{{disambig2|the end of life|the Horseman of Unicron|Airazor (Armada)}}
[[File:Battleofautobotcity.jpg|upright=1.77|thumb|And lo, the children did weep. They wept hard too.]]
''Transformers'' is a children's franchise, but at its core, it's a story of war. This means that the '''death''' of major and minor characters sometimes figures into the fiction.

Given the ambiguous nature of [[Transformer]] physiology, there is very little consistency regarding what is fatal to a Transformer, even within a single storyline. Damage that one Transformer might shrug off can prove fatal to another, or even to the same character in a different story. Sometimes just a laser blast or two will do the trick. Other times, characters survive being melted, [[Waspinator (BW)|crushed into cubes]], and even [[Demolishor (Armada)|utterly disintegrated]]. It does not take a terribly cynical viewer to conclude that the threshold of survival is generally determined by the needs of the plot.

The out-of-universe reasons for a character's death can vary from plot development to the arrival of [[To sell toys|new toys]]. Conveniently enough for writers who are beholden to the whims of a toy company, the majority of Transformers characters are machines, which means that death isn't necessarily permanent. Across the various universes, characters that appear to have been killed have been known to pop up alive again at a later date, or go through some sort of resurrection.

{{quote|"How can you all be so cold and unfeeling? He died a hero!" "Don't you even have mechanical hearts?" "The humans don't understand! Our form of life is vastly different from theirs!"|[[Spider-Man]], [[Sparkplug Witwicky]], and [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]]|"[[Prisoner of War!]]"|noquote=true}}

==In-fiction causes of death==
[[File:DEATH.jpg|left|thumb|upright=2.2|[[Scorponok (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Scorponok]] is just as puzzled as the rest of us.]]
There is little consistency in what can kill a Transformer. Sometimes it takes just a shot. Other times, even totally annihilating a Transformer's body still doesn't do the trick. Even the most basic method of killing, which is to destroy or otherwise cause the loss of a Transformer's [[spark]], varies quite a bit in its details from story to story, character to character, and series to series.

However, over time there has been some convergence of concepts regarding Transformer design across the various franchises and storylines. The concept of Sparks as a Transformer's driving life force has become nearly universal, and with it, the notion that loss of Spark equals death. Various [[2005 IDW continuity]] comics, particularly ''[[The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|More Than Meets The Eye]]'', have delved deeply into this, positing that a Transformer can die if their Spark, brain or (in a new and unique twist) transformation cog are sufficiently damaged, known as "[[Rossum's Trinity‎]]". MTMTE also makes note of the difficulties in killing a Transformer, and how things like decapitation may not be lethal in the right circumstances.

If one is so inclined, these concepts can be applied retroactively to many, if not all, older stories - so that various means of death described below can be seen simply as the means of inflicting the requisite damage on a Transformer's vital bits.

When a Transformer dies, the loss of their life force (or artistic convention, out here in the real world) often results in them turning gray. The most well-known example by far is Optimus Prime's death in the animated movie; Prowl can also be glimpsed turning gray as he falls during the shuttle assault. This idea has shown up in a few other places, such as [[Transform and Roll Out#Part 3|the ''Animated'' cartoon]] and [[World, Shut Your Mouth Part 3: Predestination: A Beginner's Guide|the ''More Than Meets the Eye'' comics]], the latter of which [[Sardines|coined]] the term "[[aggressive depigmentation]]" to describe the phenomenon.
{{-}}

===Weaponsfire===
{{bigquote|This was almost too easy, Starscream!|[[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]] (like the fandom) is surprised to find how easily Autobots die, ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]''}}

[[File:Tftm1986a.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|We're here aboard the Autobot shuttle, where we've secretly replaced Brawn's hyper-dense metal armor plating with styrene plastic. Let's see if anyone can tell the difference.]]
[[File:TFTM UltraMagnus dies.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|Prepare for your death today. Yer gonna die!!]]
[[File:Magnusdeath.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|Ow! Hey! Cut it out, guys! That hurts!]]
[[File:Blades1.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|Sorry, [[Outpost B-67 exo-structuring party|nameless guy]], your generic nature means you will never be miraculously resurrected.]]
[[File:DreadwingdeathImage.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|You will pay for this, Megatron! Mark my words, you'll pay!]]
Like humans, Transformers can be killed by damage caused by energy, projectile, and chemical weapons. Just how many shots it takes is widely variable, however.
*In the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|original ''The Transformers'' cartoon]]:
**Many casualties of the [[Battle of Autobot City]] (and its run-up), including [[Prowl (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Prowl]], [[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]], [[Ratchet (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Ratchet]], [[Ironhide (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Ironhide]], and [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]], are victims of energy weapons. {{storylink|The Transformers: The Movie}} This was quite a change from the cartoon's M.O., wherein the same characters routinely got shot and blasted all the time and shrugged it off, or at worst spent some time in the repair bay. Brawn and Prowl (whose tech specs show endurances of 9) both went down after ''one shot''.
**[[Ultra Magnus (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Ultra Magnus]] subsequently "dies" after being shot a few times by the [[Sweep (G1)|Sweeps]], exploding into pieces. He is soon revived by the [[Junkion (species)|Junkions]], however. {{storylink|The Transformers: The Movie}}
**In the Japanese continuity, Ultra Magnus dies ''again'', for real this time, after [[Sixshot (G1)|Sixshot]] shoots him a few times. {{storylink|Ultra Magnus Dies!!}}
*In the [[Marvel Comics continuity|Marvel comics]]:
**[[Impactor (G1)|Impactor]] is cut down by a single head shot from [[Macabre]]. {{storylink|Target: 2006}}
**Most deaths in the ''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (Marvel)|Generation 2]]'' book occur from energy weapons, such as [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]], {{storylink|Devices and Desires! (Marvel)|Devices and Desires!}} as well as numerous generics. {{storylink|War Without End!}} Quite a few victims explode spectacularly after being shot, including [[Tantrum (G1)|Tantrum]], {{storylink|The Gathering Darkness}} [[Runamuck (G1)|Runamuck]], [[Quake (G1)|Quake]], {{storylink|New Dawn}} and [[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]]. {{storylink|Escalation!}}
*In the ''[[Beast Wars: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]'' cartoon:
**[[Dinobot (BW)|Dinobot]] dies after incurring severe damage from numerous [[Predacon (BW)|Predacon]] weapons. {{storylink|Code of Hero}} Other characters have survived similar or worse levels of damage, but the episode gave a reason: Dinobot refuses to go into [[stasis lock]], which his onboard computer warns could "result in loss of Spark" if he keeps it up.
**[[Tigerhawk]] is disintegrated by the main cannon of the starship ''[[Nemesis (G1)|Nemesis]]''. The same cannon subsequently blasts [[Inferno (BW)|Inferno]] and [[Quickstrike (BW)|Quickstrike]], apparently killing them, though their "death" may be permanent simply because there was nobody around to put them back together - or at least, [[Waspinator (BW)|nobody who cared to]]. {{storylink|Nemesis Part 2}}
*''Armada'' cartoon: [[Optimus Prime (Armada)/Cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] dies holding back the [[Hydra Cannon]], the damage causing him to [[:File:Crisis Optimus Prime dies.jpg|crumble to dust]]. {{storylink|Crisis (Armada)|Crisis}}
*[[Dreamwave Generation One continuity|Dreamwave G1]] comics: [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]] is gunned down by [[Motormaster (G1)|Motormaster]]. {{storylink|The Age of Wrath}} He got better. {{storylink|Prime Directive issue 3|Prime Directive #3}}
*[[Transformers: Universe (comic)|Universe]]: [[Tankor (BM)|Tankor]] is shot and killed by [[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]] during the final battle of the [[Universe War]].
*This happens a ''lot'' in the [[Movie continuity]]:
**[[Brawl (Movie)|Brawl]] and [[Blackout (Movie)|Blackout]] both die from weapons fire. {{storylink|Transformers (film)|Transformers}}
**Arcee and Elita-One and possibly Chromia are killed by Decepticon fire.
**All the [[Appliancebot]]s are shot dead by [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]].
**A crapload of [[Protoform]]s are shot down by [[NEST]] soldiers. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}
**[[Crowbar]] is shot in the face by Ironhide.
**[[Wheeljack (Movie)|Que]] is brought to his knees by a shot to the chest from a Decepticon protoform before [[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]] finishes him off by shooting him in the back. {{storylink|Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon}}
**[[Leadfoot (DOTM)|Leadfoot]] is killed by a massive onslaught of gunfire from [[Cemetery Wind]]. [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]] is brutally whittled down in a similar manner, until Lockdown comes and executes him. {{storylink|Transformers: Age of Extinction (film)|Age of Extinction}}
*"[[Transformers: Shattered Glass (franchise)|Shattered Glass]]": [[Megatron (SG)|Megatron]] gets his face blown off/in by [[Cyclonus (SG)|Cyclonus]]. {{storylink|Reunification: Part 4}}
*Many goons during the [[Transformers: War for Cybertron (franchise)|War for Cybertron]] die from being shot. {{storylink|Transformers: War for Cybertron (games)|War for Cybertron}}
*''Prime'' cartoon: [[Dreadwing (Prime)|Dreadwing]] is killed by a shot through the chest by [[Megatron (WFC)|Megatron]]. {{storylink|Regeneration (Prime)|Regeneration}}
*''Cyberverse'' cartoon:
**[[Prowl (Cyberverse)|Prowl]] leaps in front of a shot meant for Optimus Prime. While dialogue suggests he could have lived, he is not seen afterward as the lights in his optics fade out. {{storylink|Battle For Cybertron II}}
**In [[Megatron X (Cyberverse)|Megatron X's]] reality, the tyrant shot his universe's Optimus Prime with his fusion cannon and subsequently seized the Matrix of Leadership for himself. {{storylink|The Other One}}
*''War for Cybertron Trilogy'' cartoon:
**[[Bug Bite (G1)|Bug Bite]] and [[Exhaust|Exhaust]] are shot by [[Cog (G1)|Cog]] (Bug Bite in the chest and Exhaust in the head) and left adrift in space. {{storylink|Earthrise episode 6}}
**[[Barricade (IDW)|Barricade]] is possibly killed by a shot from [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]], since he never appears again and one of the AllSpark ghosts uses his character model. {{storylink|Kingdom episode 2}} {{storylink|Kingdom episode 6}}
{{-}}

===Big explosions===
{{bigquote|They're going to blow us all to pieces! [[Guardian (Marvel)|Guardian]]'s booby-trapped - packed with enough explosives to level this whole mountain!|[[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]], "[[The Wrath of Grimlock!]]"}}

