2005 IDW timeline

Let's see how far we've come.

Beginning as a simple reimagining of the traditional Generation 1 continuity family under the pen of Simon Furman, the IDW Generation 1 continuity has evolved over the course of eleven years into the single longest-running continuity in the history of the brand, spanning numerous ongoings, miniseries, and one-shots. Almost every work ties into the overarcing timeline, telling a single unified story that starts at the dawn of time, moves through to the Great War and eventually into a new era of post-war reconstruction. Naturally, such a long-running work of fiction is bound to contain occasional storytelling and artistic inconsistencies, though certain writers have actively sought to correct these mistakes over the course of their careers.

In 2016, IDW Publishing announced the formation of the Hasbro Universe, a shared comic continuity retroactively encompassing the Transformers, G.I. Joe, other Hasbro properties such as Rom the Space Knight, and, in a stranger development, the events of the largely forgotten Hearts of Steel miniseries. This chronology focuses largely on the adventures of the Transformers as they relate to the timeframe of the larger Hasbro Universe, with characters from other properties only dealt with in passing.

The story never ends, Ironhide. It just changes into something else.Alpha Trion, Pax Cybertronia

1,000,000+ years ago

This section covers fiction that is ongoing. It will be added to as the story progresses. If it isn't current, you can help by updating it.

5 billion BCE

First, there was color.

According to legend, Primus creates Cybertron Crisis Intervention and splits himself into the Guiding Hand, a benevolent pantheon of deities encompassing himself, Mortilus, Adaptus, Solomus, and Epistemus. You, Me, and Other Revelations

4.5 billion BCE

The planet Earth forms. Crisis Intervention

16 million BCE

The Stentarian civil war begins, pitting the heroic Terradores against the villainous Ammonites. Little Victories Their war precipitates the disastrous Shattering, necessitating the creation of the Galactic Council to stabilize the galaxy and govern the planets who join its ranks. You, Me, and Other Revelations

12 million BCE

Cybertronian religion holds that the first Transformers were created around this time by the Guiding Hand. You, Me, and Other Revelations According to legend, the very first Cybertronian, in the land that will one day become Iacon, realizes that he can transform. How to Say Goodbye and Mean It The creation and subsequent proliferation of the Transformer race leads to the planet's first golden age. You, Me, and Other Revelations

In some religious circles, the devout believe that Mortilus' ambition sparked a "war between the gods," pitting himself against the other members of the Guiding Hand. The conflict is supposedly great enough to tear Luna 1 from its orbit and send the moon hurtling away through space.

Though Mortilus is killed, the gods are weakened by the conflict. Solomus's prison becomes the Matrix, Epistemus and Adaptus become the brain module and the transformation cog, while Primus himself retreats into the core of Cybertron to become Vector Sigma. From these sacrifices, the Cybertronian race gains sentience, wisdom, intellect, change, and immortality. The first generation of Cybertronians present to witness these supernatural feats supposedly go on to become the mythical Knights of Cybertron, You, Me, and Other Revelations who go onto turn the planet into a paradise. Among their many feats involve defeating the monstrous Trypticon, rumored to be a creation of Mortilus, Salvation alongside Metroplex, the First Titan. Trypticon's body is sealed away beneath the Toraxxis Plains. The Illusion of Control

Eventually, after turning Cybertron into a utopian haven for both the mind and spirit, the Knights leave Cybertron to spread enlightenment aboard a fleet of Titans, and subsequently vanish from history. You, Me, and Other Revelations Many 'bots doubt the veracity of this tale, and many do not believe in the Knights entirely. Dark Dawn

...and then there was not.

With the benevolent influence of the Knights no longer guiding its progress, Cybertronian civilization reverts to a primitive state, ushering in a new dark age of barbarism as the formerly-unified planet splinters into a multitude of smaller tribes and societies. Chief among these myriad groups are the Thirteen Tribes, led by Thirteen Primes The Crucible and encompassing a multitude of followers, from the gigantic Titans to the diminutive Titan Masters. White Light The Thirteen join forces to rule Cybertron, and become the archetypes for future Cybertronians to pattern themselves after. Heavy

8 million BCE

Off with his Headmaster.

