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Ultra Magnus (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

2021-04-22T08:17:55Z

OrderlySummit: /* Road's End */

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[[File:SpotlightUltraMagnus-HisWayOrTheHardWay.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|"Aww, betcha say that to all the treaty-breaking weapons dealers."]]
Even in war, there are laws. '''Ultra Magnus''', Duly Appointed Enforcer of the [[Tyrest Accord]], is the thin blue line that enforces those laws. Whether Autobot or Decepticon, break them and you can do things his way... or the hard way.

He's so popular that people just love to cosplay as him!

{{quote|But is it enough to make me "bend"? In my book, one compromise leads to another... and '''''another'''''... and pretty soon... you've '''''crossed''''' the line you're supposed to be holding.|Ultra Magnus|''[[Spotlight: Ultra Magnus]]''}}

:*''First Appearance:'' [[Escalation issue 1|''Transformers: Escalation'' #1]] (Minimus Ambus, as Ultra Magnus)
:**[[Parasites|''Transformers: Autocracy'' #2]] (the original Ultra Magnus)
:**[[The Gloaming|''Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye'' #16]] (Datum, as Ultra Magnus)
:**[[Remain in Light 1 of 5: The Fecund Moon|''Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye'' #17]] (Minimus Ambus, as himself)
:**[[Shining Armor issue 1|''Rom vs. Transformers: Shining Armor'' #1]] (Convoy, as Ultra Magnus)

{{TOCclear}}

==Fiction==
===The original Magnus===
[[File:Parasites-OrionPaxUltraMagnusSparring.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.66|Foreshadowing!]]
The legend of Ultra Magnus began with the first 'bot to bear the name: a stern, no-nonsense Autobot who, during the early years of the war, fought alongside [[Optimus Prime (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Orion Pax]], [[Skids (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Skids]] and the legendary [[Delta Magnus]] to contain the Decepticons. {{storylink|Parasites}} {{storylink|Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|The Divided Self}} When Orion sided with [[Megatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Megatron]] to overthrow [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]]'s corrupt government, Magnus and his security forces stood with them, {{storylink|Overthrown}} but when Zeta was deposed, Megatron betrayed Orion and took over the planet, sending Magnus, [[Ironhide (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Ironhide]], and [[Bumblebee (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Bumblebee]] into hiding. They were captured when their safehouse was raided by the Decepticons, {{storylink|Transformation (issue)|Transformation}} but were soon liberated by [[Hot Rod (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Hot Rod]] and met back up with Orion, who had been transformed into [[Optimus Prime (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Optimus Prime]] and awoken the dormant [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]]. {{storylink|Rise}} Alongside the entire Autobot army, Ultra Magnus then marched on the [[Citadel]] to fight Megatron for the control of Cybertron. {{storylink|Broadcast}} After the Decepticons had been chased out of [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]], Magnus aided Optimus Prime in inspecting the remains of Zeta Prime's cache of outlawed weaponry. {{storylink|Endgame}}

Shortly after Optimus Prime's rise to leadership, Ultra Magnus was part of a unit sent to defend the [[Toraxxis mega-refinery]] from [[Scorponok (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Scorponok]]'s Decepticons. {{storylink|Rage (IDW)|Rage}} During the Autobots' attempts at stopping a rampaging [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]], Magnus was responsible for bringing out the strongest weapons in the Autobot arsenal {{storylink|The Illusion of Control}} and subsequently fought at Prime's side during the battle with the beast in [[Harmonex]]. {{storylink|Annihilation}} Following the defeat of Trypticon at the hands of Megatron and [[Grimlock (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Grimlock]], Ultra Magnus saw the calm as a chance to arrest Megatron, but was discouraged from doing so when the rest of the Decepticon army arrived. {{storylink|Belly of the Beast (issue)|Belly of the Beast}} He went on to oversee the process of cleansing Grimlock's systems of Trypticon's corrupted energon, {{storylink|Primacy issue 1|Primacy #1}} and witness the epic battle between Trypticon and Metroplex. {{storylink|Primacy issue 3|Primacy #3}} Once Trypticon's attack turned out to be the first phase of a Decepticon invasion, Ultra Magnus stood with the other Autobots in defense of Iacon. {{storylink|Primacy issue 4|Primacy #4}}

===The immortal lawman===
[[File:MTMTE19 magnus armor.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|"I've never seen anything so awesome in the entire galaxy...Alright, give me the bomb."]]
But all beings have a fixed lifespan, and Ultra Magnus was no different. When he passed away (under unrevealed circumstances), the legend he left in his wake inspired Chief Justice [[Solomus|Tyrest]] to ensure that he lived on. Circulating a rumor that Magnus had merely faked his death, Tyrest fashioned a suit of [[Magnus Armor|armor]] cast in Magnus's image and bestowed it upon a succession of other 'bots—the first being '''[[Suture (G1)|Suture]]''', with later successors including '''[[Datum]]''', '''[[Ramp]]''' and '''[[Blockus]]'''—who took on Magnus's name and reputation, and served Tyrest as a Duly Appointed Enforcer of the [[Tyrest Accord]], upholding the [[Code of Interplanetary Conflict]], a treaty between Autobots, Decepticons and other alien races. Each wearer was a "loadbearer", a kind of [[Point One Percenter]] possessing a [[spark]] with an animating force strong enough to integrate the Magnus armor. Upon the passing of each wearer, a trigger in the armor would return it to Tyrest wherever he was in the galaxy, so that it could be passed on to his next chosen enforcer. The Cybertronian public only ever believed that there was a solitary Ultra Magnus who flouted death at every turn; {{storylink|Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|The Divided Self}} the "freak recoveries" he made only enhanced Magnus's reputation, and he would later be cited by [[First Aid (G1)|First Aid]] as an example of a larger sized bot whose Spark could recover from the kind of damage suffered by [[Rewind (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Rewind]]. {{storylink|Before & After}}

[[File:MTMTE16 magnus on simanzi.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.67|You know Magnus, you don't need this much firepower just to fix a leak in your basement.]]
As such, it becomes hard to know exactly which Magnus was involved in which of his recorded appearances, such as his battle against [[Black Shadow (Victory)|Black Shadow]] as part of the [[113th Battalion]]. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement (issue)|Rules of Disengagement}} One bearer of the Magnus Armor perished on [[Simanzi]], 1st Cycle 3718, when he was caught offguard by a [[Cybernought|Cybernaught]] while heading toward the [[Crucible]] with [[Rotorstorm (G1)|Rotorstorm]]. Later, during the 2nd Cycle, another Magnus fell when he took a direct hit from the [[K-Class]] Decepticon [[Torque (G1)|Torque]] while giving orders during a battle on [[Clemency]] over the [[Nightmare Engine]]. In the 3rd Cycle, the statistician Datum was wearing the Magnus Armor and took part in the [[Battle for Hell's Point]], during which he blocked the exhaust vent of [[Hell's Point|the ship in question]] with his body, trusting that the [[Warriors Elite]] wouldn't risk destroying it by blasting him off without Megatron's permission. Unfortunately, he hadn't realized Megatron was right there, hiding in plain sight in his new gun alternate mode, which [[Heretech]] used to blast him. {{storylink|The Gloaming}} Legend held that the smirk Magnus had given the warriors when he thought he had them beaten was the only time he ever smiled in his life. {{Storylink|Liars, A to D Part 2: Hangers On|Hangers On}} One Magnus would fall victim to the Spark affliction known as a [[zero point]], {{storylink|Zero Point}} and another to the [[Fast-Folding Sun]]. {{storylink|Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|The Divided Self}}

One of the Ultra Magnuses had Wheelie work under him, who supplied him with reserve ammunition. Unfortunately, due to Wheelie's small size, Magnus had a tendency to overlook the little bot. {{storylink|Spotlight: Wheelie}}

Only a few Autobots ever knew the truth of Magnus's identity; by the time of the 19th century, they included Optimus Prime, [[Ironhide (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Ironhide]], {{storylink|Shining Armor issue 5|Shining Armor #5}} [[Prowl (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Prowl]], {{storylink|The Becoming: Dark Cybertron Chapter 10|The Becoming}} [[Ratchet (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Ratchet]] {{storylink|The Sound of Breaking Glass}} and [[Bumblebee (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Bumblebee]], the latter only aware because people tended to tell him their secrets. {{storylink|Shining Armor issue 5|Shining Armor #5}} However, the secret did leak in the form of a conspiracy theory claiming that Ultra Magnus was "just a little guy in armor", though it wasn't widely believed. {{storylink|Winners & Losers: Dark Cybertron Chapter 3|Winners & Losers}}

[[File:MTMTE18 minimus ambus.jpg|thumb|And then Takara saw this and were all like, "Oh, hmmm. We need to do a [[Alpha Trion (G1)#Legends|redeco]], don't we?"]]
After burning through several other load bearers, '''[[Minimus Ambus]]''', spark brother to the noted Autobot philanthropist [[Dominus Ambus]], took up the mantle of Ultra Magnus. {{storylink|Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|The Divided Self}} Minimus found his overachieving brother difficult to get along with, but loved him all the same; he was off-planet when Dominus mysteriously disappeared, but the connection the brothers shared led Minimus to believe his brother had died. His physical resemblance to Dominus (including the shared "facial insignia" moustache of the [[House of Ambus]]) pained Minimus, so when Tyrest chose him to be the next Ultra Magnus—to become a different person—Minimus was happy to take on the role. He aspired to be the kind of no-nonsense lawman the original had been. {{storylink|The Not Knowing}}

Renowned for his stalwart personality and his commitment to the job, Minimus became the longest serving wearer of the Magnus Armor. {{storylink|Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|The Divided Self}} As Magnus, Minimus had many adventures in his duties as enforcer of the Tyrest Accord, including the arrests of both a Decepticon peddling miniaturization technology who infected him with [[Nanocon]]s, {{storylink|Primus: You, Me, and Other Revelations|You, Me, and Other Revelations}} and wannabe [[Sparkeater (creature)|Sparkeater]] [[Blip]]. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}} When [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]]'s renegade "patient" [[Arcee (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Arcee]] cut a swathe of destruction across the galaxy, Magnus hunted her down, using a combination of holographic trickery and shock grenades to subdue her so she could be sent to the [[Garrus-9]] penitentiary. {{storylink|Spotlight: Arcee}}

In his leisure time, Minimus began writing ''[[Terms of Peace]]'', a book that detailed every law for every conceivable scenario and would ensure everlasting peace and prosperity if followed. He ran into trouble, however, when he failed to find a politically correct way of phrasing "punishable by death" as the penalty for breaking many of the rules. {{storylink|Sardines}}
{{-}}

===Xetaxxis and back===
[[File:ShiningArmor2-spacewalk.jpg|thumb||left|upright=1.4]]

Some three hundred years ago, Minimus Ambus was gravely wounded and opted to take a sabbatical from his duties. In his place, Tyrest appointed '''[[Convoy (G1)|Convoy]]''' as the next Point One Percenter to don the armor. Convoy brought his own unique spin on Ultra Magnus to the table: eschewing his predecessor's stern, measured approach, Convoy was hotheaded, triggerhappy, and prejudiced against organics. {{storylink|Shining Armor issue 5|Shining Armor #5}}

In the mid-19th century, Ultra Magnus and his crew of [[Bumblebee (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Bumblebee]] and [[Sky Blast (G1)|Sky Blast]] were patrolling the [[Zugzwang Cluster]] when they came across a pair of Decepticons assaulting a [[Galactic Council]] shuttle. They quickly overwhelmed their foes and, at Magnus' urging, investigated the wreckage to ensure that nobody had survived. The two found that the Decepticons had been trying to destroy the Council ship to cover up their tracks; smelling a conspiracy, Magnus hacked into the shuttle's security and discovered the Council had been bound for the backwater planet of [[Xetaxxis]]. The Autobots followed, and eventually caught up with them over the [[Solstar Order]] space station ''[[Orchid Crossing]]''; leaving Sky Blast to watch the ship, {{storylink|Shining Armor issue 2|Shining Armor #2}} the pair made a dramatic entrance by blasting their way in through a wall. {{storylink|Shining Armor issue 1|Shining Armor #1}}

[[File:ShiningArmor2-wereintrouble.jpg|thumb||right|upright=1.4]]

The two Autobots were immediately attacked by four [[Space Knight]]s; misreading the situation, Magnus mistook the Cybertronian orphan [[Stardrive]] for a Decepticon operative and opened fire on Starscream and the Knights as the chaotic battle began tearing the space station apart. Sky Blast joined the fight, but was jumped by one of the Decepticon's [[Dire Wraith]] allies and subsequently mutated into an out-of-control monster.

Deciding the battle was lost, Magnus hacked into the space station's systems and disabled everything, sending ''Orchid Crossing'' plummeting into Xetaxxis in the hopes that atmospheric reentry would burn the hybrid up with them. Stardrive - hoping to rescue the Cybertronians - used her starfighter configuration to rescue them, and all three Transformers plummeted onto the icy surface of the planet. Quickly recovering form his ordeal, Magnus placed her under arrest for violating the [[Tyrest Accord]]s; Stardrive agreed to go with Magnus under the condition that they find her Space Knight comrades. Irked at the idea of helping organics, Magnus didn't get far into his argument before Rom, [[Livia]], and [[Sata]] arrived and shot him. {{storylink|Shining Armor issue 2|Shining Armor #2}}

[[File:ShiningArmor4-MagnusVsWraiths.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4]]

Recovering from the blast, the two Autobots engaged the Space Knights in a brief shootout as he shielded Stardrive from [[Neutralizer]] fire. Stardrive managed to break up the fighting and properly introduced herself to the two feuding factions. Rom was left confused by talk of the Decepticons, prompting Ultra Magnus to explain the nature of the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]] and the factionalized state of the Cybertronian species. When Stardrive revealed the existence of her energon synthesizer, the Autobots and Knights agreed to a temporary teamup and rolled out to find the synthesizer before the Decepticons could. The ground-bound Autobots and Sata were delayed when Bumblebee stopped to help the native [[Xetaxxan|Xetaxxians]] cope with the extreme cold, a violation of the Tyrest Accord which earned the ire of Ultra Magnus. It didn't take long before the "Xetaxxians" revealed themselves as Dire Wraith imposters as [[Astrotrain (G1)/toys|Astrotrain]] and [[Vekktral]] attacked. Magnus ordered his two comrades to join the others while he stayed behind to hold off the horde. {{storylink|Shining Armor issue 3|Shining Armor #3}}

[[File:ShiningArmor4-UltraMonster.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.3|[https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Guzzlord_(Pok%C3%A9mon) Guzzlord], is that you?]]
Using the superheated rock as an improvised weapon, Magnus fought wave after wave of Wraiths, shrugging off their blows before he began to tire. After dispatching a hundred of the aliens, an exhausted Magnus was slowly worn down by their onslaught and pinned to the ground as Vekktral approached, boasting that he now understood how to properly control Cybertronian biology. Possessed by Vekktral, the Wraith-Magnus regrouped with the Decepticons and, using his new knowledge, immediately turned on Starscream and the other Decepticons. {{storylink|Shining Armor issue 4|Shining Armor #4}}

Decepticons, Autobots, and Space Knights formed a strange alliance against Vekktral and his body-snatching forces, Vekktral losing an arm from their combined attack. Within his mind, Magnus continued to struggle against Vekktral before Convoy realized that the Wraith had made a crucial oversight; unaware of the nature of the [[Magnus Armor]], Vekktral had failed to account for the inner robot. Convoy was thus able to stop Vekktral by forcing Ultra Magnus's chest open, giving Rom opening he needed to end the threat by allowing Rom to shoot him.

Following the sterilization of Xetaxxis, Bumblebee used the armor's recall switch to return to the Autobot fleet and inform Optimus Prime about Convoy's passing. Optimus Prime briefly eulogizied Convoy as he laid the fallen Autobot to rest; after a century of recuperation, Minimus Ambus returned to active duty and donned the repaired armor to become Ultra Magnus once more. {{storylink|Shining Armor issue 5|Shining Armor #5}}
{{-}}

===The hunt for Scorponok===
[[File:SpotlightUltraMagnus shoots Scorpie.jpg|upright=1.4|left|thumb]]
Tracking down Decepticon wheeler-dealer [[Swindle (G1)|Swindle]] on the planet [[Zull]], Magnus was convinced to let the criminal go in exchange for information on the current whereabouts of an even greater offender: [[Scorponok (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Scorponok]], against whom Magnus bore a personal grudge. Magnus followed Swindle's lead to the planet [[Nebulos]], and although he disrupted Scorponok's operations, the Decepticon was able to escape. {{storylink|Spotlight: Ultra Magnus}} The cycle repeated years later when Magnus caught up to Swindle again, arresting him for yet another violation, only to wind up once again letting him go in return for a fresh lead on Scorponok's new location. {{storylink|Escalation issue 1|Escalation #1}} {{storylink|Spotlight: Optimus Prime}}

While en route to help deal with the fallout of a [[Spotlight: Arcee|break-in at Garrus-9]], Magnus changed course in response to a distress call from [[Hound (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Hound]]'s crew, who were under attack by [[Cyclonus (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Cyclonus]]. After Magnus drove Cyclonus off, he teamed with Hound's crew to track him to [[Corata-Vaz]] and stage an ambush, only to be beaten back when he unleashed [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]] on them. {{storylink|Spotlight: Cyclonus}} {{storylink|Spotlight: Hardhead}} After obtaining further intel on the plot being orchestrated by Cyclonus and his fellow [[Dead Universe]] Transformers, {{storylink|Spotlight: Doubledealer}} Magnus co-ordinated a simultaneous strike against their various [[Nega-Core]] installations. {{storylink|Spotlight: Sideswipe}}

[[File:MaxDinos5 Grimlock Magnus.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.66|It's now my job to jail all the interesting guys.]]
Sometime after the foiling of the Dead Universe [[Expansion]], Ultra Magnus received a signal from a battered Hot Rod, requesting some backup for [[Sunstreaker (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Sunstreaker]], who was in the process of confronting Scorponok on Earth. Determined to put an end to his old quarry once and for all, Magnus headed for Earth. {{storylink|Maximum Dinobots issue 1|Maximum Dinobots #1}} {{storylink|Maximum Dinobots issue 4|Maximum Dinobots #4}} Scorponok had already been defeated by the [[Dinobot (G1)|Dynobots]] by the time Magnus arrived, though he made it in time to stop them from killing him, intent on seeing Scorponok punished by the law. After stripping Scorponok's [[Machination]] facility of Cybertronian tech and providing Optimus Prime with a report on the events, Magnus departed for Garrus-9 with Scorponok, [[Shockwave (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Shockwave]] and Grimlock, who had surrendered to Magnus in exchange for his rescinding the warrants on the other Dynobots. {{storylink|Maximum Dinobots issue 5|Maximum Dinobots #5}}

===Taking charge===
[[File:LastStandoftheWreckers1-trysomethinghilarious.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.66|Ultra Magnus uses sarcasm quotes to remind you he doesn't find ''anything'' hilarious.]]
Magnus was soon to discover that he had picked up a stowaway when he left Earth: human runaway [[Verity Carlo]]. Surprisingly, Magnus warmed to Verity in his own way and allowed her to stay with him; she, in return, affectionately dubbed him "Uncle Magnus". After about four years of adventuring together, Magnus and Verity were called upon by Prowl to transport the Autobot commando squad known as the [[Wrecker]]s to Garrus-9, which had been overrun by Decepticons during a [[Surge (G1)|galaxy-wide uprising]] a few years before. En route, the group picked up former Wreckers leader and Garrus-9 escapee [[Impactor (G1)|Impactor]], {{Storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 1|Last Stand of the Wreckers #1}} who Magnus encouraged the recalcitrant [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] to take on the mission with them. Magnus proceeded to brief the Wreckers and sent them on their way, but refrained from participating in the mission himself, both to turn a blind eye to the Wreckers' often-brutal methods, and because Prowl had requested his presence back on Earth to investigate the murder of Ironhide. {{Storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 2|Last Stand of the Wreckers #2}} The mission was a disaster at best, with many Wreckers dying at the hands of [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]]; Magnus would go on to carry great guilt over his non-participation. {{storylink|Under Cold Blue Stars}} Further, on the return trip, Magnus discovered that Verity had also left him, having stolen away with the Wreckers on their mission; {{storylink|In Word and Deed}} despite appearances, he would dearly miss her. {{storylink|Cybertronian Homesick Blues}}

[[File:SeasonsInFlight-RodimusMagnus.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.66]]
Arriving on Earth, {{storylink|Things Fall Apart, Part 1: "New Arrivals, Old Encounters"|New Arrivals, Old Encounters}} Magnus discovered the Autobots in disarray, Ironhide's death having caused Optimus Prime to surrender to human agency [[Skywatch]], leaving Bumblebee in charge. Magnus called for the Autobots' full cooperation, but after performing an autopsy of Ironhide's body and learning that the 'bot who had led the mission on which he died, Hot Rod, had broken away from Bumblebee's group, he elected to search Hot Rod out for questioning. {{storylink|Things Fall Apart, Part 2: "A Rude Awakening"|A Rude Awakening}} Discovering that Hot Rod—now calling himself "Rodimus Prime"—had begun to construct a rocket to leave Earth, and had allied himself with Decepticons in order to do so, including Magnus's old stoolie Swindle, Magnus attempted to arrest Rodimus under charges of treason. Prowl stood up for Rodimus, and, unable to arrest ''everyone'', the furious Magnus returned to Bumblebee's cave. {{storylink|Things Fall Apart, Part 3: "Seasons in Flight"|Seasons in Flight}} In short order, he forcibly recruited a team of Autobots to arrest Rodimus and his followers, but when they returned to Rodimus's launch site, they were confronted by Swindle's secret weapon: the [[Stunticon (G1)|Stunticon]] [[combiner]] [[Menasor (G1)|Menasor]], who was ordered to kill Magnus first. {{storylink|Things Fall Apart, Part 4: "Enemies of the System"|Enemies of the System}} Magnus fared poorly in the battle, but was saved from death at Menasor's hands by Optimus Prime, who had brokered an alliance with Skywatch. Repaired after the battle, Magnus was furious to find Swindle had slipped through his fingers again, and took out his frustrations on Rodimus. When Bumblebee tried to defuse the situation, Magnus attempted to cite his greater authority of his legal jurisdiction, but was put in his place when the younger Autobot pointed out that on Earth, ''he'' was in charge. However, as this was going on, Rodimus took off in Ultra Magnus' shuttle, leaving him stuck on Earth with the other Autobots. {{storylink|Things Fall Apart, Part 5: "Earthworks"|Earthworks}}

Temporarily provided with a ship by Skywatch, {{storylink|International Incident Part 1: "The Land Ironclads"|The Land Ironclads}} Magnus recovered the surviving Wreckers from Garrus-9, and delivered the fruit of their mission to Prowl: a [[data slug]] containing complete records of Autobot war crimes from the [[Aequitas]] computer. Knowing that it would be disastrous if the data got out, Magnus maintained his plausible deniability and left it in Prowl's hands. {{Storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}}

[[File:IDW16 magnus under fire.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.95|Eastbound and Down.]]
Some time later, when Bumblebee was the victim of an attempted assassination, Magnus lost patience with [[Brawn (G1)|Brawn]]'s raging and threatened to have him restrained. He was interrupted by the news that the plane carrying Optimus Prime's team back from [[North Korea]] had been blown out of the sky, but before he and [[Kyle Pennington|Pennington]] could get any real information about the attack, the Decepticons launched an attack on the base. Ultra Magnus was incapacitated by [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]]'s sonic powers, allowing the Decepticons to free their captive comrades and escape. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 1: The Demolished Man|The Demolished Man}} In the aftermath of the attack, Magnus took command and relocated everyone to [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]]'s location, but not before leaving Brawn with a mission to find and recruit the aid of the disenfranchised Decepticon [[Thundercracker (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Thundercracker]]. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} On the way to Omega, the Autobots were attacked by humans who didn't want them on their planet, and Pennington had to talk Ultra Magnus out of retaliating. Unfortunately, things got worse when Megatron himself showed up and easily dispatched Ultra Magnus and his troops. Assuming that he was out to destroy the Autobots as usual, Magnus tried to distract Megatron from killing the Skywatch soldiers, but the Decepticon made it clear that the humans were just as important targets for his revenge. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 3: Woken Furies|Woken Furies}} The injured Magnus was held hostage by Megatron and [[Soundwave (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Soundwave]] and used as leverage to get Optimus Prime to meet with them. This meeting ended with Megatron retreating with a [[stasis lock]]ed Soundwave, and Ultra Magnus was brought to safety. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome|Burning Chrome}} As he awaited repairs, Magnus told Prime that he had managed to place a tracking chip on Soundwave, allowing the Autobots to find Megatron's hideout. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine|Enemy Mine}}

