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Megatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

2014-01-10T16:06:35Z

Solaar: /* The long game */

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{{factions|decepticon}}
[[File:IDWMegatron.jpg|thumb|300x342px|Megatron A, Megatron B, Megatron Retailer's Incentive, and Megatron Dynamic Forces Exclusive variant.]]
'''Megatron''' waged a battle to destroy the evil forces of the [[Senate]]! Then he ''continued'' to wage a war against the evil forces of freedom, organic life, and the very idea of an Autobot living.

{{quote|In the final analysis, I would happily wade across a river of corpses, chest-deep in rust and grease and engine oil, just to crush the Spark of the last Autobot standing. And I would not do so simply as a means to an end. No. I'd do it, Prime, because it would give me ''pleasure''.|Megatron to Optimus Prime|''[[Chaos Theory Part 1]]''}}

__TOC__
==IDW Generation 1 comics==
{{ongoing}}
===Birth of a tyrant===
[[File:ChaosTheory1 megatron symbol creation.jpg|left|thumb|300px|... And thus the "Silica Fracturism" art movement was born.]]
Long ago, before the war and under the reign of [[Nominus Prime]], Megatron of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]] was an [[energon]] miner, a member of the lower class, living near [[Rodion]]. An intellectual and a poet, Megatron was sickened by the caste-ridden social apartheid of Cybertronian society—where your form determined your role, and your role your rights—and so he wrote [[After the Ark: Nominus Prime and the Illusion of Progress|a treatise]] on how pacifist dissent and the exchange of ideas could change things. It was while he was sharing this work with his miner friend [[Impactor (G1)|Impactor]] over a drink in [[Maccadam's Old Oil House|Maccadam's New Oil House]] that the event occurred which would change the course of his life, as Impactor wound up being drawn into a bar brawl with some of the city's upper classes and Megatron was among those arrested after the fracas. In order to silence his increasingly loud voice of dissent against their regime, the [[Senate]] arranged for a police officer on their payroll, [[Whirl (G1)|Whirl]], to kill Megatron, but before Whirl could finish the job, police captain [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]], having discovered Megatron's innocence, arranged for his release. [[File:Minermegs.jpg|225px|thumb|Now that's the look of a well-adjusted individual.]] Despite Pax expressing support for the message of his writings, Megatron now found himself filled with rage and hate, disillusioned with his former ideology and realiing the power of applied violence. Angrily hurling the datapad on which he had written his treatise through a public info-screen, Megatron observed the jagged shape of the shattered glass, and later turned it into a [[insignia|symbol]] for his cause. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

Megatron's samizdat writings began to circulate in Cybertron's underground, spawning the "[[Decepticon]]" movement, its name derived from its own slogan, "You are being deceived", warning the common 'bot of the Senate's true nature. Knowing that, at this stage, assassinating Megatron would merely make him a martyr, the Senate instead elected to relocate him off-planet, re-assigning him to [[Mining Outpost C-12]] on the world of [[Messatine]] while they tried their own schemes to defuse the growing Decepticon movement. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}}

Megatron continued to seethe with hate and frustration in his new workplace, which reached a peak when, some time later, [[Decimus|Senator Decimus]] arrived to announce that the mine was being closed immediately and the workers would be relocated. When one of the Senator's guards killed a worker for insubordination and claims of Senate corruption, Megatron's fury boiled over and he hurled his pickaxe at Decimus. In turn, he was attacked by the Senator's guard, whom he killed by smashing his head to fragments. A riot erupted around him, but Megatron himself could only sit amongst the chaos, staring at his fuel-stained hands in abject horror, which allowed him to be easily pacified and rounded up with the other miners as the mayhem was quickly suppressed. En route to [[Penal Facility H-3|imprisonment]] back on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], however, [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] and [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] broke free and started a riot aboard [[Longshot (G1)|their ship]]. Megatron joined in their effort, and together, they overpowered their guards, took control of the ship, and disappeared into the [[Kaon]] underground. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}}
[[File:MegsOrigin2 Cykill.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
After evading law enforcement, Megatron joined a team of underworld gladiators under the tutelage of [[Clench (G1)|Clench]]. Initially repulsed by killing his opponents, the games eventually turned him more brutal and excessive, and he took control of the entire operation from Clench. The opportunistic Senator [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], after seeing how much money there was in the underworld matches, covertly sent his agent [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] to offer Megatron weaponry and technology to upgrade himself and his comrades. Their meeting was spied upon by [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (G1)|Fastback]], agents from the Senate's forces, who Megatron slew. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}} Subsequently, impressed by how he treated his animal-form [[Decepticon Mini-Cassette|cassette partners]] as equals (in contradiction to the teachings of his Senate masters), Megatron invited Soundwave back to the gladiator pits and gave him permission to use his mind-reading abilities on him. Within Megatron's mind, Soundwave saw his honest desire for all Cybertronians to be true equals, and was so moved by it that he joined Megatron's cause. {{storylink|Soundwaves (issue)|Soundwaves}}

Gradually, Megatron used the gladiatorial games to drum up an army of violent malcontents, sending Soundwave to recruit more and more warriors to his cause. Such recruits included [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]], who he was presented with while having an arm he lost in a brawl replaced with a new limb that incorporated an [[energon mace]], {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} and the disenfranchised warrior [[Drift (G1)|Drift]], who was personally asked by Megatron to fight at his side when he attended a Decepticon rally, and whom Megatron rechristened "Deadlock". {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}} Seeking to enhance his army even further, Megatron reached out to [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Senator Shockwave]], offering to supply him the resources to perfect the teachings of his lost mentor [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] and create a [[combiner]] that would serve the Decepticons. Shockwave cautioned that it could take some time, but Megatron was content to wait. {{storylink|Shockwaves}}

[[File:Apexthrone.JPG|250px|thumb|right|You should have gone to IKEA.]]
Despite all his efforts, Megatron believed that the Senate was still not taking the Decepticons seriously, so Soundwave formulated a plan for a declaration of intent that could be not denied: lure the Senate to Kaon and murder them. {{storylink|Soundwaves (issue)|Soundwaves}} In preparation for this scheme, Megatron offered to restore Shockwave's lost hands—a victim of [[empurata]]—believing that doing so might speed his work. {{storylink|Shockwaves}} The following day, in accordance with Soundwave's plan, Megatron and the Decepticons allowed themselves to be arrested by Sentinel Prime's men, after which Soundwave was freed on Ratbat's orders, while Starscream would ensure his own release by pretending to defect. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} Together, Soundwave and Starscream exterminated the entire Senate, then liberated Megatron and the rest of their comrades, in the process granting their leader the gift of a [[fusion cannon]] liberated from the Senate forces' armory. Megatron led his army against Sentinel Prime's men, killed Sentinel himself, and took control of Kaon, now ready to turn his insurgency into a full-blown war. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

===Early days of war===

Megatron formally declared war on "[[Declaration Day]]" when he delivered a stirring speach from [[Nova Point|Nova Peak]]. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} The growing Decepticon forces swiftly spread across six [[Polities of Cybertron|Torus-States]], {{storylink|Parasites}} and to combat them, Cybertron's new leader [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]] assembled a new military force, the "[[Autobot]]s", led by Megatron's old acquaintance [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]]. Researching his new opposite number, Megatron was intrigued to discover that his now-abandoned treatise had been a source of inspiration for Pax, who had even quoted from it when he confronted the Senate and openly accused them of corruption. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}} Early into the war, [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] would admit to Pax that Megatron talked about him sometimes, when he was tired. When Pax asked what was said, Bludgeon told him that it would make "both of us feel ''uncomfortable''". {{storylink|Omega's Conundrum}}
[[File:Autocracy4 backroom meeting.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]
When Orion Pax came close to Kaon during a mission, Megatron saw it as a chance to speak to him and had his Decepticons bring him in. {{storylink|The Hunt for Soundwave}} Megatron attempted to convince him that Zeta Prime was even worse than he appeared—that he had planned tto let Orion die in [[Nyon]] so that he could use his death as pretext to invade the rebel-infested city and drain the citizens of their energon—and proposed they work together against him, but Orion refused to hear him and then escaped. Knowing the doubts he'd placed in his head would only serve to damage the Autobot cause, Megatron let him go. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}}
[[File:Autocracy8 megs and pax together.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Banzai!]]
Megatron continued to keep an eye on Orion Pax's activities, spying on his encounter with the Nyon insurgent [[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hot Rod]]. {{storylink|Ruins}} When Zeta Prime's [[Guardian robot|Omega Destructor]]s suddenly attacked Nyon, Megatron was surprised by how zealously the new Prime fought against the city's rebels, but his real interest still lay on how Orion would handle the crisis. {{storylink|Purge}} Orion turned on Zeta, who in turn attempted to kill him, prompting Megatron to intervene and force the Prime to retreat. Taking Orion back to Kaon, he again offered that they work together against Zeta's corruption, and this time the Autobot officer accepted. {{storylink|Choices}} As their combined forces invaded the [[Citadel]] in Iacon, Megatron and Orion Pax made their way inside and fought Zeta Prime in person. The battle ended with Megatron killing the Prime with a head shot, and with his objective complete, he then betrayed the injured Orion by shooting him in the back. {{storylink|Overthrown}} Curiously, an alternate report incorrectly implied that Megatron had assassinated Zeta from afar, sniping him with the rifle alternate mode of [[Vos (DJD)|Vos]]. {{storylink|Bullets}} {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}}
[[File:Autocracy12 no you dont megatron.jpg|left|thumb|250px|This seems so familiar...]]
With Zeta dead, Megatron conquered Iacon and declared himself ruler of Cybertron. His soldiers patrolled the planet's streets to "keep the peace", mostly by hunting down and capturing any remaining Autobots who opposed him. {{storylink|Transformation (issue)|Transformation}} During his rule, Megatron attempted to sway the neutral Hot Rod into joining the Decepticons, but he decided otherwise upon witnessing Megatron ordering the execution of several Autobot prisoners. {{storylink|Rise}} Megatron was shocked to learn that Orion Pax had survived the betrayal and was organizing a rebellion against him under the name "Optimus Prime", and even more shocked that people actually had the courage to listen to him. He wasted no time in striking back against the rebels approaching the Citadel with the full force of his army. {{storylink|Broadcast}} During the battle, Megatron unleashed Zeta Prime's energy-draining [[vamparc ribbon|vamparc annihilator]], but when the gigantic [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] took out the cannon, Megatron fell to the streets and was confronted by Optimus Prime himself. He lost the ensuing [[The Transformers: The Movie|familiar-looking duel]] and was badly wounded after a failed attempt to defeat Prime by holding Hot Rod hostage, forcing him to escape aboard Astrotrain. As he fled, he warned Optimus that he hadn't won, he had only started a war unlike any Cybertron had ever seen. {{storylink|Endgame}}

[[File:Monstrosity3_Megatron_and_Pentius.jpg|thumb|right|300px|"WORDS THAT KILL~"]]
Before Megatron could recover from his injuries, he was betrayed by [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]], who was gunning for the position of Decepticon leader (with aid from Starscream, against Megatron's knowledge). As punishment for his failure to hold Iacon, Scorponok banished the wounded Megatron to the hell-world of [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]]. {{storylink|Derelicts}} Further injured in battle with some [[Junkion (species)|cannibalistic natives]], he stubbornly refused to give up and used the trash littering the world to patch himself up, leaving him with a mismatched, monstrous appearance. {{storylink|Wreckage (issue)|Wreckage}} While searching for a way off Junkion, Megatron entered the wreckage of a starship and found a trapped [[Quintesson]] named [[Pentius]], who had mapped the planet and knew of an area known as the [[Pillar of Rust]] where starships may land and take off. Megatron freed the alien to guide him there, while also putting him in chains to serve as his slave. {{storylink|Faces of Darkness}}
[[File:Monstrosity7 megatron takes pentius spark.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
While crossing the [[Acid Sea]] on the way to the Pillar, Megatron was attacked by [[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticons]] who pulled him into the depths. {{storylink|Rage (IDW)|Rage}} For reasons unknown he was then released, the creatures having allowed him to live. As he emerged, Pentius was waiting with a history lesson, telling him that Junkion was once a prosperous world until its inhabitants drained it of resources, leaving it the broken husk it is today: a fate that may also await Cybertron. Megatron rejected this possibility, declaring that under his rule, Cybertron—and his legacy—would last forever. {{storylink|Fallout (issue)|Fallout}} On arrival at the Pillar of Rust, Megatron was met by the [[Terrorcon (G1)|Terrorcons]], who had come to Junkion to finish what Scorponok had started by killing him. He was able to fight off several of his attackers, but [[Hun-Gurrr (G1)|Hun-Gar]] was too much for him to handle in his injured state. Egged on and taunted by Pentius, Megatron realized he had one last resource left to use: the Quintesson himself. Telling Pentius that his legacy would live on within him, he tore out the alien's [[spark]] and used it to fuel himself, granting him enough power to defeat Hun-Gar. He spared the Terrorcons in exchange for their loyalty, then returned to Cybertron on their ship to take revenge on Scorponok and take back control of the Decepticons. {{storylink|Prey (issue)|Prey}}
[[File:Monstrosity12 strange turns.jpg|right|thumb|300px|To be fair, that's all we can think about regarding you two, as well.]]
Megatron returned to a Cybertron in chaos, as the ancient reptilian [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]] had been unleashed by Scorponok and was in the midst of razing Iacon. After reasserting his leadership of the Decepticons by beating Scorponok nearly to death, he had Shockwave restore his body to it original shape and condition, {{storylink|The Illusion of Control}} and set out to investigate the Trypticon situation alone, unwilling to risk his soldiers in the face of the beast's uncontrolled fury. Finding an injured Optimus Prime on the battlefield, Megatron lectured him, but opted to leave him alive so that he could watch as the Decepticon leader defeated the enemy that Prime could not. Megatron was attacked by [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]], but as they grappled, they were swallowed by Trypticon. {{storylink|Annihilation}} Within the giant, the pair set their differences aside to fend off the [[cyber-morphic predators]] that populated his interior, and together, they destroyed Trypticon's internal power cell, taking him offline. A tense standoff between the Autobots and Decepticons followed as the two warriors emerged from within Trypticon, but both sides agreed to go their separate ways for the time being. Not long after the battle, however, Megatron removed Pentius's spark from within himself and installed it within Trypticon, reviving the monster as a Decepticon. {{storylink|Belly of the Beast}}

===The spreading conflict===
[[File:MTMTE14 megatron vs overlord.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
Megatron's actions during the war were many. Early during the conflict, he wrote ''[[Towards Peace]]'', a new treatise to replace ''After the Ark'', in which he described continuing to fight the war until the very notion of conflict was literally inconceivable. Then and only then would he finally give up his fusion cannon. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} He oversaw the creation of a class of super-warriors known as the [[Warriors Elite]], selecting only his most powerful troops to undergo the torturous upgrade, including [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]], a brilliant sadist and frequent opponent of his from his pit-fighting days who had developed an obsession with Megatron after the Decepticon leader dealt him his first ever defeat. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} At some point, he also created the [[Decepticon Justice Division]] to deal with traitors, {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} though he elected not to send them after Deadlock when he defected, valuing the warrior enough to instead dispatch [[Lockdown (G1)|Lockdown]] to bring him in. {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}}
[[File:ChaosTheory prime vs megatron montage.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]
Megatron would personally clash with Optimus Prime many times; Optimus grew to respect and fear Megatron as a calm, calculating and measured opponent, while Megatron himself respected Prime's sheer power and his skill as a tactician and as a leader. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} Megatron would later incorrectly recall their battle on [[Sherma Bridge]] during the [[Rorsha Campaign]] as the first time they met. Said battle was certainly momentous—every Autobot and Decepticon stopped fighting to witness their duel, during which Megatron's cannon arm was sliced off by Prime's [[energon-axe]], and he claimed revenge by throwing the Autobot leader off the bridge. As the war spread to other planets, they would meet again and again: during the [[Siege of Massunstrad]], Megatron sealed Prime in an anti-matter chamber; on [[Rada Mor]], Prime reduced Megatron to ashes with sentient explosives; and in the midst of the [[Vorsk Offensive]], Megatron was nearly sliced in half by Prime. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} Megatron took on a new pistol alternate mode for the [[Battle for Hell's Point]], during which he was used by [[Heretech]] to blast [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]]. {{storylink|The Gloaming}} During the same skirmish, Megatron took off half of Prime's face with his energon mace, but had a city block dropped on him by Prime in retribution, which shattered his [[transformation cog]] and trapped him in gun mode for two years. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} At the war's zenith, Megatron sealed himself in an [[Omniglobe]] to absorb the relentless flood of data coming in from countless fronts. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}}

Prime was not the only old face that Megatron would see again during the war: during a battle on an aerial drilling platform over the [[Manganese Mountains]], Megatron came face-to-face with his old friend Impactor, and stood poised to execute him until Impactor gave him a moment's pause by recalling his old fondness for poetry. In this moment, Megatron was knocked from the platform by [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] and sent plummeting to the mountains below. {{storylink|Zero Point}}
[[File:LastStandoftheWreckers2-teleconference.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]
With total war going nowhere, Megatron would go on to develop a six-stage [[infiltration protocol]] to be used for conquering targeted planets. The sixth phase called for outright planetary razing, and Megatron selected three of his Warriors Elite for this task: [[Sixshot]], {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}}, Overlord and [[Black Shadow (Victory)|Black Shadow]]. He informed this trio of his decision via teleconference, but Overlord tired of being used as someone else's weapon and refused. Megatron threatened to hunt Overlord down for his disobedience, {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 2|Last Stand of the Wreckers #2}} but while the powerful warrior spent the rest of his life preparing for this conflict, Megatron never followed up and left him to stew in his own obsession. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}}
[[File:Stormbringer1 get up and fight.jpg|right|thumb|250px|"Megatron. You're touching me. Stop it."]]
Deducing that the Autobot/Decepticon war would culminate in an energy crisis that would threatened the stability of Cybertron itself, Shockwave left Cybertron to secretly pursue alternate energy sources. Around 10,000 years ago, when Shockwave did not return, Megatron ordered Bludgeon to investigate his files, {{storylink|Spotlight: Shockwave}} secretly assigning Soundwave to investigate Bludgeon {{storylink|Spotlight: Soundwave}} and probe deeper into whatever it was Shockwave had created. {{storylink|Shockpoint}}

Shockwave's prediction soon proved accurate, and Cybertron found itself in the throes of an energy shortage. Decepticon scientist [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]] came to Megatron with a revolutionary, controversial plan to stave off this energy death by [[Pretender|polydermal grafting]], a process where they encased themselves in "symbiotic carapaces", or shells created from living tissue. When Megatron dismissed him angrily and cut him down, Thunderwing did not abandon his research; instead, he experimented on himself. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} The process gave him immense power, but drove him insane. He became so dangerous that Megatron had to join forces with Optimus Prime to stop him. This battle at [[Thunderhead Pass]] accelerated the apocalypse destined to befall Cybertron, leaving it an uninhabitable, radioactive husk and forcing both armies to continue their war on other worlds. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 1|Stormbringer #1}} Megatron advocated that they simply destroy Cybertron to ensure that Thunderwing was destroyed, but Prime refused, and threatened to stop Megatron if he tried. Megatron agreed not to destroy the planet, but warned Prime that whatever happened was on his head. Shortly after the last big push by the Decepticons, Cybertron was abandoned by both factions. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 1|Stormbringer #2}}

===Breaking protocol===
[[File:Infiltration4 enter megatron.jpg|left|thumb|225px|...oh @#$%.]]
In the present day, when word reached Megatron that the infiltration unit led by [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], stationed on the planet [[Earth]], had broken protocol, he headed for the planet to investigate. Examining the unit's abandoned bunker in [[Nebraska]] for information, he discovered that Starscream had stumbled across [[Ultra-Energon|Ore-13]]—an incredible energy source that (unbeknownst to Megatron) was the end result of Shockwave's experiments—and was planning to use it to usurp Megatron's command. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} While studying the bunker's files, he was contacted by [[Razorclaw (G1)|Razorclaw]] with some distressing news: Bludgeon's investigations of Shockwave's files had led him to revive Thunderwing. Megatron ordered the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]] to Cybertron, authorizing them to do whatever was necessary to destroy Thunderwing, including the destruction of their homeworld itself. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} Just as he was handing down this order, Megatron was happened upon by [[Verity Carlo]], a human ally of the Autobot unit active on the planet, {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} but he utterly ignored her. The bunker was then leveled by an airstrike courtesy of [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]], who were merely covering their unit's tracks and unaware of Megatron's presence; when their leader furiously emerged from the wreckage, they attempted to explain their ignorance, but he simply responded by blasting Skywarp out of the sky. [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] soon arrived on the scene, and favored opening fire rather than attempting explanations, so Megatron beat the stuffing out of him too, then set off for Starscream's new bunker in [[Oregon]]. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 5|Infiltration #5}}

[[File:Infiltration6 takeyourpunishment.jpg|250px|thumb|Those librarians are getting really strict on late returns.]]

{{quote|You will stand down. If you fight, you ''die''. There is no room anymore for mercy. In the end, you are ''all'' expendable. Choose.|Megatron's ultimatum to Starscream's troops|[[Infiltration issue 6|''Infiltration'' #6]]}}

[[Orbital jump|Orbital jumping]] to Oregon, Megatron called Starscream out and ordered the team to stand down, disgusted to see such power games being played amongst his troops. His brief, chilling speech was enough to take the fight out of all but Starscream, who, powered-up on Ore-13, took Megatron on himself. Though the new power source made Starscream a formidable adversary, Megatron was still more deadly than he, and Starscream was taken out by a point-blank fusion cannon blast through his torso. Megatron ordered the Decepticons to ensure that Starscream survived, and then, observing the Autobots who had been watching the battle, announced that it was time to begin phase two. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6}}

In light of the discovery of Ore-13, Megatron took stock of Starscream's progress on Earth and elected to get the infiltration protocol back on track himself, calling a meeting to make Starscream's former troops and making them aware, in no uncertain terms, that any further insurrections would be met with deadly force. {{storylink|Escalation issue 1|Escalation #1}} He was even able to revisit his past gun alternate mode, once again able to achieve the [[size changing|mass displacement]] the mode required thanks to the extra energy Ore-13 provided. {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}}

[[File:Megsandspidy.jpg|left|250px|thumb|Mere seconds before Megs turns Spider-Man into Spider-Goop.]]
With his forces joined by [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]], a new arrival who Megatron suspected of having ulterior motives, {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} the Decepticon leader initiated phase two of infiltration protocol by destabilizing relations between the European nations of [[Latveria]] and [[Symkaria]] through use of an aggression-inducing [[Psycho-Prism]], stolen from Latverian dicatator [[Doctor Doom]]. When the superhero team known as the [[Avengers]] investigated the array the Decepticons' were using to broadcast the prism's signal, Megatron abducted the arachnid-powered [[Spider-Man]] to use as a subject for their [[mirror response mode]], {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}} draining the hero's powers and infusing himself and the other Decepticons with them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} He proceeded to forge a brief alliance with Doctor Doom, who helped him defeat and capture the allied Autobot/Avenger team who snuck inside the Decepticons' array, but when Doom's suggestion to threaten the captives in order to force the other heroes to lay down their arms failed, Megatron violently dissolved the partnership. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Three}} Emerging from the confines of the array to take on the Autobots and Avengers himself, Megatron refrained from engaging Prime, foreesing a more intimate confrontation between the two of them in the near future, and instead turned his attention to destroying [[Iron Man]]'s Transformer-sized armor. The tables soon turned, however, when Doctor Doom freed the captive Autobots and used the Decepticon's mirror response technology to empower them. Defeated by these enhanced Autobots and with the Psycho-Prism destroyed by [[Wolverine (superhero)|Wolverine]], Megatron used the last of his extra power to teleport the Decepticons out with an [[emergency warp-out]]. He refrained from departing alongside his warriors, intending to slaughter the Avengers for their interference, but when he was immobilized by Spider-Man's webbing, knocked to the ground by [[Luke Cage]], and rattled by a hail of Autobot fire, he finally warped-out with a final taunt to Optimus Prime of the battle yet to come between them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Four}}
[[File:Massdisplacement.jpg|right|thumb|400px]]
With phase two of infiltration protocol properly underway, Megatron recognized that he ''should'' rightly withdraw and install a new unit commander on Earth, but could not resist the chance to try out his new Ore-13 empowered body, selecting the nation of [[Brasnya]], where Decepticon subterfuge was already underway, as his testing ground. {{storylink|Escalation issue 2|Escalation #2}} Allowing the Decepticon's [[facsimile construct]] [[Georgi Koska]] to wield him in pistol mode, Megatron had Koska use him to first sever a [[Russia]]n oil pipeline, and then to fire upon the soldiers who came to investigate, furthering the political and military tensions already brewing in the region. When word came through from Blitzwing that Optimus Prime and the Autobots had arrived, {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}} Megatron at last engaged Optimus directly, {{storylink|Escalation issue 4|Escalation #4}} and although Prime was able to destroy his fusion cannon, the extra strength afforded Megatron by Ore-13 allowed him to physically beat Prime into submission, punching directly into his chest and crushing his [[spark]]. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} [[File:Escalation5 prime vs megs.jpg|left|thumb|250px]] The horrified Autobots moved into a full but ineffective counterattack, their only edge being that Megatron had no long-range guns left. It turned out that Prime's apparent death was a desperate ruse when the Autobot leader countered with a surprise attack on Megatron, able to exploit Ore-13's weakness—the more it's used, the faster it burns itself out. Megatron almost collapsed from power loss and was forced to have Skywarp take him to safety before the Autobots could kill him. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}}

Furious over the embarrassing defeat, Megatron threw protocol out the window and ordered that Sixshot be summoned to the planet. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}} He took out some of his anger on Ramjet, who he discovered had been busy cooking up a plot to overthrow him; without saying a word, he beat the attempted traitor to death before tearing him apart and keeping his head as a trophy. {{storylink|Spotlight: Ramjet}}
[[File:Devastation5 decepticons attack.jpg|thumb|right|250px]]
Upon Sixshot's arrival, Megatron ordered him to utterly destroy the Autobots, and although the Phase Sixer questioned his early deployment, he was happy to go along with the abandonment of the phase structure. The other Decepticons, on the other hand, were worried that Megatron was losing his grip—and since they were too scared to tell him that, they decided to revive Starscream to do it for them. {{storylink|Devastation issue 1|Devastation #1}} Megatron monitored Sixshot's attack on the Autobots' [[Ark-19]], ordering him to pursue the escape pod that broke away from the crashing craft, {{storylink|Devastation issue 2|Devastation #2}} but before he could obliterate the Autobots, Megatron was forced to recall him to deal with a new threat assaulting the Decepticon base—the alien [[Reaper]]s. {{storylink|Devastation issue 4|Devastation #4}} Unfortunately, the Reapers convinced Sixshot to side with them, and when an Ore-13 powered Starscream entered the fray to take Sixshot down, Megatron realized his troops had been conspiring against him. He decided not to punish them '''yet''', due to greater threat posed by the Reapers, {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}} and entered battle alongside them all, even allowing Starscream to wield him in pistol mode against the aliens. After the invaders were dead, however, he turn on his men, starting with Blitzwing—but was forced to realize that they needed to remain united when it became apparent that their battle with the Reapers had made humanity inescapably aware of their existence {{storylink|Devastation issue 6|Devastation #6}}
{{--}}

===All Hail Megatron===
[[File:AHM7 megs rips out matrix.jpg|left|thumb|200px|"Oh yeah, and while I'm here..."]]
While the Decepticons were occupied fighting the Reapers, the Autobots had left Earth to deal with the greater threat of an incursion by the [[Dead Universe]]. Exploiting their enemies' absence, Megatron and his men went to ground; when Autobots returned, they could find no trace of the Decepticons, who kept one step ahead of them for months. Secretly abducting [[Hunter O'Nion]], former [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] partner to the Autobot [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]], Megatron and his men returned to Cybertron, where Megatron had [[Deluge (G2)|Deluge]] conduct experiments that bred a [[Insecticon swarm|swarm]] of monstrous [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticons]]. The experiments culminated in the creation of [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]], who Megatron employed in a series of key tasks in his plan: the Insecticon obtained from Hunter's mind various Autobot secrets and codes, completed Shockwave's long-gestating combiner process, granting the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] the ability to combine into [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]], and created a working [[space bridge]] {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} based on designs sold to them by Sixshot in exchange for his freedom. {{storylink|Spotlight: Metroplex}}

Returning to Earth, the Decepticons staged a phony schism within their ranks, allowing the Autobots to believe that they had "disappeared" as a result of a power struggle that had split their ranks into two camps, one led by Megatron and one by Starscream. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} Starscream then approached Sunstreaker, whose experience has a Headmaster had left him bitter and jaded, with the proposition that the Autobots join with his forces against Megatron, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 8|All Hail Megatron #8}} but when the Autobots arrived at the designated time and place, they were instead confronted by the united Decepticon army and quickly defeated by Devastator. After personally tearing [[Matrix of Leadership]] from Optimus Prime's chest, Megatron marched the captive Autobots through the space bridge back to Cybertron, where the Insecticon swarm waited for them. Prime, however, was able to damage the bridge, causing it to deposit the Autobots a safe distance from the swarm, but in the process, fried his own circuits and left himself comatose. Though the Autobots had escaped the fate he had intended for them, Megatron had successfully exiled his enemies to their dead homeworld; morever, using information and codes gained from Sunstreaker and Hunter, he concurrently orchestrated the event that would later be known as [[Surge (event)|The Surge]], as Decepticons stormed Autobot installations all across the galaxy, achieving total victory. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}}

[[File:Bringingthehousedown.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Megatron's urban renewal program was off to a flying start.]]

With galaxy-wide domination accomplished, one year after the Decepticons' battle with the Reapers, Megatron chose Earth to become the new Decepticon homeworld. Together with his men, Megatron stormed [[New York City]], humiliating Starscream with a display of his greater capacity for destruction. When the US Air Force retaliated, Megatron shrugged off their fire and ordered the other Decepticons to engage them; when one damaged jet threw itself toward him in a suicide run, Megatron, outraged at the [[DJ (G1)|pilot]]'s temerity, destroyed it and its occupant with a furious swipe of his hand. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} When US Army forces arrived, Megatron ordered [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] dispatched to deal with them, then sent Devastator to destroy the subway tunnels leading out of the city. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 2|All Hail Megatron #2}} With New York secured, Megatron directed the Constructicons to begin building new space bridge in the city's heart, and had a candid talk with Starscream, revealing his belief that the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seeker]]'s attitude and actions marked him as the embodiment of the Decepticon cause, even if he was blind to seeing it himself. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 3|All Hail Megatron #3}} After a series of further attacks on major American cities saw the country firmly crushed under the Decepticons' collective heel, Megatron made a propaganda speech to his men in the ruins of New York. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 4|All Hail Megatron #4}} As night fell upon the city, Megatron withdrew to privately gloat over the Matrix. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 5|All Hail Megatron #5}}

[[File:AHM6MegatronVsIsrael.jpg|left|300px|thumb|]]
As the Decepticons began attacking other countries around the globe, Megatron was questioned by Starscream on what the next step in his plan was. A recalcitrant Megatron merely informed him that it was merely time to savor their victory, but Starscream accused him of not ''having'' any plans post-victory, and was merely allowing his men to run wild to distract them from any notion of taking power for themselves. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}} What Starscream did not realize was that Megatron did indeed have a plan: to defeat the Autobots, he had created an army of killers and monsters, but in order to create his perfect rule, that army would have to be destroyed, the dissenting, distasteful elements obliterated before Megatron's peace could dawn. Megatron was not distracting his warriors... he was ''waiting'' to see which of them would question and turn on him. Silently sorrowful to already know that such dissent would begin with Starscream, an otherwise-model Decepticon, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}} Megatron withdrew to [[Israel]] for some silent reflection amid wholesale devastation. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}}

[[File:AHM10 megs vs devastator.jpg|right|thumb|250px|And then he said "MORE."]]

Some time later, Megatron surveyed the space bridge Bombshell and the Constructicons had built in New York. He congratulated Bombshell on his work, but revealed that he had always foreseen Bombshell's intellect as a danger—had always known he and his fellow Insecticons would side with Starscream when the time came. His gambit exposed, Starscream made his move and attacked, but the Insecticons proved no match for Megatron's might. The Decepticon leader had failed to anticipate one thing, however: he did not foresee the Constructicons siding with Starscream, and found himself having to fight the mighty Devastator. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}} The in-fighting was halted by a last-ditch attack by the mustered might of what remained of the human resistance, forcing Megatron and Starscream to put their differences aside momentarily and organize a defense. This attack came as no surprise to Megatron, but the same could not be said for the next entrants onto the battlefield: the Autobots had returned.

After assuring Starscream that he would be leader in the future, when his time was done, Megatron confronted Optimus Prime, surprised not so much that his old foe had survived, but that he had bothered to return to Earth. Both leaders had always maintained a policy of acceptable losses through their millennia-long war, so Megatron assumed Prime had come back for selfish reasons, to reclaim the Matrix, but Prime insisted that he had changed, and would no longer allow their cold war to endanger innocent lives on this scale. [[File:AHM12 prime vs megs.jpg|left|thumb|300px|Any given day with these two.]] Megatron scoffed at the notion, reavling that Prime's supposedly "innocent" humans were planning to nuke New York, killing millions of their own just to get rid of the Decepticons, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 11|All Hail Megatron #11}} but Prime retorted that it wasn't ''just'' about the humans, but also about the difference between Autobots and Decepticons. The two came to blows, but Megatron triumphed in short order and commanded the Decepticons to depart, leaving the Autobots to be killed by the humans' nuke... but just before they withdrew, he was shot in the face by human soldier [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], wielding a powerful weapon reverse-engineered from Cybertronian technology. Injured and disoriented by the blast, Megatron was finished off when Prime smashed his face in with his own fusion cannon. As he wanted to ''take'' leadership rather than just have it fall in his hands, Starscream picked up his damaged leader and ordered the Decepticons to retreat. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

[[File:AllHisEngines-Megatron.jpg|thumb|Pretty sure when you float in a bacta tank you're supposed to be wearing a diaper.]]
The Decepticons departed Earth aboard Astrotrain, where the gravely wounded Megatron was put on life support and tended to by Soundwave and his cassettes. With Megatron's life signs only at ten percent capacity, Starscream attempted to appeal to Soundwave's sense of logic and have him shut down so that leadership could be his, but Soundwave refused. Starscream was soon able to take command, however, when he recovered the Matrix of Leadership and professed to have been chosen by it. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 13|Uneasy Lies the Head}}

===New body, new powers===

The Decepticons eventually settled on a desolate asteroid, where Megatron was installed in a [[CR chamber|CR tank]]. Retaining some level of awareness of the events occurring around him during his convalescence, he was forced to watch as his army languished in inactivity, their energy slowly ebbing away until they were reduced to cannibalism. {{storylink|All His Engines}} After a year of trying to free his leader from this living death, Soundwave was finally forced to conclude that Megatron's body was beyond repair, and recruited the recently-returned Shockwave, whom Starscream had provided with the majority of the Decepticons' resources to create a space bridge, to help build a new body for Megatron's consciousness to inhabit. The operation succeeded and Megatron was reborn in a deadly new body, powered by Ore-13, armed with a devastatingly powerful rail gun, and even equipped with space bridge nodes stolen from Metroplex, which gave him the ability to open space bridge portals on his own. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

[[File:IDWongoing15 megatrons new body.jpg|left|thumb|275px|"Uh, it's like...did anyone ever see the movie ''Tron''?"]]

Back in action, Megatron devised a plan to destabilize the relationship between the humans and Autobots on Earth. Together with Soundwave and Shockwave, he chopped up his old body and used it to create human-scaled replicas of his former gun mode, containing small pieces of his own consciousness. When Starscream caught them in the act, Megatron elected to table his plan for the moment, as he considered it folly to go against Starscream's wishes for the moment since the Seeker was still in possession of the Matrix of Leadership. Megatron had never truly understood what the talisman ''did'', but it served as a threat merely by being an unknown variable. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} Fortunately, for Megatron this variable was soon removed from the equation when Hot Rod, estranged from the Earthbound Autobots, infiltrated the Decepticons' asteroid base and recovered the Matrix from Starscream. Megatron seized his chance, intercepting the Autobot and blasting him and the Matrix out into the void of space. {{storylink|Heart Like a Wheel}}

[[File:SLMegatron stealth bomber mode.jpg|right|thumb|275px|Behold... the ''Bomberang!'']]

With Starscream's trump card now gone, Megatron had the Decepticons gathered so he could address them. Distrustful of Shockwave's motives for preparing his new body, wary of Soundwave's constant surveillance, and repulsed by the state of his once fearsome Decepticon war machine, Megatron decided that he needed to unequivocally reestablish dominance over the now Matrix-less Starscream. He intended to beat Starscream near to death as a means of letting them both work out their frustrations with Starscream's inability to lead effectively during Megatron's absence, but Starscream did not want to fight—spiritually broken by his failures, he simply wanted Megatron to kill him. Rather than accept this, Megatron instead goaded Starscream into opening fire upon him. This began a running battle between the two, with Megatron pursuing the fleeing Seeker in his new stealth bomber alternate mode, continuing to bait Starscream every time he appeared willing to give up the fight. Incensed by Starscream's accusation that he did not know what it felt like to see everything he had worked for fall apart, when that was exactly what Starscream's pitiful leadership had done to the empire he had created, Megatron pummeled him to within an inch of his life, then paused to explain why he kept a schemer like Starscream around: as a constant reminder to watch his back. The brutal display galvanized the languid Decepticons, and Megatron was ready to begin his scheme. {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

[[File:IDWongoing14 megatron guns.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]

Roughly two years after the Decepticons' defeat on Earth, Megatron used his space bridge powers to dispatch a container full of the guns made from his old body to Earth, where they were found by South American gun-runners and illegally disseminated amongst an increasingly paranoid public seeking ways to protect themselves against Transformers. This allowed Megatron's consciousness to spread across North America, until it was focused enough to contact one particular owner of a Megatron gun: [[Joe Gladki]]. He deceived and manipulated the paranoid human, and eventually convinced him to perform an assassination attempt on [[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]], the new Autobot leader. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} In their ignorance, the Autobots then mistook Gladki's gun for Megatron himself and held it captive. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 1: The Demolished Man|The Demolished Man}}

[[File:IDWongoing16 megatron vs autobots.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

With the Autobots in chaos, Megatron started the next phase of his plan and returned to Earth personally, where he used his new stealth bomber mode to shoot down a plane carrying Optimus Prime and several other Autobots. He then hunted down the remaining Autobots, effortlessly defeating them and their new temporary leader Ultra Magnus with his powerful new body, and killing some of their [[Skywatch]] allies. Magnus tried to draw Megatron's attention from the humans, claiming the Autobots were the ones he really wanted, but Megatron assured him that humanity was his real target. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 3: Woken Furies|Woken Furies}} Taking the defeated Autobots captive, Megatron dumped them in a city and directed three of his mind-controlled human puppets to kill them. Contacting Prime directly, Megatron summoned him to the city's outskirts and revealed his plan: crush Prime's spirit and destroy the Autobots' alliance with humanity by forcing them to choose between fighting the humans or allowing them to kill them. Prime found the hole in Megatron's plan, however, when he realized that Soundwave was maintaining the connection between Megatron and his guns, and shot him in the head. His connection to his pawns severed, Megatron scooped up Soundwave and withdrew. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome|Burning Chrome}} Thanks to a tracker Ultra Magnus had slipped on Soundwave, though, Prime was able to follow the Decepticons to their bolthole and called Megatron out for a full and and proper confrontation. In actuality, Prime had lured Megatron outside so Skywatch could drop a [[kinetic harpoon]] on him, but even a weapon dropped from orbit barely proved able to put a scratch in Megatron's mighty new exostructure. Megatron proceeded to beat Prime senseless, but then returned him to the Autobots, and to their great shock, surrendered to their custody. After recovering, Optimus demanded to know why he had surrendered, but Megatron merely taunted him by revealing that Spike Witwicky had murdered a Decepticon in cold blood. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine|Enemy Mine}} Prime immediately had Prowl begin investigating Spike and Skywatch, and Prowl interrogated the Decepticon leader for information, which he provded after a little verbal sparring. {{storylink|Police Action: Prologue}}

[[File:ChaosTheory1 megatron imprisoned.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

When Rodimus returned to Earth and warned the Autobots that [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] had taken control of Cybertron, Optimus decided to lead the Autobots in reclaiming their homeworld. In the name of Earth's safety, he elected to bring Megatron and the the confiscated guns made from his old body with them. {{storylink|Space Opera—Final Tableaux: Orphans of the Helix|Orphans of the Helix}} On the way to Cybertron aboard [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]], Prime again attempted to discern why Megatron had surrendered, even releasing his old foe from his bonds and having a civil conversation with him about their past together and their dueling ideologies. Optimus tried to reach out to Megatron, offering him the chance to end the war once and for all with a handshake; Megatron appeared to consider it for a moment but ultimately remained silent. With Megatron returned to the confines of the [[variable voltage harness]], the other Autobots pressured Optimus for a decision on his fate: execution or imprisonment. Trying to come to a conclusion, Prime asked Megatron if he regretted any of his actions, but the Decepticon leader remarked that he only regretted not killing ''more'' Autobots. He taunted Prime with the notion that even he was thankful for the war, as it had raised him from a nobody to the greatest Autobot in history, and a furious Prime activated the harness, electrocuting Megatron. The jolt would have killed Megatron if Omega Supreme had not cut the power in time and Megatron, struggling to stay conscious, offered Prime his thanks for saving his life all those years ago in Rodion. Shocked by his actions, Prime realized that Megatron wanted to die and wanted Prime to be the one to kill him. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} Eventually, Prime decided to let Megatron choose his own fate, and Megatron calmly replied that he chose death. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 2}}
[[File:Chaos2 armored megatron.jpg|right|thumb|225px|Get on it, kitbashers!]]
As Omega drew close to Cybertron, Megatron demanded to know who or what was threatening their homeworld, but Optimus Prime refused to provde him with any information. {{storylink| Chaos Part One: Lamentations|Lamentations}} The Autobots subsequently engaged Galvatron's forces in battle, and while they were occupied, Megatron put into motion the ace he had up his sleeve: taking remote control of the numerous "Megatron guns" aboard Omega, Megatron summoned them to him and combined with them into a new armored mode. Breaking free from his restraints, he headed out to confront Galvatron, intent that nobody would take his world from him. {{storylink|Chaos Part Two: Numbers|Numbers}} As he tore through the Sweeps, Megatron also revealed the reason for his surrender: now that he was back on Cybertron, he could open a space bridge that would allow the massed forces of the Decepticons on Earth to return to their home planet as well. Unfortunately, not long after the Decepticons arrived on the battlefield, Galvatron's secret puppet master, the Dead Universe entity known as the [[D-Void]], seized control of their minds and those of the Sweeps, merging them into a gigantic, monstrous avatar. With Prime occupied pursuing Galvatron into Cybertron's depths, Megatron was left to face this "[[Deceptigod]]" alone. {{storylink|Chaos Part Three: Kings|Kings}} Fighting against the D-Void's attempts to ensnare his own mind and make him part of the collective, Megatron was gravely wounded and even lost an arm to the beast, but succeeded into destroying it, blasting it apart with one massive beam from his weapons. {{storylink|Chaos Part Four: Genesis|Genesis}}

===The long game===

Even as the Deceptigod disintegrated back into its component Decepticons, Megatron could see the potential the creature embodied—the D-Void had, in essence, created the perfect combiner by means of utterly obliterating free will. With Cybertron reverting into a primordial wasteland around him—a result of Optimus Prime purifying [[Vector Sigma]] with the Matrix to stop Galvatron and the D-Void—Megatron chose to withdraw to experiment with the possibilities this presented. He informed Shockwave, the sole Decepticon who had not been made part of the Deceptigod, of his plans, and Shockwave in turn revealed them to Soundwave and Bombshell. {{storylink|Shockpoint}} While Megatron hid in the wilderness, his Decepticons were left to live as second-class citizens in the new [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] that the Autobots built; Optimus Prime left Cybertron two weeks after the D-Void's defeat to calm tensions with "NAILs"—other unaffiliated Cybertronians—who had returned to their homeworld, but even as he did so, he mused that Megatron must still be out there somewhere. {{storylink|Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}
[[File:RID11 megatron in wilderness.jpg|left|thumb|225px|And this is exactly how we imagined it.]]
In the months of study and experimentation that followed, Megatron discerned that the combination of Ore-13 and space bridge technology in his body somehow gave him the ability to manipulate the natural energy of Cybertron that the D-Void had used to merge the Decepticons into the Deceptigod. After experiments on [[turbofox]]es created larger, more ferocious beasts, Megatron stepped up trials when the [[Aerialbot (G1)|Aerialbots]] seceded from the shaky government Bumblebee, [[Metalhawk (Masterforce)|Metalhawk]] and Starscream were building in Iacon and ventured into the wilderness. The signal Megatron had created from the combination energy first drove the Aerialbots mad, before uniting them in body and mind, spontaneously merging them into the gestalt [[Superion (G1)|Superion]], but this newborn Autobot combiner was considered hopelessly insane by Megatron and left to die in the wilderness. The madness aspect of the signal afforded him the chance to revive some of the principles of the infiltration protocol, however, as he blanketed the wastelands in it, forcing the Autobots, Decepticons and NAILs to stay in Iacon, causing natural conflict among them to snowball, providing a useful cover for his actions. To gain a pawn within Autobot high command, Megatron even provided Bombshell with the energy to use in conjunction with his own mind-controlling [[cerebro-shell]]s, ensnaring the mind of Prowl. With the resources and cover control of Prowl provided, Shockwave, Soundwave and Bombshell were able to use Megatron's findings to perfect the combination process, rebuilding the Constructicons with new modular designs that would allow them to merge into a perfect Devastator. The endgame was for Megatron himself to form the head of the combiner, but before risking his own mind and body, Megatron decided that Prowl would be used first as a test subject. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}}
[[File:RID12 kill him.jpg|right|thumb|350px|Can't really say I'd object.]]
The appearance of a [[Crystal City Metrotitan|Metrotitan]] on Cybertron which declared that Starscream was the "Chosen One" threatened Megatron's ability to easily re-take leadership of his Decepticons, forcing him to step up his schedule. Through Prowl, he had his inner circle gathered together in the secret "[[Black Room]]", then boldly strode into Iacon for all to see. {{storylink|The End of the Beginning of the World}} His body shattered and skeletal, he professed to come in peace, but Bumblebee did not accept his surrender and ordered his Autobots to kill him. Indeed, Megatron could possibly have died there and then had Iacon's Decepticons not stepped in, insisting that Megatron's defense of Cybertron during the D-Void's attack marked him a hero and that he be taken into custody instead. {{storylink|City on Fire}} After [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] got through examining him to prove his body concealed no weapons, Starscream approached the imprisoned Megatron and attempted to explain that he was not far away from taking complete power in the government, ensuring a Decepticon victory of a different kind. Megatron merely smiled silently at the notion, terrifying his ex-lieutenant with his grin. Presently, the Decepticons rose up in an angry mob and marched on Autobot high command to insist on Megatron's release; the situation quickly devolved into a riot, during which a squad led by [[Needlenose]] stormed the prison and freed Megatron. {{storylink|The Verge}}
[[File:RID14 new body redux.jpg|left|thumb|275px]]
Megatron brought Starscream and the captured Bumblebee and Metalhawk to the Black Room, where he explained his plans and had himself transferred into a pre-prepared new body that could combine with the Constructicons' new forms. At his command, the Constructicons and Prowl combined into the new Devastator, who immediately set about razing Iacon. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}} Even the return of Superion seemed unable to stop the powerful new combiner, until help came from an unexpected quarter—Prowl's secret assassin [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] killed Bombshell, taking out Prowl's controller and causing Devastator to shut down. This was no real impediment to Megatron, however, as the successful function of the new combiner process has been proven, and he set out to take ''his'' place as Devastator's head. Before Megatron could reach the fallen gestalt, though, Devastator awoke, possessed of his own unique, unite consciousness for the first time, and resumed tearing into Iacon. {{storylink|Plan for Everything}}
[[File:RID20_megatron_in_forcefield.jpg|right|thumb|225px|"Ooh, when I get outta here..."]]
Still Megatron remained unfazed, calmly fending off Autobot attacks and waiting for the inevitable moment when the heroes would take Devastator down. When [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] succeeded in doing so by managing to reach Prowl, Devastator separated, and Megatron immediately stepped in, re-initiation the combination with himself in control. Seconds before uniting with the Constructicons, though, his plan was foiled by Bumblebee, Ironhide and Prowl's activation of a secret failsafe: Wheeljack had integrated a forcefield generator into Megatron's spark casing during his examination of him, and when it was triggered, he was completely paralyzed in mid-transformation. {{storylink|Heavy Is the Head}} In the fallout of the battle, Starscream killed Metalhawk and took control of Iacon and banished the Autobots and Decepticons from the city. He took custody of the immobilized Megatron, and silently gloated over the victory he had accomplished by using guile and politics, rather than Megatron's ways of brute force and firepower. {{storylink|Three Monologues}}
Megatron would not remain in this state for long; that night, as the end result of millennia-long secret machinations by Shockwave, an [[Necrotitan|undead Metrotitan]] appeared on Cybertron and opened a portal to the Dead Universe in the planet's skies. Through the portal, Shockwave made contact with Galvatron and his master, the exiled Cybertron despot [[Nova Prime]], but was unable to bring them through to Cybertron thanks to the unexpected disappearance of the Titan's space bridge system. Reanimating the deceased Metalhawk with a wave of necrotic energy from the Titan, Shockwave had him liberate Megatron and bring him to his secret lab in [[Crystal City]]. {{storylink|Winners & Losers: Dark Cybertron Chapter 3|Winners & Losers}}
[[File:RID24 i remember you.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Ow.]]
Shockwave hoped that Megatron would comply with his plans willingly, but the Decepticon leader refused and Shockwave forcibly activated the space bridge technology in Megatron's body. {{storylink|Into the Abyss: Dark Cybertron Chapter 4|Into the Abyss}} The opening of the bridge in his chest caused Megatron agony, but his screams were heard by Soundwave, who led the united forces of the exiled Autobots and Decepticons to Shockwave's lab to free his leader. Nova Prime and Galvatron attempted to squeeze their way through the space bridge despite this interference, but Ironhide was able to punch Nova back through into the Dead Universe. At that moment, Shockwave's "Necrotitan" came crashing into the subterranean city, and in the chaos, Megatron was freed from the restraints holding him. No sooner had Megatron carried Ironhide to the safe hands of the other Autobots, however, than he was ripped in half from behind by Galvatron, who had successfully emerged through the portal {{storylink|Finest Hour: Dark Cybertron Chapter 5|Finest Hour}}

In a vision of the future seen by Ironhide and [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] during the reformatting of Cybertron, fifteen million years hence, Ironhide still believed Megatron to be alive and promised a young Autobot they would defeat him again if he ever returned. {{storylink|Pax Cybertronia (issue)|Pax Cybertronia}} {{storylink|A Better Tomorrow}}
{{-}}

===''Spotlight: Mirage''===
[[File:SLMirage all in good time.jpg|right|thumb|275px]]
{{NoteSLMirage}}
Somewhere, in an unknown time or place, the self-serving mercenary [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] dreamed of Megatron and his Decepticons launching a massive attack on the Autobots. But Mirage knew that to only be a dream; in reality, the Autobots were almost eradicated, and Megatron had hired him to hunt down the last of their number. Megatron was outraged by the mercenary's demand for a majority share in all energon mining operations as payment, but it proved to be fuel well spent, as he soon succeeded in locating Optimus Prime and forcing him to surrender. Megatron demanded the prisoners be executed despite Mirage's promise to spare Autobot lives. Seeing Mirage's hesitation, Megatron appealed to his greed. {{storylink|Spotlight: Mirage}}
{{-}}

==Notes==
* In [[Megatron Origin issue 2|''Megatron Origin'' #2]], we see that Megatron's helmet is, in fact, [[:Image:MegatronOrigin2 Megs hair.jpg|a helmet and not part of his head]] (at least in his original body). Upon removing his helmet, Megatron then briefly unfurls a crest. The significance of this moment is not explained, but it is briefly revisited in [[Remembrance Day|''More than Meets the Eye'' #14]] when a helmetless Megatron spars with [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]].

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Rulers of Cybertron]]

Megatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

2014-01-10T16:03:31Z

Solaar: /* New body, new powers */

{{suite}}
{{factions|decepticon}}
[[File:IDWMegatron.jpg|thumb|300x342px|Megatron A, Megatron B, Megatron Retailer's Incentive, and Megatron Dynamic Forces Exclusive variant.]]
'''Megatron''' waged a battle to destroy the evil forces of the [[Senate]]! Then he ''continued'' to wage a war against the evil forces of freedom, organic life, and the very idea of an Autobot living.

{{quote|In the final analysis, I would happily wade across a river of corpses, chest-deep in rust and grease and engine oil, just to crush the Spark of the last Autobot standing. And I would not do so simply as a means to an end. No. I'd do it, Prime, because it would give me ''pleasure''.|Megatron to Optimus Prime|''[[Chaos Theory Part 1]]''}}

__TOC__
==IDW Generation 1 comics==
{{ongoing}}
===Birth of a tyrant===
[[File:ChaosTheory1 megatron symbol creation.jpg|left|thumb|300px|... And thus the "Silica Fracturism" art movement was born.]]
Long ago, before the war and under the reign of [[Nominus Prime]], Megatron of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]] was an [[energon]] miner, a member of the lower class, living near [[Rodion]]. An intellectual and a poet, Megatron was sickened by the caste-ridden social apartheid of Cybertronian society—where your form determined your role, and your role your rights—and so he wrote [[After the Ark: Nominus Prime and the Illusion of Progress|a treatise]] on how pacifist dissent and the exchange of ideas could change things. It was while he was sharing this work with his miner friend [[Impactor (G1)|Impactor]] over a drink in [[Maccadam's Old Oil House|Maccadam's New Oil House]] that the event occurred which would change the course of his life, as Impactor wound up being drawn into a bar brawl with some of the city's upper classes and Megatron was among those arrested after the fracas. In order to silence his increasingly loud voice of dissent against their regime, the [[Senate]] arranged for a police officer on their payroll, [[Whirl (G1)|Whirl]], to kill Megatron, but before Whirl could finish the job, police captain [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]], having discovered Megatron's innocence, arranged for his release. [[File:Minermegs.jpg|225px|thumb|Now that's the look of a well-adjusted individual.]] Despite Pax expressing support for the message of his writings, Megatron now found himself filled with rage and hate, disillusioned with his former ideology and realiing the power of applied violence. Angrily hurling the datapad on which he had written his treatise through a public info-screen, Megatron observed the jagged shape of the shattered glass, and later turned it into a [[insignia|symbol]] for his cause. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

Megatron's samizdat writings began to circulate in Cybertron's underground, spawning the "[[Decepticon]]" movement, its name derived from its own slogan, "You are being deceived", warning the common 'bot of the Senate's true nature. Knowing that, at this stage, assassinating Megatron would merely make him a martyr, the Senate instead elected to relocate him off-planet, re-assigning him to [[Mining Outpost C-12]] on the world of [[Messatine]] while they tried their own schemes to defuse the growing Decepticon movement. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}}

Megatron continued to seethe with hate and frustration in his new workplace, which reached a peak when, some time later, [[Decimus|Senator Decimus]] arrived to announce that the mine was being closed immediately and the workers would be relocated. When one of the Senator's guards killed a worker for insubordination and claims of Senate corruption, Megatron's fury boiled over and he hurled his pickaxe at Decimus. In turn, he was attacked by the Senator's guard, whom he killed by smashing his head to fragments. A riot erupted around him, but Megatron himself could only sit amongst the chaos, staring at his fuel-stained hands in abject horror, which allowed him to be easily pacified and rounded up with the other miners as the mayhem was quickly suppressed. En route to [[Penal Facility H-3|imprisonment]] back on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], however, [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] and [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] broke free and started a riot aboard [[Longshot (G1)|their ship]]. Megatron joined in their effort, and together, they overpowered their guards, took control of the ship, and disappeared into the [[Kaon]] underground. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}}
[[File:MegsOrigin2 Cykill.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
After evading law enforcement, Megatron joined a team of underworld gladiators under the tutelage of [[Clench (G1)|Clench]]. Initially repulsed by killing his opponents, the games eventually turned him more brutal and excessive, and he took control of the entire operation from Clench. The opportunistic Senator [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], after seeing how much money there was in the underworld matches, covertly sent his agent [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] to offer Megatron weaponry and technology to upgrade himself and his comrades. Their meeting was spied upon by [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (G1)|Fastback]], agents from the Senate's forces, who Megatron slew. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}} Subsequently, impressed by how he treated his animal-form [[Decepticon Mini-Cassette|cassette partners]] as equals (in contradiction to the teachings of his Senate masters), Megatron invited Soundwave back to the gladiator pits and gave him permission to use his mind-reading abilities on him. Within Megatron's mind, Soundwave saw his honest desire for all Cybertronians to be true equals, and was so moved by it that he joined Megatron's cause. {{storylink|Soundwaves (issue)|Soundwaves}}

Gradually, Megatron used the gladiatorial games to drum up an army of violent malcontents, sending Soundwave to recruit more and more warriors to his cause. Such recruits included [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]], who he was presented with while having an arm he lost in a brawl replaced with a new limb that incorporated an [[energon mace]], {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} and the disenfranchised warrior [[Drift (G1)|Drift]], who was personally asked by Megatron to fight at his side when he attended a Decepticon rally, and whom Megatron rechristened "Deadlock". {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}} Seeking to enhance his army even further, Megatron reached out to [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Senator Shockwave]], offering to supply him the resources to perfect the teachings of his lost mentor [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] and create a [[combiner]] that would serve the Decepticons. Shockwave cautioned that it could take some time, but Megatron was content to wait. {{storylink|Shockwaves}}

[[File:Apexthrone.JPG|250px|thumb|right|You should have gone to IKEA.]]
Despite all his efforts, Megatron believed that the Senate was still not taking the Decepticons seriously, so Soundwave formulated a plan for a declaration of intent that could be not denied: lure the Senate to Kaon and murder them. {{storylink|Soundwaves (issue)|Soundwaves}} In preparation for this scheme, Megatron offered to restore Shockwave's lost hands—a victim of [[empurata]]—believing that doing so might speed his work. {{storylink|Shockwaves}} The following day, in accordance with Soundwave's plan, Megatron and the Decepticons allowed themselves to be arrested by Sentinel Prime's men, after which Soundwave was freed on Ratbat's orders, while Starscream would ensure his own release by pretending to defect. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} Together, Soundwave and Starscream exterminated the entire Senate, then liberated Megatron and the rest of their comrades, in the process granting their leader the gift of a [[fusion cannon]] liberated from the Senate forces' armory. Megatron led his army against Sentinel Prime's men, killed Sentinel himself, and took control of Kaon, now ready to turn his insurgency into a full-blown war. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

===Early days of war===

Megatron formally declared war on "[[Declaration Day]]" when he delivered a stirring speach from [[Nova Point|Nova Peak]]. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} The growing Decepticon forces swiftly spread across six [[Polities of Cybertron|Torus-States]], {{storylink|Parasites}} and to combat them, Cybertron's new leader [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]] assembled a new military force, the "[[Autobot]]s", led by Megatron's old acquaintance [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]]. Researching his new opposite number, Megatron was intrigued to discover that his now-abandoned treatise had been a source of inspiration for Pax, who had even quoted from it when he confronted the Senate and openly accused them of corruption. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}} Early into the war, [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] would admit to Pax that Megatron talked about him sometimes, when he was tired. When Pax asked what was said, Bludgeon told him that it would make "both of us feel ''uncomfortable''". {{storylink|Omega's Conundrum}}
[[File:Autocracy4 backroom meeting.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]
When Orion Pax came close to Kaon during a mission, Megatron saw it as a chance to speak to him and had his Decepticons bring him in. {{storylink|The Hunt for Soundwave}} Megatron attempted to convince him that Zeta Prime was even worse than he appeared—that he had planned tto let Orion die in [[Nyon]] so that he could use his death as pretext to invade the rebel-infested city and drain the citizens of their energon—and proposed they work together against him, but Orion refused to hear him and then escaped. Knowing the doubts he'd placed in his head would only serve to damage the Autobot cause, Megatron let him go. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}}
[[File:Autocracy8 megs and pax together.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Banzai!]]
Megatron continued to keep an eye on Orion Pax's activities, spying on his encounter with the Nyon insurgent [[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hot Rod]]. {{storylink|Ruins}} When Zeta Prime's [[Guardian robot|Omega Destructor]]s suddenly attacked Nyon, Megatron was surprised by how zealously the new Prime fought against the city's rebels, but his real interest still lay on how Orion would handle the crisis. {{storylink|Purge}} Orion turned on Zeta, who in turn attempted to kill him, prompting Megatron to intervene and force the Prime to retreat. Taking Orion back to Kaon, he again offered that they work together against Zeta's corruption, and this time the Autobot officer accepted. {{storylink|Choices}} As their combined forces invaded the [[Citadel]] in Iacon, Megatron and Orion Pax made their way inside and fought Zeta Prime in person. The battle ended with Megatron killing the Prime with a head shot, and with his objective complete, he then betrayed the injured Orion by shooting him in the back. {{storylink|Overthrown}} Curiously, an alternate report incorrectly implied that Megatron had assassinated Zeta from afar, sniping him with the rifle alternate mode of [[Vos (DJD)|Vos]]. {{storylink|Bullets}} {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}}
[[File:Autocracy12 no you dont megatron.jpg|left|thumb|250px|This seems so familiar...]]
With Zeta dead, Megatron conquered Iacon and declared himself ruler of Cybertron. His soldiers patrolled the planet's streets to "keep the peace", mostly by hunting down and capturing any remaining Autobots who opposed him. {{storylink|Transformation (issue)|Transformation}} During his rule, Megatron attempted to sway the neutral Hot Rod into joining the Decepticons, but he decided otherwise upon witnessing Megatron ordering the execution of several Autobot prisoners. {{storylink|Rise}} Megatron was shocked to learn that Orion Pax had survived the betrayal and was organizing a rebellion against him under the name "Optimus Prime", and even more shocked that people actually had the courage to listen to him. He wasted no time in striking back against the rebels approaching the Citadel with the full force of his army. {{storylink|Broadcast}} During the battle, Megatron unleashed Zeta Prime's energy-draining [[vamparc ribbon|vamparc annihilator]], but when the gigantic [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] took out the cannon, Megatron fell to the streets and was confronted by Optimus Prime himself. He lost the ensuing [[The Transformers: The Movie|familiar-looking duel]] and was badly wounded after a failed attempt to defeat Prime by holding Hot Rod hostage, forcing him to escape aboard Astrotrain. As he fled, he warned Optimus that he hadn't won, he had only started a war unlike any Cybertron had ever seen. {{storylink|Endgame}}

[[File:Monstrosity3_Megatron_and_Pentius.jpg|thumb|right|300px|"WORDS THAT KILL~"]]
Before Megatron could recover from his injuries, he was betrayed by [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]], who was gunning for the position of Decepticon leader (with aid from Starscream, against Megatron's knowledge). As punishment for his failure to hold Iacon, Scorponok banished the wounded Megatron to the hell-world of [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]]. {{storylink|Derelicts}} Further injured in battle with some [[Junkion (species)|cannibalistic natives]], he stubbornly refused to give up and used the trash littering the world to patch himself up, leaving him with a mismatched, monstrous appearance. {{storylink|Wreckage (issue)|Wreckage}} While searching for a way off Junkion, Megatron entered the wreckage of a starship and found a trapped [[Quintesson]] named [[Pentius]], who had mapped the planet and knew of an area known as the [[Pillar of Rust]] where starships may land and take off. Megatron freed the alien to guide him there, while also putting him in chains to serve as his slave. {{storylink|Faces of Darkness}}
[[File:Monstrosity7 megatron takes pentius spark.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
While crossing the [[Acid Sea]] on the way to the Pillar, Megatron was attacked by [[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticons]] who pulled him into the depths. {{storylink|Rage (IDW)|Rage}} For reasons unknown he was then released, the creatures having allowed him to live. As he emerged, Pentius was waiting with a history lesson, telling him that Junkion was once a prosperous world until its inhabitants drained it of resources, leaving it the broken husk it is today: a fate that may also await Cybertron. Megatron rejected this possibility, declaring that under his rule, Cybertron—and his legacy—would last forever. {{storylink|Fallout (issue)|Fallout}} On arrival at the Pillar of Rust, Megatron was met by the [[Terrorcon (G1)|Terrorcons]], who had come to Junkion to finish what Scorponok had started by killing him. He was able to fight off several of his attackers, but [[Hun-Gurrr (G1)|Hun-Gar]] was too much for him to handle in his injured state. Egged on and taunted by Pentius, Megatron realized he had one last resource left to use: the Quintesson himself. Telling Pentius that his legacy would live on within him, he tore out the alien's [[spark]] and used it to fuel himself, granting him enough power to defeat Hun-Gar. He spared the Terrorcons in exchange for their loyalty, then returned to Cybertron on their ship to take revenge on Scorponok and take back control of the Decepticons. {{storylink|Prey (issue)|Prey}}
[[File:Monstrosity12 strange turns.jpg|right|thumb|300px|To be fair, that's all we can think about regarding you two, as well.]]
Megatron returned to a Cybertron in chaos, as the ancient reptilian [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]] had been unleashed by Scorponok and was in the midst of razing Iacon. After reasserting his leadership of the Decepticons by beating Scorponok nearly to death, he had Shockwave restore his body to it original shape and condition, {{storylink|The Illusion of Control}} and set out to investigate the Trypticon situation alone, unwilling to risk his soldiers in the face of the beast's uncontrolled fury. Finding an injured Optimus Prime on the battlefield, Megatron lectured him, but opted to leave him alive so that he could watch as the Decepticon leader defeated the enemy that Prime could not. Megatron was attacked by [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]], but as they grappled, they were swallowed by Trypticon. {{storylink|Annihilation}} Within the giant, the pair set their differences aside to fend off the [[cyber-morphic predators]] that populated his interior, and together, they destroyed Trypticon's internal power cell, taking him offline. A tense standoff between the Autobots and Decepticons followed as the two warriors emerged from within Trypticon, but both sides agreed to go their separate ways for the time being. Not long after the battle, however, Megatron removed Pentius's spark from within himself and installed it within Trypticon, reviving the monster as a Decepticon. {{storylink|Belly of the Beast}}

===The spreading conflict===
[[File:MTMTE14 megatron vs overlord.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
Megatron's actions during the war were many. Early during the conflict, he wrote ''[[Towards Peace]]'', a new treatise to replace ''After the Ark'', in which he described continuing to fight the war until the very notion of conflict was literally inconceivable. Then and only then would he finally give up his fusion cannon. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} He oversaw the creation of a class of super-warriors known as the [[Warriors Elite]], selecting only his most powerful troops to undergo the torturous upgrade, including [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]], a brilliant sadist and frequent opponent of his from his pit-fighting days who had developed an obsession with Megatron after the Decepticon leader dealt him his first ever defeat. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} At some point, he also created the [[Decepticon Justice Division]] to deal with traitors, {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} though he elected not to send them after Deadlock when he defected, valuing the warrior enough to instead dispatch [[Lockdown (G1)|Lockdown]] to bring him in. {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}}
[[File:ChaosTheory prime vs megatron montage.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]
Megatron would personally clash with Optimus Prime many times; Optimus grew to respect and fear Megatron as a calm, calculating and measured opponent, while Megatron himself respected Prime's sheer power and his skill as a tactician and as a leader. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} Megatron would later incorrectly recall their battle on [[Sherma Bridge]] during the [[Rorsha Campaign]] as the first time they met. Said battle was certainly momentous—every Autobot and Decepticon stopped fighting to witness their duel, during which Megatron's cannon arm was sliced off by Prime's [[energon-axe]], and he claimed revenge by throwing the Autobot leader off the bridge. As the war spread to other planets, they would meet again and again: during the [[Siege of Massunstrad]], Megatron sealed Prime in an anti-matter chamber; on [[Rada Mor]], Prime reduced Megatron to ashes with sentient explosives; and in the midst of the [[Vorsk Offensive]], Megatron was nearly sliced in half by Prime. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} Megatron took on a new pistol alternate mode for the [[Battle for Hell's Point]], during which he was used by [[Heretech]] to blast [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]]. {{storylink|The Gloaming}} During the same skirmish, Megatron took off half of Prime's face with his energon mace, but had a city block dropped on him by Prime in retribution, which shattered his [[transformation cog]] and trapped him in gun mode for two years. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} At the war's zenith, Megatron sealed himself in an [[Omniglobe]] to absorb the relentless flood of data coming in from countless fronts. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}}

Prime was not the only old face that Megatron would see again during the war: during a battle on an aerial drilling platform over the [[Manganese Mountains]], Megatron came face-to-face with his old friend Impactor, and stood poised to execute him until Impactor gave him a moment's pause by recalling his old fondness for poetry. In this moment, Megatron was knocked from the platform by [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] and sent plummeting to the mountains below. {{storylink|Zero Point}}
[[File:LastStandoftheWreckers2-teleconference.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]
With total war going nowhere, Megatron would go on to develop a six-stage [[infiltration protocol]] to be used for conquering targeted planets. The sixth phase called for outright planetary razing, and Megatron selected three of his Warriors Elite for this task: [[Sixshot]], {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}}, Overlord and [[Black Shadow (Victory)|Black Shadow]]. He informed this trio of his decision via teleconference, but Overlord tired of being used as someone else's weapon and refused. Megatron threatened to hunt Overlord down for his disobedience, {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 2|Last Stand of the Wreckers #2}} but while the powerful warrior spent the rest of his life preparing for this conflict, Megatron never followed up and left him to stew in his own obsession. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}}
[[File:Stormbringer1 get up and fight.jpg|right|thumb|250px|"Megatron. You're touching me. Stop it."]]
Deducing that the Autobot/Decepticon war would culminate in an energy crisis that would threatened the stability of Cybertron itself, Shockwave left Cybertron to secretly pursue alternate energy sources. Around 10,000 years ago, when Shockwave did not return, Megatron ordered Bludgeon to investigate his files, {{storylink|Spotlight: Shockwave}} secretly assigning Soundwave to investigate Bludgeon {{storylink|Spotlight: Soundwave}} and probe deeper into whatever it was Shockwave had created. {{storylink|Shockpoint}}

Shockwave's prediction soon proved accurate, and Cybertron found itself in the throes of an energy shortage. Decepticon scientist [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]] came to Megatron with a revolutionary, controversial plan to stave off this energy death by [[Pretender|polydermal grafting]], a process where they encased themselves in "symbiotic carapaces", or shells created from living tissue. When Megatron dismissed him angrily and cut him down, Thunderwing did not abandon his research; instead, he experimented on himself. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} The process gave him immense power, but drove him insane. He became so dangerous that Megatron had to join forces with Optimus Prime to stop him. This battle at [[Thunderhead Pass]] accelerated the apocalypse destined to befall Cybertron, leaving it an uninhabitable, radioactive husk and forcing both armies to continue their war on other worlds. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 1|Stormbringer #1}} Megatron advocated that they simply destroy Cybertron to ensure that Thunderwing was destroyed, but Prime refused, and threatened to stop Megatron if he tried. Megatron agreed not to destroy the planet, but warned Prime that whatever happened was on his head. Shortly after the last big push by the Decepticons, Cybertron was abandoned by both factions. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 1|Stormbringer #2}}

===Breaking protocol===
[[File:Infiltration4 enter megatron.jpg|left|thumb|225px|...oh @#$%.]]
In the present day, when word reached Megatron that the infiltration unit led by [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], stationed on the planet [[Earth]], had broken protocol, he headed for the planet to investigate. Examining the unit's abandoned bunker in [[Nebraska]] for information, he discovered that Starscream had stumbled across [[Ultra-Energon|Ore-13]]—an incredible energy source that (unbeknownst to Megatron) was the end result of Shockwave's experiments—and was planning to use it to usurp Megatron's command. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} While studying the bunker's files, he was contacted by [[Razorclaw (G1)|Razorclaw]] with some distressing news: Bludgeon's investigations of Shockwave's files had led him to revive Thunderwing. Megatron ordered the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]] to Cybertron, authorizing them to do whatever was necessary to destroy Thunderwing, including the destruction of their homeworld itself. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} Just as he was handing down this order, Megatron was happened upon by [[Verity Carlo]], a human ally of the Autobot unit active on the planet, {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} but he utterly ignored her. The bunker was then leveled by an airstrike courtesy of [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]], who were merely covering their unit's tracks and unaware of Megatron's presence; when their leader furiously emerged from the wreckage, they attempted to explain their ignorance, but he simply responded by blasting Skywarp out of the sky. [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] soon arrived on the scene, and favored opening fire rather than attempting explanations, so Megatron beat the stuffing out of him too, then set off for Starscream's new bunker in [[Oregon]]. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 5|Infiltration #5}}

[[File:Infiltration6 takeyourpunishment.jpg|250px|thumb|Those librarians are getting really strict on late returns.]]