The Primes govern their planet peacefully until one of their number – the ambitious diplomat Liege Maximo – uses his silver tongue to orchestrate the death of his fellow leader Solus Prime, using Megatronus as a catspaw. The betrayal ignites tensions between the thirteen tribes and escalates into the First Cybertronian Civil War. The Crucible Heavy

Onyx Prime, leader of a tribe of beast mode Transformers, allies first with Micronus Prime, White Heat and later, Nexus Prime. Onyx and Nexus utilize the Enigma of Combination to create an army of Headmasters: combiners between beast-bots and humanoid Transformers. The Crucible The Mind Bomb The joint faction proves powerful, and the Headmasters see action on distant worlds such as Spindrift. Heart of Darkness #3

Disgusted by this fusion between beast-bots and his own kind, a young Darklander warrior named Galvatron deserts his post in Megatronus' army to begin his own campaign against the Headmasters – a campaign that ends with him killing Nexus Prime. The Crucible Disgusted by the idea of combination, Galvatron conceals the Enigma to prevent any future combiners from coming into being. The Mind Bomb The Crucible

The realization that they are not as invulnerable as they thought provokes many of the Primes to flee Cybertron, with the exception of Alpha Trion. The Crucible Nexus Prime's most devoted servant, a diminutive Titan Master named Infinitus, vows revenge for his master's death and swears allegiance to Onyx Prime before going into hiding. White Light

Around the same time, the Titan Vigilem, a warrior in the service of Liege Maximo is tried by his brethren. Rubicon The Titans deem their brother unworthy of remembrance and cast him into space with his treacherous leader now imprisoned inside his body. A repentant splinter of Liege Maximo's old tribe agree to keep the pair permanently interred, renaming their dormant Titan "Carcer." Heavy

With the war over and the Primes gone, Trion brings together Galvatron and Prima's follower Nova Major in hopes of reuniting Cybertron. Nova Major agrees, noting that under the principles of functionism, everyone will "know their place." The Crucible

The lack of tail fins was a dissapointment.

During this time, an office worker named Censere leaves his original job to retrain as a forensic pathologist. The death of an old friend of his goes unreported; as a result, Censere did not discover it until years later. The incident moves him to begin a lifelong mission: chronicling the deaths of every Cybertronian. After losing his hometown in the war, he relocates to a distant planet where he sets up a base of operations, equipped with a teleport chamber to allow him to record every fatality. The Not Knowing

Shortly afterwards, the remaining twelve Titans leave Cybertron, each one the former servant of a Prime. First Contact They embark on millennia-long deep space voyages, intending to find and colonize distant worlds in an attempt at spreading Pax Cybertronia across the cosmos. Aphelion Subsequent expeditions succeed in colonizing far-flung worlds that will one day be known as Caminus, Velocitron, and Devisiun. A 'Bot and Her City Windblade vol. 2 #6 Eventually, however, the space bridge network between the Titans fails and the colonies are permanently cut off from Cybertron and each other. In their absence, the colonists begin developing their own societies that invariably venerate the Thirteen – and, by extension, all Primes— as deities. Aphelion

7 million BCE

The Pastel Age was a soothing time.

Alpha Trion and Metroplex work together to explore the surface of Cybertron, Omega's Conundrum until the Titan eventually goes dormant beneath the city of Nyon. Ruins

Nova Major declares himself "Nova Prime". Accompanied by Galvatron, Jhiaxus, Cyclonus, and Dai Atlas, he embarks on a quest into the planet's lowermost reaches. There, they discover the ancient Omega Supreme, who allies himself with the Prime in the hopes of returning their wartorn planet to its former glory. With Omega Supreme's aid, Major Prime ushers in Cybertron's "Golden Age". All Good Things Under his direction, the Cybertronian empire expands into space, with the Primal Vanguard serving as offworld peacekeepers. Hangers On

At some point following the departure of the colony Titans, female Transformers disappear from Cybertron under unknown circumstances. ONoffON Aiming to reintroduce female Transformers to the now "genderless" Cybertronian species, Jhiaxus experiments on his follower Arcee, altering her CNA and giving her a "maelstrom of contradictory sensory input", as well as impelling other Transformers to use feminine pronouns to refer to her. Though Jhiaxus is successful in his primary objective, Arcee is left disoriented and homicidal by the process, and the scientist abandons her. Spotlight: Arcee

"It consisted of our Top Bots."