[[File:Afterdeath-gameoverman.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gw98ARXfcqk You are dead, dead, DEAAD!]"]]
Transformers characters often assume that explosions are more lethal than they really are; characters survive explosions all the time. An explosion's messy nature makes a good "out" for a writer to fake a character's death. {{storylink|The Wrath of Grimlock!}} {{storylink|Gone but Not Forgotten!}} {{storylink|The Agenda (Part 2)}} Nevertheless, a few characters have been permanently killed by explosions. (This list omits characters who exploded from within, like Ultra Magnus up above.)
*In the Marvel comics:
**[[Straxus (G1)|Straxus]] is the victim of an interdimensionally triggered explosion that destroys his body. {{storylink|The Bridge to Nowhere!}} However, in the UK continuity he survives as a raggedy, bodiless head. {{storylink|...The Harder They Die!}}
**In an alternate future, a wounded [[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] dies in the fiery explosion of a crashing shuttlecraft. {{storylink|The Legacy of Unicron!}}
**[[Roadbuster (G1)|Roadbuster]] is killed when a prototype [[pathblaster]] exploded in his face. {{storylink|Time Wars}}
**[[Finback]] is presumably killed in the explosion of a huge gun battery. [[Misfire (G1)|Misfire]] tried to warn him off, and may have been killed in the same explosion. {{storylink|On the Edge of Extinction!}}
*''Beast Wars'' cartoon:
**[[Optimus Primal (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|Optimus Primal]] is blown to bits — terminally so — by the [[unspace|transwarp]] explosion that destroyed the [[Planet Buster]]. {{storylink|Other Voices, Part 2}}
**[[Depth Charge (BW)|Depth Charge]] is killed by the explosion that resulted from [[Rampage (BW)|Rampage]]'s death (either his exploding spark, or the exploding energon shard that pierced it.) {{storylink|Nemesis Part 1}}
*Several of the [[Beast Era]] [[Wrecker]]s ([[Sonar (BW)|Sonar]], [[Spittor (BW)|Spittor]], the [[Deployer (BM)|Deployers]]) are destroyed when part of their ship explodes with them in it. {{storylink|Betrayal}}
*Energon: [[Bruticus Maximus (Energon)|Bruticus Maximus]] is killed when Storm Jet causes a massive explosion that engulfed them both.
*''Prime'':
**[[Makeshift (Prime)|Makeshift]] and the surrounding [[Vehicon (Prime)|Vehicon]]s are blown up by a grenade attached by the Autobots. Both the Vehicons and Makeshift are killed in the blast. {{storylink|Con Job}} <ref>(According to an interview at [[BotCon 2011]] with the ''Prime'' show runners, Makeshift was deemed too overpowered to be a regular in the show, so they killed him off at the end of the episode.)</ref>
** [[Hardshell]] is killed by [[Miko Nakadai|Miko]] when she fires two missiles at him, blowing him up. {{storylink|Hurt}}
*''Movie Continuty'':
**[[Long Haul (ROTF)|Long Haul]], [[Scrapper (ROTF)|Scrapper]], and several Decepticon Protoforms are killed by a human air strike in [[Egypt]]. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}
**[[Crankcase (DOTM)|Crankcase]] blows up when Ironhide kicks him into a gas station. {{storylink|Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon}}
**[[Blitzwing (BB)|Blitzwing]] gets blown to bits when Bumblebee shoves his own missile into his chest and detonates it. {{storylink|Bumblebee (film)|Bumblebee}}
*''War for Cybertron Trilogy'' cartoon: [[Elita One (G1)|Elita-1]], [[Jetfire (G1)|Jetfire]], [[Chromia (G1)|Chromia]], [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]], [[Scrapface|Scrapface]], and possibly [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] are caught in the explosion that destroys [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon Arena]]. {{storylink|Earthrise episode 6}}
* ''Last Bot Standing'': [[Strongarm (G1)|Strongarm]] died when [[Hot Rod (G1)|Rodimus]] attempted to force her shuttle to land... and instead caused her to fatally crash. {{storylink|Last Bot Standing issue 3}}

===Impact trauma===
Falling off a cliff or mountainside or tall building is usually just as fatal to Transformers as it is to, say... Wile E. Coyote. Only on rare occasion does it result in death:
*''[[Transformers: Classics|Classics]]'' continuity: [[Hacksaw]] meets his end by falling from a huge communications tower. {{storylink|The New World}}
*[[2005 IDW continuity]]:
** [[Doubledealer]] is shot, falls off a mountain and smashed to bits on impact. {{storylink|Spotlight: Doubledealer}}
** [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Infinitus]] gets knocked down a very big hole by [[Beak]] and dies. {{storylink|Last Light (issue)|Last Light}}
*Movie continuity:
**[[Devastator (ROTF)|Devastator]] falls off the [[Great Pyramid of Giza]] after a [[rail gun]] blows his arm apart. He tumbles back down the monument and collapses as he dies. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}
**[[Barricade (Movie)|Barricade]] is smashed to pieces and killed by being flung into a freeway column. {{storylink|Movie Adaptation issue 4|Movie Adaptation Issue Number Four}}
**[[Hatchet (DOTM)|Hatchet]] meets his end when [[Dino]] sends him crashing into a car.
*The [[Beast (G1)|Beast]] falls off a cliff and shatters. {{storylink|The Beast Within Part 2, Consequences}} At least, we hope that's where and how it ended.
*''[[Transformers: Prime (cartoon)|Prime]]'': [[Skyquake (Prime)|Skyquake]] crash-lands after [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]] punched out vital components in his [[alternate mode]], reducing his body to a partially transformed scrapheap.
*''[[Transformers: Last Bot Standing|Last Bot Standing]]'': [[Gripper (G1)|Gripper]] met his end when he fell off a cliff and slowly bled out. {{storylink|Last Bot Standing issue 3}}

===Disassembly===
[[File:Jazz DyingAction.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|"HERE'S what I think of your resemblance to your G1 counterpart!"]]
Taking a Transformer apart into its component parts - or ripping them to pieces - can occasionally kill them:
*Marvel comics:
**[[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] meets this fate in an alternate future, when [[Swoop (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Swoop]] uses a [[repair spider]] to pull him apart into his component pieces. {{storylink|Another Time & Place}}
**A future version of [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Ultra Magnus]] may have been killed when a group of Decepticons mobbed him and ripped him up. {{storylink|Time Wars}}
[[File:DOTM-Shockwavedeath.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|''That's'' for screwing up our continuity!]]
*Movie continuity:
** [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] kills [[Jazz (Movie)|Jazz]] by ripping him in half. {{storylink|Transformers (film)|Transformers}}
**The Wreckers gang up on a Decepticon pilot and tear him apart.
**Optimus tears [[Shockwave (Movie)|Shockwave]]'s optic from his damaged head. {{storylink|Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon}}
**[[Dropkick (Movie)|Dropkick]] gets torn apart by a chain wielded by Bumblebee. {{storylink|Bumblebee (film)|Bumblebee}}
*[[2005 IDW continuity]]:
**[[Pyro (G1)|Pyro]] is torn apart and killed while making a final stand against a mass of generic Decepticons. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}}
**[[Atomizer]] died when [[Getaway]] tore him apart. {{storylink|The Plotters' Club (Part 3): Journey's End|Journey's End}}
*''Prime'' cartoon:
**When fighting [[Megatron (WFC)|Megatron]]'s [[zombie]] army, [[Ratchet (WFC)|Ratchet]] recommends dissection to [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus]] to "cut" them down to size. How this is more effective then just blasting the living slag out of them is still up for debate. {{storylink|Darkness Rising, Part 4}}
**[[Airachnid (Prime)|Airachnid]] manages to offline [[Breakdown (WFC)|Breakdown]] by tearing him limb from limb, leaving only a pile of mutilated body parts in her wake. {{storylink|Crossfire (Prime)|Crossfire}}
*''War for Cybertron Trilogy'' cartoon:
**[[Moonracer (G1)|Moonracer]] is torn to pieces by the [[Sparkless]], before dying in Optimus's arms. {{storylink|Siege episode 6|Episode 6}}

====Bifurcation====
[[File:VictoryUKAnnual.JPG|thumb|upright=0.85|"Shakkooosh!" is good, but I could really go for a good old-fashioned "CHUK" right about now.]]
{{bigquote|I have no desire to be carved up into Auto-sushi.|Tracks, "[[Make Tracks]]"}}
A particular subset of disassembly, getting chopped in half is pretty graphic for a kids' story, even one about robots, so it doesn't happen very often.
*Marvel comics: In a dream sequence, [[Grimlock (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Grimlock]] slices [[Megatron (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Megatron]] in half, killing him. {{storylink|Victory!}}
*Japanese G1 cartoon: [[Predaking (G1)|Predaking]] gets sliced in half by Dai Atlas. The strike dissects what appears to be an organic brain in his head. {{storylink|Enter the New Supreme Commander, Dai Atlas!}}
*''Beast Wars Metals'': Terrorsaur is killed by being sliced in half by Primal's mace. {{storylink|Beast Wars Metals issue 1|Beast Wars Metals #1}}
*Movie continuity:
**[[Sideways (ROTF)|Sideways]] dies when [[Sideswipe (Movie)|Sideswipe]] slices his car mode in two.
**[[Ravage (ROTF)|Ravage]] dies when Bumblebee yanks his spine out, tearing him apart.
**[[Jetfire (Movie)|Jetfire]] slices [[Mixmaster (ROTF)|Mixmaster]] in half at the chest but Mixmaster survived this. Getting his skull stomped off, not so much. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}
**[[Lockdown (ROTF)|Lockdown]] meets his end in this manner courtesy of Optimus Prime. {{storylink|Transformers: Age of Extinction (film)|Age of Extinction}}
**[[Cliffjumper (Movie)|Cliffjumper]] gets vertically bisected by Dropkick. {{storylink|Bumblebee (film)|Bumblebee}}
*''War For Cybertron'': In the opening, a Decepticon goon is chopped in half by Optimus Prime.
*[[2005 IDW continuity]]: [[Ambulon]] is chainsawed in half ''vertically'' by [[Pharma (G1)|Pharma]]. {{storylink|Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|The Divided Self}} ([[Ratchet (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Ratchet]] specifically noted that ''horizontal'' bifurcation would be survivable - indeed, not much later, [[Megatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Megatron]] would be quite active after being ripped apart at the waist by [[Galvatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Galvatron]]. {{storylink|Finest Hour: Dark Cybertron Chapter 5}})
*[[Ravage (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Ravage]] later briefly survives being torn in half by [[Tarn (DJD)|Tarn]], {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 5: Rage, Rage|Rage, Rage}} before succumbing to his wounds. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 6: Do Not Go Gentle|Do Not Go Gentle}}
*When [[Gozer]] attacked Cybertron, it tore [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] in half, lengthways. {{storylink|Ghosts of Cybertron Part 2}}
{{-}}