Six weeks later, Ultra Magnus watched as Rodimus returned to Earth with the [[Matrix of Leadership]] and several lost Autobots in tow. He brought news that Galvatron had built an army and taken control of Cybertron, prompting Optimus Prime to lead his Autobots back to their home planet. On Bumblebee's orders, Ultra Magnus remained on Earth with him, Prowl and a few others to investigate charges brought against [[Spike Witwicky (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Spike Witwicky]] for the supposed murder of [[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]]. {{storylink|Space Opera—Final Tableaux: Orphans of the Helix|Orphans of the Helix}} He still participated in talks of what would be done with Megatron, who had surrendered himself and been taken into space with Prime's Autobots. When [[Xaaron]] explained that they needed a neutral third party to judge the Decepticon leader for his crimes, Magnus suggested [[Solomus|Chief Justice Tyrest]], and opined that they should aim for a death sentence. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1|Chaos Theory #1}}

[[File:IDW29 magnus arrests swindle.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.95|"Don't worry, Swindle. I kept your room the way you left it."]]
Magnus chewed out Prowl and [[Streetwise (G1)|Streetwise]] after the latter had broken protocol and transformed into [[robot mode]] during a mission to spy on Witwicky. Prowl brought up his suspicions of anti-Transformer pundit [[Ben Simpson]] and of a deeper Decepticon conspiracy, but Magnus ordered him to stick to the case at hand. {{storylink|Police Action: Part 1|Police Action #1}} The Autobots then brought in [[Sandra (G1)|Sandra]], a former Skywatch agent who abandoned Spike's unit once it started breaking too many rules. Ultra Magnus commended her for sticking to military protocol before questioning her on Spike's past. {{storylink|Police Action Part 2: Only Forward|Only Forward}} Around this time, Ultra Magnus was on hand to witness Bumblebee bring all five Stunticons into custody to everyone's surprise. {{storylink|The Question}} Then, after learning the whereabouts of Ben Simpson from Sandra, Bumblebee and Magnus agreed to circumvent the slow human legal system and rolled out with Skywatch to confront Simpson, discovering him to be a [[facsimile construct]] controlled by none other than Swindle. The Decepticon tried to escape again, but Ultra Magnus dismembered him and dragged him back to base, where he admitted under interrogation that he had been supplying Spike Witwicky and Skywatch with Cybertronian technology from the start. This revelation caused the Autobots to sever their ties with Skywatch. {{storylink|Police Action Part 3: A Second Chance at Eden|A Second Chance at Eden}}
{{--}}

===The problem with peace===
[[File:LiarsAtoD1-MagnusVision.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Risk of criminal activity: None. Practically perfect in every way.]]
The Autobots on Earth returned to Cybertron once Optimus Prime's team had defeated Galvatron, the [[D-Void]], and the Decepticons. Feeling that the Autobots were no longer wanted on post-war Cybertron, Ultra Magnus decided to accompany Rodimus and [[Drift (G1)|Drift]] on their quest to find the [[Knights of Cybertron]]. {{storylink|Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}} He joined the crew of the ''[[Lost Light]]'' as Rodimus's second-in-command, but soon started to become increasingly petty about minor infractions and had many, ''many'' reservations about those who had signed up for the quest. Magnus's troubles on the ''Lost Light'' started when an accident at launch caused the ship to [[Quantum generator|quantum jump]] to a random point in space. {{Storylink|Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|How to Say Goodbye and Mean It}} A ruptured hull led to a portion of the crew being sucked out into space, so Rodimus and Ultra Magnus set the ''Lost Light'' down on a nearby planet and went out searching for them. {{Storylink|Liars, A to D Part 2: Hangers On|Hangers On}} The ship was soon repaired and took off again, only for a [[Sparkeater (creature)|Sparkeater]] to be discovered on board, reminding Ultra Magnus of Blip. Magnus heavily disapproved of Rodimus using [[Rung (G1)|Rung]] as bait to lure the creature in to be killed, and told Rodimus that he had to call him out on that because nobody else would, but Rodimus brushed off the lecture, stating that ''he'' was in charge now. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}}

As time went on, Magnus became increasingly anal about ''everything'', especially minor, pointless things like dirt {{storylink|How Ratchet Got His Hands Back}}, Autobrands at angles, lighting problems, and so on—an inability to cope with peacetime had led to a full-blown nervous breakdown for Magnus that saw him try to append as much weight to the everyday rules of life as he had to the rules of war. {{storylink|Parasites}} {{storylink|Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|The Divided Self}} He made life hell for just about everyone of the ship with his obsessive-compulsive tendencies and relentless attempts to enforce petty, pointless standards of conduct that the entire crew did their best to defy, Rodimus most of all, who simply started ignoring his many, many memos. He started to question why he'd joined the quest and tried to leave several times, but Rodimus would keep talking him into staying. {{storylink|Cybertronian Homesick Blues}}

[[File:IDW MtMtE5 MagnusTailgateAttentionDirt.jpg|Cleanitallitmustbecleaned...|thumb|right|upright=1.4]]
Discovering that the naive [[Tailgate (G1)|Tailgate]], who had been offline for the duration of the war, wanted to be a Decepticon Magnus reported him to Rodimus. A history lesson courtesy of Rewind quickly disabused Tailgate of this notion, and he decided to be an Autobot instead {{storylink|Life After the Big Bang}} so Magnus began educating him in the [[Autobot Code]]—a long tortuous process that saw Magnus pore over the unabridged version and go over it in [[Semicolon|excruciating detail]]. {{storylink|How Ratchet Got His Hands Back}}

After attending a ceremony honoring [[Highbrow (G1)|Highbrow]], [[Chromedome (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Chromedome]] and [[Brainstorm (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Brainstorm]], Ultra Magnus was among the crew members temporarily frozen in place by one of Brainstorm's backfiring weapons. {{storylink|The Reluctant Specialist}} Learning of the [[Swerve's|bar]] that [[Swerve (G1)|Swerve]] had set up, he promptly arrested the big-mouthed 'bot, and sent him to join Rewind replacing rivets on the ship's hull. When Fortress Maximus took Rung and [[Whirl (G1)|Whirl]] hostage, Magnus listened in on his threats. {{storylink|Interiors}}

[[File:MtMtEAnn2012-Magnus smile.jpg|If looks could kill.|thumb|left|upright=1.67]]
The infestation of Nanocons, long thought eradicated, became active within Ultra Magnus, so a team of hardy Autobots were miniaturized and implanted inside him to try to fight the creatures. The Nanocons eventually ended up at Magnus's mouth pistons, and he was forced to destroy them by smiling—not without great effort, as those mechanisms had become rusted with disuse. Though he was greatly embarrassed by it and the crew consequently mocked him for it, Rodimus assured him that it meant they were beginning to accept him. When the ''Lost Light'' encountered the [[Galactic Council]] ship ''[[The Benign Intervention]]'', Magnus was able to use his bureaucratic skills to talk [[K'gard|Captain K'gard]] into allowing a delegation of Autobots to visit Crystal City. He himself was beamed aboard the Council ship, where K'gard told him that he was trusted by the Council and tried unsuccessfully to talk him into joining them—he even smiled at the idea the other Autobots might influence him to be less strict in his outlook. When the Council ship came under apparent attack from the surface, Magnus was beamed back aboard the ''Lost Light'' before K'gard began the process of destroying the Autobot ship with an incineration shell. Fortunately the ship had a last-minute save, courtesy of a freed [[Titan (group)|Titan]]. {{storylink|Primus: You, Me, and Other Revelations|You, Me, and Other Revelations}}

[[File:MTMTE12 magnus in action.jpg|right|Okay, Rewind. Together, we're gonna punch these guys so hard, words describing the impact are gonna spontaneously materialize out of thin air.|thumb|upright=1.1]]
Following a reconnaissance mission to [[Temptoria]], {{storylink|Before & After}} Magnus returned to the ''Lost Light'' to find Cyclonus had been blamed for an attack on [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]], and was forced to restrain Cyclonus after Drift's attempted interrogation turned violent. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 2: Patternism|Patternism}} When it turned out Red Alert's decapitation was self-inflicted, Magnus suggested putting him into cold storage, something Rodimus reluctantly agreed with. {{storylink|Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|An Intimate Beheading}} This matter dealt with, the Autobots were able to follow up on Magnus's information from Temptoria, which pointed to the missing [[Circle of Light]] possibly being held there by Decepticons. Magnus joined a task force of Autobots in an attack on the Decepticon base on the planet, his prowess in the subsequent battle particularly impressing Tailgate. Though they liberated Temptoria's capital, they failed to find the Circle of Light. {{storylink|Before & After}}

[[File:MtMtE13-VerityMagnus.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.5|Fire exits. Important stuff.]]
Having been ordered by Rodimus to go on shore leave to Hedonia, Magnus joined Swerve's social group and debuted his holomatter avatar: a copy of Verity. Slipped a [[Nucleon (substance)|nucleon]] mickey by Whirl, Magnus fell unconscious, awakening just long enough to break down in front of Swerve, admitting that he hated the quest, was upset that nobody liked him, and believed everything had gone wrong when he'd accepted Tyrest's offer. Passing out once more, his unconscious body was hauled out into the street by Swerve and friends, where they jumped up and down on him until he reflexively transformed, allowing them to drive him back to the shuttle. {{storylink|Cybertronian Homesick Blues}} Afterwards, he tried to socialise with Rung and even tried jokes, to toe-curlingly embarrassing failure. Despite that, they got on quite well. {{storylink|Signal to Noise}}

[[File:LittleVictories MagnusThunderclashHug.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.5|]]
Magnus was among those interviewed for Rewind's documentary about life on the ship, "Little Victories". He used his authority to censor the parts that made him look silly. Magnus later joined Rodimus and Drift in welcoming [[Thunder Clash|Thunderclash]] to the ''Lost Light''. Rodimus tried to use Ultra Magnus to impress Thunderclash, pointing out how the Enforcer of the Tyrest Accord was his first officer. Thunderclash ignored Rodimus' petty oneupsmanship and instead complimented Ultra Magnus on an article he had written about millitary typography, eagerly wanting to discuss its finer points. Thunderclash quickly apologized for coming on too strong, but Magnus responded to the praise by giving Thunderclash a spontaneous hug. {{storylink|Little Victories}}

===Identity revealed===
[[File:MTMTE15 overlord stabs magnus.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|left]]
Unbeknownst to Magnus, the captive Overlord was being held in a secret cell on the ''Lost Light''. When he was accidentally allowed to escape, Magnus was the first one to charge against the loose Decepticon, still carrying the guilt after the Garrus-9 fiasco. He managed to briefly beat Overlord into submission until the Decepticon stabbed him through the spark with Drift's [[Great Sword]]. While the rest of the crew dealt with dispatching Overlord, [[First Aid (G1)|First Aid]] tended to Magnus's injuries, only to discover that he would be unable to prevent the collapse of his spark. {{storylink|Under Cold Blue Stars}} The comatose Magnus was given only ten days to live, but before his end could come, within the Magnus Armor, Ambus reflexively tripped the recall switch. Under its own power, the armor levitated from the med-slab, carrying Ambus within it, appropriating a shuttle that would take him to Tyrest, who currently dwelt on Cybertron's lost moon, [[Moonbase One|Luna 1]]. {{storylink|The Gloaming}} The switch normally functioned as a teleporter, but Ambus deliberately chose to activate the manual recall, which he knew would allow the ''Lost Light'' to follow him, in hopes that Tyrest would properly discipline Rodimus for the reckless leadership that Magnus had been unable to curb. {{storylink|Remain in Light 5 of 5: This Calamitous Life|This Calamitous Life}}

[[File:Ambus Unveiled.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|right|Do not remove from packaging!]]
Upon arrival, Magnus's body was recovered by Tyrest and taken to [[Pharma (G1)|Pharma]], who was able to use Tyrest's collection of bleeding-edge tech to save his life. While the doctor worked, however, Tyrest reviewed Magnus's journals, and was appalled to see how he had become reduced to an officious, bureaucratic ''joke''. He angrily deactivated the Magnus Armor, stripping Minimus Ambus of the role he had played for years and made his very life. {{storylink|Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|The Divided Self}} Presently, when Rodimus and a contingent of ''Lost Light''ers arrived on Luna 1 as Magnus had expected, they were promptly captured by Tyrest's forces. {{storylink|Remain in Light 1 of 5: The Fecund Moon|The Fecund Moon}} Learning from Tyrest that they were to be put to death for harboring a criminal—amnesiac crewmember [[Skids (G1)|Skids]]—Ambus requested that he be placed in a cell alongside them. {{storylink|Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|The Divided Self}} He pretended to be an energon trader in order to get them to tell him about their recent escapades, hoping to prove to Tyrest that they, like he, had no knowledge of Skids's criminal past. {{storylink|Remain in Light 2 of 5: House of Ambus|House of Ambus}} {{storylink|Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|The Divided Self}} That went wrong when Rung was able to recognize the personal tics of Magnus in Ambus, and he forced Ambus to come clean about his identity and explain his life story to Rodimus and the others. Rodimus's story also had its share of surprises for Ambus, as he learned that Tyrest was working with the Decepticon [[Titan Hunter]]s and had amassed a graveyard of [[Titan (group)|Titan]] remains. Determined to find out what was going on, and why the ''Lost Light''ers were being charged with "crimes against creation", he confronted Tyrest for answers. The revelations were shocking: Tyrest believed that all Transformers "constructed cold" were abominations and he intended to exterminate them all with a [[universal killswitch]]. Ambus refused to allow him to go through with his plans, so Tyrest initiated the newest amendment to his accord—pre-emptive execution—and had one of his [[Legislator]] robots crush Ambus's head. {{storylink|Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|The Divided Self}}

[[File:Minimus ambus rodimus this calamitous life.jpg|thumb|upright=1.75|left|You're nothing but a dirty carbuncle, festering in the corner!]]
Soon after, Rodimus and the others escaped their cell burst into Tyrest's control room. Tyrest warned them against interfering, gesturing at Ambus's fallen body as an example of what happened to those who opposed him. {{storylink|Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|Arm the Lonely}} Fortunately, the Magnus Armor was not the only load that Ambus was capable of carrying: the head that was crushed by the Legislator belonged to ''another'' layer of augmentation around his irreducible core. After Tyrest activated the killswitch, Minimus awoke and punched his way clear of his intermediate body's remains and, grabbing one of the Legislators' guns, shot Tyrest in the back. Along with [[Perceptor (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Perceptor]], he devised a way to use Rodimus's half of the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]] to reverse the effects of Tyrest's killswitch, though at great risk to Rodimus's own life. Before it was put into operation Rodimus and Ambus took the opportunity to clear the air between them, with Minimus revealing that he didn't consider Rodimus a fit captain and Rodimus revealing that he had done far worse, but promising to make amends. Though their plan was successful and Rodimus survived, they were quickly overrun with Legislators and Ambus had to take up his gun once again to fight them off before [[Tailgate (G1)|Tailgate]] managed to use everything Magnus had taught him about the Autobot Code to re-write Tyrest's laws and shut them all down. {{storylink|Remain in Light 5 of 5: This Calamitous Life|This Calamitous Life}}

In the aftermath of the battle, Ambus retrieved his outer shell and reintegrated with it. Later in the ''Lost Light''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s medbay, [[Ratchet (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Ratchet]] helped him put the Magnus Armor back on, revealing that he had known about it all along, right back to the original Ultra Magnus, but since he had known Minimus the longest he considered him to be the ''true'' Ultra Magnus. {{storylink|The Sound of Breaking Glass}} With his armor reattached, Magnus met with Rodimus to take stock of recent events, then, upon learning that Cyclonus and had saved Tailgate's life, formally welcomed the ancient Transformer on board. {{storylink|Remain in Light 5 of 5: This Calamitous Life|This Calamitous Life}}

===Seeing justice done===
[[File:RID23 captain magnus.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.85]]
After the ''Lost Light'' rescued Orion Pax from the destruction of the planet [[Gorlam Prime]], Magnus accompanied him and Rodimus on a tour of the ship, {{storylink|Dark Dawn: Dark Cybertron Chapter 1|Dark Dawn}} and later joined them for a drink in Swerve's to discuss the current state of affairs. Having learned that a portal to the Dead Universe had appeared on Cybertron, Rodimus and Pax ventured through the portal that had consumed Gorlam Prime to investigate the mystery from the other side, while Magnus was left in charge of the ''Lost Light'' and given orders to track down Jhiaxus, who Prime suspected was responsible. {{storylink|Black Metal: Dark Cybertron Chapter 2|Black Metal}} Before long, however, the ''Lost Light'' found itself pushed off-course by Metroplex's thumb, which they had previously recovered. After conferring with the crew, Magnus made the decision to follow the thumb's pull and go in search of Metroplex. {{storylink|Winners & Losers: Dark Cybertron Chapter 3|Winners & Losers}}

Locking on to the thumb's signal and quantum-jumping to the ocean world of [[Hydrophena]], the ship was attacked by [[Ammonite]]s. Magnus's group took to the sea in the [[Rodpod]] and soon found Metroplex, {{storylink|Into the Abyss: Dark Cybertron Chapter 4|Into the Abyss}} only to discover that the giant's brain module was missing. {{storylink|No Exit: Dark Cybertron Chapter 6|No Exit}} While searching Metroplex's interior, they learned that Shockwave was the architect of their recent misfortunes, and encountered the [[Caminus (planet)|Camiens]] [[Chromia (G1)|Chromia]] and [[Nautica (G1)|Nautica]]. {{storylink|The Dead Are Not Enough: Dark Cybertron Chapter 7|The Dead Are Not Enough}} Their companion [[Windblade (G1)|Windblade]] was able to fill the group in on Metroplex's status, and Magnus had the idea to jumpstart Metroplex with the ''Lost Light''<nowiki>'s</nowiki> quantum engines. This successfully allowed Metroplex to quantum jump back to Cybertron. {{storylink|Burning Bright: Dark Cybertron Chapter 8|Burning Bright}} From Metroplex, Ultra Magnus and the others had a front row seat as the giant defeated the [[Quintessa (IDW)|Necrotitan]] that had been battering [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]]. {{storylink|Finis Temporis: Dark Cybertron Chapter 9|Finis Temporis}}

[[File:MTMTE27 magnus vs prowl.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left]]
In the aftermath, Ultra Magnus tried to learn more from Metroplex about the Knights of Cybertron, but could glean nothing. Receiving word of a fight between Chromedome and Prowl, he left to break the scuffle up; Prowl took offense at his intrusion, prompting Magnus to offer some choice words for the police 'bot regarding his underhanded tactics and how they harmed people. A fight seemed like it might break out between the two, until the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]], who had become fond of Prowl, stepped in, and Magnus left Prowl with his new "friends". {{storylink|The Becoming: Dark Cybertron Chapter 10|The Becoming}} As an army of seventy billion Ammonites descended upon Cybertron, Magnus joined a team led by Bumblebee to confront Shockwave in his [[Crystal City]] headquarters, though Magnus became sidetracked fighting [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] with Skids and Brainstorm while the others went on. Bludgeon was about to stab him through the chest when Optimus Prime's team suddenly emerged through a wormhole inside Brainstorm and saved him. {{storylink|Black Planet: Dark Cybertron Chapter 11|Black Planet}} Prime, Magnus and Megatron confronted Shockwave, but Magnus was blasted by Shockwave and taken out of the fight early. He was fortunately intact enough to escape after Shockwave's time drive collapsed into a black hole. {{storylink|...And the Damage Done: Dark Cybertron Finale|...And the Damage Done}}

As a direct outcome of Shockwave's defeat, Megatron decided to lay down his arms and become an Autobot. When the public of Cybertron demanded that the ex-Decepticon be placed on trial, Optimus appointed Ultra Magnus as the defense, a position he accepted, albeit not without a brief hesitation. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 1: Towards Peace|Towards Peace}}

[[File:MTMTE30 magnus hammer.jpg|right|thumb|upright=2.1|[[Diedrich Bader|HAMMER OF JUSTICE!!!]]]]