{{quote|You will stand down. If you fight, you ''die''. There is no room anymore for mercy. In the end, you are ''all'' expendable. Choose.|Megatron's ultimatum to Starscream's troops|[[Infiltration issue 6|''Infiltration'' #6]]}}

[[Orbital jump|Orbital jumping]] to Oregon, Megatron called Starscream out and ordered the team to stand down, disgusted to see such power games being played amongst his troops. His brief, chilling speech was enough to take the fight out of all but Starscream, who, powered-up on Ore-13, took Megatron on himself. Though the new power source made Starscream a formidable adversary, Megatron was still more deadly than he, and Starscream was taken out by a point-blank fusion cannon blast through his torso. Megatron ordered the Decepticons to ensure that Starscream survived, and then, observing the Autobots who had been watching the battle, announced that it was time to begin phase two. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6}}

In light of the discovery of Ore-13, Megatron took stock of Starscream's progress on Earth and elected to get the infiltration protocol back on track himself, calling a meeting to make Starscream's former troops and making them aware, in no uncertain terms, that any further insurrections would be met with deadly force. {{storylink|Escalation issue 1|Escalation #1}} He was even able to revisit his past gun alternate mode, once again able to achieve the [[size changing|mass displacement]] the mode required thanks to the extra energy Ore-13 provided. {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}}

[[File:Megsandspidy.jpg|left|250px|thumb|Mere seconds before Megs turns Spider-Man into Spider-Goop.]]
With his forces joined by [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]], a new arrival who Megatron suspected of having ulterior motives, {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} the Decepticon leader initiated phase two of infiltration protocol by destabilizing relations between the European nations of [[Latveria]] and [[Symkaria]] through use of an aggression-inducing [[Psycho-Prism]], stolen from Latverian dicatator [[Doctor Doom]]. When the superhero team known as the [[Avengers]] investigated the array the Decepticons' were using to broadcast the prism's signal, Megatron abducted the arachnid-powered [[Spider-Man]] to use as a subject for their [[mirror response mode]], {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}} draining the hero's powers and infusing himself and the other Decepticons with them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} He proceeded to forge a brief alliance with Doctor Doom, who helped him defeat and capture the allied Autobot/Avenger team who snuck inside the Decepticons' array, but when Doom's suggestion to threaten the captives in order to force the other heroes to lay down their arms failed, Megatron violently dissolved the partnership. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Three}} Emerging from the confines of the array to take on the Autobots and Avengers himself, Megatron refrained from engaging Prime, foreesing a more intimate confrontation between the two of them in the near future, and instead turned his attention to destroying [[Iron Man]]'s Transformer-sized armor. The tables soon turned, however, when Doctor Doom freed the captive Autobots and used the Decepticon's mirror response technology to empower them. Defeated by these enhanced Autobots and with the Psycho-Prism destroyed by [[Wolverine (superhero)|Wolverine]], Megatron used the last of his extra power to teleport the Decepticons out with an [[emergency warp-out]]. He refrained from departing alongside his warriors, intending to slaughter the Avengers for their interference, but when he was immobilized by Spider-Man's webbing, knocked to the ground by [[Luke Cage]], and rattled by a hail of Autobot fire, he finally warped-out with a final taunt to Optimus Prime of the battle yet to come between them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Four}}
[[File:Massdisplacement.jpg|right|thumb|400px]]
With phase two of infiltration protocol properly underway, Megatron recognized that he ''should'' rightly withdraw and install a new unit commander on Earth, but could not resist the chance to try out his new Ore-13 empowered body, selecting the nation of [[Brasnya]], where Decepticon subterfuge was already underway, as his testing ground. {{storylink|Escalation issue 2|Escalation #2}} Allowing the Decepticon's [[facsimile construct]] [[Georgi Koska]] to wield him in pistol mode, Megatron had Koska use him to first sever a [[Russia]]n oil pipeline, and then to fire upon the soldiers who came to investigate, furthering the political and military tensions already brewing in the region. When word came through from Blitzwing that Optimus Prime and the Autobots had arrived, {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}} Megatron at last engaged Optimus directly, {{storylink|Escalation issue 4|Escalation #4}} and although Prime was able to destroy his fusion cannon, the extra strength afforded Megatron by Ore-13 allowed him to physically beat Prime into submission, punching directly into his chest and crushing his [[spark]]. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} [[File:Escalation5 prime vs megs.jpg|left|thumb|250px]] The horrified Autobots moved into a full but ineffective counterattack, their only edge being that Megatron had no long-range guns left. It turned out that Prime's apparent death was a desperate ruse when the Autobot leader countered with a surprise attack on Megatron, able to exploit Ore-13's weakness—the more it's used, the faster it burns itself out. Megatron almost collapsed from power loss and was forced to have Skywarp take him to safety before the Autobots could kill him. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}}

Furious over the embarrassing defeat, Megatron threw protocol out the window and ordered that Sixshot be summoned to the planet. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}} He took out some of his anger on Ramjet, who he discovered had been busy cooking up a plot to overthrow him; without saying a word, he beat the attempted traitor to death before tearing him apart and keeping his head as a trophy. {{storylink|Spotlight: Ramjet}}
[[File:Devastation5 decepticons attack.jpg|thumb|right|250px]]
Upon Sixshot's arrival, Megatron ordered him to utterly destroy the Autobots, and although the Phase Sixer questioned his early deployment, he was happy to go along with the abandonment of the phase structure. The other Decepticons, on the other hand, were worried that Megatron was losing his grip—and since they were too scared to tell him that, they decided to revive Starscream to do it for them. {{storylink|Devastation issue 1|Devastation #1}} Megatron monitored Sixshot's attack on the Autobots' [[Ark-19]], ordering him to pursue the escape pod that broke away from the crashing craft, {{storylink|Devastation issue 2|Devastation #2}} but before he could obliterate the Autobots, Megatron was forced to recall him to deal with a new threat assaulting the Decepticon base—the alien [[Reaper]]s. {{storylink|Devastation issue 4|Devastation #4}} Unfortunately, the Reapers convinced Sixshot to side with them, and when an Ore-13 powered Starscream entered the fray to take Sixshot down, Megatron realized his troops had been conspiring against him. He decided not to punish them '''yet''', due to greater threat posed by the Reapers, {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}} and entered battle alongside them all, even allowing Starscream to wield him in pistol mode against the aliens. After the invaders were dead, however, he turn on his men, starting with Blitzwing—but was forced to realize that they needed to remain united when it became apparent that their battle with the Reapers had made humanity inescapably aware of their existence {{storylink|Devastation issue 6|Devastation #6}}
{{--}}

===All Hail Megatron===
[[File:AHM7 megs rips out matrix.jpg|left|thumb|200px|"Oh yeah, and while I'm here..."]]
While the Decepticons were occupied fighting the Reapers, the Autobots had left Earth to deal with the greater threat of an incursion by the [[Dead Universe]]. Exploiting their enemies' absence, Megatron and his men went to ground; when Autobots returned, they could find no trace of the Decepticons, who kept one step ahead of them for months. Secretly abducting [[Hunter O'Nion]], former [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] partner to the Autobot [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]], Megatron and his men returned to Cybertron, where Megatron had [[Deluge (G2)|Deluge]] conduct experiments that bred a [[Insecticon swarm|swarm]] of monstrous [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticons]]. The experiments culminated in the creation of [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]], who Megatron employed in a series of key tasks in his plan: the Insecticon obtained from Hunter's mind various Autobot secrets and codes, completed Shockwave's long-gestating combiner process, granting the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] the ability to combine into [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]], and created a working [[space bridge]] {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} based on designs sold to them by Sixshot in exchange for his freedom. {{storylink|Spotlight: Metroplex}}

Returning to Earth, the Decepticons staged a phony schism within their ranks, allowing the Autobots to believe that they had "disappeared" as a result of a power struggle that had split their ranks into two camps, one led by Megatron and one by Starscream. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} Starscream then approached Sunstreaker, whose experience has a Headmaster had left him bitter and jaded, with the proposition that the Autobots join with his forces against Megatron, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 8|All Hail Megatron #8}} but when the Autobots arrived at the designated time and place, they were instead confronted by the united Decepticon army and quickly defeated by Devastator. After personally tearing [[Matrix of Leadership]] from Optimus Prime's chest, Megatron marched the captive Autobots through the space bridge back to Cybertron, where the Insecticon swarm waited for them. Prime, however, was able to damage the bridge, causing it to deposit the Autobots a safe distance from the swarm, but in the process, fried his own circuits and left himself comatose. Though the Autobots had escaped the fate he had intended for them, Megatron had successfully exiled his enemies to their dead homeworld; morever, using information and codes gained from Sunstreaker and Hunter, he concurrently orchestrated the event that would later be known as [[Surge (event)|The Surge]], as Decepticons stormed Autobot installations all across the galaxy, achieving total victory. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}}

[[File:Bringingthehousedown.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Megatron's urban renewal program was off to a flying start.]]

With galaxy-wide domination accomplished, one year after the Decepticons' battle with the Reapers, Megatron chose Earth to become the new Decepticon homeworld. Together with his men, Megatron stormed [[New York City]], humiliating Starscream with a display of his greater capacity for destruction. When the US Air Force retaliated, Megatron shrugged off their fire and ordered the other Decepticons to engage them; when one damaged jet threw itself toward him in a suicide run, Megatron, outraged at the [[DJ (G1)|pilot]]'s temerity, destroyed it and its occupant with a furious swipe of his hand. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} When US Army forces arrived, Megatron ordered [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] dispatched to deal with them, then sent Devastator to destroy the subway tunnels leading out of the city. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 2|All Hail Megatron #2}} With New York secured, Megatron directed the Constructicons to begin building new space bridge in the city's heart, and had a candid talk with Starscream, revealing his belief that the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seeker]]'s attitude and actions marked him as the embodiment of the Decepticon cause, even if he was blind to seeing it himself. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 3|All Hail Megatron #3}} After a series of further attacks on major American cities saw the country firmly crushed under the Decepticons' collective heel, Megatron made a propaganda speech to his men in the ruins of New York. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 4|All Hail Megatron #4}} As night fell upon the city, Megatron withdrew to privately gloat over the Matrix. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 5|All Hail Megatron #5}}

[[File:AHM6MegatronVsIsrael.jpg|left|300px|thumb|]]
As the Decepticons began attacking other countries around the globe, Megatron was questioned by Starscream on what the next step in his plan was. A recalcitrant Megatron merely informed him that it was merely time to savor their victory, but Starscream accused him of not ''having'' any plans post-victory, and was merely allowing his men to run wild to distract them from any notion of taking power for themselves. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}} What Starscream did not realize was that Megatron did indeed have a plan: to defeat the Autobots, he had created an army of killers and monsters, but in order to create his perfect rule, that army would have to be destroyed, the dissenting, distasteful elements obliterated before Megatron's peace could dawn. Megatron was not distracting his warriors... he was ''waiting'' to see which of them would question and turn on him. Silently sorrowful to already know that such dissent would begin with Starscream, an otherwise-model Decepticon, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}} Megatron withdrew to [[Israel]] for some silent reflection amid wholesale devastation. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}}

[[File:AHM10 megs vs devastator.jpg|right|thumb|250px|And then he said "MORE."]]

Some time later, Megatron surveyed the space bridge Bombshell and the Constructicons had built in New York. He congratulated Bombshell on his work, but revealed that he had always foreseen Bombshell's intellect as a danger—had always known he and his fellow Insecticons would side with Starscream when the time came. His gambit exposed, Starscream made his move and attacked, but the Insecticons proved no match for Megatron's might. The Decepticon leader had failed to anticipate one thing, however: he did not foresee the Constructicons siding with Starscream, and found himself having to fight the mighty Devastator. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}} The in-fighting was halted by a last-ditch attack by the mustered might of what remained of the human resistance, forcing Megatron and Starscream to put their differences aside momentarily and organize a defense. This attack came as no surprise to Megatron, but the same could not be said for the next entrants onto the battlefield: the Autobots had returned.

After assuring Starscream that he would be leader in the future, when his time was done, Megatron confronted Optimus Prime, surprised not so much that his old foe had survived, but that he had bothered to return to Earth. Both leaders had always maintained a policy of acceptable losses through their millennia-long war, so Megatron assumed Prime had come back for selfish reasons, to reclaim the Matrix, but Prime insisted that he had changed, and would no longer allow their cold war to endanger innocent lives on this scale. [[File:AHM12 prime vs megs.jpg|left|thumb|300px|Any given day with these two.]] Megatron scoffed at the notion, reavling that Prime's supposedly "innocent" humans were planning to nuke New York, killing millions of their own just to get rid of the Decepticons, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 11|All Hail Megatron #11}} but Prime retorted that it wasn't ''just'' about the humans, but also about the difference between Autobots and Decepticons. The two came to blows, but Megatron triumphed in short order and commanded the Decepticons to depart, leaving the Autobots to be killed by the humans' nuke... but just before they withdrew, he was shot in the face by human soldier [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], wielding a powerful weapon reverse-engineered from Cybertronian technology. Injured and disoriented by the blast, Megatron was finished off when Prime smashed his face in with his own fusion cannon. As he wanted to ''take'' leadership rather than just have it fall in his hands, Starscream picked up his damaged leader and ordered the Decepticons to retreat. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

[[File:AllHisEngines-Megatron.jpg|thumb|Pretty sure when you float in a bacta tank you're supposed to be wearing a diaper.]]
The Decepticons departed Earth aboard Astrotrain, where the gravely wounded Megatron was put on life support and tended to by Soundwave and his cassettes. With Megatron's life signs only at ten percent capacity, Starscream attempted to appeal to Soundwave's sense of logic and have him shut down so that leadership could be his, but Soundwave refused. Starscream was soon able to take command, however, when he recovered the Matrix of Leadership and professed to have been chosen by it. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 13|Uneasy Lies the Head}}

===New body, new powers===

The Decepticons eventually settled on a desolate asteroid, where Megatron was installed in a [[CR chamber|CR tank]]. Retaining some level of awareness of the events occurring around him during his convalescence, he was forced to watch as his army languished in inactivity, their energy slowly ebbing away until they were reduced to cannibalism. {{storylink|All His Engines}} After a year of trying to free his leader from this living death, Soundwave was finally forced to conclude that Megatron's body was beyond repair, and recruited the recently-returned Shockwave, whom Starscream had provided with the majority of the Decepticons' resources to create a space bridge, to help build a new body for Megatron's consciousness to inhabit. The operation succeeded and Megatron was reborn in a deadly new body, powered by Ore-13, armed with a devastatingly powerful rail gun, and even equipped with space bridge nodes stolen from Metroplex, which gave him the ability to open space bridge portals on his own. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

[[File:IDWongoing15 megatrons new body.jpg|left|thumb|275px|"Uh, it's like...did anyone ever see the movie ''Tron''?"]]

Back in action, Megatron devised a plan to destabilize the relationship between the humans and Autobots on Earth. Together with Soundwave and Shockwave, he chopped up his old body and used it to create human-scaled replicas of his former gun mode, containing small pieces of his own consciousness. When Starscream caught them in the act, Megatron elected to table his plan for the moment, as he considered it folly to go against Starscream's wishes for the moment since the Seeker was still in possession of the Matrix of Leadership. Megatron had never truly understood what the talisman ''did'', but it served as a threat merely by being an unknown variable. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} Fortunately, for Megatron this variable was soon removed from the equation when Hot Rod, estranged from the Earthbound Autobots, infiltrated the Decepticons' asteroid base and recovered the Matrix from Starscream. Megatron seized his chance, intercepting the Autobot and blasting him and the Matrix out into the void of space. {{storylink|Heart Like a Wheel}}

[[File:SLMegatron stealth bomber mode.jpg|right|thumb|275px|Behold... the ''Bomberang!'']]

With Starscream's trump card now gone, Megatron had the Decepticons gathered so he could address them. Distrustful of Shockwave's motives for preparing his new body, wary of Soundwave's constant surveillance, and repulsed by the state of his once fearsome Decepticon war machine, Megatron decided that he needed to unequivocally reestablish dominance over the now Matrix-less Starscream. He intended to beat Starscream near to death as a means of letting them both work out their frustrations with Starscream's inability to lead effectively during Megatron's absence, but Starscream did not want to fight—spiritually broken by his failures, he simply wanted Megatron to kill him. Rather than accept this, Megatron instead goaded Starscream into opening fire upon him. This began a running battle between the two, with Megatron pursuing the fleeing Seeker in his new stealth bomber alternate mode, continuing to bait Starscream every time he appeared willing to give up the fight. Incensed by Starscream's accusation that he did not know what it felt like to see everything he had worked for fall apart, when that was exactly what Starscream's pitiful leadership had done to the empire he had created, Megatron pummeled him to within an inch of his life, then paused to explain why he kept a schemer like Starscream around: as a constant reminder to watch his back. The brutal display galvanized the languid Decepticons, and Megatron was ready to begin his scheme. {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

[[File:IDWongoing14 megatron guns.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]

Roughly two years after the Decepticons' defeat on Earth, Megatron used his space bridge powers to dispatch a container full of the guns made from his old body to Earth, where they were found by South American gun-runners and illegally disseminated amongst an increasingly paranoid public seeking ways to protect themselves against Transformers. This allowed Megatron's consciousness to spread across North America, until it was focused enough to contact one particular owner of a Megatron gun: [[Joe Gladki]]. He deceived and manipulated the paranoid human, and eventually convinced him to perform an assassination attempt on [[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]], the new Autobot leader. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} In their ignorance, the Autobots then mistook Gladki's gun for Megatron himself and held it captive. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 1: The Demolished Man|The Demolished Man}}

[[File:IDWongoing16 megatron vs autobots.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

With the Autobots in chaos, Megatron started the next phase of his plan and returned to Earth personally, where he used his new stealth bomber mode to shoot down a plane carrying Optimus Prime and several other Autobots. He then hunted down the remaining Autobots, effortlessly defeating them and their new temporary leader Ultra Magnus with his powerful new body, and killing some of their [[Skywatch]] allies. Magnus tried to draw Megatron's attention from the humans, claiming the Autobots were the ones he really wanted, but Megatron assured him that humanity was his real target. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 3: Woken Furies|Woken Furies}} Taking the defeated Autobots captive, Megatron dumped them in a city and directed three of his mind-controlled human puppets to kill them. Contacting Prime directly, Megatron summoned him to the city's outskirts and revealed his plan: crush Prime's spirit and destroy the Autobots' alliance with humanity by forcing them to choose between fighting the humans or allowing them to kill them. Prime found the hole in Megatron's plan, however, when he realized that Soundwave was maintaining the connection between Megatron and his guns, and shot him in the head. His connection to his pawns severed, Megatron scooped up Soundwave and withdrew. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome|Burning Chrome}} Thanks to a tracker Ultra Magnus had slipped on Soundwave, though, Prime was able to follow the Decepticons to their bolthole and called Megatron out for a full and and proper confrontation. In actuality, Prime had lured Megatron outside so Skywatch could drop a [[kinetic harpoon]] on him, but even a weapon dropped from orbit barely proved able to put a scratch in Megatron's mighty new exostructure. Megatron proceeded to beat Prime senseless, but then returned him to the Autobots, and to their great shock, surrendered to their custody. After recovering, Optimus demanded to know why he had surrendered, but Megatron merely taunted him by revealing that Spike Witwicky had murdered a Decepticon in cold blood. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine|Enemy Mine}} Prime immediately had Prowl begin investigating Spike and Skywatch, and Prowl interrogated the Decepticon leader for information, which he provded after a little verbal sparring. {{storylink|Police Action: Prologue}}

[[File:ChaosTheory1 megatron imprisoned.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

When Rodimus returned to Earth and warned the Autobots that [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] had taken control of Cybertron, Optimus decided to lead the Autobots in reclaiming their homeworld. In the name of Earth's safety, he elected to bring Megatron and the the confiscated guns made from his old body with them. {{storylink|Space Opera—Final Tableaux: Orphans of the Helix|Orphans of the Helix}} On the way to Cybertron aboard [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]], Prime again attempted to discern why Megatron had surrendered, even releasing his old foe from his bonds and having a civil conversation with him about their past together and their dueling ideologies. Optimus tried to reach out to Megatron, offering him the chance to end the war once and for all with a handshake; Megatron appeared to consider it for a moment but ultimately remained silent. With Megatron returned to the confines of the [[variable voltage harness]], the other Autobots pressured Optimus for a decision on his fate: execution or imprisonment. Trying to come to a conclusion, Prime asked Megatron if he regretted any of his actions, but the Decepticon leader remarked that he only regretted not killing ''more'' Autobots. He taunted Prime with the notion that even he was thankful for the war, as it had raised him from a nobody to the greatest Autobot in history, and a furious Prime activated the harness, electrocuting Megatron. The jolt would have killed Megatron if Omega Supreme had not cut the power in time and Megatron, struggling to stay conscious, offered Prime his thanks for saving his life all those years ago in Rodion. Shocked by his actions, Prime realized that Megatron wanted to die and wanted Prime to be the one to kill him. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} Eventually, Prime decided to let Megatron choose his own fate, and Megatron calmly replied that he chose death. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 2}}
[[File:Chaos2 armored megatron.jpg|right|thumb|225px|Get on it, kitbashers!]]
As Omega drew close to Cybertron, Megatron demanded to know who or what was threatening their homeworld, but Optimus Prime refused to provde him with any information. {{storylink| Chaos Part One: Lamentations|Lamentations}} The Autobots subsequently engaged Galvatron's forces in battle, and while they were occupied, Megatron put into motion the ace he had up his sleeve: taking remote control of the numerous "Megatron guns" aboard Omega, Megatron summoned them to him and combined with them into a new armored mode. Breaking free from his restraints, he headed out to confront Galvatron, intent that nobody would take his world from him. {{storylink|Chaos Part Two: Numbers|Numbers}} As he tore through the Sweeps, Megatron also revealed the reason for his surrender: now that he was back on Cybertron, he could open a space bridge that would allow the massed forces of the Decepticons on Earth to return to their home planet as well. Unfortunately, not long after the Decepticons arrived on the battlefield, Galvatron's secret puppet master, the Dead Universe entity known as the [[D-Void]], seized control of their minds and those of the Sweeps, merging them into a gigantic, monstrous avatar. With Prime occupied pursuing Galvatron into Cybertron's depths, Megatron was left to face this "[[Deceptigod]]" alone. {{storylink|Chaos Part Three: Kings|Kings}} Fighting against the D-Void's attempts to ensnare his own mind and make him part of the collective, Megatron was gravely wounded and even lost an arm to the beast, but succeeded into destroying it, blasting it apart with one massive beam from his weapons. {{storylink|Chaos Part Four: Genesis|Genesis}}

===The long game===

Even as the Deceptigod disintegrated back into its component Decepticons, Megatron could see the potential the creature embodied—the D-Void had, in essence, created the perfect combiner by means of utterly obliterating free will. With Cybertron reverting into a primordial wasteland around him—a result of Optimus Prime purifying [[Vector Sigma]] with the Matrix to stop Galvatron and the D-Void—Megatron chose to withdraw to experiment with the possibilities this presented. He informed Shockwave, the sole Decepticon who had not been made part of the Deceptigod, of his plans, and Shockwave in turn revealed them to Soundwave and Bombshell. {{storylink|Shockpoint}} While Megatron hid in the wilderness, his Decepticons were left to live as second-class citizens in the new [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] that the Autobots built; Optimus Prime left Cybertron two weeks after the D-Void's defeat to calm tensions with "NAILs"—other unaffiliated Cybertronians—who had returned to their homeworld, but even as he did so, he mused that Megatron must still be out there somewhere. {{storylink|Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}
[[File:RID11 megatron in wilderness.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]
In the months of study and experimentation that followed, Megatron discerned that the combination of Ore-13 and space bridge technology in his body somehow gave him the ability to manipulate the natural energy of Cybertron that the D-Void had used to merge the Decepticons into the Deceptigod. After experiments on [[turbofox]]es created larger, more ferocious beasts, Megatron stepped up trials when the [[Aerialbot (G1)|Aerialbots]] seceded from the shaky government Bumblebee, [[Metalhawk (Masterforce)|Metalhawk]] and Starscream were building in Iacon and ventured into the wilderness. The signal Megatron had created from the combination energy first drove the Aerialbots mad, before uniting them in body and mind, spontaneously merging them into the gestalt [[Superion (G1)|Superion]], but this newborn Autobot combiner was considered hopelessly insane by Megatron and left to die in the wilderness. The madness aspect of the signal afforded him the chance to revive some of the principles of the infiltration protocol, however, as he blanketed the wastelands in it, forcing the Autobots, Decepticons and NAILs to stay in Iacon, causing natural conflict among them to snowball, providing a useful cover for his actions. To gain a pawn within Autobot high command, Megatron even provided Bombshell with the energy to use in conjunction with his own mind-controlling [[cerebro-shell]]s, ensnaring the mind of Prowl. With the resources and cover control of Prowl provided, Shockwave, Soundwave and Bombshell were able to use Megatron's findings to perfect the combination process, rebuilding the Constructicons with new modular designs that would allow them to merge into a perfect Devastator. The endgame was for Megatron himself to form the head of the combiner, but before risking his own mind and body, Megatron decided that Prowl would be used first as a test subject. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}}
[[File:RID12 kill him.jpg|right|thumb|350px]]
The appearance of a [[Crystal City Metrotitan|Metrotitan]] on Cybertron which declared that Starscream was the "Chosen One" threatened Megatron's ability to easily re-take leadership of his Decepticons, forcing him to step up his schedule. Through Prowl, he had his inner circle gathered together in the secret "[[Black Room]]", then boldly strode into Iacon for all to see. {{storylink|The End of the Beginning of the World}} His body shattered and skeletal, he professed to come in peace, but Bumblebee did not accept his surrender and ordered his Autobots to kill him. Indeed, Megatron could possibly have died there and then had Iacon's Decepticons not stepped in, insisting that Megatron's defense of Cybertron during the D-Void's attack marked him a hero and that he be taken into custody instead. {{storylink|City on Fire}} After [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] got through examining him to prove his body concealed no weapons, Starscream approached the imprisoned Megatron and attempted to explain that he was not far away from taking complete power in the government, ensuring a Decepticon victory of a different kind. Megatron merely smiled silently at the notion, terrifying his ex-lieutenant with his grin. Presently, the Decepticons rose up in an angry mob and marched on Autobot high command to insist on Megatron's release; the situation quickly devolved into a riot, during which a squad led by [[Needlenose]] stormed the prison and freed Megatron. {{storylink|The Verge}}
[[File:RID14 new body redux.jpg|left|thumb|275px]]
Megatron brought Starscream and the captured Bumblebee and Metalhawk to the Black Room, where he explained his plans and had himself transferred into a pre-prepared new body that could combine with the Constructicons' new forms. At his command, the Constructicons and Prowl combined into the new Devastator, who immediately set about razing Iacon. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}} Even the return of Superion seemed unable to stop the powerful new combiner, until help came from an unexpected quarter—Prowl's secret assassin [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] killed Bombshell, taking out Prowl's controller and causing Devastator to shut down. This was no real impediment to Megatron, however, as the successful function of the new combiner process has been proven, and he set out to take ''his'' place as Devastator's head. Before Megatron could reach the fallen gestalt, though, Devastator awoke, possessed of his own unique, unite consciousness for the first time, and resumed tearing into Iacon. {{storylink|Plan for Everything}}
[[File:RID20_megatron_in_forcefield.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]
Still Megatron remained unfazed, calmly fending off Autobot attacks and waiting for the inevitable moment when the heroes would take Devastator down. When [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] succeeded in doing so by managing to reach Prowl, Devastator separated, and Megatron immediately stepped in, re-initiation the combination with himself in control. Seconds before uniting with the Constructicons, though, his plan was foiled by Bumblebee, Ironhide and Prowl's activation of a secret failsafe: Wheeljack had integrated a forcefield generator into Megatron's spark casing during his examination of him, and when it was triggered, he was completely paralyzed in mid-transformation. {{storylink|Heavy Is the Head}} In the fallout of the battle, Starscream killed Metalhawk and took control of Iacon and banished the Autobots and Decepticons from the city. He took custody of the immobilized Megatron, and silently gloated over the victory he had accomplished by using guile and politics, rather than Megatron's ways of brute force and firepower. {{storylink|Three Monologues}}
Megatron would not remain in this state for long; that night, as the end result of millennia-long secret machinations by Shockwave, an [[Necrotitan|undead Metrotitan]] appeared on Cybertron and opened a portal to the Dead Universe in the planet's skies. Through the portal, Shockwave made contact with Galvatron and his master, the exiled Cybertron despot [[Nova Prime]], but was unable to bring them through to Cybertron thanks to the unexpected disappearance of the Titan's space bridge system. Reanimating the deceased Metalhawk with a wave of necrotic energy from the Titan, Shockwave had him liberate Megatron and bring him to his secret lab in [[Crystal City]]. {{storylink|Winners & Losers: Dark Cybertron Chapter 3|Winners & Losers}}
[[File:RID24 i remember you.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Ow.]]
Shockwave hoped that Megatron would comply with his plans willingly, but the Decepticon leader refused and Shockwave forcibly activated the space bridge technology in Megatron's body. {{storylink|Into the Abyss: Dark Cybertron Chapter 4|Into the Abyss}} The opening of the bridge in his chest caused Megatron agony, but his screams were heard by Soundwave, who led the united forces of the exiled Autobots and Decepticons to Shockwave's lab to free his leader. Nova Prime and Galvatron attempted to squeeze their way through the space bridge despite this interference, but Ironhide was able to punch Nova back through into the Dead Universe. At that moment, Shockwave's "Necrotitan" came crashing into the subterranean city, and in the chaos, Megatron was freed from the restraints holding him. No sooner had Megatron carried Ironhide to the safe hands of the other Autobots, however, than he was ripped in half from behind by Galvatron, who had successfully emerged through the portal {{storylink|Finest Hour: Dark Cybertron Chapter 5|Finest Hour}}

In a vision of the future seen by Ironhide and [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] during the reformatting of Cybertron, fifteen million years hence, Ironhide still believed Megatron to be alive and promised a young Autobot they would defeat him again if he ever returned. {{storylink|Pax Cybertronia (issue)|Pax Cybertronia}} {{storylink|A Better Tomorrow}}
{{-}}

===''Spotlight: Mirage''===
[[File:SLMirage all in good time.jpg|right|thumb|275px]]
{{NoteSLMirage}}
Somewhere, in an unknown time or place, the self-serving mercenary [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] dreamed of Megatron and his Decepticons launching a massive attack on the Autobots. But Mirage knew that to only be a dream; in reality, the Autobots were almost eradicated, and Megatron had hired him to hunt down the last of their number. Megatron was outraged by the mercenary's demand for a majority share in all energon mining operations as payment, but it proved to be fuel well spent, as he soon succeeded in locating Optimus Prime and forcing him to surrender. Megatron demanded the prisoners be executed despite Mirage's promise to spare Autobot lives. Seeing Mirage's hesitation, Megatron appealed to his greed. {{storylink|Spotlight: Mirage}}
{{-}}

==Notes==
* In [[Megatron Origin issue 2|''Megatron Origin'' #2]], we see that Megatron's helmet is, in fact, [[:Image:MegatronOrigin2 Megs hair.jpg|a helmet and not part of his head]] (at least in his original body). Upon removing his helmet, Megatron then briefly unfurls a crest. The significance of this moment is not explained, but it is briefly revisited in [[Remembrance Day|''More than Meets the Eye'' #14]] when a helmetless Megatron spars with [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]].

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Rulers of Cybertron]]

Megatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

2014-01-10T15:59:36Z

Solaar: /* All Hail Megatron */

{{suite}}
{{factions|decepticon}}
[[File:IDWMegatron.jpg|thumb|300x342px|Megatron A, Megatron B, Megatron Retailer's Incentive, and Megatron Dynamic Forces Exclusive variant.]]
'''Megatron''' waged a battle to destroy the evil forces of the [[Senate]]! Then he ''continued'' to wage a war against the evil forces of freedom, organic life, and the very idea of an Autobot living.

{{quote|In the final analysis, I would happily wade across a river of corpses, chest-deep in rust and grease and engine oil, just to crush the Spark of the last Autobot standing. And I would not do so simply as a means to an end. No. I'd do it, Prime, because it would give me ''pleasure''.|Megatron to Optimus Prime|''[[Chaos Theory Part 1]]''}}

__TOC__
==IDW Generation 1 comics==
{{ongoing}}
===Birth of a tyrant===
[[File:ChaosTheory1 megatron symbol creation.jpg|left|thumb|300px|... And thus the "Silica Fracturism" art movement was born.]]
Long ago, before the war and under the reign of [[Nominus Prime]], Megatron of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]] was an [[energon]] miner, a member of the lower class, living near [[Rodion]]. An intellectual and a poet, Megatron was sickened by the caste-ridden social apartheid of Cybertronian society—where your form determined your role, and your role your rights—and so he wrote [[After the Ark: Nominus Prime and the Illusion of Progress|a treatise]] on how pacifist dissent and the exchange of ideas could change things. It was while he was sharing this work with his miner friend [[Impactor (G1)|Impactor]] over a drink in [[Maccadam's Old Oil House|Maccadam's New Oil House]] that the event occurred which would change the course of his life, as Impactor wound up being drawn into a bar brawl with some of the city's upper classes and Megatron was among those arrested after the fracas. In order to silence his increasingly loud voice of dissent against their regime, the [[Senate]] arranged for a police officer on their payroll, [[Whirl (G1)|Whirl]], to kill Megatron, but before Whirl could finish the job, police captain [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]], having discovered Megatron's innocence, arranged for his release. [[File:Minermegs.jpg|225px|thumb|Now that's the look of a well-adjusted individual.]] Despite Pax expressing support for the message of his writings, Megatron now found himself filled with rage and hate, disillusioned with his former ideology and realiing the power of applied violence. Angrily hurling the datapad on which he had written his treatise through a public info-screen, Megatron observed the jagged shape of the shattered glass, and later turned it into a [[insignia|symbol]] for his cause. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

Megatron's samizdat writings began to circulate in Cybertron's underground, spawning the "[[Decepticon]]" movement, its name derived from its own slogan, "You are being deceived", warning the common 'bot of the Senate's true nature. Knowing that, at this stage, assassinating Megatron would merely make him a martyr, the Senate instead elected to relocate him off-planet, re-assigning him to [[Mining Outpost C-12]] on the world of [[Messatine]] while they tried their own schemes to defuse the growing Decepticon movement. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}}

Megatron continued to seethe with hate and frustration in his new workplace, which reached a peak when, some time later, [[Decimus|Senator Decimus]] arrived to announce that the mine was being closed immediately and the workers would be relocated. When one of the Senator's guards killed a worker for insubordination and claims of Senate corruption, Megatron's fury boiled over and he hurled his pickaxe at Decimus. In turn, he was attacked by the Senator's guard, whom he killed by smashing his head to fragments. A riot erupted around him, but Megatron himself could only sit amongst the chaos, staring at his fuel-stained hands in abject horror, which allowed him to be easily pacified and rounded up with the other miners as the mayhem was quickly suppressed. En route to [[Penal Facility H-3|imprisonment]] back on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], however, [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] and [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] broke free and started a riot aboard [[Longshot (G1)|their ship]]. Megatron joined in their effort, and together, they overpowered their guards, took control of the ship, and disappeared into the [[Kaon]] underground. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}}
[[File:MegsOrigin2 Cykill.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
After evading law enforcement, Megatron joined a team of underworld gladiators under the tutelage of [[Clench (G1)|Clench]]. Initially repulsed by killing his opponents, the games eventually turned him more brutal and excessive, and he took control of the entire operation from Clench. The opportunistic Senator [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], after seeing how much money there was in the underworld matches, covertly sent his agent [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] to offer Megatron weaponry and technology to upgrade himself and his comrades. Their meeting was spied upon by [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (G1)|Fastback]], agents from the Senate's forces, who Megatron slew. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}} Subsequently, impressed by how he treated his animal-form [[Decepticon Mini-Cassette|cassette partners]] as equals (in contradiction to the teachings of his Senate masters), Megatron invited Soundwave back to the gladiator pits and gave him permission to use his mind-reading abilities on him. Within Megatron's mind, Soundwave saw his honest desire for all Cybertronians to be true equals, and was so moved by it that he joined Megatron's cause. {{storylink|Soundwaves (issue)|Soundwaves}}

Gradually, Megatron used the gladiatorial games to drum up an army of violent malcontents, sending Soundwave to recruit more and more warriors to his cause. Such recruits included [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]], who he was presented with while having an arm he lost in a brawl replaced with a new limb that incorporated an [[energon mace]], {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} and the disenfranchised warrior [[Drift (G1)|Drift]], who was personally asked by Megatron to fight at his side when he attended a Decepticon rally, and whom Megatron rechristened "Deadlock". {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}} Seeking to enhance his army even further, Megatron reached out to [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Senator Shockwave]], offering to supply him the resources to perfect the teachings of his lost mentor [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] and create a [[combiner]] that would serve the Decepticons. Shockwave cautioned that it could take some time, but Megatron was content to wait. {{storylink|Shockwaves}}

[[File:Apexthrone.JPG|250px|thumb|right|You should have gone to IKEA.]]
Despite all his efforts, Megatron believed that the Senate was still not taking the Decepticons seriously, so Soundwave formulated a plan for a declaration of intent that could be not denied: lure the Senate to Kaon and murder them. {{storylink|Soundwaves (issue)|Soundwaves}} In preparation for this scheme, Megatron offered to restore Shockwave's lost hands—a victim of [[empurata]]—believing that doing so might speed his work. {{storylink|Shockwaves}} The following day, in accordance with Soundwave's plan, Megatron and the Decepticons allowed themselves to be arrested by Sentinel Prime's men, after which Soundwave was freed on Ratbat's orders, while Starscream would ensure his own release by pretending to defect. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} Together, Soundwave and Starscream exterminated the entire Senate, then liberated Megatron and the rest of their comrades, in the process granting their leader the gift of a [[fusion cannon]] liberated from the Senate forces' armory. Megatron led his army against Sentinel Prime's men, killed Sentinel himself, and took control of Kaon, now ready to turn his insurgency into a full-blown war. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

===Early days of war===

Megatron formally declared war on "[[Declaration Day]]" when he delivered a stirring speach from [[Nova Point|Nova Peak]]. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} The growing Decepticon forces swiftly spread across six [[Polities of Cybertron|Torus-States]], {{storylink|Parasites}} and to combat them, Cybertron's new leader [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]] assembled a new military force, the "[[Autobot]]s", led by Megatron's old acquaintance [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]]. Researching his new opposite number, Megatron was intrigued to discover that his now-abandoned treatise had been a source of inspiration for Pax, who had even quoted from it when he confronted the Senate and openly accused them of corruption. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}} Early into the war, [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] would admit to Pax that Megatron talked about him sometimes, when he was tired. When Pax asked what was said, Bludgeon told him that it would make "both of us feel ''uncomfortable''". {{storylink|Omega's Conundrum}}
[[File:Autocracy4 backroom meeting.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]
When Orion Pax came close to Kaon during a mission, Megatron saw it as a chance to speak to him and had his Decepticons bring him in. {{storylink|The Hunt for Soundwave}} Megatron attempted to convince him that Zeta Prime was even worse than he appeared—that he had planned tto let Orion die in [[Nyon]] so that he could use his death as pretext to invade the rebel-infested city and drain the citizens of their energon—and proposed they work together against him, but Orion refused to hear him and then escaped. Knowing the doubts he'd placed in his head would only serve to damage the Autobot cause, Megatron let him go. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}}
[[File:Autocracy8 megs and pax together.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Banzai!]]
Megatron continued to keep an eye on Orion Pax's activities, spying on his encounter with the Nyon insurgent [[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hot Rod]]. {{storylink|Ruins}} When Zeta Prime's [[Guardian robot|Omega Destructor]]s suddenly attacked Nyon, Megatron was surprised by how zealously the new Prime fought against the city's rebels, but his real interest still lay on how Orion would handle the crisis. {{storylink|Purge}} Orion turned on Zeta, who in turn attempted to kill him, prompting Megatron to intervene and force the Prime to retreat. Taking Orion back to Kaon, he again offered that they work together against Zeta's corruption, and this time the Autobot officer accepted. {{storylink|Choices}} As their combined forces invaded the [[Citadel]] in Iacon, Megatron and Orion Pax made their way inside and fought Zeta Prime in person. The battle ended with Megatron killing the Prime with a head shot, and with his objective complete, he then betrayed the injured Orion by shooting him in the back. {{storylink|Overthrown}} Curiously, an alternate report incorrectly implied that Megatron had assassinated Zeta from afar, sniping him with the rifle alternate mode of [[Vos (DJD)|Vos]]. {{storylink|Bullets}} {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}}
[[File:Autocracy12 no you dont megatron.jpg|left|thumb|250px|This seems so familiar...]]
With Zeta dead, Megatron conquered Iacon and declared himself ruler of Cybertron. His soldiers patrolled the planet's streets to "keep the peace", mostly by hunting down and capturing any remaining Autobots who opposed him. {{storylink|Transformation (issue)|Transformation}} During his rule, Megatron attempted to sway the neutral Hot Rod into joining the Decepticons, but he decided otherwise upon witnessing Megatron ordering the execution of several Autobot prisoners. {{storylink|Rise}} Megatron was shocked to learn that Orion Pax had survived the betrayal and was organizing a rebellion against him under the name "Optimus Prime", and even more shocked that people actually had the courage to listen to him. He wasted no time in striking back against the rebels approaching the Citadel with the full force of his army. {{storylink|Broadcast}} During the battle, Megatron unleashed Zeta Prime's energy-draining [[vamparc ribbon|vamparc annihilator]], but when the gigantic [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] took out the cannon, Megatron fell to the streets and was confronted by Optimus Prime himself. He lost the ensuing [[The Transformers: The Movie|familiar-looking duel]] and was badly wounded after a failed attempt to defeat Prime by holding Hot Rod hostage, forcing him to escape aboard Astrotrain. As he fled, he warned Optimus that he hadn't won, he had only started a war unlike any Cybertron had ever seen. {{storylink|Endgame}}

[[File:Monstrosity3_Megatron_and_Pentius.jpg|thumb|right|300px|"WORDS THAT KILL~"]]
Before Megatron could recover from his injuries, he was betrayed by [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]], who was gunning for the position of Decepticon leader (with aid from Starscream, against Megatron's knowledge). As punishment for his failure to hold Iacon, Scorponok banished the wounded Megatron to the hell-world of [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]]. {{storylink|Derelicts}} Further injured in battle with some [[Junkion (species)|cannibalistic natives]], he stubbornly refused to give up and used the trash littering the world to patch himself up, leaving him with a mismatched, monstrous appearance. {{storylink|Wreckage (issue)|Wreckage}} While searching for a way off Junkion, Megatron entered the wreckage of a starship and found a trapped [[Quintesson]] named [[Pentius]], who had mapped the planet and knew of an area known as the [[Pillar of Rust]] where starships may land and take off. Megatron freed the alien to guide him there, while also putting him in chains to serve as his slave. {{storylink|Faces of Darkness}}
[[File:Monstrosity7 megatron takes pentius spark.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
While crossing the [[Acid Sea]] on the way to the Pillar, Megatron was attacked by [[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticons]] who pulled him into the depths. {{storylink|Rage (IDW)|Rage}} For reasons unknown he was then released, the creatures having allowed him to live. As he emerged, Pentius was waiting with a history lesson, telling him that Junkion was once a prosperous world until its inhabitants drained it of resources, leaving it the broken husk it is today: a fate that may also await Cybertron. Megatron rejected this possibility, declaring that under his rule, Cybertron—and his legacy—would last forever. {{storylink|Fallout (issue)|Fallout}} On arrival at the Pillar of Rust, Megatron was met by the [[Terrorcon (G1)|Terrorcons]], who had come to Junkion to finish what Scorponok had started by killing him. He was able to fight off several of his attackers, but [[Hun-Gurrr (G1)|Hun-Gar]] was too much for him to handle in his injured state. Egged on and taunted by Pentius, Megatron realized he had one last resource left to use: the Quintesson himself. Telling Pentius that his legacy would live on within him, he tore out the alien's [[spark]] and used it to fuel himself, granting him enough power to defeat Hun-Gar. He spared the Terrorcons in exchange for their loyalty, then returned to Cybertron on their ship to take revenge on Scorponok and take back control of the Decepticons. {{storylink|Prey (issue)|Prey}}
[[File:Monstrosity12 strange turns.jpg|right|thumb|300px|To be fair, that's all we can think about regarding you two, as well.]]
Megatron returned to a Cybertron in chaos, as the ancient reptilian [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]] had been unleashed by Scorponok and was in the midst of razing Iacon. After reasserting his leadership of the Decepticons by beating Scorponok nearly to death, he had Shockwave restore his body to it original shape and condition, {{storylink|The Illusion of Control}} and set out to investigate the Trypticon situation alone, unwilling to risk his soldiers in the face of the beast's uncontrolled fury. Finding an injured Optimus Prime on the battlefield, Megatron lectured him, but opted to leave him alive so that he could watch as the Decepticon leader defeated the enemy that Prime could not. Megatron was attacked by [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]], but as they grappled, they were swallowed by Trypticon. {{storylink|Annihilation}} Within the giant, the pair set their differences aside to fend off the [[cyber-morphic predators]] that populated his interior, and together, they destroyed Trypticon's internal power cell, taking him offline. A tense standoff between the Autobots and Decepticons followed as the two warriors emerged from within Trypticon, but both sides agreed to go their separate ways for the time being. Not long after the battle, however, Megatron removed Pentius's spark from within himself and installed it within Trypticon, reviving the monster as a Decepticon. {{storylink|Belly of the Beast}}

===The spreading conflict===
[[File:MTMTE14 megatron vs overlord.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
Megatron's actions during the war were many. Early during the conflict, he wrote ''[[Towards Peace]]'', a new treatise to replace ''After the Ark'', in which he described continuing to fight the war until the very notion of conflict was literally inconceivable. Then and only then would he finally give up his fusion cannon. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} He oversaw the creation of a class of super-warriors known as the [[Warriors Elite]], selecting only his most powerful troops to undergo the torturous upgrade, including [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]], a brilliant sadist and frequent opponent of his from his pit-fighting days who had developed an obsession with Megatron after the Decepticon leader dealt him his first ever defeat. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} At some point, he also created the [[Decepticon Justice Division]] to deal with traitors, {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} though he elected not to send them after Deadlock when he defected, valuing the warrior enough to instead dispatch [[Lockdown (G1)|Lockdown]] to bring him in. {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}}
[[File:ChaosTheory prime vs megatron montage.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]
Megatron would personally clash with Optimus Prime many times; Optimus grew to respect and fear Megatron as a calm, calculating and measured opponent, while Megatron himself respected Prime's sheer power and his skill as a tactician and as a leader. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} Megatron would later incorrectly recall their battle on [[Sherma Bridge]] during the [[Rorsha Campaign]] as the first time they met. Said battle was certainly momentous—every Autobot and Decepticon stopped fighting to witness their duel, during which Megatron's cannon arm was sliced off by Prime's [[energon-axe]], and he claimed revenge by throwing the Autobot leader off the bridge. As the war spread to other planets, they would meet again and again: during the [[Siege of Massunstrad]], Megatron sealed Prime in an anti-matter chamber; on [[Rada Mor]], Prime reduced Megatron to ashes with sentient explosives; and in the midst of the [[Vorsk Offensive]], Megatron was nearly sliced in half by Prime. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} Megatron took on a new pistol alternate mode for the [[Battle for Hell's Point]], during which he was used by [[Heretech]] to blast [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]]. {{storylink|The Gloaming}} During the same skirmish, Megatron took off half of Prime's face with his energon mace, but had a city block dropped on him by Prime in retribution, which shattered his [[transformation cog]] and trapped him in gun mode for two years. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} At the war's zenith, Megatron sealed himself in an [[Omniglobe]] to absorb the relentless flood of data coming in from countless fronts. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}}

Prime was not the only old face that Megatron would see again during the war: during a battle on an aerial drilling platform over the [[Manganese Mountains]], Megatron came face-to-face with his old friend Impactor, and stood poised to execute him until Impactor gave him a moment's pause by recalling his old fondness for poetry. In this moment, Megatron was knocked from the platform by [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] and sent plummeting to the mountains below. {{storylink|Zero Point}}
[[File:LastStandoftheWreckers2-teleconference.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]
With total war going nowhere, Megatron would go on to develop a six-stage [[infiltration protocol]] to be used for conquering targeted planets. The sixth phase called for outright planetary razing, and Megatron selected three of his Warriors Elite for this task: [[Sixshot]], {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}}, Overlord and [[Black Shadow (Victory)|Black Shadow]]. He informed this trio of his decision via teleconference, but Overlord tired of being used as someone else's weapon and refused. Megatron threatened to hunt Overlord down for his disobedience, {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 2|Last Stand of the Wreckers #2}} but while the powerful warrior spent the rest of his life preparing for this conflict, Megatron never followed up and left him to stew in his own obsession. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}}
[[File:Stormbringer1 get up and fight.jpg|right|thumb|250px|"Megatron. You're touching me. Stop it."]]
Deducing that the Autobot/Decepticon war would culminate in an energy crisis that would threatened the stability of Cybertron itself, Shockwave left Cybertron to secretly pursue alternate energy sources. Around 10,000 years ago, when Shockwave did not return, Megatron ordered Bludgeon to investigate his files, {{storylink|Spotlight: Shockwave}} secretly assigning Soundwave to investigate Bludgeon {{storylink|Spotlight: Soundwave}} and probe deeper into whatever it was Shockwave had created. {{storylink|Shockpoint}}

Shockwave's prediction soon proved accurate, and Cybertron found itself in the throes of an energy shortage. Decepticon scientist [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]] came to Megatron with a revolutionary, controversial plan to stave off this energy death by [[Pretender|polydermal grafting]], a process where they encased themselves in "symbiotic carapaces", or shells created from living tissue. When Megatron dismissed him angrily and cut him down, Thunderwing did not abandon his research; instead, he experimented on himself. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} The process gave him immense power, but drove him insane. He became so dangerous that Megatron had to join forces with Optimus Prime to stop him. This battle at [[Thunderhead Pass]] accelerated the apocalypse destined to befall Cybertron, leaving it an uninhabitable, radioactive husk and forcing both armies to continue their war on other worlds. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 1|Stormbringer #1}} Megatron advocated that they simply destroy Cybertron to ensure that Thunderwing was destroyed, but Prime refused, and threatened to stop Megatron if he tried. Megatron agreed not to destroy the planet, but warned Prime that whatever happened was on his head. Shortly after the last big push by the Decepticons, Cybertron was abandoned by both factions. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 1|Stormbringer #2}}

===Breaking protocol===
[[File:Infiltration4 enter megatron.jpg|left|thumb|225px|...oh @#$%.]]
In the present day, when word reached Megatron that the infiltration unit led by [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], stationed on the planet [[Earth]], had broken protocol, he headed for the planet to investigate. Examining the unit's abandoned bunker in [[Nebraska]] for information, he discovered that Starscream had stumbled across [[Ultra-Energon|Ore-13]]—an incredible energy source that (unbeknownst to Megatron) was the end result of Shockwave's experiments—and was planning to use it to usurp Megatron's command. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} While studying the bunker's files, he was contacted by [[Razorclaw (G1)|Razorclaw]] with some distressing news: Bludgeon's investigations of Shockwave's files had led him to revive Thunderwing. Megatron ordered the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]] to Cybertron, authorizing them to do whatever was necessary to destroy Thunderwing, including the destruction of their homeworld itself. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} Just as he was handing down this order, Megatron was happened upon by [[Verity Carlo]], a human ally of the Autobot unit active on the planet, {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} but he utterly ignored her. The bunker was then leveled by an airstrike courtesy of [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]], who were merely covering their unit's tracks and unaware of Megatron's presence; when their leader furiously emerged from the wreckage, they attempted to explain their ignorance, but he simply responded by blasting Skywarp out of the sky. [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] soon arrived on the scene, and favored opening fire rather than attempting explanations, so Megatron beat the stuffing out of him too, then set off for Starscream's new bunker in [[Oregon]]. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 5|Infiltration #5}}

[[File:Infiltration6 takeyourpunishment.jpg|250px|thumb|Those librarians are getting really strict on late returns.]]

{{quote|You will stand down. If you fight, you ''die''. There is no room anymore for mercy. In the end, you are ''all'' expendable. Choose.|Megatron's ultimatum to Starscream's troops|[[Infiltration issue 6|''Infiltration'' #6]]}}

[[Orbital jump|Orbital jumping]] to Oregon, Megatron called Starscream out and ordered the team to stand down, disgusted to see such power games being played amongst his troops. His brief, chilling speech was enough to take the fight out of all but Starscream, who, powered-up on Ore-13, took Megatron on himself. Though the new power source made Starscream a formidable adversary, Megatron was still more deadly than he, and Starscream was taken out by a point-blank fusion cannon blast through his torso. Megatron ordered the Decepticons to ensure that Starscream survived, and then, observing the Autobots who had been watching the battle, announced that it was time to begin phase two. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6}}

In light of the discovery of Ore-13, Megatron took stock of Starscream's progress on Earth and elected to get the infiltration protocol back on track himself, calling a meeting to make Starscream's former troops and making them aware, in no uncertain terms, that any further insurrections would be met with deadly force. {{storylink|Escalation issue 1|Escalation #1}} He was even able to revisit his past gun alternate mode, once again able to achieve the [[size changing|mass displacement]] the mode required thanks to the extra energy Ore-13 provided. {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}}

[[File:Megsandspidy.jpg|left|250px|thumb|Mere seconds before Megs turns Spider-Man into Spider-Goop.]]
With his forces joined by [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]], a new arrival who Megatron suspected of having ulterior motives, {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} the Decepticon leader initiated phase two of infiltration protocol by destabilizing relations between the European nations of [[Latveria]] and [[Symkaria]] through use of an aggression-inducing [[Psycho-Prism]], stolen from Latverian dicatator [[Doctor Doom]]. When the superhero team known as the [[Avengers]] investigated the array the Decepticons' were using to broadcast the prism's signal, Megatron abducted the arachnid-powered [[Spider-Man]] to use as a subject for their [[mirror response mode]], {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}} draining the hero's powers and infusing himself and the other Decepticons with them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} He proceeded to forge a brief alliance with Doctor Doom, who helped him defeat and capture the allied Autobot/Avenger team who snuck inside the Decepticons' array, but when Doom's suggestion to threaten the captives in order to force the other heroes to lay down their arms failed, Megatron violently dissolved the partnership. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Three}} Emerging from the confines of the array to take on the Autobots and Avengers himself, Megatron refrained from engaging Prime, foreesing a more intimate confrontation between the two of them in the near future, and instead turned his attention to destroying [[Iron Man]]'s Transformer-sized armor. The tables soon turned, however, when Doctor Doom freed the captive Autobots and used the Decepticon's mirror response technology to empower them. Defeated by these enhanced Autobots and with the Psycho-Prism destroyed by [[Wolverine (superhero)|Wolverine]], Megatron used the last of his extra power to teleport the Decepticons out with an [[emergency warp-out]]. He refrained from departing alongside his warriors, intending to slaughter the Avengers for their interference, but when he was immobilized by Spider-Man's webbing, knocked to the ground by [[Luke Cage]], and rattled by a hail of Autobot fire, he finally warped-out with a final taunt to Optimus Prime of the battle yet to come between them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Four}}
[[File:Massdisplacement.jpg|right|thumb|400px]]
With phase two of infiltration protocol properly underway, Megatron recognized that he ''should'' rightly withdraw and install a new unit commander on Earth, but could not resist the chance to try out his new Ore-13 empowered body, selecting the nation of [[Brasnya]], where Decepticon subterfuge was already underway, as his testing ground. {{storylink|Escalation issue 2|Escalation #2}} Allowing the Decepticon's [[facsimile construct]] [[Georgi Koska]] to wield him in pistol mode, Megatron had Koska use him to first sever a [[Russia]]n oil pipeline, and then to fire upon the soldiers who came to investigate, furthering the political and military tensions already brewing in the region. When word came through from Blitzwing that Optimus Prime and the Autobots had arrived, {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}} Megatron at last engaged Optimus directly, {{storylink|Escalation issue 4|Escalation #4}} and although Prime was able to destroy his fusion cannon, the extra strength afforded Megatron by Ore-13 allowed him to physically beat Prime into submission, punching directly into his chest and crushing his [[spark]]. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} [[File:Escalation5 prime vs megs.jpg|left|thumb|250px]] The horrified Autobots moved into a full but ineffective counterattack, their only edge being that Megatron had no long-range guns left. It turned out that Prime's apparent death was a desperate ruse when the Autobot leader countered with a surprise attack on Megatron, able to exploit Ore-13's weakness—the more it's used, the faster it burns itself out. Megatron almost collapsed from power loss and was forced to have Skywarp take him to safety before the Autobots could kill him. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}}

Furious over the embarrassing defeat, Megatron threw protocol out the window and ordered that Sixshot be summoned to the planet. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}} He took out some of his anger on Ramjet, who he discovered had been busy cooking up a plot to overthrow him; without saying a word, he beat the attempted traitor to death before tearing him apart and keeping his head as a trophy. {{storylink|Spotlight: Ramjet}}
[[File:Devastation5 decepticons attack.jpg|thumb|right|250px]]
Upon Sixshot's arrival, Megatron ordered him to utterly destroy the Autobots, and although the Phase Sixer questioned his early deployment, he was happy to go along with the abandonment of the phase structure. The other Decepticons, on the other hand, were worried that Megatron was losing his grip—and since they were too scared to tell him that, they decided to revive Starscream to do it for them. {{storylink|Devastation issue 1|Devastation #1}} Megatron monitored Sixshot's attack on the Autobots' [[Ark-19]], ordering him to pursue the escape pod that broke away from the crashing craft, {{storylink|Devastation issue 2|Devastation #2}} but before he could obliterate the Autobots, Megatron was forced to recall him to deal with a new threat assaulting the Decepticon base—the alien [[Reaper]]s. {{storylink|Devastation issue 4|Devastation #4}} Unfortunately, the Reapers convinced Sixshot to side with them, and when an Ore-13 powered Starscream entered the fray to take Sixshot down, Megatron realized his troops had been conspiring against him. He decided not to punish them '''yet''', due to greater threat posed by the Reapers, {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}} and entered battle alongside them all, even allowing Starscream to wield him in pistol mode against the aliens. After the invaders were dead, however, he turn on his men, starting with Blitzwing—but was forced to realize that they needed to remain united when it became apparent that their battle with the Reapers had made humanity inescapably aware of their existence {{storylink|Devastation issue 6|Devastation #6}}
{{--}}

===All Hail Megatron===
[[File:AHM7 megs rips out matrix.jpg|left|thumb|200px|"Oh yeah, and while I'm here..."]]
While the Decepticons were occupied fighting the Reapers, the Autobots had left Earth to deal with the greater threat of an incursion by the [[Dead Universe]]. Exploiting their enemies' absence, Megatron and his men went to ground; when Autobots returned, they could find no trace of the Decepticons, who kept one step ahead of them for months. Secretly abducting [[Hunter O'Nion]], former [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] partner to the Autobot [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]], Megatron and his men returned to Cybertron, where Megatron had [[Deluge (G2)|Deluge]] conduct experiments that bred a [[Insecticon swarm|swarm]] of monstrous [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticons]]. The experiments culminated in the creation of [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]], who Megatron employed in a series of key tasks in his plan: the Insecticon obtained from Hunter's mind various Autobot secrets and codes, completed Shockwave's long-gestating combiner process, granting the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] the ability to combine into [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]], and created a working [[space bridge]] {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} based on designs sold to them by Sixshot in exchange for his freedom. {{storylink|Spotlight: Metroplex}}

Returning to Earth, the Decepticons staged a phony schism within their ranks, allowing the Autobots to believe that they had "disappeared" as a result of a power struggle that had split their ranks into two camps, one led by Megatron and one by Starscream. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} Starscream then approached Sunstreaker, whose experience has a Headmaster had left him bitter and jaded, with the proposition that the Autobots join with his forces against Megatron, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 8|All Hail Megatron #8}} but when the Autobots arrived at the designated time and place, they were instead confronted by the united Decepticon army and quickly defeated by Devastator. After personally tearing [[Matrix of Leadership]] from Optimus Prime's chest, Megatron marched the captive Autobots through the space bridge back to Cybertron, where the Insecticon swarm waited for them. Prime, however, was able to damage the bridge, causing it to deposit the Autobots a safe distance from the swarm, but in the process, fried his own circuits and left himself comatose. Though the Autobots had escaped the fate he had intended for them, Megatron had successfully exiled his enemies to their dead homeworld; morever, using information and codes gained from Sunstreaker and Hunter, he concurrently orchestrated the event that would later be known as [[Surge (event)|The Surge]], as Decepticons stormed Autobot installations all across the galaxy, achieving total victory. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}}

[[File:Bringingthehousedown.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Megatron's urban renewal program was off to a flying start.]]

With galaxy-wide domination accomplished, one year after the Decepticons' battle with the Reapers, Megatron chose Earth to become the new Decepticon homeworld. Together with his men, Megatron stormed [[New York City]], humiliating Starscream with a display of his greater capacity for destruction. When the US Air Force retaliated, Megatron shrugged off their fire and ordered the other Decepticons to engage them; when one damaged jet threw itself toward him in a suicide run, Megatron, outraged at the [[DJ (G1)|pilot]]'s temerity, destroyed it and its occupant with a furious swipe of his hand. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} When US Army forces arrived, Megatron ordered [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] dispatched to deal with them, then sent Devastator to destroy the subway tunnels leading out of the city. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 2|All Hail Megatron #2}} With New York secured, Megatron directed the Constructicons to begin building new space bridge in the city's heart, and had a candid talk with Starscream, revealing his belief that the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seeker]]'s attitude and actions marked him as the embodiment of the Decepticon cause, even if he was blind to seeing it himself. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 3|All Hail Megatron #3}} After a series of further attacks on major American cities saw the country firmly crushed under the Decepticons' collective heel, Megatron made a propaganda speech to his men in the ruins of New York. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 4|All Hail Megatron #4}} As night fell upon the city, Megatron withdrew to privately gloat over the Matrix. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 5|All Hail Megatron #5}}

[[File:AHM6MegatronVsIsrael.jpg|left|300px|thumb|]]
As the Decepticons began attacking other countries around the globe, Megatron was questioned by Starscream on what the next step in his plan was. A recalcitrant Megatron merely informed him that it was merely time to savor their victory, but Starscream accused him of not ''having'' any plans post-victory, and was merely allowing his men to run wild to distract them from any notion of taking power for themselves. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}} What Starscream did not realize was that Megatron did indeed have a plan: to defeat the Autobots, he had created an army of killers and monsters, but in order to create his perfect rule, that army would have to be destroyed, the dissenting, distasteful elements obliterated before Megatron's peace could dawn. Megatron was not distracting his warriors... he was ''waiting'' to see which of them would question and turn on him. Silently sorrowful to already know that such dissent would begin with Starscream, an otherwise-model Decepticon, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}} Megatron withdrew to [[Israel]] for some silent reflection amid wholesale devastation. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}}

[[File:AHM10 megs vs devastator.jpg|right|thumb|250px|And then he said "MORE."]]

Some time later, Megatron surveyed the space bridge Bombshell and the Constructicons had built in New York. He congratulated Bombshell on his work, but revealed that he had always foreseen Bombshell's intellect as a danger—had always known he and his fellow Insecticons would side with Starscream when the time came. His gambit exposed, Starscream made his move and attacked, but the Insecticons proved no match for Megatron's might. The Decepticon leader had failed to anticipate one thing, however: he did not foresee the Constructicons siding with Starscream, and found himself having to fight the mighty Devastator. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}} The in-fighting was halted by a last-ditch attack by the mustered might of what remained of the human resistance, forcing Megatron and Starscream to put their differences aside momentarily and organize a defense. This attack came as no surprise to Megatron, but the same could not be said for the next entrants onto the battlefield: the Autobots had returned.

After assuring Starscream that he would be leader in the future, when his time was done, Megatron confronted Optimus Prime, surprised not so much that his old foe had survived, but that he had bothered to return to Earth. Both leaders had always maintained a policy of acceptable losses through their millennia-long war, so Megatron assumed Prime had come back for selfish reasons, to reclaim the Matrix, but Prime insisted that he had changed, and would no longer allow their cold war to endanger innocent lives on this scale. [[File:AHM12 prime vs megs.jpg|left|thumb|300px|Any given day with these two.]] Megatron scoffed at the notion, reavling that Prime's supposedly "innocent" humans were planning to nuke New York, killing millions of their own just to get rid of the Decepticons, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 11|All Hail Megatron #11}} but Prime retorted that it wasn't ''just'' about the humans, but also about the difference between Autobots and Decepticons. The two came to blows, but Megatron triumphed in short order and commanded the Decepticons to depart, leaving the Autobots to be killed by the humans' nuke... but just before they withdrew, he was shot in the face by human soldier [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], wielding a powerful weapon reverse-engineered from Cybertronian technology. Injured and disoriented by the blast, Megatron was finished off when Prime smashed his face in with his own fusion cannon. As he wanted to ''take'' leadership rather than just have it fall in his hands, Starscream picked up his damaged leader and ordered the Decepticons to retreat. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

[[File:AllHisEngines-Megatron.jpg|thumb|Pretty sure when you float in a bacta tank you're supposed to be wearing a diaper.]]
The Decepticons departed Earth aboard Astrotrain, where the gravely wounded Megatron was put on life support and tended to by Soundwave and his cassettes. With Megatron's life signs only at ten percent capacity, Starscream attempted to appeal to Soundwave's sense of logic and have him shut down so that leadership could be his, but Soundwave refused. Starscream was soon able to take command, however, when he recovered the Matrix of Leadership and professed to have been chosen by it. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 13|Uneasy Lies the Head}}

===New body, new powers===

The Decepticons eventually settled on a desolate asteroid, where Megatron was installed in a [[CR chamber|CR tank]]. Retaining some level of awareness of the events occurring around him during his convalescence, he was forced to watch as his army languished in inactivity, their energy slowly ebbing away until they were reduced to cannibalism. {{storylink|All His Engines}} After a year of trying to free his leader from this living death, Soundwave was finally forced to conclude that Megatron's body was beyond repair, and recruited the recently-returned Shockwave, whom Starscream had provided with the majority of the Decepticons' resources to create a space bridge, to help build a new body for Megatron's consciousness to inhabit. The operation succeeded and Megatron was reborn in a deadly new body, powered by Ore-13, armed with a devastatingly powerful rail gun, and even equipped with space bridge nodes stolen from Metroplex, which gave him the ability to open space bridge portals on his own. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

[[File:IDWongoing15 megatrons new body.jpg|left|thumb|275px|"Uh, it's like...did anyone ever see the movie ''Tron''?"]]