===Crushing===
[[File:Edgeofextinction-hardheadbombburst.jpg|thumb|DO NOT WANT]]
Quite a few characters have been crushed into deactivation:
*In the Marvel comics:
**[[Highbrow (G1)|Highbrow]] is smashed between [[Unicron/Generation 1|Unicron]]'s palms, while [[Bomb-Burst (G1)|Bomb-Burst]] and [[Hardhead (G1)|Hardhead]] meet a similar fate when Unicron steps on them. {{storylink|On the Edge of Extinction!}}
**[[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] is apparently killed when a very large building collapses on top of him. {{storylink|Escalation!}}
*[[Unicron Trilogy]] cartoons:
**[[Thrust (Armada)|Thrust]] is killed when caught between two folding sections of Unicron's external armor. {{storylink|Union}}
**[[Shockblast]] is crushed by Unicron's hand on [[Blizzard Planet]]. {{storylink|The Power of Unicron}}
**His brother [[Six Shot (Energon)|Six Shot]] meets a similar fate, crushed under the heel of a super-sized Galvatron. {{storylink|Galvatron Terror}}
[[File:ROTF Scorponok death.jpg|thumb|]]
*IDW continuity:
**[[Thrust (G1)|Thrust]] is killed when a group of [[human]] police officers set fire to a building and let it collapse on him, crushing him.
**The luckless [[Pipes (G1)|Pipes]] dies after [[Overlord (G1)|Overlord]] stomps on him repeatedly, causing enough damage that his Spark falls out.
*Movie continuity:
**[[Dispensor]] is crushed under [[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]]'s foot. {{storylink|Alliance issue 1|Alliance #1}}
**[[Scorponok (Movie)|Scorponok]]'s head is crushed by [[Jetfire (Movie)|Jetfire]]'s ''bare fist''. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}
**[[Shatter]] is crushed by a tanker ship that crashes into a dock. {{storylink|Bumblebee (film)|Bumblebee}}

===Melting===
[[File:BW Scorponok Terrorsaur deaths.jpg|thumb|Even having a new toy couldn't save Terrorsaur!]]
[[File:Fallout title.jpg|thumb|Primal's diet had gone horribly wrong.]]
They're made of [[living metal|metal]]; therefore, with enough heat or sufficiently acidic material, they can melt. This is one of the more fool-proof methods of killing a Transformer; few, if any, have survived it.
*In the G1 cartoon:
**An acid vat would apparently have been enough to destroy Optimus Prime. {{storylink|The Search for Alpha Trion}}
**Another acid vat is used to disintegrate living victims of Unicron. {{storylink|The Transformers: The Movie}}
*In the Marvel comics:
**Victims of the Decepticon [[smelting pool]]s on Cybertron are reduced by intense heat into their base metals, including [[Scrounge (G1)|Scrounge]]. {{storylink|The Smelting Pool!}}
**It is possible that an acid bath from (naturally) [[Blot (G1)|Blot]] offlined [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]] [[Makin' Tracks!|(for a while anyway)]]. {{storylink|Dark Star}}
**[[Scorponok (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Scorponok]] is partially melted by Unicron's flame-breath and subsequently dies. {{storylink|On the Edge of Extinction!}}
**The [[Cybertronian (faction)|Cybertronians]] use some kind of acid to rather messily eradicate some of their Decepticon ancestors, including [[Stranglehold]]. {{storylink|New Dawn}}
*In the Beast Era cartoons:
**[[Terrorsaur (BW)|Terrorsaur]] and [[Scorponok (BW)|Scorponok]] are apparently melted to death after tumbling into a lava pit within the [[Darksyde (BW)|Predacon base]]. {{storylink|Aftermath}}
**Optimus Primal's body is seemingly melted into the floor after his climactic face-off with [[Megatron (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|Megatron]]. Considering how many god-like forces were unleashed and conflicting during the battle, his demise may be due to more than simple temperature-induced melting. {{storylink|Fallout (episode)|Fallout}}
*According to [[G.B. Blackrock|Garrison Blackrock]], the [[living metal]] that constitutes Cybertronian biology can be broken down using a cocktail of complicated polymers such as [[w:polyhydroxybutyrate|polyhydroxybutyrate]]; the process — one assumes — proving fatal to the Transformer in question. {{storylink|Conquerors Part 1: Aphelion|Aphelion}}
*''Cyberverse'' cartoon: [[Drift (Cyberverse)|Drift]] is implied to have been melted by toxic Energon waste, as [[Hot Rod (Cyberverse)|Hot Rod]] barely survived the experience. {{storylink|Battle For Cybertron III}} {{storylink|The Dead End}}

===Disintegration===
{{bigquote|I saw the end! They died in a cosmic funeral pyre!|[[Shawn Berger]], "[[Megatron's Master Plan, Part 2]]"}}

[[File:Schismatic-KupDies.jpg|thumb|"Ironhide, I don't feel so good..."]]

Plasma, energy fields, and stellar atmospheres can all utterly destroy a Transformer's body. Like being melted, being reduced to one's component molecules would seem to be a surefire way of getting killed, but quite a few characters seem able to survive the process as [[ghost]]s and/or disembodied sparks:
*Generation 1 cartoon: [[Starscream (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Starscream]]'s spectacular death at the hands of [[Galvatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Galvatron]] might be categorized as incineration. {{storylink|The Transformers: The Movie}}
*Quite a few characters met this fate in the Unicron Trilogy, but all survived it in some fashion:
**[[Megatron (Armada)/Cartoon continuity|Megatron]]'s spark persisted within his burnt-out body when he was dropped into the exploding Unicron. {{storylink|Mortal Combat}} {{storylink|Megatron Resurrected}}
**[[Demolishor (Armada)|Demolishor]]'s body was obliterated by an expanding [[energon grid]], but his spark survived the process and was placed in a new body. {{storylink|Go for Unicron!}}
**[[Inferno (Energon)|Inferno]] was destroyed when he threw himself into a star, but his spark was salvaged by the Autobots and, again, placed in a new body. {{storylink|Farewell Inferno}}
**And finally, Megatron (Galvatron, whatever) threw himself into Primus's new energon sun to prevent Unicron from possessing him, killing himself yet again. {{storylink|The Sun}} This death was so inconsequential that his subsequent resurrection wasn't even explained! {{storylink|Fallen (episode)|Fallen}}
**Megatron was disintegrated ''again'', {{storylink|Cybertron (episode)|Cybertron}} before he returned to life thanks to unholy powers of the [[Armor of Unicron]]. {{storylink|Darkness (episode)|Darkness}} After being stabbed through the Spark by [[Rhisling]], his body disintegrated as he passed on into the next life. {{storylink|Unfinished}}
*[[Cosmic Rust (disease)|Cosmic Rust]] causes a Transformer's body to disintegrate to nothing:
**The [[Thirteenth Legion]] died of Cosmic Rust. {{storylink|Cosmic Rust (episode)|Cosmic Rust}}
**[[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]] dies after several shots from [[Sentinel Prime (ROTF)|Sentinel]]'s Cosmic Rust Blaster, though the big hole they left in his torso couldn't have helped much either. {{storylink|Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon}}
**Exposure to even a single [[Nervous bot|carrier]] of the disease has been known to wipe out entire planets. [[Blurr (Cyberverse)|Blurr]] was one of its victims, along with the rest of [[Velocitron]]. {{storylink|Terminal Velocity}}
*In the [[2005 IDW continuity]], [[magic]] is one of the few things that can reliably wound or kill a Transformer; the energies unleashed are anathema to mechanical life, and Transformers exposed to such power soon begin to crumble and die. Casualties of this method include [[Kup (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Kup]] {{storylink|Schismatic}} and [[Quickswitch]]. {{storylink|Good Men}}

===Consumption===
{{bigquote|...If we don't find the Matrix, some bad guy's gonna ''eat'' us! Right?|Longtooth, "[[Deadly Obsession]]"}}

[[File:Wreckers Mutants.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|The shocking death of the barely-seen guys with hardly any lines!]]
[[File:Rocky mecannibal bartender marvel uk 240.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|Cannibalism is hilarious, kids!]]
[[File:TFTM Unicron Digestion.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb]]
Getting eaten is essentially being torn apart, crushed, and melted all in a row, and it's usually fatal. Quite a few critters in the multiverse are equipped to devour giant robots:
*In the G1 cartoon:
**Various life forms are routinely devoured by the [[Sharkticon (species)|Sharkticon]]s on Quintessa. These include [[Kranix (G1)|Kranix]], a mechanical life form, though not a Transformer. [[Kup (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Kup]] and [[Hot Rod (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Hot Rod]] would have suffered this fate as well, but fought their way free. {{storylink|The Transformers: The Movie}}
**Quite a few Transformers found their way into Unicron's gullet, though many survived the experience. {{storylink|The Transformers: The Movie}}
*In the Marvel comic:
**[[Scraplet]]s are a mechanical disease - tiny robots that fed on Transformers. A hapless freighter pilot dies after being infected, and quite a few other 'bots only narrowly survived being infected. {{storylink|Crater Critters}}
**The [[Mecannibal]]s eat robots routinely, including quite a few Transformers during their sojourn on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. {{storylink|All the Familiar Faces!}} {{storylink|Out to Lunch!}} There is some indication that they can actually reconstitute their victims from their "recycled" parts, though this is never explicitly shown. {{storylink|Recipe for Disaster!}}
**Unicron skewers [[Brainstorm (G1)|Brainstorm]] and eats him. {{storylink|On the Edge of Extinction!}}
**The subsurface-dwelling [[demon]]s devour [[Runabout (G1)|Runabout]]. {{storylink|On the Edge of Extinction!}}
**The Swarm "devours" innumerable Cybertronians and a handful of older-generation Transformers as well, though this is through a molecular process almost akin to incineration. {{storylink|Swarm (issue)|Swarm}} {{storylink|Total War!}} {{storylink|A Rage in Heaven!}}
*The Sharkticons kill two of the [[Mutant (BW)|Mutants]] by gobbling them up. Or ripping them apart. Or both. We don't really know. {{storylink|Betrayal}}
*[[Flanker]] is eaten up and killed by the [[Insecticon (G1)|"Deluxe" Insecticons]].
*In the live-action films:
**[[Grimlock (AOE)|Grimlock]] and [[Scorn]] eat various [[KSI Sentry|KSI Sentries]] and at least one [[KSI Boss]] {{storylink|Transformers: Age of Extinction (film)|Age of Extinction}}
**Grimlock also made a snack out of [[Dreadbot]]. {{storylink|Transformers: The Last Knight (film)|The Last Knight}}

===Decapitation===
{{main|Decapitation}}

[[File:Cyclonus death.jpg|thumb|upright=0.85|Ahhhh, there we go...]]