Following testimony from Starscream—which Magnus had to interrupt to object to the former air commander's granstanding—Megatron asked Magnus to change his plea to not guilty. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 2: Words Hang in the Air|Words Hang in the Air}} After Magnus resignedly read Megatron's statement to the crowd, however, a group of Decepticons attacked the proceedings, and Magnus grabbed a giant hammer from one of the arena's statues to beat them back. Subsequently, during a recess, Megatron explained that this change of plea was a ploy to evoke an ancient legal loophole that permitted him to be tried not by his peers, but by the Knights of Cybertron. To that end, Optimus Prime assigned him co-captaincy of the ''Lost Light'' alongside Rodimus, and Ultra Magnus rejoined the ship's crew as it left Cybertron to resume its quest. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 3: Predestination: A Beginner's Guide|Predestination: A Beginner's Guide}}
{{--}}

===A change in perspective===
[[File:MTMTE29 magnus objects.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.5]]
Some time into the journey, the ''Lost Light'' encountered an object in space which turned out to be a coffin. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 1: Towards Peace|Towards Peace}} Magnus objected to Megatron's decision to bring it on board, but was relieved that he was at least willing to follow proper quarantine protocols. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 2: Words Hang in the Air|Words Hang in the Air}} Following the discovery that the coffin contained a dead second Rodimus and that the ''Lost Light'' was disappearing piece by piece, the crew were forced to abandon ship, with Magnus and Rodimus escaping in the ''[[Leading Light]]''. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 3: Predestination: A Beginner's Guide|Predestination: A Beginner's Guide}} As crew members began disappearing as well, Magnus used his holomatter avatar to communicate with Megatron on the Rodpod, only to disappear mid-conversation. {{storylink|Twenty Plus One}} The remaining crew discovered that these disappearances were the result of their coming into proximity with a quantum duplicate of the ''Lost Light'', created in the original quantum jump launch accident, which was "overwriting" theirs. Investigating the wreckage of the duplicate, the small group of survivors discovered that the entire duplicate crew, including Ultra Magnus, had been slaughtered by the [[Decepticon Justice Division]]. {{storylink|slaughterhouse}} Fortunately, they were soon able to shut down the duplicate ship's quantum engines, causing it to disappear and the other ship and crew to reappear. {{storylink|slaughterhouse Part 2: The Road Not Taken|The Road Not Taken}}

[[File:MTMTE35 disaggregator gun.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.8|[[Bob Budiansky#Budianskyisms|Have some armor removal, courtesy of my disaggregator gun!]]]]
As everyone gathered in Swerve's to celebrate their survival, Brainstorm—revealed to be an undercover Decepticon—made his move, triggering a poison he had laced the bar's drinks with that incapacitated the whole crew. Only Magnus, as a teetotaler, remained to confront him, but Brainstorm had prepared for that eventuality and blasted Magnus with a [[disaggregator gun]], which ripped the armor off Minimus. By the time he pulled himself together, Brainstorm had escaped via his [[Time case|time-machine briefcase]]; Megatron found the whole situation so ridiculous that he lost his temper, but Magnus reassured him that having a mental breakdown on the ''Lost Light'' was perfectly normal. {{storylink|The Custom-Made Now - An Elegant Chaos Prologue|The Custom-Made Now}} Believing that Brainstorm intended to alter history by killing Orion Pax, Rodimus took a team back in time after him; Magnus remained in the present, though he questioned Rodimus's wisdom in taking Whirl along on the mission. {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 1: All Our Parlous Yesterdays|All Our Parlous Yesterdays}} Things did not go well; when Megatron vanished from Magnus's internal database, they realized that they had made a mistake, and that it was the Decepticon leader himself, not Orion Pax, who was Brainstorm's target. {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 2: Stet|Stet}} Megatron took this as well as could be expected, forcing Magnus to physically restrain him as he tried to force Perceptor to send him back in time to save himself. After Megatron was calmed down, Magnus tried to lighten the mood by comparing [[Rodimus Star]]s; he won his for "Neatest Handwriting". Ultimately, the time-travellers were able to keep history from being altered, and when they returned to their present, Magnus joined the rest of the crew in Swerve's for celebrations. {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 3: Predestination: An Expert's Guide|Predestination: An Expert's Guide}}

[[File:MTMTE40 minimus and ten.jpg|thumb|upright=1.65|left]]
The [[Lost Light Internal Legal Affairs Committee]] was subsequently convened to decide upon Brainstorm's fate, overseen by Rodimus, Magnus, and [[Xaaron]], where it was decided that since Brainstorm was not actually a Decepticon, but had only been using them for their resources to accomplish what he thought would be to the betterment of history, he would not be kicked off the ship. Following the verdict, Magnus visited Megatron in his quarters, suspecting he had stolen a datapad that had vanished from Magnus's quarters, but found nothing. Called in to see Ratchet for a checkup, Magnus admitted to the medic that his irritation stemmed from the fact he was feeling "enfeebled"; now that everyone on the ship knew he was really Minimus Ambus, he believed they no longer respected him, and he had even found a little figurine of Minimus outside his door that he felt sure had been left there to mock him. Ratchet soon discovered, however, that it was just the opposite: the figurine had been sculpted by Swerve's bouncer [[Ten]], who thought Magnus was the bee's knees and had taken his missing datapad, leaving the figurine as a trade. Discovering the that datapad contained ''poetry'' that Magnus had been trying to write, Ratchet wrote a message for him on it advising him to be more open, and told Ten to deliver it. Encouraged by Ratchet's words, Magnus accepted Ten as a friend, and removed his armor to get a drink with him at Swerve's as Minimus Ambus. {{storylink|Our Steps Will Always Rhyme}}

When the ''Lost Light'' crew attended a pre-wake for Thunderclash, Minimus Ambus attended sans armor, and studied the supposed map to [[Cyberutopia]] that Thunderclash had carved into a wall. {{storylink|The Sensuous Frame}} Unfortunately, his lack of armor left him defenseless when the crew were attacked by the [[personality tick]]s that had brought Thunderclash to the brink of death, but the combined charisma of Rodimus and Megatron proved enough to "overdose" the psychic monsters. A little later, back in his armor on the ''Lost Light'', Magnus informed [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] that [[Skater]], [[Flex]], and [[Borer]] had solved the mystery of the ticks before him and were much more humble in doing it. {{storylink|The Frail Gaze}} Shortly thereafter, the ''Lost Light'' was contacted by Optimus Prime on Cybertron, inviting them to return to their homeworld in order to be present for the historic first contact with the colony world of [[Caminus (planet)|Caminus]]. Unwilling to pause their quest again, they agreed to send an ambassador on their behalf; Magnus tried to tell Prime about recent events, but Rodimus cut him off. {{storylink|First Contact (IDW)|First Contact}}

[[File:MTMTE44 a lot of banter.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.75]]
When Swerve's mind retreated to [[Swearth|holomatter duplicate of Earth]], Magnus (along with the rest of the crew) sent a holomatter avatar to help search for the minibot's mind, in the process recreating ''[[Community]]'' with Chromedome and Rewind. {{storylink|The One Where They Go to Earth}} Later, as Swerve was recuperating, Magnus, having had enough of Rodimus's dirty office, took it upon himself to clean it up, but in the process he discovered that the doodles Rodimus had carved into his desk were a map to Cyberutopia. Another revelation followed hot on the heels of this one; Swerve's condition had been caused by an infection resulting from a message bullet lodged in his shoulder by the Autobot spy [[Dominus Ambus|Agent 113]]. Magnus and Megatron examined the contents of the bullet together, which contained co-ordinate pointing the way to the home base of the supposedly-mythical "[[Mortilus|Necrobot]]". Magnus objected to exploring this tangent rather than following the Cyberutopia map, but was overruled by Megatron. Consequently, Magnus shed his armor and took Rewind aside; the little archivist was a former [[Conjunx Endura]] of his missing spark brother Dominus, and Minimus cautioned him against being too hopeful that they would find evidence that Dominus still lived. {{storylink|The Not Knowing}}

After an altercation involving Cyclonus and Tailgate, which ended with the latter hospitalized, Rodimus had Chromedome use his mnemosurgery abilities to discover just what had happened, revealing Getaway had been conspiring to get Megatron killed or arrested, at the cost of Tailgate's life. So Ultra Magnus went to arrest him, at which point Getaway's co-conspirator Atomizer took offense and tried attacking him, for all the good that did. Shortly thereafter, noted psychiatrist [[Froid]] arrived on board, in a ship containing the infamous murderer Sunder. For some reason this made Ultra Magnus incredibly unwelcoming toward Froid. {{storylink|Speak, Memory: Part 1}} And that was before Sunder got free and started make people tear themselves inside out, Rodimus included. Fortunately, everything turned out fine thanks to Tailgate. In the aftermath, Ultra Magnus helped Megatron make witty comments at his re-covered co-captain. {{storylink|Speak, Memory! (Part 2)}}

[[File:SilentLight MagnusArmorAlive.jpg|thumb|upright=1.8|left]]
Around late December of that year, Rodimus took off for three days to go surfing on comets, much to Minimus and Megatron's shared exasperation. By the time he returned, the ship had started moving close to Mauler territory, and in order to protect the crew they had to hide their spark energy signatures in Biometric Envelopment Devices, while Brainstorm's cloaking device hid the ship. Rodimus returned just in time to find Megatron helping Minimus put the last finishing touches on the device.

A short while later, as he crooned merrily to himself, Minimus found Swerve, Nautica and Whirl looking stiff and humorless outside his office, rather than in their B.E.Ds. Before he could finish lecturing them, he got a call from Rewind, who was finding the concept of "one bot to a B.E.D." difficult to grasp. Then, as he entered his office Minimus was set upon by his own armor, which had apparently come to life. Before he could react, Minimus was knocked unconscious by a stray wrench. {{storylink|Silent Light}} Of course, the armor had just been taken over by a swarm of scraplets, and in the aftermath Minimus spent several days fumigating it, just to be sure, distracting him from being concerned about Perceptor's experiments with space-time fissures in ''Swerve's'', though he did join the crew in a toast to surprises. {{storylink|No Guns, No Swords, No Briefcases}}

===Lost in time and space===
[[File:HowBrightTheirFrailDeeds-rollout.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.66]]
Some weeks after Sunder's rampage, Magnus was part of the Autobot force that heroically defended the people of [[Miliarium]], fighting alongside Thunderclash. Later, on board the Lost Light, Minimus was present for Megatron's lecture on the Knights of Cybertron, and what the crew had learnt about them. As Mimimus praised for the discipline and focus he was bringing, Megatron started having spasms. When Mimimus tried approaching him, Megatron lashed out. Later, Velocity noted that if Megatron hadn't been taking Fool's Energon, the blow would've likely killed Minimus.

That night, at thirty-one oh-seven hours, several members of the crew were subject to a psychological assault. Rodimus, ever the beacon of rationality, suggested tracking it to its source, distracting Magnus from his concerns with a grammatical slip. Magnus then joined the expedition, which wound up with the Rodpod inside a planet, which soon turned out to be the Necrobot's. Before the crew could dwell on that one, they were attacked. As they fled toward the Necrobot's compound, the Rodpod was shot down and destroyed, Magnus losing an arm in his effort to shield Swerve from the destruction.

Once inside, the bad news just kept on coming. It turned out the crew had been lured to the planet thanks to Getaway, and his fellow conspirators. As in, the rest of the crew, who had gotten fed up with Megatron being in charge, and Rodimus's leadership. So they arranged for them to be stranded there, with no means of getting off the planet and no means of contacting the Lost Light, their punishment for daring to side with the enemy. And just to round off the bad news, the D.J.D. were there too. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light: (1) How Bright Their Frail Deeds|How Bright Their Frail Deeds}} The Autobots were given until sundown before the enemy would storm them, in a bit of psychological warfare, but Magnus and the others learned that the Necrobot's teleportation chamber was still active and they could escape. Problem was, that would mean abandoning dozens of slumbering organics in stasis pods that the Necrobot had been keeping. Magnus, along with the others, decided to stay and ensure the organics wouldn't be murdered after Megatron gave a rousing speech. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 2: The Sun in Flight|The Sun in Flight}}

[[File:mtmte50 minimus funeral request.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|left]]
A surprise appearance by Ratchet and Drift, taking the DJD's [[turbofox]] "Pet" as a hostage, gave them a titchy edge, undone by Megatron being near-killed by [[Tarn (DJD)|Tarn]] when trying to negotiate. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 3: Your Fierce Tears|Your Fierce Tears}} The crew began to fortify the place while Magnus, in Ambus form, was measured for a new suit of armour by Brainstorm. The ''biggest possible'' suit Brainstorm could fit on his loadbearing self! MiniMagnus was clear they were all going to die and that was the be all end all (and he had a [http://www.greatwar.co.uk/poems/poets/mccraearticle.htm poem about poppies] to read out for it), and told Nightbeat that to get him to ''stop talking'' about this unimportant hollow bit of the Necroworld; just to keep him quiet, he told Nightbeat he could go investigate as long as it wasn't alone. Mid-measurement, Rewind arranged it so the crew could broadcast into space how they wanted their corpses to be disposed of.
{{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 4: At Close of Day|At Close of Day}} Minimus Ambus, blaming himself for having fun instead of stopping all of this, requested to be buried in his armour at the Luna-1 hot spot. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light: (1) How Bright Their Frail Deeds|How Bright Their Frail Deeds}}

[[File:AtCloseOfDay-MaximusAmbus.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.8|He's bigger, faster, and stronger too. He's the first member of the ''Lost Light'' crew.]]
While berating Rewind for searching the Necrobot's files, Minimus casually mentioned that his brother Dominus had also been a loadbearer, something Rewind hadn't known. This upset Rewind and he wanted to know what Dominus really looked like... and Minimus showed him Dominus' turbofox form, unaware that the "Pet" they'd captured was ''his brother, lobotimised and "domesticated"'', and left unaware when Rewind killed Dominus to prevent Chromedome's own death while fixing the man. He was still blissfully unaware when he arrived in his new '''MAXIMUS AMBUS''' armour, courtesy of Brainstorm; armour he remarked was "tasty". In the end, after Rodimus thanked everyone for travelling with him, Magnus and his friends charged the Decepticon guns, {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 4: At Close of Day|At Close of Day}} but not before everyone received a power boost from Skids. Ambus was one of the most ferocious opponents to face the Decepticons, knocking the daylights out of [[Helex (DJD)|Helex]] during the battle's opening stages. Soon, however, the power boost wore off and the Autobots were surrounded. Megatron joined the battle and covered the crew's retreat back into the fortress. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 5: Rage, Rage|Rage, Rage}} After Megatron emerged victorious and the DJD were defeated, Minimus was present with the old command trio of him, Rodimus, and Drift at the Momument to the [[Disappeared]], as Rewind explained how several missing 'bots were rescued by the Necrobot, and Rewind paid a last tribute to his deceased brother. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 6: Do Not Go Gentle|Do Not Go Gentle}}

The ''Lost Light'' crew were now joined by dozens of disoriented Cybertronians yanked from across time and space, and so Ultra Magnus took it upon himself to bring the new arrivals up to speed with the help of an extremely long slideshow. His audiovisual presentation did little to impress new arrival [[Anode]]. Minimus Ambus subsequently shed his outer armor to travel back to Cybertron with Rodimus and a small crew of other Autobots to pick up a new ship, using a jury-rigged [[Teleport chamber|teleporter]]. They discovered, however, that their entire world had been shunted into an [[Functionist Universe|alternate reality]] thanks to a rogue Galactic Council [[geobomb]]. {{storylink|Dissolution Part 1: Some Other Cybertron|Some Other Cybertron}}

[[File:Anomie-arrested.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.9]]
The entire group was arrested by [[Twelve-of-Twelve]], believing them to be rogue members of the [[Anti-Vocationist League]], and paraded through the streets in a public spectacle; when Rodimus looked to Minimus for consolation, the tiny Autobot only succeeded in making Rodimus feel worse about their predicament. That's when the real AVL showed up to free the captives, but their prowess left something to be desired and resulted in Megatron taking command of the battle. In the aftermath, [[Clicker]] offered to take the group back to [[Kalis|Adaptica]], their base of operations.{{storylink|Dissolution Part 2: Anomie|Anomie}} The group met up with rogue [[Functionist Council]] member [[Nine-of-Twelve]], from whom they learned more about the history of the Functionist Universe. Their history lesson was overshadowed when [[Six-of-Twelve]] announced "Revelation Day" and unveiled Rung's supposed alternate mode: a gigantic mining tank that left Minimus suspicious. Before the Autobots, could coordinate their next move, they were interrupted by the sudden return of [[Moonbase Two|Luna Two]], thought lost after a string of wars against the greater galaxy. {{storylink|Dissolution Part 3: A World Misplaced|A World Misplaced}}

The moon, as it turned out, had been weaponized into a gigantic [[harvester unit]] and began laying siege to the city, dragging buildings and their occupants into the air to be stripped down and processed. Having learned of a way to return to their own universe, Rodimus and Megatron butted heads as they argued about whether to save this Cybertron or flee back to their home reality, forcing Minimus to step in. Ultimately, Minimus stayed behind in Adaptica with Megatron while Rodimus's crew went off to rescue Rung, helping to coordinate the evacuation as Cybertronians fled the city. {{storylink|Dissolution Part 4: Bad Moon Rising|Bad Moon Rising}} {{storylink|Dissolution Part 5: Modes of Production|Modes of Production}}

With time running out, Minimus relayed an urgent communique from Brainstorm back on the dimensionally-displaced Necroworld, warning the Autobots that they had less than twenty minutes before it would be impossible for them to return home. With Rung laying down his life to fight the moon, the Autobots hatched a new plan where they would teleport the entire moon away from Cybertron, saving the planet and allowing them to return home. Clicker led the group to a [[matter transporter]], which turned out to be a dud, and then to a second device, which worked. Frustrated that Megatron and Terminus had yet to return, Minimus warned Rodimus that they couldn't let the ex-Decepticon "get away"... which provoked Rodimus into leaving the two behind. {{storylink|Dissolution Part 6: This Machine Kills Fascists|This Machine Kills Fascists}}

[[File:AfterMegatron MagnusBetrayed.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.9]]
In the wake of their adventure, Minimus donned his old, repaired Magnus Armor once again, only to discover that it wasn't working properly. Unbeknownst to the tiny Autobot, this hardware failure was a result of his internal cognitive dissonance after letting Megatron escape, unable to reconcile the murderous Decepticon with the odd friendship he had formed with the ex-Decepticon leader. Realizing that he was uncharacteristically late for an inspection, Minimus Ambus headed off to check up on [[Skip]]'s makeshift starship form. Once more ensconced in his malfunctioning armor, Ultra Magnus sadly mused on Rodimus's leadership versus Megatron's own stint as captain. Rodimus admitted that he had come to accept Megatron's change of heart... which prompted Ultra Magnus to snap at Rodimus, decrying his captain's judgement and denouncing Megatron as an abuser and manipulator. This tirade snapped Ultra Magnus's armor back to normal, and he promptly stomped off to conduct a proper inspection before takeoff. {{storylink|After Megatron (A Dissolution Epilogue)|After Megatron}}

Three weeks after the mutiny and the adventure in the Functionist Universe, the funerary broadcast reached Cybertron and Earth. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light: (1) How Bright Their Frail Deeds|How Bright Their Frail Deeds}}

At some unspecified point after this, a message reached Ultra Magnus and Whirl via the holographic [[Shimmer]]—Springer, sending out a message to those he trusted, asking them to destroy the legacy of the Wreckers and make a better future. {{storylink|Transformers: Requiem of the Wreckers|Requiem of the Wreckers}}

===Road's End===
[[File:Sardines TermsofPeace.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.7|]]
Aboard Skip's cramped alternate mode, Magnus attempted to continue his work on ''Terms of Peace'' only to be suddenly magnetized to Anode as part of an increasingly ridiculous prank war between her and Swerve. While [[Lug (IDW)|Lug]] managed to pull her conjunx off Magnus, this only led to all the tensions erupting, a situation made even worse by Ratchet succumbing to [[aggressive depigmentation]], despite being alive, and turning intangible, all while the mass-displacement began to wear off. {{storylink|Sardines}}

Salvation came at the hands of an unusually lucid [[Ten]] who told everyone that they needed to get to a [[Mederi]] facility via the [[Warren]]. Though the crew managed to access the cosmic structure, Skip's mass-displacement finally gave out and everyone was forced to "abandon Skip", their bodies being ravaged by the effects of super-compressed space. They'd managed to come within spitting distance of the original Mederi however, now in the year [[2018]], and fell into its gravity well. The moon's systems repaired them and, based off Cyclonus's powerful desire to reach the [[Transformer afterlife|Afterspark]] and reunite with Tailgate, presented itself as the [[Clavis Aurea]]n interpretation of the realm. {{storylink|The Everlasting Voices (1): Metastasis|Metastasis}} {{storylink|The Everlasting Voices (3): You Are Here|You Are Here}}

Magnus awoke on a mortuary slab to a deserted landscape being contacted by Rodimus who asked him to meet him under the giant [[Matrix of Leadership]] and name the planet. Unable to do the latter (given the sheer amount of planets in the galaxy), he met with the group under the artifact. When the more religious among them decided that they were in the next life, the [[ghost]]s of Trailcutter and Pipes arrived to confirm the belief. After Rodimus had a brief mental breakdown, he angrily demanded an audience with Primus before being blasted by divine lighting. {{storylink|The Everlasting Voices (1): Metastasis|Metastasis}}

[[File:TheGodWar MagnusQuestions.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|right]]
As Magnus examined the scorch mark where Rodimus had once stood, he was approached by [[Dominus Ambus]]'s spectre who declared his pride for his younger brother and apologized for the distance between them. Finally at peace, Magnus began to ascend into the full Afterspark... only to be snatched away by the Guiding Hand to serve as legal counsel in their plea for resurrection. While Magnus quickly established that the Hand ''could'' revive them, doing so would bare them from the second life when they inevitably perished again. Ultimately, it was [[Adaptus]] who decided that, since Rodimus' main objective was his crew's happiness, they had no need to be revived and sent them back limbo. Satisfied, Magnus drove off to speak with Dominus again. {{storylink|The Everlasting Voices (2): The God War|The God War}}

[[File:YouAreHere MagnusRodimusFastball.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|He's great at combo maneuvers...]]
Rightly suspecting that Rodimus wouldn't leave well enough alone, Magnus turned back and caught up with him as he, Drift, and Ratchet were fighting a group of [[Omega Guardian]]s, though a batch notably weaker than those on [[Ki-Aleta]]. After Magnus performed a [[Fastball Special]] with Rodimus, Ratchet turned his attention to the cylinder of "trapped light", the seeming power source of the afterlife, while Whirl called Magnus to relay his suspicions that everyone else was going to be murdered. Ratchet then shattered the cylinder causing the afterspark to fade away and revealing them Mederi to them. As Magnus told Whirl to inform the others, and to never call him "chunky" ever again, Rodimus deduced that Mederi was [[Cyberutopia]], the Knights having contracted [[atrophosia]] and come here for treatment. With the quest wrapped up, and joined by the Decepticon [[Scavenger (group)|Scavengers]], the group prepared to leave Mederi and head back to Cybertron before the crew of the ''Lost Light'' arrived, now mutated into [[Sparkeater (creature)|sparkeaters]]. {{storylink|The Everlasting Voices (3): You Are Here|You Are Here}}

[[File:ADanceBeforeDying CrankcaseUsedByMagnus.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|right|-even ''unwilling'' combo maneuvers.]]
After a failed attempt to reason with the infected, the group retreated before [[Wipe-Out's ship]] arrived, dropping Grimlock into battle, who began hacking apart the sparkeaters. Using [[Crankcase (G1)|Crankcase]] as a makeshift gun, Magnus reigned in Grimlock before [[First Aid (G1)|First Aid]] caught Rodimus up on [[Getaway]]'s depravity. When the ''Lost Light'' was sighted, Magnus boarded the Q-Ship, Magnus ordered Crankcase to dock in Shuttle Bay Four. No sooner had the ship landed did Getaway blow the ceiling above them, flooding the bay with the contents of the [[oil]] reservoir, including the [[Scraplet]]s. {{storylink|Crucible (Part 1): A Dance Before Dying|A Dance Before Dying}}

As Magnus lectured on the biology of the Scraplet [[combiner]], Grimlock cleaved it in twain only for it to quickly reform into a serpentine form before they lunged at Whirl. Rather than devour the Wrecker however, the predators gently brushed up against him. Recognizing that the Luna 1 Scraplets he'd domesticated on [[Christmas]] Eve were part of the swarm, Whirl broke them free of the flooded bay and set off to aid Rodimus. No sooner had the ship been retaken did a massive tear in the Warren open above the moon. {{storylink|Crucible (Part 2): Lūstrāre|Lūstrāre}} The ''Lost Light'' was quickly brought down to Mederi's surface, and the crew loaded aboard, but it was soon found that, despite Magnus' monstrously intimidating glare, that the gravity of the rift was too much for the ship's engines, dragging them to the [[Benzene Cluster]]. When they arrived, they were taken captive by the forces of the [[Adaptus|Grand Architect]]. When [[Froid]] and [[Sunder (G1)|Sunder]] reunited with the group, they informed them of what little they knew about the Architect and his plans for the [[God Gun]]. As the weapon began drilling into the void between universes, a war fleet emerged from the portal with [[Last Light (ship)|a duplicate]] ''Lost Light'' flying point. Its captain then called Magnus and Rodimus, revealing himself to be Megatron. {{storylink|Crucible (Part 3): Farsickness|Farsickness}}

[[File:TheReturnOfTheKing MagnusMegatronReunite.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.8|]]
Though the Autobot duo thought Megatron was invading the universe once more, that theory was soon disproven when the [[Functionist Universe]]'s Cybertron itself appeared, now cast in the likeness of Primus and controlled by the [[Functionist Council]]. After he'd shaken off the [[Functionary]] ships, Megatron flew to the [[Worldsweeper]] and caused a hull breach to free his friends. While the Architect managed to seal the hull breach, Magnus was brought aboard the ''Last Light'' where Megatron brought them up to speed on the Council's plans. When the [[Epistemus|Magnificence]] opined that they destroy "Primus", Megatron overruled it on the basis that "Primus" was inhabited. {{storylink|Crucible (Part 4): The Return of the King|The Return of the King}}

[[File:LL24 Magnus Explodes.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.5]]
Once Rodimus' group had freed themselves, and brought news that ''Rung'' was the ''real'' Primus, everyone met on the ''Lost Light'' to compare notes. It was decided that Rung would manufacture twelve duplicates of the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]] and their energy would be unleashed on every one of Functionist Cybertron's [[hot spot (phenomenon)|hot spots]] to overload [[Vector Sigma]]. At this, the Omega Guardians, speaking from the [[Higher Realms]] via the Magnificence, flew into an unholy rage and demanded that the false "Primus" be destroyed so that they could return. That problem was quickly handled however by [[Nickel]] crushing the Magnificence. {{storylink|Crucible (Part 5): The Unremembering|The Unremembering}} Magnus was given a Matrix and he and Whirl were sent to the hot spot at [[Mesmerica]], quickly being surrounded by Functionist soldiers. Magnus was unable to open the Matrix and distracted as he was, was hit by a Functionary's missile, knocking him out of both layers of his armor. With Minimus Ambus now unconscious, Whirl managed to open the Matrix and ultimately, the Functionists were defeated. {{storylink|Crucible (Part 6): A Spark Among Embers|A Spark Among Embers}}

[[File:LL25 MagnusToast.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|left|]]
As the crew took stock, [[Prowl (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Prowl]] arrived to inspect "New Cybertron" before declaring that, since the [[Knights of Cybertron]] didn't exist, Megatron would once again have to stand trial, this time with the [[Galactic Council]] presiding. Over Rodimus's protests, Megatron agreed to go quietly but was nonetheless allowed to join the ''Lost Light'' for one last "victory lap" cruise. As the crew prepared to quantum jump home, the science team proposed the risky gamble of recreating the malfunctioning launch, thereby quantum duplicating themselves before then shunting the duplicates into a parallel universe to ensure that the ''Lost Light''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s adventures would never truly end. When the time to jump came, the crew simply wound up back on Cybertron.