Back in action, Megatron devised a plan to destabilize the relationship between the humans and Autobots on Earth. Together with Soundwave and Shockwave, he chopped up his old body and used it to create human-scaled replicas of his former gun mode, containing small pieces of his own consciousness. When Starscream caught them in the act, Megatron elected to table his plan for the moment, as he considered it folly to go against Starscream's wishes for the moment since the Seeker was still in possession of the Matrix of Leadership. Megatron had never truly understood what the talisman ''did'', but it served as a threat merely by being an unknown variable. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} Fortunately, for Megatron this variable was soon removed from the equation when Hot Rod, estranged from the Earthbound Autobots, infiltrated the Decepticons' asteroid base and recovered the Matrix from Starscream. Megatron seized his chance, intercepting the Autobot and blasting him and the Matrix out into the void of space. {{storylink|Heart Like a Wheel}}

[[File:SLMegatron stealth bomber mode.jpg|right|thumb|275px|Behold... the ''Bomberang!'']]

With Starscream's trump card now gone, Megatron had the Decepticons gathered so he could address them. Distrustful of Shockwave's motives for preparing his new body, wary of Soundwave's constant surveillance, and repulsed by the state of his once fearsome Decepticon war machine, Megatron decided that he needed to unequivocally reestablish dominance over the now Matrix-less Starscream. He intended to beat Starscream near to death as a means of letting them both work out their frustrations with Starscream's inability to lead effectively during Megatron's absence, but Starscream did not want to fight—spiritually broken by his failures, he simply wanted Megatron to kill him. Rather than accept this, Megatron instead goaded Starscream into opening fire upon him. This began a running battle between the two, with Megatron pursuing the fleeing Seeker in his new stealth bomber alternate mode, continuing to bait Starscream every time he appeared willing to give up the fight. Incensed by Starscream's accusation that he did not know what it felt like to see everything he had worked for fall apart, when that was exactly what Starscream's pitiful leadership had done to the empire he had created, Megatron pummeled him to within an inch of his life, then paused to explain why he kept a schemer like Starscream around: as a constant reminder to watch his back. The brutal display galvanized the languid Decepticons, and Megatron was ready to begin his scheme. {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

[[File:IDWongoing14 megatron guns.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]

Roughly two years after the Decepticons' defeat on Earth, Megatron used his space bridge powers to dispatch a container full of the guns made from his old body to Earth, where they were found by South American gun-runners and illegally disseminated amongst an increasingly paranoid public seeking ways to protect themselves against Transformers. This allowed Megatron's consciousness to spread across North America, until it was focused enough to contact one particular owner of a Megatron gun: [[Joe Gladki]]. He deceived and manipulated the paranoid human, and eventually convinced him to perform an assassination attempt on [[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]], the new Autobot leader. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} In their ignorance, the Autobots then mistook Gladki's gun for Megatron himself and held it captive. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 1: The Demolished Man|The Demolished Man}}

[[File:IDWongoing16 megatron vs autobots.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

With the Autobots in chaos, Megatron started the next phase of his plan and returned to Earth personally, where he used his new stealth bomber mode to shoot down a plane carrying Optimus Prime and several other Autobots. He then hunted down the remaining Autobots, effortlessly defeating them and their new temporary leader Ultra Magnus with his powerful new body, and killing some of their [[Skywatch]] allies. Magnus tried to draw Megatron's attention from the humans, claiming the Autobots were the ones he really wanted, but Megatron assured him that humanity was his real target. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 3: Woken Furies|Woken Furies}} Taking the defeated Autobots captive, Megatron dumped them in a city and directed three of his mind-controlled human puppets to kill them. Contacting Prime directly, Megatron summoned him to the city's outskirts and revealed his plan: crush Prime's spirit and destroy the Autobots' alliance with humanity by forcing them to choose between fighting the humans or allowing them to kill them. Prime found the hole in Megatron's plan, however, when he realized that Soundwave was maintaining the connection between Megatron and his guns, and shot him in the head. His connection to his pawns severed, Megatron scooped up Soundwave and withdrew. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome|Burning Chrome}} Thanks to a tracker Ultra Magnus had slipped on Soundwave, though, Prime was able to follow the Decepticons to their bolthole and called Megatron out for a full and and proper confrontation. In actuality, Prime had lured Megatron outside so Skywatch could drop a [[kinetic harpoon]] on him, but even a weapon dropped from orbit barely proved able to put a scratch in Megatron's mighty new exostructure. Megatron proceeded to beat Prime senseless, but then returned him to the Autobots, and to their great shock, surrendered to their custody. After recovering, Optimus demanded to know why he had surrendered, but Megatron merely taunted him by revealing that Spike Witwicky had murdered a Decepticon in cold blood. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine|Enemy Mine}} Prime immediately had Prowl begin investigating Spike and Skywatch, and Prowl interrogated the Decepticon leader for information, which he provded after a little verbal sparring. {{storylink|Police Action: Prologue}}

[[File:ChaosTheory1 megatron imprisoned.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

When Rodimus returned to Earth and warned the Autobots that [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] had taken control of Cybertron, Optimus decided to lead the Autobots in reclaiming their homeworld. In the name of Earth's safety, he elected to bring Megatron and the the confiscated guns made from his old body with them. {{storylink|Space Opera—Final Tableaux: Orphans of the Helix|Orphans of the Helix}} On the way to Cybertron aboard [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]], Prime again attempted to discern why Megatron had surrendered, even releasing his old foe from his bonds and having a civil conversation with him about their past together and their dueling ideologies. Optimus tried to reach out to Megatron, offering him the chance to end the war once and for all with a handshake; Megatron appeared to consider it for a moment but ultimately remained silent. With Megatron returned to the confines of the [[variable voltage harness]], the other Autobots pressured Optimus for a decision on his fate: execution or imprisonment. Trying to come to a conclusion, Prime asked Megatron if he regretted any of his actions, but the Decepticon leader remarked that he only regretted not killing ''more'' Autobots. He taunted Prime with the notion that even he was thankful for the war, as it had raised him from a nobody to the greatest Autobot in history, and a furious Prime activated the harness, electrocuting Megatron. The jolt would have killed Megatron if Omega Supreme had not cut the power in time and Megatron, struggling to stay conscious, offered Prime his thanks for saving his life all those years ago in Rodion. Shocked by his actions, Prime realized that Megatron wanted to die and wanted Prime to be the one to kill him. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} Eventually, Prime decided to let Megatron choose his own fate, and Megatron calmly replied that he chose death. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 2}}
[[File:Chaos2 armored megatron.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]
As Omega drew close to Cybertron, Megatron demanded to know who or what was threatening their homeworld, but Optimus Prime refused to provde him with any information. {{storylink| Chaos Part One: Lamentations|Lamentations}} The Autobots subsequently engaged Galvatron's forces in battle, and while they were occupied, Megatron put into motion the ace he had up his sleeve: taking remote control of the numerous "Megatron guns" aboard Omega, Megatron summoned them to him and combined with them into a new armored mode. Breaking free from his restraints, he headed out to confront Galvatron, intent that nobody would take his world from him. {{storylink|Chaos Part Two: Numbers|Numbers}} As he tore through the Sweeps, Megatron also revealed the reason for his surrender: now that he was back on Cybertron, he could open a space bridge that would allow the massed forces of the Decepticons on Earth to return to their home planet as well. Unfortunately, not long after the Decepticons arrived on the battlefield, Galvatron's secret puppet master, the Dead Universe entity known as the [[D-Void]], seized control of their minds and those of the Sweeps, merging them into a gigantic, monstrous avatar. With Prime occupied pursuing Galvatron into Cybertron's depths, Megatron was left to face this "[[Deceptigod]]" alone. {{storylink|Chaos Part Three: Kings|Kings}} Fighting against the D-Void's attempts to ensnare his own mind and make him part of the collective, Megatron was gravely wounded and even lost an arm to the beast, but succeeded into destroying it, blasting it apart with one massive beam from his weapons. {{storylink|Chaos Part Four: Genesis|Genesis}}

===The long game===

Even as the Deceptigod disintegrated back into its component Decepticons, Megatron could see the potential the creature embodied—the D-Void had, in essence, created the perfect combiner by means of utterly obliterating free will. With Cybertron reverting into a primordial wasteland around him—a result of Optimus Prime purifying [[Vector Sigma]] with the Matrix to stop Galvatron and the D-Void—Megatron chose to withdraw to experiment with the possibilities this presented. He informed Shockwave, the sole Decepticon who had not been made part of the Deceptigod, of his plans, and Shockwave in turn revealed them to Soundwave and Bombshell. {{storylink|Shockpoint}} While Megatron hid in the wilderness, his Decepticons were left to live as second-class citizens in the new [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] that the Autobots built; Optimus Prime left Cybertron two weeks after the D-Void's defeat to calm tensions with "NAILs"—other unaffiliated Cybertronians—who had returned to their homeworld, but even as he did so, he mused that Megatron must still be out there somewhere. {{storylink|Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}
[[File:RID11 megatron in wilderness.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]
In the months of study and experimentation that followed, Megatron discerned that the combination of Ore-13 and space bridge technology in his body somehow gave him the ability to manipulate the natural energy of Cybertron that the D-Void had used to merge the Decepticons into the Deceptigod. After experiments on [[turbofox]]es created larger, more ferocious beasts, Megatron stepped up trials when the [[Aerialbot (G1)|Aerialbots]] seceded from the shaky government Bumblebee, [[Metalhawk (Masterforce)|Metalhawk]] and Starscream were building in Iacon and ventured into the wilderness. The signal Megatron had created from the combination energy first drove the Aerialbots mad, before uniting them in body and mind, spontaneously merging them into the gestalt [[Superion (G1)|Superion]], but this newborn Autobot combiner was considered hopelessly insane by Megatron and left to die in the wilderness. The madness aspect of the signal afforded him the chance to revive some of the principles of the infiltration protocol, however, as he blanketed the wastelands in it, forcing the Autobots, Decepticons and NAILs to stay in Iacon, causing natural conflict among them to snowball, providing a useful cover for his actions. To gain a pawn within Autobot high command, Megatron even provided Bombshell with the energy to use in conjunction with his own mind-controlling [[cerebro-shell]]s, ensnaring the mind of Prowl. With the resources and cover control of Prowl provided, Shockwave, Soundwave and Bombshell were able to use Megatron's findings to perfect the combination process, rebuilding the Constructicons with new modular designs that would allow them to merge into a perfect Devastator. The endgame was for Megatron himself to form the head of the combiner, but before risking his own mind and body, Megatron decided that Prowl would be used first as a test subject. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}}
[[File:RID12 kill him.jpg|right|thumb|350px]]
The appearance of a [[Crystal City Metrotitan|Metrotitan]] on Cybertron which declared that Starscream was the "Chosen One" threatened Megatron's ability to easily re-take leadership of his Decepticons, forcing him to step up his schedule. Through Prowl, he had his inner circle gathered together in the secret "[[Black Room]]", then boldly strode into Iacon for all to see. {{storylink|The End of the Beginning of the World}} His body shattered and skeletal, he professed to come in peace, but Bumblebee did not accept his surrender and ordered his Autobots to kill him. Indeed, Megatron could possibly have died there and then had Iacon's Decepticons not stepped in, insisting that Megatron's defense of Cybertron during the D-Void's attack marked him a hero and that he be taken into custody instead. {{storylink|City on Fire}} After [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] got through examining him to prove his body concealed no weapons, Starscream approached the imprisoned Megatron and attempted to explain that he was not far away from taking complete power in the government, ensuring a Decepticon victory of a different kind. Megatron merely smiled silently at the notion, terrifying his ex-lieutenant with his grin. Presently, the Decepticons rose up in an angry mob and marched on Autobot high command to insist on Megatron's release; the situation quickly devolved into a riot, during which a squad led by [[Needlenose]] stormed the prison and freed Megatron. {{storylink|The Verge}}
[[File:RID14 new body redux.jpg|left|thumb|275px]]
Megatron brought Starscream and the captured Bumblebee and Metalhawk to the Black Room, where he explained his plans and had himself transferred into a pre-prepared new body that could combine with the Constructicons' new forms. At his command, the Constructicons and Prowl combined into the new Devastator, who immediately set about razing Iacon. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}} Even the return of Superion seemed unable to stop the powerful new combiner, until help came from an unexpected quarter—Prowl's secret assassin [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] killed Bombshell, taking out Prowl's controller and causing Devastator to shut down. This was no real impediment to Megatron, however, as the successful function of the new combiner process has been proven, and he set out to take ''his'' place as Devastator's head. Before Megatron could reach the fallen gestalt, though, Devastator awoke, possessed of his own unique, unite consciousness for the first time, and resumed tearing into Iacon. {{storylink|Plan for Everything}}
[[File:RID20_megatron_in_forcefield.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]
Still Megatron remained unfazed, calmly fending off Autobot attacks and waiting for the inevitable moment when the heroes would take Devastator down. When [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] succeeded in doing so by managing to reach Prowl, Devastator separated, and Megatron immediately stepped in, re-initiation the combination with himself in control. Seconds before uniting with the Constructicons, though, his plan was foiled by Bumblebee, Ironhide and Prowl's activation of a secret failsafe: Wheeljack had integrated a forcefield generator into Megatron's spark casing during his examination of him, and when it was triggered, he was completely paralyzed in mid-transformation. {{storylink|Heavy Is the Head}} In the fallout of the battle, Starscream killed Metalhawk and took control of Iacon and banished the Autobots and Decepticons from the city. He took custody of the immobilized Megatron, and silently gloated over the victory he had accomplished by using guile and politics, rather than Megatron's ways of brute force and firepower. {{storylink|Three Monologues}}
Megatron would not remain in this state for long; that night, as the end result of millennia-long secret machinations by Shockwave, an [[Necrotitan|undead Metrotitan]] appeared on Cybertron and opened a portal to the Dead Universe in the planet's skies. Through the portal, Shockwave made contact with Galvatron and his master, the exiled Cybertron despot [[Nova Prime]], but was unable to bring them through to Cybertron thanks to the unexpected disappearance of the Titan's space bridge system. Reanimating the deceased Metalhawk with a wave of necrotic energy from the Titan, Shockwave had him liberate Megatron and bring him to his secret lab in [[Crystal City]]. {{storylink|Winners & Losers: Dark Cybertron Chapter 3|Winners & Losers}}
[[File:RID24 i remember you.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Ow.]]
Shockwave hoped that Megatron would comply with his plans willingly, but the Decepticon leader refused and Shockwave forcibly activated the space bridge technology in Megatron's body. {{storylink|Into the Abyss: Dark Cybertron Chapter 4|Into the Abyss}} The opening of the bridge in his chest caused Megatron agony, but his screams were heard by Soundwave, who led the united forces of the exiled Autobots and Decepticons to Shockwave's lab to free his leader. Nova Prime and Galvatron attempted to squeeze their way through the space bridge despite this interference, but Ironhide was able to punch Nova back through into the Dead Universe. At that moment, Shockwave's "Necrotitan" came crashing into the subterranean city, and in the chaos, Megatron was freed from the restraints holding him. No sooner had Megatron carried Ironhide to the safe hands of the other Autobots, however, than he was ripped in half from behind by Galvatron, who had successfully emerged through the portal {{storylink|Finest Hour: Dark Cybertron Chapter 5|Finest Hour}}

In a vision of the future seen by Ironhide and [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] during the reformatting of Cybertron, fifteen million years hence, Ironhide still believed Megatron to be alive and promised a young Autobot they would defeat him again if he ever returned. {{storylink|Pax Cybertronia (issue)|Pax Cybertronia}} {{storylink|A Better Tomorrow}}
{{-}}

===''Spotlight: Mirage''===
[[File:SLMirage all in good time.jpg|right|thumb|275px]]
{{NoteSLMirage}}
Somewhere, in an unknown time or place, the self-serving mercenary [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] dreamed of Megatron and his Decepticons launching a massive attack on the Autobots. But Mirage knew that to only be a dream; in reality, the Autobots were almost eradicated, and Megatron had hired him to hunt down the last of their number. Megatron was outraged by the mercenary's demand for a majority share in all energon mining operations as payment, but it proved to be fuel well spent, as he soon succeeded in locating Optimus Prime and forcing him to surrender. Megatron demanded the prisoners be executed despite Mirage's promise to spare Autobot lives. Seeing Mirage's hesitation, Megatron appealed to his greed. {{storylink|Spotlight: Mirage}}
{{-}}

==Notes==
* In [[Megatron Origin issue 2|''Megatron Origin'' #2]], we see that Megatron's helmet is, in fact, [[:Image:MegatronOrigin2 Megs hair.jpg|a helmet and not part of his head]] (at least in his original body). Upon removing his helmet, Megatron then briefly unfurls a crest. The significance of this moment is not explained, but it is briefly revisited in [[Remembrance Day|''More than Meets the Eye'' #14]] when a helmetless Megatron spars with [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]].

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Rulers of Cybertron]]

Megatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

2014-01-10T15:55:20Z

Solaar: /* Breaking protocol */

{{suite}}
{{factions|decepticon}}
[[File:IDWMegatron.jpg|thumb|300x342px|Megatron A, Megatron B, Megatron Retailer's Incentive, and Megatron Dynamic Forces Exclusive variant.]]
'''Megatron''' waged a battle to destroy the evil forces of the [[Senate]]! Then he ''continued'' to wage a war against the evil forces of freedom, organic life, and the very idea of an Autobot living.

{{quote|In the final analysis, I would happily wade across a river of corpses, chest-deep in rust and grease and engine oil, just to crush the Spark of the last Autobot standing. And I would not do so simply as a means to an end. No. I'd do it, Prime, because it would give me ''pleasure''.|Megatron to Optimus Prime|''[[Chaos Theory Part 1]]''}}

__TOC__
==IDW Generation 1 comics==
{{ongoing}}
===Birth of a tyrant===
[[File:ChaosTheory1 megatron symbol creation.jpg|left|thumb|300px|... And thus the "Silica Fracturism" art movement was born.]]
Long ago, before the war and under the reign of [[Nominus Prime]], Megatron of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]] was an [[energon]] miner, a member of the lower class, living near [[Rodion]]. An intellectual and a poet, Megatron was sickened by the caste-ridden social apartheid of Cybertronian society—where your form determined your role, and your role your rights—and so he wrote [[After the Ark: Nominus Prime and the Illusion of Progress|a treatise]] on how pacifist dissent and the exchange of ideas could change things. It was while he was sharing this work with his miner friend [[Impactor (G1)|Impactor]] over a drink in [[Maccadam's Old Oil House|Maccadam's New Oil House]] that the event occurred which would change the course of his life, as Impactor wound up being drawn into a bar brawl with some of the city's upper classes and Megatron was among those arrested after the fracas. In order to silence his increasingly loud voice of dissent against their regime, the [[Senate]] arranged for a police officer on their payroll, [[Whirl (G1)|Whirl]], to kill Megatron, but before Whirl could finish the job, police captain [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]], having discovered Megatron's innocence, arranged for his release. [[File:Minermegs.jpg|225px|thumb|Now that's the look of a well-adjusted individual.]] Despite Pax expressing support for the message of his writings, Megatron now found himself filled with rage and hate, disillusioned with his former ideology and realiing the power of applied violence. Angrily hurling the datapad on which he had written his treatise through a public info-screen, Megatron observed the jagged shape of the shattered glass, and later turned it into a [[insignia|symbol]] for his cause. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

Megatron's samizdat writings began to circulate in Cybertron's underground, spawning the "[[Decepticon]]" movement, its name derived from its own slogan, "You are being deceived", warning the common 'bot of the Senate's true nature. Knowing that, at this stage, assassinating Megatron would merely make him a martyr, the Senate instead elected to relocate him off-planet, re-assigning him to [[Mining Outpost C-12]] on the world of [[Messatine]] while they tried their own schemes to defuse the growing Decepticon movement. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}}

Megatron continued to seethe with hate and frustration in his new workplace, which reached a peak when, some time later, [[Decimus|Senator Decimus]] arrived to announce that the mine was being closed immediately and the workers would be relocated. When one of the Senator's guards killed a worker for insubordination and claims of Senate corruption, Megatron's fury boiled over and he hurled his pickaxe at Decimus. In turn, he was attacked by the Senator's guard, whom he killed by smashing his head to fragments. A riot erupted around him, but Megatron himself could only sit amongst the chaos, staring at his fuel-stained hands in abject horror, which allowed him to be easily pacified and rounded up with the other miners as the mayhem was quickly suppressed. En route to [[Penal Facility H-3|imprisonment]] back on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], however, [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] and [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] broke free and started a riot aboard [[Longshot (G1)|their ship]]. Megatron joined in their effort, and together, they overpowered their guards, took control of the ship, and disappeared into the [[Kaon]] underground. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}}
[[File:MegsOrigin2 Cykill.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
After evading law enforcement, Megatron joined a team of underworld gladiators under the tutelage of [[Clench (G1)|Clench]]. Initially repulsed by killing his opponents, the games eventually turned him more brutal and excessive, and he took control of the entire operation from Clench. The opportunistic Senator [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], after seeing how much money there was in the underworld matches, covertly sent his agent [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] to offer Megatron weaponry and technology to upgrade himself and his comrades. Their meeting was spied upon by [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (G1)|Fastback]], agents from the Senate's forces, who Megatron slew. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}} Subsequently, impressed by how he treated his animal-form [[Decepticon Mini-Cassette|cassette partners]] as equals (in contradiction to the teachings of his Senate masters), Megatron invited Soundwave back to the gladiator pits and gave him permission to use his mind-reading abilities on him. Within Megatron's mind, Soundwave saw his honest desire for all Cybertronians to be true equals, and was so moved by it that he joined Megatron's cause. {{storylink|Soundwaves (issue)|Soundwaves}}

Gradually, Megatron used the gladiatorial games to drum up an army of violent malcontents, sending Soundwave to recruit more and more warriors to his cause. Such recruits included [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]], who he was presented with while having an arm he lost in a brawl replaced with a new limb that incorporated an [[energon mace]], {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} and the disenfranchised warrior [[Drift (G1)|Drift]], who was personally asked by Megatron to fight at his side when he attended a Decepticon rally, and whom Megatron rechristened "Deadlock". {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}} Seeking to enhance his army even further, Megatron reached out to [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Senator Shockwave]], offering to supply him the resources to perfect the teachings of his lost mentor [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] and create a [[combiner]] that would serve the Decepticons. Shockwave cautioned that it could take some time, but Megatron was content to wait. {{storylink|Shockwaves}}

[[File:Apexthrone.JPG|250px|thumb|right|You should have gone to IKEA.]]
Despite all his efforts, Megatron believed that the Senate was still not taking the Decepticons seriously, so Soundwave formulated a plan for a declaration of intent that could be not denied: lure the Senate to Kaon and murder them. {{storylink|Soundwaves (issue)|Soundwaves}} In preparation for this scheme, Megatron offered to restore Shockwave's lost hands—a victim of [[empurata]]—believing that doing so might speed his work. {{storylink|Shockwaves}} The following day, in accordance with Soundwave's plan, Megatron and the Decepticons allowed themselves to be arrested by Sentinel Prime's men, after which Soundwave was freed on Ratbat's orders, while Starscream would ensure his own release by pretending to defect. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} Together, Soundwave and Starscream exterminated the entire Senate, then liberated Megatron and the rest of their comrades, in the process granting their leader the gift of a [[fusion cannon]] liberated from the Senate forces' armory. Megatron led his army against Sentinel Prime's men, killed Sentinel himself, and took control of Kaon, now ready to turn his insurgency into a full-blown war. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

===Early days of war===

Megatron formally declared war on "[[Declaration Day]]" when he delivered a stirring speach from [[Nova Point|Nova Peak]]. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} The growing Decepticon forces swiftly spread across six [[Polities of Cybertron|Torus-States]], {{storylink|Parasites}} and to combat them, Cybertron's new leader [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]] assembled a new military force, the "[[Autobot]]s", led by Megatron's old acquaintance [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]]. Researching his new opposite number, Megatron was intrigued to discover that his now-abandoned treatise had been a source of inspiration for Pax, who had even quoted from it when he confronted the Senate and openly accused them of corruption. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}} Early into the war, [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] would admit to Pax that Megatron talked about him sometimes, when he was tired. When Pax asked what was said, Bludgeon told him that it would make "both of us feel ''uncomfortable''". {{storylink|Omega's Conundrum}}
[[File:Autocracy4 backroom meeting.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]
When Orion Pax came close to Kaon during a mission, Megatron saw it as a chance to speak to him and had his Decepticons bring him in. {{storylink|The Hunt for Soundwave}} Megatron attempted to convince him that Zeta Prime was even worse than he appeared—that he had planned tto let Orion die in [[Nyon]] so that he could use his death as pretext to invade the rebel-infested city and drain the citizens of their energon—and proposed they work together against him, but Orion refused to hear him and then escaped. Knowing the doubts he'd placed in his head would only serve to damage the Autobot cause, Megatron let him go. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}}
[[File:Autocracy8 megs and pax together.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Banzai!]]
Megatron continued to keep an eye on Orion Pax's activities, spying on his encounter with the Nyon insurgent [[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hot Rod]]. {{storylink|Ruins}} When Zeta Prime's [[Guardian robot|Omega Destructor]]s suddenly attacked Nyon, Megatron was surprised by how zealously the new Prime fought against the city's rebels, but his real interest still lay on how Orion would handle the crisis. {{storylink|Purge}} Orion turned on Zeta, who in turn attempted to kill him, prompting Megatron to intervene and force the Prime to retreat. Taking Orion back to Kaon, he again offered that they work together against Zeta's corruption, and this time the Autobot officer accepted. {{storylink|Choices}} As their combined forces invaded the [[Citadel]] in Iacon, Megatron and Orion Pax made their way inside and fought Zeta Prime in person. The battle ended with Megatron killing the Prime with a head shot, and with his objective complete, he then betrayed the injured Orion by shooting him in the back. {{storylink|Overthrown}} Curiously, an alternate report incorrectly implied that Megatron had assassinated Zeta from afar, sniping him with the rifle alternate mode of [[Vos (DJD)|Vos]]. {{storylink|Bullets}} {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}}
[[File:Autocracy12 no you dont megatron.jpg|left|thumb|250px|This seems so familiar...]]
With Zeta dead, Megatron conquered Iacon and declared himself ruler of Cybertron. His soldiers patrolled the planet's streets to "keep the peace", mostly by hunting down and capturing any remaining Autobots who opposed him. {{storylink|Transformation (issue)|Transformation}} During his rule, Megatron attempted to sway the neutral Hot Rod into joining the Decepticons, but he decided otherwise upon witnessing Megatron ordering the execution of several Autobot prisoners. {{storylink|Rise}} Megatron was shocked to learn that Orion Pax had survived the betrayal and was organizing a rebellion against him under the name "Optimus Prime", and even more shocked that people actually had the courage to listen to him. He wasted no time in striking back against the rebels approaching the Citadel with the full force of his army. {{storylink|Broadcast}} During the battle, Megatron unleashed Zeta Prime's energy-draining [[vamparc ribbon|vamparc annihilator]], but when the gigantic [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] took out the cannon, Megatron fell to the streets and was confronted by Optimus Prime himself. He lost the ensuing [[The Transformers: The Movie|familiar-looking duel]] and was badly wounded after a failed attempt to defeat Prime by holding Hot Rod hostage, forcing him to escape aboard Astrotrain. As he fled, he warned Optimus that he hadn't won, he had only started a war unlike any Cybertron had ever seen. {{storylink|Endgame}}

[[File:Monstrosity3_Megatron_and_Pentius.jpg|thumb|right|300px|"WORDS THAT KILL~"]]
Before Megatron could recover from his injuries, he was betrayed by [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]], who was gunning for the position of Decepticon leader (with aid from Starscream, against Megatron's knowledge). As punishment for his failure to hold Iacon, Scorponok banished the wounded Megatron to the hell-world of [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]]. {{storylink|Derelicts}} Further injured in battle with some [[Junkion (species)|cannibalistic natives]], he stubbornly refused to give up and used the trash littering the world to patch himself up, leaving him with a mismatched, monstrous appearance. {{storylink|Wreckage (issue)|Wreckage}} While searching for a way off Junkion, Megatron entered the wreckage of a starship and found a trapped [[Quintesson]] named [[Pentius]], who had mapped the planet and knew of an area known as the [[Pillar of Rust]] where starships may land and take off. Megatron freed the alien to guide him there, while also putting him in chains to serve as his slave. {{storylink|Faces of Darkness}}
[[File:Monstrosity7 megatron takes pentius spark.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
While crossing the [[Acid Sea]] on the way to the Pillar, Megatron was attacked by [[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticons]] who pulled him into the depths. {{storylink|Rage (IDW)|Rage}} For reasons unknown he was then released, the creatures having allowed him to live. As he emerged, Pentius was waiting with a history lesson, telling him that Junkion was once a prosperous world until its inhabitants drained it of resources, leaving it the broken husk it is today: a fate that may also await Cybertron. Megatron rejected this possibility, declaring that under his rule, Cybertron—and his legacy—would last forever. {{storylink|Fallout (issue)|Fallout}} On arrival at the Pillar of Rust, Megatron was met by the [[Terrorcon (G1)|Terrorcons]], who had come to Junkion to finish what Scorponok had started by killing him. He was able to fight off several of his attackers, but [[Hun-Gurrr (G1)|Hun-Gar]] was too much for him to handle in his injured state. Egged on and taunted by Pentius, Megatron realized he had one last resource left to use: the Quintesson himself. Telling Pentius that his legacy would live on within him, he tore out the alien's [[spark]] and used it to fuel himself, granting him enough power to defeat Hun-Gar. He spared the Terrorcons in exchange for their loyalty, then returned to Cybertron on their ship to take revenge on Scorponok and take back control of the Decepticons. {{storylink|Prey (issue)|Prey}}
[[File:Monstrosity12 strange turns.jpg|right|thumb|300px|To be fair, that's all we can think about regarding you two, as well.]]
Megatron returned to a Cybertron in chaos, as the ancient reptilian [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]] had been unleashed by Scorponok and was in the midst of razing Iacon. After reasserting his leadership of the Decepticons by beating Scorponok nearly to death, he had Shockwave restore his body to it original shape and condition, {{storylink|The Illusion of Control}} and set out to investigate the Trypticon situation alone, unwilling to risk his soldiers in the face of the beast's uncontrolled fury. Finding an injured Optimus Prime on the battlefield, Megatron lectured him, but opted to leave him alive so that he could watch as the Decepticon leader defeated the enemy that Prime could not. Megatron was attacked by [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]], but as they grappled, they were swallowed by Trypticon. {{storylink|Annihilation}} Within the giant, the pair set their differences aside to fend off the [[cyber-morphic predators]] that populated his interior, and together, they destroyed Trypticon's internal power cell, taking him offline. A tense standoff between the Autobots and Decepticons followed as the two warriors emerged from within Trypticon, but both sides agreed to go their separate ways for the time being. Not long after the battle, however, Megatron removed Pentius's spark from within himself and installed it within Trypticon, reviving the monster as a Decepticon. {{storylink|Belly of the Beast}}

===The spreading conflict===
[[File:MTMTE14 megatron vs overlord.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
Megatron's actions during the war were many. Early during the conflict, he wrote ''[[Towards Peace]]'', a new treatise to replace ''After the Ark'', in which he described continuing to fight the war until the very notion of conflict was literally inconceivable. Then and only then would he finally give up his fusion cannon. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} He oversaw the creation of a class of super-warriors known as the [[Warriors Elite]], selecting only his most powerful troops to undergo the torturous upgrade, including [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]], a brilliant sadist and frequent opponent of his from his pit-fighting days who had developed an obsession with Megatron after the Decepticon leader dealt him his first ever defeat. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} At some point, he also created the [[Decepticon Justice Division]] to deal with traitors, {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} though he elected not to send them after Deadlock when he defected, valuing the warrior enough to instead dispatch [[Lockdown (G1)|Lockdown]] to bring him in. {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}}
[[File:ChaosTheory prime vs megatron montage.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]
Megatron would personally clash with Optimus Prime many times; Optimus grew to respect and fear Megatron as a calm, calculating and measured opponent, while Megatron himself respected Prime's sheer power and his skill as a tactician and as a leader. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} Megatron would later incorrectly recall their battle on [[Sherma Bridge]] during the [[Rorsha Campaign]] as the first time they met. Said battle was certainly momentous—every Autobot and Decepticon stopped fighting to witness their duel, during which Megatron's cannon arm was sliced off by Prime's [[energon-axe]], and he claimed revenge by throwing the Autobot leader off the bridge. As the war spread to other planets, they would meet again and again: during the [[Siege of Massunstrad]], Megatron sealed Prime in an anti-matter chamber; on [[Rada Mor]], Prime reduced Megatron to ashes with sentient explosives; and in the midst of the [[Vorsk Offensive]], Megatron was nearly sliced in half by Prime. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} Megatron took on a new pistol alternate mode for the [[Battle for Hell's Point]], during which he was used by [[Heretech]] to blast [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]]. {{storylink|The Gloaming}} During the same skirmish, Megatron took off half of Prime's face with his energon mace, but had a city block dropped on him by Prime in retribution, which shattered his [[transformation cog]] and trapped him in gun mode for two years. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} At the war's zenith, Megatron sealed himself in an [[Omniglobe]] to absorb the relentless flood of data coming in from countless fronts. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}}

Prime was not the only old face that Megatron would see again during the war: during a battle on an aerial drilling platform over the [[Manganese Mountains]], Megatron came face-to-face with his old friend Impactor, and stood poised to execute him until Impactor gave him a moment's pause by recalling his old fondness for poetry. In this moment, Megatron was knocked from the platform by [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] and sent plummeting to the mountains below. {{storylink|Zero Point}}
[[File:LastStandoftheWreckers2-teleconference.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]
With total war going nowhere, Megatron would go on to develop a six-stage [[infiltration protocol]] to be used for conquering targeted planets. The sixth phase called for outright planetary razing, and Megatron selected three of his Warriors Elite for this task: [[Sixshot]], {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}}, Overlord and [[Black Shadow (Victory)|Black Shadow]]. He informed this trio of his decision via teleconference, but Overlord tired of being used as someone else's weapon and refused. Megatron threatened to hunt Overlord down for his disobedience, {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 2|Last Stand of the Wreckers #2}} but while the powerful warrior spent the rest of his life preparing for this conflict, Megatron never followed up and left him to stew in his own obsession. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}}
[[File:Stormbringer1 get up and fight.jpg|right|thumb|250px|"Megatron. You're touching me. Stop it."]]
Deducing that the Autobot/Decepticon war would culminate in an energy crisis that would threatened the stability of Cybertron itself, Shockwave left Cybertron to secretly pursue alternate energy sources. Around 10,000 years ago, when Shockwave did not return, Megatron ordered Bludgeon to investigate his files, {{storylink|Spotlight: Shockwave}} secretly assigning Soundwave to investigate Bludgeon {{storylink|Spotlight: Soundwave}} and probe deeper into whatever it was Shockwave had created. {{storylink|Shockpoint}}

Shockwave's prediction soon proved accurate, and Cybertron found itself in the throes of an energy shortage. Decepticon scientist [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]] came to Megatron with a revolutionary, controversial plan to stave off this energy death by [[Pretender|polydermal grafting]], a process where they encased themselves in "symbiotic carapaces", or shells created from living tissue. When Megatron dismissed him angrily and cut him down, Thunderwing did not abandon his research; instead, he experimented on himself. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} The process gave him immense power, but drove him insane. He became so dangerous that Megatron had to join forces with Optimus Prime to stop him. This battle at [[Thunderhead Pass]] accelerated the apocalypse destined to befall Cybertron, leaving it an uninhabitable, radioactive husk and forcing both armies to continue their war on other worlds. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 1|Stormbringer #1}} Megatron advocated that they simply destroy Cybertron to ensure that Thunderwing was destroyed, but Prime refused, and threatened to stop Megatron if he tried. Megatron agreed not to destroy the planet, but warned Prime that whatever happened was on his head. Shortly after the last big push by the Decepticons, Cybertron was abandoned by both factions. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 1|Stormbringer #2}}

===Breaking protocol===
[[File:Infiltration4 enter megatron.jpg|left|thumb|225px|...oh @#$%.]]
In the present day, when word reached Megatron that the infiltration unit led by [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], stationed on the planet [[Earth]], had broken protocol, he headed for the planet to investigate. Examining the unit's abandoned bunker in [[Nebraska]] for information, he discovered that Starscream had stumbled across [[Ultra-Energon|Ore-13]]—an incredible energy source that (unbeknownst to Megatron) was the end result of Shockwave's experiments—and was planning to use it to usurp Megatron's command. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} While studying the bunker's files, he was contacted by [[Razorclaw (G1)|Razorclaw]] with some distressing news: Bludgeon's investigations of Shockwave's files had led him to revive Thunderwing. Megatron ordered the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]] to Cybertron, authorizing them to do whatever was necessary to destroy Thunderwing, including the destruction of their homeworld itself. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} Just as he was handing down this order, Megatron was happened upon by [[Verity Carlo]], a human ally of the Autobot unit active on the planet, {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} but he utterly ignored her. The bunker was then leveled by an airstrike courtesy of [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]], who were merely covering their unit's tracks and unaware of Megatron's presence; when their leader furiously emerged from the wreckage, they attempted to explain their ignorance, but he simply responded by blasting Skywarp out of the sky. [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] soon arrived on the scene, and favored opening fire rather than attempting explanations, so Megatron beat the stuffing out of him too, then set off for Starscream's new bunker in [[Oregon]]. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 5|Infiltration #5}}

[[File:Infiltration6 takeyourpunishment.jpg|250px|thumb|Those librarians are getting really strict on late returns.]]

{{quote|You will stand down. If you fight, you ''die''. There is no room anymore for mercy. In the end, you are ''all'' expendable. Choose.|Megatron's ultimatum to Starscream's troops|[[Infiltration issue 6|''Infiltration'' #6]]}}

[[Orbital jump|Orbital jumping]] to Oregon, Megatron called Starscream out and ordered the team to stand down, disgusted to see such power games being played amongst his troops. His brief, chilling speech was enough to take the fight out of all but Starscream, who, powered-up on Ore-13, took Megatron on himself. Though the new power source made Starscream a formidable adversary, Megatron was still more deadly than he, and Starscream was taken out by a point-blank fusion cannon blast through his torso. Megatron ordered the Decepticons to ensure that Starscream survived, and then, observing the Autobots who had been watching the battle, announced that it was time to begin phase two. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6}}

In light of the discovery of Ore-13, Megatron took stock of Starscream's progress on Earth and elected to get the infiltration protocol back on track himself, calling a meeting to make Starscream's former troops and making them aware, in no uncertain terms, that any further insurrections would be met with deadly force. {{storylink|Escalation issue 1|Escalation #1}} He was even able to revisit his past gun alternate mode, once again able to achieve the [[size changing|mass displacement]] the mode required thanks to the extra energy Ore-13 provided. {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}}

[[File:Megsandspidy.jpg|left|250px|thumb|Mere seconds before Megs turns Spider-Man into Spider-Goop.]]
With his forces joined by [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]], a new arrival who Megatron suspected of having ulterior motives, {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} the Decepticon leader initiated phase two of infiltration protocol by destabilizing relations between the European nations of [[Latveria]] and [[Symkaria]] through use of an aggression-inducing [[Psycho-Prism]], stolen from Latverian dicatator [[Doctor Doom]]. When the superhero team known as the [[Avengers]] investigated the array the Decepticons' were using to broadcast the prism's signal, Megatron abducted the arachnid-powered [[Spider-Man]] to use as a subject for their [[mirror response mode]], {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}} draining the hero's powers and infusing himself and the other Decepticons with them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} He proceeded to forge a brief alliance with Doctor Doom, who helped him defeat and capture the allied Autobot/Avenger team who snuck inside the Decepticons' array, but when Doom's suggestion to threaten the captives in order to force the other heroes to lay down their arms failed, Megatron violently dissolved the partnership. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Three}} Emerging from the confines of the array to take on the Autobots and Avengers himself, Megatron refrained from engaging Prime, foreesing a more intimate confrontation between the two of them in the near future, and instead turned his attention to destroying [[Iron Man]]'s Transformer-sized armor. The tables soon turned, however, when Doctor Doom freed the captive Autobots and used the Decepticon's mirror response technology to empower them. Defeated by these enhanced Autobots and with the Psycho-Prism destroyed by [[Wolverine (superhero)|Wolverine]], Megatron used the last of his extra power to teleport the Decepticons out with an [[emergency warp-out]]. He refrained from departing alongside his warriors, intending to slaughter the Avengers for their interference, but when he was immobilized by Spider-Man's webbing, knocked to the ground by [[Luke Cage]], and rattled by a hail of Autobot fire, he finally warped-out with a final taunt to Optimus Prime of the battle yet to come between them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Four}}
[[File:Massdisplacement.jpg|right|thumb|400px]]
With phase two of infiltration protocol properly underway, Megatron recognized that he ''should'' rightly withdraw and install a new unit commander on Earth, but could not resist the chance to try out his new Ore-13 empowered body, selecting the nation of [[Brasnya]], where Decepticon subterfuge was already underway, as his testing ground. {{storylink|Escalation issue 2|Escalation #2}} Allowing the Decepticon's [[facsimile construct]] [[Georgi Koska]] to wield him in pistol mode, Megatron had Koska use him to first sever a [[Russia]]n oil pipeline, and then to fire upon the soldiers who came to investigate, furthering the political and military tensions already brewing in the region. When word came through from Blitzwing that Optimus Prime and the Autobots had arrived, {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}} Megatron at last engaged Optimus directly, {{storylink|Escalation issue 4|Escalation #4}} and although Prime was able to destroy his fusion cannon, the extra strength afforded Megatron by Ore-13 allowed him to physically beat Prime into submission, punching directly into his chest and crushing his [[spark]]. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} [[File:Escalation5 prime vs megs.jpg|left|thumb|250px]] The horrified Autobots moved into a full but ineffective counterattack, their only edge being that Megatron had no long-range guns left. It turned out that Prime's apparent death was a desperate ruse when the Autobot leader countered with a surprise attack on Megatron, able to exploit Ore-13's weakness—the more it's used, the faster it burns itself out. Megatron almost collapsed from power loss and was forced to have Skywarp take him to safety before the Autobots could kill him. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}}

Furious over the embarrassing defeat, Megatron threw protocol out the window and ordered that Sixshot be summoned to the planet. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}} He took out some of his anger on Ramjet, who he discovered had been busy cooking up a plot to overthrow him; without saying a word, he beat the attempted traitor to death before tearing him apart and keeping his head as a trophy. {{storylink|Spotlight: Ramjet}}
[[File:Devastation5 decepticons attack.jpg|thumb|right|250px]]
Upon Sixshot's arrival, Megatron ordered him to utterly destroy the Autobots, and although the Phase Sixer questioned his early deployment, he was happy to go along with the abandonment of the phase structure. The other Decepticons, on the other hand, were worried that Megatron was losing his grip—and since they were too scared to tell him that, they decided to revive Starscream to do it for them. {{storylink|Devastation issue 1|Devastation #1}} Megatron monitored Sixshot's attack on the Autobots' [[Ark-19]], ordering him to pursue the escape pod that broke away from the crashing craft, {{storylink|Devastation issue 2|Devastation #2}} but before he could obliterate the Autobots, Megatron was forced to recall him to deal with a new threat assaulting the Decepticon base—the alien [[Reaper]]s. {{storylink|Devastation issue 4|Devastation #4}} Unfortunately, the Reapers convinced Sixshot to side with them, and when an Ore-13 powered Starscream entered the fray to take Sixshot down, Megatron realized his troops had been conspiring against him. He decided not to punish them '''yet''', due to greater threat posed by the Reapers, {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}} and entered battle alongside them all, even allowing Starscream to wield him in pistol mode against the aliens. After the invaders were dead, however, he turn on his men, starting with Blitzwing—but was forced to realize that they needed to remain united when it became apparent that their battle with the Reapers had made humanity inescapably aware of their existence {{storylink|Devastation issue 6|Devastation #6}}
{{--}}

===All Hail Megatron===
[[File:AHM7 megs rips out matrix.jpg|left|thumb|200px]]
While the Decepticons were occupied fighting the Reapers, the Autobots had left Earth to deal with the greater threat of an incursion by the [[Dead Universe]]. Exploiting their enemies' absence, Megatron and his men went to ground; when Autobots returned, they could find no trace of the Decepticons, who kept one step ahead of them for months. Secretly abducting [[Hunter O'Nion]], former [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] partner to the Autobot [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]], Megatron and his men returned to Cybertron, where Megatron had [[Deluge (G2)|Deluge]] conduct experiments that bred a [[Insecticon swarm|swarm]] of monstrous [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticons]]. The experiments culminated in the creation of [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]], who Megatron employed in a series of key tasks in his plan: the Insecticon obtained from Hunter's mind various Autobot secrets and codes, completed Shockwave's long-gestating combiner process, granting the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] the ability to combine into [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]], and created a working [[space bridge]] {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} based on designs sold to them by Sixshot in exchange for his freedom. {{storylink|Spotlight: Metroplex}}

Returning to Earth, the Decepticons staged a phony schism within their ranks, allowing the Autobots to believe that they had "disappeared" as a result of a power struggle that had split their ranks into two camps, one led by Megatron and one by Starscream. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} Starscream then approached Sunstreaker, whose experience has a Headmaster had left him bitter and jaded, with the proposition that the Autobots join with his forces against Megatron, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 8|All Hail Megatron #8}} but when the Autobots arrived at the designated time and place, they were instead confronted by the united Decepticon army and quickly defeated by Devastator. After personally tearing [[Matrix of Leadership]] from Optimus Prime's chest, Megatron marched the captive Autobots through the space bridge back to Cybertron, where the Insecticon swarm waited for them. Prime, however, was able to damage the bridge, causing it to deposit the Autobots a safe distance from the swarm, but in the process, fried his own circuits and left himself comatose. Though the Autobots had escaped the fate he had intended for them, Megatron had successfully exiled his enemies to their dead homeworld; morever, using information and codes gained from Sunstreaker and Hunter, he concurrently orchestrated the event that would later be known as [[Surge (event)|The Surge]], as Decepticons stormed Autobot installations all across the galaxy, achieving total victory. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}}

[[File:Bringingthehousedown.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Megatron's urban renewal program was off to a flying start.]]

With galaxy-wide domination accomplished, one year after the Decepticons' battle with the Reapers, Megatron chose Earth to become the new Decepticon homeworld. Together with his men, Megatron stormed [[New York City]], humiliating Starscream with a display of his greater capacity for destruction. When the US Air Force retaliated, Megatron shrugged off their fire and ordered the other Decepticons to engage them; when one damaged jet threw itself toward him in a suicide run, Megatron, outraged at the [[DJ (G1)|pilot]]'s temerity, destroyed it and its occupant with a furious swipe of his hand. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} When US Army forces arrived, Megatron ordered [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] dispatched to deal with them, then sent Devastator to destroy the subway tunnels leading out of the city. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 2|All Hail Megatron #2}} With New York secured, Megatron directed the Constructicons to begin building new space bridge in the city's heart, and had a candid talk with Starscream, revealing his belief that the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seeker]]'s attitude and actions marked him as the embodiment of the Decepticon cause, even if he was blind to seeing it himself. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 3|All Hail Megatron #3}} After a series of further attacks on major American cities saw the country firmly crushed under the Decepticons' collective heel, Megatron made a propaganda speech to his men in the ruins of New York. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 4|All Hail Megatron #4}} As night fell upon the city, Megatron withdrew to privately gloat over the Matrix. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 5|All Hail Megatron #5}}

[[File:AHM6MegatronVsIsrael.jpg|left|300px|thumb|]]
As the Decepticons began attacking other countries around the globe, Megatron was questioned by Starscream on what the next step in his plan was. A recalcitrant Megatron merely informed him that it was merely time to savor their victory, but Starscream accused him of not ''having'' any plans post-victory, and was merely allowing his men to run wild to distract them from any notion of taking power for themselves. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}} What Starscream did not realize was that Megatron did indeed have a plan: to defeat the Autobots, he had created an army of killers and monsters, but in order to create his perfect rule, that army would have to be destroyed, the dissenting, distasteful elements obliterated before Megatron's peace could dawn. Megatron was not distracting his warriors... he was ''waiting'' to see which of them would question and turn on him. Silently sorrowful to already know that such dissent would begin with Starscream, an otherwise-model Decepticon, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}} Megatron withdrew to [[Israel]] for some silent reflection amid wholesale devastation. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}}

[[File:AHM10 megs vs devastator.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

Some time later, Megatron surveyed the space bridge Bombshell and the Constructicons had built in New York. He congratulated Bombshell on his work, but revealed that he had always foreseen Bombshell's intellect as a danger—had always known he and his fellow Insecticons would side with Starscream when the time came. His gambit exposed, Starscream made his move and attacked, but the Insecticons proved no match for Megatron's might. The Decepticon leader had failed to anticipate one thing, however: he did not foresee the Constructicons siding with Starscream, and found himself having to fight the mighty Devastator. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}} The in-fighting was halted by a last-ditch attack by the mustered might of what remained of the human resistance, forcing Megatron and Starscream to put their differences aside momentarily and organize a defense. This attack came as no surprise to Megatron, but the same could not be said for the next entrants onto the battlefield: the Autobots had returned.

After assuring Starscream that he would be leader in the future, when his time was done, Megatron confronted Optimus Prime, surprised not so much that his old foe had survived, but that he had bothered to return to Earth. Both leaders had always maintained a policy of acceptable losses through their millennia-long war, so Megatron assumed Prime had come back for selfish reasons, to reclaim the Matrix, but Prime insisted that he had changed, and would no longer allow their cold war to endanger innocent lives on this scale. [[File:AHM12 prime vs megs.jpg|left|thumb|300px|]] Megatron scoffed at the notion, reavling that Prime's supposedly "innocent" humans were planning to nuke New York, killing millions of their own just to get rid of the Decepticons, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 11|All Hail Megatron #11}} but Prime retorted that it wasn't ''just'' about the humans, but also about the difference between Autobots and Decepticons. The two came to blows, but Megatron triumphed in short order and commanded the Decepticons to depart, leaving the Autobots to be killed by the humans' nuke... but just before they withdrew, he was shot in the face by human soldier [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], wielding a powerful weapon reverse-engineered from Cybertronian technology. Injured and disoriented by the blast, Megatron was finished off when Prime smashed his face in with his own fusion cannon. As he wanted to ''take'' leadership rather than just have it fall in his hands, Starscream picked up his damaged leader and ordered the Decepticons to retreat. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

[[File:AllHisEngines-Megatron.jpg|thumb|Pretty sure when you float in a bacta tank you're supposed to be wearing a diaper.]]
The Decepticons departed Earth aboard Astrotrain, where the gravely wounded Megatron was put on life support and tended to by Soundwave and his cassettes. With Megatron's life signs only at ten percent capacity, Starscream attempted to appeal to Soundwave's sense of logic and have him shut down so that leadership could be his, but Soundwave refused. Starscream was soon able to take command, however, when he recovered the Matrix of Leadership and professed to have been chosen by it. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 13|Uneasy Lies the Head}}

===New body, new powers===

The Decepticons eventually settled on a desolate asteroid, where Megatron was installed in a [[CR chamber|CR tank]]. Retaining some level of awareness of the events occurring around him during his convalescence, he was forced to watch as his army languished in inactivity, their energy slowly ebbing away until they were reduced to cannibalism. {{storylink|All His Engines}} After a year of trying to free his leader from this living death, Soundwave was finally forced to conclude that Megatron's body was beyond repair, and recruited the recently-returned Shockwave, whom Starscream had provided with the majority of the Decepticons' resources to create a space bridge, to help build a new body for Megatron's consciousness to inhabit. The operation succeeded and Megatron was reborn in a deadly new body, powered by Ore-13, armed with a devastatingly powerful rail gun, and even equipped with space bridge nodes stolen from Metroplex, which gave him the ability to open space bridge portals on his own. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

[[File:IDWongoing15 megatrons new body.jpg|left|thumb|275px|"Uh, it's like...did anyone ever see the movie ''Tron''?"]]

Back in action, Megatron devised a plan to destabilize the relationship between the humans and Autobots on Earth. Together with Soundwave and Shockwave, he chopped up his old body and used it to create human-scaled replicas of his former gun mode, containing small pieces of his own consciousness. When Starscream caught them in the act, Megatron elected to table his plan for the moment, as he considered it folly to go against Starscream's wishes for the moment since the Seeker was still in possession of the Matrix of Leadership. Megatron had never truly understood what the talisman ''did'', but it served as a threat merely by being an unknown variable. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} Fortunately, for Megatron this variable was soon removed from the equation when Hot Rod, estranged from the Earthbound Autobots, infiltrated the Decepticons' asteroid base and recovered the Matrix from Starscream. Megatron seized his chance, intercepting the Autobot and blasting him and the Matrix out into the void of space. {{storylink|Heart Like a Wheel}}

[[File:SLMegatron stealth bomber mode.jpg|right|thumb|275px|Behold... the ''Bomberang!'']]

With Starscream's trump card now gone, Megatron had the Decepticons gathered so he could address them. Distrustful of Shockwave's motives for preparing his new body, wary of Soundwave's constant surveillance, and repulsed by the state of his once fearsome Decepticon war machine, Megatron decided that he needed to unequivocally reestablish dominance over the now Matrix-less Starscream. He intended to beat Starscream near to death as a means of letting them both work out their frustrations with Starscream's inability to lead effectively during Megatron's absence, but Starscream did not want to fight—spiritually broken by his failures, he simply wanted Megatron to kill him. Rather than accept this, Megatron instead goaded Starscream into opening fire upon him. This began a running battle between the two, with Megatron pursuing the fleeing Seeker in his new stealth bomber alternate mode, continuing to bait Starscream every time he appeared willing to give up the fight. Incensed by Starscream's accusation that he did not know what it felt like to see everything he had worked for fall apart, when that was exactly what Starscream's pitiful leadership had done to the empire he had created, Megatron pummeled him to within an inch of his life, then paused to explain why he kept a schemer like Starscream around: as a constant reminder to watch his back. The brutal display galvanized the languid Decepticons, and Megatron was ready to begin his scheme. {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

[[File:IDWongoing14 megatron guns.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]

Roughly two years after the Decepticons' defeat on Earth, Megatron used his space bridge powers to dispatch a container full of the guns made from his old body to Earth, where they were found by South American gun-runners and illegally disseminated amongst an increasingly paranoid public seeking ways to protect themselves against Transformers. This allowed Megatron's consciousness to spread across North America, until it was focused enough to contact one particular owner of a Megatron gun: [[Joe Gladki]]. He deceived and manipulated the paranoid human, and eventually convinced him to perform an assassination attempt on [[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]], the new Autobot leader. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} In their ignorance, the Autobots then mistook Gladki's gun for Megatron himself and held it captive. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 1: The Demolished Man|The Demolished Man}}

[[File:IDWongoing16 megatron vs autobots.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

With the Autobots in chaos, Megatron started the next phase of his plan and returned to Earth personally, where he used his new stealth bomber mode to shoot down a plane carrying Optimus Prime and several other Autobots. He then hunted down the remaining Autobots, effortlessly defeating them and their new temporary leader Ultra Magnus with his powerful new body, and killing some of their [[Skywatch]] allies. Magnus tried to draw Megatron's attention from the humans, claiming the Autobots were the ones he really wanted, but Megatron assured him that humanity was his real target. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 3: Woken Furies|Woken Furies}} Taking the defeated Autobots captive, Megatron dumped them in a city and directed three of his mind-controlled human puppets to kill them. Contacting Prime directly, Megatron summoned him to the city's outskirts and revealed his plan: crush Prime's spirit and destroy the Autobots' alliance with humanity by forcing them to choose between fighting the humans or allowing them to kill them. Prime found the hole in Megatron's plan, however, when he realized that Soundwave was maintaining the connection between Megatron and his guns, and shot him in the head. His connection to his pawns severed, Megatron scooped up Soundwave and withdrew. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome|Burning Chrome}} Thanks to a tracker Ultra Magnus had slipped on Soundwave, though, Prime was able to follow the Decepticons to their bolthole and called Megatron out for a full and and proper confrontation. In actuality, Prime had lured Megatron outside so Skywatch could drop a [[kinetic harpoon]] on him, but even a weapon dropped from orbit barely proved able to put a scratch in Megatron's mighty new exostructure. Megatron proceeded to beat Prime senseless, but then returned him to the Autobots, and to their great shock, surrendered to their custody. After recovering, Optimus demanded to know why he had surrendered, but Megatron merely taunted him by revealing that Spike Witwicky had murdered a Decepticon in cold blood. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine|Enemy Mine}} Prime immediately had Prowl begin investigating Spike and Skywatch, and Prowl interrogated the Decepticon leader for information, which he provded after a little verbal sparring. {{storylink|Police Action: Prologue}}

[[File:ChaosTheory1 megatron imprisoned.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

When Rodimus returned to Earth and warned the Autobots that [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] had taken control of Cybertron, Optimus decided to lead the Autobots in reclaiming their homeworld. In the name of Earth's safety, he elected to bring Megatron and the the confiscated guns made from his old body with them. {{storylink|Space Opera—Final Tableaux: Orphans of the Helix|Orphans of the Helix}} On the way to Cybertron aboard [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]], Prime again attempted to discern why Megatron had surrendered, even releasing his old foe from his bonds and having a civil conversation with him about their past together and their dueling ideologies. Optimus tried to reach out to Megatron, offering him the chance to end the war once and for all with a handshake; Megatron appeared to consider it for a moment but ultimately remained silent. With Megatron returned to the confines of the [[variable voltage harness]], the other Autobots pressured Optimus for a decision on his fate: execution or imprisonment. Trying to come to a conclusion, Prime asked Megatron if he regretted any of his actions, but the Decepticon leader remarked that he only regretted not killing ''more'' Autobots. He taunted Prime with the notion that even he was thankful for the war, as it had raised him from a nobody to the greatest Autobot in history, and a furious Prime activated the harness, electrocuting Megatron. The jolt would have killed Megatron if Omega Supreme had not cut the power in time and Megatron, struggling to stay conscious, offered Prime his thanks for saving his life all those years ago in Rodion. Shocked by his actions, Prime realized that Megatron wanted to die and wanted Prime to be the one to kill him. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} Eventually, Prime decided to let Megatron choose his own fate, and Megatron calmly replied that he chose death. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 2}}
[[File:Chaos2 armored megatron.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]
As Omega drew close to Cybertron, Megatron demanded to know who or what was threatening their homeworld, but Optimus Prime refused to provde him with any information. {{storylink| Chaos Part One: Lamentations|Lamentations}} The Autobots subsequently engaged Galvatron's forces in battle, and while they were occupied, Megatron put into motion the ace he had up his sleeve: taking remote control of the numerous "Megatron guns" aboard Omega, Megatron summoned them to him and combined with them into a new armored mode. Breaking free from his restraints, he headed out to confront Galvatron, intent that nobody would take his world from him. {{storylink|Chaos Part Two: Numbers|Numbers}} As he tore through the Sweeps, Megatron also revealed the reason for his surrender: now that he was back on Cybertron, he could open a space bridge that would allow the massed forces of the Decepticons on Earth to return to their home planet as well. Unfortunately, not long after the Decepticons arrived on the battlefield, Galvatron's secret puppet master, the Dead Universe entity known as the [[D-Void]], seized control of their minds and those of the Sweeps, merging them into a gigantic, monstrous avatar. With Prime occupied pursuing Galvatron into Cybertron's depths, Megatron was left to face this "[[Deceptigod]]" alone. {{storylink|Chaos Part Three: Kings|Kings}} Fighting against the D-Void's attempts to ensnare his own mind and make him part of the collective, Megatron was gravely wounded and even lost an arm to the beast, but succeeded into destroying it, blasting it apart with one massive beam from his weapons. {{storylink|Chaos Part Four: Genesis|Genesis}}

===The long game===

Even as the Deceptigod disintegrated back into its component Decepticons, Megatron could see the potential the creature embodied—the D-Void had, in essence, created the perfect combiner by means of utterly obliterating free will. With Cybertron reverting into a primordial wasteland around him—a result of Optimus Prime purifying [[Vector Sigma]] with the Matrix to stop Galvatron and the D-Void—Megatron chose to withdraw to experiment with the possibilities this presented. He informed Shockwave, the sole Decepticon who had not been made part of the Deceptigod, of his plans, and Shockwave in turn revealed them to Soundwave and Bombshell. {{storylink|Shockpoint}} While Megatron hid in the wilderness, his Decepticons were left to live as second-class citizens in the new [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] that the Autobots built; Optimus Prime left Cybertron two weeks after the D-Void's defeat to calm tensions with "NAILs"—other unaffiliated Cybertronians—who had returned to their homeworld, but even as he did so, he mused that Megatron must still be out there somewhere. {{storylink|Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}
[[File:RID11 megatron in wilderness.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]
In the months of study and experimentation that followed, Megatron discerned that the combination of Ore-13 and space bridge technology in his body somehow gave him the ability to manipulate the natural energy of Cybertron that the D-Void had used to merge the Decepticons into the Deceptigod. After experiments on [[turbofox]]es created larger, more ferocious beasts, Megatron stepped up trials when the [[Aerialbot (G1)|Aerialbots]] seceded from the shaky government Bumblebee, [[Metalhawk (Masterforce)|Metalhawk]] and Starscream were building in Iacon and ventured into the wilderness. The signal Megatron had created from the combination energy first drove the Aerialbots mad, before uniting them in body and mind, spontaneously merging them into the gestalt [[Superion (G1)|Superion]], but this newborn Autobot combiner was considered hopelessly insane by Megatron and left to die in the wilderness. The madness aspect of the signal afforded him the chance to revive some of the principles of the infiltration protocol, however, as he blanketed the wastelands in it, forcing the Autobots, Decepticons and NAILs to stay in Iacon, causing natural conflict among them to snowball, providing a useful cover for his actions. To gain a pawn within Autobot high command, Megatron even provided Bombshell with the energy to use in conjunction with his own mind-controlling [[cerebro-shell]]s, ensnaring the mind of Prowl. With the resources and cover control of Prowl provided, Shockwave, Soundwave and Bombshell were able to use Megatron's findings to perfect the combination process, rebuilding the Constructicons with new modular designs that would allow them to merge into a perfect Devastator. The endgame was for Megatron himself to form the head of the combiner, but before risking his own mind and body, Megatron decided that Prowl would be used first as a test subject. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}}
[[File:RID12 kill him.jpg|right|thumb|350px]]
The appearance of a [[Crystal City Metrotitan|Metrotitan]] on Cybertron which declared that Starscream was the "Chosen One" threatened Megatron's ability to easily re-take leadership of his Decepticons, forcing him to step up his schedule. Through Prowl, he had his inner circle gathered together in the secret "[[Black Room]]", then boldly strode into Iacon for all to see. {{storylink|The End of the Beginning of the World}} His body shattered and skeletal, he professed to come in peace, but Bumblebee did not accept his surrender and ordered his Autobots to kill him. Indeed, Megatron could possibly have died there and then had Iacon's Decepticons not stepped in, insisting that Megatron's defense of Cybertron during the D-Void's attack marked him a hero and that he be taken into custody instead. {{storylink|City on Fire}} After [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] got through examining him to prove his body concealed no weapons, Starscream approached the imprisoned Megatron and attempted to explain that he was not far away from taking complete power in the government, ensuring a Decepticon victory of a different kind. Megatron merely smiled silently at the notion, terrifying his ex-lieutenant with his grin. Presently, the Decepticons rose up in an angry mob and marched on Autobot high command to insist on Megatron's release; the situation quickly devolved into a riot, during which a squad led by [[Needlenose]] stormed the prison and freed Megatron. {{storylink|The Verge}}
[[File:RID14 new body redux.jpg|left|thumb|275px]]
Megatron brought Starscream and the captured Bumblebee and Metalhawk to the Black Room, where he explained his plans and had himself transferred into a pre-prepared new body that could combine with the Constructicons' new forms. At his command, the Constructicons and Prowl combined into the new Devastator, who immediately set about razing Iacon. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}} Even the return of Superion seemed unable to stop the powerful new combiner, until help came from an unexpected quarter—Prowl's secret assassin [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] killed Bombshell, taking out Prowl's controller and causing Devastator to shut down. This was no real impediment to Megatron, however, as the successful function of the new combiner process has been proven, and he set out to take ''his'' place as Devastator's head. Before Megatron could reach the fallen gestalt, though, Devastator awoke, possessed of his own unique, unite consciousness for the first time, and resumed tearing into Iacon. {{storylink|Plan for Everything}}
[[File:RID20_megatron_in_forcefield.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]
Still Megatron remained unfazed, calmly fending off Autobot attacks and waiting for the inevitable moment when the heroes would take Devastator down. When [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] succeeded in doing so by managing to reach Prowl, Devastator separated, and Megatron immediately stepped in, re-initiation the combination with himself in control. Seconds before uniting with the Constructicons, though, his plan was foiled by Bumblebee, Ironhide and Prowl's activation of a secret failsafe: Wheeljack had integrated a forcefield generator into Megatron's spark casing during his examination of him, and when it was triggered, he was completely paralyzed in mid-transformation. {{storylink|Heavy Is the Head}} In the fallout of the battle, Starscream killed Metalhawk and took control of Iacon and banished the Autobots and Decepticons from the city. He took custody of the immobilized Megatron, and silently gloated over the victory he had accomplished by using guile and politics, rather than Megatron's ways of brute force and firepower. {{storylink|Three Monologues}}
Megatron would not remain in this state for long; that night, as the end result of millennia-long secret machinations by Shockwave, an [[Necrotitan|undead Metrotitan]] appeared on Cybertron and opened a portal to the Dead Universe in the planet's skies. Through the portal, Shockwave made contact with Galvatron and his master, the exiled Cybertron despot [[Nova Prime]], but was unable to bring them through to Cybertron thanks to the unexpected disappearance of the Titan's space bridge system. Reanimating the deceased Metalhawk with a wave of necrotic energy from the Titan, Shockwave had him liberate Megatron and bring him to his secret lab in [[Crystal City]]. {{storylink|Winners & Losers: Dark Cybertron Chapter 3|Winners & Losers}}
[[File:RID24 i remember you.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Ow.]]
Shockwave hoped that Megatron would comply with his plans willingly, but the Decepticon leader refused and Shockwave forcibly activated the space bridge technology in Megatron's body. {{storylink|Into the Abyss: Dark Cybertron Chapter 4|Into the Abyss}} The opening of the bridge in his chest caused Megatron agony, but his screams were heard by Soundwave, who led the united forces of the exiled Autobots and Decepticons to Shockwave's lab to free his leader. Nova Prime and Galvatron attempted to squeeze their way through the space bridge despite this interference, but Ironhide was able to punch Nova back through into the Dead Universe. At that moment, Shockwave's "Necrotitan" came crashing into the subterranean city, and in the chaos, Megatron was freed from the restraints holding him. No sooner had Megatron carried Ironhide to the safe hands of the other Autobots, however, than he was ripped in half from behind by Galvatron, who had successfully emerged through the portal {{storylink|Finest Hour: Dark Cybertron Chapter 5|Finest Hour}}

In a vision of the future seen by Ironhide and [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] during the reformatting of Cybertron, fifteen million years hence, Ironhide still believed Megatron to be alive and promised a young Autobot they would defeat him again if he ever returned. {{storylink|Pax Cybertronia (issue)|Pax Cybertronia}} {{storylink|A Better Tomorrow}}
{{-}}

===''Spotlight: Mirage''===
[[File:SLMirage all in good time.jpg|right|thumb|275px]]
{{NoteSLMirage}}
Somewhere, in an unknown time or place, the self-serving mercenary [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] dreamed of Megatron and his Decepticons launching a massive attack on the Autobots. But Mirage knew that to only be a dream; in reality, the Autobots were almost eradicated, and Megatron had hired him to hunt down the last of their number. Megatron was outraged by the mercenary's demand for a majority share in all energon mining operations as payment, but it proved to be fuel well spent, as he soon succeeded in locating Optimus Prime and forcing him to surrender. Megatron demanded the prisoners be executed despite Mirage's promise to spare Autobot lives. Seeing Mirage's hesitation, Megatron appealed to his greed. {{storylink|Spotlight: Mirage}}
{{-}}

==Notes==
* In [[Megatron Origin issue 2|''Megatron Origin'' #2]], we see that Megatron's helmet is, in fact, [[:Image:MegatronOrigin2 Megs hair.jpg|a helmet and not part of his head]] (at least in his original body). Upon removing his helmet, Megatron then briefly unfurls a crest. The significance of this moment is not explained, but it is briefly revisited in [[Remembrance Day|''More than Meets the Eye'' #14]] when a helmetless Megatron spars with [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]].

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Rulers of Cybertron]]

Megatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

2014-01-10T15:51:27Z

Solaar: /* The spreading conflict */

{{suite}}
{{factions|decepticon}}
[[File:IDWMegatron.jpg|thumb|300x342px|Megatron A, Megatron B, Megatron Retailer's Incentive, and Megatron Dynamic Forces Exclusive variant.]]
'''Megatron''' waged a battle to destroy the evil forces of the [[Senate]]! Then he ''continued'' to wage a war against the evil forces of freedom, organic life, and the very idea of an Autobot living.