Vector Sigma's life-giving, hot spot-igniting pulse waves begin to slow down, prompting Nova to task a team of scientists led by Tyrest with extracting new sparks from the Matrix of Leadership, dividing Cybertronians into those either "forged" or "cold constructed". A "first wave" of new Transformers is created; additional Sparks are stored until bodies can be created for them. This ends after a scientist has a crisis of conscience, steals the Matrix, and replaces it with a forgery, hiding the real one underground. The team simply assumes that they have bled the Matrix dry and the project is abandoned. The Divided Self Twenty Plus One

Hoping to rediscover the lost art of combination, Nova Prime conspires with Jhiaxus in an attempt to replicate combiner technology, seeking a process that allows sentient minds to be merged into one in the pursuit of peace – eliminating all free will save his own, a society where "all are one." All Good Things Galvatron, still opposed to the existence of combiners, secretly launches Nexus's Enigma of Combination into space to put it beyond Jhiaxus' reach. It lands on Earth, in the region that will one day be known as Mesopotamia. The Crucible

In deep space, Onyx Prime and his Titan Chela make planetfall on Eukaris, an uninhabited jungle world. Using the hot spot within his Titan, Onyx oversees the development of a new civilization of beast mode Transformers, free to live without the stigma surrounding beast modes. He eventually departs, but instructs Chela to guard his colony from any intruding "standard-formers." Windblade vol. 2 #6

Somehow aware of Galvatron's gambit, Onyx correctly deduces that Nexus's artifact has landed on Earth and dispatches a Titan Master named Sovereign to find the artifact and summon the Prime when he had found it. Helden

Abandoning his colony Titan, Prion, Micronus Prime creates and then retreats into the sub-atomic realm of Microspace. White Heat O Ship of State Crisis Intervention

6.5 million BCE

With the Cybertronian population growing exponentially under Nova Prime's program of expansion, Jhiaxus' student Shockwave begins planning for an inevitable energon shortage by developing a self-regenerating energy source. Shockwaves

6 million BCE

They did, in fact, ask for this.

After a long period of experimentation, Jhiaxus creates Monstructor from six volunteers. Though physically powerful, Monstructor is also violently insane as a result of the crude combination process, and Nova Prime's enthusiasm for the creature prompts Omega Supreme and Dai Atlas to turn on him. All Good Things

While Omega Supreme is occupied battling the beast, Nova Prime and Jhiaxus depart Cybertron in the first Ark to begin their work, with notable crew members Galvatron, Spotlight: Galvatron Cyclonus, Straxus, Grindcore, Spotlight: Cyclonus and Scourge. Rebirth A young 'bot named Tailgate, born only two weeks previously, is part of the crew responsible for cleaning out the craft's craft's coolant tubes before take-off. Cybertronian Homesick Blues He runs late and tries taking a shortcut across the fragile Mitteous Plateau, which results in him falling into stasis underground for several million years. How to Say Goodbye and Mean It

"We'll simply set a new course, for that empty region over there, near that blackish, hole-ish thing."

After a prolonged battle, Omega defeats Monstructor and locks him away in an inter-dimensional prison Spotlight: Optimus Prime and entrusts Metrotitan, one of two remaining Titans on Cybetrtron, to Dai Atlas. Primus: All Good Things The Crystal City is destroyed, but not before Shockwave plants a seed of Ore-14 within. The defeat of Monstructor allows Shockwave to realize that his old teacher had flaws of his own; Shockwave takes up the mantle of his teacher, striving to study and better his erstwhile master's works. Shockwaves Around this time he begins to investigate the history of ancient Cybertron. The Crucible

Nova Prime's Ark is subsequently lost in the Benzuli Expanse, transported to the Dead Universe. All aboard perish and are resurrected as undead creatures to serve the will of the D-Void. Spotlight: Galvatron Genesis

With Nova Prime gone, Cybertron enters a brief period known as the Interregnum. Unaware that it's a fake, Delta Magnus of the Primal Vanguard safeguard the Matrix of Leadership until a new bearer can be found. An Intimate Beheading Cybertron suffers from a lack of energy in the wake of Nova's expansion program, and tensions emerge.