As they all settled into ''Swerve's'' for a last drink, Magnus recited his favorite poem, Afterlight, which Megatron revealed to have written under a pseudonym. Adding that it was Impactor's favorite too, Megatron lamented that he'd wasted his life. Not wanting to leave it at that, Magnus gave a toast to all the friendships and bonds they'd forged... before construction cranes killed the moment and began disassembling the ship.

[[File:LL25 MagnusMegatronFarewell.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|right|Now kiss.]]
When Megatron was tried again, Magnus again acted as his defense orator. As the jury debated between infinite imprisonment and outright execution, Magnus allowed Rodimus and Megatron had one last discussion, with Megatron revealing he'd always held onto his [[Rodimus Star]], before they were called back to the sentencing chamber. On their way, Magnus revealed he was going to follow Megatron's advice and destroy the [[Magnus Armor]].

Following through on his words, Minimus Ambus dedicated his life to helping bring the [[Lunarian]]s, the generation born on Luna 1's hot spot, to term, never quite getting around to finishing ''Terms of Peace''. Years later, when Ratchet had passed, Minimus had overseen the rearing of half the new generation.

And far away, in some distant corner of the multiverse, the duplicate ''Lost Light'' materialized, ready to set sail for an infinity of new adventures. {{storylink|How To Say Goodbye And Mean It: Part 2}}

[[File:Theadventureisforever.jpg|thumb|upright=1.7|center|''[[Buzz Lightyear|"To infinity... and beyond."]]'']]
{{--}}

==Prevenge==
{{voiceactor|[[Jack Angel]] (English)}}
Ultra Magnus was lecturing Tailgate on the Autobot Code when he was suddenly transported away from the Lost Light through a trans-dimensional portal. He found himself in a metal corridor, accompanied by a reverse-polarity [[Ravage (SG)|Ravage]]. The recordicon's speech mannerisms soon began to annoy Ultra Magnus, but "thankfully," auto-cannons popped out from the corridor, giving Ultra Magnus something to blast. The two of them made their way through the labyrinth they found themselves in, eventually meeting with six other abductees from different universes: [[Blades (RB)|Blades]], [[Sonar (BW)|Sonar]], [[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]], [[Ironhide (RID)|Ironhide]], [[Arcee (Animated)|Arcee]], and [[Sureshock (Armada)|Sureshock]]. Despite Sureshock's protests, Ultra Magnus established himself as being in charge, stating that it was his business to be the ranking officer in any given situation.

A menacing voice then made itself heard, saying that it was responsible for bringing everyone together inside its death trap. After rather embarrassingly unleashing a sick and rusted [[Sharkticon (species)|Sharkticon]] against the group, the voice commanded the lot to fight one another to the death. The group (for the most part) refused, and forced the [[Skuxxoid]] to reveal himself as the architect behind the whole plot. The villain was disposed of in short order, leaving the abductees to devise a way to get themselves back home. Sonar suggested that since the place they were in was governed inherently ridiculous laws, an equally ridiculous solution was called for. Ultra Magnus went along with the idea, despite it going against everything he held dear in life. The group settled on all laughing together, as characters in a cheesy cartoon are prone to do when an episode comes to an end. Surprisingly enough, this worked, and Ultra Magnus found himself on the Lost Light once more. Shaken by his adventure, he made Tailgate promise to never speak of what had just happened, and dismissed him from his lessons for the day. {{storylink|Prevenge}}

==Notes==
*Magnus here is very different to the previous G1 takes. [[Simon Furman]] stated this was out of his 2005-2006 desire to be different and not repeat things; rather than be uncertain of his role as he was in [[Marvel Comics]], this character would be utterly certain and unwavering.<ref>[http://insidepulse.com/2006/08/04/50140/ Comics Nexus: "Caught in the Nexus: Simon Furman"]</ref>
*Furman spent some time teasing an Ultra Magnus/[[Galvatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Galvatron]] fight in homage to the [[Marvel Comics|Marvel UK]] [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|''Transformers'' comic]], but had abandoned it by the time he wrote ''Revelation''.<ref>[http://simonfurman.wordpress.com/2008/12/06/its-qa-time-again/ IT’S Q&A TIME AGAIN! | simon furman] ''
''20. You previously mentioned that we’d see Ultra Magnus vs Galvatron. Is this still going to happen?
SF) This was where my plans for Revelation/Expansion really did change, and not just because of the shift in format. Originally, I really wanted to have an Ultra Magnus/Galvatron smackdown in the tradition of the one from Target: 2006, but once I'd arranged all the players in Revelation I realised it just wasn’t going to work.</ref>
*Ultra Magnus was one of the characters whom both [[James Roberts]] and [[John Barber]] wanted for their respective books.<ref>[http://forum.idwpublishing.com/viewtopic.php?p=309188#309188 James Roberts:] As for the divvying up, we both started off with two or three characters that had been dictated – actually, that’s the wrong word – by IDW editorial, then came up with a core cast wish list. There were only a few clashes. I would have liked Prowl and Wheeljack and I think John would have liked Magnus and Ratchet. We compromised.</ref>
*Optimus Prime's unnamed Senator friend wandered around the "[[Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Shadowplay]]" 3-parter in not only a Magnus-style design, but in Ultra Magnus' colours. This was deliberate, making us believe that this was going to be the origin of Ultra Magnus rather than the origin of [[Shockwave (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Shockwave]].<ref>[http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transformers-comics-discussion/716601-transformers-more-than-meets-eye-11-discussion-spoilers-29.html#post8649838 Forum post by Alex Milne]</ref>
[[File:Ultra Magnus alt-Alex Milne-MtMtE.jpeg|thumb|upright=1.4]]
*James Roberts had carefully seeded some clues of Ultra Magnus's true identities in issues of ''More Than Meets The Eye'':
**In "[[Interiors]]", Skids mentions that Magnus used to do wisecracks.
**In the [[Primus: You, Me, and Other Revelations|2012 annual]], he prescriptively describes himself using the third person. Twice.
**Magnus refers to Tyrest giving him everything he wanted in "[[Cybertronian Homesick Blues]]".
**The fatal damage done to Magnus in "[[Under Cold Blue Stars]]", the damage First Aid says can't be fixed? It's exactly the same type of damage First Aid says Magnus survived once before in "[[Before & After]]".
**Flashbacks in "[[The Gloaming]]" showed Ultra Magnus dirty, with a crooked badge, and wise-cracking, all things his present self could never do, and each flashback ended with damage that Magnus would be really lucky to survive.
*Tragically, Ultra Magnus is the best hugger on the ''Lost Light''.<ref>[https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/799406382181220353 James Roberts during a whiskey-induced Q&A on Twitter]</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:IDW (2005) Autobots]]
[[Category:Law enforcement]]
[[Category:Lost Light crew]]
[[Category:Point One Percenters]]

Transmutate (BW)

2021-04-17T12:25:44Z

OrderlySummit: /* Notes */

{{faction|maximal}}
{{disambig2|the character|the namesake cartoon episode|Transmutate (episode)}}
:''Transmutate is a [[Maximal]] from the [[Beast Wars: Transformers (franchise)|Beast Wars]] portion of the [[Generation 1 continuity family|Generation 1]] [[continuity family]].''

[[File:Transmutate.jpg|250px|thumb|MU-tilate. MU-tant. Hm. I wonder. Oh well.]]

Confused, vulnerable, and staggeringly powerful, '''Transmutate''' (also '''Trans-Mutate''') is often perceived as a threat, especially by those who don't want such a wildly unpredictable individual disrupting their social order or behind-the-scenes plotting. Incomplete by Transformer standards, and with an innocent and trusting nature that is both boon and handicap, Transmutate is at great risk from those who have exploitation on their minds—but if provoked is able to unleash a nearly unwithstandable sonic scream as a defense mechanism.

{{note|Transmutate's origin, personality, gender, and degree of disability varied significantly depending on storylines—see below for specific details}}

{{quote|Man, I am tellin' ya, the things coming out of these pods is just getting weirder and weirder.|[[Rattrap (BW)|Rattrap]]|"[[Transmutate (episode)|Transmutate]]"}}

==Fiction==
===''Beast Wars'' cartoon===
{{voiceactor|[[Susan Blu]] (English), [[Haruna Ikezawa]] (Japanese)|[[Xu Lin]] (Chinese), [[Luca Bottale]] (Italian)}}
[[File:Transmutate Rampage.jpg|thumb|left|230px]]
Transmutate's [[stasis pod]] was one of many aboard the ''[[Axalon (BW)|Axalon]]'' and at some point crashed from [[Earth]] orbit in seismically-unstable [[Grid Deltron]]. The heavily-damaged pod later became uncovered by the region's earthquakes and Transmutate explosively freed itself, revealing a warped and asymmetrical form that quickly provoked strong emotional reactions from those nearby: fascination from [[Rampage (BW)|Rampage]], disdain from [[Rattrap]], compassion from [[Silverbolt (BW)|Silverbolt]], and greed from [[Inferno (BW)|Inferno]]. Presented with the choice of [[Maximal]] or [[Predacon (BW)|Predacon]], it hesitated and when Inferno accidentally shot it, it unleashed its sonic scream. With the Maximals out of commission as a result and feeling he'd found a kindred spirit, Rampage lost no time in befriending Transmutate. Though [[Megatron (BW)|Megatron]] failed to see the value in the mutant, deriding it as ugly and unable to transform and ordering it be destroyed, Rampage intended to prove the strange newcomer a worthy ally. He and Inferno persuaded it to act as bait for a trap for Silverbolt. When Transmutate was reluctant to finish off the Maximal, Inferno pushed the creature aside and was promptly blasted into the distance for his troubles.

[[Optimus Primal (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|Optimus Primal]] arrived and, defeating Rampage, persuaded Transmutate to return with him to the ''[[Axalon (BW)|Axalon]]'' for a scan. The results were discouraging—Optimus felt that Transmutate was a danger to itself and everyone around it, and [[Rhinox (BW)|Rhinox]] suggested immediately putting it into [[stasis lock]]. Silverbolt was the only one to speak up angrily on its behalf. Walking through the base alone, Transmutate heard Rampage calling out to it, and opted to leave the ''Axalon'' to join him.

Silverbolt quickly found the pair and immediately came to blows with Rampage. Transmutate tried to get the two to stop, landing between them right as they each fired missiles. Transmutate blazed with power, trying to halt the missiles, but was shattered in the resulting explosion. Though Transmutate lingered conscious for long enough to bid goodbye to its friends, its spark extinguished and it died, leaving both Silverbolt and Rampage devastated. {{storylink|Transmutate (episode)|Transmutate}}
{{-}}

===''Beast Wars: Uprising''===
[[File:Timelines Trans-MutateCardArt.jpg|thumb|upright=1.0|left|Every time I pin down what I think I want, it slips away.]]

In [[Primax 209.0 Gamma|a parallel reality]] where the Maximals and Predacons were created by the Autobots and Decepticons to serve as proxy armies to continue fighting in their stead, the 'bot who would become known as "Trans-Mutate" was a fully-formed Maximal. Cheerful and curious about everything around her, she suffered from a disconnect in her processors that prevented her from properly interpreting emotions and social cues, which only made her all the more fascinated in her fellow Maximals and the way they interacted with the world, and with her. For this condition, the cruel had given her the mocking nickname of "Trans-Mutate", but would likely have thought twice about doing so if they had realized that she was a [[Point One Percenter]], possessing a terrifyingly powerful [[spark]] that gave her a strength she herself feared and tried to forget about.

[[File:AloneTogetherPerception Trans-Mutate.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|right]]
Observing multiple instances of incompatible, contradictory information in the official history logs of Cybertron and concluding that it had been perpetrated deliberately, the innocent-minded Trans-Mutate brought her concerns to the authorities, who reacted not with a desire to see it corrected, as she had expected, but with an anger she could not understand—they, of course, were the ones ''responsible'' for adjusting the history logs for their own purposes. Trans-Mutate ended up allying with the [[Minion of Unicron (BWU)|mobster]] [[Cryotek (Universe)|Cryotek]], though she did not comprehend that he was a criminal: she sided with him because ''his'' account of history matched the facts she had gathered. When her usefulness to Cryotek ended, he discarded her, but she was rescued from the authorities by [[Botanica (BM)|Botanica]] and fell in with [[Rattrap (BW)|Rattrap]]'s freedom fighters, struggling to overthrow the masters who forced them to fight a continuous war. Though she understood that she had been wrong in trusting Cryotek, she could not understand ''why''. {{storylink|Perception}} {{storylink|Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club issue 55|Transmutate's profile in Club magazine #55}}

[[File:AloneTogetherPerception Trans-Mutate vehicle mode.jpg|thumb|upright=1.0|left]]
During the group's raid on the [[Ferromax Detention Center]] to free [[Dinobot (BW)|Dynobot]], Trans-Mutate found herself distracted by a voice emanating from a cell on the maximum security level: [[Rampage (BW)|Rampage]], a fellow Point One Percenter who sensed a kindred spirit in her, and who told her that he could feel the pain in her [[spark]]. The Maximals freed Dynobot, and before they left, Rampage promised Trans-Mutate that they would meet again. {{storylink|Alone Together: Prologue|Prologue}} Unfortunately, Trans-Mutate was captured during the escape, tried, and sentenced to incarceration on [[Garrus-16]]. En route, however, the prison ship ''[[Claustrum]]'' suffered a hull breach, jettisoning her stasis pod, which crashed on dwarf planet [[Metascan Omega|LGC-8803]]. Taking the [[navicomp]] from the pod to supply advice, she explored and discovered a huge structure. A short time later, she was found by Rampage, who had also been imprisoned aboard the ''Claustrum''. {{storylink|Perception}} When he turned out to be so low on energy he could barely stand, she connected him to the navicomp to give him power, and he filled her in on the concept of Point One Percenters. The pair soon realized that they were not alone, and came under attack from [[Bruton]] and [[Medusa]]. Despite putting up a fair battle, they were rendered unconscious and presented to [[Lord Imperious Delirious]]. {{storylink|Kindred}}

[[File:AloneTogetherClarity RampageTransMutateDelirious.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.45]]
The [[Destructon]] leader provided the pair with [[energon]] and revealed that he had shot the ''Claustrum'' down in order to liberate them. Explaining the origins of himself and his friends, who were all "second-born intellects"—being created by other beings—that had rebelled against their creators, Delirious invited Trans-Mutate and Rampage to join their ranks. Trans-Mutate, however, spotted the inconsistencies in Lord Imperious Delirious's story and, having uncomfortable memories of Cryotek, insisted that she and Rampage would be leaving. When pressed, she pointed out that Delirious had to be lying, because there was no way he could have known about them being on board the ship; the Destructon leader confirmed her suspicions, explaining he had shot the ship down purely to salvage its tech, but insisted that "broken" 'bots like them belonged in his care. Rampage wavered, but Trans-Mutate firmly refuted the notion that she was "broken"—and Lord Imperious Delirious responded with his hallucinogenic Delirious Fire. {{storylink|Delirious}} Trans-Mutate found herself floating in a fragmented space, unable to string together a thought, until Rampage was able to mentally contact her and persuade her to use her power to break them both free. They were immediately attacked by the Destructons, and Trans-Mutate sliced Medusa in two. The Destructons opted to leave Rampage and Trans-Mutate to be picked up by whomever answered the distress call Delirious had sent to Cybertron. {{storylink|Clarity}}

{{charstubfiction|{{storylink|Intersectionality}} {{storylink|The Inexorable March}}}}

===''Legends'' comic===
[[File:Legends Rampage and Transmutate.jpg|thumb|right|100px]]
Perched on [[Rampage (BW)|Rampage]], Transmutate watched as [[T-AI|Ai]] attempted to arrest [[Tarantulas (BW)|Tarantulas]] in [[Tera-Kura Co.]] {{Storylink|Transformers Legends Final Chapter "Epiloge"|Epiloge}}
{{--}}

==Games==
===''Transformers: Battle Tactics''===
[[File:Battle-Tactics-Transmutate.jpg|thumb|400px]]
Transmutate participated in battles against a variety of opponents, both Autobots and Decepticons. Sometimes there were many of her! She was an Epic character who was available in the December Daily Campaign and could be recruited by collecting 20 Alpha cores, 20 Beta cores, 20 Omega cores, and 10 cores of this character. {{storylink|Transformers: Battle Tactics}}
{{--}}

==Toys==
===''Beast Wars 10th Anniversary''===
[[File:BW10 Transmutate.jpg|thumb|150px|''Nobody wants me.''—eBay buyers would disagree!]]
*'''[[Cheetor (BW)/toys#Beast Wars 10th Anniversary|Cheetor]]''' ([[2006]])
*'''[[Rhinox (BW)/toys#Beast Wars 10th Anniversary|Rhinox]]''' (2006)
*'''[[Waspinator (BW)/toys#Beast Wars 10th Anniversary|Waspinator]]''' (2006)
*'''[[Dinobot (BW)/toys#Beast Wars 10th Anniversary|Dinobot]]''' (2006)
*'''[[Rattrap (BW)/toys#Beast Wars 10th Anniversary|Rattrap]]''' (2006)
*'''[[Tarantulas (BW)/toys#Beast Wars 10th Anniversary|Predacon Tarantulus]]''' {{sic}} (2006)

:Eight years after the character's fictional debut, Trans-Mutate was given a toy release as part of the ''[[Transformers: Beast Wars 10th Anniversary|Beast Wars 10th Anniversary]]'' toyline, split into components included with the first six figures in the line as the ''Transformers'' franchise's first "build-a-figure". (And ''only'' "build-a-figure", until the release of ''[[Transformers: Cyberverse (toyline)|Cyberverse]]'' [[Maccadam#Toys|Maccadam]] in [[2020]].) Trans-Mutate's head came with Waspinator, the torso with Cheetor, the waist and right leg with Rhinox, the left leg with "Tarantulus", the right arm with Rattrap, and the left arm with Dinobot.

:All six parts combine into a non-converting figure that stands about a head taller than the ''Beast Wars'' Deluxe Class molds with which its components were included. They have no action features and only limited articulation... but the simple fact that such a deliberately non-toyetic character featured in only one episode even ''got'' a toy is itself an extraordinary occurrence.

:According to [[Ben Yee]] on [[Madman Entertainment]]'s ''Beast Wars'' Season 2 DVD commentaries, Hasbro attempted to replicate Trans-Mutate's sonic scream attacks, first as a spring-loaded projectile, then as a static decoration, before finally abandoning the idea.

:The plastic in Trans-Mutate's legs is very rubbery and prone to warping, leaving the toy unable to stand unsupported after a few years.

::*''[http://www.tfu.info/2006/Maximal/Trans-Mutate/trans-mutate.htm More information on Trans-Mutate at TFU.info]''
{{--}}

===''Timelines''===
[[File:Timelinestoy-Transmutate.jpg|thumb|300px|"Abed, she’s a program."<br />"People have said similar things about me."]]
*'''Trans-Mutate''' (Deluxe Class, [[2014]])
**''Accessories:'' Two arm blades/motorcycle panels
:''[[Transformers Timelines (toyline)|Timelines]]'' Trans-Mutate is a [[redeco]] of ''[[Transformers: Prime (toyline)|Prime: First Edition]]'' [[Arcee (WFC)#Toys|Arcee]]. She was an exclusive available for purchase by [[Transformers Collectors' Club]] members. Trans-Mutate transforms from a green and tan motorcycle to a robot and back. Arm blades stow in vehicle mode and can be plugged under Trans-Mutate's forearms in robot mode.

:''Timelines'' Trans-Mutate came in a large box that is meant to serve as shared [[giftset]]-style packaging with ''Timelines'' [[Rampage (BW)#Timelines|Rampage]], though that figure is sold separately. The [[package art]] for this box is an homage to the poster of the 1985 sci-fi film ''{{w|Enemy Mine (film)|Enemy Mine}}''.

::*''[http://www.tfu.info/2014/Maximal/Trans-Mutate/trans-mutate.htm More information on ''Timelines'' Trans-Mutate at TFU.info]''
{{--}}

===''Generations''===
[[File:Generations_select_Transmutate.jpg|thumb|300px|"Ms. Transmutate, I want to get off your wild ride!"<br>"Repeat your answer please."]]
*'''Transmutate''' (Deluxe Class, [[2021]])
**''ID number'': '''WFC-GS25'''
**''Accessories:'' Tail-weapon
:A ''[[Generations Selects (toyline)|Generations Selects]]'' add-on toy for ''[[War for Cybertron: Kingdom|Kingdom]]'', Transmutate is a head retool and redeco of [[Paleotrex]]. She "transforms" into a skeletal ''Tyrannosaurus'' to robot and back via [[Partformer|disassembly and reassembly]]. Her new head replaces the mask assembly with a show-accurate head and a mouth that can open enough to replicate her super-sonic scream.

:As a redeco of a [[F.O.S.S.I.L. Technology|Fossilizer]], Transmutate can split into weapons and armor compatible with the [[C.O.M.B.A.T. System]] for use by other ''War for Cybertron Trilogy'' figures (or any figure with [[5 mm post]] compatibility). The [[Hasbro Pulse]] description mentions her disassembly function as a homage to her [[#Beast Wars 10th Anniversary|original build-a-figure toy]].<ref name="pulse">[https://hasbropulse.com/collections/generations/products/transformers-generations-selects-deluxe-wfc-gs25-transmutate Hasbro Pulse toy page]</ref> This functionality also allows her to take on an official, more show-accurate configuration, by switching her upper right arm and lower right arm. Her dino-mode tail-tip becomes a serrated sword/cudgel in robot mode and has a small tab that plugs in behind the right shoulder for weapon storage.

:Of course, she can still form the two suggested configurations from Paleotrex. The first has her robot-mode lower body and forearms combined into a double-clawed backpack, with the dino-mode tail and pelvic assembly forming a massive battle-axe, her dino-mode head and neck an arm-mounted chompy-thing, her chestplate a shield, and her head becoming a hand-held weapon. The second has her lower body still as a backpack, but now acting as twin cannons, with the dino-mode feet plugging into the bottom of a figure's feet to be... uh, stilts, we guess, keeping the arm-mounted shield-chestplate, and combining the head, dino-skull, and tail-axe assembly into a monstrously huge battle sword.

:Due to having tiny feet and a very oddly proportioned body in robot mode, the figure can be difficult to pose without it falling over, not helped by the fact that her "ankle" tilts are actually positioned just below her knees.

:This mold was also used to make [[Skelivore]].