{{quote|In the final analysis, I would happily wade across a river of corpses, chest-deep in rust and grease and engine oil, just to crush the Spark of the last Autobot standing. And I would not do so simply as a means to an end. No. I'd do it, Prime, because it would give me ''pleasure''.|Megatron to Optimus Prime|''[[Chaos Theory Part 1]]''}}

__TOC__
==IDW Generation 1 comics==
{{ongoing}}
===Birth of a tyrant===
[[File:ChaosTheory1 megatron symbol creation.jpg|left|thumb|300px|... And thus the "Silica Fracturism" art movement was born.]]
Long ago, before the war and under the reign of [[Nominus Prime]], Megatron of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]] was an [[energon]] miner, a member of the lower class, living near [[Rodion]]. An intellectual and a poet, Megatron was sickened by the caste-ridden social apartheid of Cybertronian society—where your form determined your role, and your role your rights—and so he wrote [[After the Ark: Nominus Prime and the Illusion of Progress|a treatise]] on how pacifist dissent and the exchange of ideas could change things. It was while he was sharing this work with his miner friend [[Impactor (G1)|Impactor]] over a drink in [[Maccadam's Old Oil House|Maccadam's New Oil House]] that the event occurred which would change the course of his life, as Impactor wound up being drawn into a bar brawl with some of the city's upper classes and Megatron was among those arrested after the fracas. In order to silence his increasingly loud voice of dissent against their regime, the [[Senate]] arranged for a police officer on their payroll, [[Whirl (G1)|Whirl]], to kill Megatron, but before Whirl could finish the job, police captain [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]], having discovered Megatron's innocence, arranged for his release. [[File:Minermegs.jpg|225px|thumb|Now that's the look of a well-adjusted individual.]] Despite Pax expressing support for the message of his writings, Megatron now found himself filled with rage and hate, disillusioned with his former ideology and realiing the power of applied violence. Angrily hurling the datapad on which he had written his treatise through a public info-screen, Megatron observed the jagged shape of the shattered glass, and later turned it into a [[insignia|symbol]] for his cause. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

Megatron's samizdat writings began to circulate in Cybertron's underground, spawning the "[[Decepticon]]" movement, its name derived from its own slogan, "You are being deceived", warning the common 'bot of the Senate's true nature. Knowing that, at this stage, assassinating Megatron would merely make him a martyr, the Senate instead elected to relocate him off-planet, re-assigning him to [[Mining Outpost C-12]] on the world of [[Messatine]] while they tried their own schemes to defuse the growing Decepticon movement. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}}

Megatron continued to seethe with hate and frustration in his new workplace, which reached a peak when, some time later, [[Decimus|Senator Decimus]] arrived to announce that the mine was being closed immediately and the workers would be relocated. When one of the Senator's guards killed a worker for insubordination and claims of Senate corruption, Megatron's fury boiled over and he hurled his pickaxe at Decimus. In turn, he was attacked by the Senator's guard, whom he killed by smashing his head to fragments. A riot erupted around him, but Megatron himself could only sit amongst the chaos, staring at his fuel-stained hands in abject horror, which allowed him to be easily pacified and rounded up with the other miners as the mayhem was quickly suppressed. En route to [[Penal Facility H-3|imprisonment]] back on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], however, [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] and [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] broke free and started a riot aboard [[Longshot (G1)|their ship]]. Megatron joined in their effort, and together, they overpowered their guards, took control of the ship, and disappeared into the [[Kaon]] underground. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}}
[[File:MegsOrigin2 Cykill.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
After evading law enforcement, Megatron joined a team of underworld gladiators under the tutelage of [[Clench (G1)|Clench]]. Initially repulsed by killing his opponents, the games eventually turned him more brutal and excessive, and he took control of the entire operation from Clench. The opportunistic Senator [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], after seeing how much money there was in the underworld matches, covertly sent his agent [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] to offer Megatron weaponry and technology to upgrade himself and his comrades. Their meeting was spied upon by [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (G1)|Fastback]], agents from the Senate's forces, who Megatron slew. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}} Subsequently, impressed by how he treated his animal-form [[Decepticon Mini-Cassette|cassette partners]] as equals (in contradiction to the teachings of his Senate masters), Megatron invited Soundwave back to the gladiator pits and gave him permission to use his mind-reading abilities on him. Within Megatron's mind, Soundwave saw his honest desire for all Cybertronians to be true equals, and was so moved by it that he joined Megatron's cause. {{storylink|Soundwaves (issue)|Soundwaves}}

Gradually, Megatron used the gladiatorial games to drum up an army of violent malcontents, sending Soundwave to recruit more and more warriors to his cause. Such recruits included [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]], who he was presented with while having an arm he lost in a brawl replaced with a new limb that incorporated an [[energon mace]], {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} and the disenfranchised warrior [[Drift (G1)|Drift]], who was personally asked by Megatron to fight at his side when he attended a Decepticon rally, and whom Megatron rechristened "Deadlock". {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}} Seeking to enhance his army even further, Megatron reached out to [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Senator Shockwave]], offering to supply him the resources to perfect the teachings of his lost mentor [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] and create a [[combiner]] that would serve the Decepticons. Shockwave cautioned that it could take some time, but Megatron was content to wait. {{storylink|Shockwaves}}

[[File:Apexthrone.JPG|250px|thumb|right|You should have gone to IKEA.]]
Despite all his efforts, Megatron believed that the Senate was still not taking the Decepticons seriously, so Soundwave formulated a plan for a declaration of intent that could be not denied: lure the Senate to Kaon and murder them. {{storylink|Soundwaves (issue)|Soundwaves}} In preparation for this scheme, Megatron offered to restore Shockwave's lost hands—a victim of [[empurata]]—believing that doing so might speed his work. {{storylink|Shockwaves}} The following day, in accordance with Soundwave's plan, Megatron and the Decepticons allowed themselves to be arrested by Sentinel Prime's men, after which Soundwave was freed on Ratbat's orders, while Starscream would ensure his own release by pretending to defect. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} Together, Soundwave and Starscream exterminated the entire Senate, then liberated Megatron and the rest of their comrades, in the process granting their leader the gift of a [[fusion cannon]] liberated from the Senate forces' armory. Megatron led his army against Sentinel Prime's men, killed Sentinel himself, and took control of Kaon, now ready to turn his insurgency into a full-blown war. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

===Early days of war===

Megatron formally declared war on "[[Declaration Day]]" when he delivered a stirring speach from [[Nova Point|Nova Peak]]. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} The growing Decepticon forces swiftly spread across six [[Polities of Cybertron|Torus-States]], {{storylink|Parasites}} and to combat them, Cybertron's new leader [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]] assembled a new military force, the "[[Autobot]]s", led by Megatron's old acquaintance [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]]. Researching his new opposite number, Megatron was intrigued to discover that his now-abandoned treatise had been a source of inspiration for Pax, who had even quoted from it when he confronted the Senate and openly accused them of corruption. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}} Early into the war, [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] would admit to Pax that Megatron talked about him sometimes, when he was tired. When Pax asked what was said, Bludgeon told him that it would make "both of us feel ''uncomfortable''". {{storylink|Omega's Conundrum}}
[[File:Autocracy4 backroom meeting.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]
When Orion Pax came close to Kaon during a mission, Megatron saw it as a chance to speak to him and had his Decepticons bring him in. {{storylink|The Hunt for Soundwave}} Megatron attempted to convince him that Zeta Prime was even worse than he appeared—that he had planned tto let Orion die in [[Nyon]] so that he could use his death as pretext to invade the rebel-infested city and drain the citizens of their energon—and proposed they work together against him, but Orion refused to hear him and then escaped. Knowing the doubts he'd placed in his head would only serve to damage the Autobot cause, Megatron let him go. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}}
[[File:Autocracy8 megs and pax together.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Banzai!]]
Megatron continued to keep an eye on Orion Pax's activities, spying on his encounter with the Nyon insurgent [[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hot Rod]]. {{storylink|Ruins}} When Zeta Prime's [[Guardian robot|Omega Destructor]]s suddenly attacked Nyon, Megatron was surprised by how zealously the new Prime fought against the city's rebels, but his real interest still lay on how Orion would handle the crisis. {{storylink|Purge}} Orion turned on Zeta, who in turn attempted to kill him, prompting Megatron to intervene and force the Prime to retreat. Taking Orion back to Kaon, he again offered that they work together against Zeta's corruption, and this time the Autobot officer accepted. {{storylink|Choices}} As their combined forces invaded the [[Citadel]] in Iacon, Megatron and Orion Pax made their way inside and fought Zeta Prime in person. The battle ended with Megatron killing the Prime with a head shot, and with his objective complete, he then betrayed the injured Orion by shooting him in the back. {{storylink|Overthrown}} Curiously, an alternate report incorrectly implied that Megatron had assassinated Zeta from afar, sniping him with the rifle alternate mode of [[Vos (DJD)|Vos]]. {{storylink|Bullets}} {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}}
[[File:Autocracy12 no you dont megatron.jpg|left|thumb|250px|This seems so familiar...]]
With Zeta dead, Megatron conquered Iacon and declared himself ruler of Cybertron. His soldiers patrolled the planet's streets to "keep the peace", mostly by hunting down and capturing any remaining Autobots who opposed him. {{storylink|Transformation (issue)|Transformation}} During his rule, Megatron attempted to sway the neutral Hot Rod into joining the Decepticons, but he decided otherwise upon witnessing Megatron ordering the execution of several Autobot prisoners. {{storylink|Rise}} Megatron was shocked to learn that Orion Pax had survived the betrayal and was organizing a rebellion against him under the name "Optimus Prime", and even more shocked that people actually had the courage to listen to him. He wasted no time in striking back against the rebels approaching the Citadel with the full force of his army. {{storylink|Broadcast}} During the battle, Megatron unleashed Zeta Prime's energy-draining [[vamparc ribbon|vamparc annihilator]], but when the gigantic [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] took out the cannon, Megatron fell to the streets and was confronted by Optimus Prime himself. He lost the ensuing [[The Transformers: The Movie|familiar-looking duel]] and was badly wounded after a failed attempt to defeat Prime by holding Hot Rod hostage, forcing him to escape aboard Astrotrain. As he fled, he warned Optimus that he hadn't won, he had only started a war unlike any Cybertron had ever seen. {{storylink|Endgame}}

[[File:Monstrosity3_Megatron_and_Pentius.jpg|thumb|right|300px|"WORDS THAT KILL~"]]
Before Megatron could recover from his injuries, he was betrayed by [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]], who was gunning for the position of Decepticon leader (with aid from Starscream, against Megatron's knowledge). As punishment for his failure to hold Iacon, Scorponok banished the wounded Megatron to the hell-world of [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]]. {{storylink|Derelicts}} Further injured in battle with some [[Junkion (species)|cannibalistic natives]], he stubbornly refused to give up and used the trash littering the world to patch himself up, leaving him with a mismatched, monstrous appearance. {{storylink|Wreckage (issue)|Wreckage}} While searching for a way off Junkion, Megatron entered the wreckage of a starship and found a trapped [[Quintesson]] named [[Pentius]], who had mapped the planet and knew of an area known as the [[Pillar of Rust]] where starships may land and take off. Megatron freed the alien to guide him there, while also putting him in chains to serve as his slave. {{storylink|Faces of Darkness}}
[[File:Monstrosity7 megatron takes pentius spark.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
While crossing the [[Acid Sea]] on the way to the Pillar, Megatron was attacked by [[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticons]] who pulled him into the depths. {{storylink|Rage (IDW)|Rage}} For reasons unknown he was then released, the creatures having allowed him to live. As he emerged, Pentius was waiting with a history lesson, telling him that Junkion was once a prosperous world until its inhabitants drained it of resources, leaving it the broken husk it is today: a fate that may also await Cybertron. Megatron rejected this possibility, declaring that under his rule, Cybertron—and his legacy—would last forever. {{storylink|Fallout (issue)|Fallout}} On arrival at the Pillar of Rust, Megatron was met by the [[Terrorcon (G1)|Terrorcons]], who had come to Junkion to finish what Scorponok had started by killing him. He was able to fight off several of his attackers, but [[Hun-Gurrr (G1)|Hun-Gar]] was too much for him to handle in his injured state. Egged on and taunted by Pentius, Megatron realized he had one last resource left to use: the Quintesson himself. Telling Pentius that his legacy would live on within him, he tore out the alien's [[spark]] and used it to fuel himself, granting him enough power to defeat Hun-Gar. He spared the Terrorcons in exchange for their loyalty, then returned to Cybertron on their ship to take revenge on Scorponok and take back control of the Decepticons. {{storylink|Prey (issue)|Prey}}
[[File:Monstrosity12 strange turns.jpg|right|thumb|300px|To be fair, that's all we can think about regarding you two, as well.]]
Megatron returned to a Cybertron in chaos, as the ancient reptilian [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]] had been unleashed by Scorponok and was in the midst of razing Iacon. After reasserting his leadership of the Decepticons by beating Scorponok nearly to death, he had Shockwave restore his body to it original shape and condition, {{storylink|The Illusion of Control}} and set out to investigate the Trypticon situation alone, unwilling to risk his soldiers in the face of the beast's uncontrolled fury. Finding an injured Optimus Prime on the battlefield, Megatron lectured him, but opted to leave him alive so that he could watch as the Decepticon leader defeated the enemy that Prime could not. Megatron was attacked by [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]], but as they grappled, they were swallowed by Trypticon. {{storylink|Annihilation}} Within the giant, the pair set their differences aside to fend off the [[cyber-morphic predators]] that populated his interior, and together, they destroyed Trypticon's internal power cell, taking him offline. A tense standoff between the Autobots and Decepticons followed as the two warriors emerged from within Trypticon, but both sides agreed to go their separate ways for the time being. Not long after the battle, however, Megatron removed Pentius's spark from within himself and installed it within Trypticon, reviving the monster as a Decepticon. {{storylink|Belly of the Beast}}

===The spreading conflict===
[[File:MTMTE14 megatron vs overlord.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
Megatron's actions during the war were many. Early during the conflict, he wrote ''[[Towards Peace]]'', a new treatise to replace ''After the Ark'', in which he described continuing to fight the war until the very notion of conflict was literally inconceivable. Then and only then would he finally give up his fusion cannon. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} He oversaw the creation of a class of super-warriors known as the [[Warriors Elite]], selecting only his most powerful troops to undergo the torturous upgrade, including [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]], a brilliant sadist and frequent opponent of his from his pit-fighting days who had developed an obsession with Megatron after the Decepticon leader dealt him his first ever defeat. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} At some point, he also created the [[Decepticon Justice Division]] to deal with traitors, {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} though he elected not to send them after Deadlock when he defected, valuing the warrior enough to instead dispatch [[Lockdown (G1)|Lockdown]] to bring him in. {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}}
[[File:ChaosTheory prime vs megatron montage.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]
Megatron would personally clash with Optimus Prime many times; Optimus grew to respect and fear Megatron as a calm, calculating and measured opponent, while Megatron himself respected Prime's sheer power and his skill as a tactician and as a leader. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} Megatron would later incorrectly recall their battle on [[Sherma Bridge]] during the [[Rorsha Campaign]] as the first time they met. Said battle was certainly momentous—every Autobot and Decepticon stopped fighting to witness their duel, during which Megatron's cannon arm was sliced off by Prime's [[energon-axe]], and he claimed revenge by throwing the Autobot leader off the bridge. As the war spread to other planets, they would meet again and again: during the [[Siege of Massunstrad]], Megatron sealed Prime in an anti-matter chamber; on [[Rada Mor]], Prime reduced Megatron to ashes with sentient explosives; and in the midst of the [[Vorsk Offensive]], Megatron was nearly sliced in half by Prime. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} Megatron took on a new pistol alternate mode for the [[Battle for Hell's Point]], during which he was used by [[Heretech]] to blast [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]]. {{storylink|The Gloaming}} During the same skirmish, Megatron took off half of Prime's face with his energon mace, but had a city block dropped on him by Prime in retribution, which shattered his [[transformation cog]] and trapped him in gun mode for two years. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} At the war's zenith, Megatron sealed himself in an [[Omniglobe]] to absorb the relentless flood of data coming in from countless fronts. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}}

Prime was not the only old face that Megatron would see again during the war: during a battle on an aerial drilling platform over the [[Manganese Mountains]], Megatron came face-to-face with his old friend Impactor, and stood poised to execute him until Impactor gave him a moment's pause by recalling his old fondness for poetry. In this moment, Megatron was knocked from the platform by [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] and sent plummeting to the mountains below. {{storylink|Zero Point}}
[[File:LastStandoftheWreckers2-teleconference.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]
With total war going nowhere, Megatron would go on to develop a six-stage [[infiltration protocol]] to be used for conquering targeted planets. The sixth phase called for outright planetary razing, and Megatron selected three of his Warriors Elite for this task: [[Sixshot]], {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}}, Overlord and [[Black Shadow (Victory)|Black Shadow]]. He informed this trio of his decision via teleconference, but Overlord tired of being used as someone else's weapon and refused. Megatron threatened to hunt Overlord down for his disobedience, {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 2|Last Stand of the Wreckers #2}} but while the powerful warrior spent the rest of his life preparing for this conflict, Megatron never followed up and left him to stew in his own obsession. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}}
[[File:Stormbringer1 get up and fight.jpg|right|thumb|250px|"Megatron. You're touching me. Stop it."]]
Deducing that the Autobot/Decepticon war would culminate in an energy crisis that would threatened the stability of Cybertron itself, Shockwave left Cybertron to secretly pursue alternate energy sources. Around 10,000 years ago, when Shockwave did not return, Megatron ordered Bludgeon to investigate his files, {{storylink|Spotlight: Shockwave}} secretly assigning Soundwave to investigate Bludgeon {{storylink|Spotlight: Soundwave}} and probe deeper into whatever it was Shockwave had created. {{storylink|Shockpoint}}

Shockwave's prediction soon proved accurate, and Cybertron found itself in the throes of an energy shortage. Decepticon scientist [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]] came to Megatron with a revolutionary, controversial plan to stave off this energy death by [[Pretender|polydermal grafting]], a process where they encased themselves in "symbiotic carapaces", or shells created from living tissue. When Megatron dismissed him angrily and cut him down, Thunderwing did not abandon his research; instead, he experimented on himself. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} The process gave him immense power, but drove him insane. He became so dangerous that Megatron had to join forces with Optimus Prime to stop him. This battle at [[Thunderhead Pass]] accelerated the apocalypse destined to befall Cybertron, leaving it an uninhabitable, radioactive husk and forcing both armies to continue their war on other worlds. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 1|Stormbringer #1}} Megatron advocated that they simply destroy Cybertron to ensure that Thunderwing was destroyed, but Prime refused, and threatened to stop Megatron if he tried. Megatron agreed not to destroy the planet, but warned Prime that whatever happened was on his head. Shortly after the last big push by the Decepticons, Cybertron was abandoned by both factions. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 1|Stormbringer #2}}

===Breaking protocol===
[[File:Infiltration4 enter megatron.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]
In the present day, when word reached Megatron that the infiltration unit led by [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], stationed on the planet [[Earth]], had broken protocol, he headed for the planet to investigate. Examining the unit's abandoned bunker in [[Nebraska]] for information, he discovered that Starscream had stumbled across [[Ultra-Energon|Ore-13]]—an incredible energy source that (unbeknownst to Megatron) was the end result of Shockwave's experiments—and was planning to use it to usurp Megatron's command. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} While studying the bunker's files, he was contacted by [[Razorclaw (G1)|Razorclaw]] with some distressing news: Bludgeon's investigations of Shockwave's files had led him to revive Thunderwing. Megatron ordered the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]] to Cybertron, authorizing them to do whatever was necessary to destroy Thunderwing, including the destruction of their homeworld itself. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} Just as he was handing down this order, Megatron was happened upon by [[Verity Carlo]], a human ally of the Autobot unit active on the planet, {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} but he utterly ignored her. The bunker was then leveled by an airstrike courtesy of [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]], who were merely covering their unit's tracks and unaware of Megatron's presence; when their leader furiously emerged from the wreckage, they attempted to explain their ignorance, but he simply responded by blasting Skywarp out of the sky. [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] soon arrived on the scene, and favored opening fire rather than attempting explanations, so Megatron beat the stuffing out of him too, then set off for Starscream's new bunker in [[Oregon]]. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 5|Infiltration #5}}

[[File:Infiltration6 takeyourpunishment.jpg|250px|thumb|Those librarians are getting really strict on late returns.]]

{{quote|You will stand down. If you fight, you ''die''. There is no room anymore for mercy. In the end, you are ''all'' expendable. Choose.|Megatron's ultimatum to Starscream's troops|[[Infiltration issue 6|''Infiltration'' #6]]}}

[[Orbital jump|Orbital jumping]] to Oregon, Megatron called Starscream out and ordered the team to stand down, disgusted to see such power games being played amongst his troops. His brief, chilling speech was enough to take the fight out of all but Starscream, who, powered-up on Ore-13, took Megatron on himself. Though the new power source made Starscream a formidable adversary, Megatron was still more deadly than he, and Starscream was taken out by a point-blank fusion cannon blast through his torso. Megatron ordered the Decepticons to ensure that Starscream survived, and then, observing the Autobots who had been watching the battle, announced that it was time to begin phase two. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6}}

In light of the discovery of Ore-13, Megatron took stock of Starscream's progress on Earth and elected to get the infiltration protocol back on track himself, calling a meeting to make Starscream's former troops and making them aware, in no uncertain terms, that any further insurrections would be met with deadly force. {{storylink|Escalation issue 1|Escalation #1}} He was even able to revisit his past gun alternate mode, once again able to achieve the [[size changing|mass displacement]] the mode required thanks to the extra energy Ore-13 provided. {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}}

[[File:Megsandspidy.jpg|left|250px|thumb|]]
With his forces joined by [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]], a new arrival who Megatron suspected of having ulterior motives, {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} the Decepticon leader initiated phase two of infiltration protocol by destabilizing relations between the European nations of [[Latveria]] and [[Symkaria]] through use of an aggression-inducing [[Psycho-Prism]], stolen from Latverian dicatator [[Doctor Doom]]. When the superhero team known as the [[Avengers]] investigated the array the Decepticons' were using to broadcast the prism's signal, Megatron abducted the arachnid-powered [[Spider-Man]] to use as a subject for their [[mirror response mode]], {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}} draining the hero's powers and infusing himself and the other Decepticons with them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} He proceeded to forge a brief alliance with Doctor Doom, who helped him defeat and capture the allied Autobot/Avenger team who snuck inside the Decepticons' array, but when Doom's suggestion to threaten the captives in order to force the other heroes to lay down their arms failed, Megatron violently dissolved the partnership. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Three}} Emerging from the confines of the array to take on the Autobots and Avengers himself, Megatron refrained from engaging Prime, foreesing a more intimate confrontation between the two of them in the near future, and instead turned his attention to destroying [[Iron Man]]'s Transformer-sized armor. The tables soon turned, however, when Doctor Doom freed the captive Autobots and used the Decepticon's mirror response technology to empower them. Defeated by these enhanced Autobots and with the Psycho-Prism destroyed by [[Wolverine (superhero)|Wolverine]], Megatron used the last of his extra power to teleport the Decepticons out with an [[emergency warp-out]]. He refrained from departing alongside his warriors, intending to slaughter the Avengers for their interference, but when he was immobilized by Spider-Man's webbing, knocked to the ground by [[Luke Cage]], and rattled by a hail of Autobot fire, he finally warped-out with a final taunt to Optimus Prime of the battle yet to come between them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Four}}
[[File:Massdisplacement.jpg|right|thumb|400px]]
With phase two of infiltration protocol properly underway, Megatron recognized that he ''should'' rightly withdraw and install a new unit commander on Earth, but could not resist the chance to try out his new Ore-13 empowered body, selecting the nation of [[Brasnya]], where Decepticon subterfuge was already underway, as his testing ground. {{storylink|Escalation issue 2|Escalation #2}} Allowing the Decepticon's [[facsimile construct]] [[Georgi Koska]] to wield him in pistol mode, Megatron had Koska use him to first sever a [[Russia]]n oil pipeline, and then to fire upon the soldiers who came to investigate, furthering the political and military tensions already brewing in the region. When word came through from Blitzwing that Optimus Prime and the Autobots had arrived, {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}} Megatron at last engaged Optimus directly, {{storylink|Escalation issue 4|Escalation #4}} and although Prime was able to destroy his fusion cannon, the extra strength afforded Megatron by Ore-13 allowed him to physically beat Prime into submission, punching directly into his chest and crushing his [[spark]]. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} [[File:Escalation5 prime vs megs.jpg|left|thumb|250px]] The horrified Autobots moved into a full but ineffective counterattack, their only edge being that Megatron had no long-range guns left. It turned out that Prime's apparent death was a desperate ruse when the Autobot leader countered with a surprise attack on Megatron, able to exploit Ore-13's weakness—the more it's used, the faster it burns itself out. Megatron almost collapsed from power loss and was forced to have Skywarp take him to safety before the Autobots could kill him. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}}

Furious over the embarrassing defeat, Megatron threw protocol out the window and ordered that Sixshot be summoned to the planet. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}} He took out some of his anger on Ramjet, who he discovered had been busy cooking up a plot to overthrow him; without saying a word, he beat the attempted traitor to death before tearing him apart and keeping his head as a trophy. {{storylink|Spotlight: Ramjet}}
[[File:Devastation5 decepticons attack.jpg|thumb|right|250px]]
Upon Sixshot's arrival, Megatron ordered him to utterly destroy the Autobots, and although the Phase Sixer questioned his early deployment, he was happy to go along with the abandonment of the phase structure. The other Decepticons, on the other hand, were worried that Megatron was losing his grip—and since they were too scared to tell him that, they decided to revive Starscream to do it for them. {{storylink|Devastation issue 1|Devastation #1}} Megatron monitored Sixshot's attack on the Autobots' [[Ark-19]], ordering him to pursue the escape pod that broke away from the crashing craft, {{storylink|Devastation issue 2|Devastation #2}} but before he could obliterate the Autobots, Megatron was forced to recall him to deal with a new threat assaulting the Decepticon base—the alien [[Reaper]]s. {{storylink|Devastation issue 4|Devastation #4}} Unfortunately, the Reapers convinced Sixshot to side with them, and when an Ore-13 powered Starscream entered the fray to take Sixshot down, Megatron realized his troops had been conspiring against him. He decided not to punish them '''yet''', due to greater threat posed by the Reapers, {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}} and entered battle alongside them all, even allowing Starscream to wield him in pistol mode against the aliens. After the invaders were dead, however, he turn on his men, starting with Blitzwing—but was forced to realize that they needed to remain united when it became apparent that their battle with the Reapers had made humanity inescapably aware of their existence {{storylink|Devastation issue 6|Devastation #6}}
{{--}}

===All Hail Megatron===
[[File:AHM7 megs rips out matrix.jpg|left|thumb|200px]]
While the Decepticons were occupied fighting the Reapers, the Autobots had left Earth to deal with the greater threat of an incursion by the [[Dead Universe]]. Exploiting their enemies' absence, Megatron and his men went to ground; when Autobots returned, they could find no trace of the Decepticons, who kept one step ahead of them for months. Secretly abducting [[Hunter O'Nion]], former [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] partner to the Autobot [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]], Megatron and his men returned to Cybertron, where Megatron had [[Deluge (G2)|Deluge]] conduct experiments that bred a [[Insecticon swarm|swarm]] of monstrous [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticons]]. The experiments culminated in the creation of [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]], who Megatron employed in a series of key tasks in his plan: the Insecticon obtained from Hunter's mind various Autobot secrets and codes, completed Shockwave's long-gestating combiner process, granting the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] the ability to combine into [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]], and created a working [[space bridge]] {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} based on designs sold to them by Sixshot in exchange for his freedom. {{storylink|Spotlight: Metroplex}}

Returning to Earth, the Decepticons staged a phony schism within their ranks, allowing the Autobots to believe that they had "disappeared" as a result of a power struggle that had split their ranks into two camps, one led by Megatron and one by Starscream. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} Starscream then approached Sunstreaker, whose experience has a Headmaster had left him bitter and jaded, with the proposition that the Autobots join with his forces against Megatron, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 8|All Hail Megatron #8}} but when the Autobots arrived at the designated time and place, they were instead confronted by the united Decepticon army and quickly defeated by Devastator. After personally tearing [[Matrix of Leadership]] from Optimus Prime's chest, Megatron marched the captive Autobots through the space bridge back to Cybertron, where the Insecticon swarm waited for them. Prime, however, was able to damage the bridge, causing it to deposit the Autobots a safe distance from the swarm, but in the process, fried his own circuits and left himself comatose. Though the Autobots had escaped the fate he had intended for them, Megatron had successfully exiled his enemies to their dead homeworld; morever, using information and codes gained from Sunstreaker and Hunter, he concurrently orchestrated the event that would later be known as [[Surge (event)|The Surge]], as Decepticons stormed Autobot installations all across the galaxy, achieving total victory. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}}

[[File:Bringingthehousedown.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Megatron's urban renewal program was off to a flying start.]]

With galaxy-wide domination accomplished, one year after the Decepticons' battle with the Reapers, Megatron chose Earth to become the new Decepticon homeworld. Together with his men, Megatron stormed [[New York City]], humiliating Starscream with a display of his greater capacity for destruction. When the US Air Force retaliated, Megatron shrugged off their fire and ordered the other Decepticons to engage them; when one damaged jet threw itself toward him in a suicide run, Megatron, outraged at the [[DJ (G1)|pilot]]'s temerity, destroyed it and its occupant with a furious swipe of his hand. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} When US Army forces arrived, Megatron ordered [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] dispatched to deal with them, then sent Devastator to destroy the subway tunnels leading out of the city. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 2|All Hail Megatron #2}} With New York secured, Megatron directed the Constructicons to begin building new space bridge in the city's heart, and had a candid talk with Starscream, revealing his belief that the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seeker]]'s attitude and actions marked him as the embodiment of the Decepticon cause, even if he was blind to seeing it himself. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 3|All Hail Megatron #3}} After a series of further attacks on major American cities saw the country firmly crushed under the Decepticons' collective heel, Megatron made a propaganda speech to his men in the ruins of New York. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 4|All Hail Megatron #4}} As night fell upon the city, Megatron withdrew to privately gloat over the Matrix. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 5|All Hail Megatron #5}}

[[File:AHM6MegatronVsIsrael.jpg|left|300px|thumb|]]
As the Decepticons began attacking other countries around the globe, Megatron was questioned by Starscream on what the next step in his plan was. A recalcitrant Megatron merely informed him that it was merely time to savor their victory, but Starscream accused him of not ''having'' any plans post-victory, and was merely allowing his men to run wild to distract them from any notion of taking power for themselves. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}} What Starscream did not realize was that Megatron did indeed have a plan: to defeat the Autobots, he had created an army of killers and monsters, but in order to create his perfect rule, that army would have to be destroyed, the dissenting, distasteful elements obliterated before Megatron's peace could dawn. Megatron was not distracting his warriors... he was ''waiting'' to see which of them would question and turn on him. Silently sorrowful to already know that such dissent would begin with Starscream, an otherwise-model Decepticon, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}} Megatron withdrew to [[Israel]] for some silent reflection amid wholesale devastation. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}}

[[File:AHM10 megs vs devastator.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

Some time later, Megatron surveyed the space bridge Bombshell and the Constructicons had built in New York. He congratulated Bombshell on his work, but revealed that he had always foreseen Bombshell's intellect as a danger—had always known he and his fellow Insecticons would side with Starscream when the time came. His gambit exposed, Starscream made his move and attacked, but the Insecticons proved no match for Megatron's might. The Decepticon leader had failed to anticipate one thing, however: he did not foresee the Constructicons siding with Starscream, and found himself having to fight the mighty Devastator. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}} The in-fighting was halted by a last-ditch attack by the mustered might of what remained of the human resistance, forcing Megatron and Starscream to put their differences aside momentarily and organize a defense. This attack came as no surprise to Megatron, but the same could not be said for the next entrants onto the battlefield: the Autobots had returned.

After assuring Starscream that he would be leader in the future, when his time was done, Megatron confronted Optimus Prime, surprised not so much that his old foe had survived, but that he had bothered to return to Earth. Both leaders had always maintained a policy of acceptable losses through their millennia-long war, so Megatron assumed Prime had come back for selfish reasons, to reclaim the Matrix, but Prime insisted that he had changed, and would no longer allow their cold war to endanger innocent lives on this scale. [[File:AHM12 prime vs megs.jpg|left|thumb|300px|]] Megatron scoffed at the notion, reavling that Prime's supposedly "innocent" humans were planning to nuke New York, killing millions of their own just to get rid of the Decepticons, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 11|All Hail Megatron #11}} but Prime retorted that it wasn't ''just'' about the humans, but also about the difference between Autobots and Decepticons. The two came to blows, but Megatron triumphed in short order and commanded the Decepticons to depart, leaving the Autobots to be killed by the humans' nuke... but just before they withdrew, he was shot in the face by human soldier [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], wielding a powerful weapon reverse-engineered from Cybertronian technology. Injured and disoriented by the blast, Megatron was finished off when Prime smashed his face in with his own fusion cannon. As he wanted to ''take'' leadership rather than just have it fall in his hands, Starscream picked up his damaged leader and ordered the Decepticons to retreat. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

[[File:AllHisEngines-Megatron.jpg|thumb|Pretty sure when you float in a bacta tank you're supposed to be wearing a diaper.]]
The Decepticons departed Earth aboard Astrotrain, where the gravely wounded Megatron was put on life support and tended to by Soundwave and his cassettes. With Megatron's life signs only at ten percent capacity, Starscream attempted to appeal to Soundwave's sense of logic and have him shut down so that leadership could be his, but Soundwave refused. Starscream was soon able to take command, however, when he recovered the Matrix of Leadership and professed to have been chosen by it. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 13|Uneasy Lies the Head}}

===New body, new powers===

The Decepticons eventually settled on a desolate asteroid, where Megatron was installed in a [[CR chamber|CR tank]]. Retaining some level of awareness of the events occurring around him during his convalescence, he was forced to watch as his army languished in inactivity, their energy slowly ebbing away until they were reduced to cannibalism. {{storylink|All His Engines}} After a year of trying to free his leader from this living death, Soundwave was finally forced to conclude that Megatron's body was beyond repair, and recruited the recently-returned Shockwave, whom Starscream had provided with the majority of the Decepticons' resources to create a space bridge, to help build a new body for Megatron's consciousness to inhabit. The operation succeeded and Megatron was reborn in a deadly new body, powered by Ore-13, armed with a devastatingly powerful rail gun, and even equipped with space bridge nodes stolen from Metroplex, which gave him the ability to open space bridge portals on his own. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

[[File:IDWongoing15 megatrons new body.jpg|left|thumb|275px|"Uh, it's like...did anyone ever see the movie ''Tron''?"]]

Back in action, Megatron devised a plan to destabilize the relationship between the humans and Autobots on Earth. Together with Soundwave and Shockwave, he chopped up his old body and used it to create human-scaled replicas of his former gun mode, containing small pieces of his own consciousness. When Starscream caught them in the act, Megatron elected to table his plan for the moment, as he considered it folly to go against Starscream's wishes for the moment since the Seeker was still in possession of the Matrix of Leadership. Megatron had never truly understood what the talisman ''did'', but it served as a threat merely by being an unknown variable. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} Fortunately, for Megatron this variable was soon removed from the equation when Hot Rod, estranged from the Earthbound Autobots, infiltrated the Decepticons' asteroid base and recovered the Matrix from Starscream. Megatron seized his chance, intercepting the Autobot and blasting him and the Matrix out into the void of space. {{storylink|Heart Like a Wheel}}

[[File:SLMegatron stealth bomber mode.jpg|right|thumb|275px|Behold... the ''Bomberang!'']]

With Starscream's trump card now gone, Megatron had the Decepticons gathered so he could address them. Distrustful of Shockwave's motives for preparing his new body, wary of Soundwave's constant surveillance, and repulsed by the state of his once fearsome Decepticon war machine, Megatron decided that he needed to unequivocally reestablish dominance over the now Matrix-less Starscream. He intended to beat Starscream near to death as a means of letting them both work out their frustrations with Starscream's inability to lead effectively during Megatron's absence, but Starscream did not want to fight—spiritually broken by his failures, he simply wanted Megatron to kill him. Rather than accept this, Megatron instead goaded Starscream into opening fire upon him. This began a running battle between the two, with Megatron pursuing the fleeing Seeker in his new stealth bomber alternate mode, continuing to bait Starscream every time he appeared willing to give up the fight. Incensed by Starscream's accusation that he did not know what it felt like to see everything he had worked for fall apart, when that was exactly what Starscream's pitiful leadership had done to the empire he had created, Megatron pummeled him to within an inch of his life, then paused to explain why he kept a schemer like Starscream around: as a constant reminder to watch his back. The brutal display galvanized the languid Decepticons, and Megatron was ready to begin his scheme. {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

[[File:IDWongoing14 megatron guns.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]

Roughly two years after the Decepticons' defeat on Earth, Megatron used his space bridge powers to dispatch a container full of the guns made from his old body to Earth, where they were found by South American gun-runners and illegally disseminated amongst an increasingly paranoid public seeking ways to protect themselves against Transformers. This allowed Megatron's consciousness to spread across North America, until it was focused enough to contact one particular owner of a Megatron gun: [[Joe Gladki]]. He deceived and manipulated the paranoid human, and eventually convinced him to perform an assassination attempt on [[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]], the new Autobot leader. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} In their ignorance, the Autobots then mistook Gladki's gun for Megatron himself and held it captive. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 1: The Demolished Man|The Demolished Man}}

[[File:IDWongoing16 megatron vs autobots.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

With the Autobots in chaos, Megatron started the next phase of his plan and returned to Earth personally, where he used his new stealth bomber mode to shoot down a plane carrying Optimus Prime and several other Autobots. He then hunted down the remaining Autobots, effortlessly defeating them and their new temporary leader Ultra Magnus with his powerful new body, and killing some of their [[Skywatch]] allies. Magnus tried to draw Megatron's attention from the humans, claiming the Autobots were the ones he really wanted, but Megatron assured him that humanity was his real target. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 3: Woken Furies|Woken Furies}} Taking the defeated Autobots captive, Megatron dumped them in a city and directed three of his mind-controlled human puppets to kill them. Contacting Prime directly, Megatron summoned him to the city's outskirts and revealed his plan: crush Prime's spirit and destroy the Autobots' alliance with humanity by forcing them to choose between fighting the humans or allowing them to kill them. Prime found the hole in Megatron's plan, however, when he realized that Soundwave was maintaining the connection between Megatron and his guns, and shot him in the head. His connection to his pawns severed, Megatron scooped up Soundwave and withdrew. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome|Burning Chrome}} Thanks to a tracker Ultra Magnus had slipped on Soundwave, though, Prime was able to follow the Decepticons to their bolthole and called Megatron out for a full and and proper confrontation. In actuality, Prime had lured Megatron outside so Skywatch could drop a [[kinetic harpoon]] on him, but even a weapon dropped from orbit barely proved able to put a scratch in Megatron's mighty new exostructure. Megatron proceeded to beat Prime senseless, but then returned him to the Autobots, and to their great shock, surrendered to their custody. After recovering, Optimus demanded to know why he had surrendered, but Megatron merely taunted him by revealing that Spike Witwicky had murdered a Decepticon in cold blood. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine|Enemy Mine}} Prime immediately had Prowl begin investigating Spike and Skywatch, and Prowl interrogated the Decepticon leader for information, which he provded after a little verbal sparring. {{storylink|Police Action: Prologue}}

[[File:ChaosTheory1 megatron imprisoned.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

When Rodimus returned to Earth and warned the Autobots that [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] had taken control of Cybertron, Optimus decided to lead the Autobots in reclaiming their homeworld. In the name of Earth's safety, he elected to bring Megatron and the the confiscated guns made from his old body with them. {{storylink|Space Opera—Final Tableaux: Orphans of the Helix|Orphans of the Helix}} On the way to Cybertron aboard [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]], Prime again attempted to discern why Megatron had surrendered, even releasing his old foe from his bonds and having a civil conversation with him about their past together and their dueling ideologies. Optimus tried to reach out to Megatron, offering him the chance to end the war once and for all with a handshake; Megatron appeared to consider it for a moment but ultimately remained silent. With Megatron returned to the confines of the [[variable voltage harness]], the other Autobots pressured Optimus for a decision on his fate: execution or imprisonment. Trying to come to a conclusion, Prime asked Megatron if he regretted any of his actions, but the Decepticon leader remarked that he only regretted not killing ''more'' Autobots. He taunted Prime with the notion that even he was thankful for the war, as it had raised him from a nobody to the greatest Autobot in history, and a furious Prime activated the harness, electrocuting Megatron. The jolt would have killed Megatron if Omega Supreme had not cut the power in time and Megatron, struggling to stay conscious, offered Prime his thanks for saving his life all those years ago in Rodion. Shocked by his actions, Prime realized that Megatron wanted to die and wanted Prime to be the one to kill him. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} Eventually, Prime decided to let Megatron choose his own fate, and Megatron calmly replied that he chose death. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 2}}
[[File:Chaos2 armored megatron.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]
As Omega drew close to Cybertron, Megatron demanded to know who or what was threatening their homeworld, but Optimus Prime refused to provde him with any information. {{storylink| Chaos Part One: Lamentations|Lamentations}} The Autobots subsequently engaged Galvatron's forces in battle, and while they were occupied, Megatron put into motion the ace he had up his sleeve: taking remote control of the numerous "Megatron guns" aboard Omega, Megatron summoned them to him and combined with them into a new armored mode. Breaking free from his restraints, he headed out to confront Galvatron, intent that nobody would take his world from him. {{storylink|Chaos Part Two: Numbers|Numbers}} As he tore through the Sweeps, Megatron also revealed the reason for his surrender: now that he was back on Cybertron, he could open a space bridge that would allow the massed forces of the Decepticons on Earth to return to their home planet as well. Unfortunately, not long after the Decepticons arrived on the battlefield, Galvatron's secret puppet master, the Dead Universe entity known as the [[D-Void]], seized control of their minds and those of the Sweeps, merging them into a gigantic, monstrous avatar. With Prime occupied pursuing Galvatron into Cybertron's depths, Megatron was left to face this "[[Deceptigod]]" alone. {{storylink|Chaos Part Three: Kings|Kings}} Fighting against the D-Void's attempts to ensnare his own mind and make him part of the collective, Megatron was gravely wounded and even lost an arm to the beast, but succeeded into destroying it, blasting it apart with one massive beam from his weapons. {{storylink|Chaos Part Four: Genesis|Genesis}}

===The long game===

Even as the Deceptigod disintegrated back into its component Decepticons, Megatron could see the potential the creature embodied—the D-Void had, in essence, created the perfect combiner by means of utterly obliterating free will. With Cybertron reverting into a primordial wasteland around him—a result of Optimus Prime purifying [[Vector Sigma]] with the Matrix to stop Galvatron and the D-Void—Megatron chose to withdraw to experiment with the possibilities this presented. He informed Shockwave, the sole Decepticon who had not been made part of the Deceptigod, of his plans, and Shockwave in turn revealed them to Soundwave and Bombshell. {{storylink|Shockpoint}} While Megatron hid in the wilderness, his Decepticons were left to live as second-class citizens in the new [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] that the Autobots built; Optimus Prime left Cybertron two weeks after the D-Void's defeat to calm tensions with "NAILs"—other unaffiliated Cybertronians—who had returned to their homeworld, but even as he did so, he mused that Megatron must still be out there somewhere. {{storylink|Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}
[[File:RID11 megatron in wilderness.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]
In the months of study and experimentation that followed, Megatron discerned that the combination of Ore-13 and space bridge technology in his body somehow gave him the ability to manipulate the natural energy of Cybertron that the D-Void had used to merge the Decepticons into the Deceptigod. After experiments on [[turbofox]]es created larger, more ferocious beasts, Megatron stepped up trials when the [[Aerialbot (G1)|Aerialbots]] seceded from the shaky government Bumblebee, [[Metalhawk (Masterforce)|Metalhawk]] and Starscream were building in Iacon and ventured into the wilderness. The signal Megatron had created from the combination energy first drove the Aerialbots mad, before uniting them in body and mind, spontaneously merging them into the gestalt [[Superion (G1)|Superion]], but this newborn Autobot combiner was considered hopelessly insane by Megatron and left to die in the wilderness. The madness aspect of the signal afforded him the chance to revive some of the principles of the infiltration protocol, however, as he blanketed the wastelands in it, forcing the Autobots, Decepticons and NAILs to stay in Iacon, causing natural conflict among them to snowball, providing a useful cover for his actions. To gain a pawn within Autobot high command, Megatron even provided Bombshell with the energy to use in conjunction with his own mind-controlling [[cerebro-shell]]s, ensnaring the mind of Prowl. With the resources and cover control of Prowl provided, Shockwave, Soundwave and Bombshell were able to use Megatron's findings to perfect the combination process, rebuilding the Constructicons with new modular designs that would allow them to merge into a perfect Devastator. The endgame was for Megatron himself to form the head of the combiner, but before risking his own mind and body, Megatron decided that Prowl would be used first as a test subject. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}}
[[File:RID12 kill him.jpg|right|thumb|350px]]
The appearance of a [[Crystal City Metrotitan|Metrotitan]] on Cybertron which declared that Starscream was the "Chosen One" threatened Megatron's ability to easily re-take leadership of his Decepticons, forcing him to step up his schedule. Through Prowl, he had his inner circle gathered together in the secret "[[Black Room]]", then boldly strode into Iacon for all to see. {{storylink|The End of the Beginning of the World}} His body shattered and skeletal, he professed to come in peace, but Bumblebee did not accept his surrender and ordered his Autobots to kill him. Indeed, Megatron could possibly have died there and then had Iacon's Decepticons not stepped in, insisting that Megatron's defense of Cybertron during the D-Void's attack marked him a hero and that he be taken into custody instead. {{storylink|City on Fire}} After [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] got through examining him to prove his body concealed no weapons, Starscream approached the imprisoned Megatron and attempted to explain that he was not far away from taking complete power in the government, ensuring a Decepticon victory of a different kind. Megatron merely smiled silently at the notion, terrifying his ex-lieutenant with his grin. Presently, the Decepticons rose up in an angry mob and marched on Autobot high command to insist on Megatron's release; the situation quickly devolved into a riot, during which a squad led by [[Needlenose]] stormed the prison and freed Megatron. {{storylink|The Verge}}
[[File:RID14 new body redux.jpg|left|thumb|275px]]
Megatron brought Starscream and the captured Bumblebee and Metalhawk to the Black Room, where he explained his plans and had himself transferred into a pre-prepared new body that could combine with the Constructicons' new forms. At his command, the Constructicons and Prowl combined into the new Devastator, who immediately set about razing Iacon. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}} Even the return of Superion seemed unable to stop the powerful new combiner, until help came from an unexpected quarter—Prowl's secret assassin [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] killed Bombshell, taking out Prowl's controller and causing Devastator to shut down. This was no real impediment to Megatron, however, as the successful function of the new combiner process has been proven, and he set out to take ''his'' place as Devastator's head. Before Megatron could reach the fallen gestalt, though, Devastator awoke, possessed of his own unique, unite consciousness for the first time, and resumed tearing into Iacon. {{storylink|Plan for Everything}}
[[File:RID20_megatron_in_forcefield.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]
Still Megatron remained unfazed, calmly fending off Autobot attacks and waiting for the inevitable moment when the heroes would take Devastator down. When [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] succeeded in doing so by managing to reach Prowl, Devastator separated, and Megatron immediately stepped in, re-initiation the combination with himself in control. Seconds before uniting with the Constructicons, though, his plan was foiled by Bumblebee, Ironhide and Prowl's activation of a secret failsafe: Wheeljack had integrated a forcefield generator into Megatron's spark casing during his examination of him, and when it was triggered, he was completely paralyzed in mid-transformation. {{storylink|Heavy Is the Head}} In the fallout of the battle, Starscream killed Metalhawk and took control of Iacon and banished the Autobots and Decepticons from the city. He took custody of the immobilized Megatron, and silently gloated over the victory he had accomplished by using guile and politics, rather than Megatron's ways of brute force and firepower. {{storylink|Three Monologues}}
Megatron would not remain in this state for long; that night, as the end result of millennia-long secret machinations by Shockwave, an [[Necrotitan|undead Metrotitan]] appeared on Cybertron and opened a portal to the Dead Universe in the planet's skies. Through the portal, Shockwave made contact with Galvatron and his master, the exiled Cybertron despot [[Nova Prime]], but was unable to bring them through to Cybertron thanks to the unexpected disappearance of the Titan's space bridge system. Reanimating the deceased Metalhawk with a wave of necrotic energy from the Titan, Shockwave had him liberate Megatron and bring him to his secret lab in [[Crystal City]]. {{storylink|Winners & Losers: Dark Cybertron Chapter 3|Winners & Losers}}
[[File:RID24 i remember you.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Ow.]]
Shockwave hoped that Megatron would comply with his plans willingly, but the Decepticon leader refused and Shockwave forcibly activated the space bridge technology in Megatron's body. {{storylink|Into the Abyss: Dark Cybertron Chapter 4|Into the Abyss}} The opening of the bridge in his chest caused Megatron agony, but his screams were heard by Soundwave, who led the united forces of the exiled Autobots and Decepticons to Shockwave's lab to free his leader. Nova Prime and Galvatron attempted to squeeze their way through the space bridge despite this interference, but Ironhide was able to punch Nova back through into the Dead Universe. At that moment, Shockwave's "Necrotitan" came crashing into the subterranean city, and in the chaos, Megatron was freed from the restraints holding him. No sooner had Megatron carried Ironhide to the safe hands of the other Autobots, however, than he was ripped in half from behind by Galvatron, who had successfully emerged through the portal {{storylink|Finest Hour: Dark Cybertron Chapter 5|Finest Hour}}

In a vision of the future seen by Ironhide and [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] during the reformatting of Cybertron, fifteen million years hence, Ironhide still believed Megatron to be alive and promised a young Autobot they would defeat him again if he ever returned. {{storylink|Pax Cybertronia (issue)|Pax Cybertronia}} {{storylink|A Better Tomorrow}}
{{-}}

===''Spotlight: Mirage''===
[[File:SLMirage all in good time.jpg|right|thumb|275px]]
{{NoteSLMirage}}
Somewhere, in an unknown time or place, the self-serving mercenary [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] dreamed of Megatron and his Decepticons launching a massive attack on the Autobots. But Mirage knew that to only be a dream; in reality, the Autobots were almost eradicated, and Megatron had hired him to hunt down the last of their number. Megatron was outraged by the mercenary's demand for a majority share in all energon mining operations as payment, but it proved to be fuel well spent, as he soon succeeded in locating Optimus Prime and forcing him to surrender. Megatron demanded the prisoners be executed despite Mirage's promise to spare Autobot lives. Seeing Mirage's hesitation, Megatron appealed to his greed. {{storylink|Spotlight: Mirage}}
{{-}}

==Notes==
* In [[Megatron Origin issue 2|''Megatron Origin'' #2]], we see that Megatron's helmet is, in fact, [[:Image:MegatronOrigin2 Megs hair.jpg|a helmet and not part of his head]] (at least in his original body). Upon removing his helmet, Megatron then briefly unfurls a crest. The significance of this moment is not explained, but it is briefly revisited in [[Remembrance Day|''More than Meets the Eye'' #14]] when a helmetless Megatron spars with [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]].

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Rulers of Cybertron]]

Megatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

2014-01-10T15:49:30Z

Solaar: /* Early days of war */

{{suite}}
{{factions|decepticon}}
[[File:IDWMegatron.jpg|thumb|300x342px|Megatron A, Megatron B, Megatron Retailer's Incentive, and Megatron Dynamic Forces Exclusive variant.]]
'''Megatron''' waged a battle to destroy the evil forces of the [[Senate]]! Then he ''continued'' to wage a war against the evil forces of freedom, organic life, and the very idea of an Autobot living.

{{quote|In the final analysis, I would happily wade across a river of corpses, chest-deep in rust and grease and engine oil, just to crush the Spark of the last Autobot standing. And I would not do so simply as a means to an end. No. I'd do it, Prime, because it would give me ''pleasure''.|Megatron to Optimus Prime|''[[Chaos Theory Part 1]]''}}

__TOC__
==IDW Generation 1 comics==
{{ongoing}}
===Birth of a tyrant===
[[File:ChaosTheory1 megatron symbol creation.jpg|left|thumb|300px|... And thus the "Silica Fracturism" art movement was born.]]
Long ago, before the war and under the reign of [[Nominus Prime]], Megatron of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]] was an [[energon]] miner, a member of the lower class, living near [[Rodion]]. An intellectual and a poet, Megatron was sickened by the caste-ridden social apartheid of Cybertronian society—where your form determined your role, and your role your rights—and so he wrote [[After the Ark: Nominus Prime and the Illusion of Progress|a treatise]] on how pacifist dissent and the exchange of ideas could change things. It was while he was sharing this work with his miner friend [[Impactor (G1)|Impactor]] over a drink in [[Maccadam's Old Oil House|Maccadam's New Oil House]] that the event occurred which would change the course of his life, as Impactor wound up being drawn into a bar brawl with some of the city's upper classes and Megatron was among those arrested after the fracas. In order to silence his increasingly loud voice of dissent against their regime, the [[Senate]] arranged for a police officer on their payroll, [[Whirl (G1)|Whirl]], to kill Megatron, but before Whirl could finish the job, police captain [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]], having discovered Megatron's innocence, arranged for his release. [[File:Minermegs.jpg|225px|thumb|Now that's the look of a well-adjusted individual.]] Despite Pax expressing support for the message of his writings, Megatron now found himself filled with rage and hate, disillusioned with his former ideology and realiing the power of applied violence. Angrily hurling the datapad on which he had written his treatise through a public info-screen, Megatron observed the jagged shape of the shattered glass, and later turned it into a [[insignia|symbol]] for his cause. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

Megatron's samizdat writings began to circulate in Cybertron's underground, spawning the "[[Decepticon]]" movement, its name derived from its own slogan, "You are being deceived", warning the common 'bot of the Senate's true nature. Knowing that, at this stage, assassinating Megatron would merely make him a martyr, the Senate instead elected to relocate him off-planet, re-assigning him to [[Mining Outpost C-12]] on the world of [[Messatine]] while they tried their own schemes to defuse the growing Decepticon movement. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}}

Megatron continued to seethe with hate and frustration in his new workplace, which reached a peak when, some time later, [[Decimus|Senator Decimus]] arrived to announce that the mine was being closed immediately and the workers would be relocated. When one of the Senator's guards killed a worker for insubordination and claims of Senate corruption, Megatron's fury boiled over and he hurled his pickaxe at Decimus. In turn, he was attacked by the Senator's guard, whom he killed by smashing his head to fragments. A riot erupted around him, but Megatron himself could only sit amongst the chaos, staring at his fuel-stained hands in abject horror, which allowed him to be easily pacified and rounded up with the other miners as the mayhem was quickly suppressed. En route to [[Penal Facility H-3|imprisonment]] back on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], however, [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] and [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] broke free and started a riot aboard [[Longshot (G1)|their ship]]. Megatron joined in their effort, and together, they overpowered their guards, took control of the ship, and disappeared into the [[Kaon]] underground. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}}
[[File:MegsOrigin2 Cykill.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
After evading law enforcement, Megatron joined a team of underworld gladiators under the tutelage of [[Clench (G1)|Clench]]. Initially repulsed by killing his opponents, the games eventually turned him more brutal and excessive, and he took control of the entire operation from Clench. The opportunistic Senator [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], after seeing how much money there was in the underworld matches, covertly sent his agent [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] to offer Megatron weaponry and technology to upgrade himself and his comrades. Their meeting was spied upon by [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (G1)|Fastback]], agents from the Senate's forces, who Megatron slew. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}} Subsequently, impressed by how he treated his animal-form [[Decepticon Mini-Cassette|cassette partners]] as equals (in contradiction to the teachings of his Senate masters), Megatron invited Soundwave back to the gladiator pits and gave him permission to use his mind-reading abilities on him. Within Megatron's mind, Soundwave saw his honest desire for all Cybertronians to be true equals, and was so moved by it that he joined Megatron's cause. {{storylink|Soundwaves (issue)|Soundwaves}}

Gradually, Megatron used the gladiatorial games to drum up an army of violent malcontents, sending Soundwave to recruit more and more warriors to his cause. Such recruits included [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]], who he was presented with while having an arm he lost in a brawl replaced with a new limb that incorporated an [[energon mace]], {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} and the disenfranchised warrior [[Drift (G1)|Drift]], who was personally asked by Megatron to fight at his side when he attended a Decepticon rally, and whom Megatron rechristened "Deadlock". {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}} Seeking to enhance his army even further, Megatron reached out to [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Senator Shockwave]], offering to supply him the resources to perfect the teachings of his lost mentor [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] and create a [[combiner]] that would serve the Decepticons. Shockwave cautioned that it could take some time, but Megatron was content to wait. {{storylink|Shockwaves}}

[[File:Apexthrone.JPG|250px|thumb|right|You should have gone to IKEA.]]
Despite all his efforts, Megatron believed that the Senate was still not taking the Decepticons seriously, so Soundwave formulated a plan for a declaration of intent that could be not denied: lure the Senate to Kaon and murder them. {{storylink|Soundwaves (issue)|Soundwaves}} In preparation for this scheme, Megatron offered to restore Shockwave's lost hands—a victim of [[empurata]]—believing that doing so might speed his work. {{storylink|Shockwaves}} The following day, in accordance with Soundwave's plan, Megatron and the Decepticons allowed themselves to be arrested by Sentinel Prime's men, after which Soundwave was freed on Ratbat's orders, while Starscream would ensure his own release by pretending to defect. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} Together, Soundwave and Starscream exterminated the entire Senate, then liberated Megatron and the rest of their comrades, in the process granting their leader the gift of a [[fusion cannon]] liberated from the Senate forces' armory. Megatron led his army against Sentinel Prime's men, killed Sentinel himself, and took control of Kaon, now ready to turn his insurgency into a full-blown war. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

===Early days of war===

Megatron formally declared war on "[[Declaration Day]]" when he delivered a stirring speach from [[Nova Point|Nova Peak]]. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} The growing Decepticon forces swiftly spread across six [[Polities of Cybertron|Torus-States]], {{storylink|Parasites}} and to combat them, Cybertron's new leader [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]] assembled a new military force, the "[[Autobot]]s", led by Megatron's old acquaintance [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]]. Researching his new opposite number, Megatron was intrigued to discover that his now-abandoned treatise had been a source of inspiration for Pax, who had even quoted from it when he confronted the Senate and openly accused them of corruption. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}} Early into the war, [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] would admit to Pax that Megatron talked about him sometimes, when he was tired. When Pax asked what was said, Bludgeon told him that it would make "both of us feel ''uncomfortable''". {{storylink|Omega's Conundrum}}
[[File:Autocracy4 backroom meeting.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]
When Orion Pax came close to Kaon during a mission, Megatron saw it as a chance to speak to him and had his Decepticons bring him in. {{storylink|The Hunt for Soundwave}} Megatron attempted to convince him that Zeta Prime was even worse than he appeared—that he had planned tto let Orion die in [[Nyon]] so that he could use his death as pretext to invade the rebel-infested city and drain the citizens of their energon—and proposed they work together against him, but Orion refused to hear him and then escaped. Knowing the doubts he'd placed in his head would only serve to damage the Autobot cause, Megatron let him go. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}}
[[File:Autocracy8 megs and pax together.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Banzai!]]
Megatron continued to keep an eye on Orion Pax's activities, spying on his encounter with the Nyon insurgent [[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hot Rod]]. {{storylink|Ruins}} When Zeta Prime's [[Guardian robot|Omega Destructor]]s suddenly attacked Nyon, Megatron was surprised by how zealously the new Prime fought against the city's rebels, but his real interest still lay on how Orion would handle the crisis. {{storylink|Purge}} Orion turned on Zeta, who in turn attempted to kill him, prompting Megatron to intervene and force the Prime to retreat. Taking Orion back to Kaon, he again offered that they work together against Zeta's corruption, and this time the Autobot officer accepted. {{storylink|Choices}} As their combined forces invaded the [[Citadel]] in Iacon, Megatron and Orion Pax made their way inside and fought Zeta Prime in person. The battle ended with Megatron killing the Prime with a head shot, and with his objective complete, he then betrayed the injured Orion by shooting him in the back. {{storylink|Overthrown}} Curiously, an alternate report incorrectly implied that Megatron had assassinated Zeta from afar, sniping him with the rifle alternate mode of [[Vos (DJD)|Vos]]. {{storylink|Bullets}} {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}}
[[File:Autocracy12 no you dont megatron.jpg|left|thumb|250px|This seems so familiar...]]
With Zeta dead, Megatron conquered Iacon and declared himself ruler of Cybertron. His soldiers patrolled the planet's streets to "keep the peace", mostly by hunting down and capturing any remaining Autobots who opposed him. {{storylink|Transformation (issue)|Transformation}} During his rule, Megatron attempted to sway the neutral Hot Rod into joining the Decepticons, but he decided otherwise upon witnessing Megatron ordering the execution of several Autobot prisoners. {{storylink|Rise}} Megatron was shocked to learn that Orion Pax had survived the betrayal and was organizing a rebellion against him under the name "Optimus Prime", and even more shocked that people actually had the courage to listen to him. He wasted no time in striking back against the rebels approaching the Citadel with the full force of his army. {{storylink|Broadcast}} During the battle, Megatron unleashed Zeta Prime's energy-draining [[vamparc ribbon|vamparc annihilator]], but when the gigantic [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] took out the cannon, Megatron fell to the streets and was confronted by Optimus Prime himself. He lost the ensuing [[The Transformers: The Movie|familiar-looking duel]] and was badly wounded after a failed attempt to defeat Prime by holding Hot Rod hostage, forcing him to escape aboard Astrotrain. As he fled, he warned Optimus that he hadn't won, he had only started a war unlike any Cybertron had ever seen. {{storylink|Endgame}}

[[File:Monstrosity3_Megatron_and_Pentius.jpg|thumb|right|300px|"WORDS THAT KILL~"]]
Before Megatron could recover from his injuries, he was betrayed by [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]], who was gunning for the position of Decepticon leader (with aid from Starscream, against Megatron's knowledge). As punishment for his failure to hold Iacon, Scorponok banished the wounded Megatron to the hell-world of [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]]. {{storylink|Derelicts}} Further injured in battle with some [[Junkion (species)|cannibalistic natives]], he stubbornly refused to give up and used the trash littering the world to patch himself up, leaving him with a mismatched, monstrous appearance. {{storylink|Wreckage (issue)|Wreckage}} While searching for a way off Junkion, Megatron entered the wreckage of a starship and found a trapped [[Quintesson]] named [[Pentius]], who had mapped the planet and knew of an area known as the [[Pillar of Rust]] where starships may land and take off. Megatron freed the alien to guide him there, while also putting him in chains to serve as his slave. {{storylink|Faces of Darkness}}
[[File:Monstrosity7 megatron takes pentius spark.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
While crossing the [[Acid Sea]] on the way to the Pillar, Megatron was attacked by [[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticons]] who pulled him into the depths. {{storylink|Rage (IDW)|Rage}} For reasons unknown he was then released, the creatures having allowed him to live. As he emerged, Pentius was waiting with a history lesson, telling him that Junkion was once a prosperous world until its inhabitants drained it of resources, leaving it the broken husk it is today: a fate that may also await Cybertron. Megatron rejected this possibility, declaring that under his rule, Cybertron—and his legacy—would last forever. {{storylink|Fallout (issue)|Fallout}} On arrival at the Pillar of Rust, Megatron was met by the [[Terrorcon (G1)|Terrorcons]], who had come to Junkion to finish what Scorponok had started by killing him. He was able to fight off several of his attackers, but [[Hun-Gurrr (G1)|Hun-Gar]] was too much for him to handle in his injured state. Egged on and taunted by Pentius, Megatron realized he had one last resource left to use: the Quintesson himself. Telling Pentius that his legacy would live on within him, he tore out the alien's [[spark]] and used it to fuel himself, granting him enough power to defeat Hun-Gar. He spared the Terrorcons in exchange for their loyalty, then returned to Cybertron on their ship to take revenge on Scorponok and take back control of the Decepticons. {{storylink|Prey (issue)|Prey}}
[[File:Monstrosity12 strange turns.jpg|right|thumb|300px|To be fair, that's all we can think about regarding you two, as well.]]
Megatron returned to a Cybertron in chaos, as the ancient reptilian [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]] had been unleashed by Scorponok and was in the midst of razing Iacon. After reasserting his leadership of the Decepticons by beating Scorponok nearly to death, he had Shockwave restore his body to it original shape and condition, {{storylink|The Illusion of Control}} and set out to investigate the Trypticon situation alone, unwilling to risk his soldiers in the face of the beast's uncontrolled fury. Finding an injured Optimus Prime on the battlefield, Megatron lectured him, but opted to leave him alive so that he could watch as the Decepticon leader defeated the enemy that Prime could not. Megatron was attacked by [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]], but as they grappled, they were swallowed by Trypticon. {{storylink|Annihilation}} Within the giant, the pair set their differences aside to fend off the [[cyber-morphic predators]] that populated his interior, and together, they destroyed Trypticon's internal power cell, taking him offline. A tense standoff between the Autobots and Decepticons followed as the two warriors emerged from within Trypticon, but both sides agreed to go their separate ways for the time being. Not long after the battle, however, Megatron removed Pentius's spark from within himself and installed it within Trypticon, reviving the monster as a Decepticon. {{storylink|Belly of the Beast}}

===The spreading conflict===
[[File:MTMTE14 megatron vs overlord.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
Megatron's actions during the war were many. Early during the conflict, he wrote ''[[Towards Peace]]'', a new treatise to replace ''After the Ark'', in which he described continuing to fight the war until the very notion of conflict was literally inconceivable. Then and only then would he finally give up his fusion cannon. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} He oversaw the creation of a class of super-warriors known as the [[Warriors Elite]], selecting only his most powerful troops to undergo the torturous upgrade, including [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]], a brilliant sadist and frequent opponent of his from his pit-fighting days who had developed an obsession with Megatron after the Decepticon leader dealt him his first ever defeat. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} At some point, he also created the [[Decepticon Justice Division]] to deal with traitors, {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} though he elected not to send them after Deadlock when he defected, valuing the warrior enough to instead dispatch [[Lockdown (G1)|Lockdown]] to bring him in. {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}}
[[File:ChaosTheory prime vs megatron montage.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]
Megatron would personally clash with Optimus Prime many times; Optimus grew to respect and fear Megatron as a calm, calculating and measured opponent, while Megatron himself respected Prime's sheer power and his skill as a tactician and as a leader. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} Megatron would later incorrectly recall their battle on [[Sherma Bridge]] during the [[Rorsha Campaign]] as the first time they met. Said battle was certainly momentous—every Autobot and Decepticon stopped fighting to witness their duel, during which Megatron's cannon arm was sliced off by Prime's [[energon-axe]], and he claimed revenge by throwing the Autobot leader off the bridge. As the war spread to other planets, they would meet again and again: during the [[Siege of Massunstrad]], Megatron sealed Prime in an anti-matter chamber; on [[Rada Mor]], Prime reduced Megatron to ashes with sentient explosives; and in the midst of the [[Vorsk Offensive]], Megatron was nearly sliced in half by Prime. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} Megatron took on a new pistol alternate mode for the [[Battle for Hell's Point]], during which he was used by [[Heretech]] to blast [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]]. {{storylink|The Gloaming}} During the same skirmish, Megatron took off half of Prime's face with his energon mace, but had a city block dropped on him by Prime in retribution, which shattered his [[transformation cog]] and trapped him in gun mode for two years. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} At the war's zenith, Megatron sealed himself in an [[Omniglobe]] to absorb the relentless flood of data coming in from countless fronts. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}}

Prime was not the only old face that Megatron would see again during the war: during a battle on an aerial drilling platform over the [[Manganese Mountains]], Megatron came face-to-face with his old friend Impactor, and stood poised to execute him until Impactor gave him a moment's pause by recalling his old fondness for poetry. In this moment, Megatron was knocked from the platform by [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] and sent plummeting to the mountains below. {{storylink|Zero Point}}
[[File:LastStandoftheWreckers2-teleconference.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]
With total war going nowhere, Megatron would go on to develop a six-stage [[infiltration protocol]] to be used for conquering targeted planets. The sixth phase called for outright planetary razing, and Megatron selected three of his Warriors Elite for this task: [[Sixshot]], {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}}, Overlord and [[Black Shadow (Victory)|Black Shadow]]. He informed this trio of his decision via teleconference, but Overlord tired of being used as someone else's weapon and refused. Megatron threatened to hunt Overlord down for his disobedience, {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 2|Last Stand of the Wreckers #2}} but while the powerful warrior spent the rest of his life preparing for this conflict, Megatron never followed up and left him to stew in his own obsession. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}}
[[File:Stormbringer1 get up and fight.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]
Deducing that the Autobot/Decepticon war would culminate in an energy crisis that would threatened the stability of Cybertron itself, Shockwave left Cybertron to secretly pursue alternate energy sources. Around 10,000 years ago, when Shockwave did not return, Megatron ordered Bludgeon to investigate his files, {{storylink|Spotlight: Shockwave}} secretly assigning Soundwave to investigate Bludgeon {{storylink|Spotlight: Soundwave}} and probe deeper into whatever it was Shockwave had created. {{storylink|Shockpoint}}

Shockwave's prediction soon proved accurate, and Cybertron found itself in the throes of an energy shortage. Decepticon scientist [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]] came to Megatron with a revolutionary, controversial plan to stave off this energy death by [[Pretender|polydermal grafting]], a process where they encased themselves in "symbiotic carapaces", or shells created from living tissue. When Megatron dismissed him angrily and cut him down, Thunderwing did not abandon his research; instead, he experimented on himself. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} The process gave him immense power, but drove him insane. He became so dangerous that Megatron had to join forces with Optimus Prime to stop him. This battle at [[Thunderhead Pass]] accelerated the apocalypse destined to befall Cybertron, leaving it an uninhabitable, radioactive husk and forcing both armies to continue their war on other worlds. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 1|Stormbringer #1}} Megatron advocated that they simply destroy Cybertron to ensure that Thunderwing was destroyed, but Prime refused, and threatened to stop Megatron if he tried. Megatron agreed not to destroy the planet, but warned Prime that whatever happened was on his head. Shortly after the last big push by the Decepticons, Cybertron was abandoned by both factions. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 1|Stormbringer #2}}

===Breaking protocol===
[[File:Infiltration4 enter megatron.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]
In the present day, when word reached Megatron that the infiltration unit led by [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], stationed on the planet [[Earth]], had broken protocol, he headed for the planet to investigate. Examining the unit's abandoned bunker in [[Nebraska]] for information, he discovered that Starscream had stumbled across [[Ultra-Energon|Ore-13]]—an incredible energy source that (unbeknownst to Megatron) was the end result of Shockwave's experiments—and was planning to use it to usurp Megatron's command. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} While studying the bunker's files, he was contacted by [[Razorclaw (G1)|Razorclaw]] with some distressing news: Bludgeon's investigations of Shockwave's files had led him to revive Thunderwing. Megatron ordered the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]] to Cybertron, authorizing them to do whatever was necessary to destroy Thunderwing, including the destruction of their homeworld itself. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} Just as he was handing down this order, Megatron was happened upon by [[Verity Carlo]], a human ally of the Autobot unit active on the planet, {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} but he utterly ignored her. The bunker was then leveled by an airstrike courtesy of [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]], who were merely covering their unit's tracks and unaware of Megatron's presence; when their leader furiously emerged from the wreckage, they attempted to explain their ignorance, but he simply responded by blasting Skywarp out of the sky. [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] soon arrived on the scene, and favored opening fire rather than attempting explanations, so Megatron beat the stuffing out of him too, then set off for Starscream's new bunker in [[Oregon]]. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 5|Infiltration #5}}

[[File:Infiltration6 takeyourpunishment.jpg|250px|thumb|Those librarians are getting really strict on late returns.]]

