-E20 Smokescreen — Ground Special Ops Sergeant
WFC-E24 Sky Lynx — N/A
WFC-E31 Ironhide — Ground Infantry Captain
WFC-E31 Prowl — Ground Infantry Major
WFC-E32 Bluestreak — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-E34 Trailbreaker — Ground Special Ops Captain
WFC-E36 Sunstreaker — Ground Special Ops Private
Alternate Universe Optimus Prime — N/A
Decepticons
WFC-E4 Bombshock — Air Weapons Raider
WFC-E4 Growl — Air Weapons Raider
WFC-E9 Starscream — Air Infantry Captain (didn't climb any rank since Siege)
WFC-E12 Astrotrain — Space Transport Captain
WFC-E15 Roller Force — Ground [Unknown] Raider
WFC-E15 Ground Hog — Ground [Unknown] Raider
WFC-E18 Airwave — Air Black Ops Sergeant
WFC-E21 Snapdragon — Space Infantry Sergeant (presented as a Mercenary at Toy Fair, but uses Decepticon livery)
WFC-E21 Krunk — N/A
WFC-E23 Doubledealer — Air Infantry Sergeant (while fiction treats him as a Mercenary, he has a Decepticon rank badge)
WFC-E25 Scorponok — N/A (Megatron literally blasted the rank badge off the packaging!)
WFC-E25 Lord Zarak — N/A
WFC-E26 Thrust — Air Infantry Sergeant
WFC-E27 Ramjet — Air Infantry Sergeant
WFC-E27 Dirge — Air Infantry Sergeant
WFC-E29 Skywarp — Air Black Ops Sergeant
WFC-E29 Thundercracker — Air Infantry Sergeant
WFC-E30 Pounce — Ground Espionage Sergeant
WFC-E30 Wingspan — Air Applied Sciences Raider
WFC-E33 Centurion Drone — N/A
WFC-E35 Fasttrack — Space Infantry Raider
WFC-E37 Runamuck — Ground Black Ops Raider
WFC-E38 Megatron — Ground Infantry General
WFC-E39 Doublecrosser — Ground Applied Sciences Raider
WFC-E40 Direct-Hit — Ground Weapons Raider
WFC-E40 Power Punch — Ground Weapons Raider
WFC-E41 Runabout — Ground Black Ops Raider
This is how they work:
And these are the known variants:
* The idea seems to be that Decepticons have their own terminology, but it’s inconsistent. Not everything has a unique Decepticon name, and some sources use Autobot terms instead. I've opted for all the unique terms, 'cause honestly it's more interesting that way.
* Concept art mentions 8 Units (including Recon and Intelligence), though it appears only 7 have been put to use.
* The other Factions do not get their own ranking system
* Aside from the Netflix series, sub-lines like Selects and Galactic Odyssey don’t include badges
* The card game uses these too, but someone else is gonna have to cover that one...