{{comingsoontoy}}
{{--}}

==Notes==
*A point of argument is why the Maximals were so quick to stasis-lock Transmutate instead of transferring their spark to another body like Rhinox did with Optimus Primal following the latter's unintentional sacrifice. It was stated only that their [[core consciousness]] and body structure were mutilated beyond recovery; no mention was made about the condition of their spark. Of course, the euthanasia metaphor of the character's title episode would fall apart if they did that, but hey, semantics.
**The script for this episode explicitly states that Transmutate's spark was unstable: "Energy ERUPTS throughout Its body as Its own unstable spark begins to tear It apart." Although stage direction and narration from scripts are only [[pseudocanon]], this may nonetheless satisfy some that the spark was indeed as damaged as the body. The script, like many ''Beast Wars'' scripts, can be found on [http://web.archive.org/web/20050211031602/http://www.bwtf.com/bw/tvshow/episodes/seasontwo/ BWTF.com].
[[File:Transmutate Facepic.jpg|200px|thumb|faaaaaaaaaaaace]]
*The episode script's cast listing section describes the character as thus: "TRANSMUTATE: a being with no beauty of form nor logic of shape, massive, made of unmatched parts: bits of Predacon, pieces of Maximal, chunks of Fuzor and Transmetal, heavy-duty weapons, and a face that vaguely indicates it is female." This wording lends some credence to the idea that Transmutate was originally a female Protoform. At least one early draft of the script consistently uses female pronouns; however, the final script and the episode as aired constantly refers to Transmutate only as "it." In [[2014]], an alternate universe version of Transmutate would be depicted as female by a [[Transformers Timelines (toyline)|''Timelines'']] toy and corresponding Club magazine story. In [[2021]], Transmutate's ''Generations Selects'' toy, which is a representation of her show appearance, used female pronouns in the [[Hasbro Pulse]] online description.<ref name="pulse"/>
*Transmutate is the first canonically autistic-coded Transformers character.

===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Transmutate''' (トランスミューテイト ''Toransumyūteito'')
*''Italian:'' '''Convertor'''
*''Mandarin:'' '''Biànyì Biàntǐ''' (China, 变异变体, "Transmutate")
*''Portuguese:'' '''Transmutante'''
*''Russian:'' '''Transmutatsiya''' (Трансмутация), '''Transmutant''' (Трансмутант)
*''Spanish:'' '''Transmutante'''

== References ==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Beast Wars Maximals]]
[[Category:Beast Wars Transformers]]
[[Category:Beast Wars: Uprising Maximals]]
[[Category:Beast Wars 10th Anniversary| ]]
[[Category:Female Transformers]]
[[Category:Fossilizers]]
[[Category:Generations Selects]]
[[Category:Legends Predacons]]
[[Category:Point One Percenters]]
[[Category:Timelines characters]]
[[Category:Transmetals]]
[[Category:War for Cybertron: Kingdom Maximals]]

Cube (sport)

2021-04-11T06:34:14Z

OrderlySummit: /* Rescue Bots Academy cartoon */

{{disambig3|Cube}}
[[File:Cube arena (Cyberverse - Cube promo).jpg|thumb|right|300px|CRUCIBLE!]]
'''Cube''' is a [[Cybertronian sport]] resembling the primitive, barbaric [[Earth]] sporting ritual known as rugby. It involves pursuing a, er, cube, filled with [[energon]] and with rudimentary [[artificial intelligence]]. Yes, this means the ball—er, cube—really ''does'' have a mind of its own. Teams consist of six players to a side, four in robot mode and two in vehicle mode, and the objective is to hold on to the energon-filled cube for a set amount of time, at which point it allows the player to absorb the energon boost inside as their team scores a point.

==Fiction==
===''Cyberverse'' cartoon===
[[File:The Cube Is Live (Cyberverse - Cube).jpg|thumb|left|250px|Eyes up, Guardian.]]
Cube was a popular sport played on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] during the Golden Age. [[Bumblebee (Cyberverse)|Bumblebee]] was a big fan, attending a match between the [[Iacon Wreckers]] and [[Polyhex]] teams. To his annoyance, the [[Seeker (Cyberverse)|Seekers]] were ''also'' fans and ''also'' in attendance. [[Starscream (Cyberverse)|Starscream]] decided to spice up the game out of boredom and managed to introduce his own reprogrammed cube onto the field of play, however Bumblebee succeeded in catching and absorbing the rogue cube. {{storylink|Cube (episode)|Cube}} Iacon went on to win the game. According to [[Shadow Striker (Cyberverse)|Shadow Striker]], Polyhex had also defeated [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]] during the Cube semi-finals. {{storylink|Maccadam's}}

Later Bumblebee and [[Windblade (Cyberverse)|Windblade]] would play one-on-one Cube matches for fun. {{storylink|Siloed}} Much later on Earth, they found a Cube in the storage bays of a [[Decepticon scout ship]] they had commandeered; {{storylink|Cube (episode)|Cube}} Bumblebee kept it around as a souvenir. {{storylink|Terminal Velocity}}

As the Cybertronian resistance hunkered down in [[Maccadam's Old Oil House|Maccadam's]], [[Clobber (Cyberverse)|Clobber]] amused herself trying to balance a Cube on its side. Eventually, her disappointment turned to frustration, prompting her smash the Cube. {{storylink|The Sleeper}}

{{-}}

===''Rescue Bots Academy'' cartoon===
[[File:RBAOptimusPrimeCube.jpeg|thumb|right|250px|Impressing you, Hot Shot, is the easiest thing I'll do all day.]]
The first Cube was created by [[Ratchet (WFC)|Ratchet]]. {{storylink|Medix Steps Up To The Bat}} [[Grimlock (RID 2015)|Grimlock]] was once a Cube player under the name Steelwall, and won MVP at the 217th Cybertron All-Bot Bowl. He held on to one of the classic Cubes as a souvenir of the time. {{storylink|Trouble Cubed}} [[Hot Shot (Prime)|Hot Shot]]'s friend [[Jetbash]] once tried out for the Iacon Wreckers, but was turned down due to a lack of free slots. {{storylink|Five into Four}}

Hot Shot and his friends enjoyed the game of Cube, although Hot Shot's me-first playing style sometimes left his friends frustrated. When [[Optimus Prime (WFC)|Optimus Prime]] recruited Hot Shot to join the [[Rescue Bot]]s, Hot Shot proposed they play a match of Cube, but Optimus demurred. {{storylink|Recruits Part I}} Optimus later suggested Hot Shot consider what he'd do if a game of Cube depended on his scoring, and apply that to his rescue work. {{storylink|Recruits Part II}} Hot Shot also had a handheld version of Cube. {{storylink|Whirl'd View}} An attempt to play Cube with Hot Shot gave [[Whirl (RBA)|Whirl]] an idea to solve the simulation they were having trouble with. {{storylink|Plan Bee}}

The recruits were keen to go to Cybertron to watch the Cube playoffs. {{storylink|Blame Game}} When Hot Shot was having an off-day, he found even his Cube skills were failing him. {{storylink|Lucky Ducky}} A competition between Hot Shot and [[Wedge (RBA)|Wedge]] naturally included a game of Cube which Wedge was convinced he'd lose. He persevered anyway and managed to win Cube. {{storylink|Battle of the Bots}}

Aiming to win the Cube championship finals, [[Scorch (RBA)|Scorch]] ditched [[Rust (RBA)|Rust]] from the [[Cyberblazers]] and headed to [[Earth]] where he successfully convinced Hot Shot to abandon his Rescue Bot training and join the team. {{storylink|Best Bots Forever Part 1}} Hot Shot introduced the team to the concept of teamwork, and though Scorch was injured during the final match, the rest of the team pulled off a victory. Hot Shot, however, opted to return to the Academy for graduation. {{storylink|Best Bots Forever Part 2}}

By year 2, all of the recruits were playing Cube. {{storylink|Acting Out}} Ratchet still had the original Cube in his laboratory. It was accidentally triggered by [[Medix (RB)|Medix]]'s bat [[Mister Flappy]], and Hot Shot had to catch it. {{storylink|Medix Steps Up To The Bat}} On one occasion the recruits had to have Grimlock substitute for Wedge as the latter was busy practicing for a play. {{storylink|Acting Out}} Hot Shot "borrowed" Grimlock's classic Cube without asking and got Hoist to jazz up its AI. Unfortunately this meant it escaped the Academy and hid in Milford, eventually forcing the recruits to ask Grimlock for help in recapturing it. {{storylink|Trouble Cubed}}

{{stub}}

[[Category:Cyberverse (2018)]]
[[Category:Rescue Bots Academy]]
[[Category:Sports]]
[[Category:Transformer culture]]

Transformer

2021-04-04T14:06:17Z

OrderlySummit: /* Early life */

{{disambig3.5|the living alien robots|the brand in which they appear and are sold as toys|Transformers brand|Transformers}}
[[File:Bumblebeeg1.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|[[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]], a Transformer, transforming. Savvy?]]
The '''Transformers''' are a species of {{w|Sentience|sentient}}, living robotic beings (mostly) originating from the distant machine world of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. The stories of their lives, their histories, and most especially their wars have been chronicled across many different [[Continuity|continuities]] in the vast [[multiverse]].

The designation "Transformer" stems from the species' generally-shared ability to ''[[Transformation|transform]]'', to change their bodies at will, rearranging their component parts from a robotic primary mode (usually, but not always, humanoid) into an alternate form; generally vehicles, weapons, machinery, or animals. In some continuities this ability to transform is innate to all members of the species, in others it was a wartime innovation that was adopted by most, but not all, of the populace.

While this species is commonly known throughout the galaxy as "Transformers", the technical term for these beings is '''Cybertronians''', which they generally use to refer to themselves. Other, less-frequently used terms to refer to beings from Cybertron include '''Cybertronic''' or simply '''Cybertron'''.

{{bigquote|Many [[MYA|millions of years ago]], on the planet Cybertron, life existed. But not life as we know it today. Intelligent robots that could think and feel inhabited the cities.|[[Victor Caroli|A voice]] from beyond|"[[More than Meets the Eye, Part 1]]"}}

==Origins==
{{quote|Just how exactly did these towering marvels of technology become living, sentient beings with the ability to transform their appearance to adapt to their environment? Two words: WHO CARES?"|''[[Transformers Animated (cartoon)|Transformers Animated]]'' story bible}}

The many origin stories of the Transformers—why and how these shapechanging robots became the way they are—has been explored across a wide variety of mediums. As is the case for just about every ''Transformers'' story, many of the details of these tales are mutually irreconcilable with one another.

The three most prominent origins for the Transformer race are as follows:

===The Quintessons===
: ''See also: [[Quintesson]]''
[[File:Ffod4 production line.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The [[The Transformers (cartoon)|1984 cartoon]] established that the Autobots and Decepticons began as two different product lines of robotic slaves, only developing civilization after overthrowing their cruel [[Quintesson]] creators.]]
{{quote|What the Quintessons failed to grasp was that their robots had developed emotions. That we knew and felt the difference between freedom and slavery. And that oversight sealed their fate.|[[Prime Nova]]|"[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4]]"}}

The malevolent aliens known as the [[Quintesson]]s first appeared in [[The Transformers: The Movie|the 1986 animated film]], but it would not be until the third season of the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|the 1984 ''Transformers'']] cartoon that would explain their role in the history of Cybertron. In "[[Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4]]," [[Hot Rod (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Rodimus Prime]] experienced a vision of the past and learned that Cybertron had once been a planet-sized factory overseen by the aliens: the ancestors of the [[Autobot]]s were designed as "consumer goods," and the [[Decepticon]]s began as "military hardware". In time, however, the Quintessons' robotic creations would gain sentience and overthrow their masters in a rebellion before driving them off-planet, later inventing [[transformation]] when those military robots went rogue and made war against their proto-Autobot brethren.

Although well-known because of the cartoon's prominence, it has been given relatively little attention in subsequent media; with the rise of the Primus origin story, subsequent works of fiction have largely reduced the Quintessons to merely ''interfering'' with the natural development of the Transformers, as seen in [[3H Productions|3H]]'s ''[[Transformers: The Wreckers|Wreckers]]'' comics and the [[Aligned continuity family]].

''[[Transformers vs. G.I. Joe]]'' would offer a variation on the Quintesson origin story, depicting the aliens as fifth-dimensional beings who had created the living planet known as "[[Daiakuron]]", which itself would go on to spawn [[Primus]] and the Transformer race.

More recently, the fourth instalment of the [[live-action film series]], ''[[Transformers: Age of Extinction (film)|Age of Extinction]]'', would reveal that the Transformers of ''that'' universe had also been created by some other alien race. It is, however, unclear if the mysterious, organic aliens known only as the "[[Creator (AOE)|Creator]]s" ''are'' this universe's version of the Quintessons, and what, if any, connection they possess to the equally enigmatic mechanoid who calls herself "[[Quintessa (TLK)|Quintessa]]".
{{-}}

===Primus===
: ''See also: [[Primus]], [[Unicron]], [[Thirteen]], [[Well of All Sparks]]''
[[File:Prima.jpg|thumb|right|250px|[[Prima]] was the first Transformer to be created by Primus, and would later be reimagined as the leader of the mighty group of Transformers known as the [[Thirteen]].]]

{{quote|They '''were''' the dream--mechanical beings able to transform their bodies into vehicles, machinery and weapons; a last line of defense against the chaos bringer, '''Unicron'''!|[[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|''The Transformers'' comic]] introductory blurb}}

Independent of the cartoon's Quintesson origin, writer [[Simon Furman]] came up with his own origin for the Transformers. As first detailed in the [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)#Marvel UK|Marvel UK]] comic, the Cybertronians of that universe had been created by their god, the benevolent [[Primus]], as proxies to carry on the battle with his villainous opposite: the dreaded chaos-bringer known as [[Unicron]]. This origin story was eventually folded into the American books when Furman took over from US author [[Bob Budiansky]], overwriting the earlier "[[atechnogenesis]]" theory. From there, the tale would undergo various permutations in various pieces of ancillary media before settling on a widely-accepted version of events, establishing that Primus himself, like Unicron, could transform from a robot into a planet; unlike Unicron, however, Primus transformed into [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] itself.

The first Transformer that Primus created was dubbed [[Prima]], bearer of the [[Matrix of Leadership]], and later stories set in other universes would take this concept and run with it. Future works would establish that the very first group of Transformers to be created, of which Prima was traditionally a part, would become known as the "[[Thirteen]]," demigod-like figures of enormous power, and who themselves would go on to play a major role in the overarching ''Transformers'' mythos in their own right. The [[Unicron Trilogy]] was the first cartoon to incorporate the Primus and Unicron origin into its storyline, as would several [[Fun Publications]]-exclusive stories, and for many years this was widely accepted to be "the definitive" Transformer origin story.

Note, however, that not ''all'' modern continuities adhere to this strict interpretation of events; notably, the original [[2005 IDW continuity]] would establish a [[Rung (G1)|very different interpretation of Primus]], who that continuity's version of [[Unicron/Generation 1#2005 IDW continuity|Unicron]] was entirely unconnected to.

{{-}}

===The AllSpark===
:''See also: [[AllSpark]], [[AllSpark Mutation]], [[Energon radiation]]
[[File:Defiance4 allspark creates primes.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The [[AllSpark]], a mysterious relic capable of granting life to the Transformer race, has featured prominently in most ''Transformers'' stories released since the late 2000s.]]
{{quote|Before time began, there was the Cube. We know not where it comes from, only that it holds the power to create worlds and fill them with life. That is how our race was born.|[[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]]|''[[Transformers (film)|Transformers]]''}}

The very earliest drafts of the 2007 ''[[Transformers (film)|Transformers]]'' movie originally had the Autobots and Decepticons come to [[Earth]] in search of the [[Matrix of Leadership]]; for one reason or another, this relic was later reworked into a new artifact, a life-giving cube that was first deemed "the Energon Cube," and then hastily redubbed into "The AllSpark," evidently co-opting the name from ''Beast Machines'' and its description of the [[Transformer afterlife]].

The first ''Transformers'' movie depicted the AllSpark as the sole creator of the Transformers; a powerful, semi-sentient object of unknown manufacture, this artifact was responsible of energizing the [[living metal]] of Cybertron with [[Spark]]s and creating the first generation of Transformers. When loosed on Earth, AllSpark energy was capable of spontaneously imbuing [[human]] machinery with Transformer life, creating "[[AllSpark Mutation]]s" from mundane vehicles or appliances. As part of Hasbro's attempts at brand synergy, the AllSpark would also feature in that year's ''[[Transformers Animated (cartoon)|Transformers Animated]]'' cartoon, with more-or-less the same backstory, treating the mysterious object as the creator of the Cybertronian species, with individual fragments of the AllSpark displaying the power to bring new Transformers online from whatever inanimate objects happened to be in the vicinity. The concept would be folded into the "Primus" origin in the "Aligned" continuity family, which established the Allspark as the divine mechanism Primus created to generate new sparks. Almost a decade later, 2018's ''[[Transformers: Cyberverse (cartoon)|Cyberverse]]'' cartoon would once more establish the AllSpark as the mysterious, and seemingly sole, progenitor of Cybertronian life. The ''[[Transformers: War for Cybertron Trilogy (cartoon)|War for Cybertron Trilogy]]'' cartoon would take a similar tack, claiming that Cybertron itself would be unable to survive without the AllSpark.

Recent developments in the live-action series continuity family—most notably the introduction of the enigmatic "[[Creator (AOE)|Creator]]s"—have offered a possible insight into the ''true'' origin of the live-action version of the AllSpark, but no concrete information has yet surfaced.
{{-}}

===Other origins===
[[File:Pulleys.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The theory of atechnogenesis proposes the Transformer race evolved naturally, rather than being created by an external force.]]
; Atechnogenesis
The very first origin ever put forth for the Transformers established that the Transformers had evolved through [[atechnogenesis]], a mechanical parallel to the Darwinian evolution of life on Earth and arising from the interaction between "naturally occurring gears, levers and pulleys" on the surface of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]. This questionable theory was given in the [[The Transformers (issue)|very first ''Transformers'' comic ever produced]] and was quickly forgotten, though the concept occasionally crops up as an in-universe "atheist" viewpoint to contrast against more spiritual perspectives. A more serious take on the concept was published in a [[A Birth of Planet Saybertron|Japanese-exclusive manga]].
{{-}}

[[File:CybertronFossil.jpg|thumb|right|250px|''[[Beast Machines: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Machines]]'' suggested that Cybertron was once home to organic creatures, long-since extinct.]]

; Migration
Several installments of the Generation 1 continuity — most notably ''[[Beast Machines: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Machines]]'', but also ''[[Transformers: Kiss Players (franchise)|Kiss Players]]'' — revealed that, long ago, the metallic world of Cybertron was once a verdant, Earthlike planet. The first episode of ''Beast Machines'' had [[Optimus Primal (BW)|Optimus Primal]] muse that the first Transformers "came to Cybertron," and subsequently learned to transform—an event that evidently coincided with the extinction of Cybertron's natural biosphere. The [[Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Japanese continuity]] would reconcile the basics of this premise with the cartoon's Quintesson origin, but no American media has ever expounded on Primal's words or their significance.
{{-}}

[[File:SpotlightNightbeat GorlamPrimeUpgrading.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The [[Gorlamite]]s were once organic beings that came to adopt robotic forms.]]

; Biomechanical evolution
{{quote|The origins of our '''own''' planet are lost in the distant mists of time. Perhaps, once upon a time... '''Cybertron''' was something like '''this'''.|[[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]]|[[Spotlight: Nightbeat]]}}
In the [[2005 IDW continuity]], the world of [[Gorlam Prime]] was a planet whose [[Gorlamite|humanoid inhabitants]] developed a culture of cybernetic implants, rapidly shedding their biological forms to become a Transformer-like race and eventually rebuilding their planet into a metallic world and rechristening it "Cybertron". On a visit to Gorlam Prime during the earliest stages of this evolution, [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] idly wondered if Cybertron and its inhabitants had once passed through a similar phase. To date, no continuity has ever established this "biomechanical evolution" as a proven origin for the Transformer race, but a similar process is how the Transformers' sister race, the [[GoBot]]s of [[Gobotron]], came to be.
{{-}}

[[File:GoBots5-anheir.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The conclusion of Tom Scioli's ''Go-Bots'' series implied that the Cybertronian race was descended from a civilization of spacefaring Go-Bots.]]

; Go-Bots
{{quote|Go-Bots! Transform and roll out!|[[Road Ranger]]|{{gb|Go-Bots issue 5|''Go-Bots'' #5}}}}
The long-dormant ''[[GoBots]]'' property, a one-time rival to the Transformers brand, was unexpectedly revived in late 2018 by writer and artist [[Tom Scioli]] for a [[Go-Bots (comic)|5-issue miniseries]]. Though the miniseries was, for the most part, an affectionate pastiche of various sci-fi concepts unrelated to the ''Transformers'' brand, and, indeed, most prior iterations of the Go-Bots—''{{w|Terminator (franchise)|Terminator}}'', ''{{w|Planet of the Apes}}'', and so on—the comic ended with a peaceful Gobotron sailing through space as Go-Bot leader [[Road Ranger]] announced his intention to seed the multiverse with a panoply of [[Cybertron (planet)|mechanical worlds]]. In the meantime, he worked to construct an "optimized" version of himself, a mechanical "heir" that, while not seen, is heavily implied to be [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]]; [[Bug Bite (GoBots)|Bug Bite]] considered building a similar [[Bumblebee (G1)|copy of himself]], and [[Cy-Kill (G1)|Cy-Kill]] and [[Leader-1 (GoBots)|Leader-1]]'s remains were amalgamated into a [[Starscream (G1)|new jet-bot]]. For a variety of reasons, it's very unlikely that any future ''Transformers'' story will touch upon this origin.
{{--}}

==Transformer biology==
===Physiology and variance in form===
: ''See also: [[Robot mode]], [[alternate mode]], [[scale]]''

[[File:G1Misfire boxart.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Most Transformers are essentially humanoid...]]

{{quote|I take great pleasure, and indeed pride, in noting how varied we are throughout the cosmos and beyond. [[Noble (BM)|Organic Cybertronians]], [[Micromaster Combiner|modular Cybertronians]], [[Titan Master|Cybertronians]] [[binary bonding|binary-bonded]] to [[Overload (Armada)|other Cybertronians]], [[Headmaster (technology)|Cybertronians binary-bonded to organic life]], [[Pretender|Cybertronians with organic shells]], [[Combiner|Cybertronians who combine their sparks with other Cybertronians]], [[Duocon|Cybertronians who can split their sparks in twain]], [[Titan (group)|Cybertronians who become cities]], or [[Insecticon (WFC)|insects]], or [[Cosmos (G1)|starships]], or even [[Primus|planets]]... it makes my spark pulse brighter.|[[Vector Prime]]|[[Ask Vector Prime|Ask Vector Prime, 5/26/2015]]}}

The vast majority of Transformers are built along a humanoid frame, generally referred to as their "[[robot mode]]:" two arms, two legs, a torso, and one head. This isn't to say that all Transformers are human''like'', however: some have unconventional limbs, their hands (or whole arm) replaced with tools, claws, weapons, or some other form of manipulator (like a [[beast mode]]'s head). Though most Transformers possess a pair of humanlike legs, some Transformers have opted for more exotic forms of locomotion; a Transformer might possess digitigrade legs, wheels or tractor treads instead of feet, or no discernible legs at all, floating on antigravity. Some Transformers have more or less than the normal number of limbs altogether, such as the six-armed [[Octus (G1)|Octus]]. Transformers' faces run the gamut of design, from looking like a metal human in a helmet, to characters like [[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]] or [[Whirl (G1)|Whirl]], whose faces consist of little more than a single glowing eye, or more animalistic designs such as [[Waspinator (BW)|Waspinator]].

[[File:ROTF Wheelbot concept art.jpg|thumb|left|250px|...but many are not.]]

While humanoid forms are the norm, they are certainly not the ''rule'', and it is not at all uncommon for a Transformer to possess a primary mode based on an animal or vehicle—for instance, [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]], [[Grand Slam (G1)|Grand Slam]] and [[Raindance]], who transform from cassette tapes into a panther, a tank, and a jet, respectively. We consider these to be their "robot modes;" while they are definitely inhuman, they are at least capable of independent movement.

Transformers are ''generally'' large in comparison to Earth lifeforms; the average Transformer stands roughly four times the height of a human, depending on its size and shape. However, great variances in form are common; some Transformers, like the [[Mini-Con]]s, [[Micromaster]]s, [[Maximal]]s, or [[Predacon (BW)|Predacon]]s, are approximately human sized. Still others, such as the [[Real Gear Robot]]s or the [[Transformers: BotBots|BotBots]], are small enough to fit in a human's palm.