Those who were constructed cold face institutionalized apartheid; Chaos Theory Part 1 although this eventually ends due to mounting public pressure, including mass protests and marches. Twenty Plus One However, intrinsic prejudice against constructed cold Transformers persists in among a sizable percentage of the population. Chaos Theory Part 1

After a period of unrest, Nominus Prime becomes the next Matrix-bearer, though by this point the office of "Prime" is largely subordinate to the new, but increasingly corrupt, Senate. Interiors Chaos Theory Part 1 Life After the Big Bang At some point around this time, Cybertronian datekeeping switches to a New Calendar. Before & After Functionist sentiment becomes an institution of society overseen by the Functionist Council, with robots expected to stick to a single job determined by their alternate mode. Monoformers, those without alt mode, face shape-hate. Interiors Chaos Theory Part 1 Life After the Big Bang Unable to determine what Rung does, the Council classifies him as an "ornament". Little Victories

You can tell it's advanced because it's glowing.

The Senate use the sinister network of secret facilities known as the Institute root out and quash dissent through mnemosurgical techniques like shadowplay. The Functionist Council becomes fond of subjecting criminals to a barbaric head-and-hand replacement ritual known as empurata. Patternism Shockwave joins the Senate in the hopes of precipitating real change on Cybertron and founds the Jhiaxian Academy of Advanced Technology in memory of his old teacher. Shockwaves

As a result of their increasingly stagnant and moribund society, neighboring alien races start calling the Cybertronians "Autobots": an insult, meaning "automatons". Chaos Theory Part 2

5 million BCE

Would you kill baby Megatron?

The experimental ship Unitrex-1 is commissioned and constructed in the city of Unitrex, designed to house a prototype quantum generator. Before it can launch, time travelling Autobots from the future infiltrate the vessel, searching for a way to recharge their time machine. Hoping to use the ship’s engine to provide the necessary jump-start, Rodimus uses Perceptor's knowledge of future quantum science to upgrade the Unitrex-1's generator so that it can perform the task, and retroactively creates the very first quantum generator. A reaction between the case and generator causes the vessel to quantum jump away through time and space. Predestination: An Expert's Guide No Guns, No Swords, No Briefcases

A watchmaker named Whirl attempts to leave the Aerial Corps and follow his true passion as a awatchmaker. Though initially successful due to a moderate functionary pemitting the change, the Council catches word of his blasphemy and engineer his downfall via a local criminal syndicate. In the aftermath, he is subjected to empurata, leaving him destitute, and, eventually, he is convinced to join the Senate’s security forces. Interiors Patternism Stet Megatron is constructed cold in Tarn, intended to house a spark from the Matrix of Leadership. The same Autobots from the future interfere with his development, extinguishing the original spark. Predestination: An Expert's Guide

The time travel misadventure creates a divergent timeline where Megatron was never constructed at all. Before this alternate universe can overwrite reality, the future Whirl replaces Megatron's spark with a forged Point One Percenter spark harvested from the future. This action returns history to its proper course and gives rise to the first and only “hybrid” Transformer. Predestination: An Expert's Guide

Megatron spends his early life hoping to become a medic, The Becoming, but the tenants of Functionalism means that he instead becomes a miner, working at Nova Point. Towards Peace Sickened by the caste-based brutality of Nominus Prime’s Cybertron, Megatron writes a treatise arguing in favor of non-violent dissent and the peaceful exchange of ideas. His ideas prove popular among Cybertron’s menial classes, attracting a growing movement that threatens the sovereignty of the Senate. Chaos Theory Part 1

While discussing his ideas with his friend Impactor at Maccadam's New Oil House, the two are caught in a bar brawl Chaos Theory Part 1 accidentally caused by the same time-hopping Autobots from the future. Stet The fight sees both Megatron and Impactor arrested; hoping to use the event to silence Megatron, the Senate send Whirl to visit Megatron’s cell to permanently silence him. Chaos Theory Part 1

Lend me your audio receptors.