{{quote|You will stand down. If you fight, you ''die''. There is no room anymore for mercy. In the end, you are ''all'' expendable. Choose.|Megatron's ultimatum to Starscream's troops|[[Infiltration issue 6|''Infiltration'' #6]]}}

[[Orbital jump|Orbital jumping]] to Oregon, Megatron called Starscream out and ordered the team to stand down, disgusted to see such power games being played amongst his troops. His brief, chilling speech was enough to take the fight out of all but Starscream, who, powered-up on Ore-13, took Megatron on himself. Though the new power source made Starscream a formidable adversary, Megatron was still more deadly than he, and Starscream was taken out by a point-blank fusion cannon blast through his torso. Megatron ordered the Decepticons to ensure that Starscream survived, and then, observing the Autobots who had been watching the battle, announced that it was time to begin phase two. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6}}

In light of the discovery of Ore-13, Megatron took stock of Starscream's progress on Earth and elected to get the infiltration protocol back on track himself, calling a meeting to make Starscream's former troops and making them aware, in no uncertain terms, that any further insurrections would be met with deadly force. {{storylink|Escalation issue 1|Escalation #1}} He was even able to revisit his past gun alternate mode, once again able to achieve the [[size changing|mass displacement]] the mode required thanks to the extra energy Ore-13 provided. {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}}

[[File:Megsandspidy.jpg|left|250px|thumb|]]
With his forces joined by [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]], a new arrival who Megatron suspected of having ulterior motives, {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} the Decepticon leader initiated phase two of infiltration protocol by destabilizing relations between the European nations of [[Latveria]] and [[Symkaria]] through use of an aggression-inducing [[Psycho-Prism]], stolen from Latverian dicatator [[Doctor Doom]]. When the superhero team known as the [[Avengers]] investigated the array the Decepticons' were using to broadcast the prism's signal, Megatron abducted the arachnid-powered [[Spider-Man]] to use as a subject for their [[mirror response mode]], {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}} draining the hero's powers and infusing himself and the other Decepticons with them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} He proceeded to forge a brief alliance with Doctor Doom, who helped him defeat and capture the allied Autobot/Avenger team who snuck inside the Decepticons' array, but when Doom's suggestion to threaten the captives in order to force the other heroes to lay down their arms failed, Megatron violently dissolved the partnership. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Three}} Emerging from the confines of the array to take on the Autobots and Avengers himself, Megatron refrained from engaging Prime, foreesing a more intimate confrontation between the two of them in the near future, and instead turned his attention to destroying [[Iron Man]]'s Transformer-sized armor. The tables soon turned, however, when Doctor Doom freed the captive Autobots and used the Decepticon's mirror response technology to empower them. Defeated by these enhanced Autobots and with the Psycho-Prism destroyed by [[Wolverine (superhero)|Wolverine]], Megatron used the last of his extra power to teleport the Decepticons out with an [[emergency warp-out]]. He refrained from departing alongside his warriors, intending to slaughter the Avengers for their interference, but when he was immobilized by Spider-Man's webbing, knocked to the ground by [[Luke Cage]], and rattled by a hail of Autobot fire, he finally warped-out with a final taunt to Optimus Prime of the battle yet to come between them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Four}}
[[File:Massdisplacement.jpg|right|thumb|400px]]
With phase two of infiltration protocol properly underway, Megatron recognized that he ''should'' rightly withdraw and install a new unit commander on Earth, but could not resist the chance to try out his new Ore-13 empowered body, selecting the nation of [[Brasnya]], where Decepticon subterfuge was already underway, as his testing ground. {{storylink|Escalation issue 2|Escalation #2}} Allowing the Decepticon's [[facsimile construct]] [[Georgi Koska]] to wield him in pistol mode, Megatron had Koska use him to first sever a [[Russia]]n oil pipeline, and then to fire upon the soldiers who came to investigate, furthering the political and military tensions already brewing in the region. When word came through from Blitzwing that Optimus Prime and the Autobots had arrived, {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}} Megatron at last engaged Optimus directly, {{storylink|Escalation issue 4|Escalation #4}} and although Prime was able to destroy his fusion cannon, the extra strength afforded Megatron by Ore-13 allowed him to physically beat Prime into submission, punching directly into his chest and crushing his [[spark]]. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} [[File:Escalation5 prime vs megs.jpg|left|thumb|250px]] The horrified Autobots moved into a full but ineffective counterattack, their only edge being that Megatron had no long-range guns left. It turned out that Prime's apparent death was a desperate ruse when the Autobot leader countered with a surprise attack on Megatron, able to exploit Ore-13's weakness—the more it's used, the faster it burns itself out. Megatron almost collapsed from power loss and was forced to have Skywarp take him to safety before the Autobots could kill him. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}}

Furious over the embarrassing defeat, Megatron threw protocol out the window and ordered that Sixshot be summoned to the planet. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}} He took out some of his anger on Ramjet, who he discovered had been busy cooking up a plot to overthrow him; without saying a word, he beat the attempted traitor to death before tearing him apart and keeping his head as a trophy. {{storylink|Spotlight: Ramjet}}
[[File:Devastation5 decepticons attack.jpg|thumb|right|250px]]
Upon Sixshot's arrival, Megatron ordered him to utterly destroy the Autobots, and although the Phase Sixer questioned his early deployment, he was happy to go along with the abandonment of the phase structure. The other Decepticons, on the other hand, were worried that Megatron was losing his grip—and since they were too scared to tell him that, they decided to revive Starscream to do it for them. {{storylink|Devastation issue 1|Devastation #1}} Megatron monitored Sixshot's attack on the Autobots' [[Ark-19]], ordering him to pursue the escape pod that broke away from the crashing craft, {{storylink|Devastation issue 2|Devastation #2}} but before he could obliterate the Autobots, Megatron was forced to recall him to deal with a new threat assaulting the Decepticon base—the alien [[Reaper]]s. {{storylink|Devastation issue 4|Devastation #4}} Unfortunately, the Reapers convinced Sixshot to side with them, and when an Ore-13 powered Starscream entered the fray to take Sixshot down, Megatron realized his troops had been conspiring against him. He decided not to punish them '''yet''', due to greater threat posed by the Reapers, {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}} and entered battle alongside them all, even allowing Starscream to wield him in pistol mode against the aliens. After the invaders were dead, however, he turn on his men, starting with Blitzwing—but was forced to realize that they needed to remain united when it became apparent that their battle with the Reapers had made humanity inescapably aware of their existence {{storylink|Devastation issue 6|Devastation #6}}
{{--}}

===All Hail Megatron===
[[File:AHM7 megs rips out matrix.jpg|left|thumb|200px]]
While the Decepticons were occupied fighting the Reapers, the Autobots had left Earth to deal with the greater threat of an incursion by the [[Dead Universe]]. Exploiting their enemies' absence, Megatron and his men went to ground; when Autobots returned, they could find no trace of the Decepticons, who kept one step ahead of them for months. Secretly abducting [[Hunter O'Nion]], former [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] partner to the Autobot [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]], Megatron and his men returned to Cybertron, where Megatron had [[Deluge (G2)|Deluge]] conduct experiments that bred a [[Insecticon swarm|swarm]] of monstrous [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticons]]. The experiments culminated in the creation of [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]], who Megatron employed in a series of key tasks in his plan: the Insecticon obtained from Hunter's mind various Autobot secrets and codes, completed Shockwave's long-gestating combiner process, granting the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] the ability to combine into [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]], and created a working [[space bridge]] {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} based on designs sold to them by Sixshot in exchange for his freedom. {{storylink|Spotlight: Metroplex}}

Returning to Earth, the Decepticons staged a phony schism within their ranks, allowing the Autobots to believe that they had "disappeared" as a result of a power struggle that had split their ranks into two camps, one led by Megatron and one by Starscream. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} Starscream then approached Sunstreaker, whose experience has a Headmaster had left him bitter and jaded, with the proposition that the Autobots join with his forces against Megatron, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 8|All Hail Megatron #8}} but when the Autobots arrived at the designated time and place, they were instead confronted by the united Decepticon army and quickly defeated by Devastator. After personally tearing [[Matrix of Leadership]] from Optimus Prime's chest, Megatron marched the captive Autobots through the space bridge back to Cybertron, where the Insecticon swarm waited for them. Prime, however, was able to damage the bridge, causing it to deposit the Autobots a safe distance from the swarm, but in the process, fried his own circuits and left himself comatose. Though the Autobots had escaped the fate he had intended for them, Megatron had successfully exiled his enemies to their dead homeworld; morever, using information and codes gained from Sunstreaker and Hunter, he concurrently orchestrated the event that would later be known as [[Surge (event)|The Surge]], as Decepticons stormed Autobot installations all across the galaxy, achieving total victory. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}}

[[File:Bringingthehousedown.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Megatron's urban renewal program was off to a flying start.]]

With galaxy-wide domination accomplished, one year after the Decepticons' battle with the Reapers, Megatron chose Earth to become the new Decepticon homeworld. Together with his men, Megatron stormed [[New York City]], humiliating Starscream with a display of his greater capacity for destruction. When the US Air Force retaliated, Megatron shrugged off their fire and ordered the other Decepticons to engage them; when one damaged jet threw itself toward him in a suicide run, Megatron, outraged at the [[DJ (G1)|pilot]]'s temerity, destroyed it and its occupant with a furious swipe of his hand. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} When US Army forces arrived, Megatron ordered [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] dispatched to deal with them, then sent Devastator to destroy the subway tunnels leading out of the city. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 2|All Hail Megatron #2}} With New York secured, Megatron directed the Constructicons to begin building new space bridge in the city's heart, and had a candid talk with Starscream, revealing his belief that the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seeker]]'s attitude and actions marked him as the embodiment of the Decepticon cause, even if he was blind to seeing it himself. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 3|All Hail Megatron #3}} After a series of further attacks on major American cities saw the country firmly crushed under the Decepticons' collective heel, Megatron made a propaganda speech to his men in the ruins of New York. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 4|All Hail Megatron #4}} As night fell upon the city, Megatron withdrew to privately gloat over the Matrix. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 5|All Hail Megatron #5}}

[[File:AHM6MegatronVsIsrael.jpg|left|300px|thumb|]]
As the Decepticons began attacking other countries around the globe, Megatron was questioned by Starscream on what the next step in his plan was. A recalcitrant Megatron merely informed him that it was merely time to savor their victory, but Starscream accused him of not ''having'' any plans post-victory, and was merely allowing his men to run wild to distract them from any notion of taking power for themselves. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}} What Starscream did not realize was that Megatron did indeed have a plan: to defeat the Autobots, he had created an army of killers and monsters, but in order to create his perfect rule, that army would have to be destroyed, the dissenting, distasteful elements obliterated before Megatron's peace could dawn. Megatron was not distracting his warriors... he was ''waiting'' to see which of them would question and turn on him. Silently sorrowful to already know that such dissent would begin with Starscream, an otherwise-model Decepticon, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}} Megatron withdrew to [[Israel]] for some silent reflection amid wholesale devastation. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}}

[[File:AHM10 megs vs devastator.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

Some time later, Megatron surveyed the space bridge Bombshell and the Constructicons had built in New York. He congratulated Bombshell on his work, but revealed that he had always foreseen Bombshell's intellect as a danger—had always known he and his fellow Insecticons would side with Starscream when the time came. His gambit exposed, Starscream made his move and attacked, but the Insecticons proved no match for Megatron's might. The Decepticon leader had failed to anticipate one thing, however: he did not foresee the Constructicons siding with Starscream, and found himself having to fight the mighty Devastator. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}} The in-fighting was halted by a last-ditch attack by the mustered might of what remained of the human resistance, forcing Megatron and Starscream to put their differences aside momentarily and organize a defense. This attack came as no surprise to Megatron, but the same could not be said for the next entrants onto the battlefield: the Autobots had returned.

After assuring Starscream that he would be leader in the future, when his time was done, Megatron confronted Optimus Prime, surprised not so much that his old foe had survived, but that he had bothered to return to Earth. Both leaders had always maintained a policy of acceptable losses through their millennia-long war, so Megatron assumed Prime had come back for selfish reasons, to reclaim the Matrix, but Prime insisted that he had changed, and would no longer allow their cold war to endanger innocent lives on this scale. [[File:AHM12 prime vs megs.jpg|left|thumb|300px|]] Megatron scoffed at the notion, reavling that Prime's supposedly "innocent" humans were planning to nuke New York, killing millions of their own just to get rid of the Decepticons, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 11|All Hail Megatron #11}} but Prime retorted that it wasn't ''just'' about the humans, but also about the difference between Autobots and Decepticons. The two came to blows, but Megatron triumphed in short order and commanded the Decepticons to depart, leaving the Autobots to be killed by the humans' nuke... but just before they withdrew, he was shot in the face by human soldier [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], wielding a powerful weapon reverse-engineered from Cybertronian technology. Injured and disoriented by the blast, Megatron was finished off when Prime smashed his face in with his own fusion cannon. As he wanted to ''take'' leadership rather than just have it fall in his hands, Starscream picked up his damaged leader and ordered the Decepticons to retreat. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

[[File:AllHisEngines-Megatron.jpg|thumb|Pretty sure when you float in a bacta tank you're supposed to be wearing a diaper.]]
The Decepticons departed Earth aboard Astrotrain, where the gravely wounded Megatron was put on life support and tended to by Soundwave and his cassettes. With Megatron's life signs only at ten percent capacity, Starscream attempted to appeal to Soundwave's sense of logic and have him shut down so that leadership could be his, but Soundwave refused. Starscream was soon able to take command, however, when he recovered the Matrix of Leadership and professed to have been chosen by it. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 13|Uneasy Lies the Head}}

===New body, new powers===

The Decepticons eventually settled on a desolate asteroid, where Megatron was installed in a [[CR chamber|CR tank]]. Retaining some level of awareness of the events occurring around him during his convalescence, he was forced to watch as his army languished in inactivity, their energy slowly ebbing away until they were reduced to cannibalism. {{storylink|All His Engines}} After a year of trying to free his leader from this living death, Soundwave was finally forced to conclude that Megatron's body was beyond repair, and recruited the recently-returned Shockwave, whom Starscream had provided with the majority of the Decepticons' resources to create a space bridge, to help build a new body for Megatron's consciousness to inhabit. The operation succeeded and Megatron was reborn in a deadly new body, powered by Ore-13, armed with a devastatingly powerful rail gun, and even equipped with space bridge nodes stolen from Metroplex, which gave him the ability to open space bridge portals on his own. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

[[File:IDWongoing15 megatrons new body.jpg|left|thumb|275px|"Uh, it's like...did anyone ever see the movie ''Tron''?"]]

Back in action, Megatron devised a plan to destabilize the relationship between the humans and Autobots on Earth. Together with Soundwave and Shockwave, he chopped up his old body and used it to create human-scaled replicas of his former gun mode, containing small pieces of his own consciousness. When Starscream caught them in the act, Megatron elected to table his plan for the moment, as he considered it folly to go against Starscream's wishes for the moment since the Seeker was still in possession of the Matrix of Leadership. Megatron had never truly understood what the talisman ''did'', but it served as a threat merely by being an unknown variable. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} Fortunately, for Megatron this variable was soon removed from the equation when Hot Rod, estranged from the Earthbound Autobots, infiltrated the Decepticons' asteroid base and recovered the Matrix from Starscream. Megatron seized his chance, intercepting the Autobot and blasting him and the Matrix out into the void of space. {{storylink|Heart Like a Wheel}}

[[File:SLMegatron stealth bomber mode.jpg|right|thumb|275px|Behold... the ''Bomberang!'']]

With Starscream's trump card now gone, Megatron had the Decepticons gathered so he could address them. Distrustful of Shockwave's motives for preparing his new body, wary of Soundwave's constant surveillance, and repulsed by the state of his once fearsome Decepticon war machine, Megatron decided that he needed to unequivocally reestablish dominance over the now Matrix-less Starscream. He intended to beat Starscream near to death as a means of letting them both work out their frustrations with Starscream's inability to lead effectively during Megatron's absence, but Starscream did not want to fight—spiritually broken by his failures, he simply wanted Megatron to kill him. Rather than accept this, Megatron instead goaded Starscream into opening fire upon him. This began a running battle between the two, with Megatron pursuing the fleeing Seeker in his new stealth bomber alternate mode, continuing to bait Starscream every time he appeared willing to give up the fight. Incensed by Starscream's accusation that he did not know what it felt like to see everything he had worked for fall apart, when that was exactly what Starscream's pitiful leadership had done to the empire he had created, Megatron pummeled him to within an inch of his life, then paused to explain why he kept a schemer like Starscream around: as a constant reminder to watch his back. The brutal display galvanized the languid Decepticons, and Megatron was ready to begin his scheme. {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

[[File:IDWongoing14 megatron guns.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]

Roughly two years after the Decepticons' defeat on Earth, Megatron used his space bridge powers to dispatch a container full of the guns made from his old body to Earth, where they were found by South American gun-runners and illegally disseminated amongst an increasingly paranoid public seeking ways to protect themselves against Transformers. This allowed Megatron's consciousness to spread across North America, until it was focused enough to contact one particular owner of a Megatron gun: [[Joe Gladki]]. He deceived and manipulated the paranoid human, and eventually convinced him to perform an assassination attempt on [[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]], the new Autobot leader. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} In their ignorance, the Autobots then mistook Gladki's gun for Megatron himself and held it captive. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 1: The Demolished Man|The Demolished Man}}

[[File:IDWongoing16 megatron vs autobots.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

With the Autobots in chaos, Megatron started the next phase of his plan and returned to Earth personally, where he used his new stealth bomber mode to shoot down a plane carrying Optimus Prime and several other Autobots. He then hunted down the remaining Autobots, effortlessly defeating them and their new temporary leader Ultra Magnus with his powerful new body, and killing some of their [[Skywatch]] allies. Magnus tried to draw Megatron's attention from the humans, claiming the Autobots were the ones he really wanted, but Megatron assured him that humanity was his real target. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 3: Woken Furies|Woken Furies}} Taking the defeated Autobots captive, Megatron dumped them in a city and directed three of his mind-controlled human puppets to kill them. Contacting Prime directly, Megatron summoned him to the city's outskirts and revealed his plan: crush Prime's spirit and destroy the Autobots' alliance with humanity by forcing them to choose between fighting the humans or allowing them to kill them. Prime found the hole in Megatron's plan, however, when he realized that Soundwave was maintaining the connection between Megatron and his guns, and shot him in the head. His connection to his pawns severed, Megatron scooped up Soundwave and withdrew. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome|Burning Chrome}} Thanks to a tracker Ultra Magnus had slipped on Soundwave, though, Prime was able to follow the Decepticons to their bolthole and called Megatron out for a full and and proper confrontation. In actuality, Prime had lured Megatron outside so Skywatch could drop a [[kinetic harpoon]] on him, but even a weapon dropped from orbit barely proved able to put a scratch in Megatron's mighty new exostructure. Megatron proceeded to beat Prime senseless, but then returned him to the Autobots, and to their great shock, surrendered to their custody. After recovering, Optimus demanded to know why he had surrendered, but Megatron merely taunted him by revealing that Spike Witwicky had murdered a Decepticon in cold blood. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine|Enemy Mine}} Prime immediately had Prowl begin investigating Spike and Skywatch, and Prowl interrogated the Decepticon leader for information, which he provded after a little verbal sparring. {{storylink|Police Action: Prologue}}

[[File:ChaosTheory1 megatron imprisoned.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

When Rodimus returned to Earth and warned the Autobots that [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] had taken control of Cybertron, Optimus decided to lead the Autobots in reclaiming their homeworld. In the name of Earth's safety, he elected to bring Megatron and the the confiscated guns made from his old body with them. {{storylink|Space Opera—Final Tableaux: Orphans of the Helix|Orphans of the Helix}} On the way to Cybertron aboard [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]], Prime again attempted to discern why Megatron had surrendered, even releasing his old foe from his bonds and having a civil conversation with him about their past together and their dueling ideologies. Optimus tried to reach out to Megatron, offering him the chance to end the war once and for all with a handshake; Megatron appeared to consider it for a moment but ultimately remained silent. With Megatron returned to the confines of the [[variable voltage harness]], the other Autobots pressured Optimus for a decision on his fate: execution or imprisonment. Trying to come to a conclusion, Prime asked Megatron if he regretted any of his actions, but the Decepticon leader remarked that he only regretted not killing ''more'' Autobots. He taunted Prime with the notion that even he was thankful for the war, as it had raised him from a nobody to the greatest Autobot in history, and a furious Prime activated the harness, electrocuting Megatron. The jolt would have killed Megatron if Omega Supreme had not cut the power in time and Megatron, struggling to stay conscious, offered Prime his thanks for saving his life all those years ago in Rodion. Shocked by his actions, Prime realized that Megatron wanted to die and wanted Prime to be the one to kill him. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} Eventually, Prime decided to let Megatron choose his own fate, and Megatron calmly replied that he chose death. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 2}}
[[File:Chaos2 armored megatron.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]
As Omega drew close to Cybertron, Megatron demanded to know who or what was threatening their homeworld, but Optimus Prime refused to provde him with any information. {{storylink| Chaos Part One: Lamentations|Lamentations}} The Autobots subsequently engaged Galvatron's forces in battle, and while they were occupied, Megatron put into motion the ace he had up his sleeve: taking remote control of the numerous "Megatron guns" aboard Omega, Megatron summoned them to him and combined with them into a new armored mode. Breaking free from his restraints, he headed out to confront Galvatron, intent that nobody would take his world from him. {{storylink|Chaos Part Two: Numbers|Numbers}} As he tore through the Sweeps, Megatron also revealed the reason for his surrender: now that he was back on Cybertron, he could open a space bridge that would allow the massed forces of the Decepticons on Earth to return to their home planet as well. Unfortunately, not long after the Decepticons arrived on the battlefield, Galvatron's secret puppet master, the Dead Universe entity known as the [[D-Void]], seized control of their minds and those of the Sweeps, merging them into a gigantic, monstrous avatar. With Prime occupied pursuing Galvatron into Cybertron's depths, Megatron was left to face this "[[Deceptigod]]" alone. {{storylink|Chaos Part Three: Kings|Kings}} Fighting against the D-Void's attempts to ensnare his own mind and make him part of the collective, Megatron was gravely wounded and even lost an arm to the beast, but succeeded into destroying it, blasting it apart with one massive beam from his weapons. {{storylink|Chaos Part Four: Genesis|Genesis}}

===The long game===

Even as the Deceptigod disintegrated back into its component Decepticons, Megatron could see the potential the creature embodied—the D-Void had, in essence, created the perfect combiner by means of utterly obliterating free will. With Cybertron reverting into a primordial wasteland around him—a result of Optimus Prime purifying [[Vector Sigma]] with the Matrix to stop Galvatron and the D-Void—Megatron chose to withdraw to experiment with the possibilities this presented. He informed Shockwave, the sole Decepticon who had not been made part of the Deceptigod, of his plans, and Shockwave in turn revealed them to Soundwave and Bombshell. {{storylink|Shockpoint}} While Megatron hid in the wilderness, his Decepticons were left to live as second-class citizens in the new [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] that the Autobots built; Optimus Prime left Cybertron two weeks after the D-Void's defeat to calm tensions with "NAILs"—other unaffiliated Cybertronians—who had returned to their homeworld, but even as he did so, he mused that Megatron must still be out there somewhere. {{storylink|Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}
[[File:RID11 megatron in wilderness.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]
In the months of study and experimentation that followed, Megatron discerned that the combination of Ore-13 and space bridge technology in his body somehow gave him the ability to manipulate the natural energy of Cybertron that the D-Void had used to merge the Decepticons into the Deceptigod. After experiments on [[turbofox]]es created larger, more ferocious beasts, Megatron stepped up trials when the [[Aerialbot (G1)|Aerialbots]] seceded from the shaky government Bumblebee, [[Metalhawk (Masterforce)|Metalhawk]] and Starscream were building in Iacon and ventured into the wilderness. The signal Megatron had created from the combination energy first drove the Aerialbots mad, before uniting them in body and mind, spontaneously merging them into the gestalt [[Superion (G1)|Superion]], but this newborn Autobot combiner was considered hopelessly insane by Megatron and left to die in the wilderness. The madness aspect of the signal afforded him the chance to revive some of the principles of the infiltration protocol, however, as he blanketed the wastelands in it, forcing the Autobots, Decepticons and NAILs to stay in Iacon, causing natural conflict among them to snowball, providing a useful cover for his actions. To gain a pawn within Autobot high command, Megatron even provided Bombshell with the energy to use in conjunction with his own mind-controlling [[cerebro-shell]]s, ensnaring the mind of Prowl. With the resources and cover control of Prowl provided, Shockwave, Soundwave and Bombshell were able to use Megatron's findings to perfect the combination process, rebuilding the Constructicons with new modular designs that would allow them to merge into a perfect Devastator. The endgame was for Megatron himself to form the head of the combiner, but before risking his own mind and body, Megatron decided that Prowl would be used first as a test subject. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}}
[[File:RID12 kill him.jpg|right|thumb|350px]]
The appearance of a [[Crystal City Metrotitan|Metrotitan]] on Cybertron which declared that Starscream was the "Chosen One" threatened Megatron's ability to easily re-take leadership of his Decepticons, forcing him to step up his schedule. Through Prowl, he had his inner circle gathered together in the secret "[[Black Room]]", then boldly strode into Iacon for all to see. {{storylink|The End of the Beginning of the World}} His body shattered and skeletal, he professed to come in peace, but Bumblebee did not accept his surrender and ordered his Autobots to kill him. Indeed, Megatron could possibly have died there and then had Iacon's Decepticons not stepped in, insisting that Megatron's defense of Cybertron during the D-Void's attack marked him a hero and that he be taken into custody instead. {{storylink|City on Fire}} After [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] got through examining him to prove his body concealed no weapons, Starscream approached the imprisoned Megatron and attempted to explain that he was not far away from taking complete power in the government, ensuring a Decepticon victory of a different kind. Megatron merely smiled silently at the notion, terrifying his ex-lieutenant with his grin. Presently, the Decepticons rose up in an angry mob and marched on Autobot high command to insist on Megatron's release; the situation quickly devolved into a riot, during which a squad led by [[Needlenose]] stormed the prison and freed Megatron. {{storylink|The Verge}}
[[File:RID14 new body redux.jpg|left|thumb|275px]]
Megatron brought Starscream and the captured Bumblebee and Metalhawk to the Black Room, where he explained his plans and had himself transferred into a pre-prepared new body that could combine with the Constructicons' new forms. At his command, the Constructicons and Prowl combined into the new Devastator, who immediately set about razing Iacon. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}} Even the return of Superion seemed unable to stop the powerful new combiner, until help came from an unexpected quarter—Prowl's secret assassin [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] killed Bombshell, taking out Prowl's controller and causing Devastator to shut down. This was no real impediment to Megatron, however, as the successful function of the new combiner process has been proven, and he set out to take ''his'' place as Devastator's head. Before Megatron could reach the fallen gestalt, though, Devastator awoke, possessed of his own unique, unite consciousness for the first time, and resumed tearing into Iacon. {{storylink|Plan for Everything}}
[[File:RID20_megatron_in_forcefield.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]
Still Megatron remained unfazed, calmly fending off Autobot attacks and waiting for the inevitable moment when the heroes would take Devastator down. When [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] succeeded in doing so by managing to reach Prowl, Devastator separated, and Megatron immediately stepped in, re-initiation the combination with himself in control. Seconds before uniting with the Constructicons, though, his plan was foiled by Bumblebee, Ironhide and Prowl's activation of a secret failsafe: Wheeljack had integrated a forcefield generator into Megatron's spark casing during his examination of him, and when it was triggered, he was completely paralyzed in mid-transformation. {{storylink|Heavy Is the Head}} In the fallout of the battle, Starscream killed Metalhawk and took control of Iacon and banished the Autobots and Decepticons from the city. He took custody of the immobilized Megatron, and silently gloated over the victory he had accomplished by using guile and politics, rather than Megatron's ways of brute force and firepower. {{storylink|Three Monologues}}
Megatron would not remain in this state for long; that night, as the end result of millennia-long secret machinations by Shockwave, an [[Necrotitan|undead Metrotitan]] appeared on Cybertron and opened a portal to the Dead Universe in the planet's skies. Through the portal, Shockwave made contact with Galvatron and his master, the exiled Cybertron despot [[Nova Prime]], but was unable to bring them through to Cybertron thanks to the unexpected disappearance of the Titan's space bridge system. Reanimating the deceased Metalhawk with a wave of necrotic energy from the Titan, Shockwave had him liberate Megatron and bring him to his secret lab in [[Crystal City]]. {{storylink|Winners & Losers: Dark Cybertron Chapter 3|Winners & Losers}}
[[File:RID24 i remember you.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Ow.]]
Shockwave hoped that Megatron would comply with his plans willingly, but the Decepticon leader refused and Shockwave forcibly activated the space bridge technology in Megatron's body. {{storylink|Into the Abyss: Dark Cybertron Chapter 4|Into the Abyss}} The opening of the bridge in his chest caused Megatron agony, but his screams were heard by Soundwave, who led the united forces of the exiled Autobots and Decepticons to Shockwave's lab to free his leader. Nova Prime and Galvatron attempted to squeeze their way through the space bridge despite this interference, but Ironhide was able to punch Nova back through into the Dead Universe. At that moment, Shockwave's "Necrotitan" came crashing into the subterranean city, and in the chaos, Megatron was freed from the restraints holding him. No sooner had Megatron carried Ironhide to the safe hands of the other Autobots, however, than he was ripped in half from behind by Galvatron, who had successfully emerged through the portal {{storylink|Finest Hour: Dark Cybertron Chapter 5|Finest Hour}}

In a vision of the future seen by Ironhide and [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] during the reformatting of Cybertron, fifteen million years hence, Ironhide still believed Megatron to be alive and promised a young Autobot they would defeat him again if he ever returned. {{storylink|Pax Cybertronia (issue)|Pax Cybertronia}} {{storylink|A Better Tomorrow}}
{{-}}

===''Spotlight: Mirage''===
[[File:SLMirage all in good time.jpg|right|thumb|275px]]
{{NoteSLMirage}}
Somewhere, in an unknown time or place, the self-serving mercenary [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] dreamed of Megatron and his Decepticons launching a massive attack on the Autobots. But Mirage knew that to only be a dream; in reality, the Autobots were almost eradicated, and Megatron had hired him to hunt down the last of their number. Megatron was outraged by the mercenary's demand for a majority share in all energon mining operations as payment, but it proved to be fuel well spent, as he soon succeeded in locating Optimus Prime and forcing him to surrender. Megatron demanded the prisoners be executed despite Mirage's promise to spare Autobot lives. Seeing Mirage's hesitation, Megatron appealed to his greed. {{storylink|Spotlight: Mirage}}
{{-}}

==Notes==
* In [[Megatron Origin issue 2|''Megatron Origin'' #2]], we see that Megatron's helmet is, in fact, [[:Image:MegatronOrigin2 Megs hair.jpg|a helmet and not part of his head]] (at least in his original body). Upon removing his helmet, Megatron then briefly unfurls a crest. The significance of this moment is not explained, but it is briefly revisited in [[Remembrance Day|''More than Meets the Eye'' #14]] when a helmetless Megatron spars with [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]].

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Rulers of Cybertron]]

Megatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

2014-01-10T15:45:45Z

Solaar: /* Early days of war */

{{suite}}
{{factions|decepticon}}
[[File:IDWMegatron.jpg|thumb|300x342px|Megatron A, Megatron B, Megatron Retailer's Incentive, and Megatron Dynamic Forces Exclusive variant.]]
'''Megatron''' waged a battle to destroy the evil forces of the [[Senate]]! Then he ''continued'' to wage a war against the evil forces of freedom, organic life, and the very idea of an Autobot living.

{{quote|In the final analysis, I would happily wade across a river of corpses, chest-deep in rust and grease and engine oil, just to crush the Spark of the last Autobot standing. And I would not do so simply as a means to an end. No. I'd do it, Prime, because it would give me ''pleasure''.|Megatron to Optimus Prime|''[[Chaos Theory Part 1]]''}}

__TOC__
==IDW Generation 1 comics==
{{ongoing}}
===Birth of a tyrant===
[[File:ChaosTheory1 megatron symbol creation.jpg|left|thumb|300px|... And thus the "Silica Fracturism" art movement was born.]]
Long ago, before the war and under the reign of [[Nominus Prime]], Megatron of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]] was an [[energon]] miner, a member of the lower class, living near [[Rodion]]. An intellectual and a poet, Megatron was sickened by the caste-ridden social apartheid of Cybertronian society—where your form determined your role, and your role your rights—and so he wrote [[After the Ark: Nominus Prime and the Illusion of Progress|a treatise]] on how pacifist dissent and the exchange of ideas could change things. It was while he was sharing this work with his miner friend [[Impactor (G1)|Impactor]] over a drink in [[Maccadam's Old Oil House|Maccadam's New Oil House]] that the event occurred which would change the course of his life, as Impactor wound up being drawn into a bar brawl with some of the city's upper classes and Megatron was among those arrested after the fracas. In order to silence his increasingly loud voice of dissent against their regime, the [[Senate]] arranged for a police officer on their payroll, [[Whirl (G1)|Whirl]], to kill Megatron, but before Whirl could finish the job, police captain [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]], having discovered Megatron's innocence, arranged for his release. [[File:Minermegs.jpg|225px|thumb|Now that's the look of a well-adjusted individual.]] Despite Pax expressing support for the message of his writings, Megatron now found himself filled with rage and hate, disillusioned with his former ideology and realiing the power of applied violence. Angrily hurling the datapad on which he had written his treatise through a public info-screen, Megatron observed the jagged shape of the shattered glass, and later turned it into a [[insignia|symbol]] for his cause. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

Megatron's samizdat writings began to circulate in Cybertron's underground, spawning the "[[Decepticon]]" movement, its name derived from its own slogan, "You are being deceived", warning the common 'bot of the Senate's true nature. Knowing that, at this stage, assassinating Megatron would merely make him a martyr, the Senate instead elected to relocate him off-planet, re-assigning him to [[Mining Outpost C-12]] on the world of [[Messatine]] while they tried their own schemes to defuse the growing Decepticon movement. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}}

Megatron continued to seethe with hate and frustration in his new workplace, which reached a peak when, some time later, [[Decimus|Senator Decimus]] arrived to announce that the mine was being closed immediately and the workers would be relocated. When one of the Senator's guards killed a worker for insubordination and claims of Senate corruption, Megatron's fury boiled over and he hurled his pickaxe at Decimus. In turn, he was attacked by the Senator's guard, whom he killed by smashing his head to fragments. A riot erupted around him, but Megatron himself could only sit amongst the chaos, staring at his fuel-stained hands in abject horror, which allowed him to be easily pacified and rounded up with the other miners as the mayhem was quickly suppressed. En route to [[Penal Facility H-3|imprisonment]] back on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], however, [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] and [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] broke free and started a riot aboard [[Longshot (G1)|their ship]]. Megatron joined in their effort, and together, they overpowered their guards, took control of the ship, and disappeared into the [[Kaon]] underground. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}}
[[File:MegsOrigin2 Cykill.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
After evading law enforcement, Megatron joined a team of underworld gladiators under the tutelage of [[Clench (G1)|Clench]]. Initially repulsed by killing his opponents, the games eventually turned him more brutal and excessive, and he took control of the entire operation from Clench. The opportunistic Senator [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], after seeing how much money there was in the underworld matches, covertly sent his agent [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] to offer Megatron weaponry and technology to upgrade himself and his comrades. Their meeting was spied upon by [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (G1)|Fastback]], agents from the Senate's forces, who Megatron slew. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}} Subsequently, impressed by how he treated his animal-form [[Decepticon Mini-Cassette|cassette partners]] as equals (in contradiction to the teachings of his Senate masters), Megatron invited Soundwave back to the gladiator pits and gave him permission to use his mind-reading abilities on him. Within Megatron's mind, Soundwave saw his honest desire for all Cybertronians to be true equals, and was so moved by it that he joined Megatron's cause. {{storylink|Soundwaves (issue)|Soundwaves}}

Gradually, Megatron used the gladiatorial games to drum up an army of violent malcontents, sending Soundwave to recruit more and more warriors to his cause. Such recruits included [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]], who he was presented with while having an arm he lost in a brawl replaced with a new limb that incorporated an [[energon mace]], {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} and the disenfranchised warrior [[Drift (G1)|Drift]], who was personally asked by Megatron to fight at his side when he attended a Decepticon rally, and whom Megatron rechristened "Deadlock". {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}} Seeking to enhance his army even further, Megatron reached out to [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Senator Shockwave]], offering to supply him the resources to perfect the teachings of his lost mentor [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] and create a [[combiner]] that would serve the Decepticons. Shockwave cautioned that it could take some time, but Megatron was content to wait. {{storylink|Shockwaves}}

[[File:Apexthrone.JPG|250px|thumb|right|You should have gone to IKEA.]]
Despite all his efforts, Megatron believed that the Senate was still not taking the Decepticons seriously, so Soundwave formulated a plan for a declaration of intent that could be not denied: lure the Senate to Kaon and murder them. {{storylink|Soundwaves (issue)|Soundwaves}} In preparation for this scheme, Megatron offered to restore Shockwave's lost hands—a victim of [[empurata]]—believing that doing so might speed his work. {{storylink|Shockwaves}} The following day, in accordance with Soundwave's plan, Megatron and the Decepticons allowed themselves to be arrested by Sentinel Prime's men, after which Soundwave was freed on Ratbat's orders, while Starscream would ensure his own release by pretending to defect. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} Together, Soundwave and Starscream exterminated the entire Senate, then liberated Megatron and the rest of their comrades, in the process granting their leader the gift of a [[fusion cannon]] liberated from the Senate forces' armory. Megatron led his army against Sentinel Prime's men, killed Sentinel himself, and took control of Kaon, now ready to turn his insurgency into a full-blown war. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

===Early days of war===

Megatron formally declared war on "[[Declaration Day]]" when he delivered a stirring speach from [[Nova Point|Nova Peak]]. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} The growing Decepticon forces swiftly spread across six [[Polities of Cybertron|Torus-States]], {{storylink|Parasites}} and to combat them, Cybertron's new leader [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]] assembled a new military force, the "[[Autobot]]s", led by Megatron's old acquaintance [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]]. Researching his new opposite number, Megatron was intrigued to discover that his now-abandoned treatise had been a source of inspiration for Pax, who had even quoted from it when he confronted the Senate and openly accused them of corruption. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}} Early into the war, [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] would admit to Pax that Megatron talked about him sometimes, when he was tired. When Pax asked what was said, Bludgeon told him that it would make "both of us feel ''uncomfortable''". {{storylink|Omega's Conundrum}}
[[File:Autocracy4 backroom meeting.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]
When Orion Pax came close to Kaon during a mission, Megatron saw it as a chance to speak to him and had his Decepticons bring him in. {{storylink|The Hunt for Soundwave}} Megatron attempted to convince him that Zeta Prime was even worse than he appeared—that he had planned tto let Orion die in [[Nyon]] so that he could use his death as pretext to invade the rebel-infested city and drain the citizens of their energon—and proposed they work together against him, but Orion refused to hear him and then escaped. Knowing the doubts he'd placed in his head would only serve to damage the Autobot cause, Megatron let him go. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}}
[[File:Autocracy8 megs and pax together.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Banzai!]]
Megatron continued to keep an eye on Orion Pax's activities, spying on his encounter with the Nyon insurgent [[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hot Rod]]. {{storylink|Ruins}} When Zeta Prime's [[Guardian robot|Omega Destructor]]s suddenly attacked Nyon, Megatron was surprised by how zealously the new Prime fought against the city's rebels, but his real interest still lay on how Orion would handle the crisis. {{storylink|Purge}} Orion turned on Zeta, who in turn attempted to kill him, prompting Megatron to intervene and force the Prime to retreat. Taking Orion back to Kaon, he again offered that they work together against Zeta's corruption, and this time the Autobot officer accepted. {{storylink|Choices}} As their combined forces invaded the [[Citadel]] in Iacon, Megatron and Orion Pax made their way inside and fought Zeta Prime in person. The battle ended with Megatron killing the Prime with a head shot, and with his objective complete, he then betrayed the injured Orion by shooting him in the back. {{storylink|Overthrown}} Curiously, an alternate report incorrectly implied that Megatron had assassinated Zeta from afar, sniping him with the rifle alternate mode of [[Vos (DJD)|Vos]]. {{storylink|Bullets}} {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}}
[[File:Autocracy12 no you dont megatron.jpg|left|thumb|250px|This seems so familiar...]]
With Zeta dead, Megatron conquered Iacon and declared himself ruler of Cybertron. His soldiers patrolled the planet's streets to "keep the peace", mostly by hunting down and capturing any remaining Autobots who opposed him. {{storylink|Transformation (issue)|Transformation}} During his rule, Megatron attempted to sway the neutral Hot Rod into joining the Decepticons, but he decided otherwise upon witnessing Megatron ordering the execution of several Autobot prisoners. {{storylink|Rise}} Megatron was shocked to learn that Orion Pax had survived the betrayal and was organizing a rebellion against him under the name "Optimus Prime", and even more shocked that people actually had the courage to listen to him. He wasted no time in striking back against the rebels approaching the Citadel with the full force of his army. {{storylink|Broadcast}} During the battle, Megatron unleashed Zeta Prime's energy-draining [[vamparc ribbon|vamparc annihilator]], but when the gigantic [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] took out the cannon, Megatron fell to the streets and was confronted by Optimus Prime himself. He lost the ensuing [[The Transformers: The Movie|familiar-looking duel]] and was badly wounded after a failed attempt to defeat Prime by holding Hot Rod hostage, forcing him to escape aboard Astrotrain. As he fled, he warned Optimus that he hadn't won, he had only started a war unlike any Cybertron had ever seen. {{storylink|Endgame}}

[[File:Monstrosity3_Megatron_and_Pentius.jpg|thumb|right|300px|"WORDS THAT KILL~"]]
Before Megatron could recover from his injuries, he was betrayed by [[Scorponok (G1)|Scorponok]], who was gunning for the position of Decepticon leader (with aid from Starscream, against Megatron's knowledge). As punishment for his failure to hold Iacon, Scorponok banished the wounded Megatron to the hell-world of [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]]. {{storylink|Derelicts}} Further injured in battle with some [[Junkion (species)|cannibalistic natives]], he stubbornly refused to give up and used the trash littering the world to patch himself up, leaving him with a mismatched, monstrous appearance. {{storylink|Wreckage (issue)|Wreckage}} While searching for a way off Junkion, Megatron entered the wreckage of a starship and found a trapped [[Quintesson]] named [[Pentius]], who had mapped the planet and knew of an area known as the [[Pillar of Rust]] where starships may land and take off. Megatron freed the alien to guide him there, while also putting him in chains to serve as his slave. {{storylink|Faces of Darkness}}
[[File:Monstrosity7 megatron takes pentius spark.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
While crossing the [[Acid Sea]] on the way to the Pillar, Megatron was attacked by [[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticons]] who pulled him into the depths. {{storylink|Rage (IDW)|Rage}} For reasons unknown he was then released, the creatures having allowed him to live. As he emerged, Pentius was waiting with a history lesson, telling him that Junkion was once a prosperous world until its inhabitants drained it of resources, leaving it the broken husk it is today: a fate that may also await Cybertron. Megatron rejected this possibility, declaring that under his rule, Cybertron—and his legacy—would last forever. {{storylink|Fallout (issue)|Fallout}} On arrival at the Pillar of Rust, Megatron was met by the [[Terrorcon (G1)|Terrorcons]], who had come to Junkion to finish what Scorponok had started by killing him. He was able to fight off several of his attackers, but [[Hun-Gurrr (G1)|Hun-Gar]] was too much for him to handle in his injured state. Egged on and taunted by Pentius, Megatron realized he had one last resource left to use: the Quintesson himself. Telling Pentius that his legacy would live on within him, he tore out the alien's [[spark]] and used it to fuel himself, granting him enough power to defeat Hun-Gar. He spared the Terrorcons in exchange for their loyalty, then returned to Cybertron on their ship to take revenge on Scorponok and take back control of the Decepticons. {{storylink|Prey (issue)|Prey}}
[[File:Monstrosity12 strange turns.jpg|right|thumb|300px|To be fair, that's all we can think about regarding you two, as well.]]
Megatron returned to a Cybertron in chaos, as the ancient reptilian [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]] had been unleashed by Scorponok and was in the midst of razing Iacon. After reasserting his leadership of the Decepticons by beating Scorponok nearly to death, he had Shockwave restore his body to it original shape and condition, {{storylink|The Illusion of Control}} and set out to investigate the Trypticon situation alone, unwilling to risk his soldiers in the face of the beast's uncontrolled fury. Finding an injured Optimus Prime on the battlefield, Megatron lectured him, but opted to leave him alive so that he could watch as the Decepticon leader defeated the enemy that Prime could not. Megatron was attacked by [[Grimlock (G1)|Grimlock]], but as they grappled, they were swallowed by Trypticon. {{storylink|Annihilation}} Within the giant, the pair set their differences aside to fend off the [[cyber-morphic predators]] that populated his interior, and together, they destroyed Trypticon's internal power cell, taking him offline. A tense standoff between the Autobots and Decepticons followed as the two warriors emerged from within Trypticon, but both sides agreed to go their separate ways for the time being. Not long after the battle, however, Megatron removed Pentius's spark from within himself and installed it within Trypticon, reviving the monster as a Decepticon. {{storylink|Belly of the Beast}}

===The spreading conflict===
[[File:MTMTE14 megatron vs overlord.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]
Megatron's actions during the war were many. Early during the conflict, he wrote ''[[Towards Peace]]'', a new treatise to replace ''After the Ark'', in which he described continuing to fight the war until the very notion of conflict was literally inconceivable. Then and only then would he finally give up his fusion cannon. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} He oversaw the creation of a class of super-warriors known as the [[Warriors Elite]], selecting only his most powerful troops to undergo the torturous upgrade, including [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]], a brilliant sadist and frequent opponent of his from his pit-fighting days who had developed an obsession with Megatron after the Decepticon leader dealt him his first ever defeat. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} At some point, he also created the [[Decepticon Justice Division]] to deal with traitors, {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}} though he elected not to send them after Deadlock when he defected, valuing the warrior enough to instead dispatch [[Lockdown (G1)|Lockdown]] to bring him in. {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}}
[[File:ChaosTheory prime vs megatron montage.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]
Megatron would personally clash with Optimus Prime many times; Optimus grew to respect and fear Megatron as a calm, calculating and measured opponent, while Megatron himself respected Prime's sheer power and his skill as a tactician and as a leader. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} Megatron would later incorrectly recall their battle on [[Sherma Bridge]] during the [[Rorsha Campaign]] as the first time they met. Said battle was certainly momentous—every Autobot and Decepticon stopped fighting to witness their duel, during which Megatron's cannon arm was sliced off by Prime's [[energon-axe]], and he claimed revenge by throwing the Autobot leader off the bridge. As the war spread to other planets, they would meet again and again: during the [[Siege of Massunstrad]], Megatron sealed Prime in an anti-matter chamber; on [[Rada Mor]], Prime reduced Megatron to ashes with sentient explosives; and in the midst of the [[Vorsk Offensive]], Megatron was nearly sliced in half by Prime. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} Megatron took on a new pistol alternate mode for the [[Battle for Hell's Point]], during which he was used by [[Heretech]] to blast [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]]. {{storylink|The Gloaming}} During the same skirmish, Megatron took off half of Prime's face with his energon mace, but had a city block dropped on him by Prime in retribution, which shattered his [[transformation cog]] and trapped him in gun mode for two years. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} At the war's zenith, Megatron sealed himself in an [[Omniglobe]] to absorb the relentless flood of data coming in from countless fronts. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}}

Prime was not the only old face that Megatron would see again during the war: during a battle on an aerial drilling platform over the [[Manganese Mountains]], Megatron came face-to-face with his old friend Impactor, and stood poised to execute him until Impactor gave him a moment's pause by recalling his old fondness for poetry. In this moment, Megatron was knocked from the platform by [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] and sent plummeting to the mountains below. {{storylink|Zero Point}}
[[File:LastStandoftheWreckers2-teleconference.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]
With total war going nowhere, Megatron would go on to develop a six-stage [[infiltration protocol]] to be used for conquering targeted planets. The sixth phase called for outright planetary razing, and Megatron selected three of his Warriors Elite for this task: [[Sixshot]], {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}}, Overlord and [[Black Shadow (Victory)|Black Shadow]]. He informed this trio of his decision via teleconference, but Overlord tired of being used as someone else's weapon and refused. Megatron threatened to hunt Overlord down for his disobedience, {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 2|Last Stand of the Wreckers #2}} but while the powerful warrior spent the rest of his life preparing for this conflict, Megatron never followed up and left him to stew in his own obsession. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}}
[[File:Stormbringer1 get up and fight.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]
Deducing that the Autobot/Decepticon war would culminate in an energy crisis that would threatened the stability of Cybertron itself, Shockwave left Cybertron to secretly pursue alternate energy sources. Around 10,000 years ago, when Shockwave did not return, Megatron ordered Bludgeon to investigate his files, {{storylink|Spotlight: Shockwave}} secretly assigning Soundwave to investigate Bludgeon {{storylink|Spotlight: Soundwave}} and probe deeper into whatever it was Shockwave had created. {{storylink|Shockpoint}}

Shockwave's prediction soon proved accurate, and Cybertron found itself in the throes of an energy shortage. Decepticon scientist [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]] came to Megatron with a revolutionary, controversial plan to stave off this energy death by [[Pretender|polydermal grafting]], a process where they encased themselves in "symbiotic carapaces", or shells created from living tissue. When Megatron dismissed him angrily and cut him down, Thunderwing did not abandon his research; instead, he experimented on himself. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} The process gave him immense power, but drove him insane. He became so dangerous that Megatron had to join forces with Optimus Prime to stop him. This battle at [[Thunderhead Pass]] accelerated the apocalypse destined to befall Cybertron, leaving it an uninhabitable, radioactive husk and forcing both armies to continue their war on other worlds. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 1|Stormbringer #1}} Megatron advocated that they simply destroy Cybertron to ensure that Thunderwing was destroyed, but Prime refused, and threatened to stop Megatron if he tried. Megatron agreed not to destroy the planet, but warned Prime that whatever happened was on his head. Shortly after the last big push by the Decepticons, Cybertron was abandoned by both factions. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 1|Stormbringer #2}}

===Breaking protocol===
[[File:Infiltration4 enter megatron.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]
In the present day, when word reached Megatron that the infiltration unit led by [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]], stationed on the planet [[Earth]], had broken protocol, he headed for the planet to investigate. Examining the unit's abandoned bunker in [[Nebraska]] for information, he discovered that Starscream had stumbled across [[Ultra-Energon|Ore-13]]—an incredible energy source that (unbeknownst to Megatron) was the end result of Shockwave's experiments—and was planning to use it to usurp Megatron's command. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} While studying the bunker's files, he was contacted by [[Razorclaw (G1)|Razorclaw]] with some distressing news: Bludgeon's investigations of Shockwave's files had led him to revive Thunderwing. Megatron ordered the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]] to Cybertron, authorizing them to do whatever was necessary to destroy Thunderwing, including the destruction of their homeworld itself. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} Just as he was handing down this order, Megatron was happened upon by [[Verity Carlo]], a human ally of the Autobot unit active on the planet, {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} but he utterly ignored her. The bunker was then leveled by an airstrike courtesy of [[Thundercracker (G1)|Thundercracker]] and [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]], who were merely covering their unit's tracks and unaware of Megatron's presence; when their leader furiously emerged from the wreckage, they attempted to explain their ignorance, but he simply responded by blasting Skywarp out of the sky. [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] soon arrived on the scene, and favored opening fire rather than attempting explanations, so Megatron beat the stuffing out of him too, then set off for Starscream's new bunker in [[Oregon]]. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 5|Infiltration #5}}

[[File:Infiltration6 takeyourpunishment.jpg|250px|thumb|Those librarians are getting really strict on late returns.]]

{{quote|You will stand down. If you fight, you ''die''. There is no room anymore for mercy. In the end, you are ''all'' expendable. Choose.|Megatron's ultimatum to Starscream's troops|[[Infiltration issue 6|''Infiltration'' #6]]}}

[[Orbital jump|Orbital jumping]] to Oregon, Megatron called Starscream out and ordered the team to stand down, disgusted to see such power games being played amongst his troops. His brief, chilling speech was enough to take the fight out of all but Starscream, who, powered-up on Ore-13, took Megatron on himself. Though the new power source made Starscream a formidable adversary, Megatron was still more deadly than he, and Starscream was taken out by a point-blank fusion cannon blast through his torso. Megatron ordered the Decepticons to ensure that Starscream survived, and then, observing the Autobots who had been watching the battle, announced that it was time to begin phase two. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6}}

In light of the discovery of Ore-13, Megatron took stock of Starscream's progress on Earth and elected to get the infiltration protocol back on track himself, calling a meeting to make Starscream's former troops and making them aware, in no uncertain terms, that any further insurrections would be met with deadly force. {{storylink|Escalation issue 1|Escalation #1}} He was even able to revisit his past gun alternate mode, once again able to achieve the [[size changing|mass displacement]] the mode required thanks to the extra energy Ore-13 provided. {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}}

[[File:Megsandspidy.jpg|left|250px|thumb|]]
With his forces joined by [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]], a new arrival who Megatron suspected of having ulterior motives, {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} the Decepticon leader initiated phase two of infiltration protocol by destabilizing relations between the European nations of [[Latveria]] and [[Symkaria]] through use of an aggression-inducing [[Psycho-Prism]], stolen from Latverian dicatator [[Doctor Doom]]. When the superhero team known as the [[Avengers]] investigated the array the Decepticons' were using to broadcast the prism's signal, Megatron abducted the arachnid-powered [[Spider-Man]] to use as a subject for their [[mirror response mode]], {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}} draining the hero's powers and infusing himself and the other Decepticons with them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} He proceeded to forge a brief alliance with Doctor Doom, who helped him defeat and capture the allied Autobot/Avenger team who snuck inside the Decepticons' array, but when Doom's suggestion to threaten the captives in order to force the other heroes to lay down their arms failed, Megatron violently dissolved the partnership. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Three}} Emerging from the confines of the array to take on the Autobots and Avengers himself, Megatron refrained from engaging Prime, foreesing a more intimate confrontation between the two of them in the near future, and instead turned his attention to destroying [[Iron Man]]'s Transformer-sized armor. The tables soon turned, however, when Doctor Doom freed the captive Autobots and used the Decepticon's mirror response technology to empower them. Defeated by these enhanced Autobots and with the Psycho-Prism destroyed by [[Wolverine (superhero)|Wolverine]], Megatron used the last of his extra power to teleport the Decepticons out with an [[emergency warp-out]]. He refrained from departing alongside his warriors, intending to slaughter the Avengers for their interference, but when he was immobilized by Spider-Man's webbing, knocked to the ground by [[Luke Cage]], and rattled by a hail of Autobot fire, he finally warped-out with a final taunt to Optimus Prime of the battle yet to come between them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Four}}
[[File:Massdisplacement.jpg|right|thumb|400px]]
With phase two of infiltration protocol properly underway, Megatron recognized that he ''should'' rightly withdraw and install a new unit commander on Earth, but could not resist the chance to try out his new Ore-13 empowered body, selecting the nation of [[Brasnya]], where Decepticon subterfuge was already underway, as his testing ground. {{storylink|Escalation issue 2|Escalation #2}} Allowing the Decepticon's [[facsimile construct]] [[Georgi Koska]] to wield him in pistol mode, Megatron had Koska use him to first sever a [[Russia]]n oil pipeline, and then to fire upon the soldiers who came to investigate, furthering the political and military tensions already brewing in the region. When word came through from Blitzwing that Optimus Prime and the Autobots had arrived, {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}} Megatron at last engaged Optimus directly, {{storylink|Escalation issue 4|Escalation #4}} and although Prime was able to destroy his fusion cannon, the extra strength afforded Megatron by Ore-13 allowed him to physically beat Prime into submission, punching directly into his chest and crushing his [[spark]]. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} [[File:Escalation5 prime vs megs.jpg|left|thumb|250px]] The horrified Autobots moved into a full but ineffective counterattack, their only edge being that Megatron had no long-range guns left. It turned out that Prime's apparent death was a desperate ruse when the Autobot leader countered with a surprise attack on Megatron, able to exploit Ore-13's weakness—the more it's used, the faster it burns itself out. Megatron almost collapsed from power loss and was forced to have Skywarp take him to safety before the Autobots could kill him. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}}

Furious over the embarrassing defeat, Megatron threw protocol out the window and ordered that Sixshot be summoned to the planet. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}} He took out some of his anger on Ramjet, who he discovered had been busy cooking up a plot to overthrow him; without saying a word, he beat the attempted traitor to death before tearing him apart and keeping his head as a trophy. {{storylink|Spotlight: Ramjet}}
[[File:Devastation5 decepticons attack.jpg|thumb|right|250px]]
Upon Sixshot's arrival, Megatron ordered him to utterly destroy the Autobots, and although the Phase Sixer questioned his early deployment, he was happy to go along with the abandonment of the phase structure. The other Decepticons, on the other hand, were worried that Megatron was losing his grip—and since they were too scared to tell him that, they decided to revive Starscream to do it for them. {{storylink|Devastation issue 1|Devastation #1}} Megatron monitored Sixshot's attack on the Autobots' [[Ark-19]], ordering him to pursue the escape pod that broke away from the crashing craft, {{storylink|Devastation issue 2|Devastation #2}} but before he could obliterate the Autobots, Megatron was forced to recall him to deal with a new threat assaulting the Decepticon base—the alien [[Reaper]]s. {{storylink|Devastation issue 4|Devastation #4}} Unfortunately, the Reapers convinced Sixshot to side with them, and when an Ore-13 powered Starscream entered the fray to take Sixshot down, Megatron realized his troops had been conspiring against him. He decided not to punish them '''yet''', due to greater threat posed by the Reapers, {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}} and entered battle alongside them all, even allowing Starscream to wield him in pistol mode against the aliens. After the invaders were dead, however, he turn on his men, starting with Blitzwing—but was forced to realize that they needed to remain united when it became apparent that their battle with the Reapers had made humanity inescapably aware of their existence {{storylink|Devastation issue 6|Devastation #6}}
{{--}}

===All Hail Megatron===
[[File:AHM7 megs rips out matrix.jpg|left|thumb|200px]]
While the Decepticons were occupied fighting the Reapers, the Autobots had left Earth to deal with the greater threat of an incursion by the [[Dead Universe]]. Exploiting their enemies' absence, Megatron and his men went to ground; when Autobots returned, they could find no trace of the Decepticons, who kept one step ahead of them for months. Secretly abducting [[Hunter O'Nion]], former [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]] partner to the Autobot [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]], Megatron and his men returned to Cybertron, where Megatron had [[Deluge (G2)|Deluge]] conduct experiments that bred a [[Insecticon swarm|swarm]] of monstrous [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticons]]. The experiments culminated in the creation of [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]], who Megatron employed in a series of key tasks in his plan: the Insecticon obtained from Hunter's mind various Autobot secrets and codes, completed Shockwave's long-gestating combiner process, granting the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] the ability to combine into [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]], and created a working [[space bridge]] {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} based on designs sold to them by Sixshot in exchange for his freedom. {{storylink|Spotlight: Metroplex}}

Returning to Earth, the Decepticons staged a phony schism within their ranks, allowing the Autobots to believe that they had "disappeared" as a result of a power struggle that had split their ranks into two camps, one led by Megatron and one by Starscream. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} Starscream then approached Sunstreaker, whose experience has a Headmaster had left him bitter and jaded, with the proposition that the Autobots join with his forces against Megatron, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 8|All Hail Megatron #8}} but when the Autobots arrived at the designated time and place, they were instead confronted by the united Decepticon army and quickly defeated by Devastator. After personally tearing [[Matrix of Leadership]] from Optimus Prime's chest, Megatron marched the captive Autobots through the space bridge back to Cybertron, where the Insecticon swarm waited for them. Prime, however, was able to damage the bridge, causing it to deposit the Autobots a safe distance from the swarm, but in the process, fried his own circuits and left himself comatose. Though the Autobots had escaped the fate he had intended for them, Megatron had successfully exiled his enemies to their dead homeworld; morever, using information and codes gained from Sunstreaker and Hunter, he concurrently orchestrated the event that would later be known as [[Surge (event)|The Surge]], as Decepticons stormed Autobot installations all across the galaxy, achieving total victory. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}}

[[File:Bringingthehousedown.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Megatron's urban renewal program was off to a flying start.]]

With galaxy-wide domination accomplished, one year after the Decepticons' battle with the Reapers, Megatron chose Earth to become the new Decepticon homeworld. Together with his men, Megatron stormed [[New York City]], humiliating Starscream with a display of his greater capacity for destruction. When the US Air Force retaliated, Megatron shrugged off their fire and ordered the other Decepticons to engage them; when one damaged jet threw itself toward him in a suicide run, Megatron, outraged at the [[DJ (G1)|pilot]]'s temerity, destroyed it and its occupant with a furious swipe of his hand. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} When US Army forces arrived, Megatron ordered [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] dispatched to deal with them, then sent Devastator to destroy the subway tunnels leading out of the city. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 2|All Hail Megatron #2}} With New York secured, Megatron directed the Constructicons to begin building new space bridge in the city's heart, and had a candid talk with Starscream, revealing his belief that the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seeker]]'s attitude and actions marked him as the embodiment of the Decepticon cause, even if he was blind to seeing it himself. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 3|All Hail Megatron #3}} After a series of further attacks on major American cities saw the country firmly crushed under the Decepticons' collective heel, Megatron made a propaganda speech to his men in the ruins of New York. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 4|All Hail Megatron #4}} As night fell upon the city, Megatron withdrew to privately gloat over the Matrix. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 5|All Hail Megatron #5}}

[[File:AHM6MegatronVsIsrael.jpg|left|300px|thumb|]]
As the Decepticons began attacking other countries around the globe, Megatron was questioned by Starscream on what the next step in his plan was. A recalcitrant Megatron merely informed him that it was merely time to savor their victory, but Starscream accused him of not ''having'' any plans post-victory, and was merely allowing his men to run wild to distract them from any notion of taking power for themselves. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}} What Starscream did not realize was that Megatron did indeed have a plan: to defeat the Autobots, he had created an army of killers and monsters, but in order to create his perfect rule, that army would have to be destroyed, the dissenting, distasteful elements obliterated before Megatron's peace could dawn. Megatron was not distracting his warriors... he was ''waiting'' to see which of them would question and turn on him. Silently sorrowful to already know that such dissent would begin with Starscream, an otherwise-model Decepticon, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}} Megatron withdrew to [[Israel]] for some silent reflection amid wholesale devastation. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}}

[[File:AHM10 megs vs devastator.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

Some time later, Megatron surveyed the space bridge Bombshell and the Constructicons had built in New York. He congratulated Bombshell on his work, but revealed that he had always foreseen Bombshell's intellect as a danger—had always known he and his fellow Insecticons would side with Starscream when the time came. His gambit exposed, Starscream made his move and attacked, but the Insecticons proved no match for Megatron's might. The Decepticon leader had failed to anticipate one thing, however: he did not foresee the Constructicons siding with Starscream, and found himself having to fight the mighty Devastator. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}} The in-fighting was halted by a last-ditch attack by the mustered might of what remained of the human resistance, forcing Megatron and Starscream to put their differences aside momentarily and organize a defense. This attack came as no surprise to Megatron, but the same could not be said for the next entrants onto the battlefield: the Autobots had returned.

After assuring Starscream that he would be leader in the future, when his time was done, Megatron confronted Optimus Prime, surprised not so much that his old foe had survived, but that he had bothered to return to Earth. Both leaders had always maintained a policy of acceptable losses through their millennia-long war, so Megatron assumed Prime had come back for selfish reasons, to reclaim the Matrix, but Prime insisted that he had changed, and would no longer allow their cold war to endanger innocent lives on this scale. [[File:AHM12 prime vs megs.jpg|left|thumb|300px|]] Megatron scoffed at the notion, reavling that Prime's supposedly "innocent" humans were planning to nuke New York, killing millions of their own just to get rid of the Decepticons, {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 11|All Hail Megatron #11}} but Prime retorted that it wasn't ''just'' about the humans, but also about the difference between Autobots and Decepticons. The two came to blows, but Megatron triumphed in short order and commanded the Decepticons to depart, leaving the Autobots to be killed by the humans' nuke... but just before they withdrew, he was shot in the face by human soldier [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], wielding a powerful weapon reverse-engineered from Cybertronian technology. Injured and disoriented by the blast, Megatron was finished off when Prime smashed his face in with his own fusion cannon. As he wanted to ''take'' leadership rather than just have it fall in his hands, Starscream picked up his damaged leader and ordered the Decepticons to retreat. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

[[File:AllHisEngines-Megatron.jpg|thumb|Pretty sure when you float in a bacta tank you're supposed to be wearing a diaper.]]
The Decepticons departed Earth aboard Astrotrain, where the gravely wounded Megatron was put on life support and tended to by Soundwave and his cassettes. With Megatron's life signs only at ten percent capacity, Starscream attempted to appeal to Soundwave's sense of logic and have him shut down so that leadership could be his, but Soundwave refused. Starscream was soon able to take command, however, when he recovered the Matrix of Leadership and professed to have been chosen by it. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 13|Uneasy Lies the Head}}

===New body, new powers===

The Decepticons eventually settled on a desolate asteroid, where Megatron was installed in a [[CR chamber|CR tank]]. Retaining some level of awareness of the events occurring around him during his convalescence, he was forced to watch as his army languished in inactivity, their energy slowly ebbing away until they were reduced to cannibalism. {{storylink|All His Engines}} After a year of trying to free his leader from this living death, Soundwave was finally forced to conclude that Megatron's body was beyond repair, and recruited the recently-returned Shockwave, whom Starscream had provided with the majority of the Decepticons' resources to create a space bridge, to help build a new body for Megatron's consciousness to inhabit. The operation succeeded and Megatron was reborn in a deadly new body, powered by Ore-13, armed with a devastatingly powerful rail gun, and even equipped with space bridge nodes stolen from Metroplex, which gave him the ability to open space bridge portals on his own. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

[[File:IDWongoing15 megatrons new body.jpg|left|thumb|275px|"Uh, it's like...did anyone ever see the movie ''Tron''?"]]

Back in action, Megatron devised a plan to destabilize the relationship between the humans and Autobots on Earth. Together with Soundwave and Shockwave, he chopped up his old body and used it to create human-scaled replicas of his former gun mode, containing small pieces of his own consciousness. When Starscream caught them in the act, Megatron elected to table his plan for the moment, as he considered it folly to go against Starscream's wishes for the moment since the Seeker was still in possession of the Matrix of Leadership. Megatron had never truly understood what the talisman ''did'', but it served as a threat merely by being an unknown variable. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} Fortunately, for Megatron this variable was soon removed from the equation when Hot Rod, estranged from the Earthbound Autobots, infiltrated the Decepticons' asteroid base and recovered the Matrix from Starscream. Megatron seized his chance, intercepting the Autobot and blasting him and the Matrix out into the void of space. {{storylink|Heart Like a Wheel}}

[[File:SLMegatron stealth bomber mode.jpg|right|thumb|275px|Behold... the ''Bomberang!'']]