On the other end of the scale, some Transformers are large enough to dwarf other Cybertronians. The colossal city-bots known as [[Titan (group)|Titan]]s are one such faction, transforming into entire cities for smaller Transformers to inhabit. Particularly large Transformers, like [[Unicron]] and [[Primus]], might transform into entire planets. In the ''[[Transformers: Cybertron (cartoon)|Cybertron]]'' series, the planet [[Gigantion]] is populated by both extremes: robots who tower over "normal"-sized Transformers, aided by their tiny Mini-Con partners. For the most part, however, the "average" Transformer ranges from about 15 to 40 feet in height.
{{-}}

===Physical construction===
:''See also: [[Living metal]], [[Transformation cog]], [[Brain module]], [[:Category:Transformer anatomy|Transformer anatomy]]''

[[File:BlitzwingDissectionDreamwave.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Transformer anatomy is made up of several different mechanical parts, each of which serves an important function.]]

{{quote|You're a motorcycle, Arcee. Shouldn't you know how to build a motorcycle engine?}}
{{quote|You're a human, Jack. Can you build me a small intestine?|[[Jack Darby]] and [[Arcee (WFC)|Arcee]]|"[[Masters & Students]]"}}

Though their metal bodies were shown to be easily built by other Transformers from conventional materials, even the very earliest stories in the franchise showed that Transformers could feel pleasurable and painful sensations—physically "alive" in body, not just mind. This "[[living metal]]" was described as having a cellular structure in the [[Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers: Victory (cartoon)|''Victory'' cartoon]], a fact independently reiterated by the the Marvel [[Transformers: Generation 2 (Marvel)|''Generation 2'' comic books]], which also established that Transformers possessed "genetic material" (useful when [[Reproduction|"budding"]]). It was the Marvel comic which first introduced the idea that the Transformers originally emerged from the very fabric of the planet Cybertron itself, an idea that has become the dominant "origin" story for the species in modern media, and the means by which new Transfomers come into being even in the present day. Following its introduction in the [[Beast Wars: Transformers (cartoon)|''Beast Wars'' cartoon]], the first stage of Transformer life, prior to taking on an alternate mode, has come to usually be depicted as the raw, featureless "[[protoform]]". As living matter, Transformers' bodies are even capable of being ravaged by [[:Category:Diseases|disease]].

Being mechanical creatures, Transformers possess a number of distinct parts that make up their anatomy; some are largely analogous to human components, but many others serve exotic purposes: complex fuel reactors and ammunition storage are among them. Significant components include the the [[transformation cog]], which controls a Cybertronian's ability to change shape, and the [[brain module]] and/or [[personality component]], which houses a Transformer's mind and controls the functions of the body.

===Transformation===
:''See also: [[Transformation]], [[Transformation cog]], [[Scanning]], [[Action Master]], [[Monoformer]]

[[File:TarnAltMode.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Most Transformers are capable of changing between two or more different forms at will.]]

{{quote|Why do you transform into cars and things?}}
{{quote|Simple. Disguise! Besides, it sure beats walking.|[[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] and [[Trailbreaker (G1)|Trailbreaker]]|"[[More than Meets the Eye, Part 2]]"}}

The eponymous, and most iconic, component of the ''Transformers'' franchise is, of course, their characteristic ability to [[transformation|transform]] from one shape to the other—in most cases, this involves changing from a humanoid [[robot mode]] into an [[alternate mode]]; this alternate mode is usually some kind of vehicle or creature, but Transformers across the multiverse have assumed unconventional forms: [[Metroplex (G1)|buildings]], [[Botanica (BM)|plants]], [[Ejector|household appliances]], or even [[Sprinkleberry D'uhnut|human food]].

Early stories depicted this ability as something that the Transformer race as a whole was not created with; it was either a wartime innovation designed to disguise themselves from their opponents, or an unexpected side effect as a result of their rebuilding at the hands of the ''[[Ark (G1)|Ark]]'' on [[Earth]]. However, it would not take long for this ability to be cemented as a natural extension of Cybertronian biology; later stories would, for the most part, establish that Transformers are born with a functioning alternate mode, or at least the ability to assume one.

Modern ''Transformers'' fiction has established that the complex mechanical "organ" known as the [[transformation cog]], or T-cog, allows a Cybertronian to transform; most Transformers in contemporary fiction can change their alternate modes at will (e.g., changing their Cybertronian vehicle mode into a suitable Earth disguise) through a process known as [[scanning]]. Some Cybertronians possess unique forms of transformation: they may have the ability to [[Jumpstarter|transform much faster than "regular" Transformers]] or the ability to assume [[Triple Changer|multiple alternate modes]], for instance.

In rare instances, Transformers may ''lose'' the ability to transform over their lifetimes; the [[Marvel Comics continuity]] depicted this as a symptom of inducing mutagenic [[Nucleon (substance)|Nucleon]] as a fuel source, sacrificing transformation for enhanced durability and power, while in the [[2005 IDW continuity]] the decision to give up one's alternate mode was a religious choice which involved voluntarily removing the [[Transformation cog]].

===Sparks===
{{main|Spark}}

[[File:The Spark Rhinox spark.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The presence of an animating spark is what separates most Transformers from simple robots.]]

{{quote|We call it a 'Spark'. It contains our life force and our memories.}}
{{quote|Yeah, we call that a 'soul'.|[[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]] and [[Cade Yeager]]|''[[Transformers: Age of Extinction (film)|Age of Extinction]]''}}

Though their bodies and minds are robotic in nature, Transformers are not mere automatons: most Cybertronian lifeforms are living, sentient, emotional, and fully-intelligent beings. This animating, semi-mystical "life-force" that sets them apart from simple machines is traditionally referred to as the [[spark]], a specially charged mass of {{w|positron}}s that resides in, and energizes, their mechanical frames. Though the concept was first introduced in the ''[[Beast Wars: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]'' animated series, it has gone on to inform every incarnation of the Transformers franchise, and has even been retroactively applied to the earliest Generation 1 continuities. A spark can be thought of as the "soul" of the Transformer; a Cybertronian life effectively begins with the ignition of a new spark, and ends when that spark is extinguished.

The spark's relationship to the rest of the Transformer is somewhat nebulous and varies aross continuities. In some stories, a spark ''is'' the sum totality of a Transformer; it can be [[Spark extractor|extracted]] from the body of one Cybertronian and implanted into the frame of another, effectively "uploading" the memories and personality encoded in that Spark into a new body. In other continuities, the spark's presence in the body is harder to define; in these continuities, it coexists with other components crucial to Transformer life, such as the [[brain module]], making it harder to define where certain aspects of Transformer life begin or end. Some Cybertronians are created ''without'' sparks, and these Transformers are generally referred to as "[[drone]]s", deriving sentience from their programming. While their appearance and programming may allow them to adopt a convincing imitation of life and intelligence, most Cybertronians generally do not consider these Transformers to be truly "alive".
{{-}}

===Fuel===
: ''See also: [[Energon]], [[Dark Energon]], [[Synthetic Energon]], [[Transformer fuel]], [[Nucleon (substance)|Nucleon]], [[:Category:Power sources|Power sources]]

[[File:EnergonCubesCartoon1.jpg|left|thumb|200px|In the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|1984 cartoon]], Transformers can process different types of fuel into [[energon cube]]s, their primary energy source.]]

{{quote|No more artificial '''energon''' derivatives, no more scrabbling for micro-ergs of some foul local brew. This... is the '''real''' thing!|[[Starscream (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Starscream]]|[[Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6]]}}

Unlike humans, who require food, air, and water to survive, the only substance Cybertronians require to assure their continued functioning is a fuel source—though for a species as large and powerful as the Transformers, the average Cybertronian consumes a ''significant'' amount of fuel on a regular basis. This desire for energy has led to many wars, and the frequent depletion of their home planet's energy sources. Though early stories such as the [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|Marvel comic]], suggested that Cybertronians could directly convert human energy sources like oil and gasoline, into a nebulously-defined [[Transformer fuel]], it wasn't long before the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|1984 cartoon]] introduced the concept of "[[energon]]:" a Cybertronian fuel that could be created by processing other fuel sources into an [[energon cube]], which generally became the default form of Transformer fuel going forward.

[[File:Roadhandler cardart.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The [[Micromaster]] upgrade allows Transformers to downsize into smaller, more fuel-efficient bodies.]]

To survive the constant fuel shortages, various Transformers across the multiverse have attempted to find means of either reducing or circumventing their reliance on energon. Alternate fuel sources, such as [[Nucleon (substance)|Nucleon]], [[Angolmois Energy]], or even the dreaded [[Dark Energon]], can fulfill most of the energy needs of a Transformer, but may have unpredictable side effects. Some continuities have expanded on Marvel's idea, and asserted that while Transformers ''can'' synthesize a usable fuel substitute from local energy sources, this Energon derivative is largely inefficient and offers poor fuel efficiency, making it a poor substitute for the genuine article. In other instances, Transformers may upgrade themselves into more fuel-efficient bodies, capable of functioning on exponentially less energon than other Transformers. The most famous of these are the [[Micromaster]]s, who derogatorily refer to other Transformers as "[[Macromaster|guzzlers]]". The [[Maximal]]s and [[Predacon (BW)|Predacon]]s of [[Beast Era]] Cybertron would follow in their footsteps; by their time, three hundred years after the end of the Great War, the entire Transformer race had downsized to the point where they were only slightly taller than an average [[human]].

Not ''all'' Transformers exclusively rely on energon, however, and some Transformers have developed various solutions to cheaply convert organic material into energy. The Generation 1 [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticon]]s were one such group, who could sustain themselves by eating both organic and inorganic matter. Transformers who upgraded themselves into [[Powermaster]]s, meanwhile, could [[binary bonding|binary-bond]] with a specially-augmented biological partner, using this smaller lifeform's metabolism as a battery to fuel their systems in the absence of energon. In some universes, such as ''[[Beast Wars: Uprising]]'', the Maximals and Predacons have displayed the power to directly process food into energon by using their beast modes, though this is not a universally-established ability.

===Combination===
: ''See also: [[Combiner]], [[Micromaster Combiner]], [[Power Core Combiners]], [[Multiforce]], [[Mini-Con]]

[[File:G1Defensor-VisualWorks.jpg|thumb|left|200px|[[Defensor (G1)|Defensor]] is the combined form of the five [[Protectobot (G1)|Protectobots]], but possesses his own independent consciousness and personality.]]
{{quote|Wow, how come we can't do that?}}
{{quote|I don't know, I think they're double-jointed.|[[Side Burn (RID)|Side Burn]] and [[Prowl (RID)|Prowl]] on [[Rail Racer (RID)|Rail Racer]]|"[[Bullet Train to the Rescue]]"}}

Some Transformers have displayed the ability to physically unite with one or more Cybertronians to assume a single, unified shape. These unusual Transformers are known as "[[combiner]]s". The exact nature of this combination depends on the individuals. Some Transformers, such as the [[Mini-Con]]s, are capable of undergoing a unique form of combination known as "[[powerlinx|powerlinking]]", where the smaller partner is able to imbue their "bulk" partner with extra powers, and, in some cases, new weaponry.

In rare cases, two Transformers may combine to form a single, shared vehicle mode, such as the [[Micromaster Combiner]]s. In other situations, teams of Transformers may unite to form weapons or tools, such as the [[Star Saber (Armada)|Star Saber]], the combined form of the [[Mini-Con]] [[Air Defense Mini-Con Team (Armada)|Air Defense Team]]. Generally, though, the most famous and memorable combiners are those Transformers who unite into a single "super robot", an exponentially larger and more powerful being than any of its components. This super robot, or "gestalt", may be made up of as few as two Transformers, or as many as six, but in most cases this combined form is, essentially, their own character, possessing a unique personality and consciousness that's more than just the sum total of their parts.

The origins of combination, when explored, are not particularly clear; the earliest fictions treated it as a unique trait that ''only'' these Transformers could possess through nebulous means, but as the ''Transformers'' franchise evolved other continuities would introduce various supernatural artifacts—such as the [[Spark of Combination]] or the [[Enigma of Combination]]—which could instantaneously change ''any'' group of Cybertronians into a functional combiner.
{{-}}

===Weapons and abilities===
: ''See also: [[Weapon]], [[ability]]''

[[File:Shermandam.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Some Transformers can project energy into a physical form, creating weapons like the [[energon-axe]] and [[energon mace]].]]

{{quote|Have a mechanical malfunction, courtesy of my concussion cannon!|[[Breakdown (G1)|Breakdown]]|"[[Heavy Traffic!]]"}}

Even the most peaceful Cybertronian is far from harmless; while the sheer bulk of their massive mechanical bodies poses an inadvertent threat to smaller life-forms, most, if not all, Transformers also have access to a devastating variety of weapons. The earliest ''Transformers'' stories faithfully depicted the various accessories packaged with indidividual toys as unique handheld weapons, with [[Bob Budiansky]] coming up with a wide variety of powers to set each gun apart from the next, such as [[Cliffjumper (G1)|Cliffjumper]]'s signature [[glass gas]]. Other weapons, such as [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]]'s shoulder-mounted cannons, are directly incorporated into their physical form. Like humans, Transformers may display a proficiency with long-ranged artillery weapons, medium-ranged rifles and pistols, or melee weapons like axes and swords. Individual weapons display varying levels of sophistication: melee weapons may be made out of solid metal alloys or pure energy, while their guns may fire bullets, slugs, chemical compounds, or exotic laser bolts.

[[File:Prime optimusionblaster.jpg|thumb|left|300px|The [[ion blaster]] is a signature weapon for [[Optimus Prime (disambiguation)|Optimus Prime]] in many ''Transformers'' stories.]]

Where exactly Transformers ''store'' these weapons when not wielding them was something of a mystery for many years; some obscure media would later declare that the majority of Transformers have access to a "[[subspace storage pocket]]:" a miniature dimension capable of storing matter, and the place where weapons and other accessories (eg.g. Optimus Prime's trailer) went when not in use. Later stories, most prominently the original 2007 film and its sequels, would drop this concept entirely. Rather, these stories depicted the various weapons of any given Transformer as "built-in" extensions of their natural bodies, depicting their weapons as physical transformations for their hand and forearm. This treatment carried over into the 2010 ''[[Transformers: Prime (cartoon)|Prime]]'' cartoon, though it would be dropped once again for [[Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2015 cartoon)|its 2015 sequel]].

In other instances, Transformers may possess rare abilities that, while they may not have a directly offensive use, set the Transformer apart from their comrades. Depending on the universe, these may be the result of natural upgrades to their bodies, or a sort of "genetic mutation" that distinguishes them from other Transformers—see [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]]'s ability to [[teleportation|teleport]] himself from place to place, or [[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]]'s power to generate magnetic fields.
{{-}}

===Organic components===
: ''See also: [[Binary bonding]], [[Pretender]], [[Technorganic]], [[Maximal]], [[Predacon (BW)|Predacon]]''

[[File:MTMTELandmine.jpg|thumb|right|200px|[[Pretender]] technology augments Cybertronians with quasi-organic outer "shells".]]
{{quote|So what are we? Robots, or animals?}}
{{quote|Both... and neither.|[[Cheetor (BW)|Cheetor]] and [[Optimus Primal (BW)/Beast Wars cartoon continuity|Optimus Primal]]|"[[Master of the House]]"}}

[[File:Cheetorbw.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Future generations of Cybertronians use [[DNA scanner]]s to adopt the forms of organic creatures]]

Cybertronians are a constantly-developing race, and after making contact with non-mechanical intelligences both Autobots and Decepticons have been known to harness the potential of organic life, as both weapons of war and to advance their own development as a species. Though these upgrades are powerful, and frequently coveted by other Cybertronians, not ''all'' Cybertronians are convinced of the soundness of this so-called "evolutionary leap;" some Transformers view the prospect of carbon-based life as repulsive, and these technologies as revolting or downright heretical.

The fusion between organic and mechanical takes many forms across the vast ''Transformers'' multiverse, running the gamut from simple [[binary bonding|binary-bonded]] partnerships—where a Transformer develops a symbiotic partnership with a smaller creature, to the point where they may telepathically merge into a single entity—to the advanced [[Pretender]] armor, concealing the mechanical shape of a Transformer beneath a specially-tailored "shell" that incorporates organic matter. These so-called "Pretenders" possess enhanced regenerative abilities, with their shells even allowing them to pass as non-robotic humanoids.

In those future universes where the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]] gives way to the [[Beast Era]], the [[Maximal]]s and [[Predacon (BW)|Predacon]]s will go on to develop advanced [[DNA scanner]]s; thanks to advancements in both [[Micromaster]] and Pretender technology, these future Cybertronians are able to copy genetic material and directly integrate organic components into their structures, allowing them to disguise themselves as organic life without the need for an external Pretender shell. Even this arrangement can be enhanced: exposure to the energies of the [[Oracle (BM)|Oracle]] can unite both forms of life at the cellular level to create the first "[[technorganic]]" Transformers, a form of life said to be neither organic nor technological.
{{-}}

===Gender===
{{main|Female Transformer}}

[[File:Revolution5-Windbladeprofile.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Changing attitudes in the ''Transformers'' brand led to the creation of [[Windblade (G1)|Windblade]] as a new "headline" female character.]]
{{quote|Female Autobots?! I thought they were extinct!|[[Shockwave (G1)|Shockwave]]|"[[The Search for Alpha Trion]]"}}
As a kid-friendly franchise first and foremost, most continuities have established that Transformers reproduce through decidedly asexual means; despite this, however, the Cybertronian species is usually depicted with a degree of {{w|sexual dimorphism}}, with clearly "male" and "female" robots coexisting, both in fiction and on toy shelves—though the male-to-female ratio has been historically skewed greatly in favor of the former. In early ''Transformers'' installments (and even some later stories!), female Transformers were presented as an aberration of sorts, their femininity sometimes the result of alien interference or malevolent genetic experimentation, and treated as something "outside" the Cybertronian norm. Changes in the real-world pop culture landscape, and an increased number of female writers in the ''Transformers'' franchise, have led to more recent works taking steps to depict female Cybertronians and their gender presentation as nothing particularly different from their male counterparts: just a natural aspect of the Cybertronian species.

As a kid's franchise, the topic of what Transformer gender really ''means'' in a society of asexual robots hasn't really been explored in most continuities, though some works, most notably IDW's older-skewing comics, have used their settings to tackle some deeper issues relating to gender and gender identity in Transformer society and the real world.

The earliest female Transformers introduced to the mythos: [[Chromia (G1)|Chromia]], [[Moonracer (G1)|Moonracer]], [[Firestar (G1)|Firestar]], [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]], and so on, were generally depicted as curvier than the boxy "male" Transformers, looking more like attractive human women in armor than anything else. Since then, however, female Transformers have been allowed to diversify in appearance and personality, giving us some less-stereotypical females like ''Beast Machines'' [[Strika (BM)|Strika]] and ''Robots in Disguise'' [[Strongarm (RID)|Strongarm]], while new headline characters like [[Windblade (G1)|Windblade]] have increased representation of female characters as a whole in the franchise.
{{--}}

==Transformer life cycle==
The life cycle of the Transformer race differs greatly from those of organic species.

===Birth===
: ''See also: [[Reproduction]], [[Protoform]], [[hatchling]], [[M.T.O.|Made To Order Soldiers]]''

[[File:Protoforms2.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Many continuities feature [[protoform]]s as the earliest stage of a Transformer life.]]
{{quote|The sparks give rise to '''sentience'''. The metal gains '''form'''... and the '''protoforms''' emerge. A '''generation new'''.|[[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]]|''[[The Transformers: Salvation|Salvation]]''}}

The vast majority of ''Transformers'' continuities have firmly established that the Transformers reproduce asexually, though the individual mechanisms of just ''how'' a new Transformer comes to life can vary even within the same fictional universe. The creation of a new Transformer generally begins with the ignition of a [[spark]]—whether this spark comes from the living computer [[Vector Sigma]], the [[AllSpark]] itself, or a [[sacred implement]] such as the [[Matrix of Leadership]] and its [[Primal Program]] depends on the story—and then infusing that spark into a suitable body. In some instances, such as those Transformers brought to life directly by the [[AllSpark]], this body can be a mundane Earth machine, its structure supernaturally altered to become the [[living metal]] that makes up all Transformers, but, for the most part, most continuities have established that new Transformers begin as a "[[protoform]]:" a humanoid mass of liquid metal that requires the infusion of a [[spark]] to become a full-fledged Transformer. A protoform quickly develops into a new Transformer after accepting a spark; though the specifics are rarely elaborated upon, this process is ''generally'' understood to be very fast, occurring in a matter of days, hours, or even minutes, depending on the continuity. In Transformer society at large, "protoform" is often used as a shorthand equivalency for childhood or infancy, and Transformers are frequently said to have been "forged" as a Cybertronian synonym for "born".

[[File:Your First Mistake - Army Building Seekers.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Other Transformers are manually assembled, like conventional machines, and subsequently given life through the infusion of a Spark.]]

In other circumstances, a Spark may bypass the protoform stage entirely, and is implanted into a pre-constructed Transformer body; after this infusion, the new Transformer simply springs to life. Still other continuities have established that Transformers are capable of "[[Reproduction#budding|budding]]", a {{w|mitosis}}-like process in which a Transformer sacrifices some of its own essence to create a new protoform.

The Transformers of the live-action movie series appear to be the exception to this rule; multiple Transformer characters have alluded to possessing fathers and mothers (the implications of these statements have never been explored), while in this continuity new Transformers begin as feral "[[hatchling]]s", who spend their early days nourishing themselves in egg sac-like "pods" of energon. Certainly this seems to point towards the Transformers having some kind of familial relationships, though how exactly these tie into that universe's overarching mythology of the AllSpark and the "[[Creator (AOE)|Creator]]s" is something of a mystery.
{{-}}

===Early life===
: ''See also:[[:Category:Transformer education|Transformer education]]''

[[File:Shining armor 1 baby stardrive.jpg|thumb|right|200px|At five days old, [[Stardrive]] has already developed her "adult" appearance.]]
{{quote|But back then, I was just a '''kid'''. I had to learn to talk, and interact with people. By my '''fifth solar cycle''', I was... '''considerably bigger''' than [[Elonian|my classmates]].|[[Stardrive]]|[[Shining Armor issue 1|''Shining Armor'' #1]]}}

While [[human]] children might take years to master the various skills required of them in later life, Transformers are brought online as more-or-less independent lifeforms, their personalities ranging anywhere from early adolescence to full maturity. These new Cybertronians are essentially adults, capable of making decisions and fending for themselves without any kind of parental guidance. It is for this reason that most Transformers do not possess, or even have any concept, of parental units or familial bonds. The sole exception to this rule are [[twin]]s; akin to the splitting of a human zygote, twins are generally depicted as the product of a "split spark", granting them a unique, quasi-telepathic "sibling bond", and occasionally manifesting the power to [[combiner|combine]] with one another. Many depictions of Transformer "childhood" tend towards the comedic and are thus of dubious veracity; for instance, [[Side Burn (RID)|Side Burn]] claimed that he had been a non-transforming tricycle in his youth.

[[File:Autobot Cadets.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Institutions like [[Autobot boot camp]] build teamwork and co-operative skills between young Autobots.]]

The personality and traits of a Transformer also seem to be established rather quickly after coming online; this can occasionally lead to strange situations, where the deep-voiced, chivalric hero [[Silverbolt (BW)|Silverbolt]] is in fact ''younger'' than the excitable, childlike [[Cheetor (BW)|Cheetor]]. Similar oddities occur across the franchise.

As a consequence of their unusual life cycle, most Transformers do not have much of a concept of "childhood" as humans know it, perhaps explaining why the Autobots are so prone to taking human children into harm's way. As a war story first and foremost, generally taking place long after the collapse of any functioning society, few continuities have explored how young Cybertronians are formally socialized and educated; indeed, most newborn Transformers are immediately thrust into the front lines to continue the war. Those scant references to early life ''do'' depict young Transformers learning life skills in a group setting, whether this is through ''[[Transformers: Cybertron (cartoon)|Cybertron's]]'' [[primary programming]], or a more military-flavoured education such as ''[[Transformers Animated (cartoon)|Animated]]''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s [[Autobot boot camp]]. More specialized institutions, such as ''Animated''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s [[Cyber-Ninja Dojo]], [[2005 IDW continuity|IDW]]'s [[Ultirex Technoversity]], or [[Aligned continuity family]]'s [[Rescue Bot Training Center]] suggest that some Transformers may choose to focus on specific academic or military fields as part of their vocational path.
{{-}}

===Lifespan===
: ''See also: [[:Category:Elderly Transformers|Elderly Transformers]]''

[[File:AniRatchetPromoModel.jpg|thumb|right|200px|At more than four million years old, the elderly Transformer [[Ratchet (Animated)|Ratchet]] is evidently in the later stages of his life.]]