Sometimes cutting a Transformer's head off is fatal. Sometimes!
*In the Marvel comics:
**The Megatron clone kills Cyclonus by ripping his head off. {{storylink|Dry Run!}}
**Several of the Wreckers are destroyed by having their heads ripped or blasted off, including Twin Twist and Topspin, respectively. {{storylink|Time Wars}}
**[[Razorclaw (G1)|Razorclaw]] has his head cut off by a propeller fired by [[Leadfoot (G2)|Leadfoot]], presumably (given the ''Generation 2'' book's emphasis on body count) killing him. {{storylink|A Rage in Heaven!}}
*In the movie continuity:
**Characters frequently die by decapitation of some form: [[Bonecrusher (Movie)|Bonecrusher]], {{storylink|Transformers (film)|Transformers}} and [[Grindor (ROTF)|Grindor]] {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}} are particularly notable examples. [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] LOVES doing this.
**Decapitation is a mere inconvenience for [[Frenzy (Movie)|Frenzy]] the first time. The second time, when the blow actually destroys most of his head, proves fatal.
**[[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] is decapitated in the third movie. [[Wheeljack (Movie)|Que]] and [[Ironhide (Movie)|Ironhide]]'s heads fall off when they die, possibly to add finality to their demises. {{storylink|Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon}}
**[[Onslaught (ROTF)|Onslaught]] met his end after losing his head to [[Drift (AOE)|Drift]]'s sword. {{storylink|Transformers: The Last Knight (film)|The Last Knight}}
*In the 2005 IDW continuity:
**The heads of [[Springarm]] and [[Wheelarch]] are removed and then mockingly put on display to creep out [[Optimus Prime (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Orion Pax]]. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 2}}
*In the Aligned continuity, Vehicons and Insecticons are frequently murdered by decapitation.
*In the 2019 IDW continuity: [[Quake (G1)|Quake]] loses his head and his spark to [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]]. {{storylink|Rise of the Decepticons: Prisoners|Prisoners}}
*''Last Bot Standing'': [[Nitro (IDW)|Nitro]] dies when [[Hot Rod (G1)|Rodimus]] rips his head off. {{storylink|Last Bot Standing issue 1}}

===Destruction of brain===
{{bigquote|Next strike in the neural cluster, yes? Weakest spot on ''all'' Transformers...|[[Death's Head (G1)|Death's Head]], "[[Fire on High!]]"}}
[[File:K-PLUTCH.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|Roadbuster has spiders on the brain.]]
In the early days of the franchise, a Transformer's life force was sometimes understood to be entirely contained within their [[brain module]], most prominently in the Marvel comics. Destroying the brain would kill the Transformer. This premise was eventually modified to incorporate the more esoteric concept of [[spark]]s.
*In the Marvel comics:
**In an alternate future, [[Shockwave (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Shockwave]] is blasted by [[Death's Head (G1)|Death's Head]], who kills him by extracting and crushing his brain module. {{storylink|The Legacy of Unicron!}}
**The [[Throttlebot]]s ''avoid'' death by having their brain modules removed from their bodies shortly before their bodies are destroyed (by crushing). {{storylink|Toy Soldiers!}}
*Movie continuity:
**Optimus rips Grindor's head apart with two hooks. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}
**[[Soundwave (ROTF)|Soundwave]], [[Laserbeak (DOTM)|Laserbeak]], and [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]]'s heads are blown to bits by explosives or other weapons.
**Optimus Prime kills Sentinel Prime by shooting him in the head with Megatron's shotgun. {{storylink|Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon}}
**[[Nitro Zeus]] dies when his head gets blown off by Bumblebee. {{storylink|Transformers: The Last Knight (film)|The Last Knight}}
[[File:DOTM-Soundwavedeath.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|How exactly is [[Kinetic Solutions Incorporated|KSI]] supposed to download his brain when there's no brain left?]]
*In the 2005 IDW continuity, the brain module is part of [[Rossum's Trinity]] and its destruction will cause the destruction of both the spark and the [[transformation cog]], killing the Cybertronian in question:
**[[Overlord (G1)|Overlord]] blasts [[Rotorstorm (G1)|Rotorstorm]] right in the head, destroying his brain module. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 4}}
**Impactor kills [[Snare]] by crushing his brain module. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 4}}
**[[Squadron X]] are all shot in the head. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 4}}
**In the [[Functionist Universe]], every Cybertronian possesses an [[obsolescence chip]] that can be remotely detonated, destroying their heads. [[Rewind (G1)|Rewind]] and all other Cybertronians with [[data slug]] alt-modes are killed in a [[mass recall]]. {{storylink|The Custom-Made Now - An Elegant Chaos Prologue|The Custom-Made Now}}
**[[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]] dies when [[Kaon (DJD)|Kaon]] smashes his brain module against his own forcefield. {{storylink|Births, Deaths, and Interventions}}
**[[Tarantulas (BW)|Tarantulas]] uses his [[size changing]] powers to blow open [[Roadbuster (G1)|Roadbuster]]'s head from the inside out. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 4}}
**[[Oiler]] has his head sliced in two by a [[Junkion (species)|Junkion]]. {{storylink|New Cybertron Part 5: Future Glories Lost|Future Glories Lost}}
**Kup exploits [[Razorclaw (G1)|Razorclaw]]'s "secret weakness" to defeat him... shooting him in the head and blowing his cranium to bits. (Kup points out that it's most people's secret weakness.) {{storylink|The Iron Klaw}}
**[[Adaptus]] met his end when [[Solomus]] drilled directly into his brain. {{storylink|Crucible (Part 5): The Unremembering|The Unremembering}}
*''Beast Wars: Uprising'':
**The [[Resistance]] use a device to short-circuit the remnants of [[Cerebros (G1)|Cerebros]]'s consciousness, frying the [[Cyberdroid]]s that contain his tripartite brain. {{storylink|Head Games}}
*''Last Bot Standing'':
**[[Moon (BW)|Moon]] and [[Wildwheel (G1)|Wildwheel]] are both impaled through their heads with a girder, most likely destroying their brain modules in the process. {{storylink|Last Bot Standing issue 3}}
**[[Hot Rod (G1)|Rodimus]] kills [[Treadshock (G1)|Treadshock]] by crushing his head with a boulder. {{storylink|Last Bot Standing issue 3}}

===Destruction of spark===
{{bigquote|RAW energon! Right through your twisted spark!|Depth Charge to Rampage, "[[Nemesis Part 1]]"}}
[[File:Skyfallwontbethereforit.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|And then he hung Skyfall from his ceiling.]]
Getting stabbed right through the spark is almost always fatal:
*In ''Beast Wars'': The supposedly immortal Rampage is killed when Depth Charge pierces his spark with an energon blade. {{storylink|Nemesis Part 1}}
*''[[Transcendent Technomorph|TransTech]]'': [[Skyfall (Cybertron)|Skyfall]] dies when [[Alpha Trion (SG)|Alpha Trion]] rams his [[sword]] right through his chest. {{storylink|Transcendent: Part 6}}
*''Energon'': [[Constructicon Maximus]] dies when [[Storm Jet (Energon)|Storm Jet]] impales and crushes his spark.
*''Cybertron'': [[Megatron (Armada)#Cybertron cartoon|Galvatron]] dies when [[Optimus Prime (Armada)/Cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] impales him with [[Rhisling]]. {{storylink|Unfinished}}
*Movie continuity:
**[[Transformers (Titan Magazine)|Titan's Movie comics]]: Transformers have forcefields shielding their sparks, which can be externalized to protect bodywork. Jazz loved doing this, leaving him far more vulnerable to death by destruction of spark than he would otherwise be. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 6|Lost in Space 4: Jazz}}
**Optimus Prime dies when Megatron stabs him through the chest with his death-lock pincer, followed by a blast from his fusion cannon through the spark chamber. [[The Fallen]] also meets his end when a resurrected Optimus punches through his chest and crushes his spark. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}
*''Cyberverse'': [[Slipstream (Cyberverse)|Slipstream]] is killed when [[Bludgeon (Cyberverse)|Bludgeon]] stabs her in the back through her spark. {{storylink|Parley}}

That's not the only way to destroy a spark either:

*''Beast Machines'' continuity: [[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]] — already reduced to a spark within the matrix — ceases to be when Megatron annihilates his spark from existence. {{storylink|Singularity Ablyss}}
*2005 IDW continuity:
**[[Tarn (DJD)|Tarn]] has modified his vocal processor so that he can get his voice into synch with a spark's pulse and then get it to stop. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement (issue)|Rules of Disengagement}}
**The [[universal killswitch]] built by Chief Justice Tyrest worked by scrambling the Matrix derived sparkcode shared by every constructed cold spark.
**Sentinel Prime wanted Sovereign to power up by eating [[Outrigger]]'s spark, a power shared by the [[Titan Master]]s. This would have killed the [[Circle of Light]] member. {{storylink|Ten to Midnight}}
*''Beast Wars: Uprising'': The Vehicons destroy the sparks of those they inject with a nano-virus. The victim is simultaneously turned into another Vehicon in the process.

===Loss of spark===
{{bigquote|Warning. Further expenditure will result in permanent loss of spark. Stasis lock ''must'' commence.|[[Dinobot (BW)|Dinobot]]'s internal computer, "[[Code of Hero]]"}}
[[File:Jetstorm with extractor.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|Lost, stolen, whatever...]]
Sometimes sparks can survive outside of a body; sometimes they cannot. In the Beast Era, there is some indication that a spark left outside a body will soon begin to return to the Matrix/AllSpark/another dimension.
*When Dinobot expires after his final battle, his Spark is seen exiting his body. The implication is that a sufficiently damaged body can no longer hold a spark within this continuity. {{storylink|Code of Hero}}
*''Beast Machines'' subsequently showed living sparks existing outside of bodies on a regular basis. The sparkless bodies were simply considered shells, rather than "dead", due to the fact that the sparks were forcibly removed with a [[spark extractor]].
*''Animated'' cartoon: [[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]] dies when he intentionally relinquishes his own spark. {{storylink|Endgame, Part II}}
*Movie continuity:
**[[Jetfire (Movie)|Jetfire]] rips out his own spark chamber to give Optimus a fighting chance. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}
**[[The Fallen]] dies when Optimus punches through his chest and crushes his spark. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}
**Lockdown executes a wounded Ratchet by removing his spark. {{storylink|Transformers: Age of Extinction (film)|Age of Extinction}}
*''Cyberverse'' cartoon:
**In ''Cyberverse''<nowiki>'s</nowiki> second season, this is [[Starscream (Cyberverse)|Starscream's]] ultimate goal, planning to use the [[AllSpark]] to rip the sparks from every Transformer and bring peace through genocide. He succeeds in doing this to his [[Seeker (Cyberverse)|Seeker]] followers before he is ultimately thwarted. {{storylink|Dark Birth}}
**Shockwave uses a doohickey to zap his spark into the Allspark and corrupt it. A few minutes later, [[Cheetor (Cyberverse)|Cheetor]] uses the same device to do the same and counteract Shockwave's deeds. {{storylink|Battle For Cybertron IV}}