With Starscream's trump card now gone, Megatron had the Decepticons gathered so he could address them. Distrustful of Shockwave's motives for preparing his new body, wary of Soundwave's constant surveillance, and repulsed by the state of his once fearsome Decepticon war machine, Megatron decided that he needed to unequivocally reestablish dominance over the now Matrix-less Starscream. He intended to beat Starscream near to death as a means of letting them both work out their frustrations with Starscream's inability to lead effectively during Megatron's absence, but Starscream did not want to fight—spiritually broken by his failures, he simply wanted Megatron to kill him. Rather than accept this, Megatron instead goaded Starscream into opening fire upon him. This began a running battle between the two, with Megatron pursuing the fleeing Seeker in his new stealth bomber alternate mode, continuing to bait Starscream every time he appeared willing to give up the fight. Incensed by Starscream's accusation that he did not know what it felt like to see everything he had worked for fall apart, when that was exactly what Starscream's pitiful leadership had done to the empire he had created, Megatron pummeled him to within an inch of his life, then paused to explain why he kept a schemer like Starscream around: as a constant reminder to watch his back. The brutal display galvanized the languid Decepticons, and Megatron was ready to begin his scheme. {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

[[File:IDWongoing14 megatron guns.jpg|left|thumb|300px]]

Roughly two years after the Decepticons' defeat on Earth, Megatron used his space bridge powers to dispatch a container full of the guns made from his old body to Earth, where they were found by South American gun-runners and illegally disseminated amongst an increasingly paranoid public seeking ways to protect themselves against Transformers. This allowed Megatron's consciousness to spread across North America, until it was focused enough to contact one particular owner of a Megatron gun: [[Joe Gladki]]. He deceived and manipulated the paranoid human, and eventually convinced him to perform an assassination attempt on [[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]], the new Autobot leader. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} In their ignorance, the Autobots then mistook Gladki's gun for Megatron himself and held it captive. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 1: The Demolished Man|The Demolished Man}}

[[File:IDWongoing16 megatron vs autobots.jpg|right|thumb|250px]]

With the Autobots in chaos, Megatron started the next phase of his plan and returned to Earth personally, where he used his new stealth bomber mode to shoot down a plane carrying Optimus Prime and several other Autobots. He then hunted down the remaining Autobots, effortlessly defeating them and their new temporary leader Ultra Magnus with his powerful new body, and killing some of their [[Skywatch]] allies. Magnus tried to draw Megatron's attention from the humans, claiming the Autobots were the ones he really wanted, but Megatron assured him that humanity was his real target. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 3: Woken Furies|Woken Furies}} Taking the defeated Autobots captive, Megatron dumped them in a city and directed three of his mind-controlled human puppets to kill them. Contacting Prime directly, Megatron summoned him to the city's outskirts and revealed his plan: crush Prime's spirit and destroy the Autobots' alliance with humanity by forcing them to choose between fighting the humans or allowing them to kill them. Prime found the hole in Megatron's plan, however, when he realized that Soundwave was maintaining the connection between Megatron and his guns, and shot him in the head. His connection to his pawns severed, Megatron scooped up Soundwave and withdrew. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome|Burning Chrome}} Thanks to a tracker Ultra Magnus had slipped on Soundwave, though, Prime was able to follow the Decepticons to their bolthole and called Megatron out for a full and and proper confrontation. In actuality, Prime had lured Megatron outside so Skywatch could drop a [[kinetic harpoon]] on him, but even a weapon dropped from orbit barely proved able to put a scratch in Megatron's mighty new exostructure. Megatron proceeded to beat Prime senseless, but then returned him to the Autobots, and to their great shock, surrendered to their custody. After recovering, Optimus demanded to know why he had surrendered, but Megatron merely taunted him by revealing that Spike Witwicky had murdered a Decepticon in cold blood. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine|Enemy Mine}} Prime immediately had Prowl begin investigating Spike and Skywatch, and Prowl interrogated the Decepticon leader for information, which he provded after a little verbal sparring. {{storylink|Police Action: Prologue}}

[[File:ChaosTheory1 megatron imprisoned.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]

When Rodimus returned to Earth and warned the Autobots that [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] had taken control of Cybertron, Optimus decided to lead the Autobots in reclaiming their homeworld. In the name of Earth's safety, he elected to bring Megatron and the the confiscated guns made from his old body with them. {{storylink|Space Opera—Final Tableaux: Orphans of the Helix|Orphans of the Helix}} On the way to Cybertron aboard [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]], Prime again attempted to discern why Megatron had surrendered, even releasing his old foe from his bonds and having a civil conversation with him about their past together and their dueling ideologies. Optimus tried to reach out to Megatron, offering him the chance to end the war once and for all with a handshake; Megatron appeared to consider it for a moment but ultimately remained silent. With Megatron returned to the confines of the [[variable voltage harness]], the other Autobots pressured Optimus for a decision on his fate: execution or imprisonment. Trying to come to a conclusion, Prime asked Megatron if he regretted any of his actions, but the Decepticon leader remarked that he only regretted not killing ''more'' Autobots. He taunted Prime with the notion that even he was thankful for the war, as it had raised him from a nobody to the greatest Autobot in history, and a furious Prime activated the harness, electrocuting Megatron. The jolt would have killed Megatron if Omega Supreme had not cut the power in time and Megatron, struggling to stay conscious, offered Prime his thanks for saving his life all those years ago in Rodion. Shocked by his actions, Prime realized that Megatron wanted to die and wanted Prime to be the one to kill him. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} Eventually, Prime decided to let Megatron choose his own fate, and Megatron calmly replied that he chose death. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 2}}
[[File:Chaos2 armored megatron.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]
As Omega drew close to Cybertron, Megatron demanded to know who or what was threatening their homeworld, but Optimus Prime refused to provde him with any information. {{storylink| Chaos Part One: Lamentations|Lamentations}} The Autobots subsequently engaged Galvatron's forces in battle, and while they were occupied, Megatron put into motion the ace he had up his sleeve: taking remote control of the numerous "Megatron guns" aboard Omega, Megatron summoned them to him and combined with them into a new armored mode. Breaking free from his restraints, he headed out to confront Galvatron, intent that nobody would take his world from him. {{storylink|Chaos Part Two: Numbers|Numbers}} As he tore through the Sweeps, Megatron also revealed the reason for his surrender: now that he was back on Cybertron, he could open a space bridge that would allow the massed forces of the Decepticons on Earth to return to their home planet as well. Unfortunately, not long after the Decepticons arrived on the battlefield, Galvatron's secret puppet master, the Dead Universe entity known as the [[D-Void]], seized control of their minds and those of the Sweeps, merging them into a gigantic, monstrous avatar. With Prime occupied pursuing Galvatron into Cybertron's depths, Megatron was left to face this "[[Deceptigod]]" alone. {{storylink|Chaos Part Three: Kings|Kings}} Fighting against the D-Void's attempts to ensnare his own mind and make him part of the collective, Megatron was gravely wounded and even lost an arm to the beast, but succeeded into destroying it, blasting it apart with one massive beam from his weapons. {{storylink|Chaos Part Four: Genesis|Genesis}}

===The long game===

Even as the Deceptigod disintegrated back into its component Decepticons, Megatron could see the potential the creature embodied—the D-Void had, in essence, created the perfect combiner by means of utterly obliterating free will. With Cybertron reverting into a primordial wasteland around him—a result of Optimus Prime purifying [[Vector Sigma]] with the Matrix to stop Galvatron and the D-Void—Megatron chose to withdraw to experiment with the possibilities this presented. He informed Shockwave, the sole Decepticon who had not been made part of the Deceptigod, of his plans, and Shockwave in turn revealed them to Soundwave and Bombshell. {{storylink|Shockpoint}} While Megatron hid in the wilderness, his Decepticons were left to live as second-class citizens in the new [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] that the Autobots built; Optimus Prime left Cybertron two weeks after the D-Void's defeat to calm tensions with "NAILs"—other unaffiliated Cybertronians—who had returned to their homeworld, but even as he did so, he mused that Megatron must still be out there somewhere. {{storylink|Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}
[[File:RID11 megatron in wilderness.jpg|left|thumb|225px]]
In the months of study and experimentation that followed, Megatron discerned that the combination of Ore-13 and space bridge technology in his body somehow gave him the ability to manipulate the natural energy of Cybertron that the D-Void had used to merge the Decepticons into the Deceptigod. After experiments on [[turbofox]]es created larger, more ferocious beasts, Megatron stepped up trials when the [[Aerialbot (G1)|Aerialbots]] seceded from the shaky government Bumblebee, [[Metalhawk (Masterforce)|Metalhawk]] and Starscream were building in Iacon and ventured into the wilderness. The signal Megatron had created from the combination energy first drove the Aerialbots mad, before uniting them in body and mind, spontaneously merging them into the gestalt [[Superion (G1)|Superion]], but this newborn Autobot combiner was considered hopelessly insane by Megatron and left to die in the wilderness. The madness aspect of the signal afforded him the chance to revive some of the principles of the infiltration protocol, however, as he blanketed the wastelands in it, forcing the Autobots, Decepticons and NAILs to stay in Iacon, causing natural conflict among them to snowball, providing a useful cover for his actions. To gain a pawn within Autobot high command, Megatron even provided Bombshell with the energy to use in conjunction with his own mind-controlling [[cerebro-shell]]s, ensnaring the mind of Prowl. With the resources and cover control of Prowl provided, Shockwave, Soundwave and Bombshell were able to use Megatron's findings to perfect the combination process, rebuilding the Constructicons with new modular designs that would allow them to merge into a perfect Devastator. The endgame was for Megatron himself to form the head of the combiner, but before risking his own mind and body, Megatron decided that Prowl would be used first as a test subject. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}}
[[File:RID12 kill him.jpg|right|thumb|350px]]
The appearance of a [[Crystal City Metrotitan|Metrotitan]] on Cybertron which declared that Starscream was the "Chosen One" threatened Megatron's ability to easily re-take leadership of his Decepticons, forcing him to step up his schedule. Through Prowl, he had his inner circle gathered together in the secret "[[Black Room]]", then boldly strode into Iacon for all to see. {{storylink|The End of the Beginning of the World}} His body shattered and skeletal, he professed to come in peace, but Bumblebee did not accept his surrender and ordered his Autobots to kill him. Indeed, Megatron could possibly have died there and then had Iacon's Decepticons not stepped in, insisting that Megatron's defense of Cybertron during the D-Void's attack marked him a hero and that he be taken into custody instead. {{storylink|City on Fire}} After [[Wheeljack (G1)|Wheeljack]] got through examining him to prove his body concealed no weapons, Starscream approached the imprisoned Megatron and attempted to explain that he was not far away from taking complete power in the government, ensuring a Decepticon victory of a different kind. Megatron merely smiled silently at the notion, terrifying his ex-lieutenant with his grin. Presently, the Decepticons rose up in an angry mob and marched on Autobot high command to insist on Megatron's release; the situation quickly devolved into a riot, during which a squad led by [[Needlenose]] stormed the prison and freed Megatron. {{storylink|The Verge}}
[[File:RID14 new body redux.jpg|left|thumb|275px]]
Megatron brought Starscream and the captured Bumblebee and Metalhawk to the Black Room, where he explained his plans and had himself transferred into a pre-prepared new body that could combine with the Constructicons' new forms. At his command, the Constructicons and Prowl combined into the new Devastator, who immediately set about razing Iacon. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}} Even the return of Superion seemed unable to stop the powerful new combiner, until help came from an unexpected quarter—Prowl's secret assassin [[Arcee (G1)|Arcee]] killed Bombshell, taking out Prowl's controller and causing Devastator to shut down. This was no real impediment to Megatron, however, as the successful function of the new combiner process has been proven, and he set out to take ''his'' place as Devastator's head. Before Megatron could reach the fallen gestalt, though, Devastator awoke, possessed of his own unique, unite consciousness for the first time, and resumed tearing into Iacon. {{storylink|Plan for Everything}}
[[File:RID20_megatron_in_forcefield.jpg|right|thumb|225px]]
Still Megatron remained unfazed, calmly fending off Autobot attacks and waiting for the inevitable moment when the heroes would take Devastator down. When [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] succeeded in doing so by managing to reach Prowl, Devastator separated, and Megatron immediately stepped in, re-initiation the combination with himself in control. Seconds before uniting with the Constructicons, though, his plan was foiled by Bumblebee, Ironhide and Prowl's activation of a secret failsafe: Wheeljack had integrated a forcefield generator into Megatron's spark casing during his examination of him, and when it was triggered, he was completely paralyzed in mid-transformation. {{storylink|Heavy Is the Head}} In the fallout of the battle, Starscream killed Metalhawk and took control of Iacon and banished the Autobots and Decepticons from the city. He took custody of the immobilized Megatron, and silently gloated over the victory he had accomplished by using guile and politics, rather than Megatron's ways of brute force and firepower. {{storylink|Three Monologues}}
Megatron would not remain in this state for long; that night, as the end result of millennia-long secret machinations by Shockwave, an [[Necrotitan|undead Metrotitan]] appeared on Cybertron and opened a portal to the Dead Universe in the planet's skies. Through the portal, Shockwave made contact with Galvatron and his master, the exiled Cybertron despot [[Nova Prime]], but was unable to bring them through to Cybertron thanks to the unexpected disappearance of the Titan's space bridge system. Reanimating the deceased Metalhawk with a wave of necrotic energy from the Titan, Shockwave had him liberate Megatron and bring him to his secret lab in [[Crystal City]]. {{storylink|Winners & Losers: Dark Cybertron Chapter 3|Winners & Losers}}
[[File:RID24 i remember you.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Ow.]]
Shockwave hoped that Megatron would comply with his plans willingly, but the Decepticon leader refused and Shockwave forcibly activated the space bridge technology in Megatron's body. {{storylink|Into the Abyss: Dark Cybertron Chapter 4|Into the Abyss}} The opening of the bridge in his chest caused Megatron agony, but his screams were heard by Soundwave, who led the united forces of the exiled Autobots and Decepticons to Shockwave's lab to free his leader. Nova Prime and Galvatron attempted to squeeze their way through the space bridge despite this interference, but Ironhide was able to punch Nova back through into the Dead Universe. At that moment, Shockwave's "Necrotitan" came crashing into the subterranean city, and in the chaos, Megatron was freed from the restraints holding him. No sooner had Megatron carried Ironhide to the safe hands of the other Autobots, however, than he was ripped in half from behind by Galvatron, who had successfully emerged through the portal {{storylink|Finest Hour: Dark Cybertron Chapter 5|Finest Hour}}

In a vision of the future seen by Ironhide and [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]] during the reformatting of Cybertron, fifteen million years hence, Ironhide still believed Megatron to be alive and promised a young Autobot they would defeat him again if he ever returned. {{storylink|Pax Cybertronia (issue)|Pax Cybertronia}} {{storylink|A Better Tomorrow}}
{{-}}

===''Spotlight: Mirage''===
[[File:SLMirage all in good time.jpg|right|thumb|275px]]
{{NoteSLMirage}}
Somewhere, in an unknown time or place, the self-serving mercenary [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] dreamed of Megatron and his Decepticons launching a massive attack on the Autobots. But Mirage knew that to only be a dream; in reality, the Autobots were almost eradicated, and Megatron had hired him to hunt down the last of their number. Megatron was outraged by the mercenary's demand for a majority share in all energon mining operations as payment, but it proved to be fuel well spent, as he soon succeeded in locating Optimus Prime and forcing him to surrender. Megatron demanded the prisoners be executed despite Mirage's promise to spare Autobot lives. Seeing Mirage's hesitation, Megatron appealed to his greed. {{storylink|Spotlight: Mirage}}
{{-}}

==Notes==
* In [[Megatron Origin issue 2|''Megatron Origin'' #2]], we see that Megatron's helmet is, in fact, [[:Image:MegatronOrigin2 Megs hair.jpg|a helmet and not part of his head]] (at least in his original body). Upon removing his helmet, Megatron then briefly unfurls a crest. The significance of this moment is not explained, but it is briefly revisited in [[Remembrance Day|''More than Meets the Eye'' #14]] when a helmetless Megatron spars with [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]].

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Rulers of Cybertron]]

Megatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

2013-05-03T14:47:00Z

Solaar: /* IDW Generation 1 continuity */

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[[File:IDWMegatron.jpg|thumb|300x342px]]
'''Megatron''' waged a battle to destroy the evil forces of the [[Senate]]!

==IDW Generation 1 continuity==
{{ongoing}}

{{quote|In the final analysis, I would happily wade across a river of corpses, chest-deep in rust and grease and engine oil, just to crush the Spark of the last Autobot standing. And I would not do so simply as a means to an end. No. I'd do it, Prime, because it would give me ''pleasure''.|Megatron to Optimus Prime|''[[Chaos Theory Part 1]]''}}

[[File:Ongoing22 MaccadamsNewOilHouse.jpg|left|thumb|300px|His neighbors said he was so quiet and unassuming.]]
Long ago, before the war and under the reign of [[Nominus Prime]], Megatron of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]] was an [[energon]] miner, a member of the lower class, living near [[Rodion]]. The caste-ridden social apartheid of Cybertronian society—where your form determined your role, and your role your rights—sickened him and, being an intellectual sort, he wrote [[After the Ark: Nominus Prime and the Illusion of Progress|a treatise]] on how pacifist dissent and the exchange of ideas could change things. But then he was arrested for a crime [[Impactor (G1)|a friend]] had committed against the Autobot upper classes, and [[Whirl (G1)|one of their friends]] in the police beat him in his cell, intending to kill him, while mocking him for how nobody would care about the death of a lowly miner. Police captain [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]], however, found out Megatron was innocent and let him go. But now he was filled with rage and hate, disillusioned with his former ideology and realising the power of applied violence. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

Megatron's samizdat writings began to circulate in Cybertron's underground, spawning the Decepticon movement. Wanting him out of the way but not wanting to make him a martyr, the Senate exiled him to the mines on [[Messatine]]. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}} He continued to seethe with hate and frustration while at [[Mining Outpost C-12]]. One day [[Decimus|Senator Decimus]] arrived at the mine to announce that the mine was being closed immediately and the workers would be relocated. However, when one of the Senator's guards killed a worker for insubordination and claims of Senate corruption, Megatron attacked Decimus and killed the guard in self-defense (and was shocked to find he had done so). This started a riot which was quickly crushed. He and the other miners were en route to [[Penal Facility H-3|imprisonment]] when [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] and [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] broke free and started a riot aboard [[Longshot (G1)|their ship]]. They overpowered their guards, damaged Decimus's ship to ward off pursuit, as the authorities would focus on his rescue, and made their way to [[Kaon]]. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}}

[[File:Minermegs.jpg|200px|thumb|Now that's the look of a well-adjusted individual.]]

After evading law enforcement, Megatron joined a team of underworld gladiators under the tutelage of [[Clench (G1)|Clench]]. Initially repulsed by killing his opponents, the games eventually turned him more brutal and excessive, and he took control of the entire operation from Clench. The opportunistic Senator [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], after seeing how much money there was in the underworld matches, sent his agent [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] to offer Megatron weaponry and technology to upgrade himself and his comrades. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}} [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]]'s Autobots were sent to investigate the gladiatorial games, but when two Autobots were personally killed by Megatron, Prime's forces stepped up their pursuit. Megatron used the gladiatorial games to drum up an army of violent malcontents and spread chaos throughout Cybertron. He then deliberately allowed Sentinel Prime's forces to capture his burgeoning army, {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} so that [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] (pretending to defect) and Soundwave and his hidden cassette army could exterminate the Kaon Senate and then free every last prisoner. Megatron led the army of prisoners against the Autobots, beat Sentinel Prime nearly to death, and took control of Kaon. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

[[File:Apexthrone.JPG|250px|thumb|You should have gone to IKEA.]]

Megatron's infamy spread and his message of rising up against the ruling classes struck a chord with many disenfranchised Cybertronians. One such fellow was [[Drift (G1)|Drift]], who attended a Decepticon rally and was personally asked by Megatron to fight at his side. Megatron rechristened Drift as "Deadlock" and welcomed him into the Decepticon fold. {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}} Soon enough, the growing Decepticon forces had spread across six [[Polities of Cybertron|Torus-States]]. {{storylink|Parasites}} At one point, he met Orion Pax again on [[Sherma Bridge]], where they did battle for the first time. Orion chopped off Megatron's cannon arm during the fight, but the Decepticon leader came out victorious by tossing him off the bridge. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

To Megatron's interest, his now-abandoned treatise had been a source of inspiration for Orion Pax, who had even quoted from it when he confronted the Senate and openly accused them of corruption. When the Autobot captain came close to Kaon during a mission, Megatron saw it as a chance to speak to him and had his Decepticons bring him in. {{storylink|The Hunt for Soundwave}} Orion, turned cynical by his time in the force, refused Megatron's offers for them to work together against the newest corrupt Autobot leader, [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]]. Megatron let him know that Zeta was even worse than he seemed, having planned to let Orion die in [[Nyon]] so that he could use his death as pretext to invade the rebel-infested city and drain the citizens of their energon. Orion then escaped, but knowing the doubts he'd placed in his head would only serve to damage the Autobot cause, Megatron let him go. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}}

Megatron continued to keep an eye on Orion Pax's activities, spying on his encounter with the Nyon insurgent [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]]. {{storylink|Ruins}} When Zeta Prime's [[Guardian robot|Omega Destructor]]s suddenly attacked Nyon, Megatron was surprised by how zealously the new Prime fought against the city's rebels, but his real interest still lay on how Orion would handle the crisis. {{storylink|Purge}} Orion turned on Zeta, who in turn attempted to kill him, prompting Megatron to intervene and force the Prime to retreat. Taking Orion back to Kaon, he again offered that they work together against Zeta's corruption, and this time the Autobot officer accepted. {{storylink|Choices}} As their combined forces invaded the [[Citadel]] in Iacon, Megatron and Orion Pax made their way inside and fought Zeta Prime in person.The battle ended with Megatron killing the Prime with a head shot, and with his objective complete, he then betrayed the injured Orion by shooting him in the back. {{storylink|Overthrown}}

With Zeta dead, Megatron conquered Iacon and declared himself ruler of Cybertron. His soldiers patrolled the planet's streets to "keep the peace", mostly by hunting down and capturing any remaining Autobots who opposed him. {{storylink|Transformation (issue)|Transformation}} During his rule, Megatron attempted to sway the neutral [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] into joining the Decepticons, but he decided otherwise upon witnessing Megatron ordering the execution of several Autobot prisoners. {{storylink|Rise}} Megatron was shocked to learn that Orion Pax had survived the betrayal and was organizing a rebellion against him under the name "Optimus Prime", and even more shocked that people actually had the courage to listen to him. He wasted no time in striking back against the rebels approaching the Citadel with the full force of his army. {{storylink|Broadcast}}

During the battle, Megatron ordered Blitzwing to distract the Autobots long enough for him to bring out the "vamparc annihilator", a giant [[vamparc ribbon]] built inside the Citadel by Zeta Prime. Though he managed to knock out a lot of Autobots, [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] arrived and took out the cannon along with the entire building, causing Megatron to fall to the streets and face Optimus Prime himself. He lost the ensuing [[The Transformers: The Movie|familiar-looking duel]] and was badly wounded after a failed attempt to defeat Prime by holding Hot Rod hostage, forcing him to escape aboard Astrotrain. As he fled, he warned Optimus that he hadn't won, he had only started a war unlike any Cybertron had ever seen. {{storylink|Endgame}}

At some point early in the war, he wrote ''[[Towards Peace]]'', a new treatise to replace ''After the Ark'', in which he described continuing to fight the war until the very notion of conflict was literally inconceivable. Then and only then would he finally give up his fusion cannon. At some point, he also created the [[Decepticon Justice Division]] to deal with traitors. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}}

[[File:Megatrong1idwpreearth.jpg|left|150px|thumb|450 years ago, his helmet was black, but now it's gray. The difference time makes, huh?]]
Over time, the war between Megatron's Decepticon army and Optimus Prime's Autobots covered the entire planet and soon beyond to the rest of the galaxy. Optimus grew to respect and fear Megatron as a calm, calculating and measured opponent, while Megatron himself respected Prime's sheer power and his skill as a tactician and as a leader. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} They would proceed to duel each other directly many times, such as during the [[Battle for Hell's Point]] and the [[Siege of Massunstrad]] {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}, and also fight by proxy, sealing themselves into [[Omniglobe]]s, "hypercongizance shells" which would feed them the entirety of data from the frontlines, enabling the sides to throw everything they had at each other for a prolonged period of time. The Decepticons didn't even spare the resources to collect their dead, who lay where they fell for eons. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}}

Ultimately, with total war getting nowhere, Megatron would go on to develop a six-stage [[infiltration protocol]] to be used for conquering targeted planets, and selected Sixshot, a living weapon he had constructed with frightening amounts of power that only he had the "off-switch" for {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}}, and the similarly ultra-powerful Overlord and [[Black Shadow (Victory)|Black Shadow]] to be the agents who would strike the final blow in each battle. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 2|Last Stand of the Wreckers #2}} As the Autobot/Decepticon war progressed, the conflict became so great that it created an impending energy crisis and threatened the stability of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] itself. When [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Shockwave]] left Cybertron, secretly pursuing alternate energy sources, Megatron ordered [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] to investigate his files, secretly assigning Soundwave to investigate Bludgeon. {{storylink|Spotlight: Shockwave}}

When Deadlock deserted the cause at some point during the war, Megatron sent the bounty hunter [[Lockdown (G1)|Lockdown]] to bring him back. {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}}

Later, a Decepticon scientist, [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]], came to Megatron with a revolutionary, controversial plan to stave off this energy death by [[Pretender|polydermal grafting]], a process where they encased themselves in "symbiotic carapaces", or shells created from living tissue. When Megatron dismissed him angrily and cut him down, Thunderwing did not abandon his research, but instead experimented on himself. As a result, Thunderwing became so powerful that Megatron had to join forces with Optimus Prime to stop him. This battle at [[Thunderhead Pass]] accelerated the apocalypse destined to befall Cybertron, leaving it an uninhabitable, radioactive husk and forcing both armies to continue their war on other worlds. Megatron advocated that they simply destroy Cybertron to ensure that Thunderwing was destroyed, but Prime refused, and threatened to stop Megatron if he tried. Megatron agreed not to destroy the planet, but warned Prime that whatever happened was on his head. Shortly after the last big push by the Decepticons, Cybertron was abandoned by both factions.

[[File:Infiltration6 takeyourpunishment.jpg|250px|thumb|Those librarians are getting really strict on late returns.]]
Seven hundred [[Units of time|stellar cycles]] later, in current times, it was discovered that as a result of digging through Shockwave's files, Bludgeon had resurrected Thunderwing's dangerous project, as well as Thunderwing himself. After being informed of Thunderwing's attack on [[Nebulos]], Megatron dispatched the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]] in the ''[[Thanatos]]'' to Cybertron, authorizing [[Razorclaw (G1)|Razorclaw]] to do whatever was necessary to destroy Thunderwing, including the destruction of Cybertron. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} However, Optimus Prime and the [[Wrecker]]s were able to thwart both Bludgeon and Thunderwing, and so destruction of the planet was averted. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 4|Stormbringer #4}}

{{quote|You will stand down. If you fight, you ''die''. There is no room anymore for mercy. In the end, you are ''all'' expendable. Choose.|Megatron's ultimatum to Starscream's troops|"[[Infiltration issue 6]]"}}

Megatron, meanwhile, was on Earth, investigating Starscream's infiltration team. He discovered that Starscream had stumbled across [[Ultra-Energon|Ore-13]], an incredible energy source which had been [[Spotlight: Shockwave|mysteriously seeded there]], and that the [[Air Commander]] was planning to use it to usurp Megatron's command—this annoyed him, as he had thought they were beyond such power games. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} After seriously damaging the hesitantly rebellious [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] and [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]], {{storylink|Infiltration issue 5|Infiltration #5}} Megatron ordered the AWOL team to stand down and then took on a super-powered Starscream. Though the Ore-13 made Starscream a formidable adversary, Megatron was still more deadly than he, and Starscream was destroyed. All throughout, he acted eerily calm & measured and made both Autobot and Decepticon wet themselves in fear. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6}}

Megatron took stock of Starscream's progress on Earth in light of the discovery of Ore-13 and called a meeting to make Starscream's former troops aware, in no uncertain terms, that any further insurrections would be met with deadly force. {{storylink|Escalation issue 1|Escalation #1}} Initiating phase two of infiltration protocol, Megatron stole a prototype [[Psycho-Prism]] from [[Doctor Doom]]'s laboratory. He created an "array" structure in [[Latveria]] as a base of operations. He sent Skywarp and Thundercracker to the nearby country of [[Symkaria]] in hopes they will blame Latveria and start a war. He activated the Psycho-Prism which produced an aggression wave that made nearby humans more aggressive in order to further increase international tensions. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}} Doctor Doom, not appreciating the Decepticons' setting up shop in his country, tried to remove their base with an army of [[Doombot]]s. Megatron had no problem repelling them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}}

The [[Avengers]] arrived and Megatron let them enter his facility where he scanned them looking for a suitable sample to leech power from as part of their [[mirror response mode]]. He selected [[Spider-Man]] and captured him. The remaining Avengers retreated and Megatron energized the facilities energy shield. The Autobots arrived and were attacked by the Avengers thanks to their heightened aggression. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}}

Megatron energized himself and all of his troops except Ramjet, who he didn't trust. Outside, the Autobots were able to nullify the aggression wave amongst the Avengers and they teamed up and started attacking the array. Megatron sent out his energized troops to repel the invaders. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} Ratchet, Prowl, and [[Luke Cage]] were able to breech the array's defenses. Megatron captured Ratchet and Luke Cage while Ramjet and Megatron's new ally, Doctor Doom captured Prowl. When his forces outside were defeated, Megatron—on the advice of Doctor Doom—sent a holographic message to those outside that he would kill his captives if they did not surrender. They did not surrender and instead renewed their attack. Megatron blamed Doctor Doom for the failure and turned on him.

[[File:Megsandspidy.jpg|left|200px|thumb|]]

Megatron did not go through with his threat of killing the hostages. Instead he went out to face his attackers himself, holding Luke Cage. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Three}} He was beating the opposition until Prowl, Ratchet, and Spider-Man [[orbital jump|orbital bounced]] out of the facility. They had been freed by Doctor Doom and the two Autobots used the Decepticon equipment to energize themselves with [[Wolverine (superhero)|Wolverine]]'s super power. This added firepower led to his defeat. His Psycho-Prism was destroyed so there was no point in continuing the fight and ordered his troops to retreat using an [[emergency warp-out]]. Megatron himself stuck around awhile hoping to beat someone up, but Spider-Man wrapped him up in webbing, Luke Cage knocked him over, and the Autobots opened fire on him while he was down. He finally warped-out taunting Optimus Prime on the way out. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Four}}

[[File:Megatrong1idwgunbody.jpg|150px|thumb|I also wonder.]]
After getting the infiltration protocols back on track, Megatron stayed instead of leaving Earth in the hands of a new commander. He decided to try out his new [[Size changing|mass-displacing]] handgun [[Alternate mode|altmode]] and the Ore-13 power. {{storylink|Escalation issue 2|Escalation #2}} He personally took charge of the Decepticon subterfuge in [[Brasnya]], guiding the facsimile of [[Georgi Koska]] in an attempt to escalate an international incident into a full polarizing war, and acting as Koska's personal weapon. (His alt-mode only works when a human is holding and firing him, which left him at a disadvantage against the Autobots, who could simply pin him down in that form. Maybe Megatron just wants to be held.) {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}}

When Optimus Prime arrived, Megatron transformed and started a full-blown to-the-death melee with his longtime foe for all the nuts and bolts—this surprised Optimus, who accused Megatron of letting the Ore-13 power go to his head and causing him to be "some raging braggart". Even with his fusion cannon disabled almost right away, Megatron gained the upper hand due to his Ore-13 high. Beating his foe down, he squeezed Prime's spark casing and seemingly killed him; {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} aghast, the Autobots moved into a full but ineffective counterattack, their only edge being that Megatron had no long-range guns left. However, Prime's death was a desperate ruse, and the Autobot leader countered with a surprise attack on Megatron, able to exploit Ore-13's weakness—the more it's used, the faster it burns itself out. Megatron almost collapsed from power loss and was forced to have Skywarp take him to safety before the Autobots could kill him.

Upon returning to base and being refueled and repaired, Megatron was hopping mad. Mad enough to prematurely call in his ultimate living weapon—[[Sixshot]]—despite [[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]]'s panic attack on hearing that. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}}

During this time, he discovered a plot by [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] to overthrow him. Without saying a word, he beat the living [[Slag (slang)|slag]] out of the attempted traitor before tearing him apart and keeping his head as a trophy. {{storylink|Spotlight: Ramjet}}

Upon Sixshot's arrival, Megatron ordered him to utterly destroy the Autobots, throwing out the methodical "Phase" strategy. The other Decepticons were worried that Megatron was losing his grip—and since they were too scared to tell him that, they decided to revive Starscream to do it for them. {{storylink|Devastation issue 1|Devastation #1}} Before Sixshot could obliterate the Autobots, Megatron recalled him to deal with a new threat—the [[Reaper]]s. {{storylink|Devastation issue 4|Devastation #4}} Megatron deduced that the other Decepticons betrayed him by awakening Starscream, but decided not to punish them '''yet''', due to the present task of destroying the Reapers. {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}} After these foes were dead, Megatron was forced to accept Starscream and the others when it became clear the humans were aware of them now. {{storylink|Devastation issue 6|Devastation #6}}

[[File:Bringingthehousedown.jpg|left|250px|thumb|Megatron's urban renewal program was off to a flying start.]]
Some time later, the Autobots were led into a trap; false information was planted by an [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Autobot traitor]], and they were led into an ambush and soundly defeated by the Decepticons and the newly-created [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]]. After personally ripping the [[Matrix of Leadership]] out of Optimus Prime's chest, Megatron planned to drop the Autobots into the midst of [[Insecticon swarm|three thousand horrendous things he had created]] on Cybertron. When all but Prime had gone through the space bridge, Prime grabbed Blitzwing's gun and somehow saved the other Autobots from certain death, closing the portal. Optimus was critically injured by the space bridge, which fried his circuits. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} This caused Starscream's status among the Decepticons and their concern about Megatron to go ''way'' down, with former dissenters like [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] becoming Megatron fanboys. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} By use of Sunstreaker's input with Starscream and Bombshell's experimentation on [[Hunter O'Nion]], Megatron was able to defeat [[Omega Supreme (G1)|almost]] all the Autobots in the galaxy...

A year after the defeat of Optimus, Megatron decided to take Earth and make it the new Decepticon homeworld. He arrived on the front lines as the Decepticons attacked [[New York City]], humiliating Starscream by outdoing him in destroying things with just one shot from his fusion cannon. When the US Air Force responded with an F-22 squad, as a show of force Megatron had Soundwave disable the human's missile targeting, followed by the Decepticons just standing there shrugging off bullets before making their attack. After one jet was damaged by Skywarp, [[DJ (G1)|its pilot]] attempted to take out Megatron with a suicide run, but the Decepticon leader calmly swatted the incoming plane, causing it to explode. As flames rose from the wreckage, Megatron emerged, completely undamaged, laughing maniacally. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} Megatron continued to direct the Decepticon assault on New York, dispatching [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] to mop up the U.S. Army's ground forces and ordering the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] to combine into [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] and destroy the underwater tunnels leading out of the city. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 2|All Hail Megatron #2}}

His plan executed flawlessly, the Decepticons continued their assault on the major cities of the United States, disabling or nullifying any attempt by the army or navy to counterattack. As he surveyed his handiwork in New York, he ordered Hook and the Constructicons to begin building ''something'' in the once-great human city and appreciated their "sacrifice" in using "substandard" building materials. Soon thereafter he was joined by Starscream, with whom he had a heart to heart and revealed he believed Starscream to be the embodiment of the Decepticon cause, but that Starscream was blind to realizing this. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 3|All Hail Megatron #3}}

When the humans had fallen, Megatron made a propaganda speech to his men in the ruins of New York. He heaped great praise on their efforts, both on Earth and across the galaxy, announcing they had finally crushed the Autobots for good. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 4|All Hail Megatron #4}} After making this speech (and dispatching Ratbat to attack a small group of mercenaries led by [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Commander Witwicky]]), Megatron entered one of the "buildings" to gaze at his newly prized possession... the Autobot Matrix of Leadership that he stole from Optimus. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 5|All Hail Megatron #5}}

[[File:AHM6MegatronVsIsrael.jpg|200px|thumb|]]

That praise turned out to be empty, as Starscream started noticing that Megatron didn't have a plan now victory had been achieved, and the smashy-smash fun on Earth was him trying to distract the troops—because now he had an army of evil sociopathic murderers with nothing to murder and a doctrine of taking power. Not even smashing up [[Israel]] made him feel better. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}} Eventually, Starscream made his move, revealing to Megatron that he had swayed the Insecticons to his side. Megatron easily swatted the insects aside, however, and explained to Starscream that he had known about his plans all along. Unfortunately, he hadn't anticipated Starscream to have rallied the Constructicons backing him up, and found himself having to fight the mighty Devastator. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}}

[[File:AHM12-youreafool.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Ever so often, Megatron likes to remind us he's basically Magneto.]]

As the battle was interrupted by an attack from human jets, Megatron and Starscream put their differences aside momentarily to organize a defense. Megatron was not at all surprised by the attack, as he had planned the invasion—nay, the ''war''—down to the smallest detail. He explained to Starscream that while the Decepticon forces may have no real goal at the moment, he planned to remodel them into something greater after the war was done. Then he was suddenly interrupted by something he ''hadn't'' planned for: the return of the Autobots. After assuring Starscream that he'd be leader someday (just not right now), Megatron confronted Optimus Prime again, accusing the Autobot of coming for his Matrix rather than truly caring about Earth. He also revealed that Prime's supposedly "innocent" humans were planning to nuke New York, killing millions of their own just to get rid of the Decepticons. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 11|All Hail Megatron #11}}

Prime retorted that it wasn't about the humans, it was about the difference between him and Megatron—the difference between Autobots and Decepticons. The two came to blows, and Megatron eventually came out on top by throwing Prime into a building. He ordered the Decepticons to leave Earth, leaving the Autobots to be killed by the humans' nuke... only to be shot in the face by [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], wielding a powerful weapon reverse-engineered from Cybertronian technology. Injured and disoriented by the blast, Megatron was finished off when Optimus Prime got back up and smashed his face in with his own fusion cannon. As he wanted to ''take'' leadership rather than just have it fall in his hands, Starscream picked up his damaged leader and took him off the planet. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

[[File:AllHisEngines-Megatron.jpg|thumb|150px|Pretty sure when you float in a bacta tank you're supposed to be wearing a diaper.]]

On board Astrotrain, Megatron was put on life support and was tended to by Soundwave and his cassettes. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 13|Uneasy Lies the Head}}

The Decepticons eventually settled on a desolate asteroid and Megatron spent the next three years in a [[CR chamber|CR tank]]. He was somehow conscious and aware of current events during his recovery. Megatron was forced to simply watch as most of the Decepticon army languished in inactivity and slowly began to unravel under Starscream's leadership. {{storylink|All His Engines}} But despite Megatron's mental health and awareness, Soundwave eventually realized that his body was beyond repair. He convinced Shockwave, who had been given access to plenty of resources for his space bridge project, to help him build a brand new body for Megatron's consciousness to inhabit. They were successful, and even included space bridge technology in Megatron himself, allowing him to create warp portals to Earth.

Back in action, Megatron devised a plan to destabilize the relationship between the humans and Autobots on Earth. Together with Soundwave and Shockwave, he chopped up his old body and used it to create human-scaled replicas of his former gun mode, containing small pieces of his own consciousness. Starscream caught them in the act, but wasn't too shocked to learn of Megatron's return, as he knew it had been inevitable. Megatron was unable to take back leadership of the Decepticons at the moment, however, as Starscream was in possession of the Matrix of Leadership, an object which Megatron considered a threat due to its mysterious nature. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}}

[[File:Ongoing Issue 13 - Megatron.jpg|left|200px|thumb|"Ever see the movie ''Tron''?"]]

When [[Hot Rod (G1)|Rodimus]] infiltrated the Decepticons' asteroid base and recovered the Matrix from Starscream, Megatron stepped in to intercept the Autobot. Rodimus panicked when coming upon the reborn Decepticon commander and held up the Matrix to try and ward him off. But Megatron simply shot Rodimus at point-blank range, blasting him out into space, Matrix and all. Intent on reestablishing his authority, Megatron then informed Soundwave to gather the other Decepticons so he could address them. {{storylink|Heart Like a Wheel}}

Distrustful of Shockwave's motives for preparing his new body, wary of Soundwave's constant surveillance, and repulsed by the state of his once fearsome Decepticon war machine, Megatron decided that he needed to unequivocally reestablish dominance over the now Matrix-less Starscream. His intended to beat Starscream near to death, thereby allowing both of them to work out their frustrations with Starscream's inability to lead effectively over the three years Megatron was incapacitated. However, Starscream did not want to fight. He was devastated by his loss of the Matrix and his inability to command the obedience of the Decepticon forces in Megatron's absence despite possessing the Matrix, and simply wanted Megatron to kill him and get it over with, if that was what Megatron intended to do. Megatron, instead of accepting Starscream's refusal to engage him, goaded the former Matrix-bearer into opening fire upon him. This forced Starscream to both flee and fight for his life so that he might escape Megatron's vengeance. Megatron, pursuing in his new stealth bomber alt-mode continues to bait Starscream into conflict as he tries to escape, and eventually achieved his desire to beat him into submission, which re-ignited Starscream's scheming nature, and the desire to lead the Decepticons once again, which Megatron believes is necessary for the proper functioning of his Decepticons. {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

Megatron, aided by Shockwave, moved to immediately implement the first stage of his planned vengeance against the Autobots and the citizens of Earth by sending a container full of guns based on his former alternate mode ( which were made from his old body), as well as his old head, through a space bridge to Earth, where it landed in [[Quetzaltenango]], [[Mexico]]. Without the knowledge of any human government, the powerful weapons were then smuggled into the United States by gun enthusiasts and civilians looking for anti-Transformer weaponry. This allowed Megatron's consciousness to spread throughout the land, until it was focused enough to contact one particular owner of a Megatron gun: [[Joe Gladki]]. He deceived and manipulated the paranoid human, and eventually convinced him to perform an assassination attempt on [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]], the new Autobot leader. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} In their ignorance, the Autobots then mistook Gladki's gun for Megatron himself and held it captive. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 1: The Demolished Man|The Demolished Man}}

With the Autobots in chaos, Megatron started the next phase of his plan and returned to Earth personally, where he used his new stealth bomber mode to shoot down a plane carrying Optimus Prime and several other Autobots. He then hunted down [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]], who was in charge following the loss of both Bumblebee and Prime, and killed some Mexicans attacking Magnus's troops with Megatron guns just because. With his powerful new body, he effortlessly defeated the entire Autobot team and killed some of their [[Skywatch]] allies. Ultra Magnus tried to stop him, telling Megatron that he was back for the Autobots and not the humans, but Megatron assured him that humanity was his real target. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 3: Woken Furies|Woken Furies}}

Megatron revealed that his entire scheme was a plot to try and crush Optimus Prime's spirit and ruin the fragile alliance between humanity and the Autobots by arming deranged and unstable humans with advanced weaponry based on his old body, thus forcing the Autobots to choose between fighting the humans or allowing them to kill them. He dumped several of the Autobots in a heavily populated area and mind controlled three already paranoid humans to kill the Autobots. He also took Ultra Magnus hostage, having Soundwave keep a weapon trained on him as he taunted Prime about the no win situation he had created. However, he also revealed to Prime that he was controlling the humans, and in a bid to distract him enough to break the mental control, Prime shot Soundwave in the head, badly wounding him. Distraught and furious that his faithful lieutenant had been wounded, Megatron chose to flee to get Soundwave medical attention, forcing him to break communication. Unfortunately however, despite this Megatron's plan succeeded. Jazz was forced to kill a human to save Bumblebee's life, increasing the paranoia and hatred that humanity felt for the Autobots. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome|Burning Chrome}}

With Soundwave wounded severely, Megatron took him to a temporary lab that Shockwave had set up on Earth, to have Soundwave repaired. However Shockwave noted that much of the Decepticon's resources had been used to construct Megatron's new body and the new space bridge, and it would take a great deal of time to properly rebuild Soundwave. It was at this point that Optimus Prime attacked again and after threatening Shockwave, goaded Megatron into a confrontation. Megatron ordered his troops not to attack Prime, wanting them to watch as he crippled the Autobot leader and left him for the humans to kill. However one thing Megatron didn't suspect was for Prime to be desperate enough to drop a satellite on top of him, in an effort to kill him once and for all.

However Megatron's new body, empowered greatly by Ore-13, was virtually unharmed by the attack. He beat Prime senseless but then, shockingly, surrendered to the Autobots and was promptly imprisoned inside Omega Supreme. Optimus demanded to know why he surrendered and Megatron taunted him by revealing that Spike Witwicky had murdered a Decepticon in cold blood and told him the humans couldn't be trusted, mocking Prime's desire to work with the humans and warning him that he had doomed his Autobots by allying with Skywatch. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine|Enemy Mine}}

Prime immediately had Prowl begin investigating Spike and Skywatch, and one of the first things Prowl did was quiz Megatron on what he knew about Spike's activities. Megatron told him what he needed to know after a little verbal sparring. {{storylink|Police Action: Prologue}}

When Rodimus returned to Earth and warned the Autobots that [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] had taken control of Cybertron, now habitable once more thanks to Alpha Trion repairing the ravaged world and Ironhide and Sunstreaker having wiped out the Swarm, Optimus decided to lead the Autobots to claim their homeworld back from the insane Galvatron. He also decided to bring both Megatron and the Matrix, believing that the humans would be less at risk of Decepticon attacks if Megatron and the Matrix were both off earth. {{storylink|Space Opera—Final Tableaux: Orphans of the Helix|Orphans of the Helix}}

On the way to Cybertron, Megatron was fully scanned by both Ratchet and [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]], who, along with [[Xaaron]] had come to assist the Autobots in making sure Megatron was secure and to provide legal counsel in how to treat him as he was now a prisoner of war. Megatron was silent while they confirmed that he had no concealed weaponry on him. Shortly after this, Prime himself came to talk to Megatron, wanting for once to have an actual conversation with his old foe and try to make peace, seeing the situation as a chance to finally end the war. Initially skeptical of Prime's reasons for talking to him, when Prime released Megatron from his bonds. Megatron challenged Prime's motto of "Freedom is the right of all sentient beings" by pointing out that it was he, not Prime, who had stood up for the Cybertronians who were treated as little more than slaves by the corrupt ruling class of Cybertron and claiming that the only true way to bring peace to the universe was through conquest. After arguing about their conflicting viewpoints the two began to remember old battles and the numerous near death experiences, even laughing together as they shared war stories. It was then that Optimus tried to reach out to Megatron, offering him the chance to end the war once and for all with a handshake, telling him that all he had to do was tell him that he wanted the war to end and it would. Megatron appeared to consider it for a moment but ultimately remained silent. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

Under pressure to decide whether Megatron would be executed or imprisoned should he be found guilty of crimes against the species and genocide, Prime confronted Megatron and asked him if he regretted any of his actions. Megatron coldly replied that he did not and in fact only regretted that he hadn't done more and killed more Autobots, claiming that he would kill Autobots solely for pleasure and that as long as anyone stood in his way he would kill them. He also claimed that Optimus was secretly glad for the war, taunting him in a manner similar to the way Whirl had once taunted Megatron by pointing out that if the war had never happened Optimus would have lived and died as a nobody, with no one knowing or caring who he was, but because of Megatron Optimus had become famous and the most respected and worshipped Cybertronian of all. It was a taunt designed to make Prime want to kill him and Optimus nearly did, activating the Variable Voltage Harness. Omega Supreme managed to cut the power in time and Megatron, struggling to stay conscious, offered Prime his thanks for saving his life all those years ago in Rodion. Shocked by his actions Prime realised that Megatron wanted to die and wanted him to be the one to kill him.

This was confirmed when he asked Megatron what HE wanted his punishment to be if found guilty at his trial. Death or imprisonment. Megatron calmly replied that he chose death. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 2}}

On the way to Cybertron, Megatron demanded to know who or what was attacking the planet, questioning whether it was Starscream, Shockwave or even Thunderwing. Optimus refused to answer, stating that now Megatron was a prisoner everything going on outside the walls of his cell was no longer his concern and questioning why Megatron was suddenly so sentimental. Megatron ominously noted that Cybertron was more than just a metal world and that if it was in the wrong hands they were all in danger. He also threatened Prime but Optimus simply left the cell, no longer willing to speak with Megatron. {{storylink| Chaos Part One: Lamentations|Lamentations}}

As the battle with the [[Sweep]]s and Galvatron raged across Cybertron, Megatron chose this moment to reveal the ace he had up his sleeve: The Autobots had confiscated a number of the guns made from his old body, which he was able to take control of and use to upgrade himself into a secondary armored mode. This allowed him to break free of his restraints within Omega Supreme, cackling insanely as he broke loose and confronted both the Autobots and the gathered Sweeps, declaring that Cybertron belonged to him and he would not allow Galvatron to have it. {{storylink|Chaos Part Two: Numbers|Numbers}}

[[File:Megatron Chaospt4 Genesis.jpg|thumb|200px|End...of...line...]]
Tearing through the Sweeps with ease, Megatron summoned his Decepticon forces to kill the Autobots gathered on Cybertron, using a beacon built into his new body to lead them to exactly where he was. While Megatron fought the Sweeps his Decepticons came close to overwhelming the battered and exhausted Autobots, before [[D-Void]], acting through the [[Darkness (G1)|Heart of Darkness]], summoned all the Decepticons to combine into a gigantic monster along with the Sweeps, a monster that began attacking Cybertron and the Autobots. Megatron ordered Prime to come join him in battle against the monster but Prime replied that as he had to deal with Galvatron, it would be up to Megatron to stop the advancing monstrosity. {{storylink|Chaos Part Three: Kings|Kings}}

As the stunned Autobots watched, Megatron, though gravely wounded and missing an arm, resisted D-Void's control and not only fought but destroyed the Deceptigod, blasting it apart with one massive beam from his weapons. {{storylink|Chaos Part Four: Genesis|Genesis}} In the chaos that followed Galvatron's defeat and the restoration of Cybertron, Megatron was nowhere to be found. As Optimus Prime exiled himself from Cybertron weeks later, he mused that his nemesis must still be out there somewhere. {{storylink|The Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}

Months after what had become known as the "Chaos Event", Megatron wandered into a rebuilt [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] from the wilderness Cybertron had become, heavily damaged and carrying a bunch of severed Sweep heads. {{storylink|The End of the Beginning of the World}} He claimed to come in peace, a claim that was hardly convincing to Bumblebee's Autobots overseeing the city who opted to kill him on sight. They were stopped by Iacon's Decepticon population, who saw Megatron's actions during the Chaos Event as those of a hero and forced them to take him into custody instead. He requested to talk to Bumblebee, who refused on the grounds that his "talk" with Optimus Prime had gone nowhere, and was instead approached by Starscream. {{storylink|City on Fire}}

Millions of years after the end of the war, when the Autobots were finally at peace, [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] still believed Megatron to be alive and promised a young Autobot they would defeat him again if he ever returned. {{storylink|Pax Cybertronia (issue)|Pax Cybertronia}} This may have actually have happened, or it may just have been a vision Ironhide had during the Chaos Event. {{storylink|A Better Tomorrow}}

===Spotlight: Mirage===
{{note|The events of ''Spotlight: Mirage'' are presented as a dream sequence of Mirage, and may possibly represent an alternate/unknown continuity.}}
With most of the Autobots in the galaxy defeated, Megatron chafed to end the war quickly. He demanded [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] track the last pocket of Autobot resistance down for the Decepticons. The mercenary demanded a majority share in all energon mining operations, a deal which outraged Megatron, until Mirage pointed out it was a small price to pay to end the war. After Optimus Prime surrendered, Megatron demanded the prisoners be executed despite Mirage's promise to spare Autobot lives. Seeing Mirage's hesitation, Megatron appealed to his greed. {{storylink|Spotlight: Mirage}}
{{-}}

==Notes==
* In "[[Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2]]", we see that Megatron's helmet is, in fact, [[:Image:MegatronOrigin2 Megs hair.jpg|a helmet and not part of his head]] (at least in this continuity). Upon removing his helmet, Megatron then briefly unfurls a crest. The significance of this moment is not explained, nor is it ever revisited. Thankfully.

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Rulers of Cybertron]]

Megatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

2013-05-03T14:46:25Z

Solaar: /* IDW Generation 1 continuity */

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[[File:IDWMegatron.jpg|thumb|300x342px]]
'''Megatron''' waged a battle to destroy the evil forces of the [[Senate]]!

==IDW Generation 1 continuity==
{{ongoing}}

{{quote|In the final analysis, I would happily wade across a river of corpses, chest-deep in rust and grease and engine oil, just to crush the Spark of the last Autobot standing. And I would not do so simply as a means to an end. No. I'd do it, Prime, because it would give me ''pleasure''.|Megatron to Optimus Prime|''[[Chaos Theory Part 1]]''}}

[[File:Ongoing22 MaccadamsNewOilHouse.jpg|left|thumb|300px|His neighbors said he was so quiet and unassuming.]]
Long ago, before the war and under the reign of [[Nominus Prime]], Megatron of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]] was an [[energon]] miner, a member of the lower class, living near [[Rodion]]. The caste-ridden social apartheid of Cybertronian society—where your form determined your role, and your role your rights—sickened him and, being an intellectual sort, he wrote [[After the Ark: Nominus Prime and the Illusion of Progress|a treatise]] on how pacifist dissent and the exchange of ideas could change things. But then he was arrested for a crime [[Impactor (G1)|a friend]] had committed against the Autobot upper classes, and [[Whirl (G1)|one of their friends]] in the police beat him in his cell, intending to kill him, while mocking him for how nobody would care about the death of a lowly miner. Police captain [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]], however, found out Megatron was innocent and let him go. But now he was filled with rage and hate, disillusioned with his former ideology and realising the power of applied violence. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

Megatron's samizdat writings began to circulate in Cybertron's underground, spawning the Decepticon movement. Wanting him out of the way but not wanting to make him a martyr, the Senate exiled him to the mines on [[Messatine]]. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}} He continued to seethe with hate and frustration while at [[Mining Outpost C-12]]. One day [[Decimus|Senator Decimus]] arrived at the mine to announce that the mine was being closed immediately and the workers would be relocated. However, when one of the Senator's guards killed a worker for insubordination and claims of Senate corruption, Megatron attacked Decimus and killed the guard in self-defense (and was shocked to find he had done so). This started a riot which was quickly crushed. He and the other miners were en route to [[Penal Facility H-3|imprisonment]] when [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] and [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] broke free and started a riot aboard [[Longshot (G1)|their ship]]. They overpowered their guards, damaged Decimus's ship to ward off pursuit, as the authorities would focus on his rescue, and made their way to [[Kaon]]. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}}

[[File:Minermegs.jpg|150px|thumb|Now that's the look of a well-adjusted individual.]]

After evading law enforcement, Megatron joined a team of underworld gladiators under the tutelage of [[Clench (G1)|Clench]]. Initially repulsed by killing his opponents, the games eventually turned him more brutal and excessive, and he took control of the entire operation from Clench. The opportunistic Senator [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], after seeing how much money there was in the underworld matches, sent his agent [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] to offer Megatron weaponry and technology to upgrade himself and his comrades. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}} [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]]'s Autobots were sent to investigate the gladiatorial games, but when two Autobots were personally killed by Megatron, Prime's forces stepped up their pursuit. Megatron used the gladiatorial games to drum up an army of violent malcontents and spread chaos throughout Cybertron. He then deliberately allowed Sentinel Prime's forces to capture his burgeoning army, {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} so that [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] (pretending to defect) and Soundwave and his hidden cassette army could exterminate the Kaon Senate and then free every last prisoner. Megatron led the army of prisoners against the Autobots, beat Sentinel Prime nearly to death, and took control of Kaon. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

[[File:Apexthrone.JPG|250px|thumb|You should have gone to IKEA.]]

Megatron's infamy spread and his message of rising up against the ruling classes struck a chord with many disenfranchised Cybertronians. One such fellow was [[Drift (G1)|Drift]], who attended a Decepticon rally and was personally asked by Megatron to fight at his side. Megatron rechristened Drift as "Deadlock" and welcomed him into the Decepticon fold. {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}} Soon enough, the growing Decepticon forces had spread across six [[Polities of Cybertron|Torus-States]]. {{storylink|Parasites}} At one point, he met Orion Pax again on [[Sherma Bridge]], where they did battle for the first time. Orion chopped off Megatron's cannon arm during the fight, but the Decepticon leader came out victorious by tossing him off the bridge. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

To Megatron's interest, his now-abandoned treatise had been a source of inspiration for Orion Pax, who had even quoted from it when he confronted the Senate and openly accused them of corruption. When the Autobot captain came close to Kaon during a mission, Megatron saw it as a chance to speak to him and had his Decepticons bring him in. {{storylink|The Hunt for Soundwave}} Orion, turned cynical by his time in the force, refused Megatron's offers for them to work together against the newest corrupt Autobot leader, [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]]. Megatron let him know that Zeta was even worse than he seemed, having planned to let Orion die in [[Nyon]] so that he could use his death as pretext to invade the rebel-infested city and drain the citizens of their energon. Orion then escaped, but knowing the doubts he'd placed in his head would only serve to damage the Autobot cause, Megatron let him go. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}}

Megatron continued to keep an eye on Orion Pax's activities, spying on his encounter with the Nyon insurgent [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]]. {{storylink|Ruins}} When Zeta Prime's [[Guardian robot|Omega Destructor]]s suddenly attacked Nyon, Megatron was surprised by how zealously the new Prime fought against the city's rebels, but his real interest still lay on how Orion would handle the crisis. {{storylink|Purge}} Orion turned on Zeta, who in turn attempted to kill him, prompting Megatron to intervene and force the Prime to retreat. Taking Orion back to Kaon, he again offered that they work together against Zeta's corruption, and this time the Autobot officer accepted. {{storylink|Choices}} As their combined forces invaded the [[Citadel]] in Iacon, Megatron and Orion Pax made their way inside and fought Zeta Prime in person.The battle ended with Megatron killing the Prime with a head shot, and with his objective complete, he then betrayed the injured Orion by shooting him in the back. {{storylink|Overthrown}}

With Zeta dead, Megatron conquered Iacon and declared himself ruler of Cybertron. His soldiers patrolled the planet's streets to "keep the peace", mostly by hunting down and capturing any remaining Autobots who opposed him. {{storylink|Transformation (issue)|Transformation}} During his rule, Megatron attempted to sway the neutral [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] into joining the Decepticons, but he decided otherwise upon witnessing Megatron ordering the execution of several Autobot prisoners. {{storylink|Rise}} Megatron was shocked to learn that Orion Pax had survived the betrayal and was organizing a rebellion against him under the name "Optimus Prime", and even more shocked that people actually had the courage to listen to him. He wasted no time in striking back against the rebels approaching the Citadel with the full force of his army. {{storylink|Broadcast}}

During the battle, Megatron ordered Blitzwing to distract the Autobots long enough for him to bring out the "vamparc annihilator", a giant [[vamparc ribbon]] built inside the Citadel by Zeta Prime. Though he managed to knock out a lot of Autobots, [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] arrived and took out the cannon along with the entire building, causing Megatron to fall to the streets and face Optimus Prime himself. He lost the ensuing [[The Transformers: The Movie|familiar-looking duel]] and was badly wounded after a failed attempt to defeat Prime by holding Hot Rod hostage, forcing him to escape aboard Astrotrain. As he fled, he warned Optimus that he hadn't won, he had only started a war unlike any Cybertron had ever seen. {{storylink|Endgame}}

At some point early in the war, he wrote ''[[Towards Peace]]'', a new treatise to replace ''After the Ark'', in which he described continuing to fight the war until the very notion of conflict was literally inconceivable. Then and only then would he finally give up his fusion cannon. At some point, he also created the [[Decepticon Justice Division]] to deal with traitors. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}}

[[File:Megatrong1idwpreearth.jpg|left|150px|thumb|450 years ago, his helmet was black, but now it's gray. The difference time makes, huh?]]
Over time, the war between Megatron's Decepticon army and Optimus Prime's Autobots covered the entire planet and soon beyond to the rest of the galaxy. Optimus grew to respect and fear Megatron as a calm, calculating and measured opponent, while Megatron himself respected Prime's sheer power and his skill as a tactician and as a leader. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} They would proceed to duel each other directly many times, such as during the [[Battle for Hell's Point]] and the [[Siege of Massunstrad]] {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}, and also fight by proxy, sealing themselves into [[Omniglobe]]s, "hypercongizance shells" which would feed them the entirety of data from the frontlines, enabling the sides to throw everything they had at each other for a prolonged period of time. The Decepticons didn't even spare the resources to collect their dead, who lay where they fell for eons. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}}

Ultimately, with total war getting nowhere, Megatron would go on to develop a six-stage [[infiltration protocol]] to be used for conquering targeted planets, and selected Sixshot, a living weapon he had constructed with frightening amounts of power that only he had the "off-switch" for {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}}, and the similarly ultra-powerful Overlord and [[Black Shadow (Victory)|Black Shadow]] to be the agents who would strike the final blow in each battle. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 2|Last Stand of the Wreckers #2}} As the Autobot/Decepticon war progressed, the conflict became so great that it created an impending energy crisis and threatened the stability of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] itself. When [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Shockwave]] left Cybertron, secretly pursuing alternate energy sources, Megatron ordered [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] to investigate his files, secretly assigning Soundwave to investigate Bludgeon. {{storylink|Spotlight: Shockwave}}

When Deadlock deserted the cause at some point during the war, Megatron sent the bounty hunter [[Lockdown (G1)|Lockdown]] to bring him back. {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}}

Later, a Decepticon scientist, [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]], came to Megatron with a revolutionary, controversial plan to stave off this energy death by [[Pretender|polydermal grafting]], a process where they encased themselves in "symbiotic carapaces", or shells created from living tissue. When Megatron dismissed him angrily and cut him down, Thunderwing did not abandon his research, but instead experimented on himself. As a result, Thunderwing became so powerful that Megatron had to join forces with Optimus Prime to stop him. This battle at [[Thunderhead Pass]] accelerated the apocalypse destined to befall Cybertron, leaving it an uninhabitable, radioactive husk and forcing both armies to continue their war on other worlds. Megatron advocated that they simply destroy Cybertron to ensure that Thunderwing was destroyed, but Prime refused, and threatened to stop Megatron if he tried. Megatron agreed not to destroy the planet, but warned Prime that whatever happened was on his head. Shortly after the last big push by the Decepticons, Cybertron was abandoned by both factions.

[[File:Infiltration6 takeyourpunishment.jpg|250px|thumb|Those librarians are getting really strict on late returns.]]
Seven hundred [[Units of time|stellar cycles]] later, in current times, it was discovered that as a result of digging through Shockwave's files, Bludgeon had resurrected Thunderwing's dangerous project, as well as Thunderwing himself. After being informed of Thunderwing's attack on [[Nebulos]], Megatron dispatched the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]] in the ''[[Thanatos]]'' to Cybertron, authorizing [[Razorclaw (G1)|Razorclaw]] to do whatever was necessary to destroy Thunderwing, including the destruction of Cybertron. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} However, Optimus Prime and the [[Wrecker]]s were able to thwart both Bludgeon and Thunderwing, and so destruction of the planet was averted. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 4|Stormbringer #4}}

{{quote|You will stand down. If you fight, you ''die''. There is no room anymore for mercy. In the end, you are ''all'' expendable. Choose.|Megatron's ultimatum to Starscream's troops|"[[Infiltration issue 6]]"}}

Megatron, meanwhile, was on Earth, investigating Starscream's infiltration team. He discovered that Starscream had stumbled across [[Ultra-Energon|Ore-13]], an incredible energy source which had been [[Spotlight: Shockwave|mysteriously seeded there]], and that the [[Air Commander]] was planning to use it to usurp Megatron's command—this annoyed him, as he had thought they were beyond such power games. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} After seriously damaging the hesitantly rebellious [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] and [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]], {{storylink|Infiltration issue 5|Infiltration #5}} Megatron ordered the AWOL team to stand down and then took on a super-powered Starscream. Though the Ore-13 made Starscream a formidable adversary, Megatron was still more deadly than he, and Starscream was destroyed. All throughout, he acted eerily calm & measured and made both Autobot and Decepticon wet themselves in fear. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6}}

Megatron took stock of Starscream's progress on Earth in light of the discovery of Ore-13 and called a meeting to make Starscream's former troops aware, in no uncertain terms, that any further insurrections would be met with deadly force. {{storylink|Escalation issue 1|Escalation #1}} Initiating phase two of infiltration protocol, Megatron stole a prototype [[Psycho-Prism]] from [[Doctor Doom]]'s laboratory. He created an "array" structure in [[Latveria]] as a base of operations. He sent Skywarp and Thundercracker to the nearby country of [[Symkaria]] in hopes they will blame Latveria and start a war. He activated the Psycho-Prism which produced an aggression wave that made nearby humans more aggressive in order to further increase international tensions. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}} Doctor Doom, not appreciating the Decepticons' setting up shop in his country, tried to remove their base with an army of [[Doombot]]s. Megatron had no problem repelling them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}}

The [[Avengers]] arrived and Megatron let them enter his facility where he scanned them looking for a suitable sample to leech power from as part of their [[mirror response mode]]. He selected [[Spider-Man]] and captured him. The remaining Avengers retreated and Megatron energized the facilities energy shield. The Autobots arrived and were attacked by the Avengers thanks to their heightened aggression. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}}

Megatron energized himself and all of his troops except Ramjet, who he didn't trust. Outside, the Autobots were able to nullify the aggression wave amongst the Avengers and they teamed up and started attacking the array. Megatron sent out his energized troops to repel the invaders. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} Ratchet, Prowl, and [[Luke Cage]] were able to breech the array's defenses. Megatron captured Ratchet and Luke Cage while Ramjet and Megatron's new ally, Doctor Doom captured Prowl. When his forces outside were defeated, Megatron—on the advice of Doctor Doom—sent a holographic message to those outside that he would kill his captives if they did not surrender. They did not surrender and instead renewed their attack. Megatron blamed Doctor Doom for the failure and turned on him.

[[File:Megsandspidy.jpg|left|200px|thumb|]]

Megatron did not go through with his threat of killing the hostages. Instead he went out to face his attackers himself, holding Luke Cage. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Three}} He was beating the opposition until Prowl, Ratchet, and Spider-Man [[orbital jump|orbital bounced]] out of the facility. They had been freed by Doctor Doom and the two Autobots used the Decepticon equipment to energize themselves with [[Wolverine (superhero)|Wolverine]]'s super power. This added firepower led to his defeat. His Psycho-Prism was destroyed so there was no point in continuing the fight and ordered his troops to retreat using an [[emergency warp-out]]. Megatron himself stuck around awhile hoping to beat someone up, but Spider-Man wrapped him up in webbing, Luke Cage knocked him over, and the Autobots opened fire on him while he was down. He finally warped-out taunting Optimus Prime on the way out. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Four}}

[[File:Megatrong1idwgunbody.jpg|150px|thumb|I also wonder.]]
After getting the infiltration protocols back on track, Megatron stayed instead of leaving Earth in the hands of a new commander. He decided to try out his new [[Size changing|mass-displacing]] handgun [[Alternate mode|altmode]] and the Ore-13 power. {{storylink|Escalation issue 2|Escalation #2}} He personally took charge of the Decepticon subterfuge in [[Brasnya]], guiding the facsimile of [[Georgi Koska]] in an attempt to escalate an international incident into a full polarizing war, and acting as Koska's personal weapon. (His alt-mode only works when a human is holding and firing him, which left him at a disadvantage against the Autobots, who could simply pin him down in that form. Maybe Megatron just wants to be held.) {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}}

When Optimus Prime arrived, Megatron transformed and started a full-blown to-the-death melee with his longtime foe for all the nuts and bolts—this surprised Optimus, who accused Megatron of letting the Ore-13 power go to his head and causing him to be "some raging braggart". Even with his fusion cannon disabled almost right away, Megatron gained the upper hand due to his Ore-13 high. Beating his foe down, he squeezed Prime's spark casing and seemingly killed him; {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} aghast, the Autobots moved into a full but ineffective counterattack, their only edge being that Megatron had no long-range guns left. However, Prime's death was a desperate ruse, and the Autobot leader countered with a surprise attack on Megatron, able to exploit Ore-13's weakness—the more it's used, the faster it burns itself out. Megatron almost collapsed from power loss and was forced to have Skywarp take him to safety before the Autobots could kill him.

Upon returning to base and being refueled and repaired, Megatron was hopping mad. Mad enough to prematurely call in his ultimate living weapon—[[Sixshot]]—despite [[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]]'s panic attack on hearing that. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}}

During this time, he discovered a plot by [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] to overthrow him. Without saying a word, he beat the living [[Slag (slang)|slag]] out of the attempted traitor before tearing him apart and keeping his head as a trophy. {{storylink|Spotlight: Ramjet}}

Upon Sixshot's arrival, Megatron ordered him to utterly destroy the Autobots, throwing out the methodical "Phase" strategy. The other Decepticons were worried that Megatron was losing his grip—and since they were too scared to tell him that, they decided to revive Starscream to do it for them. {{storylink|Devastation issue 1|Devastation #1}} Before Sixshot could obliterate the Autobots, Megatron recalled him to deal with a new threat—the [[Reaper]]s. {{storylink|Devastation issue 4|Devastation #4}} Megatron deduced that the other Decepticons betrayed him by awakening Starscream, but decided not to punish them '''yet''', due to the present task of destroying the Reapers. {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}} After these foes were dead, Megatron was forced to accept Starscream and the others when it became clear the humans were aware of them now. {{storylink|Devastation issue 6|Devastation #6}}

[[File:Bringingthehousedown.jpg|left|250px|thumb|Megatron's urban renewal program was off to a flying start.]]
Some time later, the Autobots were led into a trap; false information was planted by an [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Autobot traitor]], and they were led into an ambush and soundly defeated by the Decepticons and the newly-created [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]]. After personally ripping the [[Matrix of Leadership]] out of Optimus Prime's chest, Megatron planned to drop the Autobots into the midst of [[Insecticon swarm|three thousand horrendous things he had created]] on Cybertron. When all but Prime had gone through the space bridge, Prime grabbed Blitzwing's gun and somehow saved the other Autobots from certain death, closing the portal. Optimus was critically injured by the space bridge, which fried his circuits. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} This caused Starscream's status among the Decepticons and their concern about Megatron to go ''way'' down, with former dissenters like [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] becoming Megatron fanboys. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} By use of Sunstreaker's input with Starscream and Bombshell's experimentation on [[Hunter O'Nion]], Megatron was able to defeat [[Omega Supreme (G1)|almost]] all the Autobots in the galaxy...