{{quote|You can be glacially slow, because you live with an abundance of time. Yet you can be impetuous and careless, because error and consequence seem transitory. You expect to '''outlive''' them. When you imagine the far future, you imagine your individual selves in it. You '''know''' you will be there. And some of you think that gives you '''ownership''' over it.|[[Pra'tyne]]|"[[Escape Part One]]"}}

As mechanical beings, most Cybertronians are an incredibly long-lived, and even "young" Transformers may be older than any living thing on planet Earth. Though the specifics may vary, Transformers measure time in terms of millions of years and generally exist on a fundamentally different timescale than humanity—the precise age of Transformer civilization differs from one continuity to the next, from [[2005 IDW continuity|IDW]]'s twelve million years to ''[[Transformers Animated (cartoon)|Animated]]''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s claim of "over ten ''billion'' years"—but across all of these continuities it's made clear that Cybertronians are not bound to the fleeting lifespans of short-lived organic beings; their histories, empires, and wars playing out over a period of geological epochs.

A conservative estimate would put the average Transformer lifespan at four to seven million years, though some universes, most recently 2018's ''[[Transformers: Cyberverse (cartoon)|Cyberverse]]'' cartoon, has suggested that its cast of characters are more than 65 million years old, with the Autobots having landed on Earth during the end of the {{w|Late Cretaceous|Late Cretaceous}} era.

An individual Cybertronian might grow to a venerable age, outlasting entire civilizations in the process, but they are not truly immortal beings. Though one might assume that, as robotic lifeforms, a Cybertronian could simply replace worn-out parts indefinitely, it is clear that Cybertronians ''do'' age, many indeed become "elderly", (in some cases, this manifests as a variety of memory and mobility-related problems) and even die from age-related complications, such as [[cybercrosis]]. The precise nature of Transformer aging is not well-understood, though several continuities, such as the [[Transformers: Wings Universe|Wings Universe]] or the live-action film series, have linked the process to a prolonged period of fuel depletion. These sorts of "natural" deaths are very rare in the franchise; as ''Transformers'' is a war story first and foremost, it is far more common to have Transformer lives simply cut short for one reason or another.
{{-}}

===Death and the afterlife===
:''See also: [[Death]], [[Transformer afterlife]], [[Transformer funerary practices]], [[Zombie]]

[[File:Afterdeath-gameoverman.jpg|thumb|right|200px|A powerful enough explosion can fatally blow a Transformer apart.]]

{{quote|He lived a warrior... and died a hero. Let his spark join the Matrix, the greatest of Cybertron.|[[Optimus Primal (BW)|Optimus Primal]] eulogizes [[Dinobot (BW)|Dinobot]]|"[[Code of Hero]]"}}

Though long-lived, powerful, and able to quickly recover from even grievous injuries, Cybertronians are not invincible, and can be killed like any other lifeform, as has been demonstrated again and again by their endless wars. Exactly what it ''takes'' to bring down a Transformer varies from one continuity to the next—and, more cynically, as the needs of the plot demand—but for the most part the death of a Transformer is accompanied by the extinguishment of its spark.

Transformers can be killed through ways that are analogous to human causes of death: they can be shot, stabbed, blown to bits, or otherwise damaged by weapons to the point where their body can no longer function, their heads and torsos can be mutilated beyond repair by [[decapitation]] or simple blunt impact trauma, or their physical structures can be broken down by toxic compounds designed to damage their [[living metal]]. A Transformer can be "poisoned", sometimes lethally so, by ingesting the wrong kind of fuel, or they can simply "starve" to death if they are unable to refuel for long enough. Transformers may also die from uniquely robotic causes; long-term exposure to exotic forms of radiation may short out their circuitry, while exotic diseases like [[Cosmic Rust (disease)|Cosmic Rust]] or [[Scraplet]]s can destroy their mechanical bodies from within. In those universes where science and sorcery coexist, Cybertronians have also displayed a glaring vulnerability to [[magic]]. As a story of war, all of these fates and worse have befallen various Transformers across the multiverse.

[[File:GhostsofCybertron1-Starscream.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Starscream's mutated spark is somehow able to sustain his consciousness after death, surviving as an incorporeal [[ghost]].]]

Unlike humans, however, who may or may not profess a ''belief'' in an afterlife without any concrete evidence, the various [[Transformer afterlife|afterlives]] are generally regarded as real; when a Transformer's spark is extinguished, it merely returns to the metaphysical dimension alternately referred to as the "Allspark" or "Afterspark", supposedly connected to the entirety of the Transformer race across the multiverse, where it can commune with the other spirits of the departed.

Death does not necessarily mark the end for a Transformer, however. It is possible that a Transformer may return to life if the spark can be plucked from the afterlife and safely transferred into a new vessel. In other cases, the spark itself may choose to re-enter our physical world if the need is great and resume life as a mortal Transformer. A handful of Transformers, most infamously [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], have displayed the ability to survive the complete physical destruction of their body and continue existence as a spectral "[[ghost]]", displaying typically ghostly skills such as intangibility and the power to possess the bodies of other Transformers. Various sources have flagged this ability as a rare spark-based "mutation," and as such it is the exception, not the rule.

In still other instances, Transformers may be resurrected as [[zombie]]s; in most cases, these are dead Transformers whose physical shells have merely fallen under the control of another, and lack the sparks that characterize Cybertronians as truly "alive".
{{--}}

==Transformer culture==
[[File:WOTF Emotion.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|Transformers can exhibit any number of personality types, including [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|loving]] [[Elita One (G1)|couples]], [[Beachcomber (G1)|peaceful creatures]], [[Hot Shot (Armada)|impetuous adolescents]] and [[Galvatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|omnicidal maniacs]].]]

Regardless of continuity, the most distinctive facet of Cybertronian society has been its near-continuous state of [[Cybertronian Civil Wars|planetary Civil War]] between the [[Autobot]]s and the [[Decepticon]]s. The conflict is mostly defined by what each faction believes is the "destiny" of the Transformers: the Autobots believe in a peaceful society where Cybertron is a place of culture and justice, while the Decepticons believe in a "might makes right" philosophy where Cybertron would be the center of a [[Decepticon Empire|mighty empire]]. The fact that the vast majority of what we know about Transformers has been shaped by this constant, corrosive warfare should not be overlooked.

===Society===
:''See also: [[Functionism]], [[Caste system]], [[Pax Cybertronia]], [[Cybertronian colonies]]

[[File:Bigredkhanna.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Cybertronian civilization bears many similarities to human societies on Earth.]]

{{quote|Everyone's Shape Serves A Purpose|A [[Functionism|Functionist]] slogan|"[[Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|How to Say Goodbye and Mean It]]", "[[Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc]]"}}

Individual depictions of life on both pre-war and post-war Cybertron have varied wildly from one continuity to the next, but most continuities have established that Transformers organized themselves into societies comparable to most modern human civilizations, with many of the same hallmarks: a written language, clear division of labour, an organized government, complex social hierarchies, and education systems designed to pass on knowledge and culture to newly-forged Transforemrs. Individual career paths on Cybertron are largely analogous to many human jobs: [[Stockade (RID)|soldiers]], [[Arcee (Animated)|teachers]], [[Constructicon (G1)|construction workers]], [[Terminus (G1)|miners]], [[Circuit (G1)|journalists]], [[Megatron (SG)|professors]], [[Perceptor (G1)|scientists]], [[Maccadam|bartenders]], and [[Windsweeper|sanitation engineers]], to name a few. Other facets of society are similarly Earth-like, with [[Needlenose (G1)|fads and fashions]], [[Overload (RID)|theater]], [[Rippersnapper (SG)|film]], [[Mirage (G1)|aristocracy]], [[Empty|poverty]], and so on. Millions of years old, life on Cybertron is very much guided by ancient traditions and millennia-old schools of thought, and many Transformers regard their forebears with great reverence and respect—even if a cursory analysis of the history books reveals that those "ancestors" were not particularly upstanding individuals themselves.

Unlike humans, however, Cybertronians place great importance on the value of their shapeshifting abilities and [[alternate mode]]s, and have been known to divide themselves into social groupings based on this premise. Depending on the universe, those Transformers who share a similar alternate mode or profession—for instance, all Transformers who become aircraft, or those who work in Cybertron's various scientific fields—may be lumped together under a single, inflexible social group or caste. The rigidity of this system varies by continuity, but some universes have taken this concept to the extreme, such as the [[Aligned continuity family]]'s depiction of its [[caste system]] or IDW's [[Functionism]] as the defining trait of pre-war Cybertron. In many continuities, pre-war Cybertron has been depicted as something of a dystopia; whether this is due to energy shortages, an oppressive government, and simple cultural stagnation, these stories portray the planet and its culture as crumbling, highly stratified between "haves" and "have-nots," and overseen by a bloated and corrupt government in the final years before the rise of the Decepticons. Not ''all'' modern ''Transformers'' fiction adheres to this rule, however, such as IDW's [[Transformers (2019 comic)|2019 comic reboot]] and its decision to reimagine the planet as an enlightened, largely egalitarian utopia.

[[File:Planetmicro landscape.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Cybertronians have been known to colonize distant worlds, such as the planet [[Micro]].]]

The Transformers are a naturally expansionistic race, and their development has been punctuated by the periodic [[Cybertronian colonies|colonization]] of other planets throughout the universe. What this colonization entails depends on the intentions of the Cybertronians; Cybertronians may change their worlds to fit their needs through [[eco-structuring]], strip-mining and rebuilding the planet into a miniature copy of Cybertron, while in other cases Cybertronians may adapt by changing ''themselves'', leaving the planet in a more-or-less natural state. Many universes have established that this period of colonization and expansion occurred in the distant past, with the various colonies cut off from Cybertron in the present day; in the interim, these isolated Transformer outposts may develop over time to become entirely new kinds of Transformer, with their own unique societies.

[[File:TheAutonomyLesson-spaceport.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Post-war Cybertronian society is marked by periods of turmoil and reconstruction.]]

Wartime Cybertronian society is portrayed as heavily polarized between Autobot and Decepticon. Neutrality is rare, and when [[neutral]]s do exist, they generally fare poorly, becoming victims of Decepticon abuse and destruction or being otherwise forced to flee the planet. Those rare universes where the Great War is allowed to come to an end feature reconciliation and reconstruction efforts aimed at rebuilding a wounded planet and otherwise move on from a dark era of death and destruction. But some Transformers are incapable of letting go of their grudges; armed pockets of resistance may hold out for years on backwater planets, while more clever individuals may gather like-minded dissidents to plot revenge from the shadows. Years after the ratification of an official armistice, even the most open-minded of Transformers may still continue clinging to old allegiances, with post-war society developing along strict factionalist lines.

Some Transformers refer to the ideal outcome of Cybertronian civilization as the "[[Pax Cybertronia]]", ushering in a prosperous future for the galaxy by bringing lasting peace to the Transformer homeworld and beyond.
{{-}}

===War===
:''See also: [[Cybertronian Civil Wars]], [[:Category:Wars|Wars]]

[[File:BattleForCybertron.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Most ''Transformers'' stories are set during the "[[Great War (G1)|Great War]]" between the [[Autobot]]s and [[Decepticon]]s.]]

{{quote|'''Unity''' would give way to '''discord'''... '''civil war''' begat a '''Golden Age''' which begat a '''new''' civil war. "'''Why'''" is the question. Why...is Cybertron locked in this '''cycle'''?|[[Shockwave (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Shockwave]]|"[[The Falling, Interlude: The First Who Was Named|The First Who Was Named]]"}}

The history of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] is the history of a planet wracked by brutal civil wars, interspersed with comparatively brief "[[Golden Age]]s" of peace and prosperity. Not unlike [[human]]ity, the process of war and reconciliation tends to be depressingly cyclical: the outcome of one war leads to a disaffected group of individuals who inevitably spark the next great war. Though the most famous war in the ''Transformers'' multiverse tends to be the so-called "Great War," between the (generally) heroic [[Autobot]]s and the (usually) villainous [[Decepticon]]s, many other equally destructive conflicts can and have occurred: the [[First Cybertronian Civil War]], the [[Machine Wars (event)|Machine Wars]], or the [[Grand Uprising]], have all pitted millions of Transformers against one another for control of Cybertron, and sometimes the entire galaxy.

The longevity and power of the Cybertronian race means that their wars tend to be brutal, drawn-out affairs, frequently lasting for millions of years and potentially stretching across dozens of planets—these may be [[Cybertronian colonies]], or "neutral" worlds populated by primitive organics. In many of these conflicts, Cybertron itself is rendered uninhabitable, forcing the war off-world. Cybertronians at war do not seem to follow any kind of rules of engagement analogous to humanity's {{w|Geneva Conventions}}; civilians, noncombatants, and wounded soldiers are considered to be viable targets, and the inhabitants of neutral planets may be exterminated, their homes [[Eco-structuring|cyberformed]], to expand the aegis of a potential [[Decepticon Empire]]. Wide-scale atrocities and ever-more elaborate weapons of war are common, and even many Autobot leaders across the multiverse have found themselves making morally questionable decisions in the name of victory.

The constant wars of the Cybertronian race have greatly stunted their potential development as a species; in [[Nexus 208.0 Epsilon|one of the few universes]] where Cybertron did ''not'' collapse into civil war, the Transformers of that universe gradually evolved into a [[Transcendent Technomorph|highly advanced breed of life]] and devised a system of cross-dimensional travel.
{{-}}

===Politics===
:''See also: [[Transformer government]], [[High Council (disambiguation)|High Council]], [[Prime (rank)]], [[Decepticon leader]]

[[File:Multiplicity Jetfire before High Council.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Many Transformer governments are oligarchic in nature, overseen by a "High Council" of appointed officials.]]

{{quote|Oh, ''great'' system, your "democracy"! No mechanism to break a tie!|[[Dinobot (BW)|Dinobot]]|"[[Chain of Command (BW)|Chain of Command]]"}}

Most Transformer governments are non-democratic in nature, overseen by one or more particularly wise or experienced individuals. This government may be oligarchic in nature, such as the various "[[High Council (disambiguation)|High Council]]s" present throughout the multiverse, monarchic, such as the ancient [[Overlord (rank)|Overlords]] of the [[Marvel Comics continuity]], or an outright dictatorship—benevolent or not. All of them seem to wield a great deal of power over both military and civilian institutions. During wartime situations, command over a faction generally falls to a single autocratic leader, occasionally known as the [[Supreme Commander]]. Though they may seek counsel and consent from their followers, ultimately wartime decisions are theirs and theirs alone to make. Very few continuities have ever depicted a free or open electoral process on pre-war Cybertron.

On the planetary level, Cybertron is generally organized into a series of autonomous [[Polities of Cybertron|city-state]]s with their own independent governments; some continuities have established that this present-day state of events is the result of the fracturing of larger empires during the earliest days of the Cybertronian race. Depending on the universe, these city-states may be represented by Senators, who meet to discuss international issues as part of the planetary governing body known as the [[Senate]].

Particularly noble or otherwise pious Transformers, such as the Autobots, may gravitate to leadership under a single powerful individual known as a [[Prime (rank)|Prime]], who serves as a head of state, spiritual leader, and commander-in-chief all in one. In most franchises, this Prime is leader of the Autobots, and their leadership is demonstrated by their ability to wield the Autobot [[Matrix of Leadership]] which is generally passed from one successor to the next. Several continuities have demonstrated that Autobot leaders ''can'' be removed by the [[Crisis Act]]—essentially a vote of no confidence—but this law is not universal. In the ''[[Transformers Animated (cartoon)|Transformers Animated]]'' continuity, the supreme commander of Autobot civilization is known as a [[Magnus (rank)|Magnus]], who answers to Cybertron's civilian and military guilds.

Those Transformers who rally under the flag of the Decepticons, however, bow only to the supremacy of the [[Decepticon leader|most powerful]] and normally have ''no'' mechanism for peaceful handover of power: power struggles within the faction have occasionally erupted in the form of a [[Decepticon Civil War]].

By the era of the Maximals and Predacons, the planet is dually ruled by both the [[Maximal Elder|Maximal Council of Elders]] and the [[Tripredacus Council]], each seeming to hold jurisdictions over their respective factions. Both appear to be composed of war veterans from the Great War, Autobot and Decepticon veterans who have retired from an active role in Cybertronian life in favour of guiding a new generation of Transformers. The episode "[[Chain of Command (BW)|Chain of Command]]" suggests that Maximal society is [[democracy|democratic]] in nature, though IDW's ''Beast Wars'' comic would namedrop the [[Maximal Imperium]] as the name of their government.

===Religion===
:''See also: [[Religion]], [[:Category:Gods|Gods]]''

[[File:TheSumAndItsParts-OptimusMatrix.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The devout inhabitants of [[Caminus (planet)|Caminus]] worshipped [[Optimus Prime (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Optimus Prime]] as a living god.]]

{{quote|You gotta wonder: if God made man in his image, who made ''him''?|[[Robert Epps]] on [[Optimus Prime (Movie)|Optimus Prime]]|''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (film)|Revenge of the Fallen]]''}}

Across the multiverse, different ''Transformers'' stories have introduced a wide range of potential belief systems for the Cybertronian race—beliefs that have an alarming tendency of eventually being revealed as more-or-less true. Very rarely are Transformers or their society ''writ large'' depicted as atheistic; most Cybertronians seem to hold at least some religious beliefs, though the nature of thieir faiths are not always clearly outlined. Most Autobots (and even some Decepticons), for instance, view the [[Matrix of Leadership]] to be a divine artifact, a combination sacred talisman and symbol of office. Sacred texts such as the [[Covenant of Primus]] and various religious rituals are common enough to be considered largely unremarkable in Cybertronian society.

Just like humans, groups of Transformers may choose to worship various deities, or differing aspects of the same deity. In most series, worship of [[Primus]] is the most predominant of these faiths, though permutations of Primus-worship take many different shapes; the [[2005 IDW continuity]], for instance, conflated Primus with the benevolent pantheon of deities known as the [[Guiding Hand]]. In more recent continuities, Cybertronians have been known to worship the [[Thirteen]], treating them as infallible demigods, and some particularly pious individuals may choose to deify ''all'' those Transformers who hold the rank of [[Prime (rank)|Prime]] or carry the Matrix of Leadership.

[[File:WarWithin Escalation Bludgeons vision.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Some religious choices may have unintended consequences.]]

Other religions are more sinister in nature; ''particularly'' malevolent Cybertronians may choose to partake in illicit rites aimed at channeling arcane forces such as "[[dark science]]". Still others may choose to forsake Transformer society entirely by worshipping the dreaded [[Unicron]]. Among their number are the evil member of the Thirteen known as "[[The Fallen]]," and a number of different incarnations of [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]], both of whom have pledged to actively spread chaos and disharmony across the universe in service of their new master.

A handful of Transformers have displayed the ability to manifest paranormal powers outside the scope of natural Cybertronian science; they may have gained these powers as part of a dark pact with arcane forces, or they may be the result of studying mystical disciplines, like [[magic]]. These rare Transformers may be able to weave illusions, cast spells, fire bolts of mystical energy, commune with or resurrect deceased Transformers, or even divine the future.
{{-}}

===Sciences===
[[File:Spacebridge (Cyberverse - Fractured).jpg|thumb|right|250px|[[Space bridge]]s allow Transformers to instantaneously warp from one location to another, regardless of distance.]]
{{quote|This ship is literally out of this world! Even the [[Fantastic Four]]'s brilliant leader, [[Mister Fantastic|Reed Richards]], would feel like a kid at his first science fair in here!|[[Spider-Man]]|"[[Prisoner of War!]]"}}

As robotic beings who predate the earliest humans by millions of years, it should come as no surprise that Cybertronian technology far outstrips the sum total of humanity's scientific development. Exotic technologies that defy our conventional understanding of physics are treated as commonplace; Cybertronian starships, and even those Transformers who ''become'' starships, for instance, are capable of {{w|faster-than-light}} travel and able to traverse vast distances in a short period of time. [[Space bridge]] technology goes even further than that, allowing travelers to instantaneously warp billions of lightyears, completely bypassing the need for an interstellar voyage. Artificial intelligences of varying levels of sophistication coexist alongside their sentient creators, and exotic chemical compounds are commonplace in both military and civilian uses.

When it is portrayed at all, academia on Cybertron is very much akin to its Earthen counterparts; Transformers may choose to specialize in one or more scientific disciplines—physics, engineering, and biology being the most common. Perhaps as a result of their biological immortality, scientific progress seems to occur far more slowly for Cybertronians than it does for humanity; outside of minor innovations and development of weapons, Cybertron has been known to have technology largely stagnate for millions of years, whether within or outside of wartime. Indeed, [[Vector Prime]] has [[Source:Ask Vector Prime/Facebook#CybertronianTech|noted]] that in [[The Transformers (cartoon)|certain universes]], technology developed more in the few decades following the Transformers' first contact with Earth than it did for millions of years beforehand, implying that humanity's [[Human Confederacy|own rapid development]] could act as a "catalyst" for the Transformers' advancements.

===Art===
: ''See also: [[Transformer music]], [[:Category:Artists|Artists]]''

[[File:Caged bulkhead.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Some Cybertronians have been known to study the artistic legacies of other species... though the results can be questionable.]]
{{quote|Destruction is the highest form of art.|[[Slog (G1)|Slog]]'s motto|[[Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|More than Meets the Eye]]'' profile}}
The Transformers have been shown to have a very active [[Transformer music|musical tradition]]. The [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]] itself has an archive of 11 million traditional Cybertronian songs. Many Transformers such as [[Jazz (G1)|Jazz]] and [[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] have shown great interest in music, and [[Squawkbox]] is one prominent example of a Cybertronian musician.

Furthermore, sculpture seems to be one of the primary art forms of Cybertron, with many Transformers dedicated to it. One notable (and gruesome) school of sculpture, practiced by a startling number of Transformers involves making art out of the bodies of other Transformers. The [[Slogism]] movement is a part of this school.

Filmmaking is also practiced on Cybertron, though most examples seen are either [[Proteus's Promise|documentaries]] or [[The Birth of Cybertron|straight-up propaganda]]. Attempts by Cybertronians have also been made to produce films more inspired by the human art of cinema, but the results [[Dark Invasion|tend to]] [[Starscream: The Movie (film)|be lacking]].
{{-}}

===Linguistics===
: ''See also: [[Cybertronian language]], [[Cybertronix]], [[Cybertronian Standard]], [[Cyberglyphics]], [[Ancient Cybertronian]]''

[[File:ToWalkAmongTheChosen-Spanish.jpg|thumb|right|200px|[[Optimus Prime (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Optimus Prime]] displays the ability to fluently speak Spanish while deployed in [[Mexico City]].]]

{{quote|You must realize that our actual "names" are communicated in an alien language wholly orthogonal to the human experience, and we often translate not just words but concepts. Since these are sometimes culturally dependent, our algorithms use sophisticated "best-fit" methodologies to ensure that even if a translation is not literal, it is resonant.|[[Vector Prime]]|[[Ask Vector Prime]]}}

Nothing if not adaptable, Cybertronians can quickly adapt to life on a new planet by instantaneously learning the local languages, allowing them to fluently and easily communicate with native lifeforms. The process by which this is done so is not always so clear-cut; the [[Transformers (film)|2007 film]] credited this skill to the Autobots' ability to access the [[Internet]], while [[Recipe for Disaster!|an issue]] of the [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|Marvel Comic]] suggested that it was a natural ability, albeit one that that required time to unscramble and synthesize the language for Cybertronians. Various Transformers have referred to their names as "code-names," suggesting that their names as humans understand them are not their ''real'' names, but merely translated to get a similar ''idea'' of their true name across.