And here is what everyone's badges translate to:
SIEGE
Autobots
WFC-S1 Firedrive — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S2 Lionizer — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S4 Roadhandler — Ground [Unknown] Private
WFC-S4 Swindler — Ground [Unknown] Private
WFC-S6 Topshot — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S6 Flak — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S7 Sideswipe — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-S8 Cog — Ground Artillery Sergeant
WFC-S9 Hound — Ground Infantry Sergeant
WFC-S11 Optimus Prime — Ground Infantry General
WFC-S13 Ultra Magnus — Ground Infantry Major
WFC-S15 Greenlight — Ground Special Ops Private
WFC-S15 Dazzlestrike — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S16 Pteraxadon — Air Artillery Private
WFC-S19 Red Heat — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-S19 Stakeout — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-S20 Chromia — Ground Special Ops Sergeant
WFC-S21 Ironhide — Ground Infantry Captain
WFC-S22 Sixgun — Ground Infantry Sergeant
WFC-S23 Prowl — Ground Infantry Major
WFC-S26 Covert Clone Sideswipe — Ground Special Ops Private
WFC-S26 Slamdance — Ground [Unknown] Sergeant
WFC-S26 Trenchfoot — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S28 Jetfire — Air Engineering Captain
WFC-S29 Omega Supreme — Space Transport Captain
WFC-S29 Countdown — N/A
WFC-S31 Smashdown — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S33 Powertrain — Ground Special Ops Private
WFC-S33 Highjump — Ground Special Ops Private
WFC-S34 Ratchet — Ground Engineering Private*
(Ratchet's rank is a nightmare to figure out. The instructions show him as a Private, a downloadable poster uses Sergeant, the Siege webpage says it's "Specialist" which seems like a mistake, while the front of the box actually uses a weird symbol that only shows up one other place that's clearly an error. UGH)
WFC-S35 Red Alert — Ground Medical Private (and yes, Ratchet’s an engineer and Red’s a medic; lord only knowns why)
WFC-S38 Springer — Air Special Ops Sergeant
WFC-S40 Galaxy Upgrade Optimus Prime — Space Infantry General
WFC-S42 Impactor — Ground Special Ops Captain
WFC-S43 Mirage — Ground Special Ops Sergeant
WFC-S45 Rung — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S49 Crosshairs — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S55 Holo Mirage — Ground Special Ops Sergeant
WFC-S56 Aragon — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-S58 Road-Police — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-S58 Wheel Blaze — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-S59 Ground Shaker — Air Infantry Private
WFC-S59 Overair — Air Infantry Private
WFC-S60 Ricon — Ground Transport Private
WFC-S60 Irontread — Ground Transport Private
WFC-S64 Bluestreak — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-S65 Classic Animation Optimus Prime — Ground Infantry General
Nemesis Prime (Takara) — Ground Infantry General (Nemesis is a Decepticon, but his packaging is just Optimus' with the name swapped out)
Decepticons
WFC-S3 Blowpipe — Air Weapons Raider
WFC-S5 Storm Cloud — Air Infantry Raider
WFC-S5 Visper — Air Infantry Raider
WFC-S10 Skytread — Ground Black Ops Raider
WFC-S12 Megatron — Ground Infantry General
WFC-S14 Shockwave — Space Applied Sciences Major
WFC-S17 Aimless — Air Weapons Raider
WFC-S18 Laserbeak — Air Espionage Raider
WFC-S18 Ravage — Ground Espionage Raider
WFC-S24 Starscream — Air Infantry Captain
WFC-S25 Soundwave — Ground Espionage Major
WFC-S27 Skywarp — Air Black Ops Sergeant
WFC-S27 Fracas — Air Weapons Raider
WFC-S27 Shrute — Air Espionage Raider
WFC-S27 Terror-Daxtyl — Air Espionage Raider
WFC-S30 Caliburst — Air Weapons Raider
WFC-S32 Blackjack — Ground Infantry Raider
