Decepticon Civil War
The Decepticon Civil War is not a single conflict but something that has repeatedly happened whenever there have been leadership disputes among the Decepticon army. It differs from the usual punch-up between disputing leaders in that the Decepticon Civil Wars involve conflicting groups of Decepticon soldiers.
Sometimes they're really quick, sometimes they last for a long time, and the clashing leaders never just solve things with a coin toss.
Marvel Comics
[edit]Ratbat/Scorponok
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A brief conflict, this was engineered by Starscream to allow him a shot at the Underbase. The Earth-based Decepticon platoons under Ratbat and Scorponok had been acting independently of each other. Scorponok's attempts at contact were covered up by Starscream, though his commander Ratbat seemingly had little interest in working together, what with him trying to locate the all-powerful Underbase at the time.
Unable to delay Scorponok's arrival further, Starscream "welcomed" him and his crew to Ratbat's base. An already tense situation was worsened by Starscream's "accidental" revelation of the Underbase's existence, sparking off a brief and violent conflict. It reaffirmed that Buzzsaw is slagging nasty.
The battle ended when Starscream stole Scorponok's ship to seek the Underbase for himself, making both sides realize they'd been played. Cold War! The two leaders agreed to put their enmity on hold and work together, but when the opportunity presented itself, Scorponok killed Ratbat, securing leadership of all Earth-based Decepticons once Starscream was defeated. Dark Star
Scorponok/Shockwave
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While believed dead, Shockwave began plotting against the current Earth commander Scorponok, believing him unsuitable for the role. Shockwave recruited a couple of Scorponok's men to the fold, but the bulk of his troops were Decepticons believed dead, which meant that nobody saw the attack coming. Eye of the Storm
In their first strike Shockwave's group obliterated Scorponok's New Jersey base. Surrender! Shockwave's troops didn't fare so well against the Decepticon leader himself, however, so Shockwave personally engaged Scorponok, while their troops likewise battled. ...All This and Civil War 2
The intervention of the Autobots and Neo-Knights caused Shockwave to be taken out and the "war" to end in Scorponok's favour. Out of Time!
Scorponok/Megatron/Shockwave
[edit]In a divergent timeline, 1991 saw a three-way version of the above civil war, with Megatron involved. The involvement of Megatron caused this war to end badly for Scorponok - he was left defeated, wounded and pursued by Megatron's Air Strike Patrol. Only by surrendering to the Autobots and thus forcing them to protect him (while he walked off) did Scorponok even survive. As Shockwave was later seen under the control of Megatron (and chafing under it), we can safely assume Megatron was the victor. Aspects of Evil!
This conflict took place in another timeline as well, in 1990; this time, Megatron was aware of his eventual future as Galvatron. The outcome is unknown but presumably Megatron won there too. Trigger-Happy!
Megatron/Shockwave
[edit]Megatron and Shockwave formed splinter factions on Earth with separate agendas Starting Over! Two Steps Back! and soon in, Shockwave attempted to sabotage Megatron's operations. This led to open fighting between Decepticons Life in the Slow Lane, while each side still required more troops. Flashback! Realising this was giving the Autobots the strategic advantage, they called an Enclave to settle their differences before they turned into a full-on war. The Autobots fitted up Shockwave for an attempted assassination of Megatron, ensuring that war duly broke out. The Bad Guy's Ball!
It was Shockwave that took the lead, partly thanks to Soundwave serving as a spy in Megatron's ranks. Secrets This meant he needed Starscream, his nominal second-in-command, less and the Seeker began to chafe under it. This led to the final end of the civil war as Starscream pulled a Starscream: he had Megatron's agents tell him where Shockwave would be, then blackmailed Soundwave to "agree" to a joint leadership for the "good of the Decepticons". The old leaders found themselves Autobot-hunted fugitives. Internal Affairs!
Although there was also a third faction of Decepticons commanded by Scorponok, they were not seen to be involved in the conflict. The Living Nightlights!
Titan Magazines
[edit]Starscream/Stockade
[edit]In a divergent timeline, the Decepticons succeeded at Mission City and conquered the United States. Due to both his own distaste for the death of Cybertron and a deal with the Autobots, Stockade began a Decepticon Civil War to stop Starscream's reconquest of the United States of America. The bulk of his troops came from Starscream's own drones and men, which were reprogrammed and pressganged respectively. Revolution Part 2 Stockade stormed right into the Decepticon Heartland itself, only to be halted by the return of Megatron. The Autobots stepped in before the war could go on further. Revolution Part 3