[[File:Other voices text.jpg|thumb|left|200px|''[[Beast Wars: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]'' introduced separate languages for both Maximals and Predacons.]]

It can be safely assumed that stories set exclusively on Cybertron or setting otherwise devoid of humans have "translated" dialogue for the benefits of us, the viewer, though the ''implication'' is certainly that these Cybertronians are "really" speaking in their native tongue. What, exactly, spoken Cybertronian language sounds like is something of a mystery; the live-action film series, at least, have established that the native tongue of those Transformers is a collection of garbled electronic noises, its pitch and speed depending on the size of the 'bot in question. Transformers who are unable, or unwilling, to speak may use nonverbal languages, such as [[chirolinguistics]] or [[Cybertronian Sign Language]].

Our knowledge of written languages is more concrete; over the years, a variety of Cybertronian calligraphies have surfaced, depending on era and faction—[[Maximal]]s use a different language than [[Predacon (BW)|Predacon]]s, and both differ from the languages of [[Autobot]]s from [[Decepticon]]. Out of universe, these "written languages" tend to be rather simple 1-1 cyphers of the English alphabet, and as a result of this, many stories have taken the opportunity to sneak in various [[Easter egg]]s in the form of hidden messages, for the benefit of those ultra-geeky fans.
{{-}}

===Medicine===
{{See also|:Category:Medics|l1=Medics}}

[[File:TheBecoming-MegatronAndRatchet.jpg|thumb|right|275px|While Cybertronian medical procedures superficially resemble human ones, the techniques involved are more similar to vehicle maintenance.]]
{{quote|Miko, a T-Cog is a ''biomechanism'', not a scrapyard find. If it were that easy, don't you think I would have replaced Bumblebee's voice box by now?|[[Ratchet (WFC)|Ratchet]]|"[[Operation Bumblebee, Part 1]]"}}

Cybertronians are an adaptable and robust race, able to survive even grevious injuries, but seriously injured or ailing Transformers may turn to members of Cybertron's medical community for assistance. The robotic nature of their bodies means that a Cybertronian "doctor" is a combination mechanic, roboticist, and physician, who must be able to accurately assess and repair damage to their patient's mechanical form. Individual specializations exist, such as "[[blacksmith]]s"—essentially, a Cybertronian obstetrician—but most in-fiction Transformer medicine comes in the form of on-the-ground battlefield repairs, designed to get wounded soldiers back on their feet and into the fight as quickly as possible.

Different educational institutions on Cybertron have been known to offer courses in medicine, and the realities of war mean that their services are in generally high demand. Some particularly deranged medics may fall in with the [[Decepticon]]s or other unsavory sorts, developing [[Ratchet (SG)|exotic and oftentimes gruesome "treatments"]] to perform on both both friends and foes, or concocting exotic new [[Cosmic Rust (disease)|disease-based bioweapons]] designed to wreak havoc on their enemies.

Generally, Cybertronian physicians choose to transform into ambulances and other "first responder" vehicles, and even those who don't often sport red-and-white color schemes.
{{-}}

===Romance===
: ''See also: [[Transformer romance]], [[Conjunx Endura]], [[Kiss]]

[[File:TheGloaming-iloveyou.jpg|thumb|right|200px|[[Chromedome (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Chromedome]] and [[Rewind (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Rewind]] would popularize the term "[[Conjunx Endura]]" as the official term for a romantic union between Transformers.]]

{{quote|Nudge nudge, wink, wink - know what I mean?|[[Wreck-Gar (G1)|Wreck-Gar]]|"[[Fire on High!]]"}}

Although their means of propagation tend towards the asexual, the Transformer psyche is not dissimilar enough to a human's that they do not crave the same kinds of long-term social bonds that we do, and though the story of ''Transformers'' is primarily one of war, various continuities have established that Cybertronians are also capable of the same kind of romantic affection that humans regularly engage in. This behavior dates back to the earliest days of the franchise; though it was never ''explicitly'' spelled out, dialogue in [[The Transformers (cartoon)|the 1984 cartoon]] made it abundantly clear that [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]] and [[Elita One (G1)|Elita One]] held one another in high regard, with similar implications continuing through the [[The Transformers: The Movie|1986 animated film]] and its treatment of both the "swashbuckling hero" [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] and the distinctly feminine [[Arcee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Arcee]]. Some instances of romance are depicted as serious, while others are distinctly played for laughs, such as the Predacon [[Scylla]]'s emphatically one-sided crush on the Maximal [[Ikard]].

[[File:Pgalove.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Cybertronians may fall in love with [[human]]s or other organic lifeforms.]]

In rarer cases, Cybertronians may fall in love with [[human]]s or [[alien]]s (though their feelings may not always be reciprocated), while particularly clueless Cybertronians may develop an attraction to inanimate objects—see [[Side Burn (RID)|Side Burn]] and his inexplicable romantic attraction to red sports cars. Other Transformers may consider this behavior ''strange'', but there do not seem to be any explicit taboos against it either.

Though one would assume that—as basically sexless lifeforms—the average Transformer would not display any real kind of preference when it comes to the already vague concept of Transformer gender, most ''Transformers'' fiction has largely displayed Transformers in "straight" relationships, with "male" Cybertronians falling in love with "female" Cybertronians and vice versa. Only comparatively recently as this situation begun to change; in [[2012]], ''[[Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|More than Meets the Eye]]'' made history by introducing [[Chromedome (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Chromedome]] and [[Rewind (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Rewind]] as the first definitively identified same-sex couple, with many more following in their footsteps. ''More than Meets the Eye'' would dub individuals in this kind of relationship as "[[Conjunx Endura]]e," the first official name for the concept and the term that would become the standard terminology to describe romantically intertwined Transformers of any gender.
{{--}}

==Related species==
:''See also: [[Junkion (species)|Junkion]], [[Lithone (species)|Lithone]], [[Sharkticon (species)|Sharkticon]], [[Gorlamite]], [[Stentarian]], [[Go-Bot (species)|Go-Bot]]
[[File:TFTM-WreckGarsits.jpg|thumb|right|300px|The Junkions had the ability to transform into motorcycle forms, which others of their species could ride. In some continuities, they are alien creatures, while in others they are the descendents of stranded Cybertronian colonists.]]
What is a Transformer? Going over the criteria that we have laid out here, the question seems a simple one at first blush: an alien robot who can transform from one form to another. The truth behind the answer isn't quite as easy to define, however; the ''Transformers'' franchise has populated its fictional universe with a variety of other [[alien]] species who superficially resemble Transformers, most notably the eccentric [[Junkion (species)|Junkions]] and the ravenous [[Sharkticon (species)|Sharkticon]]s. In some instances, one could assume that these creatures are the process of a sort of {{w|convergent evolution}}, sharing a similar bodyplan despite originating on planets far from Cybertron.

Some more recent continuities, most notably the [[Aligned continuity family]], have established—apparently to preserve the "uniqueness" of the Cybertronian race—that these groups are actually the ''descendants'' of ancestral Cybertronians, who adapted both physically and culturally to survive on different worlds. This is not a hard-and-fast rule, however, and many modern continuities, such as the [[2005 IDW continuity|original IDW continuity]], have continued to treat these groups as entirely unrelated alien species.
{{--}}

==Notes==
===Foreign names===
*''Japanese:'' '''Transformer''' (トランスフォーマー ''Toransufōmā'')
*''Mandarin:'' '''Biànxíng Jīngāng''' (变形金刚, "Transforming Vajra")

==External links==
*{{i|Transformer}} at the IDW Hasbro Wiki
*[[wikia:memory-beta:Cybertronian|Cybertronian]] at Memory Beta, the non-canon ''Star Trek'' wiki

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Mistress of Flame

2020-12-21T09:35:49Z

OrderlySummit: /* Notes */ I asked Sarah what TMoF's alt-mode is months ago and finally got around to updating it here

:''The Mistress of Flame is a [[Caminus (planet)|Camien]] leader from the [[2005 IDW continuity|IDW portion]] of the [[Generation 1 continuity family]].''

[[File:MistressOfFlame.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.67|The course the Prophets choose for us may not always be comfortable. But we must follow it.]]

Though the [[Forgefire Parliament]] ostensibly governs the Cybetronian colony of [[Caminus (planet)|Caminus]], it's clear that the people of Caminus revere the '''Mistress of Flame'''. The high priestess of the [[Way of Flame]], the Mistress and her adherents believe that the [[Thirteen|the original Thirteen Transformers]] were gods, and that each inhabitant of Caminus possesses a piece of the spark of [[Solus Prime]]; supported by an order of [[Torchbearer]]s assembled to uphold the legacy of Solus Prime, the Mistress is an imposing figure who both commands and ''demands'' respect—and doesn't take blasphemers lightly.

While a devout practitioner of her faith, the latest Transformer to hold the title of Mistress is also a canny and adept manipulator when it comes to matters more secular. The arrival of [[Optimus Prime (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Optimus Prime]]—supposedly the mythical [[The Arisen|"Thirteenth Prime"]]—proved a boon to her, and as the interstellar [[Council of Worlds]] takes shape, she's resolved to build Optimus into ''her'' idea of what a worthy [[Prime (rank)|Prime]] should represent... whether he wants to or not.

{{quote|It is only the purest servant of Solus Prime who can keep forging until they reach the real miracle... the creation of a single true thing.|The Mistress of Flame|"[[Your First Mistake]]"}}

==Fiction==
===Generation 1 continuity family===
====2005 IDW continuity====
{{first|[[The Sum and Its Parts|Transformers: Windblade vol. 2 #1]]}}

[[File:GhostStories-mistressandpyra.jpg|thumb|left|250px|"Would you like to see the vacation photos?"]]

In the distant past, before the energon shortages made space travel impossible, Caminus detected a Cybertronian beacon from the planet [[Antilla]]. The linguist [[Magrada]] was sent along with [[Praesidia Magna|Praesidia]] and the '''Matriarch of Incaendium'''. Upon arriving on the planet, the trio found an [[Nemesis (BWII)|unnatural mechanical mountain]]. Despite Magrada's warnings, the Matriarch approached the mountain which split open to reveal an enormous optic and the ruler of the land: [[Shockwave (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Onyx Prime]]. The bestial Prime beheaded Magrada while the other two Camiens escaped. Upon returning to Caminus, it was found that the Mistress of Flame had perished and the Matriarch ascended to the position. Her first act was to promote Praesidia to leadership of the [[Torchbearer]]s. The experience would forever haunt the Mistress. {{storylink|The Falling, Chapter 1: Surfeit of Primes|Surfeit of Primes}}

Following a disastrous Torchbearer mission where both [[Praesidia Magna]] and [[Fastbreak (G1)|Fastbreak]] were killed in action, the Mistress met with [[Pyra Magna|Pyra]], who was experiencing recurring nightmares of her commander's death on Antilla. The Mistress recounted her discovery of Antilla, but accepted Praesidia's death as part of the will of the Primes. Though Pyra was still uneasy about the circumstances behind her commander's death, she remained a member of the Torchbearers, taking command of the group and becoming "Pyra Magna". {{storylink|Ghost Stories}} The Mistress would subsequently cover up this attack. {{storylink|The Falling, Chapter 2: Another Mine|Another Mine}}

When the Cybertronian explorer [[Thunder Clash|Thunderclash]] made contact with Caminus shortly after the end of the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]], the Mistress of Flame chose Windblade, [[Chromia (G1)|Chromia]], and [[Nautica (G1)|Nautica]] to join his crew in the hopes of reconnecting with their ancestral homeworld and gather aid for their dying planet. {{storylink|If I Know You}}

Contact with Cybertron would arrive some years later, though not in the way that the Camiens had anticipated; following the reintroduction of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] to [[Caminus (planet)|Caminus]] by way of a violent rampage by [[Menasor (G1)|Menasor]] and his defeat by [[Superion (G1)|Superion]], [[Windblade (G1)|Windblade]] requested an audience with the Mistress of Flame. Presumably, the Cityspeaker explained that [[Optimus Prime (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Optimus Prime]], keeper of the Matrix of Leadership, was visiting, and all that that implied, as subsequently she arrived to greet the former [[Autobot]] commander. Upstaging [[Starscream (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Starscream]]'s attempt at first contact with Caminus's ruling body, Optimus Prime displayed that he was a Matrix bearer as the Mistress of Flame and the others bowed before him. {{storylink|The Sum and Its Parts}} The Mistress became convinced that Optimus was none other than "The Arisen": the incarnation of the legendary Thirteenth Prime. {{storylink|All Hail Optimus Part 3: The Medium and the Message|The Medium and the Message}}

[[File:TheSumAndItsParts-MistressofFlame.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.67|You may go now, my child.]]

The wheels quickly came off when the sacred Prime showed up to a meeting with [[Circuit (G1)|reporters]], saying "the people" had a right to know what was going on. To the Mistress's appalled confusion, the Prime kept talking about [[democracy]] and the blasphemous idea of letting people choose instead of telling them what was best, as was his duty as the infallible divine font. He even went to risk ''his life'' on the surface! She was rebuked when she protested and was left angry. {{storylink|The Possible Light}}

After the [[Combiner Wars (event)|messy first contact]] and the formation of the [[Council of Worlds]], the Mistress of Flame called Windblade to a meeting. The Cityspeaker warned her that Starscream still had control over all the [[combiner]]s and she was unsure why the Prime had asked her to accept [[Rattrap (BW)|Rattrap]] as Cybertron's council representative. In response, the Mistress advised her that a true servant of Solus Prime needed to keep going forward and working: "the forging is where impurities are removed ... and all that remains is the burning heart of truth itself." {{storylink|All That Remains}}

The Mistress of Flame believed she knew the true name of "[[The Arisen]]", one of the two anonymous members of the [[Thirteen|Thirteen Prime]]s. One of her Torchbearer groups, under Pyra Magna, considered this blasphemous and abandoned her for it. {{storylink|Conquerors Part 2: Lagrange|Lagrange}}

[[File:Aphelion-MistressAndNewTorchbearers.jpg|thumb|left|250px|"What thee are about to see comes down from the time of the beginning, without change. This is the [[Vulcan]] heart. This is the Vulcan soul. This is our way."]]

Optimus eventually asked the Mistress of Flame to tell her followers to ''stop'' worshipping him. Instead, she berated him for ignoring his legacy as a Prime and the legends of a [[Pax Cybertronia]], that the ascension of Cybertron didn't have to mean tyranny. She pushed him into snarling that he defended Earth because ''all'' sentient beings defend freedom and then confronted him with how this was the word of Primus; his role was to bring freedom to all and he could surely bring more of it to Earth, provide it resources and topple its tyrants. To her, it seemed that Optimus had seen so much corruption and war that he could not believe "anyone would act ''altruistically''". Optimus mulled this over and casually tried to see if Windblade could vouch for the Mistress as trustworthy. {{storylink|Conquerors Part 1: Aphelion|Aphelion}}

Her words led him down the path to annexing Earth into the Council as an Autobot protectorate. He was haunted by a vision of [[Aileron]] as a new Mistress of Flame {{storylink|All Hail Optimus Part 1: Once Upon a Time on Earth|Once Upon a Time on Earth}} and nightmares in which the incumbent decried him for sacrificing others for his ambition, and he decided to open up communications to the Mistress of Flame, Starscream, and Soundwave to discuss what to do. {{storylink|All Hail Optimus Part 2: Edge of the Earth|Edge of the Earth}} Optimus travelled to Caminus to meet with the Mistress, where she expounded on her theory that Earth was one of the thirteen lost colonies... and that Optimus Prime was the Arisen, destined to rule Earth as the ancient Primes had once governed their respective colony worlds. {{storylink|All Hail Optimus Part 3: The Medium and the Message|The Medium and the Message}}

[[File:BehindMyBleedingBack-MistressofFlame.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.67|Now ''that'' is a face you can trust.]]

When a horde of undead [[Titan (group)|Titan]]s threatened Cybertron, the Mistress organized the evacuation efforts as the Transformers relocated their sick and wounded to Caminus. {{storylink|Ping}} Though the Titans were repelled, Windblade was gravely injured by her traumatic experience with [[Vigilem]], and, as a result, the Mistress took her place on the Council. {{storylink|New Cybertron Part 3: Behind My Bleeding Back|Behind My Bleeding Back}} In the wake of the crisis, Starscream —struggling to cope with the threat of a released [[Liege Maximo]]—mulled over his next moves with representatives from the colonies. The Mistress of Flame agreed with [[Elita One (G1)|Elita One]]'s belief that news of the Liege Maximo's escape should be concealed from the public for fear of inciting widespread panic, though ultimately Chancellor Starscream made the final decision. The Mistress stayed behind to discuss [[Chromia (G1)|Chromia]]'s recent exploits, requesting that she be released into Camien custody. After some soul-searching, Starscream did so, but on the condition that she be released to hunt down and kill the treacherous Prime. {{storylink|Heavy}}

The Council next convened when Optimus travelled to Cybertron to discuss sharing their technology with the recently arrived [[Junkion (species)|Junkion]]s on Earth. Though the Camien leader vouched for Optimus, noting that he'd divinely "proved" Earth's status as a Transformer world, Starscream ultimately shot down the proposal, citing a violation of the [[Tyrest Accord]]. {{storylink|New Cybertron Part 3: Behind My Bleeding Back|Behind My Bleeding Back}} Optimus would eventually pull some political stunts of his own to force Earth to join the Council as an equal; when Earth officially joined the Council of Worlds, [[Joe Colton|Baron Ironblood]] and his [[Iron Ring]] laid siege to [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]]. In the emergency meeting to discuss the fate of [[Scarlett]] and her team of humans, the Mistress vocally protested Elita's dismissive attitude towards Optimus Prime. {{storylink|First Strike issue 4|First Strike #4}}

[[File:TheChosenOne-MistressOfSlap.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Doink!]]

When the humans had been defeated and Earth's spot secured on the Council, Windblade arrived to formally retake her place as a Council delegate; discovering that Starscream ''still'' hadn't told Cybertron about the Liege Maximo, she quickly turned on the Mistress of Flame for taking part in the deception, who, in turn, slapped Windblade when the Cityspeaker blasphemed against the Primes. Incensed, Windblade went to [[Circuit (G1)|Circuit]] and [[Longtooth]] to tell them about the Liege Maximo, and as panic spread across Iacon the Mistress preemptively stripped Windblade of her status as a delegate and banished her from Caminus. {{storylink|The Chosen One}}

After Windblade had been elected as ruler of the [[Republic of Cybertron]], the Mistress sought out [[Alpha Trion (G1)|The Trion]] and told the ancient Prime of her encounter on Antilla. After advising [[Scoop (G1)|Scoop]] to take his grievances out on Starscream instead of the Primes, the Mistress made her way to the Space Bridge reflecting that all the myths and legends she'd grown up worshipping had let her down. When Optimus Prime came through with an [[Ore-13]] shipment, the Mistress requested a private word before a shadow fell over the city and Onyx Prime returned to Cybertron atop his optic craft with Liege Maximo as his prisoner. {{storylink|The Falling, Chapter 1: Surfeit of Primes|Surfeit of Primes}} In the subsequent Council meeting, the Mistress vocally supported Optimus, continuing to believe he was the Arisen, being Cybertron's champion against Onyx bringing up the bestial Prime's attack on Caminus as proof of his sinister motives. After a mysterious explosion ripped through the [[Spire]], and claimed the life of Alpha Trion, {{storylink|The Falling, Chapter 2: Another Mine|Another Mine}} the Mistress knelt by his corpse. {{storylink|The Falling, Chapter 3: The Ground|The Ground}}

[[File:Unicron1-solusforge.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Oh Flame Princess, I think you're rad.]]

When [[Unicron/Generation 1|Unicron]] awoke and began to feast upon Caminus, the Mistress oversaw evacuation efforts through the space bridge to Cybertron. When the attacking [[Maximal]]s broke through resistance and made planetfall, the Mistress took it upon herself to protect her people until all of them could evacuate, stepping in place of [[Pyra Magna]]. Entrusting her [[Forgehammer]] to Pyra, the Mistress of Flame lived up to her title by projecting blasts of flame from her chest to incinerate the onslaught. Unfortunately, the enemy was too great in number, and the Mistress was soon overwhelmed by the Maximal horde. Her sacrifice allowed all the citizens of Caminus to evacuate to Cybertron safely, and Pyra Magna, still holding her sacred hammer, mourned her passing. {{storylink|Last Stand (Unicron)|Last Stand}}

Though Caminus fell—followed shortly thereafter by Cybertron—the Cybertronian race was able to blunt Unicron's advance over Earth; subsequently, it was Pyra Magna who took up the mantle of the new Mistress of Flame, wielding her predecessor's Forgehammer while rebuilding the Torchbearers to include new members [[Swift (G1)|Swift]] and [[Slide]]. {{storylink|Post}}

====''Prime Wars Trilogy'' cartoons====
{{voiceactor|[[Lana McKissack]] (English)}}
{{charstubfiction|{{storylink|Prelude to Transformers: Combiner Wars - Starscream}}{{storylink|Prelude to Transformers: Combiner Wars - Windblade}}{{storylink|The Council}}{{storylink|Homecoming (CW)|Homecoming}}{{storylink|A War of Giants}}{{storylink|Darkest Hour (CW)|Darkest Hour}}{{storylink|Destruction's Dawn}}}}
[[File:Machinima-Titans-Return-Ep3-MistressFalling.jpg|left|thumb|300px|In the name of Tom Petty.]]
In the aftermath of the Combiner Wars, the Mistress of Flame organized the reconstruction efforts on Cybertron. She apologized to Optimus Prime for distrusting him and offered him a seat on the Council, but Prime turned her down, suggesting [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]] for the role to her chagrin. {{storylink|Aftermath and Rebirth}} Shortly thereafter, the Mistress was engaged in business at the [[Primal Basilica]] when [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]] began rampaging through Metroplex City. Briefed on the situation by Windblade and Perceptor, the Mistress took charge and began ordering countermeasures, including calling on the [[Elite Air Resistance Squadron]] to attack Trypticon and sending the Combiners to find [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]]. {{storylink|Our Heroes Respond}} Eventually, she ordered Perceptor to reboot the Basilica's defenses and headed to the prayer chamber to call upon the [[Thirteen]] for guidance. {{storylink|The Fight Begins}}
[[File:TR-Ep4-Overlord-and-Emissary-Mistress-of-Flame-dies.jpg|thumb|300px|Directed by Alfred Hitchcock.]]
While she prayed for a miracle, [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]] arrived and attacked her. The Mistress attempted to defend herself, but Overlord proved too strong and overpowered her, demanding to know Megatron's whereabouts. When the Mistress didn't respond, Overlord threw her into one of the lights, electrocuting her, and left her for dead. {{storylink|Overlord and Emissary}} Megatron arrived a short time later, finding her at death's door. When asked who did this to her, the Mistress offered Overlord's name before finally succumbing to her wounds. {{storylink|At the Last Second}} A short time later, Perceptor and Optimus found the Mistress's corpse, though they were unable to find any evidence identifying her killer. The Combiners learned of the Mistress's death from Megatron and attacked him, assuming him responsible, but he used a recording of her last words to vindicate himself. {{storylink|Desperate Actions}}
{{-}}

===''Cyberverse'' cartoon===
Upon seeing the effects of the [[Dweller (Cyberverse)|Dweller]]'s hypnotic gas, [[Chromia (Cyberverse)|Chromia]] swore by the Mistress of Flame. {{storylink|Dweller In The Depths (Cyberverse)|Dweller In The Depths}}

==Notes==
*The Mistress of Flame isn't the first person to have [[Matrix Flame priest|a fire-themed religious connection to the Matrix of Leadership]].
*The Mistress has never been shown to transform. Whatever her alt-mode is remains unknown. That being said, if [[Sarah Stone]] were to draw her alt-mode it would be a [https://twitter.com/fayren/status/1301725878444060674?s=20/ "spikey shaped stealth bomber"] vehicle.
*Though generally seen holding her [[Forgehammer]], the accessory was never named until [[2018]]'s [[Stranger Eons|''Unicron'' #2]].

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