Local police captain Orion Pax manages to arrange for Megatron’s release before Whirl can finish him off, saving his life. Orion discovers Megatron’s readings, and, moved by them, decides to confront the Senate, deciding to 'reclaim' the slur Autobot as short for "autonomous robot.” Orion’s diatribe inspires Shockwave, who has been searching for promising young Cybertronians, to befriend the police captain in the hopes of nudging him into bearing the Matrix of Leadership. Shockwave arranges for his release and repair, adding a new Matrix chamber to his chest in the repair process. Chaos Theory Part 2

Megatron, however, comes to the realization that peaceful dissent will not be enough to unseat the Senate – and that violence makes a more powerful statement. Chaos Theory Part 1

Shortly afterwards, several Senators make a grab for more power by ordering an attack on Nominus Prime, using it as an excuse to obtain the Matrix of Leadership and enforce more control over an increasingly unruly Cybertronian populace. During the Primal Procession, Nominus is attacked by a suicide bomber and rendered comatose. The public is told that Nominus is merely in hiding while the Senate investigate the comatose Prime, hoping to use their head of security Sentinel to tap into the power of the Matrix. Post Hoc The Chaos of Warm Things Unbeknownst to all, “Sentinel” is, in reality, a false identity constructed by Infinitus, using his Titan Master powers to disguise himself as a normal Cybertronian. Last Light

Sentinel’s attempts prove fruitless, but expose an ancient secret: Nominus Prime’s “Matrix” is a fake holdover from the days of Nova Prime’s reign. Realizing this, the Senate sees no use keeping the Prime around and kill him, releasing a cover story that he passed away from a rust infection. Thus bolstered, the Senate impose the Clampdown, limiting the rights and social mobilities of all Cybertronians. Ostensibly, this is to root out terrorists and tighten security, in reality, it is an opportunity for Senators to track down and silence those who contest their rule. The injustice proves useful for the growing "Decepticon" movement, basing themselves off Megatron’s samizdat writings.

"I have sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man."

As part of attempts to limit any future Decepticon uprisings, the Senate has Megatron transferred to an offworld mine on Messatine to limit his influence.Post Hoc There, he meets Terminus, an elderly miner who encourages him to keep writing. Terminus helps smuggle each new work back to Cybertron, continuing the spread of the Decepticon movement. The Senate eventually tries to cut the problem off at the source, deploying Froid and Trepan to try and rewire Megatron’s mind through shadowplay. Megatron escapes the procedure due to a nearby explosion and subsequent evacuation – in reality, the explosion is caused by Brainstorm jumping backwards through time. Births, Deaths, and Interventions Afterwards Megatron publishes his magnum opus, Towards Peace, which will eventually become the Decepticon manifesto. Towards Peace

We can rebuild him. Better than he was before. Better. Stronger. More logical.

As part of a complicated plan to eliminate the threat the Decepticons pose to their social order, Senator Proteus promises to recognize the Decepticons as a legitimate political entity if 10,000 of them register as such, actually a method of gathering names for future shadowplay. Patternism To discredit the growing movement, the Senate intends to stage a bombing that will be pinned on the Decepticons. The scheme is foiled by Orion Pax, Ratchet, and a trio of outliers comprising Skids, Damus and Windcharger. They succeed, but as a repercussion, his friend Senator Shockwave is brainwashed and subjected to empurata and shadowplay by the Institute. An Intimate Beheading Realizing that he has been "liberated" from the constraints of emotions, Shockwave continues his energy research in secret. Shockwaves

Thanks to the influence of the Senate, Sentinel is installed as the new Matrix-bearer and becomes “Sentinel Prime”. Patternism Sentinel reorganizes the Senate’s security forces into the Elite Guard, a collection of thuggish bruisers. All Our Parlous Yesterdays Infinitus quietly uses his Titan Master talents to assemble a legion of sleeper agents that will join his side should the need arise, including Red Alert. Prowl joins his security services and eventually becomes Sentinel's second-in-command. Last Light

Hoping to take out the bot responsible for the heist, Sentinel Prime’s forces try to track down Orion Pax and his friends, forcing them to go on the run. While on the lam, he meets the ambitious Zeta, another of Shockwave’s handpicked wunderkind. All Our Parlous Yesterdays

4.2 million BCE

On Luna Two, Thymesis Energon mining facility workers Frak and Rushcut uncover a Point One Percenter spark beneath the moon's surface, the first in ten generations. The spark will become Overlord's. Remembrance Day

4 million BCE

"You seem familiar. Ain't I killed you before?"