===Energy overload===
{{bigquote|We may need energon for power, but this is too much of a good thing.|[[Optimus Primal (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|Optimus Primal]], "[[Beast Wars (Part 1)]]"}}
[[File:TFAnimated transformandrollout DEATH.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|Death — the Optimus version of a power nap.]]
[[File:Underbaseallmine.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|He's got an Underbase in his underpants.]]
The average [[human]] needs a lot of [[water]] to survive. But too much water results in {{w|Water intoxication|a horrible death}}. Similarly, Transformers need energy to survive, but too much of it can be a very bad thing. Sometimes it's just plain old energy; other times it some special god-like force that does them in.
*In the Marvel comics:
**An [[Underbase]]-empowered Starscream slaughters dozens of Transformers with energy blasts, {{storylink|Dark Star}} which reportedly burn out millions of their [[microchip]]s. {{storylink|Guess Who the Mecannibals Are Having for Dinner?}} Some Transformers are seen to recover from these attacks, either via conventional repairs {{storylink|All the Familiar Faces!}} or through the power of [[Nucleon (substance)|Nucleon]]. {{storylink|The Void! (US)}}
**Starscream himself dies when he absorbs all the energies of the Underbase. {{storylink|Dark Star}}
**[[Landmine (G1)|Landmine]] is apparently killed when struck by a blast of energy from the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]], though the physical effect is more like being hit by an especially powerful laser blast. {{storylink|All Fall Down|All Fall Down (issue)}}
*''Super-God Masterforce'' cartoon: [[Sixknight]] dies from an overcharge of BlackZarak's Devil Power. {{storylink|Malevolent and Inhuman! The True Form of Devil Z}}
*[[2005 IDW continuity]]: [[Runabout (G1)|Runabout]] dies when one of the [[Reaper]]s zaps him full of energy, causing him to explode from within. {{storylink|Devastation issue 6}}
*Movie continuity: [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] is killed when [[Sam Witwicky]] shoves the [[AllSpark]] into his chest. {{storylink|Transformers (film)|Transformers}} [[Evac (Ride)|Evac]] does the same thing with the Allspark shard with Megatron {{storylink|Transformers: The Ride – 3D}}
*''Transformers Animated'' cartoon: [[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus Prime]] gets caught in an explosion of [[AllSpark]] energy that may have been sufficient to kill him, although he also fell off a very tall building immediately afterwards (Starscream was caught in the same explosion and survived, but was knocked offline for an unspecified period.)

===Energy depletion===
On rare occasion, Transformers can simply run out of energy completely and expire.
*Marvel comics: the ancient [[Overlord (rank)|Overlord]] dies from a lack of energy. {{storylink|State Games}}
*''Cybertron'' cartoon [[Vector Prime]] dies after he helps the crew to time travel. {{storylink|Guardian (episode)|Guardian}}
*Movie continuity: [[Jetfire (Movie)|Jetfire]] explains that a lack of energon causes the Transformer equivalent of aging, such as rusting joints, mental confusion, and pieces falling apart, followed by an indefinite period of stasis that can only be reversed by an infusion of Allspark energy. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}

===Disease===
You may think giant robots couldn't have diseases but it turns out they can!

*Marvel comics: [[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]] contracts [[Corrodia Gravis]], a wasting disease where your body is consumed by rust as your metal breaks down at the molecular level. Only a systems boost from a compatible donor could save Snarl {{storylink|Assassins}} but the disease came back anyway. The best cure is to store a Transformer's brain in remote storage and build a whole new body. {{storylink|Destiny of the Dinobots!}}
*2005 IDW comics: [[Pharma (G1)|Pharma]] engineers the [[Red Rust]] virus: spread by touch and triggered by transforming, it causes all the coolants, dispersants and anti-rusting agents in a Transformer to cross-contaminate and cause a molecular breakdown. The first sign is when the Transformer starts "crying" the fuel out. {{storylink|How Ratchet Got His Hands Back}} Most of [[Delphi]] was killed. {{storylink|Life After the Big Bang}}
*And of course, there's the aforementioned [[Scraplet]]s, [[Cosmic Rust (disease)|cosmic rust]], and the similarly named Rust Plague.

===Aging===
{{quote|Parts wear out and can no longer be replaced. Fatigue sets in. Memory banks overflow and tiny fragmentation errors creep in. In the end, entropy claims us all.|[[Vector Prime]]|[[Ask Vector Prime]]}}

While many characters are portrayed as being old, dying of old age is almost unheard of in Transformers.

*In Transformers UK, it is implied Transformers have long, but not endless life spans. In Kup's story, Kup says that he was put on a spaceship to live out his "remaining years" alone. In another story, Goldbug says that he may never understand humans, even if he lives to be 2 million.
*In the 2005 IDW continuity, Ratchet notes that the process of a Cybertronian aging to death (also referred to as age-related burnout) is a relatively recent discovery. He also notes that many, both spiritual and scientific, still refused to "give up on this-this very seductive idea that we're immortal". [[Tailgate (G1)|Tailgate]] had been diagnosed with [[cybercrosis]], a fatal condition that has been around since before [[Nova Prime]]'s era but which Ratchet believes in this case was brought about by a combination of the radiation Tailgate had been exposed to upon [[Vector Sigma]]'s re-ignition in addition to his old age. Far in the future, Ratchet himself would succumb to age-related burnout.
*''[[The Transformers: Regeneration One|Regeneration One]]'': Although it takes eons, all Transformers eventually die of old age after being disconnected from the life-giving powers of [[Primus]]. {{storylink|The War to End All Wars, Part 5}}

==Suicide==
{{quote|Do you realize how '''hard''' it is for a Cybertronian to die by his own hand? You can jump off a building, blow yourself up, cut off your own head - and you might still survive.|Chromedome, [[Before & After]]}}
Sometimes a Transformer kills himself for some reason, or tries to.
*Marvel comics
**Dirge and Nightbeat, rather than be eaten by the Swarm, self-destruct.
*''Beast Wars''
**Transformers can deliberately override the stasis lock protocols, even if this will result in death. {{storylink|Code of Hero}}
**In the final battles, Depth Charge allows himself to be blown up, killing Rampage. Rampage laughs maniacally as he detonates, suggesting that he was deliberately trying to die. {{storylink|Nemesis Part 1}}. [[Dinobot II]] let himself go down with the ''Nemesis''. {{storylink|Nemesis Part 2}}
*''Energon'': Galvatron, Starscream, and [[Tidal Wave (Armada)|Mirage]] throw themselves into a sun and vaporize themselves. [[Cyclonus (Armada)|Snow Cat]] and Demolishor may have also done this.
*''Revenge of the Fallen'': Jetfire rips out his entire spark housing for Optimus Prime to have enough power to kill The Fallen. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}
*2005 IDW continuity
**A [[NAIL protester]] kills himself by repeatedly transforming until his [[transformation cog]] burns out. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|How to Say Goodbye and Mean It}}
**[[Centurion (IDW)|Centurion]] alludes to a desire to find his [[Axalon (BW)|old spaceship]] so that he can die there. How exactly he plans to do this is never expounded on. {{storylink|Strange Visitors}}

==Non-fatal deactivation==
{{quote|"You mean he's still alive?!" "No! But neither is he what you would term 'dead'!"|[[Spider-Man]] and [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]], "[[Prisoner of War!]]"|noquote=true}}

[[File:Zombiesbackfromthedead.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Braiiiiiin mooooodulllllles....]]

For almost every single cause of death listed above, there's been one or more Transformers who have survived it, sometimes without so much as a period of unconsciousness.

In particular, "deactivation" is the Transformers equivalent of being in a coma. Numerous Transformers are seen to enter this state and eventually recover, such as the Autobots deactivated by Shockwave, {{storylink|The Last Stand}} who later were repaired. However, the line between death and deactivation is a blurry one. Sometimes the two words are used interchangeably, even in reference to characters who are later revived. Most of Starscream's Underbase victims were described as deactivated, and were sometimes lamented as "dead" while at other times were shown undergoing repairs. {{storylink|Back from the Dead}} {{storylink|Gone but Not Forgotten!}} {{storylink|The Gathering Storm}}

"[[Stasis lock]]" would eventually give a more concrete name to the state of deactivation. The inert Transformers on the crashed Ark were retconned as being in stasis lock. Various ''Beast Wars'' characters would go into stasis lock to maintain their spark when their body had sustained too much damage from weaponsfire or energon absorption. ''Animated'' showed a crew of Autobots voluntarily entering protective stasis lock in anticipation of a crash landing.

Some of the quasi-fatal things which can cause a Transformer to "deactivate" include:

===Impact trauma===
Smashing into something usually knocks out a Transformer, but almost never actually kills them:
*The crew of the original [[Ark (G1)|Ark]] are deactivated when the ship crashes on Earth and lies inert for 4 million years {{storylink|More than Meets the Eye, Part 1}} {{storylink|The Transformers (issue)}}
*Marvel comics: [[Gears (G1)|Gears]] falls to his "death", but is patched together and talking again in short order. {{storylink|Prisoner of War!}}

===Decapitation===
[[File:Sentinelprimeanimatedhumiliated.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|In the movie continuity, this would've been fatal. In ''Animated'', it's just embarrassing.]]
{{bigquote|Anyone who can lop your head off in one blow is alright by me!|[[Landmine (G1)|Landmine]] jokes about [[Cloudburst]]'s near-death experience, "[[Recipe for Disaster!]]"}}
Like we said before, decapitation is sometimes fatal... and other times it isn't.
*Marvel comic:
**Optimus Prime is able to survive as just a head when Shockwave separates it from his body in an effort to get the Creation Matrix. {{storylink|The New Order}}
**[[Cloudburst]] is abruptly decapitated by sword, but is just fine after some repairs. {{storylink|Recipe for Disaster!}}
*G1 cartoon: Optimus Prime is disassembled into his component parts, but functions just fine as nothing more than a head once [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]] connects a few wires. {{storylink|City of Steel (episode)|City of Steel}}
*''Beast Wars'' cartoon: [[Inferno (BW)|Inferno]] survives having his head blasted or otherwise knocked off multiple times, {{storylink|Spider's Game}} {{storylink|Other Voices, Part 2}} {{storylink|Coming of the Fuzors (Part 1)}} {{storylink|Code of Hero}} and even puts it back on himself one time. He even accidentally swaps heads with Megatron once, much to the latter's annoyance. {{storylink|Coming of the Fuzors (Part 2)}} And let's not even get started on how many times [[Waspinator (BW)|Waspinator]] has lost his head.
[[File:TLK-Mohawk demise.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|Looks like ''Animated's'' non-fatal decapitation practice is catching up to the rest of the [[Multiverse]].]]
*[[2005 IDW continuity]]:
**[[Runamuck (G1)|Runamuck]] is just fine when one of the Reapers whacks his head off. (He doesn't fare so well when another Reaper crushes his head with a boulder, however.) {{storylink|Devastation issue 6}}
**[[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]]'s head is removed in an apparent suicide attempt; he survived because he was put back together in time, before his Spark had faded out. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc}} {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 2: Patternism}}
*''Animated'' cartoon: Decapitated victims of the ''Animated'' [[Headmaster (Animated)|Headmaster]] rarely show any ill effects other than not having a body anymore. {{storylink|Headmaster (episode)|Headmaster}} {{storylink|The Return of the Headmaster}} {{storylink|A Bridge Too Close, Part II}}
*Movie Continuity:
** Frenzy survives his first decapitation by [[Mikaela Banes]]. {{storylink|Transformers (film)|Transformers}}
**[[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]]'s consciousness survives his decapitation in the Chicago battle, even after having an axe lodged right into his processor. {{storylink|Transformers: Age of Extinction (film)|Age of Extinction}}
**[[Mohawk]] had himself blown up by [[Bumblebee (Movie)|Bumblebee]], yet his head remained functional, and he himself continued to speak. {{storylink|Transformers: The Last Knight (film)|The Last Knight}}

===Dismemberment===
{{quote|MY ARM!!!|Starscream, ''Revenge of the Fallen''}}
Transformers get ripped to pieces all the time, and recover from it:
*Marvel comic: Scorponok tears [[Tantrum (G1)|Tantrum]] to pieces. [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] slices [[Horri-Bull]] in half at the waist. Both are seen alive later on. {{storylink|Cold War!}}
*''Last Stand of the Wreckers'': [[Guzzle (G1)|Guzzle]] is torn in half by [[Overlord (G1)|Overlord]] and is easily repaired. The same also happens to [[Fortress Maximus (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Fortress Maximus]].
*''Revenge of the Fallen'': During a fierce battle, [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] not only cuts off [[Grindor (ROTF)|Grindor]]'s arm with an Energon blade, but he rips off [[Starscream (Movie)|Starscream]]'s arm with his bare hands, and proceeded to ''beat him with it''.

