Cyber Key

This article is about personal power-up energy storage devices. For the four mystical objects, see Cyber Planet Key.

Cyber Keys are personal devices in the Cybertron portion of the Unicron Trilogy.

Cyber Keys are devices that give Transformers power-up abilities. Each one contains a fragment of the power of a Cyber Planet Key. A Transformer can use one to boost their abilities for a duration of time before the Cyber Key has to recharge itself.

Fiction

Timelines

Force of Habit

Types and Powers

Cybertron's Cyber Keys are clear with silver detailing, with either an Autobot or Decepticon symbol in the middle. It is Primus himself who powers these keys.

The Cyber Keys of Velocitron are red with silver accents and decorated with the symbol of a speedometer needle. In addition to the inhabitants of Velocitron, Hot Shot also uses a Velocitron key. Many powers activated by Velocitron keys are related to enhancing the recipient's speed. The power of these keys comes from the Velocitron Cyber Planet Key.

Jungle Planet's Cyber Keys are green with a silver border, marked with a clawed paw print. After transforming into Leobreaker, Overhaul gained a new Jungle Planet Cyber Key. Many powers activated by Jungle Planet keys are related to enhancing the recipients strength and attack power. These keys derive their power from the Jungle Planer Cyber Planet Key.

Earth's Cyber Keys are blue with silver edging and bear the image of a sunrise. Several of the Autobots and Decepticons from Cybertron used Earth Cyber Keys, including Landmine, Red Alert, Scattorshot, Thundercracker and Mudflap, as did the ancient Autobots and Decepticons who came to the planet ages ago. Many powers activated by Earth keys are related to enhancing the recipient's firepower. Earth's Cyber Planet Key powers these individual keys.

Gigantion's Keys are purple with silver detailing, bearing a gear symbol. Many powers activated by Gigantion keys are related to increasing the recipient's physical stature. (For Gigantion natives, who are already huge, this can mean going from "work mode" to "battle mode," which stands taller.) The Gigantion Cyber Keys are powered by the Gigantion Cyber Planet Key.

The keys employed by the inhabitants of Planet X are orange in color with silver accents and bearing a Decepticon symbol (despite the unaligned nature of these Transformers). These keys presumably derive from the power of Unicron, the secret benefactor of the Planet X survivors, given that the planet was not a colony world.

A Combatron key.

The planet Combatron has red keys with silver metal frames and a symbol resembling a mushroom cloud.

Red Alert was the first to notice the different color-coding of the Cyber Keys and further speculated that the unique keys employed by Optimus Prime and Vector Prime were created due to a normal Cyber Key being affected by the objects of power the two wielded, namely Optimus Prime's Matrix of Leadership and Rhisling, Vector Prime's sword. Although Red Alert did not comment on the unique key wielded by Megatron, presumably his is created through the power of the Armor of Unicron that he wears.

Toys

Cybertron

Just about every single toy came with at least one key, the only real exceptions being the Mini-Cons. In the US, the keys had codes printed on the back for an interactive feature on Hasbro’s Transformers toy website. Takara’s website did not incorporate this feature however, leaving the Japanese Galaxy Force keys (referred to in Galaxy Force as "Force Chips" along with the greater "Planet Force") without the code tampo. The toy packaging refers to all keys as Cyber Planet Keys. This differs from the cartoon which only refers to the four colony keys as Cyber Planet Keys, and the other, everyday keys as simply Cyber Keys.

Other toylines

Cyber Planet Keys (most often simply called "Keys") were included in later toylines with toys that were redecos from the Cyberton line. There is presumably no cosmic technology underlying them. Examples include the BotCon 2006 exclusive Timelines promo toys, which came with Golden Disk keys, and several Movie toys that featured Sector Seven keys.

Trivia

• In "The Dark Heart of Sandokan" and "Force of Habit", the Cyber Keys are treated somewhat differently than they were in the Cybertron cartoon. Here, they are depicted as tangible objects that must be manufactured from crystals, while they are portrayed as energy-ish manifestations of a Transformer's burning heart of justice in the cartoon.
• Brushguard is of the opinion that Cyber Keys are more powerful than Energon chips. Force of Habit

External link

• Force Chip catalog (Japanese)