By this time, Cybertronian society is growing increasingly secular, and as a result the role of the Functionist Council in society has greatly diminished. When the Senate catches wind of a new hand-shaped hot spot in Alyon that seemingly proves the existence of the supernatural Guiding Hand, they send the Elite Guard to secure the site, cover its existence from prying Functionist eyes, and use the newborn sparks within for experimentation. Orion Pax and his fugitives clash with the Senate for control of the hot spot, and with the help of some time-travelling Autobots they are successful in defending the location. All Our Parlous Yesterdays

With Messatine abandoned, Megatron is transferred to Mining Outpost C-12 on Croteus 12. Growing increasingly frustrated with his life, he works there for a period of time until Senator Decimus automates the mine, leaving the miners unemployed. When Decimus and his thuggish police force arrives to announce the closure of the facility, the reaction sparks a riot – and in the chaos, Megatron takes his first life. Megatron Origin #1 Megatron and his fellow miners escape in a shuttle to join the illegal gladiatorial games beneath the city of Kaon. Megatron takes over the games and is approached by Soundwave, an emissary of Senator Ratbat, to cause terror throughout Cybertron. Thousands of new Decepticons join the cause, including the Constructicons, who help rebuild the motley collection of gladiators into full-on warriors. Megatron Origin #2

During this period, Shockwave is approached by Starscream, who brings him before Megatron. Realizing that Shockwave has a goal of his own, but with no interest in what it actually is, Megatron offers the former senator the freedom and resources that the Senate cannot provide. In exchange, Shockwave will use his scientific talents to study and improve on Jhiaxus's technology in the hopes of creating a functioning combiner for the Decepticons. Shockwave accepts the offer, though he notes that it will take a very long time. Shockwaves

"I could make a giant purple griffin out of stolen automobiles..."

Megatron unites his gladiators under the Decepticon banner and arranges their 'capture' by Sentinel Prime's forces. Once captured, Starscream and Soundwave's forces massacre the Senate, and release the Decepticons from prison so they can overrun the security force's HQ. Megatron Origin #3 News of the Decepticon uprising reaches Sentinel Prime, and the Prime dons his Apex Armor to make a final stand against the Decepticons in Kaon. He loses the ensuing duel with Megatron, and the Decepticon leader fashions his defeated enemy's armor into a throne. With Kaon now a Decepticon stronghold, the security forces withdraw to Iacon. Megatron Origin #4

Sentinel Prime’s body is laid to rest within the Primal Basilica... but while “Sentinel Prime” has publicly perished, Infinitus lives on, and the tiny head-bot abandons his old body and goes into hiding underneath Kaon. Neither the Senate nor the Decepticons are able to explain the mysterious loss of the corpse’s head. The Last Autobot

Zeta subsequently steps up as the next Prime. Omega's Conundrum His leadership – relying heavily on pageantry and theatrical displays of force – restores a semblance of order to Cybertron, forcing the Decepticons back underground for the time being. Orion Pax returns to the force, helping to keep the peace in these troubled times; To Walk Among the Chosen he asks Ironhide to teach him how to be a soldier and not just a cop. Old Ways

Orion Pax and Zeta help to reshape Cybertron's disorganized security forces into a counter-terrorism army dubbed the "Autobots". Spotlight: Blurr Zeta begins reorganizing Cybertron in ways large and small, "pushing Cybertronian society as fast as it can go." Future Glories Lost Among other things, he gives more rights to members of the disposable class, a political move spurred in part by the writings and campaigning of noted adventurer and rhetorician Dominus Ambus. Before & After Under his leadership, Zeta brings back the Senate as the "New Senate," but he also secretly resuscitates the Institute and turns it into "The New Institute" for his own uses. Remembrance Day

With the Decepticon movement now publicly recognized as a terrorist movement, Zeta takes numerous actions to root out illegal activity, which eventually leads to shutting down popular venues like racetracks. This temporarily puts star racer Blurr out of the spotlight. Spotlight: Blurr Orion Pax later oversees a hostage exchange with the Decepticons. This is a trick to capture the wise Alpha Trion, so the Decepticons can use him to find a Titan and gain spacebridge technology. Pax prevents this. Spotlight: Orion Pax

Hoist is stranded in the Rust Spot and develops a fear of solitude. Spotlight: Hoist Blurr gets caught in Autobot/Decepticon crossfire, but Orion convinces him to turn his self-confidence to the Autobot cause. Spotlight: Blurr

Ah, I could just look at myself all day.