WFC-S32 Hyperdrive — Ground Infantry Raider
WFC-S36 Refraktor — Ground Espionage Raider
WFC-S37 Brunt — Ground Weapons Raider
WFC-S39 Thundercracker — Air Infantry Sergeant
WFC-S41 Barricade — Ground Infantry Sergeant
WFC-S44 Singe — Air Weapons Raider
WFC-S46 Rumble — Ground Espionage Raider
WFC-S46 Ratbat — Air Espionage Raider
WFC-S47 Direct-Hit — Ground Weapons Raider
WFC-S47 Power Punch — Ground Weapons Raider
WFC-S48 Spinister — Air Infantry Raider
WFC-S50 Apeface — Ground Espionage Private
WFC-S50 Krunk — N/A
WFC-S51 Astrotrain — Space Transport Captain
WFC-S52 Acid Storm — Air Infantry Raider
WFC-S53 Ion Storm — Air Infantry Raider
WFC-S54 Nova Storm — Air Infantry Raider
WFC-S57 Decepticon Impactor — Ground Infantry Sergeant
WFC-S61 Nightflight — Air Infantry Raider
WFC-S61 Slyhopper — Air Black Ops Raider
WFC-S62 Cratermaker — Ground Weapons Raider
WFC-S62 Fireline — Ground Weapons Raider
WFC-S63 Soundblaster — Ground Weapons Sergeant
WFC-S66 Classic Animation Megatron — Ground Infantry General
Refraktor Reconnaissance Team
Spectro, Spyglass, Viewfinder — Ground Espionage Raider
Kremzeek — N/A
Selects
WFC-GS01 Combat Megatron — Ground Infantry General
WFC-GS03 Galactic Man Shockwave — Space Applied Sciences Major
(Selects generally don't have badges, but these two do, presumably because they got mainline counterparts)
EARTHRISE
Autobots
WFC-E1 Soundbarrier — Air Engineering Private
WFC-E2 Smashdown — Air Artillery Private (transferred from Ground to Air Command apparently)
WFC-E3 Trip-Up — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-E3 Daddy-O — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-E5 Hoist — Ground Medical Private
WFC-E6 Wheeljack — Ground Engineering Sergeant
WFC-E7 Cliffjumper — Ground Infantry Private
WFC-E8 Ironworks — Space Engineering Captain
WFC-E10 Grapple — Ground Engineering Captain
WFC-E11 Optimus Prime — Ground Infantry General
WFC-E14 Rung — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-E16 Fuzer — Space Special Ops Private
WFC-E16 Blast Master — Space Special Ops Private
WFC-E17 Arcee — Ground Special Ops Sergeant
WFC-E20 Smokescreen — Ground Special Ops Sergeant
WFC-E24 Sky Lynx — N/A
WFC-E31 Ironhide — Ground Infantry Captain
WFC-E31 Prowl — Ground Infantry Major
WFC-E32 Bluestreak — Ground Artillery Private
WFC-E34 Trailbreaker — Ground Special Ops Captain
WFC-E36 Sunstreaker — Ground Special Ops Private
Alternate Universe Optimus Prime — N/A
Decepticons
WFC-E4 Bombshock — Air Weapons Raider
WFC-E4 Growl — Air Weapons Raider
WFC-E9 Starscream — Air Infantry Captain (didn't climb any rank since Siege)
WFC-E12 Astrotrain — Space Transport Captain
WFC-E15 Roller Force — Ground [Unknown] Raider
WFC-E15 Ground Hog — Ground [Unknown] Raider
WFC-E18 Airwave — Air Black Ops Sergeant
WFC-E21 Snapdragon — Space Infantry Sergeant (presented as a Mercenary at Toy Fair, but uses Decepticon livery)
WFC-E21 Krunk — N/A
WFC-E23 Doubledealer — Air Infantry Sergeant (while fiction treats him as a Mercenary, he has a Decepticon rank badge)
WFC-E25 Scorponok — N/A (Megatron literally blasted the rank badge off the packaging!)
WFC-E25 Lord Zarak — N/A
WFC-E26 Thrust — Air Infantry Sergeant
WFC-E27 Ramjet — Air Infantry Sergeant
WFC-E27 Dirge — Air Infantry Sergeant
WFC-E29 Skywarp — Air Black Ops Sergeant
WFC-E29 Thundercracker — Air Infantry Sergeant
WFC-E30 Pounce — Ground Espionage Sergeant
WFC-E30 Wingspan — Air Applied Sciences Raider
WFC-E33 Centurion Drone — N/A
WFC-E35 Fasttrack — Space Infantry Raider
WFC-E37 Runamuck — Ground Black Ops Raider
WFC-E38 Megatron — Ground Infantry General
WFC-E39 Doublecrosser — Ground Applied Sciences Raider
WFC-E40 Direct-Hit — Ground Weapons Raider
WFC-E40 Power Punch — Ground Weapons Raider
WFC-E41 Runabout — Ground Black Ops Raider