===Spark removal===
{{bigquote|His spark can't exist outside a living body!|[[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]], "[[Optimal Situation]]"}}

A Transformer's spark—their "soul", their living essence—can be removed from their body, or the body can be destroyed around them
*The destruction of Starscream's body, and his subsequent survival as a ghost, was eventually retconned to be his Spark enduring without a physical form. {{storylink|The Transformers: The Movie}} {{storylink|Starscream's Ghost}} {{storylink|Possession}}
*''Beast Wars'' cartoon: Tigatron and Airazor's sparks spend quite some time wandering around behind Tigerhawk, before combining and entering his body. {{storylink|Other Victories}}
*In the ''Beast Machines'' cartoon:
**Megatron de-sparks most of Cybertron's population and stores their sparks in a big barrel. Most were restored to bodies eventually. {{storylink|Endgame Pt. III: Seeds of the Future}}
**Blackarachnia's spark wanders around bodiless for a time. {{storylink|Revelations Part III: Apocalypse}}
**Megatron himself, his spark in a depolarized state, wanders the surface of Cybertron without a body for a time. {{storylink|Spark of Darkness}}

The treatment of bodiless sparks in ''Beast Machines'' is seen by some fans as contradicting the canon established by ''Beast Wars'', particularly the quote above.

*In the 2005 IDW continuity, the spark, like the other two parts of Rossum's Trinity, can be safely removed and stored with the proper medical equipment.

===Limbo===
Sometimes Transformers get shunted out of creation as we know it, and into various alternate, sub- and non-dimensions.
*Marvel comics:
**The [[trans-time dimensional portal]] crosses [[unspace]], "a bit of dimensional nothingness" where Ratchet and Megatron vanished and were believed dead. {{storylink|The Gathering Storm}}
**Transformers mass-displaced by time travel wind up in a formless dimension known as [[Limbo]].
*2005 IDW comics: Megatron severely damages Optimus Prime in battle and plans on finishing him off by crushing his [[Laser core|spark core]]. Optimus Prime feigns death by downloading his "consciousness" into his [[Combat Deck (G1)|trailer section]], causing his [[Brain Center|robot mode]] to appear dead. In the time it took for Prime's consciousness to transfer to his trailer, he briefly enters [[infraspace|limbo]], the transitional infraspace between life and death. {{storylink|The Transformers: Escalation|Escalation}}

==Resuscitation==
Robots are machines. They can be switched off, taken apart, blown to bits, and put back together. Ergo, in many continuities and cases, "death" is not nearly as permanent a condition as it is for us fragile fleshy types.

===Reconstruction===
[[File:PeoplePower-reprogrammed.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4]]

{{bigquote|I've done it! Optimus Prime lives!|[[Klementia|A random Quintesson]], "[[The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 1]]"}}

*Generation 1 cartoon:
**Optimus Prime is simply ''repaired'' back to life by a Quintesson. Some fixing of this and that, a burst of power, and boom, suddenly he's alive again. {{storylink|The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 1}}
**Ultra Magnus's death is undone after his limbs were reconnected to each other. {{storylink|The Transformers: The Movie}}
*Marvel comics: Optimus Prime's mind gets encoded on a disk. After a new [[Powermaster]] body was constructed for him, the disk's contents are loaded into it, and Optimus Prime lives again. (One wonders why they couldn't make as many Optimus Primes as they pleased.) {{storylink|People Power!}}
*Movie continuity: [[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]]'s consciousness manipulates [[Kinetic Solutions Incorporated|KSI]] into building him a new body, which he subsequently infects. {{storylink|Transformers: Age of Extinction (film)|Age of Extinction}}

===Spark transfer===
Transferring a Transformer's spark into a new body constitutes a form of resurrection, particularly if the Transformer's previous body was destroyed.
*''Beast Wars'' cartoon: Optimus Primal is restored to life when Rhinox manages to recall his spark from the Matrix, a special circumstance only enabled by a temporary window into transwarp space. {{storylink|Coming of the Fuzors (Part 2)}}
*''Beast Machines'' cartoon: various Vehicon generals are brought to life by placing other Transformer's sparks into them.
*''Armada'' cartoon: Smokescreen is shot through the chest at point blank range by the Requiem Blaster {{storylink|Sacrifice}} but his spark survived and is put into a new body. {{storylink|Regeneration (Armada)|Regeneration}}
*''Energon'' cartoon: Inferno and Demolishor both have their bodies ''atomized''; however, their sparks both survive, and are placed into new bodies. (The upshot of all of this is that it's nigh-impossible to kill a Unicron Trilogy Transformer, unless they do it themselves.) {{storylink|Go for Unicron!}} {{storylink|Farewell Inferno}}
*''Animated'' cartoon: The spark of a dying [[Yoketron (Animated)|Yoketron]] is placed into a new protoform body by [[Prowl (Animated)|Prowl]]; however, Yoketron consciously chooses to let his life end, and expires anyway. {{storylink|Five Servos of Doom}}
*2005 IDW comics: [[Lug (IDW)|Lug]] gets brought back to life after spending five hundred years as a spark fragment in an Energon flower by being transplanted into a snowflake of [[Living metal#2005 IDW continuity|''sentio metallico'']], which results in her being reborn as a [[protoform]]. {{storylink|Dissolution Part 6: This Machine Kills Fascists|This Machine Kills Fascists}}

==="Magical" substances===
*Marvel comics: The miraculous healing properties of Nucleon bring many Autobots back to life, as well as a few Decepticons. {{storylink|The Void! (US)|The Void!}}
*''Energon'' cartoon: Megatron is revived by the all-encompassing power of energon, as was Unicron. {{storylink|Megatron Resurrected}}

===Primus and Primus-related powers===
{{bigquote|Where the Last Autobot is concerned, even death, it would appear, is an abstract concept!|Optimus Prime explains his latest revival, "[[End of the Road! (US)|End of the Road!]]"}}

Anything tied to the primordial life-force of the Transformers' god Primus tends to be a cure-all for death. This includes Primus himself, his various power-wielding avatars and servants, and the assorted Matrixes and Allsparks, all of which can deliver an infusion of the essence of life itself. In some continuities, this is portrayed as a Transformer's spark being brought back out of the Allspark dimension.

[[File:RageInHeaven-HeroPrime.jpg|thumb|upright=0.85|A real man never dies, even when he's killed!]]
*In the Marvel comics:
**The [[Last Autobot]] is granted the power of recreation by Primus, which he uses to raise numerous fallen Autobots from the battlefield. {{storylink|End of the Road! (US)}}
**Optimus Prime is eager to find the lost Creation Matrix, stating that it would be able to restore many deactivated warriors to life. {{storylink|Bird of Prey!}}
**Optimus Prime is restored to life by the [[Swarm (G2)|Swarm]] after it had ingested the energies and knowledge of the Matrix. {{storylink|A Rage in Heaven!}}
*In the movie continuity:
**The AllSpark is shown repeatedly to be capable of restoring just about anything. Frenzy gets a whole new body from its power, Bumblebee temporarily gets his voice back, {{storylink|Transformers (film)|Transformers}} and Megatron is restored to life by merely a fragment of it. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}
**Optimus Prime is restored to life by the Matrix of Leadership, an Allspark-related talisman. {{storylink|Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen}}
**Sentinel Prime is revived after crash landing on the moon by the Matrix of Leadership, courtesy of Optimus Prime. {{storylink|Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon}}
*''Beast Machines'' cartoon: [[Optimus Primal (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|Optimus Primal]]'s body is destroyed, but the AllSpark granted him the choice of uniting with it or being reborn. He chose the latter, and ''poof'', just walked right out of the Oracle bubble in a brand new version of his previous body. {{storylink|Fallout (episode)|Fallout}}
*''Armada'' cartoon: [[Optimus Prime (Armada)/Cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] is brought back to life by the power of the [[Mini-Con]]s after his body was disintegrated. {{storylink|Miracle}}
*"[[Transformers: Shattered Glass (franchise)|Shattered Glass]]": [[Skyfall (Cybertron)|Skyfall]] is resurrected when he and his gestaltmates are combined and reborn by Primus into [[Nexus Prime]]. {{storylink|Reunification: Part 5}} Nexus Prime then brings [[Megatron (SG)|Megatron]] back from the other side of the Allspark and infuses him with some of Primus's power to become Galvatron. {{storylink|Reunification: Part 6}}

===Zombies===
*Dude, [[zombie]]s!

==Immortality==
===Immortal sparks===
Certain sparks have mutant qualities that allow them to, potentially, exist forever.
*Starscream survives his death at the hands of Galvatron; this was later explained as him having a "mutant indestructible spark". {{storylink|Starscream's Ghost}} {{storylink|Possession}} {{storylink|Bad Spark}}
*[[Rampage (BW)|Rampage]] was created as an attempt to duplicate Starscream's immortal spark. {{storylink|Bad Spark}} He is eventually killed by [[Depth Charge (BW)|Depth Charge]], so the attempt may be seen as unsuccessful. {{storylink|Nemesis Part 1}}

===Other===
*[[Multiversal singularity|Multiversal singularities]] such as [[Unicron]] and [[The Fallen]] were immortal, existing in multiple dimensions simultaneously as extensions of the same being across different dimensions (reverse-time dimensions, for example, are key to revival of the singularities). Multiversal singularities ceased to exist with the coming of the [[Shroud]], nullifying this concept.
*''Animated'' [[Starscream (Animated)|Starscream]] cannot be killed so long as he retains his Allspark fragment embedded in his forehead. Whether or not this ability extends to other AllSpark creations is unknown.
*Denizens of the [[Dead Universe]] can essentially regenerate themselves out of nothing, no matter how much damage was inflicted on them. This ability appears to no longer apply, post-[[Expansion]], except when in direct proximity to the Dead Universe.
*Thunderwing's Pretender shell makes him nearly invincible. At the very least, he is able to withstand incredible amounts of salvo and not even flinch.
*[[Waspinator (BW)|Waspinator]] can never completely die no matter what for some reason. It's probably because if he died, the universe wouldn't be able to inflict pain on him anymore.