A year after the defeat of Optimus, Megatron decided to take Earth and make it the new Decepticon homeworld. He arrived on the front lines as the Decepticons attacked [[New York City]], humiliating Starscream by outdoing him in destroying things with just one shot from his fusion cannon. When the US Air Force responded with an F-22 squad, as a show of force Megatron had Soundwave disable the human's missile targeting, followed by the Decepticons just standing there shrugging off bullets before making their attack. After one jet was damaged by Skywarp, [[DJ (G1)|its pilot]] attempted to take out Megatron with a suicide run, but the Decepticon leader calmly swatted the incoming plane, causing it to explode. As flames rose from the wreckage, Megatron emerged, completely undamaged, laughing maniacally. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} Megatron continued to direct the Decepticon assault on New York, dispatching [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] to mop up the U.S. Army's ground forces and ordering the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] to combine into [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] and destroy the underwater tunnels leading out of the city. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 2|All Hail Megatron #2}}

His plan executed flawlessly, the Decepticons continued their assault on the major cities of the United States, disabling or nullifying any attempt by the army or navy to counterattack. As he surveyed his handiwork in New York, he ordered Hook and the Constructicons to begin building ''something'' in the once-great human city and appreciated their "sacrifice" in using "substandard" building materials. Soon thereafter he was joined by Starscream, with whom he had a heart to heart and revealed he believed Starscream to be the embodiment of the Decepticon cause, but that Starscream was blind to realizing this. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 3|All Hail Megatron #3}}

When the humans had fallen, Megatron made a propaganda speech to his men in the ruins of New York. He heaped great praise on their efforts, both on Earth and across the galaxy, announcing they had finally crushed the Autobots for good. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 4|All Hail Megatron #4}} After making this speech (and dispatching Ratbat to attack a small group of mercenaries led by [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Commander Witwicky]]), Megatron entered one of the "buildings" to gaze at his newly prized possession... the Autobot Matrix of Leadership that he stole from Optimus. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 5|All Hail Megatron #5}}

[[File:AHM6MegatronVsIsrael.jpg|200px|thumb|]]

That praise turned out to be empty, as Starscream started noticing that Megatron didn't have a plan now victory had been achieved, and the smashy-smash fun on Earth was him trying to distract the troops—because now he had an army of evil sociopathic murderers with nothing to murder and a doctrine of taking power. Not even smashing up [[Israel]] made him feel better. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}} Eventually, Starscream made his move, revealing to Megatron that he had swayed the Insecticons to his side. Megatron easily swatted the insects aside, however, and explained to Starscream that he had known about his plans all along. Unfortunately, he hadn't anticipated Starscream to have rallied the Constructicons backing him up, and found himself having to fight the mighty Devastator. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}}

[[File:AHM12-youreafool.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Ever so often, Megatron likes to remind us he's basically Magneto.]]

As the battle was interrupted by an attack from human jets, Megatron and Starscream put their differences aside momentarily to organize a defense. Megatron was not at all surprised by the attack, as he had planned the invasion—nay, the ''war''—down to the smallest detail. He explained to Starscream that while the Decepticon forces may have no real goal at the moment, he planned to remodel them into something greater after the war was done. Then he was suddenly interrupted by something he ''hadn't'' planned for: the return of the Autobots. After assuring Starscream that he'd be leader someday (just not right now), Megatron confronted Optimus Prime again, accusing the Autobot of coming for his Matrix rather than truly caring about Earth. He also revealed that Prime's supposedly "innocent" humans were planning to nuke New York, killing millions of their own just to get rid of the Decepticons. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 11|All Hail Megatron #11}}

Prime retorted that it wasn't about the humans, it was about the difference between him and Megatron—the difference between Autobots and Decepticons. The two came to blows, and Megatron eventually came out on top by throwing Prime into a building. He ordered the Decepticons to leave Earth, leaving the Autobots to be killed by the humans' nuke... only to be shot in the face by [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], wielding a powerful weapon reverse-engineered from Cybertronian technology. Injured and disoriented by the blast, Megatron was finished off when Optimus Prime got back up and smashed his face in with his own fusion cannon. As he wanted to ''take'' leadership rather than just have it fall in his hands, Starscream picked up his damaged leader and took him off the planet. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

[[File:AllHisEngines-Megatron.jpg|thumb|150px|Pretty sure when you float in a bacta tank you're supposed to be wearing a diaper.]]

On board Astrotrain, Megatron was put on life support and was tended to by Soundwave and his cassettes. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 13|Uneasy Lies the Head}}

The Decepticons eventually settled on a desolate asteroid and Megatron spent the next three years in a [[CR chamber|CR tank]]. He was somehow conscious and aware of current events during his recovery. Megatron was forced to simply watch as most of the Decepticon army languished in inactivity and slowly began to unravel under Starscream's leadership. {{storylink|All His Engines}} But despite Megatron's mental health and awareness, Soundwave eventually realized that his body was beyond repair. He convinced Shockwave, who had been given access to plenty of resources for his space bridge project, to help him build a brand new body for Megatron's consciousness to inhabit. They were successful, and even included space bridge technology in Megatron himself, allowing him to create warp portals to Earth.

Back in action, Megatron devised a plan to destabilize the relationship between the humans and Autobots on Earth. Together with Soundwave and Shockwave, he chopped up his old body and used it to create human-scaled replicas of his former gun mode, containing small pieces of his own consciousness. Starscream caught them in the act, but wasn't too shocked to learn of Megatron's return, as he knew it had been inevitable. Megatron was unable to take back leadership of the Decepticons at the moment, however, as Starscream was in possession of the Matrix of Leadership, an object which Megatron considered a threat due to its mysterious nature. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}}

[[File:Ongoing Issue 13 - Megatron.jpg|left|200px|thumb|"Ever see the movie ''Tron''?"]]

When [[Hot Rod (G1)|Rodimus]] infiltrated the Decepticons' asteroid base and recovered the Matrix from Starscream, Megatron stepped in to intercept the Autobot. Rodimus panicked when coming upon the reborn Decepticon commander and held up the Matrix to try and ward him off. But Megatron simply shot Rodimus at point-blank range, blasting him out into space, Matrix and all. Intent on reestablishing his authority, Megatron then informed Soundwave to gather the other Decepticons so he could address them. {{storylink|Heart Like a Wheel}}

Distrustful of Shockwave's motives for preparing his new body, wary of Soundwave's constant surveillance, and repulsed by the state of his once fearsome Decepticon war machine, Megatron decided that he needed to unequivocally reestablish dominance over the now Matrix-less Starscream. His intended to beat Starscream near to death, thereby allowing both of them to work out their frustrations with Starscream's inability to lead effectively over the three years Megatron was incapacitated. However, Starscream did not want to fight. He was devastated by his loss of the Matrix and his inability to command the obedience of the Decepticon forces in Megatron's absence despite possessing the Matrix, and simply wanted Megatron to kill him and get it over with, if that was what Megatron intended to do. Megatron, instead of accepting Starscream's refusal to engage him, goaded the former Matrix-bearer into opening fire upon him. This forced Starscream to both flee and fight for his life so that he might escape Megatron's vengeance. Megatron, pursuing in his new stealth bomber alt-mode continues to bait Starscream into conflict as he tries to escape, and eventually achieved his desire to beat him into submission, which re-ignited Starscream's scheming nature, and the desire to lead the Decepticons once again, which Megatron believes is necessary for the proper functioning of his Decepticons. {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

Megatron, aided by Shockwave, moved to immediately implement the first stage of his planned vengeance against the Autobots and the citizens of Earth by sending a container full of guns based on his former alternate mode ( which were made from his old body), as well as his old head, through a space bridge to Earth, where it landed in [[Quetzaltenango]], [[Mexico]]. Without the knowledge of any human government, the powerful weapons were then smuggled into the United States by gun enthusiasts and civilians looking for anti-Transformer weaponry. This allowed Megatron's consciousness to spread throughout the land, until it was focused enough to contact one particular owner of a Megatron gun: [[Joe Gladki]]. He deceived and manipulated the paranoid human, and eventually convinced him to perform an assassination attempt on [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]], the new Autobot leader. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} In their ignorance, the Autobots then mistook Gladki's gun for Megatron himself and held it captive. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 1: The Demolished Man|The Demolished Man}}

With the Autobots in chaos, Megatron started the next phase of his plan and returned to Earth personally, where he used his new stealth bomber mode to shoot down a plane carrying Optimus Prime and several other Autobots. He then hunted down [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]], who was in charge following the loss of both Bumblebee and Prime, and killed some Mexicans attacking Magnus's troops with Megatron guns just because. With his powerful new body, he effortlessly defeated the entire Autobot team and killed some of their [[Skywatch]] allies. Ultra Magnus tried to stop him, telling Megatron that he was back for the Autobots and not the humans, but Megatron assured him that humanity was his real target. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 3: Woken Furies|Woken Furies}}

Megatron revealed that his entire scheme was a plot to try and crush Optimus Prime's spirit and ruin the fragile alliance between humanity and the Autobots by arming deranged and unstable humans with advanced weaponry based on his old body, thus forcing the Autobots to choose between fighting the humans or allowing them to kill them. He dumped several of the Autobots in a heavily populated area and mind controlled three already paranoid humans to kill the Autobots. He also took Ultra Magnus hostage, having Soundwave keep a weapon trained on him as he taunted Prime about the no win situation he had created. However, he also revealed to Prime that he was controlling the humans, and in a bid to distract him enough to break the mental control, Prime shot Soundwave in the head, badly wounding him. Distraught and furious that his faithful lieutenant had been wounded, Megatron chose to flee to get Soundwave medical attention, forcing him to break communication. Unfortunately however, despite this Megatron's plan succeeded. Jazz was forced to kill a human to save Bumblebee's life, increasing the paranoia and hatred that humanity felt for the Autobots. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome|Burning Chrome}}

With Soundwave wounded severely, Megatron took him to a temporary lab that Shockwave had set up on Earth, to have Soundwave repaired. However Shockwave noted that much of the Decepticon's resources had been used to construct Megatron's new body and the new space bridge, and it would take a great deal of time to properly rebuild Soundwave. It was at this point that Optimus Prime attacked again and after threatening Shockwave, goaded Megatron into a confrontation. Megatron ordered his troops not to attack Prime, wanting them to watch as he crippled the Autobot leader and left him for the humans to kill. However one thing Megatron didn't suspect was for Prime to be desperate enough to drop a satellite on top of him, in an effort to kill him once and for all.

However Megatron's new body, empowered greatly by Ore-13, was virtually unharmed by the attack. He beat Prime senseless but then, shockingly, surrendered to the Autobots and was promptly imprisoned inside Omega Supreme. Optimus demanded to know why he surrendered and Megatron taunted him by revealing that Spike Witwicky had murdered a Decepticon in cold blood and told him the humans couldn't be trusted, mocking Prime's desire to work with the humans and warning him that he had doomed his Autobots by allying with Skywatch. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine|Enemy Mine}}

Prime immediately had Prowl begin investigating Spike and Skywatch, and one of the first things Prowl did was quiz Megatron on what he knew about Spike's activities. Megatron told him what he needed to know after a little verbal sparring. {{storylink|Police Action: Prologue}}

When Rodimus returned to Earth and warned the Autobots that [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] had taken control of Cybertron, now habitable once more thanks to Alpha Trion repairing the ravaged world and Ironhide and Sunstreaker having wiped out the Swarm, Optimus decided to lead the Autobots to claim their homeworld back from the insane Galvatron. He also decided to bring both Megatron and the Matrix, believing that the humans would be less at risk of Decepticon attacks if Megatron and the Matrix were both off earth. {{storylink|Space Opera—Final Tableaux: Orphans of the Helix|Orphans of the Helix}}

On the way to Cybertron, Megatron was fully scanned by both Ratchet and [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]], who, along with [[Xaaron]] had come to assist the Autobots in making sure Megatron was secure and to provide legal counsel in how to treat him as he was now a prisoner of war. Megatron was silent while they confirmed that he had no concealed weaponry on him. Shortly after this, Prime himself came to talk to Megatron, wanting for once to have an actual conversation with his old foe and try to make peace, seeing the situation as a chance to finally end the war. Initially skeptical of Prime's reasons for talking to him, when Prime released Megatron from his bonds. Megatron challenged Prime's motto of "Freedom is the right of all sentient beings" by pointing out that it was he, not Prime, who had stood up for the Cybertronians who were treated as little more than slaves by the corrupt ruling class of Cybertron and claiming that the only true way to bring peace to the universe was through conquest. After arguing about their conflicting viewpoints the two began to remember old battles and the numerous near death experiences, even laughing together as they shared war stories. It was then that Optimus tried to reach out to Megatron, offering him the chance to end the war once and for all with a handshake, telling him that all he had to do was tell him that he wanted the war to end and it would. Megatron appeared to consider it for a moment but ultimately remained silent. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

Under pressure to decide whether Megatron would be executed or imprisoned should he be found guilty of crimes against the species and genocide, Prime confronted Megatron and asked him if he regretted any of his actions. Megatron coldly replied that he did not and in fact only regretted that he hadn't done more and killed more Autobots, claiming that he would kill Autobots solely for pleasure and that as long as anyone stood in his way he would kill them. He also claimed that Optimus was secretly glad for the war, taunting him in a manner similar to the way Whirl had once taunted Megatron by pointing out that if the war had never happened Optimus would have lived and died as a nobody, with no one knowing or caring who he was, but because of Megatron Optimus had become famous and the most respected and worshipped Cybertronian of all. It was a taunt designed to make Prime want to kill him and Optimus nearly did, activating the Variable Voltage Harness. Omega Supreme managed to cut the power in time and Megatron, struggling to stay conscious, offered Prime his thanks for saving his life all those years ago in Rodion. Shocked by his actions Prime realised that Megatron wanted to die and wanted him to be the one to kill him.

This was confirmed when he asked Megatron what HE wanted his punishment to be if found guilty at his trial. Death or imprisonment. Megatron calmly replied that he chose death. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 2}}

On the way to Cybertron, Megatron demanded to know who or what was attacking the planet, questioning whether it was Starscream, Shockwave or even Thunderwing. Optimus refused to answer, stating that now Megatron was a prisoner everything going on outside the walls of his cell was no longer his concern and questioning why Megatron was suddenly so sentimental. Megatron ominously noted that Cybertron was more than just a metal world and that if it was in the wrong hands they were all in danger. He also threatened Prime but Optimus simply left the cell, no longer willing to speak with Megatron. {{storylink| Chaos Part One: Lamentations|Lamentations}}

As the battle with the [[Sweep]]s and Galvatron raged across Cybertron, Megatron chose this moment to reveal the ace he had up his sleeve: The Autobots had confiscated a number of the guns made from his old body, which he was able to take control of and use to upgrade himself into a secondary armored mode. This allowed him to break free of his restraints within Omega Supreme, cackling insanely as he broke loose and confronted both the Autobots and the gathered Sweeps, declaring that Cybertron belonged to him and he would not allow Galvatron to have it. {{storylink|Chaos Part Two: Numbers|Numbers}}

[[File:Megatron Chaospt4 Genesis.jpg|thumb|200px|End...of...line...]]
Tearing through the Sweeps with ease, Megatron summoned his Decepticon forces to kill the Autobots gathered on Cybertron, using a beacon built into his new body to lead them to exactly where he was. While Megatron fought the Sweeps his Decepticons came close to overwhelming the battered and exhausted Autobots, before [[D-Void]], acting through the [[Darkness (G1)|Heart of Darkness]], summoned all the Decepticons to combine into a gigantic monster along with the Sweeps, a monster that began attacking Cybertron and the Autobots. Megatron ordered Prime to come join him in battle against the monster but Prime replied that as he had to deal with Galvatron, it would be up to Megatron to stop the advancing monstrosity. {{storylink|Chaos Part Three: Kings|Kings}}

As the stunned Autobots watched, Megatron, though gravely wounded and missing an arm, resisted D-Void's control and not only fought but destroyed the Deceptigod, blasting it apart with one massive beam from his weapons. {{storylink|Chaos Part Four: Genesis|Genesis}} In the chaos that followed Galvatron's defeat and the restoration of Cybertron, Megatron was nowhere to be found. As Optimus Prime exiled himself from Cybertron weeks later, he mused that his nemesis must still be out there somewhere. {{storylink|The Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}

Months after what had become known as the "Chaos Event", Megatron wandered into a rebuilt [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] from the wilderness Cybertron had become, heavily damaged and carrying a bunch of severed Sweep heads. {{storylink|The End of the Beginning of the World}} He claimed to come in peace, a claim that was hardly convincing to Bumblebee's Autobots overseeing the city who opted to kill him on sight. They were stopped by Iacon's Decepticon population, who saw Megatron's actions during the Chaos Event as those of a hero and forced them to take him into custody instead. He requested to talk to Bumblebee, who refused on the grounds that his "talk" with Optimus Prime had gone nowhere, and was instead approached by Starscream. {{storylink|City on Fire}}

Millions of years after the end of the war, when the Autobots were finally at peace, [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] still believed Megatron to be alive and promised a young Autobot they would defeat him again if he ever returned. {{storylink|Pax Cybertronia (issue)|Pax Cybertronia}} This may have actually have happened, or it may just have been a vision Ironhide had during the Chaos Event. {{storylink|A Better Tomorrow}}

===Spotlight: Mirage===
{{note|The events of ''Spotlight: Mirage'' are presented as a dream sequence of Mirage, and may possibly represent an alternate/unknown continuity.}}
With most of the Autobots in the galaxy defeated, Megatron chafed to end the war quickly. He demanded [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] track the last pocket of Autobot resistance down for the Decepticons. The mercenary demanded a majority share in all energon mining operations, a deal which outraged Megatron, until Mirage pointed out it was a small price to pay to end the war. After Optimus Prime surrendered, Megatron demanded the prisoners be executed despite Mirage's promise to spare Autobot lives. Seeing Mirage's hesitation, Megatron appealed to his greed. {{storylink|Spotlight: Mirage}}
{{-}}

==Notes==
* In "[[Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2]]", we see that Megatron's helmet is, in fact, [[:Image:MegatronOrigin2 Megs hair.jpg|a helmet and not part of his head]] (at least in this continuity). Upon removing his helmet, Megatron then briefly unfurls a crest. The significance of this moment is not explained, nor is it ever revisited. Thankfully.

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Rulers of Cybertron]]

Nominus Prime

2013-05-03T14:29:03Z

Solaar:

:''Nominus Prime is a [[Transformer]] from the [[Generation 1 continuity family]].''
[[Image:ChaosTheory2 NominusPrime.jpg|thumb|right|250px|]]

'''Nominus Prime''' is a little-known figure. Unfortunately, what we know includes that he was a douche.

==Fiction==
===IDW Generation 1 continuity===
Nominus Prime assumed office sometime after the disappearance of [[Nova Prime]] into the [[Benzuli Expanse]]. Under his rule, [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] was a planet full of corruption, social apartheid, and general oppression: a Cybertronian citizen's role in life was determined by the body he was built in, and the handful of elites (particularly the military) would step down on that citizen's face... ''forever''.

A young, idealistic [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]] wrote a political tract advocating non-violent resistance: ''[[After the Ark: Nominus Prime and the Illusion of Progress]]''. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}} A short time later, Nominus was attacked and seriously injured by a suicide bomber during the [[Primal Procession]], leaving him in a critical condition. It was revealed afterward by [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|a Senator friend]] of [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]] that the organization responsible for sending the bomber was actually affiliated with the Cybertronian [[Senate]] itself. The corrupt Senate's intent was to obtain a valid excuse to give themselves "unfettered" access to the life-giving [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]] and also to become even more controlling and implement the [[Clampdown]]. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 2}} While they told the public that Nominus had gone into hiding, the Senate actually kept the comatose Prime around so that their head of security [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel]] could tap into the power of the Matrix in his chest. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}} {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}} His attempts exposed a well-kept secret: Nominus Prime's "Matrix" was merely a fake. With this revelation, the Senate saw no more use in keeping Nominus around and had him killed, releasing a cover story claiming he passed away from a [[rust]] infection in his [[spark]] casing. They would go on to manipulate events so that Sentinel would succeed him as the next Prime. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}}

[[Image:Lastknownnominus.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Best shot of the guy we could find.]]As the body of Nominus lay in state at the [[Primal Basilica]], [[Whirl (G1)|Whirl]] tipped off Orion Pax about a planned bombing that would be blamed on the nascent Decepticon movement. Deducing that the bomb must be the fake Matrix that Nominus carried, Pax assembled a team of specialists to carry out the most audacious heist in Cybertronian history - to steal the Matrix! {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 2: Patternism|Patternism}} Despite the Primal Basilica's security measures, the [[Triorian Guard]] and the fact that the fake Matrix was wired into Nominus's chest like a 440 tamper-proof fuel pump, Pax was able to retrieve it thanks to help from [[Windcharger (G1)|Windcharger]], [[Glitch (IDW)|Glitch]], [[Skids (G1)|Skids]] and [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]]. {{storylink|Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|An Intimate Beheading}}

Nominus Prime was the namesake of the [[Nominus Prize for Medicine]]. {{storylink|Life After the Big Bang}}

==Notes==
*The presence of another Prime ''this'' close to ''[[The Transformers: Megatron Origin|Megatron Origin]]'' indicates that Sentinel did not last long in his job.
*Just like poor [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]], Nominus wasn't included in the lineage of Primes depicted in "[[Spotlight: Optimus Prime]]". In real life, this is because he was created after "Spotlight: Optimus Prime" had been published. In that ''Spotlight'', we hear that the Primes are ideals that embody the ages they reign in, which is probably an in-story reason for why Optimus doesn't want to visualize the bastard...
*Nominus was injured when Orion Pax gave his speech to the Senate where he first self-identified as an "Autobot" and he was killed soon after, so his reign predated the common usage of the term.

==External links==
*[http://markerguru.deviantart.com/gallery/?offset=24#/d46wxhr Colored concept art of Nominus Prime @ Alex Milne's DeviantArt]

[[Category:Comic-only Transformers]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Transformers]]
[[Category:Primes]]

File:Shadowplay2 Nominus Prime dead.jpg

2013-05-03T14:28:31Z

Solaar:

Zeta Prime (G1)

2013-05-03T14:11:49Z

Solaar: /* IDW Generation 1 continuity */

{{factions|autobot}}
{{disambig3|Zeta Prime}}

:''Zeta Prime is an [[Autobot]] from the [[Generation 1 continuity family]].''

[[Image:Newnarrator ffod.jpg|right|180px|thumb|The classic battle between evil and the narrator.]]

Thrust into authority by the death of the previous Matrix bearer, '''Zeta Prime''' took on the thankless job of heading the Autobot forces in the wake of [[Decepticon]] conflicts.

==Fiction==
===''The Transformers'' cartoon===
:''Voice actor:'' [[Phillip Clarke]] (English)

Zeta Prime inherited the [[Matrix of Leadership]] from [[Guardian Prime]] when he was killed during the early days of the war with the Decepticons. His stint as Autobot leader appears to have been a short-lived one, as he died before the end of the war and was succeeded by [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]].

When [[Hot Rod (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Rodimus Prime]] journeyed into the Matrix in 2005, Zeta Prime was the fifth guide he encountered, who gave a very short account of the continuing Autobot-Decepticon war. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4}}

===IDW Generation 1 continuity===
[[File:Goodzeta.jpg|thumb|right|200px|What a friendly fellow.]]
Before the war, Zeta came in contact with [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Senator Shockwave]], who saw him as a promising character with the potential to become a powerful leader who'd change Cybertron for the better, and had his body modified to incorporate a [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]] cavity in order to push him towards this path. After not hearing from Shockwave for a while, Zeta followed instructions left to him and sought out [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]], one of the ''other'' promising Cybertronians befriended and modified by Shockwave. {{storylink|Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|An Intimate Beheading}}

[[Image:Parasites Zeta Prime.jpg|thumb|left]]
Following the death of [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]], Zeta did indeed live up to Shockwave's expectations and rose to the rank of Prime, making Pax one of his loyal enforcers. In order to facilitate a hostage exchange with Decepticons in the [[Rust Spot]], Zeta commissioned a refit for Orion Pax, who led a group that comprised of Pax himself, [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]], and [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]] to save [[Ratchet (G1)|Ratchet]]. {{storylink|Omega's Conundrum}} During his tenure he brought about many changes, such as granting more rights to [[Functionism|"disposable class"]] citizens {{storylink|Before & After}} and instating a new, compulsory [[Decepticon Registration Act]]. {{storylink|Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|An Intimate Beheading}} Zeta Prime solidified the Autobot security forces into a true army to withstand the civil war Cybertron suddenly found itself embroiled in. Towards this end, he locked down most recreational activities, as they were magnets for terrorist activity by the [[Decepticon]]s. This included a direct order to shut down the races which brought [[Blurr (G1)|Blurr]]'s stardom.

In the wake of these shutdowns, he increased Autobot recruitment heavily, and many former entertainers joined the Autobot forces, only to find they were ill-prepared for the realities of war. Many attempts on his life were hatched, including one which was intercepted by a group of Autobots that included Orion Pax, then going by the name Optimus. Optimus was able to convince Blurr to carry news of the plot to Zeta Prime before the assassins could reach him. {{storylink|Spotlight: Blurr}} At the surface, Zeta appeared to be a change from the corrupt regime of the [[Senate]], a view which he encouraged by rebranding his changes as "new", including a New Senate and a [[New Imperium]]. In truth he was not much better, having secretly created the [[The Institute|New Institute]] to brainwash both Decepticons as well as Autobots in need of... a push in the right direction. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} Over time, this side of him became more obvious as he grew overzealous in his fight against the Decepticons and prone to outbursts of rage. Nevertheless, Orion Pax and the other Autobots continued to act as enforcers of his authority. {{storylink|Law and Disorder}}

Frustrated with the growing Decepticon rebellion, Zeta Prime procured [[Jhiaxus (G2)|Jhiaxus]]'s [[vamparc ribbon]] and outfitted his troops, including the [[Omega Destructor]]s with it. Unfortunately, the weapon came with a high energy cost, which Zeta was more than happy to draw from the citizens of Cybertron themselves, starting with the terror cell-infested city of [[Nyon]]. The spying [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] was witness to Zeta Prime's elaboration of his insane plan in the [[Senate]] and fled once his cover was blown. Zeta ordered Orion Pax to hunt down the Decepticon before his vamparc ribbon became public knowledge. {{storylink|Parasites}}

[[Image:Zeta Prime Orion Pax Autocracy7.jpg|right|250px|thumb|]]
To Zeta Prime's annoyance, Orion not only returned empty-handed, but also questioned his plan to drain his own citizens. Zeta brushed him off and reminded him that he had twice led his troops into Decepticon ambushes, then sent his team on a mission to capture the insurgent [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] and make up for their failures. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}} Not long thereafter, Zeta Prime personally led several Omega Destructors into Nyon, devastating the city and draining its citizens dry, forcing Hot Rod's rebels to self-destruct the city rather than let it become fuel for his army. This only turned out to be part of Zeta's plan, as it meant he finally got rid of Nyon and its rebels once and for all. Have witnessed the attack, Orion Pax and his troops turned on and attacked Zeta, but he defeated them all with a vamparc ribbon. {{storylink|Purge}} Before he could finish Orion off, Zeta was interrupted by the arrival of [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]], who caused his weapon to overload and forced him to retreat. {{storylink|Choices}}

During a meeting with the Senate, Zeta Prime and his Omega Destructors were attacked by a joint Autobot-Decepticon force, with Megatron and Orion Pax personally battling Zeta himself. After Orion destroyed his vamparc ribbon, Megatron was able to get close and use his fusion cannon to destroy Zeta Prime's head. {{storylink|Overthrown}}

In spite of having been kind of a madman, Zeta Prime was still honored with a memorial statue near [[Sherma Bridge]]. {{storylink|Zero Point}}

==Notes==
*The cartoon incarnation was never named in the cartoon. The distinctly unimaginative designation of "'''New Narrator'''" was granted in the dialogue script for "Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4", and "Zeta Prime" comes from ''[[Transformers Animated: The AllSpark Almanac II]]''.
*The [[IDW Publishing]] version of Zeta Prime wasn't included in the lineage of Primes depicted in "[[Spotlight: Optimus Prime]]", though given what he did in his tenure, that's understandable. Of course, the ''real world'' explanation for this was the Zeta Prime character was created after "Spotlight: Optimus Prime" had been published.

{{spiritguides nav}}

[[Category:Autobot leaders]]
[[Category:Fiction-only Transformers]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Autobots]]
[[Category:Matrix bearers]]
[[Category:Primes]]

Sentinel Prime (G1)

2013-05-03T13:53:21Z

Solaar: /* IDW Generation 1 continuity */

{{disambig3|Sentinel Prime}}
{{factions|quintesson|autobot}}

:''Sentinel Prime is an [[Autobot]] leader from the [[Generation 1 continuity family]].''
[[Image:Sentinel prime lou.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Well, shoot, who wants the Matrix?]]
'''Sentinel Prime''' was [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime's]] immediate predecessor as [[Prime (rank)|Autobot leader]]. ([[Alpha Trion (G1)|Except when]] [[Zeta Prime (G1)|he isn't]].)

==Fiction==
===''The Transformers'' cartoon===
:''Voice actor:'' [[Jack Angel]] (English), [[Takurō Kitagawa]] (Japanese)

[[Image:Aubotot gladiator.jpg|right|250px|thumb|You've got the pre-Touch! You've got the pre-Power! Pre-Yeah!]]
{{Note|The original cartoon version of Sentinel Prime was never named in fiction. The character is referred to as '''U-Haul Robot''' in the dialogue script for "Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4" and was not given the name "Sentinel Prime" until ''[[Transformers Animated: The AllSpark Almanac II|The AllSpark Almanac II]]'' [[retcon|declared it so]] via an [[Ask Vector Prime]] entry. Likewise, the earlier appearance of "U-Haul Robot" was dubbed "Sentinel Major", giving him a pre-Matrix name.}}
'''Sentinel Major''' was originally one of the Quintessons' slave robots on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] around twelve million years ago. Unusual among his consumer goods brethren, Sentinel Major was equipped for combat and was forced to participate in [[Gladiatorial combat|gladiatorial games]] for the Quintessons' amusement, wielding a spiked ball-and-chain weapon and a tire-shaped shield. He was once defeated in battle by [[Prima]], who attacked their Quintesson masters when their match was over, only to be destroyed himself.

Subsequently, the consumer goods robots rose up against the Quintessons in a rebellion that ultimately forced the aliens off the planet. Sentinel Major survived this clash, but he and the rest of his race—now dubbed "Autobots"—were robbed of any chance of peace when the military hardware robots, now known as "[[Decepticon]]s", set their sights on conquering Cybertron for themselves. Two [[Guardian Prime|Autobot]] [[Zeta Prime (G1)|leaders]] fell during the war that ensued, and Sentinel Major inherited the Matrix of Leadership and became '''Sentinel Prime''', leader of the Autobots. Under his leadership, the Autobots realized that they would never be able to defeat the Decepticons with firepower, and they turned instead to stealth, reconfiguring their bodies to be able to [[transform]] into other forms. With the power of his new ability, Sentinel Prime defeated the [[Early Decepticon leader|Decepticons' leader]], and the Autobots won the war.

[[Image:Aubotot gladiator vehicle.jpg|left|180px|thumb|He transforms into Rhi, the forgotten Beast Rider.]]

The ensuing period of peace was known as the [[Golden Age of Cybertron]], but, around nine million years BC, the Decepticon threat re-emerged when they too adopted transformation, and coupled it with robot-mode flight powers. One of the first of this new breed of Decepticons, the malevolent [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]], killed Sentinel Prime in combat. As he died, Sentinel Prime handed off the Matrix to [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]], who kept it safe until the emergence of the next Autobot leader, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]].

When [[Hot Rod (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Rodimus Prime]] journeyed into the Matrix in 2005, Sentinel Prime was the sixth guide he encountered. Sentinel Prime recounted the development of transformation, the Autobot victory in the war and the rise of Megatron. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4}}
{{-}}

===Marvel Comics continuity===
Sentinel Prime was mentioned in a recitation of Primes, after [[Prime Nova]] and before [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]], by the [[Matrix of Leadership|Creation Matrix]]. {{storylink|Dark Creation}}

{{note|The retelling of [[Unicron]]'s origin in the UK comics included a brief glimpse of a dying Matrix bearer passing the [[Matrix of Leadership]] to Optimus Prime. However, as he is unnamed, the only way we can presume this being is Sentinel Prime is because, as we are told later, Sentinel Prime was the leader before Optimus.}}

===Dreamwave ''Generation 1'' comics===
{{cleanup|June 2010|The text here doesn't seem to fit our established style.}}

Sentinel Prime was Autobot leader for the first 500,000 years of the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]]. More physically massive than Optimus Prime, Sentinel Prime's armor was made of [[trithyllium]] alloy impregnated with irradiated carbon fibers, unbreakable short of a precisely-aimed point-blank shot.

Sentinel Prime's primary weapons were his swiveling shoulder cannons, capable of firing a variety of specialized payloads including concussive and shrapnel-needle shells, and gyro-inhibiting and magnetic inducer shells. (Disruptive warheads which foul an opponent's systems.) He was also armed with a solar-energy rifle and an energon-charged sword.

Sentinel Prime used an [[electro-disrupter]], a device capable of projecting several copies of his image, to disorient his opponents in battle. When interrupted, electro-disrupter images de-rez, leaving a visible path back to the real projector. Because using direct attacks would reveal which image was the real Sentinel Prime, he must limit himself to indirect weapons like shrapnel shells when using it.

Sentinel Prime's only physical weakness was his shoulder-cannons. A direct hit down their barrel could cause the ammunition inside to explode, causing catastrophic damage. To minimize that risk, he swivels the cannons to his back except when about to fire.<ref>Nearly all of his technical specifications come from descriptions found in the [[Keepers Trilogy]].</ref>

[[Image:Sentinel prime dw.jpg|right|180px|thumb|"Marley was dead to begin with..."]]
8.2 million years ago, Sentinel Prime went to reason with [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]], seeking to reach him with sermon and doctrine. He failed and was tortured and destroyed by Megatron on the battlefields of [[Tyrest (polity)|Tyrest]]. {{storylink|Transformers: The Ultimate Guide}} Megatron was chagrined to discover that Sentinel Prime (suspecting he might be killed) had not brought the Matrix with him into battle. {{storylink|The War Within issue 1|The War Within #1}}

The Matrix used a vision of Sentinel Prime to strengthen Optimus Prime's resolve during a battle with Megatron by confronting him with the claim that Megatron had chosen Optimus to be Prime, knowing that he was weak. Megatron's alleged influence over the Prime selection process was never substantiated.

The [[Keeper (species)|Keepers]] subsequently created a robotic duplicate of Sentinel Prime to confuse Optimus and undermine his confidence. Though possessing all of Sentinel Prime's considerable abilities, Optimus eventually realized that the duplicate had been created from his own memories of Sentinel Prime, and was incapable of doing anything ''new''. Optimus destroyed the duplicate of Sentinel Prime, having largely overcome his own doubts about his fitness to be Autobot leader. {{storylink|Hardwired}}
{{-}}

===IDW Generation 1 continuity===
[[Image:Bigguysentinel.jpg|left|120px|thumb|Be honest with me; how pacifistic do I look?]]
Before the war, Sentinel was head of security for the [[Senate]]. One of the duties of his security force was to go around threatening and killing people who got in the Senate's way or might embarrass it. Shortly after an assassination attempt on [[Nominus Prime]], he eagerly watched Senator [[Proteus]] announcing the implementation of the "[[Clampdown]]", which would improve security at the cost of "some of the freedoms" of the populace. He was constantly interrupted by reports that an intruder was fighting his way into the [[Grand Imperium]], defeating all the security squadrons Sentinel sent at him. Interested in seeing how things would play out, he stood by as [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]] entered the Senate's chamber and confronted them over their corruption and detached relation to the populace. Proteus eventually ordered Sentinel to have him removed. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 2}}

As the Clampdown began, the Senate, who were behind the attack on Nominus Prime to begin with, had Sentinel try to tap into the powers of the [[Matrix of Leadership]] in the Prime's chest. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}} {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}} In the process, Sentinel discovered that the Matrix was merely a fake, and with this revelation the Senate decided they had no more use for Nominus and had him killed. They went on to spread rumours that Sentinel was showing signs of affinity for being a Prime {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}} while he got to work on planning a "Decepticon terrorist attack" that would give him an excuse to round up all proto-Decepticons and send them [[the Institute|off for brainwashing]]. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 2: Patternism|Patternism}} While [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]] thwarted this, Sentinel's men were still able to discover that [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Senator Shockwave]] was quietly forming an army of dissident outliers. Sentinel ordered Shockwave's academy destroyed in an "accident" and Shockwave himself subjected to [[empurata]] and brainwashing. {{storylink|Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|An Intimate Beheading}}

Upon assuming office, Sentinel Prime operated out of the [[Security Services Headquarters]] in [[Kaon]], generally regarded as "the worst place on Cybertron." By this point Sentinel had developed great disdain for government authority, viewing the ruling Senators to be spoiled whiners. He worked alongside [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]], his [[Second-in-command|lieutenant]]. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}}

After a surge in illegal [[Gladiatorial combat|gladiatorial bloodsports]], he assigned [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (G1)|Fastback]] to stake out one of the sites associated with the matches as part of a dragnet. Unfortunately, their communications were jammed by [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] just prior to their untimely demises. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}}

Sentinel Prime vowed not to let their deaths be in vain, and at their funeral, the Autobot leader urged others to let their deaths be a call to arms. Eventually, after Senator [[Decimus]] was kidnapped by the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seekers]] at [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron's]] orders, Sentinel Prime led a raid on Megatron's base. They captured Megatron and most of the others, but were forced to free Soundwave per Senate directive, much to Prime's frustration. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}}

[[Image:Biggersentinel.jpg|right|150px|thumb|How about now?]]
When [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]]'s "betrayal" led to the eventual eruption of the war, Sentinel Prime held the line at Kaon until he decided to take things to the next level. Thus, Prime returned with his massive "[[Apex Armor (G1)|Apex]]" mode, a battle-armor/super-powerful/more-firepower-than-god mode. It didn't make much of a difference, seeing as Megatron tore into it and pulled Prime off a cliff. Sentinel was defeated by Megatron. Afterwards, the former Prime's barely functional body was dumped into the middle of the Autobot forces. Prowl ordered a retreat. We would too.

The next morning, Megatron discussed his next moves with Soundwave... sitting on a throne made out of Prime's Apex armor. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

He was immediately succeeded by [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]]. {{storylink|Spotlight: Blurr}}
{{--}}

==Notes==
*In a few instances throughout the third season of the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|Generation 1 animated series]], the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicon]] [[Long Haul (G1)|Long Haul]] appears in the U-Haul Robot's color scheme. Guess [[AKOM]] got their "Hauls" mixed up!
*Any similarities between U-Haul Robot and [[Wikipedia:Spartacus|Spartacus]] are purely coincidental. No, really.
*The original IDW Sentinel Prime sketch included in "[[Spotlight: Optimus Prime]]" was clearly based on his first (and otherwise only) appearance in the Marvel comics panel shown above. Though his resemblance as drawn in ''Megatron Origin'' is less distinctly similar due to artistic interpretation and the helmet [[Alex Milne]] draws him wearing. He also definitely resembles, by and large, the Keepers description of the character, in that he is quite heavily armed. However the keen interest he shows in the use of those weapons and combat in general seem a stark contrast to the "peacetime leader unsuitable for war" portrayed in that continuity. IDW Sentinel is more likely to smash you with his [[Apex Armor (G1)|Apex Armor]] than try to ply you with doctrine.
* G1 Sentinel Prime has yet to receive a toy of any kind. He did come close once. As revealed in the [[Transformers Collectors' Club]] roundtable panel at [[BotCon 2007]], the original concept for the convention-[[exclusive]] [[redeco]] of [[Cybertron Defense Team|Cybertron Defense]] [[Hot Shot (Armada)|Hot Shot]] was Sentinel Prime. The mold DOES bear a decent resemblance to his IDW appearance, but in the end it was decided that [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] was a better choice for the mold (and likely for the [[Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club (magazine)|ongoing club comic]] story).
* There is another [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] character called [[Sentinel Major]], who might be considered the incarnation of Sentinel Prime in [[Transformers: Wings Universe|his own continuity]]. However, his design and role are obvious homages to ''[[Transformers Animated (franchise)|Animated]]'' [[Sentinel Prime (Animated)|Sentinel Prime]]. What to make of this is a matter of [[Talk:Sentinel Prime (G1)#Sentinel Major|some debate]].

==References==
<references />

{{Template:Spiritguides nav}}

[[Category:Autobot leaders]]
[[Category:Fiction-only Transformers]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Autobots]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Matrix bearers]]
[[Category:Primes]]

Sentinel Prime (G1)

2013-05-03T13:52:58Z

Solaar: /* IDW Generation 1 continuity */

{{disambig3|Sentinel Prime}}
{{factions|quintesson|autobot}}

:''Sentinel Prime is an [[Autobot]] leader from the [[Generation 1 continuity family]].''
[[Image:Sentinel prime lou.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Well, shoot, who wants the Matrix?]]
'''Sentinel Prime''' was [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime's]] immediate predecessor as [[Prime (rank)|Autobot leader]]. ([[Alpha Trion (G1)|Except when]] [[Zeta Prime (G1)|he isn't]].)

==Fiction==
===''The Transformers'' cartoon===
:''Voice actor:'' [[Jack Angel]] (English), [[Takurō Kitagawa]] (Japanese)

[[Image:Aubotot gladiator.jpg|right|250px|thumb|You've got the pre-Touch! You've got the pre-Power! Pre-Yeah!]]
{{Note|The original cartoon version of Sentinel Prime was never named in fiction. The character is referred to as '''U-Haul Robot''' in the dialogue script for "Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4" and was not given the name "Sentinel Prime" until ''[[Transformers Animated: The AllSpark Almanac II|The AllSpark Almanac II]]'' [[retcon|declared it so]] via an [[Ask Vector Prime]] entry. Likewise, the earlier appearance of "U-Haul Robot" was dubbed "Sentinel Major", giving him a pre-Matrix name.}}
'''Sentinel Major''' was originally one of the Quintessons' slave robots on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] around twelve million years ago. Unusual among his consumer goods brethren, Sentinel Major was equipped for combat and was forced to participate in [[Gladiatorial combat|gladiatorial games]] for the Quintessons' amusement, wielding a spiked ball-and-chain weapon and a tire-shaped shield. He was once defeated in battle by [[Prima]], who attacked their Quintesson masters when their match was over, only to be destroyed himself.

Subsequently, the consumer goods robots rose up against the Quintessons in a rebellion that ultimately forced the aliens off the planet. Sentinel Major survived this clash, but he and the rest of his race—now dubbed "Autobots"—were robbed of any chance of peace when the military hardware robots, now known as "[[Decepticon]]s", set their sights on conquering Cybertron for themselves. Two [[Guardian Prime|Autobot]] [[Zeta Prime (G1)|leaders]] fell during the war that ensued, and Sentinel Major inherited the Matrix of Leadership and became '''Sentinel Prime''', leader of the Autobots. Under his leadership, the Autobots realized that they would never be able to defeat the Decepticons with firepower, and they turned instead to stealth, reconfiguring their bodies to be able to [[transform]] into other forms. With the power of his new ability, Sentinel Prime defeated the [[Early Decepticon leader|Decepticons' leader]], and the Autobots won the war.

[[Image:Aubotot gladiator vehicle.jpg|left|180px|thumb|He transforms into Rhi, the forgotten Beast Rider.]]

The ensuing period of peace was known as the [[Golden Age of Cybertron]], but, around nine million years BC, the Decepticon threat re-emerged when they too adopted transformation, and coupled it with robot-mode flight powers. One of the first of this new breed of Decepticons, the malevolent [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]], killed Sentinel Prime in combat. As he died, Sentinel Prime handed off the Matrix to [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]], who kept it safe until the emergence of the next Autobot leader, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]].

When [[Hot Rod (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Rodimus Prime]] journeyed into the Matrix in 2005, Sentinel Prime was the sixth guide he encountered. Sentinel Prime recounted the development of transformation, the Autobot victory in the war and the rise of Megatron. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4}}
{{-}}

===Marvel Comics continuity===
Sentinel Prime was mentioned in a recitation of Primes, after [[Prime Nova]] and before [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]], by the [[Matrix of Leadership|Creation Matrix]]. {{storylink|Dark Creation}}

{{note|The retelling of [[Unicron]]'s origin in the UK comics included a brief glimpse of a dying Matrix bearer passing the [[Matrix of Leadership]] to Optimus Prime. However, as he is unnamed, the only way we can presume this being is Sentinel Prime is because, as we are told later, Sentinel Prime was the leader before Optimus.}}

===Dreamwave ''Generation 1'' comics===
{{cleanup|June 2010|The text here doesn't seem to fit our established style.}}

Sentinel Prime was Autobot leader for the first 500,000 years of the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]]. More physically massive than Optimus Prime, Sentinel Prime's armor was made of [[trithyllium]] alloy impregnated with irradiated carbon fibers, unbreakable short of a precisely-aimed point-blank shot.

Sentinel Prime's primary weapons were his swiveling shoulder cannons, capable of firing a variety of specialized payloads including concussive and shrapnel-needle shells, and gyro-inhibiting and magnetic inducer shells. (Disruptive warheads which foul an opponent's systems.) He was also armed with a solar-energy rifle and an energon-charged sword.

Sentinel Prime used an [[electro-disrupter]], a device capable of projecting several copies of his image, to disorient his opponents in battle. When interrupted, electro-disrupter images de-rez, leaving a visible path back to the real projector. Because using direct attacks would reveal which image was the real Sentinel Prime, he must limit himself to indirect weapons like shrapnel shells when using it.

Sentinel Prime's only physical weakness was his shoulder-cannons. A direct hit down their barrel could cause the ammunition inside to explode, causing catastrophic damage. To minimize that risk, he swivels the cannons to his back except when about to fire.<ref>Nearly all of his technical specifications come from descriptions found in the [[Keepers Trilogy]].</ref>

[[Image:Sentinel prime dw.jpg|right|180px|thumb|"Marley was dead to begin with..."]]
8.2 million years ago, Sentinel Prime went to reason with [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]], seeking to reach him with sermon and doctrine. He failed and was tortured and destroyed by Megatron on the battlefields of [[Tyrest (polity)|Tyrest]]. {{storylink|Transformers: The Ultimate Guide}} Megatron was chagrined to discover that Sentinel Prime (suspecting he might be killed) had not brought the Matrix with him into battle. {{storylink|The War Within issue 1|The War Within #1}}

The Matrix used a vision of Sentinel Prime to strengthen Optimus Prime's resolve during a battle with Megatron by confronting him with the claim that Megatron had chosen Optimus to be Prime, knowing that he was weak. Megatron's alleged influence over the Prime selection process was never substantiated.

The [[Keeper (species)|Keepers]] subsequently created a robotic duplicate of Sentinel Prime to confuse Optimus and undermine his confidence. Though possessing all of Sentinel Prime's considerable abilities, Optimus eventually realized that the duplicate had been created from his own memories of Sentinel Prime, and was incapable of doing anything ''new''. Optimus destroyed the duplicate of Sentinel Prime, having largely overcome his own doubts about his fitness to be Autobot leader. {{storylink|Hardwired}}
{{-}}

===IDW Generation 1 continuity===
[[Image:Bigguysentinel.jpg|left|120px|thumb|Be honest with me; how pacifistic do I look?]]
Before the war, Sentinel was head of security for the [[Senate]]. One of the duties of his security force was to go around threatening and killing people who got in the Senate's way or might embarrass it. Shortly after an assassination attempt on [[Nominus Prime]], he eagerly watched Senator [[Proteus]] announcing the implementation of the "[[Clampdown]]", which would improve security at the cost of "some of the freedoms" of the populace. He was constantly interrupted by reports that an intruder was fighting his way into the [[Grand Imperium]], defeating all the security squadrons Sentinel sent at him. Interested in seeing how things would play out, he stood by as [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]] entered the Senate's chamber and confronted them over their corruption and detached relation to the populace. Proteus eventually ordered Sentinel to have him removed. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 2}}

As the Clampdown began, the Senate, who were behind the attack on Nominus Prime to begin with, had Sentinel try to tap into the powers of the [[Matrix of Leadership]] in the Prime's chest. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}} {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}} In the process, Sentinel discovered that the Matrix was merely a fake, and with this revelation the Senate decided they had no more use for Nominus and had him killed. They went on to spread rumours that Sentinel was showing signs of affinity for being a Prime {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}} while he got to work on planning a "Decepticon terrorist attack" that would give him an excuse to round up all proto-Decepticons and send them [[the Institute|off for brainwashing]]. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 2: Patternism|Patternism}} While [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]] thwarted this, Sentinel's men were still able to discover that [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Senator Shockwave]] was quietly forming an army of dissident outliers. Sentinel ordered Shockwave's academy destroyed in an "accident" and Shockwave himself subjected to [[empurata]] and brainwashing. {{storylink|Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|An Intimate Beheading}}

Upon assuming office, Sentinel Prime operated out of the [[Security Services Headquarters]] in [[Kaon]], generally regarded as "the worst place on Cybertron." By this point Sentinel had developed great disdain for government authority, viewing the ruling Senators to be spoiled whiners. He worked alongside [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]], his [[Second-in-command|lieutenant]]. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}}

After a surge in illegal [[Gladiatorial combat|gladiatorial bloodsports]], he assigned [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (G1)|Fastback]] to stake out one of the sites associated with the matches as part of a dragnet. Unfortunately, their communications were jammed by [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] just prior to their untimely demises. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}}

Sentinel Prime vowed not to let their deaths be in vain, and at their funeral, the Autobot leader urged others to let their deaths be a call to arms. Eventually, after Senator [[Decimus]] was kidnapped by the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seekers]] at [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron's]] orders, Sentinel Prime led a raid on Megatron's base. They captured Megatron and most of the others, but were forced to free Soundwave per Senate directive, much to Prime's frustration. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}}

[[Image:Biggersentinel.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Okay, What about now?]]
When [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]]'s "betrayal" led to the eventual eruption of the war, Sentinel Prime held the line at Kaon until he decided to take things to the next level. Thus, Prime returned with his massive "[[Apex Armor (G1)|Apex]]" mode, a battle-armor/super-powerful/more-firepower-than-god mode. It didn't make much of a difference, seeing as Megatron tore into it and pulled Prime off a cliff. Sentinel was defeated by Megatron. Afterwards, the former Prime's barely functional body was dumped into the middle of the Autobot forces. Prowl ordered a retreat. We would too.

The next morning, Megatron discussed his next moves with Soundwave... sitting on a throne made out of Prime's Apex armor. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

He was immediately succeeded by [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]]. {{storylink|Spotlight: Blurr}}
{{--}}

==Notes==
*In a few instances throughout the third season of the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|Generation 1 animated series]], the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicon]] [[Long Haul (G1)|Long Haul]] appears in the U-Haul Robot's color scheme. Guess [[AKOM]] got their "Hauls" mixed up!
*Any similarities between U-Haul Robot and [[Wikipedia:Spartacus|Spartacus]] are purely coincidental. No, really.
*The original IDW Sentinel Prime sketch included in "[[Spotlight: Optimus Prime]]" was clearly based on his first (and otherwise only) appearance in the Marvel comics panel shown above. Though his resemblance as drawn in ''Megatron Origin'' is less distinctly similar due to artistic interpretation and the helmet [[Alex Milne]] draws him wearing. He also definitely resembles, by and large, the Keepers description of the character, in that he is quite heavily armed. However the keen interest he shows in the use of those weapons and combat in general seem a stark contrast to the "peacetime leader unsuitable for war" portrayed in that continuity. IDW Sentinel is more likely to smash you with his [[Apex Armor (G1)|Apex Armor]] than try to ply you with doctrine.
* G1 Sentinel Prime has yet to receive a toy of any kind. He did come close once. As revealed in the [[Transformers Collectors' Club]] roundtable panel at [[BotCon 2007]], the original concept for the convention-[[exclusive]] [[redeco]] of [[Cybertron Defense Team|Cybertron Defense]] [[Hot Shot (Armada)|Hot Shot]] was Sentinel Prime. The mold DOES bear a decent resemblance to his IDW appearance, but in the end it was decided that [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] was a better choice for the mold (and likely for the [[Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club (magazine)|ongoing club comic]] story).
* There is another [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] character called [[Sentinel Major]], who might be considered the incarnation of Sentinel Prime in [[Transformers: Wings Universe|his own continuity]]. However, his design and role are obvious homages to ''[[Transformers Animated (franchise)|Animated]]'' [[Sentinel Prime (Animated)|Sentinel Prime]]. What to make of this is a matter of [[Talk:Sentinel Prime (G1)#Sentinel Major|some debate]].

==References==
<references />

{{Template:Spiritguides nav}}

[[Category:Autobot leaders]]
[[Category:Fiction-only Transformers]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Autobots]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Matrix bearers]]
[[Category:Primes]]

Sentinel Prime (G1)

2013-05-03T13:45:55Z

Solaar: /* IDW Generation 1 continuity */

{{disambig3|Sentinel Prime}}
{{factions|quintesson|autobot}}

:''Sentinel Prime is an [[Autobot]] leader from the [[Generation 1 continuity family]].''
[[Image:Sentinel prime lou.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Well, shoot, who wants the Matrix?]]
'''Sentinel Prime''' was [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime's]] immediate predecessor as [[Prime (rank)|Autobot leader]]. ([[Alpha Trion (G1)|Except when]] [[Zeta Prime (G1)|he isn't]].)

==Fiction==
===''The Transformers'' cartoon===
:''Voice actor:'' [[Jack Angel]] (English), [[Takurō Kitagawa]] (Japanese)

[[Image:Aubotot gladiator.jpg|right|250px|thumb|You've got the pre-Touch! You've got the pre-Power! Pre-Yeah!]]
{{Note|The original cartoon version of Sentinel Prime was never named in fiction. The character is referred to as '''U-Haul Robot''' in the dialogue script for "Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4" and was not given the name "Sentinel Prime" until ''[[Transformers Animated: The AllSpark Almanac II|The AllSpark Almanac II]]'' [[retcon|declared it so]] via an [[Ask Vector Prime]] entry. Likewise, the earlier appearance of "U-Haul Robot" was dubbed "Sentinel Major", giving him a pre-Matrix name.}}
'''Sentinel Major''' was originally one of the Quintessons' slave robots on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] around twelve million years ago. Unusual among his consumer goods brethren, Sentinel Major was equipped for combat and was forced to participate in [[Gladiatorial combat|gladiatorial games]] for the Quintessons' amusement, wielding a spiked ball-and-chain weapon and a tire-shaped shield. He was once defeated in battle by [[Prima]], who attacked their Quintesson masters when their match was over, only to be destroyed himself.

Subsequently, the consumer goods robots rose up against the Quintessons in a rebellion that ultimately forced the aliens off the planet. Sentinel Major survived this clash, but he and the rest of his race—now dubbed "Autobots"—were robbed of any chance of peace when the military hardware robots, now known as "[[Decepticon]]s", set their sights on conquering Cybertron for themselves. Two [[Guardian Prime|Autobot]] [[Zeta Prime (G1)|leaders]] fell during the war that ensued, and Sentinel Major inherited the Matrix of Leadership and became '''Sentinel Prime''', leader of the Autobots. Under his leadership, the Autobots realized that they would never be able to defeat the Decepticons with firepower, and they turned instead to stealth, reconfiguring their bodies to be able to [[transform]] into other forms. With the power of his new ability, Sentinel Prime defeated the [[Early Decepticon leader|Decepticons' leader]], and the Autobots won the war.

[[Image:Aubotot gladiator vehicle.jpg|left|180px|thumb|He transforms into Rhi, the forgotten Beast Rider.]]

The ensuing period of peace was known as the [[Golden Age of Cybertron]], but, around nine million years BC, the Decepticon threat re-emerged when they too adopted transformation, and coupled it with robot-mode flight powers. One of the first of this new breed of Decepticons, the malevolent [[Megatron (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Megatron]], killed Sentinel Prime in combat. As he died, Sentinel Prime handed off the Matrix to [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]], who kept it safe until the emergence of the next Autobot leader, [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Optimus Prime]].

When [[Hot Rod (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Rodimus Prime]] journeyed into the Matrix in 2005, Sentinel Prime was the sixth guide he encountered. Sentinel Prime recounted the development of transformation, the Autobot victory in the war and the rise of Megatron. {{storylink|Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4}}
{{-}}

===Marvel Comics continuity===
Sentinel Prime was mentioned in a recitation of Primes, after [[Prime Nova]] and before [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]], by the [[Matrix of Leadership|Creation Matrix]]. {{storylink|Dark Creation}}

{{note|The retelling of [[Unicron]]'s origin in the UK comics included a brief glimpse of a dying Matrix bearer passing the [[Matrix of Leadership]] to Optimus Prime. However, as he is unnamed, the only way we can presume this being is Sentinel Prime is because, as we are told later, Sentinel Prime was the leader before Optimus.}}

===Dreamwave ''Generation 1'' comics===
{{cleanup|June 2010|The text here doesn't seem to fit our established style.}}

Sentinel Prime was Autobot leader for the first 500,000 years of the [[Great War (G1)|Great War]]. More physically massive than Optimus Prime, Sentinel Prime's armor was made of [[trithyllium]] alloy impregnated with irradiated carbon fibers, unbreakable short of a precisely-aimed point-blank shot.

Sentinel Prime's primary weapons were his swiveling shoulder cannons, capable of firing a variety of specialized payloads including concussive and shrapnel-needle shells, and gyro-inhibiting and magnetic inducer shells. (Disruptive warheads which foul an opponent's systems.) He was also armed with a solar-energy rifle and an energon-charged sword.

Sentinel Prime used an [[electro-disrupter]], a device capable of projecting several copies of his image, to disorient his opponents in battle. When interrupted, electro-disrupter images de-rez, leaving a visible path back to the real projector. Because using direct attacks would reveal which image was the real Sentinel Prime, he must limit himself to indirect weapons like shrapnel shells when using it.

Sentinel Prime's only physical weakness was his shoulder-cannons. A direct hit down their barrel could cause the ammunition inside to explode, causing catastrophic damage. To minimize that risk, he swivels the cannons to his back except when about to fire.<ref>Nearly all of his technical specifications come from descriptions found in the [[Keepers Trilogy]].</ref>

[[Image:Sentinel prime dw.jpg|right|180px|thumb|"Marley was dead to begin with..."]]
8.2 million years ago, Sentinel Prime went to reason with [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]], seeking to reach him with sermon and doctrine. He failed and was tortured and destroyed by Megatron on the battlefields of [[Tyrest (polity)|Tyrest]]. {{storylink|Transformers: The Ultimate Guide}} Megatron was chagrined to discover that Sentinel Prime (suspecting he might be killed) had not brought the Matrix with him into battle. {{storylink|The War Within issue 1|The War Within #1}}

The Matrix used a vision of Sentinel Prime to strengthen Optimus Prime's resolve during a battle with Megatron by confronting him with the claim that Megatron had chosen Optimus to be Prime, knowing that he was weak. Megatron's alleged influence over the Prime selection process was never substantiated.

The [[Keeper (species)|Keepers]] subsequently created a robotic duplicate of Sentinel Prime to confuse Optimus and undermine his confidence. Though possessing all of Sentinel Prime's considerable abilities, Optimus eventually realized that the duplicate had been created from his own memories of Sentinel Prime, and was incapable of doing anything ''new''. Optimus destroyed the duplicate of Sentinel Prime, having largely overcome his own doubts about his fitness to be Autobot leader. {{storylink|Hardwired}}
{{-}}

===IDW Generation 1 continuity===
[[Image:Bigguysentinel.jpg|left|120px|thumb|Be honest with me; how pacifistic do I look?]]
Before the war, Sentinel was head of security for the [[Senate]]. One of the duties of his security force was to go around threatening and killing people who got in the Senate's way or might embarrass it. Shortly after an assassination attempt on [[Nominus Prime]], he eagerly watched Senator [[Proteus]] announcing the implementation of the "[[Clampdown]]", which would improve security at the cost of "some of the freedoms" of the populace. He was constantly interrupted by reports that an intruder was fighting his way into the [[Grand Imperium]], defeating all the security squadrons Sentinel sent at him. Interested in seeing how things would play out, he stood by as [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]] entered the Senate's chamber and confronted them over their corruption and detached relation to the populace. Proteus eventually ordered Sentinel to have him removed. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 2}}

As the Clampdown began, the Senate, who were behind the attack on Nominus Prime to begin with, had Sentinel try to tap into the powers of the [[Matrix of Leadership]] in the Prime's chest. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}} {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}} In the process, Sentinel discovered that the Matrix was merely a fake, and with this revelation the Senate decided they had no more use for Nominus and had him killed. They went on to spread rumours that Sentinel was showing signs of affinity for being a Prime {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}} while he got to work on planning a "Decepticon terrorist attack" that would give him an excuse to round up all proto-Decepticons and send them [[the Institute|off for brainwashing]]. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 2: Patternism|Patternism}} While [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]] thwarted this, Sentinel's men were still able to discover that [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Senator Shockwave]] was quietly forming an army of dissident outliers. Sentinel ordered Shockwave's academy destroyed in an "accident" and Shockwave himself subjected to [[empurata]] and brainwashing. {{storylink|Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|An Intimate Beheading}}

Upon assuming office, Sentinel Prime operated out of the [[Security Services Headquarters]] in [[Kaon]], generally regarded as "the worst place on Cybertron." By this point Sentinel had developed great disdain for government authority, viewing the ruling Senators to be spoiled whiners. He worked alongside [[Prowl (G1)|Prowl]], his [[Second-in-command|lieutenant]]. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}}

After a surge in illegal [[Gladiatorial combat|gladiatorial bloodsports]], he assigned [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (G1)|Fastback]] to stake out one of the sites associated with the matches as part of a dragnet. Unfortunately, their communications were jammed by [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] just prior to their untimely demises. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}}

Sentinel Prime vowed not to let their deaths be in vain, and at their funeral, the Autobot leader urged others to let their deaths be a call to arms. Eventually, after Senator [[Decimus]] was kidnapped by the [[Seeker (body-type)|Seekers]] at [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron's]] orders, Sentinel Prime led a raid on Megatron's base. They captured Megatron and most of the others, but were forced to free Soundwave per Senate directive, much to Prime's frustration. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}}

[[Image:IDW SentPrime Apexarmor.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Okay, What about now?]]
When [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]]'s "betrayal" led to the eventual eruption of the war, Sentinel Prime held the line at Kaon until he decided to take things to the next level. Thus, Prime returned with his massive "[[Apex Armor (G1)|Apex]]" mode, a battle-armor/super-powerful/more-firepower-than-god mode. It didn't make much of a difference, seeing as Megatron tore into it and pulled Prime off a cliff. Sentinel was defeated by Megatron. Afterwards, the former Prime's barely functional body was dumped into the middle of the Autobot forces. Prowl ordered a retreat. We would too.

The next morning, Megatron discussed his next moves with Soundwave... sitting on a throne made out of Prime's Apex armor. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

He was immediately succeeded by [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]]. {{storylink|Spotlight: Blurr}}
{{--}}

==Notes==
*In a few instances throughout the third season of the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|Generation 1 animated series]], the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicon]] [[Long Haul (G1)|Long Haul]] appears in the U-Haul Robot's color scheme. Guess [[AKOM]] got their "Hauls" mixed up!
*Any similarities between U-Haul Robot and [[Wikipedia:Spartacus|Spartacus]] are purely coincidental. No, really.
*The original IDW Sentinel Prime sketch included in "[[Spotlight: Optimus Prime]]" was clearly based on his first (and otherwise only) appearance in the Marvel comics panel shown above. Though his resemblance as drawn in ''Megatron Origin'' is less distinctly similar due to artistic interpretation and the helmet [[Alex Milne]] draws him wearing. He also definitely resembles, by and large, the Keepers description of the character, in that he is quite heavily armed. However the keen interest he shows in the use of those weapons and combat in general seem a stark contrast to the "peacetime leader unsuitable for war" portrayed in that continuity. IDW Sentinel is more likely to smash you with his [[Apex Armor (G1)|Apex Armor]] than try to ply you with doctrine.
* G1 Sentinel Prime has yet to receive a toy of any kind. He did come close once. As revealed in the [[Transformers Collectors' Club]] roundtable panel at [[BotCon 2007]], the original concept for the convention-[[exclusive]] [[redeco]] of [[Cybertron Defense Team|Cybertron Defense]] [[Hot Shot (Armada)|Hot Shot]] was Sentinel Prime. The mold DOES bear a decent resemblance to his IDW appearance, but in the end it was decided that [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] was a better choice for the mold (and likely for the [[Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club (magazine)|ongoing club comic]] story).
* There is another [[Generation 1 (franchise)|Generation 1]] character called [[Sentinel Major]], who might be considered the incarnation of Sentinel Prime in [[Transformers: Wings Universe|his own continuity]]. However, his design and role are obvious homages to ''[[Transformers Animated (franchise)|Animated]]'' [[Sentinel Prime (Animated)|Sentinel Prime]]. What to make of this is a matter of [[Talk:Sentinel Prime (G1)#Sentinel Major|some debate]].

==References==
<references />

{{Template:Spiritguides nav}}

[[Category:Autobot leaders]]
[[Category:Fiction-only Transformers]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Autobots]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Matrix bearers]]
[[Category:Primes]]

File:Bigguysentinel.jpg

2013-05-03T13:43:47Z

Solaar:

Megatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

2013-05-03T13:35:47Z

Solaar: /* IDW Generation 1 continuity */

{{suite}}
{{factions|decepticon}}
[[File:IDWMegatron.jpg|thumb|300x342px]]
'''Megatron''' waged a battle to destroy the evil forces of the [[Senate]]!

==IDW Generation 1 continuity==
{{ongoing}}

{{quote|In the final analysis, I would happily wade across a river of corpses, chest-deep in rust and grease and engine oil, just to crush the Spark of the last Autobot standing. And I would not do so simply as a means to an end. No. I'd do it, Prime, because it would give me ''pleasure''.|Megatron to Optimus Prime|''[[Chaos Theory Part 1]]''}}

[[File:Ongoing22 MaccadamsNewOilHouse.jpg|left|thumb|300px|His neighbors said he was so quiet and unassuming.]]
Long ago, before the war and under the reign of [[Nominus Prime]], Megatron of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]] was an [[energon]] miner, a member of the lower class, living near [[Rodion]]. The caste-ridden social apartheid of Cybertronian society—where your form determined your role, and your role your rights—sickened him and, being an intellectual sort, he wrote [[After the Ark: Nominus Prime and the Illusion of Progress|a treatise]] on how pacifist dissent and the exchange of ideas could change things. But then he was arrested for a crime [[Impactor (G1)|a friend]] had committed against the Autobot upper classes, and [[Whirl (G1)|one of their friends]] in the police beat him in his cell, intending to kill him, while mocking him for how nobody would care about the death of a lowly miner. Police captain [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]], however, found out Megatron was innocent and let him go. But now he was filled with rage and hate, disillusioned with his former ideology and realising the power of applied violence. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

Megatron's samizdat writings began to circulate in Cybertron's underground, spawning the Decepticon movement. Wanting him out of the way but not wanting to make him a martyr, the Senate exiled him to the mines on [[Messatine]]. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}} He continued to seethe with hate and frustration while at [[Mining Outpost C-12]]. One day [[Decimus|Senator Decimus]] arrived at the mine to announce that the mine was being closed immediately and the workers would be relocated. However, when one of the Senator's guards killed a worker for insubordination and claims of Senate corruption, Megatron attacked Decimus and killed the guard in self-defense (and was shocked to find he had done so). This started a riot which was quickly crushed. He and the other miners were en route to [[Penal Facility H-3|imprisonment]] when [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] and [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] broke free and started a riot aboard [[Longshot (G1)|their ship]]. They overpowered their guards, damaged Decimus's ship to ward off pursuit, as the authorities would focus on his rescue, and made their way to [[Kaon]]. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}}

[[File:Minermegs.jpg|250px|thumb|Now that's the look of a well-adjusted individual.]]

After evading law enforcement, Megatron joined a team of underworld gladiators under the tutelage of [[Clench (G1)|Clench]]. Initially repulsed by killing his opponents, the games eventually turned him more brutal and excessive, and he took control of the entire operation from Clench. The opportunistic Senator [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], after seeing how much money there was in the underworld matches, sent his agent [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] to offer Megatron weaponry and technology to upgrade himself and his comrades. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}} [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]]'s Autobots were sent to investigate the gladiatorial games, but when two Autobots were personally killed by Megatron, Prime's forces stepped up their pursuit. Megatron used the gladiatorial games to drum up an army of violent malcontents and spread chaos throughout Cybertron. He then deliberately allowed Sentinel Prime's forces to capture his burgeoning army, {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} so that [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] (pretending to defect) and Soundwave and his hidden cassette army could exterminate the Kaon Senate and then free every last prisoner. Megatron led the army of prisoners against the Autobots, beat Sentinel Prime nearly to death, and took control of Kaon. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

[[File:Apexthrone.JPG|250px|thumb|You should have gone to IKEA.]]