==Out-of-fiction causes of character death==
===Drama / character culmination===
[[File:LastStandoftheWreckers5- Ironfistaneurism.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|I told you I was ill.]]
At its best, character death can be a moving plot development, the fruition of an ongoing character arc.
*[[Scorponok (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Scorponok]] spends much of [[Simon Furman]]'s Marvel US run conflicted and doubting himself, and under the weight of his pre-Headmaster self's reputation. He finally gets past this and takes the fight to Unicron, dying in the process, his last words asking Optimus if he'd done good. {{storylink|On the Edge of Extinction!}}
*Suspecting that they would have to remove a character from the show, the writers of ''Beast Wars'' began planning for Dinobot's death several episodes ahead of time. Thus, when it came, it was the outcome of the character's own choices, flaws, and history, and played a crucial role in the show's plot. {{storylink|Code of Hero}}
*Sunstreaker's death in ''[[The Transformers: All Hail Megatron|All Hail Megatron]]'' was intended to follow a similar style of arc... only it's missing the whole choices, flaws and history thing. Oh well!
*Optimus Primal's death(s) in ''Beast Machines'' are likewise the outcome of his own choices and character. {{storylink|End of the Line}} {{storylink| Endgame Pt. III: Seeds of the Future}} His death in ''Beast Wars'', by contrast, is more a moment of dramatic pathos — knowingly walking into danger, his enemy got the better of him. {{storylink|Other Voices, Part 2}}
*[[Ironfist (G1)|Ironfist]]'s death in ''[[The Transformers: Last Stand of the Wreckers|Last Stand of the Wreckers]]'' is his main plot arc, quietly built up in the background since the first issue.

===Consequences of war===
[[File:Bulkhead Eradicon Darkness Rising 3.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|His special large intestine! There's only one like it!]]
It's hard to take a war story seriously when nobody actually dies. The reality of war can be more readily portrayed when characters die. [[Generic]]s are particularly handy for this, allowing death to be shown while not removing primary characters (retail toys!) from the story. The results can range from high drama and pathos to numbingly pointless body counts.
*Impactor's death is used to drive home the threat of the Decepticons as well as the risks taken by the Autobots and their commanders. {{storylink|Target: 2006}}
*The ''Generation 2'' book features several deaths which drive home the realities of war. Most notably, Red Alert's destruction serves to make Grimlock acutely aware of just how badly he'd screwed up. {{storylink|Devices and Desires! (Marvel)|Devices and Desires!}}
*Pretty much every death in ''[[The Transformers: Last Stand of the Wreckers|Last Stand of the Wreckers]]'' comes under this.
*[[Cliffjumper (WFC)|Cliffjumper]], [[Tailgate (Prime)|Tailgate]], [[Skyquake (Prime)|Skyquake]] and [[Makeshift (Prime)|Makeshift]] are all killed in their first ''Prime'' episodes, due to just plain bad luck in the first three cases and because of a deliberate Autobot killing in Makeshift's. The [[Vehicon (Prime)|Vehicons]] are presented as sentient ''and'' as being killed by Autobots in large numbers. [[Jeff Kline]] famously said at the advent of ''Prime'' that all deaths would be final. While the rule applied to the majority of the series, it was happily ignored when it came time for the deaths of [[Bumblebee (WFC)|Bumblebee]], [[Megatron (WFC)|Megatron]], and [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]], who were all revived almost immediately after death (admittedly it took until the [[Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2015 cartoon)|follow-up series]] to revive Optimus a second time, but let's face it, we're used to that by this point).
*In [[Megatron X (Cyberverse)|Megatron X]]'s reality, the Autobots lost the war and all of them probably died.{{storylink|The Other One}}

===Increased threat===
[[File:LastStandoftheWreckers1-whycouldntyou.jpg|upright=2.0|thumb]]
An enemy that kills is an enemy to be taken seriously. Thus a writer will frequently throw in some preliminary deaths to point out how seriously the bad guy should be treated.
*The generic who dies at the beginning of "[[City of Fear!]]" serves to show the zombies as a true life-threatening menace.
*Likewise for Runabout's death at the hands of the demons ; {{storylink|On the Edge of Extinction!}} knowing they can devour a Transformer makes the reader more concerned about the Dinobots' subsequent fate. {{storylink|Still Life!}}
*In "[[The Transformers: Last Stand of the Wreckers|Last Stand of the Wreckers]]", [[Overlord (G1)|Overlord]] makes corpses in practically every scene he's in!
*Cliffjumper in ''Prime'' is set up as a main character and then killed in five minutes, immediately putting the ''Prime'' Decepticons forward as a major threat.
*[[Ratchet (Movie)|Ratchet]] is brutally hunted down and killed early into ''Age of Extinction'' by [[Cemetery Wind]] and [[Lockdown (ROTF)|Lockdown]], to show what has befallen the majority of the Cybertronians on Earth (and the old cast from the first three films) and what will happen if the survivors are caught.
*''Transformers: Unicron'' begins with Unicron already having noshed on [[Velocitron]], which had previously appeared a few times in that continuity's works while never exactly being a major focus, and soon the [[Space Knight]]s find the corpse of Cliffjumper, whose last major appearance had been a good four years prior, but then Wheeljack, who has been a main character in the last few years, dies as well, proving the situation is now beyond serious. Also, several named Space Knights from Rom's own series die, but they're nasty, bigoted jerks so nobody feels bad when they snuff it.

===Cast thinning===
Generation 1 stories were particularly notorious for acquiring gigantic casts as they rolled on, because of the franchise's longevity. A simple way to make things more manageable was simply to kill off large numbers of characters in battle.

*Examples are rife in the Marvel comics:
**The "[[Time Wars]]" storyline gets rid of the [[Wrecker]]s and quite a few Decepticons as well.
**The [[Underbase Saga]] even more explicitly clears out dozens of characters, leaving perhaps 2 dozen characters from each faction in the story.
**The battle with Unicron in "[[On the Edge of Extinction!]]" likewise got rid of a lot of older characters, leaving the story free to concentrate on more of a core cast (and associated newer toy characters.)
*''The Transformers: The Movie'' does this on a smaller basis. While only a handful of characters were actually killed off, many more cast members simply disappeared without explanation in the following season of the cartoon.
*[[Betrayal|Wreckers #2]] deals with its oversized cast by killing off scads of characters right up front.

More recent stories - particularly those without the overriding imperative [[to sell toys]], such as the G1 IDW comics - have accepted that not every character must be constantly accounted for at all times or roll-called every issue, allowing larger casts to simply exist in the background until needed. Another alternative, particularly visible in the ''Beast Wars'' cartoon, is to give new bodies (based on corresponding new toys, of course) to existing characters, allowing them to continue promoting new toys across multiple seasons of the show.

===Character motivation===
[[File:Bludgeonasavageplace.jpg|upright=1.5|thumb|"How are we going to SHEEEAGH together if he's dead?!"]]

A quick and easy way to create enmity between characters is for the antagonist to kill someone close to the protagonist.

*In Marvel's comics, [[Carnivac (G1)|Carnivac]]'s revenge plot against the new [[Mayhem Attack Squad]] is motivated by [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]]'s murder of [[Catilla (G1)|Catilla]]. {{storylink|A Savage Place!}}
*In ''Energon'', [[Wing Saber (Energon)|Wing Saber ''nee'' Dagger]] swears revenge on [[Shockblast]] after the murder of his partner, [[Padlock (Energon)|Padlock]]. {{storylink|Shockblast: Rampage}} He then forgets to care about Shockblast later but, y'know, ''Energon'' story.
*In ''Prime'', [[Airachnid (Prime)|Airachnid]] and [[Arcee (WFC)|Arcee's]] conflict is down to Airachnid's murder of [[Tailgate (Prime)|Tailgate]]. {{storylink|Predatory}} She keeps throwing this in Arcee's face.

===Clear space for new toys===
{{main|To sell toys}}
[[File:Newyorkunderbase.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|(They also cease to appear on store shelves.)]]
Some fiction has an inherently limited capacity for characters. ''Beast Wars'' and ''Beast Machines'' are by far the most prominent examples; their CGI animation made character animation expensive and necessitated removing an old character before a new one could be brought in. But any medium can be susceptible to this toy-driven phenomena.
*The numerous casualties of ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]'' are fairly explicitly removed from the story to make way for a wave of new toy/characters.
*Terrorsaur and Scorponok had to be removed — quickly — to make room for the two upcoming Fuzor characters, hence their sudden, blink-and-you-miss-it death in "[[Aftermath]]".
*Airazor and Tigatron were removed for similar reasons. When their plot was finally resolved, it was, surprise, via [[Tigerhawk|a new toy]]!
{{-}}

==Fleshling death==
{{quote|"The humans' spark is fragile." "WHAT?! Impossible! Their spark's not eternal?" "One life. That's ''all'' they've got." "Bahh. Then they really ''are'' poorly designed."|[[Demolishor (Armada)|Demolishor]] and [[Megatron (Armada)/Cartoon continuity|Megatron]]|"[[Energon Grid (episode)|Energon Grid]]"|noquote=true}}

In general, ''Transformers'' fiction is pretty squeamish about showing the deaths of Earth's organic creatures. But it's a war, and sometimes it does happen. The out-of-universe reasons generally fall into three categories: Consequences of War, Emotional Pathos, and BLOOD IZ KEWL.

The various cartoons tend to show organic death the least, as they are most clearly aimed at, and easily accessible by, children. Comics tend to be less reluctant to show the impact of the Transformers' war on innocent lives, though the death rate varies by series. Latter-day Generation 1 books especially revel in high body counts, because squishing stupid humans is killer and awesome and radical and hardcore. Even the occasional [[Satellite of Doom|children's storybook]] has been known to off mass quantities of the dumb fleshies.

===Animal death===
[[File:MurderedPuppy02.jpg|upright=0.85|thumb|One dead dog]]
[[File:Sparkwar3 Dead noble.jpg|upright=0.85|thumb|Two dead dogs]]
Cute little animals are almost always killed off for reasons of Emotional Pathos:
*A little girl's pet puppy named [[Pis]] barks at [[Wilder (G1)|Wilder]] and is kicked so hard he died. {{storylink|Rage!! Little Devils with No Need for Rules}}
*The "[[Battle Dog]]" is shot down by the Decepticons after running away from Megatron's experiments. {{storylink|Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers issue 8|Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers #8}}
*[[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] reminds [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]] that [[The Fallen]] once shot down a ship full of [[Antilian bumble-puppy|Antilian bumble-puppies]]. (Decepticons have a thing for killing puppies.)
*The dog-like [[Noble (BM)|Noble]] is shot at by [[Megatron (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|Megatron]] because of his hatred for organics {{storylink|Sparkwar Pt. III: The Siege}} and was later mourned by his "owner", [[Nightscream (BM)|Nightscream]]. {{storylink|Spark of Darkness}}
*A stray shot from [[Tigatron]] accidentally causes an avalanche which kills his friend [[Snowstalker]]. {{storylink|Law of the Jungle}}
*[[Terrorsaur (BW)|Terrorsaur]] eats an eagle. {{storylink|Power Surge (episode)|Power Surge}} [[Tarantulas (BW)|Tarantulas]] eats a cute little rat, {{storylink|Victory (episode)|Victory}} and nearly eats an antelope as well. {{storylink|Code of Hero}}
*In order to save [[Blackarachnia (BW)|Blackarachnia]], [[Silverbolt (Fuzor)|Silverbolt]] knocks a [[saber-toothed cat|saber-toothed tiger]] off a cliff, presumably killing it. {{Storylink|Bad Spark}}
*[[Blackarachnia (Animated)|Elita-1]] uses [[Sentinel Prime (Animated)|Sentinel]]'s shield to knock a spikey rock onto a giant spider, effectively killing it. She later used [[Optimus Prime (Animated)|Optimus]]' axe to kill some new-born baby spiders. {{Storylink|Along Came a Spider}}
*Human villain [[Trophy White]] has a grisly display of stuffed and mounted animal heads. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.10|Bring Me the Head of Optimus Prime}}
*[[Laserbeak (DOTM)|Laserbeak]] takes potshots at a vulture for fun in Africa. {{storylink|Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon}}
*[[Megatron (Movie)|Megatron]] killed a friggin' elephant in Africa. (In [[Transformers: Dark of the Moon (novel)|the adaptation]], at least.)
{{-}}

===Human death===
[[File:Razorclawshootsahuman.jpg|thumb|upright=0.85|This didn't happen much.]]
*Marvel US: The [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|original Marvel book]] ignored or glossed over human casualties, which were rarely if ever shown; the panel at right, from [[Toy Soldiers!|US #37]], shows a ''very'' unusual instance of a human dying right in front of us. One of the few human(oid)s to die on-panel was [[Galen]], killed off to make way for [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike]]. ''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (Marvel)|Generation 2]]'' was much more explicit about human death, as Bludgeon and later [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] attacked Earth for the purpose of inflicting casualties.
*Marvel UK: The UK-original stories were much less reluctant to show human death; within the first year or so, humans had died in Autobot-induced car wrecks and at the hands of mind-controlled Autobots.
*In ''[[The Transformers: Regeneration One|Regeneration One]]'', after his revival on Earth, Megatron manages to gain control of Earth's nuclear arsenal and uses it to push humanity to the brink of extinction. {{storylink|Loose Ends, Part 3}} During that conflict, Megatron has some fun terrorizing the population with his army of zombie Decepticons. [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]] tracks down and killed [[Buster Witwicky (G1)|Buster]] and [[Jesse (G1)|Jessie]] Witwicky in a car wash; had he had his full faculties, he might have [[Buster Witwicky and the Car Wash of Doom|appreciated the irony]]. {{storylink|Less Than Zero}}
*In almost every US-aired cartoon series, humans essentially ''never'' die. Even ''[[Transformers Animated (cartoon)|Transformers Animated]]'', which features the city of [[Detroit]] getting smashed by robot battles virtually every week, never once mentions humans getting killed. And then ''[[Transformers: Prime (cartoon)|Transformers: Prime]]'' showed up.
**A human is shown slumped against a wall in "[[Darkness Rising, Part 5]]", a victim of Soundwave, though it isn't clear whether he was dead or merely unconscious.[[File:Convoy-kablooie.jpg|thumb|upright=0.85|They'll, uh, be okay, maybe.]]
**When [[MECH|human terrorists]] are featured, they will often die. Piloted or driven vehicles explode and enemies are implied to be crushed. "[[Convoy (episode)|Convoy]]" is the first of numerous examples.
**When Nemesis Prime attacks a military base in his [[Nemesis Prime (episode)|self-titled episode]], it's likely his rampage cost the lives of numerous soldiers.
**When the military attacked [[Darkmount (Earth)|Darkmount]], its fusion cannons devastate the entire force, presumably killing them all.
**[[Silas|Cylas]] is the first human to die on-screen in Western Transformers animation, but not before thanking [[Airachnid (Prime)|Airachnid]] for finally freeing him of his gruesome existence.
*Contemporary toyline-based comics (''[[Transformers: Armada (Dreamwave)|Armada]]'', ''[[Transformers: Energon (comic)|Energon]]'') seem to follow a similar policy, avoiding showing, only mentioning, human death.
*Japanese cartoons, by contrast, don't seem to mind showing human deaths (or [[Pis|dog deaths]], for that matter).
*The [[Dreamwave Generation One continuity|Dreamwave G1 comics]] really thought it was totally awesome and cool and radical to kill off those stupid humans. Thus, they start off with Megatron smushing some stupid humans. More smushing and killing and blowing up follows. DIE, dumb stubbies, DIE!
*[[2005 IDW continuity]] managed to avoid this for a long time, showing human death only when it was particularly integral to the plot... then ''[[The Transformers: All Hail Megatron|All Hail Megatron]]'' came down the pike. DIE, stupid fleshies, DIE!
*The live-action [[movie continuity]] implies a great deal of human death. ''Revenge'' mentions a body count of over 9,000 (don't even ''think'' about it), and massive damage is done during the battle of [[Mission City]], though little of it is shown on screen. And of course, the first film begins with Blackout wiping out an entire military base. A handful of humans are killed directly on-screen, most notably [[Patrick Donnelly|Donnelly]]. Then of course we get to ''Dark of the Moon'', which has Decepticons laying siege to [[Chicago]], killing most of its citizens, including several being shot and exploding and disintegrating into just skulls ''directly in front of the camera''. That's not even mentioning [[Laserbeak (DOTM)|Laserbeak]], whose job it is to assassinate civilians, even if it means befriending their children to do it. Twisted.
**[[Dylan Gould]] is killed when he was shoved into [[Sentinel Prime (ROTF)|Sentinel Prime's]] space bridge generator, but given he was a villain it's not so much of a concern. {{storylink|Transformers: Dark of the Moon (film)|Dark of the Moon}}
**[[Sam Witwicky]] was killed by Megatron but brought back to life by the Primes.
**[[Lucas Flannery]], in a bit of karmic retribution (for having tipped off [[Cemetery Wind]] to Optimus' location against Cade's wishes), gets fried by one of [[Lockdown (ROTF)|Lockdown]]'s grenades and his mangled corpse is converted into ''[[Living metal#Live-action film series|Transformium]]''. [[James Savoy]] says his sister was a casualty of the Battle of Chicago, which he uses as an excuse to sadistically hunt and kill Autobots and their sympathizers. He ends up getting knocked out of a very high window by [[Cade Yeager]] for attempting to kill his family. Later, his boss, [[Harold Attinger]], is brutally gunned down by Optimus Prime when he tries to kill Cade for sympathizing with the Autobots. Additionally, [[Joshua Joyce]] tries to scramble paramedics to the scene of Galvatron's rampage (much to Attinger's disgust), believing people were killed. And then there's the [[Dinobot (AOE)|Dinobots]] stomping through the densely crowded streets of Hong Kong. They certainly killed more people than Decepticons!
**[[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]'s arrival to Earth was predicted to cause tens of millions of human casualties. When its continents began reconnecting, the human news reported they were literally scraping away major cities such as [[Hong Kong]] and projected to kill millions.
**''[[Bumblebee (film)|Bumblebee]]'' introduces a new method of human death: liquification. [[Dropkick (Movie)|Dropkick]] uses a special gun that performs this feat on [[Roy (BB)|some random guy]] and later [[Dr. Powell]]. {{storylink|Bumblebee (film)|Bumblebee}}
*The alternate timeline arc in Titan's Movie comic featured big wars on Earth and lots of destruction, clearly ''insinuating'' human death while not being explicit. The exceptions were in [[Transformers Comic issue 10|issue #10]], where [[NATO]] is said to be suffering losses of 11,506 and the [[France|Palais Bourbon]] is blown up when people are still clearly inside. Sam Witwicky, meanwhile, was stated to have died.
*Titan quite blatantly stated that the [[Free Men]] had caused great loss of life at an air base, a rare example of humans killing humans. In the same story, [[Robert Epps]] opens fire on militia men, which kinda implies he was killing them. {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.10|Bring Me the Head of Optimus Prime}} Similarly, [[Wheelie (ROTF)|Wheelie]] of all people is seen zapping humans at close range during a Decepticon attack; with no "oh it was a stun beam" handwave and the 'Cons not pulling punches, it sure seems like he's murdered 'em! {{storylink|Transformers Comic issue 2.6|Outlaw Blues}}
*In ''[[Transformers: Kiss Players (franchise)|Kiss Players]]'', several [[Kiss Player]]s were seen being devoured by Legions.
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==Characters who die a lot==
*[[The many deaths of Optimus Prime|Optimus Prime]]
*[[Starscream (disambiguation)|Starscream]] — [[Starscream (G1)|He]] [[Starscream (Armada)|dies]] [[Starscream (Animated)|quite]] [[Starscream (Movie)|a]] [[Starscream (Cyberverse)|lot]].
*[[Dirge (G1)]] — the unlucky guy who also [[:File:Unicron1-RampageKillsDirge.jpg|gets]] [[:File:Dirge DeathSerpentor.jpg|killed]] [[:File:Dirge DeathSwarm.jpg|off]] [[:File:Dirge DeathTimelines.jpg|in]] [[:File:Dirge DeathUnicron.jpg|many]] [[:File:Dirge DeathArmada.jpg|continuities]]
*[[Quake (G1)|Quake]] — the unlucky guy who gets killed over and over in the same continuity, but doesn't seem to mind.
*[[Cy-Kill (disambiguation)|Cy-Kill]] — a Go-Bots character transferred to many Transformers comics just to be killed off violently, for no other reason than the lolz of ending his toyline, his universe, and finally his life... repeatedly.
*[[Sentinel Prime (G1)]] — the unlucky [[Prime (rank)|Prime]] [[:File:Sentinel prime lou.jpg|who]] [[:File:Sentinel prime dw.jpg|must]] [[Megatron Origin issue 4|die]].
*[[Solus Prime]], who perishes in every continuity to involve the [[Thirteen]], because [[The Fallen|Megatronus]]'s downfall just can't happen any other way.

==See also==
*[[Transformer funerary practices]]
*[[To sell toys]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

[[Category:Biology]]
[[Category:Transformer anatomy]]