Megatron's infamy spread and his message of rising up against the ruling classes struck a chord with many disenfranchised Cybertronians. One such fellow was [[Drift (G1)|Drift]], who attended a Decepticon rally and was personally asked by Megatron to fight at his side. Megatron rechristened Drift as "Deadlock" and welcomed him into the Decepticon fold. {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}} Soon enough, the growing Decepticon forces had spread across six [[Polities of Cybertron|Torus-States]]. {{storylink|Parasites}} At one point, he met Orion Pax again on [[Sherma Bridge]], where they did battle for the first time. Orion chopped off Megatron's cannon arm during the fight, but the Decepticon leader came out victorious by tossing him off the bridge. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

To Megatron's interest, his now-abandoned treatise had been a source of inspiration for Orion Pax, who had even quoted from it when he confronted the Senate and openly accused them of corruption. When the Autobot captain came close to Kaon during a mission, Megatron saw it as a chance to speak to him and had his Decepticons bring him in. {{storylink|The Hunt for Soundwave}} Orion, turned cynical by his time in the force, refused Megatron's offers for them to work together against the newest corrupt Autobot leader, [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]]. Megatron let him know that Zeta was even worse than he seemed, having planned to let Orion die in [[Nyon]] so that he could use his death as pretext to invade the rebel-infested city and drain the citizens of their energon. Orion then escaped, but knowing the doubts he'd placed in his head would only serve to damage the Autobot cause, Megatron let him go. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}}

Megatron continued to keep an eye on Orion Pax's activities, spying on his encounter with the Nyon insurgent [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]]. {{storylink|Ruins}} When Zeta Prime's [[Guardian robot|Omega Destructor]]s suddenly attacked Nyon, Megatron was surprised by how zealously the new Prime fought against the city's rebels, but his real interest still lay on how Orion would handle the crisis. {{storylink|Purge}} Orion turned on Zeta, who in turn attempted to kill him, prompting Megatron to intervene and force the Prime to retreat. Taking Orion back to Kaon, he again offered that they work together against Zeta's corruption, and this time the Autobot officer accepted. {{storylink|Choices}} As their combined forces invaded the [[Citadel]] in Iacon, Megatron and Orion Pax made their way inside and fought Zeta Prime in person.The battle ended with Megatron killing the Prime with a head shot, and with his objective complete, he then betrayed the injured Orion by shooting him in the back. {{storylink|Overthrown}}

With Zeta dead, Megatron conquered Iacon and declared himself ruler of Cybertron. His soldiers patrolled the planet's streets to "keep the peace", mostly by hunting down and capturing any remaining Autobots who opposed him. {{storylink|Transformation (issue)|Transformation}} During his rule, Megatron attempted to sway the neutral [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] into joining the Decepticons, but he decided otherwise upon witnessing Megatron ordering the execution of several Autobot prisoners. {{storylink|Rise}} Megatron was shocked to learn that Orion Pax had survived the betrayal and was organizing a rebellion against him under the name "Optimus Prime", and even more shocked that people actually had the courage to listen to him. He wasted no time in striking back against the rebels approaching the Citadel with the full force of his army. {{storylink|Broadcast}}

During the battle, Megatron ordered Blitzwing to distract the Autobots long enough for him to bring out the "vamparc annihilator", a giant [[vamparc ribbon]] built inside the Citadel by Zeta Prime. Though he managed to knock out a lot of Autobots, [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] arrived and took out the cannon along with the entire building, causing Megatron to fall to the streets and face Optimus Prime himself. He lost the ensuing [[The Transformers: The Movie|familiar-looking duel]] and was badly wounded after a failed attempt to defeat Prime by holding Hot Rod hostage, forcing him to escape aboard Astrotrain. As he fled, he warned Optimus that he hadn't won, he had only started a war unlike any Cybertron had ever seen. {{storylink|Endgame}}

At some point early in the war, he wrote ''[[Towards Peace]]'', a new treatise to replace ''After the Ark'', in which he described continuing to fight the war until the very notion of conflict was literally inconceivable. Then and only then would he finally give up his fusion cannon. At some point, he also created the [[Decepticon Justice Division]] to deal with traitors. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}}

[[File:Megatrong1idwpreearth.jpg|left|150px|thumb|450 years ago, his helmet was black, but now it's gray. The difference time makes, huh?]]
Over time, the war between Megatron's Decepticon army and Optimus Prime's Autobots covered the entire planet and soon beyond to the rest of the galaxy. Optimus grew to respect and fear Megatron as a calm, calculating and measured opponent, while Megatron himself respected Prime's sheer power and his skill as a tactician and as a leader. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} They would proceed to duel each other directly many times, such as during the [[Battle for Hell's Point]] and the [[Siege of Massunstrad]] {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}, and also fight by proxy, sealing themselves into [[Omniglobe]]s, "hypercongizance shells" which would feed them the entirety of data from the frontlines, enabling the sides to throw everything they had at each other for a prolonged period of time. The Decepticons didn't even spare the resources to collect their dead, who lay where they fell for eons. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}}

Ultimately, with total war getting nowhere, Megatron would go on to develop a six-stage [[infiltration protocol]] to be used for conquering targeted planets, and selected Sixshot, a living weapon he had constructed with frightening amounts of power that only he had the "off-switch" for {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}}, and the similarly ultra-powerful Overlord and [[Black Shadow (Victory)|Black Shadow]] to be the agents who would strike the final blow in each battle. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 2|Last Stand of the Wreckers #2}} As the Autobot/Decepticon war progressed, the conflict became so great that it created an impending energy crisis and threatened the stability of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] itself. When [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Shockwave]] left Cybertron, secretly pursuing alternate energy sources, Megatron ordered [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] to investigate his files, secretly assigning Soundwave to investigate Bludgeon. {{storylink|Spotlight: Shockwave}}

When Deadlock deserted the cause at some point during the war, Megatron sent the bounty hunter [[Lockdown (G1)|Lockdown]] to bring him back. {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}}

Later, a Decepticon scientist, [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]], came to Megatron with a revolutionary, controversial plan to stave off this energy death by [[Pretender|polydermal grafting]], a process where they encased themselves in "symbiotic carapaces", or shells created from living tissue. When Megatron dismissed him angrily and cut him down, Thunderwing did not abandon his research, but instead experimented on himself. As a result, Thunderwing became so powerful that Megatron had to join forces with Optimus Prime to stop him. This battle at [[Thunderhead Pass]] accelerated the apocalypse destined to befall Cybertron, leaving it an uninhabitable, radioactive husk and forcing both armies to continue their war on other worlds. Megatron advocated that they simply destroy Cybertron to ensure that Thunderwing was destroyed, but Prime refused, and threatened to stop Megatron if he tried. Megatron agreed not to destroy the planet, but warned Prime that whatever happened was on his head. Shortly after the last big push by the Decepticons, Cybertron was abandoned by both factions.

[[File:Infiltration6 takeyourpunishment.jpg|250px|thumb|Those librarians are getting really strict on late returns.]]
Seven hundred [[Units of time|stellar cycles]] later, in current times, it was discovered that as a result of digging through Shockwave's files, Bludgeon had resurrected Thunderwing's dangerous project, as well as Thunderwing himself. After being informed of Thunderwing's attack on [[Nebulos]], Megatron dispatched the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]] in the ''[[Thanatos]]'' to Cybertron, authorizing [[Razorclaw (G1)|Razorclaw]] to do whatever was necessary to destroy Thunderwing, including the destruction of Cybertron. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} However, Optimus Prime and the [[Wrecker]]s were able to thwart both Bludgeon and Thunderwing, and so destruction of the planet was averted. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 4|Stormbringer #4}}

{{quote|You will stand down. If you fight, you ''die''. There is no room anymore for mercy. In the end, you are ''all'' expendable. Choose.|Megatron's ultimatum to Starscream's troops|"[[Infiltration issue 6]]"}}

Megatron, meanwhile, was on Earth, investigating Starscream's infiltration team. He discovered that Starscream had stumbled across [[Ultra-Energon|Ore-13]], an incredible energy source which had been [[Spotlight: Shockwave|mysteriously seeded there]], and that the [[Air Commander]] was planning to use it to usurp Megatron's command—this annoyed him, as he had thought they were beyond such power games. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} After seriously damaging the hesitantly rebellious [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] and [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]], {{storylink|Infiltration issue 5|Infiltration #5}} Megatron ordered the AWOL team to stand down and then took on a super-powered Starscream. Though the Ore-13 made Starscream a formidable adversary, Megatron was still more deadly than he, and Starscream was destroyed. All throughout, he acted eerily calm & measured and made both Autobot and Decepticon wet themselves in fear. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6}}

Megatron took stock of Starscream's progress on Earth in light of the discovery of Ore-13 and called a meeting to make Starscream's former troops aware, in no uncertain terms, that any further insurrections would be met with deadly force. {{storylink|Escalation issue 1|Escalation #1}} Initiating phase two of infiltration protocol, Megatron stole a prototype [[Psycho-Prism]] from [[Doctor Doom]]'s laboratory. He created an "array" structure in [[Latveria]] as a base of operations. He sent Skywarp and Thundercracker to the nearby country of [[Symkaria]] in hopes they will blame Latveria and start a war. He activated the Psycho-Prism which produced an aggression wave that made nearby humans more aggressive in order to further increase international tensions. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}} Doctor Doom, not appreciating the Decepticons' setting up shop in his country, tried to remove their base with an army of [[Doombot]]s. Megatron had no problem repelling them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}}

The [[Avengers]] arrived and Megatron let them enter his facility where he scanned them looking for a suitable sample to leech power from as part of their [[mirror response mode]]. He selected [[Spider-Man]] and captured him. The remaining Avengers retreated and Megatron energized the facilities energy shield. The Autobots arrived and were attacked by the Avengers thanks to their heightened aggression. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}}

Megatron energized himself and all of his troops except Ramjet, who he didn't trust. Outside, the Autobots were able to nullify the aggression wave amongst the Avengers and they teamed up and started attacking the array. Megatron sent out his energized troops to repel the invaders. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} Ratchet, Prowl, and [[Luke Cage]] were able to breech the array's defenses. Megatron captured Ratchet and Luke Cage while Ramjet and Megatron's new ally, Doctor Doom captured Prowl. When his forces outside were defeated, Megatron—on the advice of Doctor Doom—sent a holographic message to those outside that he would kill his captives if they did not surrender. They did not surrender and instead renewed their attack. Megatron blamed Doctor Doom for the failure and turned on him.

[[File:Megsandspidy.jpg|left|200px|thumb|]]

Megatron did not go through with his threat of killing the hostages. Instead he went out to face his attackers himself, holding Luke Cage. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Three}} He was beating the opposition until Prowl, Ratchet, and Spider-Man [[orbital jump|orbital bounced]] out of the facility. They had been freed by Doctor Doom and the two Autobots used the Decepticon equipment to energize themselves with [[Wolverine (superhero)|Wolverine]]'s super power. This added firepower led to his defeat. His Psycho-Prism was destroyed so there was no point in continuing the fight and ordered his troops to retreat using an [[emergency warp-out]]. Megatron himself stuck around awhile hoping to beat someone up, but Spider-Man wrapped him up in webbing, Luke Cage knocked him over, and the Autobots opened fire on him while he was down. He finally warped-out taunting Optimus Prime on the way out. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Four}}

[[File:Megatrong1idwgunbody.jpg|150px|thumb|I also wonder.]]
After getting the infiltration protocols back on track, Megatron stayed instead of leaving Earth in the hands of a new commander. He decided to try out his new [[Size changing|mass-displacing]] handgun [[Alternate mode|altmode]] and the Ore-13 power. {{storylink|Escalation issue 2|Escalation #2}} He personally took charge of the Decepticon subterfuge in [[Brasnya]], guiding the facsimile of [[Georgi Koska]] in an attempt to escalate an international incident into a full polarizing war, and acting as Koska's personal weapon. (His alt-mode only works when a human is holding and firing him, which left him at a disadvantage against the Autobots, who could simply pin him down in that form. Maybe Megatron just wants to be held.) {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}}

When Optimus Prime arrived, Megatron transformed and started a full-blown to-the-death melee with his longtime foe for all the nuts and bolts—this surprised Optimus, who accused Megatron of letting the Ore-13 power go to his head and causing him to be "some raging braggart". Even with his fusion cannon disabled almost right away, Megatron gained the upper hand due to his Ore-13 high. Beating his foe down, he squeezed Prime's spark casing and seemingly killed him; {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} aghast, the Autobots moved into a full but ineffective counterattack, their only edge being that Megatron had no long-range guns left. However, Prime's death was a desperate ruse, and the Autobot leader countered with a surprise attack on Megatron, able to exploit Ore-13's weakness—the more it's used, the faster it burns itself out. Megatron almost collapsed from power loss and was forced to have Skywarp take him to safety before the Autobots could kill him.

Upon returning to base and being refueled and repaired, Megatron was hopping mad. Mad enough to prematurely call in his ultimate living weapon—[[Sixshot]]—despite [[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]]'s panic attack on hearing that. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}}

During this time, he discovered a plot by [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] to overthrow him. Without saying a word, he beat the living [[Slag (slang)|slag]] out of the attempted traitor before tearing him apart and keeping his head as a trophy. {{storylink|Spotlight: Ramjet}}

Upon Sixshot's arrival, Megatron ordered him to utterly destroy the Autobots, throwing out the methodical "Phase" strategy. The other Decepticons were worried that Megatron was losing his grip—and since they were too scared to tell him that, they decided to revive Starscream to do it for them. {{storylink|Devastation issue 1|Devastation #1}} Before Sixshot could obliterate the Autobots, Megatron recalled him to deal with a new threat—the [[Reaper]]s. {{storylink|Devastation issue 4|Devastation #4}} Megatron deduced that the other Decepticons betrayed him by awakening Starscream, but decided not to punish them '''yet''', due to the present task of destroying the Reapers. {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}} After these foes were dead, Megatron was forced to accept Starscream and the others when it became clear the humans were aware of them now. {{storylink|Devastation issue 6|Devastation #6}}

[[File:Bringingthehousedown.jpg|left|250px|thumb|Megatron's urban renewal program was off to a flying start.]]
Some time later, the Autobots were led into a trap; false information was planted by an [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Autobot traitor]], and they were led into an ambush and soundly defeated by the Decepticons and the newly-created [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]]. After personally ripping the [[Matrix of Leadership]] out of Optimus Prime's chest, Megatron planned to drop the Autobots into the midst of [[Insecticon swarm|three thousand horrendous things he had created]] on Cybertron. When all but Prime had gone through the space bridge, Prime grabbed Blitzwing's gun and somehow saved the other Autobots from certain death, closing the portal. Optimus was critically injured by the space bridge, which fried his circuits. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} This caused Starscream's status among the Decepticons and their concern about Megatron to go ''way'' down, with former dissenters like [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] becoming Megatron fanboys. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} By use of Sunstreaker's input with Starscream and Bombshell's experimentation on [[Hunter O'Nion]], Megatron was able to defeat [[Omega Supreme (G1)|almost]] all the Autobots in the galaxy...

A year after the defeat of Optimus, Megatron decided to take Earth and make it the new Decepticon homeworld. He arrived on the front lines as the Decepticons attacked [[New York City]], humiliating Starscream by outdoing him in destroying things with just one shot from his fusion cannon. When the US Air Force responded with an F-22 squad, as a show of force Megatron had Soundwave disable the human's missile targeting, followed by the Decepticons just standing there shrugging off bullets before making their attack. After one jet was damaged by Skywarp, [[DJ (G1)|its pilot]] attempted to take out Megatron with a suicide run, but the Decepticon leader calmly swatted the incoming plane, causing it to explode. As flames rose from the wreckage, Megatron emerged, completely undamaged, laughing maniacally. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} Megatron continued to direct the Decepticon assault on New York, dispatching [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] to mop up the U.S. Army's ground forces and ordering the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] to combine into [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] and destroy the underwater tunnels leading out of the city. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 2|All Hail Megatron #2}}

His plan executed flawlessly, the Decepticons continued their assault on the major cities of the United States, disabling or nullifying any attempt by the army or navy to counterattack. As he surveyed his handiwork in New York, he ordered Hook and the Constructicons to begin building ''something'' in the once-great human city and appreciated their "sacrifice" in using "substandard" building materials. Soon thereafter he was joined by Starscream, with whom he had a heart to heart and revealed he believed Starscream to be the embodiment of the Decepticon cause, but that Starscream was blind to realizing this. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 3|All Hail Megatron #3}}

When the humans had fallen, Megatron made a propaganda speech to his men in the ruins of New York. He heaped great praise on their efforts, both on Earth and across the galaxy, announcing they had finally crushed the Autobots for good. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 4|All Hail Megatron #4}} After making this speech (and dispatching Ratbat to attack a small group of mercenaries led by [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Commander Witwicky]]), Megatron entered one of the "buildings" to gaze at his newly prized possession... the Autobot Matrix of Leadership that he stole from Optimus. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 5|All Hail Megatron #5}}

[[File:AHM6MegatronVsIsrael.jpg|200px|thumb|]]

That praise turned out to be empty, as Starscream started noticing that Megatron didn't have a plan now victory had been achieved, and the smashy-smash fun on Earth was him trying to distract the troops—because now he had an army of evil sociopathic murderers with nothing to murder and a doctrine of taking power. Not even smashing up [[Israel]] made him feel better. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}} Eventually, Starscream made his move, revealing to Megatron that he had swayed the Insecticons to his side. Megatron easily swatted the insects aside, however, and explained to Starscream that he had known about his plans all along. Unfortunately, he hadn't anticipated Starscream to have rallied the Constructicons backing him up, and found himself having to fight the mighty Devastator. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}}

[[File:AHM12-youreafool.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Ever so often, Megatron likes to remind us he's basically Magneto.]]

As the battle was interrupted by an attack from human jets, Megatron and Starscream put their differences aside momentarily to organize a defense. Megatron was not at all surprised by the attack, as he had planned the invasion—nay, the ''war''—down to the smallest detail. He explained to Starscream that while the Decepticon forces may have no real goal at the moment, he planned to remodel them into something greater after the war was done. Then he was suddenly interrupted by something he ''hadn't'' planned for: the return of the Autobots. After assuring Starscream that he'd be leader someday (just not right now), Megatron confronted Optimus Prime again, accusing the Autobot of coming for his Matrix rather than truly caring about Earth. He also revealed that Prime's supposedly "innocent" humans were planning to nuke New York, killing millions of their own just to get rid of the Decepticons. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 11|All Hail Megatron #11}}

Prime retorted that it wasn't about the humans, it was about the difference between him and Megatron—the difference between Autobots and Decepticons. The two came to blows, and Megatron eventually came out on top by throwing Prime into a building. He ordered the Decepticons to leave Earth, leaving the Autobots to be killed by the humans' nuke... only to be shot in the face by [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], wielding a powerful weapon reverse-engineered from Cybertronian technology. Injured and disoriented by the blast, Megatron was finished off when Optimus Prime got back up and smashed his face in with his own fusion cannon. As he wanted to ''take'' leadership rather than just have it fall in his hands, Starscream picked up his damaged leader and took him off the planet. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

[[File:AllHisEngines-Megatron.jpg|thumb|150px|Pretty sure when you float in a bacta tank you're supposed to be wearing a diaper.]]

On board Astrotrain, Megatron was put on life support and was tended to by Soundwave and his cassettes. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 13|Uneasy Lies the Head}}

The Decepticons eventually settled on a desolate asteroid and Megatron spent the next three years in a [[CR chamber|CR tank]]. He was somehow conscious and aware of current events during his recovery. Megatron was forced to simply watch as most of the Decepticon army languished in inactivity and slowly began to unravel under Starscream's leadership. {{storylink|All His Engines}} But despite Megatron's mental health and awareness, Soundwave eventually realized that his body was beyond repair. He convinced Shockwave, who had been given access to plenty of resources for his space bridge project, to help him build a brand new body for Megatron's consciousness to inhabit. They were successful, and even included space bridge technology in Megatron himself, allowing him to create warp portals to Earth.

Back in action, Megatron devised a plan to destabilize the relationship between the humans and Autobots on Earth. Together with Soundwave and Shockwave, he chopped up his old body and used it to create human-scaled replicas of his former gun mode, containing small pieces of his own consciousness. Starscream caught them in the act, but wasn't too shocked to learn of Megatron's return, as he knew it had been inevitable. Megatron was unable to take back leadership of the Decepticons at the moment, however, as Starscream was in possession of the Matrix of Leadership, an object which Megatron considered a threat due to its mysterious nature. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}}

[[File:Ongoing Issue 13 - Megatron.jpg|left|200px|thumb|"Ever see the movie ''Tron''?"]]

When [[Hot Rod (G1)|Rodimus]] infiltrated the Decepticons' asteroid base and recovered the Matrix from Starscream, Megatron stepped in to intercept the Autobot. Rodimus panicked when coming upon the reborn Decepticon commander and held up the Matrix to try and ward him off. But Megatron simply shot Rodimus at point-blank range, blasting him out into space, Matrix and all. Intent on reestablishing his authority, Megatron then informed Soundwave to gather the other Decepticons so he could address them. {{storylink|Heart Like a Wheel}}

Distrustful of Shockwave's motives for preparing his new body, wary of Soundwave's constant surveillance, and repulsed by the state of his once fearsome Decepticon war machine, Megatron decided that he needed to unequivocally reestablish dominance over the now Matrix-less Starscream. His intended to beat Starscream near to death, thereby allowing both of them to work out their frustrations with Starscream's inability to lead effectively over the three years Megatron was incapacitated. However, Starscream did not want to fight. He was devastated by his loss of the Matrix and his inability to command the obedience of the Decepticon forces in Megatron's absence despite possessing the Matrix, and simply wanted Megatron to kill him and get it over with, if that was what Megatron intended to do. Megatron, instead of accepting Starscream's refusal to engage him, goaded the former Matrix-bearer into opening fire upon him. This forced Starscream to both flee and fight for his life so that he might escape Megatron's vengeance. Megatron, pursuing in his new stealth bomber alt-mode continues to bait Starscream into conflict as he tries to escape, and eventually achieved his desire to beat him into submission, which re-ignited Starscream's scheming nature, and the desire to lead the Decepticons once again, which Megatron believes is necessary for the proper functioning of his Decepticons. {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

Megatron, aided by Shockwave, moved to immediately implement the first stage of his planned vengeance against the Autobots and the citizens of Earth by sending a container full of guns based on his former alternate mode ( which were made from his old body), as well as his old head, through a space bridge to Earth, where it landed in [[Quetzaltenango]], [[Mexico]]. Without the knowledge of any human government, the powerful weapons were then smuggled into the United States by gun enthusiasts and civilians looking for anti-Transformer weaponry. This allowed Megatron's consciousness to spread throughout the land, until it was focused enough to contact one particular owner of a Megatron gun: [[Joe Gladki]]. He deceived and manipulated the paranoid human, and eventually convinced him to perform an assassination attempt on [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]], the new Autobot leader. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} In their ignorance, the Autobots then mistook Gladki's gun for Megatron himself and held it captive. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 1: The Demolished Man|The Demolished Man}}

With the Autobots in chaos, Megatron started the next phase of his plan and returned to Earth personally, where he used his new stealth bomber mode to shoot down a plane carrying Optimus Prime and several other Autobots. He then hunted down [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]], who was in charge following the loss of both Bumblebee and Prime, and killed some Mexicans attacking Magnus's troops with Megatron guns just because. With his powerful new body, he effortlessly defeated the entire Autobot team and killed some of their [[Skywatch]] allies. Ultra Magnus tried to stop him, telling Megatron that he was back for the Autobots and not the humans, but Megatron assured him that humanity was his real target. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 3: Woken Furies|Woken Furies}}

Megatron revealed that his entire scheme was a plot to try and crush Optimus Prime's spirit and ruin the fragile alliance between humanity and the Autobots by arming deranged and unstable humans with advanced weaponry based on his old body, thus forcing the Autobots to choose between fighting the humans or allowing them to kill them. He dumped several of the Autobots in a heavily populated area and mind controlled three already paranoid humans to kill the Autobots. He also took Ultra Magnus hostage, having Soundwave keep a weapon trained on him as he taunted Prime about the no win situation he had created. However, he also revealed to Prime that he was controlling the humans, and in a bid to distract him enough to break the mental control, Prime shot Soundwave in the head, badly wounding him. Distraught and furious that his faithful lieutenant had been wounded, Megatron chose to flee to get Soundwave medical attention, forcing him to break communication. Unfortunately however, despite this Megatron's plan succeeded. Jazz was forced to kill a human to save Bumblebee's life, increasing the paranoia and hatred that humanity felt for the Autobots. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome|Burning Chrome}}

With Soundwave wounded severely, Megatron took him to a temporary lab that Shockwave had set up on Earth, to have Soundwave repaired. However Shockwave noted that much of the Decepticon's resources had been used to construct Megatron's new body and the new space bridge, and it would take a great deal of time to properly rebuild Soundwave. It was at this point that Optimus Prime attacked again and after threatening Shockwave, goaded Megatron into a confrontation. Megatron ordered his troops not to attack Prime, wanting them to watch as he crippled the Autobot leader and left him for the humans to kill. However one thing Megatron didn't suspect was for Prime to be desperate enough to drop a satellite on top of him, in an effort to kill him once and for all.

However Megatron's new body, empowered greatly by Ore-13, was virtually unharmed by the attack. He beat Prime senseless but then, shockingly, surrendered to the Autobots and was promptly imprisoned inside Omega Supreme. Optimus demanded to know why he surrendered and Megatron taunted him by revealing that Spike Witwicky had murdered a Decepticon in cold blood and told him the humans couldn't be trusted, mocking Prime's desire to work with the humans and warning him that he had doomed his Autobots by allying with Skywatch. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine|Enemy Mine}}

Prime immediately had Prowl begin investigating Spike and Skywatch, and one of the first things Prowl did was quiz Megatron on what he knew about Spike's activities. Megatron told him what he needed to know after a little verbal sparring. {{storylink|Police Action: Prologue}}

When Rodimus returned to Earth and warned the Autobots that [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] had taken control of Cybertron, now habitable once more thanks to Alpha Trion repairing the ravaged world and Ironhide and Sunstreaker having wiped out the Swarm, Optimus decided to lead the Autobots to claim their homeworld back from the insane Galvatron. He also decided to bring both Megatron and the Matrix, believing that the humans would be less at risk of Decepticon attacks if Megatron and the Matrix were both off earth. {{storylink|Space Opera—Final Tableaux: Orphans of the Helix|Orphans of the Helix}}

On the way to Cybertron, Megatron was fully scanned by both Ratchet and [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]], who, along with [[Xaaron]] had come to assist the Autobots in making sure Megatron was secure and to provide legal counsel in how to treat him as he was now a prisoner of war. Megatron was silent while they confirmed that he had no concealed weaponry on him. Shortly after this, Prime himself came to talk to Megatron, wanting for once to have an actual conversation with his old foe and try to make peace, seeing the situation as a chance to finally end the war. Initially skeptical of Prime's reasons for talking to him, when Prime released Megatron from his bonds. Megatron challenged Prime's motto of "Freedom is the right of all sentient beings" by pointing out that it was he, not Prime, who had stood up for the Cybertronians who were treated as little more than slaves by the corrupt ruling class of Cybertron and claiming that the only true way to bring peace to the universe was through conquest. After arguing about their conflicting viewpoints the two began to remember old battles and the numerous near death experiences, even laughing together as they shared war stories. It was then that Optimus tried to reach out to Megatron, offering him the chance to end the war once and for all with a handshake, telling him that all he had to do was tell him that he wanted the war to end and it would. Megatron appeared to consider it for a moment but ultimately remained silent. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

Under pressure to decide whether Megatron would be executed or imprisoned should he be found guilty of crimes against the species and genocide, Prime confronted Megatron and asked him if he regretted any of his actions. Megatron coldly replied that he did not and in fact only regretted that he hadn't done more and killed more Autobots, claiming that he would kill Autobots solely for pleasure and that as long as anyone stood in his way he would kill them. He also claimed that Optimus was secretly glad for the war, taunting him in a manner similar to the way Whirl had once taunted Megatron by pointing out that if the war had never happened Optimus would have lived and died as a nobody, with no one knowing or caring who he was, but because of Megatron Optimus had become famous and the most respected and worshipped Cybertronian of all. It was a taunt designed to make Prime want to kill him and Optimus nearly did, activating the Variable Voltage Harness. Omega Supreme managed to cut the power in time and Megatron, struggling to stay conscious, offered Prime his thanks for saving his life all those years ago in Rodion. Shocked by his actions Prime realised that Megatron wanted to die and wanted him to be the one to kill him.

This was confirmed when he asked Megatron what HE wanted his punishment to be if found guilty at his trial. Death or imprisonment. Megatron calmly replied that he chose death. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 2}}

On the way to Cybertron, Megatron demanded to know who or what was attacking the planet, questioning whether it was Starscream, Shockwave or even Thunderwing. Optimus refused to answer, stating that now Megatron was a prisoner everything going on outside the walls of his cell was no longer his concern and questioning why Megatron was suddenly so sentimental. Megatron ominously noted that Cybertron was more than just a metal world and that if it was in the wrong hands they were all in danger. He also threatened Prime but Optimus simply left the cell, no longer willing to speak with Megatron. {{storylink| Chaos Part One: Lamentations|Lamentations}}

As the battle with the [[Sweep]]s and Galvatron raged across Cybertron, Megatron chose this moment to reveal the ace he had up his sleeve: The Autobots had confiscated a number of the guns made from his old body, which he was able to take control of and use to upgrade himself into a secondary armored mode. This allowed him to break free of his restraints within Omega Supreme, cackling insanely as he broke loose and confronted both the Autobots and the gathered Sweeps, declaring that Cybertron belonged to him and he would not allow Galvatron to have it. {{storylink|Chaos Part Two: Numbers|Numbers}}

[[File:Megatron Chaospt4 Genesis.jpg|thumb|200px|End...of...line...]]
Tearing through the Sweeps with ease, Megatron summoned his Decepticon forces to kill the Autobots gathered on Cybertron, using a beacon built into his new body to lead them to exactly where he was. While Megatron fought the Sweeps his Decepticons came close to overwhelming the battered and exhausted Autobots, before [[D-Void]], acting through the [[Darkness (G1)|Heart of Darkness]], summoned all the Decepticons to combine into a gigantic monster along with the Sweeps, a monster that began attacking Cybertron and the Autobots. Megatron ordered Prime to come join him in battle against the monster but Prime replied that as he had to deal with Galvatron, it would be up to Megatron to stop the advancing monstrosity. {{storylink|Chaos Part Three: Kings|Kings}}

As the stunned Autobots watched, Megatron, though gravely wounded and missing an arm, resisted D-Void's control and not only fought but destroyed the Deceptigod, blasting it apart with one massive beam from his weapons. {{storylink|Chaos Part Four: Genesis|Genesis}} In the chaos that followed Galvatron's defeat and the restoration of Cybertron, Megatron was nowhere to be found. As Optimus Prime exiled himself from Cybertron weeks later, he mused that his nemesis must still be out there somewhere. {{storylink|The Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}

Months after what had become known as the "Chaos Event", Megatron wandered into a rebuilt [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] from the wilderness Cybertron had become, heavily damaged and carrying a bunch of severed Sweep heads. {{storylink|The End of the Beginning of the World}} He claimed to come in peace, a claim that was hardly convincing to Bumblebee's Autobots overseeing the city who opted to kill him on sight. They were stopped by Iacon's Decepticon population, who saw Megatron's actions during the Chaos Event as those of a hero and forced them to take him into custody instead. He requested to talk to Bumblebee, who refused on the grounds that his "talk" with Optimus Prime had gone nowhere, and was instead approached by Starscream. {{storylink|City on Fire}}

Millions of years after the end of the war, when the Autobots were finally at peace, [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] still believed Megatron to be alive and promised a young Autobot they would defeat him again if he ever returned. {{storylink|Pax Cybertronia (issue)|Pax Cybertronia}} This may have actually have happened, or it may just have been a vision Ironhide had during the Chaos Event. {{storylink|A Better Tomorrow}}

===Spotlight: Mirage===
{{note|The events of ''Spotlight: Mirage'' are presented as a dream sequence of Mirage, and may possibly represent an alternate/unknown continuity.}}
With most of the Autobots in the galaxy defeated, Megatron chafed to end the war quickly. He demanded [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] track the last pocket of Autobot resistance down for the Decepticons. The mercenary demanded a majority share in all energon mining operations, a deal which outraged Megatron, until Mirage pointed out it was a small price to pay to end the war. After Optimus Prime surrendered, Megatron demanded the prisoners be executed despite Mirage's promise to spare Autobot lives. Seeing Mirage's hesitation, Megatron appealed to his greed. {{storylink|Spotlight: Mirage}}
{{-}}

==Notes==
* In "[[Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2]]", we see that Megatron's helmet is, in fact, [[:Image:MegatronOrigin2 Megs hair.jpg|a helmet and not part of his head]] (at least in this continuity). Upon removing his helmet, Megatron then briefly unfurls a crest. The significance of this moment is not explained, nor is it ever revisited. Thankfully.

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Rulers of Cybertron]]

Megatron (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

2013-05-03T13:32:55Z

Solaar:

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[[File:IDWMegatron.jpg|thumb|300x342px]]
'''Megatron''' waged a battle to destroy the evil forces of the [[Senate]]!

==IDW Generation 1 continuity==
{{ongoing}}

{{quote|In the final analysis, I would happily wade across a river of corpses, chest-deep in rust and grease and engine oil, just to crush the Spark of the last Autobot standing. And I would not do so simply as a means to an end. No. I'd do it, Prime, because it would give me ''pleasure''.|Megatron to Optimus Prime|''[[Chaos Theory Part 1]]''}}

[[File:Ongoing22 MaccadamsNewOilHouse.jpg|left|thumb|300px|His neighbors said he was so quiet and unassuming.]]
Long ago, before the war and under the reign of [[Nominus Prime]], Megatron of [[Tarn (polity)|Tarn]] was an [[energon]] miner, a member of the lower class, living near [[Rodion]]. The caste-ridden social apartheid of Cybertronian society—where your form determined your role, and your role your rights—sickened him and, being an intellectual sort, he wrote [[After the Ark: Nominus Prime and the Illusion of Progress|a treatise]] on how pacifist dissent and the exchange of ideas could change things. But then he was arrested for a crime [[Impactor (G1)|a friend]] had committed against the Autobot upper classes, and [[Whirl (G1)|one of their friends]] in the police beat him in his cell, intending to kill him, while mocking him for how nobody would care about the death of a lowly miner. Police captain [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]], however, found out Megatron was innocent and let him go. But now he was filled with rage and hate, disillusioned with his former ideology and realising the power of applied violence. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

Megatron's samizdat writings began to circulate in Cybertron's underground, spawning the Decepticon movement. Wanting him out of the way but not wanting to make him a martyr, the Senate exiled him to the mines on [[Messatine]]. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}} He continued to seethe with hate and frustration while at [[Mining Outpost C-12]]. One day [[Decimus|Senator Decimus]] arrived at the mine to announce that the mine was being closed immediately and the workers would be relocated. However, when one of the Senator's guards killed a worker for insubordination and claims of Senate corruption, Megatron attacked Decimus and killed the guard in self-defense (and was shocked to find he had done so). This started a riot which was quickly crushed. He and the other miners were en route to [[Penal Facility H-3|imprisonment]] when [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] and [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] broke free and started a riot aboard [[Longshot (G1)|their ship]]. They overpowered their guards, damaged Decimus's ship to ward off pursuit, as the authorities would focus on his rescue, and made their way to [[Kaon]]. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}}

[[File:minermegs.JPG|250px|thumb|Now that's the look of a well-adjusted individual.]]

After evading law enforcement, Megatron joined a team of underworld gladiators under the tutelage of [[Clench (G1)|Clench]]. Initially repulsed by killing his opponents, the games eventually turned him more brutal and excessive, and he took control of the entire operation from Clench. The opportunistic Senator [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], after seeing how much money there was in the underworld matches, sent his agent [[Soundwave (G1)|Soundwave]] to offer Megatron weaponry and technology to upgrade himself and his comrades. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}} [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]]'s Autobots were sent to investigate the gladiatorial games, but when two Autobots were personally killed by Megatron, Prime's forces stepped up their pursuit. Megatron used the gladiatorial games to drum up an army of violent malcontents and spread chaos throughout Cybertron. He then deliberately allowed Sentinel Prime's forces to capture his burgeoning army, {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} so that [[Starscream (G1)|Starscream]] (pretending to defect) and Soundwave and his hidden cassette army could exterminate the Kaon Senate and then free every last prisoner. Megatron led the army of prisoners against the Autobots, beat Sentinel Prime nearly to death, and took control of Kaon. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

[[File:Apexthrone.JPG|250px|thumb|You should have gone to IKEA.]]

Megatron's infamy spread and his message of rising up against the ruling classes struck a chord with many disenfranchised Cybertronians. One such fellow was [[Drift (G1)|Drift]], who attended a Decepticon rally and was personally asked by Megatron to fight at his side. Megatron rechristened Drift as "Deadlock" and welcomed him into the Decepticon fold. {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}} Soon enough, the growing Decepticon forces had spread across six [[Polities of Cybertron|Torus-States]]. {{storylink|Parasites}} At one point, he met Orion Pax again on [[Sherma Bridge]], where they did battle for the first time. Orion chopped off Megatron's cannon arm during the fight, but the Decepticon leader came out victorious by tossing him off the bridge. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

To Megatron's interest, his now-abandoned treatise had been a source of inspiration for Orion Pax, who had even quoted from it when he confronted the Senate and openly accused them of corruption. When the Autobot captain came close to Kaon during a mission, Megatron saw it as a chance to speak to him and had his Decepticons bring him in. {{storylink|The Hunt for Soundwave}} Orion, turned cynical by his time in the force, refused Megatron's offers for them to work together against the newest corrupt Autobot leader, [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]]. Megatron let him know that Zeta was even worse than he seemed, having planned to let Orion die in [[Nyon]] so that he could use his death as pretext to invade the rebel-infested city and drain the citizens of their energon. Orion then escaped, but knowing the doubts he'd placed in his head would only serve to damage the Autobot cause, Megatron let him go. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}}

Megatron continued to keep an eye on Orion Pax's activities, spying on his encounter with the Nyon insurgent [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]]. {{storylink|Ruins}} When Zeta Prime's [[Guardian robot|Omega Destructor]]s suddenly attacked Nyon, Megatron was surprised by how zealously the new Prime fought against the city's rebels, but his real interest still lay on how Orion would handle the crisis. {{storylink|Purge}} Orion turned on Zeta, who in turn attempted to kill him, prompting Megatron to intervene and force the Prime to retreat. Taking Orion back to Kaon, he again offered that they work together against Zeta's corruption, and this time the Autobot officer accepted. {{storylink|Choices}} As their combined forces invaded the [[Citadel]] in Iacon, Megatron and Orion Pax made their way inside and fought Zeta Prime in person.The battle ended with Megatron killing the Prime with a head shot, and with his objective complete, he then betrayed the injured Orion by shooting him in the back. {{storylink|Overthrown}}

With Zeta dead, Megatron conquered Iacon and declared himself ruler of Cybertron. His soldiers patrolled the planet's streets to "keep the peace", mostly by hunting down and capturing any remaining Autobots who opposed him. {{storylink|Transformation (issue)|Transformation}} During his rule, Megatron attempted to sway the neutral [[Hot Rod (G1)|Hot Rod]] into joining the Decepticons, but he decided otherwise upon witnessing Megatron ordering the execution of several Autobot prisoners. {{storylink|Rise}} Megatron was shocked to learn that Orion Pax had survived the betrayal and was organizing a rebellion against him under the name "Optimus Prime", and even more shocked that people actually had the courage to listen to him. He wasted no time in striking back against the rebels approaching the Citadel with the full force of his army. {{storylink|Broadcast}}

During the battle, Megatron ordered Blitzwing to distract the Autobots long enough for him to bring out the "vamparc annihilator", a giant [[vamparc ribbon]] built inside the Citadel by Zeta Prime. Though he managed to knock out a lot of Autobots, [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] arrived and took out the cannon along with the entire building, causing Megatron to fall to the streets and face Optimus Prime himself. He lost the ensuing [[The Transformers: The Movie|familiar-looking duel]] and was badly wounded after a failed attempt to defeat Prime by holding Hot Rod hostage, forcing him to escape aboard Astrotrain. As he fled, he warned Optimus that he hadn't won, he had only started a war unlike any Cybertron had ever seen. {{storylink|Endgame}}

At some point early in the war, he wrote ''[[Towards Peace]]'', a new treatise to replace ''After the Ark'', in which he described continuing to fight the war until the very notion of conflict was literally inconceivable. Then and only then would he finally give up his fusion cannon. At some point, he also created the [[Decepticon Justice Division]] to deal with traitors. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}}

[[File:Megatrong1idwpreearth.jpg|left|150px|thumb|450 years ago, his helmet was black, but now it's gray. The difference time makes, huh?]]
Over time, the war between Megatron's Decepticon army and Optimus Prime's Autobots covered the entire planet and soon beyond to the rest of the galaxy. Optimus grew to respect and fear Megatron as a calm, calculating and measured opponent, while Megatron himself respected Prime's sheer power and his skill as a tactician and as a leader. {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} They would proceed to duel each other directly many times, such as during the [[Battle for Hell's Point]] and the [[Siege of Massunstrad]] {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}, and also fight by proxy, sealing themselves into [[Omniglobe]]s, "hypercongizance shells" which would feed them the entirety of data from the frontlines, enabling the sides to throw everything they had at each other for a prolonged period of time. The Decepticons didn't even spare the resources to collect their dead, who lay where they fell for eons. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement}}

Ultimately, with total war getting nowhere, Megatron would go on to develop a six-stage [[infiltration protocol]] to be used for conquering targeted planets, and selected Sixshot, a living weapon he had constructed with frightening amounts of power that only he had the "off-switch" for {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}}, and the similarly ultra-powerful Overlord and [[Black Shadow (Victory)|Black Shadow]] to be the agents who would strike the final blow in each battle. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 2|Last Stand of the Wreckers #2}} As the Autobot/Decepticon war progressed, the conflict became so great that it created an impending energy crisis and threatened the stability of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] itself. When [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Shockwave]] left Cybertron, secretly pursuing alternate energy sources, Megatron ordered [[Bludgeon (G1)|Bludgeon]] to investigate his files, secretly assigning Soundwave to investigate Bludgeon. {{storylink|Spotlight: Shockwave}}

When Deadlock deserted the cause at some point during the war, Megatron sent the bounty hunter [[Lockdown (G1)|Lockdown]] to bring him back. {{storylink|Drift issue 2|Drift #2}}

Later, a Decepticon scientist, [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]], came to Megatron with a revolutionary, controversial plan to stave off this energy death by [[Pretender|polydermal grafting]], a process where they encased themselves in "symbiotic carapaces", or shells created from living tissue. When Megatron dismissed him angrily and cut him down, Thunderwing did not abandon his research, but instead experimented on himself. As a result, Thunderwing became so powerful that Megatron had to join forces with Optimus Prime to stop him. This battle at [[Thunderhead Pass]] accelerated the apocalypse destined to befall Cybertron, leaving it an uninhabitable, radioactive husk and forcing both armies to continue their war on other worlds. Megatron advocated that they simply destroy Cybertron to ensure that Thunderwing was destroyed, but Prime refused, and threatened to stop Megatron if he tried. Megatron agreed not to destroy the planet, but warned Prime that whatever happened was on his head. Shortly after the last big push by the Decepticons, Cybertron was abandoned by both factions.

[[File:Infiltration6 takeyourpunishment.jpg|250px|thumb|Those librarians are getting really strict on late returns.]]
Seven hundred [[Units of time|stellar cycles]] later, in current times, it was discovered that as a result of digging through Shockwave's files, Bludgeon had resurrected Thunderwing's dangerous project, as well as Thunderwing himself. After being informed of Thunderwing's attack on [[Nebulos]], Megatron dispatched the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]] in the ''[[Thanatos]]'' to Cybertron, authorizing [[Razorclaw (G1)|Razorclaw]] to do whatever was necessary to destroy Thunderwing, including the destruction of Cybertron. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 3|Stormbringer #3}} However, Optimus Prime and the [[Wrecker]]s were able to thwart both Bludgeon and Thunderwing, and so destruction of the planet was averted. {{storylink|Stormbringer issue 4|Stormbringer #4}}

{{quote|You will stand down. If you fight, you ''die''. There is no room anymore for mercy. In the end, you are ''all'' expendable. Choose.|Megatron's ultimatum to Starscream's troops|"[[Infiltration issue 6]]"}}

Megatron, meanwhile, was on Earth, investigating Starscream's infiltration team. He discovered that Starscream had stumbled across [[Ultra-Energon|Ore-13]], an incredible energy source which had been [[Spotlight: Shockwave|mysteriously seeded there]], and that the [[Air Commander]] was planning to use it to usurp Megatron's command—this annoyed him, as he had thought they were beyond such power games. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 4|Infiltration #4}} After seriously damaging the hesitantly rebellious [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] and [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]], {{storylink|Infiltration issue 5|Infiltration #5}} Megatron ordered the AWOL team to stand down and then took on a super-powered Starscream. Though the Ore-13 made Starscream a formidable adversary, Megatron was still more deadly than he, and Starscream was destroyed. All throughout, he acted eerily calm & measured and made both Autobot and Decepticon wet themselves in fear. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6}}

Megatron took stock of Starscream's progress on Earth in light of the discovery of Ore-13 and called a meeting to make Starscream's former troops aware, in no uncertain terms, that any further insurrections would be met with deadly force. {{storylink|Escalation issue 1|Escalation #1}} Initiating phase two of infiltration protocol, Megatron stole a prototype [[Psycho-Prism]] from [[Doctor Doom]]'s laboratory. He created an "array" structure in [[Latveria]] as a base of operations. He sent Skywarp and Thundercracker to the nearby country of [[Symkaria]] in hopes they will blame Latveria and start a war. He activated the Psycho-Prism which produced an aggression wave that made nearby humans more aggressive in order to further increase international tensions. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}} Doctor Doom, not appreciating the Decepticons' setting up shop in his country, tried to remove their base with an army of [[Doombot]]s. Megatron had no problem repelling them. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}}

The [[Avengers]] arrived and Megatron let them enter his facility where he scanned them looking for a suitable sample to leech power from as part of their [[mirror response mode]]. He selected [[Spider-Man]] and captured him. The remaining Avengers retreated and Megatron energized the facilities energy shield. The Autobots arrived and were attacked by the Avengers thanks to their heightened aggression. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}}

Megatron energized himself and all of his troops except Ramjet, who he didn't trust. Outside, the Autobots were able to nullify the aggression wave amongst the Avengers and they teamed up and started attacking the array. Megatron sent out his energized troops to repel the invaders. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} Ratchet, Prowl, and [[Luke Cage]] were able to breech the array's defenses. Megatron captured Ratchet and Luke Cage while Ramjet and Megatron's new ally, Doctor Doom captured Prowl. When his forces outside were defeated, Megatron—on the advice of Doctor Doom—sent a holographic message to those outside that he would kill his captives if they did not surrender. They did not surrender and instead renewed their attack. Megatron blamed Doctor Doom for the failure and turned on him.

[[File:Megsandspidy.jpg|left|200px|thumb|]]

Megatron did not go through with his threat of killing the hostages. Instead he went out to face his attackers himself, holding Luke Cage. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Three}} He was beating the opposition until Prowl, Ratchet, and Spider-Man [[orbital jump|orbital bounced]] out of the facility. They had been freed by Doctor Doom and the two Autobots used the Decepticon equipment to energize themselves with [[Wolverine (superhero)|Wolverine]]'s super power. This added firepower led to his defeat. His Psycho-Prism was destroyed so there was no point in continuing the fight and ordered his troops to retreat using an [[emergency warp-out]]. Megatron himself stuck around awhile hoping to beat someone up, but Spider-Man wrapped him up in webbing, Luke Cage knocked him over, and the Autobots opened fire on him while he was down. He finally warped-out taunting Optimus Prime on the way out. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Four}}

[[File:Megatrong1idwgunbody.jpg|150px|thumb|I also wonder.]]
After getting the infiltration protocols back on track, Megatron stayed instead of leaving Earth in the hands of a new commander. He decided to try out his new [[Size changing|mass-displacing]] handgun [[Alternate mode|altmode]] and the Ore-13 power. {{storylink|Escalation issue 2|Escalation #2}} He personally took charge of the Decepticon subterfuge in [[Brasnya]], guiding the facsimile of [[Georgi Koska]] in an attempt to escalate an international incident into a full polarizing war, and acting as Koska's personal weapon. (His alt-mode only works when a human is holding and firing him, which left him at a disadvantage against the Autobots, who could simply pin him down in that form. Maybe Megatron just wants to be held.) {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}}

When Optimus Prime arrived, Megatron transformed and started a full-blown to-the-death melee with his longtime foe for all the nuts and bolts—this surprised Optimus, who accused Megatron of letting the Ore-13 power go to his head and causing him to be "some raging braggart". Even with his fusion cannon disabled almost right away, Megatron gained the upper hand due to his Ore-13 high. Beating his foe down, he squeezed Prime's spark casing and seemingly killed him; {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} aghast, the Autobots moved into a full but ineffective counterattack, their only edge being that Megatron had no long-range guns left. However, Prime's death was a desperate ruse, and the Autobot leader countered with a surprise attack on Megatron, able to exploit Ore-13's weakness—the more it's used, the faster it burns itself out. Megatron almost collapsed from power loss and was forced to have Skywarp take him to safety before the Autobots could kill him.

Upon returning to base and being refueled and repaired, Megatron was hopping mad. Mad enough to prematurely call in his ultimate living weapon—[[Sixshot]]—despite [[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]]'s panic attack on hearing that. {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}}

During this time, he discovered a plot by [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] to overthrow him. Without saying a word, he beat the living [[Slag (slang)|slag]] out of the attempted traitor before tearing him apart and keeping his head as a trophy. {{storylink|Spotlight: Ramjet}}

Upon Sixshot's arrival, Megatron ordered him to utterly destroy the Autobots, throwing out the methodical "Phase" strategy. The other Decepticons were worried that Megatron was losing his grip—and since they were too scared to tell him that, they decided to revive Starscream to do it for them. {{storylink|Devastation issue 1|Devastation #1}} Before Sixshot could obliterate the Autobots, Megatron recalled him to deal with a new threat—the [[Reaper]]s. {{storylink|Devastation issue 4|Devastation #4}} Megatron deduced that the other Decepticons betrayed him by awakening Starscream, but decided not to punish them '''yet''', due to the present task of destroying the Reapers. {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}} After these foes were dead, Megatron was forced to accept Starscream and the others when it became clear the humans were aware of them now. {{storylink|Devastation issue 6|Devastation #6}}

[[File:Bringingthehousedown.jpg|left|250px|thumb|Megatron's urban renewal program was off to a flying start.]]
Some time later, the Autobots were led into a trap; false information was planted by an [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Autobot traitor]], and they were led into an ambush and soundly defeated by the Decepticons and the newly-created [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]]. After personally ripping the [[Matrix of Leadership]] out of Optimus Prime's chest, Megatron planned to drop the Autobots into the midst of [[Insecticon swarm|three thousand horrendous things he had created]] on Cybertron. When all but Prime had gone through the space bridge, Prime grabbed Blitzwing's gun and somehow saved the other Autobots from certain death, closing the portal. Optimus was critically injured by the space bridge, which fried his circuits. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}} This caused Starscream's status among the Decepticons and their concern about Megatron to go ''way'' down, with former dissenters like [[Skywarp (G1)|Skywarp]] becoming Megatron fanboys. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} By use of Sunstreaker's input with Starscream and Bombshell's experimentation on [[Hunter O'Nion]], Megatron was able to defeat [[Omega Supreme (G1)|almost]] all the Autobots in the galaxy...

A year after the defeat of Optimus, Megatron decided to take Earth and make it the new Decepticon homeworld. He arrived on the front lines as the Decepticons attacked [[New York City]], humiliating Starscream by outdoing him in destroying things with just one shot from his fusion cannon. When the US Air Force responded with an F-22 squad, as a show of force Megatron had Soundwave disable the human's missile targeting, followed by the Decepticons just standing there shrugging off bullets before making their attack. After one jet was damaged by Skywarp, [[DJ (G1)|its pilot]] attempted to take out Megatron with a suicide run, but the Decepticon leader calmly swatted the incoming plane, causing it to explode. As flames rose from the wreckage, Megatron emerged, completely undamaged, laughing maniacally. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} Megatron continued to direct the Decepticon assault on New York, dispatching [[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] to mop up the U.S. Army's ground forces and ordering the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] to combine into [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] and destroy the underwater tunnels leading out of the city. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 2|All Hail Megatron #2}}

His plan executed flawlessly, the Decepticons continued their assault on the major cities of the United States, disabling or nullifying any attempt by the army or navy to counterattack. As he surveyed his handiwork in New York, he ordered Hook and the Constructicons to begin building ''something'' in the once-great human city and appreciated their "sacrifice" in using "substandard" building materials. Soon thereafter he was joined by Starscream, with whom he had a heart to heart and revealed he believed Starscream to be the embodiment of the Decepticon cause, but that Starscream was blind to realizing this. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 3|All Hail Megatron #3}}

When the humans had fallen, Megatron made a propaganda speech to his men in the ruins of New York. He heaped great praise on their efforts, both on Earth and across the galaxy, announcing they had finally crushed the Autobots for good. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 4|All Hail Megatron #4}} After making this speech (and dispatching Ratbat to attack a small group of mercenaries led by [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Commander Witwicky]]), Megatron entered one of the "buildings" to gaze at his newly prized possession... the Autobot Matrix of Leadership that he stole from Optimus. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 5|All Hail Megatron #5}}

[[File:AHM6MegatronVsIsrael.jpg|200px|thumb|]]

That praise turned out to be empty, as Starscream started noticing that Megatron didn't have a plan now victory had been achieved, and the smashy-smash fun on Earth was him trying to distract the troops—because now he had an army of evil sociopathic murderers with nothing to murder and a doctrine of taking power. Not even smashing up [[Israel]] made him feel better. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}} Eventually, Starscream made his move, revealing to Megatron that he had swayed the Insecticons to his side. Megatron easily swatted the insects aside, however, and explained to Starscream that he had known about his plans all along. Unfortunately, he hadn't anticipated Starscream to have rallied the Constructicons backing him up, and found himself having to fight the mighty Devastator. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}}

[[File:AHM12-youreafool.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Ever so often, Megatron likes to remind us he's basically Magneto.]]

As the battle was interrupted by an attack from human jets, Megatron and Starscream put their differences aside momentarily to organize a defense. Megatron was not at all surprised by the attack, as he had planned the invasion—nay, the ''war''—down to the smallest detail. He explained to Starscream that while the Decepticon forces may have no real goal at the moment, he planned to remodel them into something greater after the war was done. Then he was suddenly interrupted by something he ''hadn't'' planned for: the return of the Autobots. After assuring Starscream that he'd be leader someday (just not right now), Megatron confronted Optimus Prime again, accusing the Autobot of coming for his Matrix rather than truly caring about Earth. He also revealed that Prime's supposedly "innocent" humans were planning to nuke New York, killing millions of their own just to get rid of the Decepticons. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 11|All Hail Megatron #11}}

Prime retorted that it wasn't about the humans, it was about the difference between him and Megatron—the difference between Autobots and Decepticons. The two came to blows, and Megatron eventually came out on top by throwing Prime into a building. He ordered the Decepticons to leave Earth, leaving the Autobots to be killed by the humans' nuke... only to be shot in the face by [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]], wielding a powerful weapon reverse-engineered from Cybertronian technology. Injured and disoriented by the blast, Megatron was finished off when Optimus Prime got back up and smashed his face in with his own fusion cannon. As he wanted to ''take'' leadership rather than just have it fall in his hands, Starscream picked up his damaged leader and took him off the planet. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

[[File:AllHisEngines-Megatron.jpg|thumb|150px|Pretty sure when you float in a bacta tank you're supposed to be wearing a diaper.]]

On board Astrotrain, Megatron was put on life support and was tended to by Soundwave and his cassettes. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 13|Uneasy Lies the Head}}

The Decepticons eventually settled on a desolate asteroid and Megatron spent the next three years in a [[CR chamber|CR tank]]. He was somehow conscious and aware of current events during his recovery. Megatron was forced to simply watch as most of the Decepticon army languished in inactivity and slowly began to unravel under Starscream's leadership. {{storylink|All His Engines}} But despite Megatron's mental health and awareness, Soundwave eventually realized that his body was beyond repair. He convinced Shockwave, who had been given access to plenty of resources for his space bridge project, to help him build a brand new body for Megatron's consciousness to inhabit. They were successful, and even included space bridge technology in Megatron himself, allowing him to create warp portals to Earth.

Back in action, Megatron devised a plan to destabilize the relationship between the humans and Autobots on Earth. Together with Soundwave and Shockwave, he chopped up his old body and used it to create human-scaled replicas of his former gun mode, containing small pieces of his own consciousness. Starscream caught them in the act, but wasn't too shocked to learn of Megatron's return, as he knew it had been inevitable. Megatron was unable to take back leadership of the Decepticons at the moment, however, as Starscream was in possession of the Matrix of Leadership, an object which Megatron considered a threat due to its mysterious nature. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}}

[[File:Ongoing Issue 13 - Megatron.jpg|left|200px|thumb|"Ever see the movie ''Tron''?"]]

When [[Hot Rod (G1)|Rodimus]] infiltrated the Decepticons' asteroid base and recovered the Matrix from Starscream, Megatron stepped in to intercept the Autobot. Rodimus panicked when coming upon the reborn Decepticon commander and held up the Matrix to try and ward him off. But Megatron simply shot Rodimus at point-blank range, blasting him out into space, Matrix and all. Intent on reestablishing his authority, Megatron then informed Soundwave to gather the other Decepticons so he could address them. {{storylink|Heart Like a Wheel}}

Distrustful of Shockwave's motives for preparing his new body, wary of Soundwave's constant surveillance, and repulsed by the state of his once fearsome Decepticon war machine, Megatron decided that he needed to unequivocally reestablish dominance over the now Matrix-less Starscream. His intended to beat Starscream near to death, thereby allowing both of them to work out their frustrations with Starscream's inability to lead effectively over the three years Megatron was incapacitated. However, Starscream did not want to fight. He was devastated by his loss of the Matrix and his inability to command the obedience of the Decepticon forces in Megatron's absence despite possessing the Matrix, and simply wanted Megatron to kill him and get it over with, if that was what Megatron intended to do. Megatron, instead of accepting Starscream's refusal to engage him, goaded the former Matrix-bearer into opening fire upon him. This forced Starscream to both flee and fight for his life so that he might escape Megatron's vengeance. Megatron, pursuing in his new stealth bomber alt-mode continues to bait Starscream into conflict as he tries to escape, and eventually achieved his desire to beat him into submission, which re-ignited Starscream's scheming nature, and the desire to lead the Decepticons once again, which Megatron believes is necessary for the proper functioning of his Decepticons. {{storylink|Spotlight: Megatron}}

Megatron, aided by Shockwave, moved to immediately implement the first stage of his planned vengeance against the Autobots and the citizens of Earth by sending a container full of guns based on his former alternate mode ( which were made from his old body), as well as his old head, through a space bridge to Earth, where it landed in [[Quetzaltenango]], [[Mexico]]. Without the knowledge of any human government, the powerful weapons were then smuggled into the United States by gun enthusiasts and civilians looking for anti-Transformer weaponry. This allowed Megatron's consciousness to spread throughout the land, until it was focused enough to contact one particular owner of a Megatron gun: [[Joe Gladki]]. He deceived and manipulated the paranoid human, and eventually convinced him to perform an assassination attempt on [[Bumblebee (G1)|Bumblebee]], the new Autobot leader. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 2: Altered Carbon|Altered Carbon}} In their ignorance, the Autobots then mistook Gladki's gun for Megatron himself and held it captive. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 1: The Demolished Man|The Demolished Man}}

With the Autobots in chaos, Megatron started the next phase of his plan and returned to Earth personally, where he used his new stealth bomber mode to shoot down a plane carrying Optimus Prime and several other Autobots. He then hunted down [[Ultra Magnus (G1)|Ultra Magnus]], who was in charge following the loss of both Bumblebee and Prime, and killed some Mexicans attacking Magnus's troops with Megatron guns just because. With his powerful new body, he effortlessly defeated the entire Autobot team and killed some of their [[Skywatch]] allies. Ultra Magnus tried to stop him, telling Megatron that he was back for the Autobots and not the humans, but Megatron assured him that humanity was his real target. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 3: Woken Furies|Woken Furies}}

Megatron revealed that his entire scheme was a plot to try and crush Optimus Prime's spirit and ruin the fragile alliance between humanity and the Autobots by arming deranged and unstable humans with advanced weaponry based on his old body, thus forcing the Autobots to choose between fighting the humans or allowing them to kill them. He dumped several of the Autobots in a heavily populated area and mind controlled three already paranoid humans to kill the Autobots. He also took Ultra Magnus hostage, having Soundwave keep a weapon trained on him as he taunted Prime about the no win situation he had created. However, he also revealed to Prime that he was controlling the humans, and in a bid to distract him enough to break the mental control, Prime shot Soundwave in the head, badly wounding him. Distraught and furious that his faithful lieutenant had been wounded, Megatron chose to flee to get Soundwave medical attention, forcing him to break communication. Unfortunately however, despite this Megatron's plan succeeded. Jazz was forced to kill a human to save Bumblebee's life, increasing the paranoia and hatred that humanity felt for the Autobots. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome|Burning Chrome}}

With Soundwave wounded severely, Megatron took him to a temporary lab that Shockwave had set up on Earth, to have Soundwave repaired. However Shockwave noted that much of the Decepticon's resources had been used to construct Megatron's new body and the new space bridge, and it would take a great deal of time to properly rebuild Soundwave. It was at this point that Optimus Prime attacked again and after threatening Shockwave, goaded Megatron into a confrontation. Megatron ordered his troops not to attack Prime, wanting them to watch as he crippled the Autobot leader and left him for the humans to kill. However one thing Megatron didn't suspect was for Prime to be desperate enough to drop a satellite on top of him, in an effort to kill him once and for all.

However Megatron's new body, empowered greatly by Ore-13, was virtually unharmed by the attack. He beat Prime senseless but then, shockingly, surrendered to the Autobots and was promptly imprisoned inside Omega Supreme. Optimus demanded to know why he surrendered and Megatron taunted him by revealing that Spike Witwicky had murdered a Decepticon in cold blood and told him the humans couldn't be trusted, mocking Prime's desire to work with the humans and warning him that he had doomed his Autobots by allying with Skywatch. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine|Enemy Mine}}

Prime immediately had Prowl begin investigating Spike and Skywatch, and one of the first things Prowl did was quiz Megatron on what he knew about Spike's activities. Megatron told him what he needed to know after a little verbal sparring. {{storylink|Police Action: Prologue}}

When Rodimus returned to Earth and warned the Autobots that [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] had taken control of Cybertron, now habitable once more thanks to Alpha Trion repairing the ravaged world and Ironhide and Sunstreaker having wiped out the Swarm, Optimus decided to lead the Autobots to claim their homeworld back from the insane Galvatron. He also decided to bring both Megatron and the Matrix, believing that the humans would be less at risk of Decepticon attacks if Megatron and the Matrix were both off earth. {{storylink|Space Opera—Final Tableaux: Orphans of the Helix|Orphans of the Helix}}

On the way to Cybertron, Megatron was fully scanned by both Ratchet and [[Perceptor (G1)|Perceptor]], who, along with [[Xaaron]] had come to assist the Autobots in making sure Megatron was secure and to provide legal counsel in how to treat him as he was now a prisoner of war. Megatron was silent while they confirmed that he had no concealed weaponry on him. Shortly after this, Prime himself came to talk to Megatron, wanting for once to have an actual conversation with his old foe and try to make peace, seeing the situation as a chance to finally end the war. Initially skeptical of Prime's reasons for talking to him, when Prime released Megatron from his bonds. Megatron challenged Prime's motto of "Freedom is the right of all sentient beings" by pointing out that it was he, not Prime, who had stood up for the Cybertronians who were treated as little more than slaves by the corrupt ruling class of Cybertron and claiming that the only true way to bring peace to the universe was through conquest. After arguing about their conflicting viewpoints the two began to remember old battles and the numerous near death experiences, even laughing together as they shared war stories. It was then that Optimus tried to reach out to Megatron, offering him the chance to end the war once and for all with a handshake, telling him that all he had to do was tell him that he wanted the war to end and it would. Megatron appeared to consider it for a moment but ultimately remained silent. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1}}

Under pressure to decide whether Megatron would be executed or imprisoned should he be found guilty of crimes against the species and genocide, Prime confronted Megatron and asked him if he regretted any of his actions. Megatron coldly replied that he did not and in fact only regretted that he hadn't done more and killed more Autobots, claiming that he would kill Autobots solely for pleasure and that as long as anyone stood in his way he would kill them. He also claimed that Optimus was secretly glad for the war, taunting him in a manner similar to the way Whirl had once taunted Megatron by pointing out that if the war had never happened Optimus would have lived and died as a nobody, with no one knowing or caring who he was, but because of Megatron Optimus had become famous and the most respected and worshipped Cybertronian of all. It was a taunt designed to make Prime want to kill him and Optimus nearly did, activating the Variable Voltage Harness. Omega Supreme managed to cut the power in time and Megatron, struggling to stay conscious, offered Prime his thanks for saving his life all those years ago in Rodion. Shocked by his actions Prime realised that Megatron wanted to die and wanted him to be the one to kill him.

This was confirmed when he asked Megatron what HE wanted his punishment to be if found guilty at his trial. Death or imprisonment. Megatron calmly replied that he chose death. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 2}}

On the way to Cybertron, Megatron demanded to know who or what was attacking the planet, questioning whether it was Starscream, Shockwave or even Thunderwing. Optimus refused to answer, stating that now Megatron was a prisoner everything going on outside the walls of his cell was no longer his concern and questioning why Megatron was suddenly so sentimental. Megatron ominously noted that Cybertron was more than just a metal world and that if it was in the wrong hands they were all in danger. He also threatened Prime but Optimus simply left the cell, no longer willing to speak with Megatron. {{storylink| Chaos Part One: Lamentations|Lamentations}}

As the battle with the [[Sweep]]s and Galvatron raged across Cybertron, Megatron chose this moment to reveal the ace he had up his sleeve: The Autobots had confiscated a number of the guns made from his old body, which he was able to take control of and use to upgrade himself into a secondary armored mode. This allowed him to break free of his restraints within Omega Supreme, cackling insanely as he broke loose and confronted both the Autobots and the gathered Sweeps, declaring that Cybertron belonged to him and he would not allow Galvatron to have it. {{storylink|Chaos Part Two: Numbers|Numbers}}

[[File:Megatron Chaospt4 Genesis.jpg|thumb|200px|End...of...line...]]
Tearing through the Sweeps with ease, Megatron summoned his Decepticon forces to kill the Autobots gathered on Cybertron, using a beacon built into his new body to lead them to exactly where he was. While Megatron fought the Sweeps his Decepticons came close to overwhelming the battered and exhausted Autobots, before [[D-Void]], acting through the [[Darkness (G1)|Heart of Darkness]], summoned all the Decepticons to combine into a gigantic monster along with the Sweeps, a monster that began attacking Cybertron and the Autobots. Megatron ordered Prime to come join him in battle against the monster but Prime replied that as he had to deal with Galvatron, it would be up to Megatron to stop the advancing monstrosity. {{storylink|Chaos Part Three: Kings|Kings}}

As the stunned Autobots watched, Megatron, though gravely wounded and missing an arm, resisted D-Void's control and not only fought but destroyed the Deceptigod, blasting it apart with one massive beam from his weapons. {{storylink|Chaos Part Four: Genesis|Genesis}} In the chaos that followed Galvatron's defeat and the restoration of Cybertron, Megatron was nowhere to be found. As Optimus Prime exiled himself from Cybertron weeks later, he mused that his nemesis must still be out there somewhere. {{storylink|The Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}

Months after what had become known as the "Chaos Event", Megatron wandered into a rebuilt [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]] from the wilderness Cybertron had become, heavily damaged and carrying a bunch of severed Sweep heads. {{storylink|The End of the Beginning of the World}} He claimed to come in peace, a claim that was hardly convincing to Bumblebee's Autobots overseeing the city who opted to kill him on sight. They were stopped by Iacon's Decepticon population, who saw Megatron's actions during the Chaos Event as those of a hero and forced them to take him into custody instead. He requested to talk to Bumblebee, who refused on the grounds that his "talk" with Optimus Prime had gone nowhere, and was instead approached by Starscream. {{storylink|City on Fire}}

Millions of years after the end of the war, when the Autobots were finally at peace, [[Ironhide (G1)|Ironhide]] still believed Megatron to be alive and promised a young Autobot they would defeat him again if he ever returned. {{storylink|Pax Cybertronia (issue)|Pax Cybertronia}} This may have actually have happened, or it may just have been a vision Ironhide had during the Chaos Event. {{storylink|A Better Tomorrow}}

===Spotlight: Mirage===
{{note|The events of ''Spotlight: Mirage'' are presented as a dream sequence of Mirage, and may possibly represent an alternate/unknown continuity.}}
With most of the Autobots in the galaxy defeated, Megatron chafed to end the war quickly. He demanded [[Mirage (G1)|Mirage]] track the last pocket of Autobot resistance down for the Decepticons. The mercenary demanded a majority share in all energon mining operations, a deal which outraged Megatron, until Mirage pointed out it was a small price to pay to end the war. After Optimus Prime surrendered, Megatron demanded the prisoners be executed despite Mirage's promise to spare Autobot lives. Seeing Mirage's hesitation, Megatron appealed to his greed. {{storylink|Spotlight: Mirage}}
{{-}}

==Notes==
* In "[[Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2]]", we see that Megatron's helmet is, in fact, [[:Image:MegatronOrigin2 Megs hair.jpg|a helmet and not part of his head]] (at least in this continuity). Upon removing his helmet, Megatron then briefly unfurls a crest. The significance of this moment is not explained, nor is it ever revisited. Thankfully.

[[Category:Decepticon leaders]]
[[Category:Generation 1 Decepticons]]
[[Category:Gladiators]]
[[Category:Rulers of Cybertron]]

File:Minermegs.jpg

2013-05-03T13:31:20Z

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