On the Decepticon side of things, growing tension causes ideological rifts among the community. a sizeable portion of Decepticons maintain that their movement should be one of pacifism, but others – bolstered by Megatron’s recent actions – begin preparing for all-out war by amassing weapons from offworld. Behind My Bleeding Back Decepticon gunrunner Hefter finds himself on the wrong side of the law when Zeta’s forces crack down on the Decepticons, and his death in police custody sparks a larger inquiry that involves Orion Pax. To Walk Among the Chosen With the help of Prowl and conflicted Decepticon pacifist Jetfire, Orion succeeds in uncovering exposing Needlenose and Horri-Bull’s Decepticon cell, but his experiences leave him embittered and ready to go to war against the Decepticons. Feel Safe Without Regrets

A young Cybertronian named Bumblebee joins the Autobots after the Decepticons trick him into delivering explosives through his dreams. Ghost Stories

With war looming on the horizon, Prowl forms an alliance with the neutral scientist Mesothulas. Sins of the Wreckers #3 Together, they create many weapons and devices that will see use in the upcoming conflict, but Prowl eventually has a crisis of conscience and recruits Impactor to dispose of his increasingly depraved comrade. Impactor does so in exchange for having Roadbuster released, but finds himself unable to kill "Ostaros", an artificial Cybertronian created in the lab. Instead, he inducts the young “Transformer” into the Autobots as "Springer". Sins of the Wreckers #5

Megatron holds Declaration Day, officially announcing the commencement of the Great War. Zeta and Orion work to fight back against the Decepticons, but Zeta Prime’s ruthlessness pushes him to create the vamparc ribbon, which drains energon from his own citizens and other insurgents. Horrified by his leader, Orion Pax turns on him and forges an alliance with Megatron to overthrow the tyrannical Prime. Autocracy

He's getting The Touch.

They succeed, and Megatron kills Zeta in an action later remembered as "the gunshot that killed a civilization.” Life After the Big Bang Megatron immediately betrays Orion, casts him into the depths of Cybertron, and declares himself ruler of the planet. Lost underground, Orion discovers the long-lost true Matrix and is turned into Optimus Prime. Optimus uses his new connection with the Matrix to awaken the dormant Metroplex and rally a new army against Megatron’s dictatorship. The new army of Autobots drive the Decepticons out of Iacon, setting the stage for all-out war. Autocracy

Wheelie is finally (reluctantly) accepted for a scouting mission and crashlands on LV-117. He spends a period of time getting beaten up by giant spiders, picking his arm out of giant lizard dung, and sending a distress signal. Spotlight: Wheelie

Megatron is overthrown and exiled to Junkion by Scorponok, who destroys Cybertron's last major source of energon and awakens the ancient monster Trypticon. Aided by the Quintesson Pentius, Megatron is able to return and defeat the beast alongside Grimlock, Monstrosity

Are you sure this is the Heleus Cluster?

Alarmed by the energon crisis and escalating hostilities, numerous Cybertronians began evacuating the planet in the Exodus, a mass diaspora of neutrals, conscientious objectors, and other non-participants in the war. Dai Atlas and Tyrest oversee the safe evacuation of approximately 10-20 million refugees. Fallout Among the evacuees are the Circle of Light, who secretly depart Cybertron aboard Metrotitan and establish a hidden city on the planet of Theophany. Drift #2 A group of Mortilus-worshipipng neutrals discover the drifting Unitrex-1 near Vela Pulsar. Twenty Plus One They take custody of the abandoned ship for the duration of the war, keeping a mutated Sparkeater aboard docile by feeding it turbofoxes.The Chaos of Warm Things

Megatron revives Trypticon using Pentius's spark and gathers the scattered Decepticon forces for a full-scale assault on the Autobots, but Optimus Prime cleanses him of the Quintesson's influence and captures him. Primacy

At some point after this, the original Ultra Magnus dies under mysterious circumstances. Hoping to keep the legend of the immortal lawman alive, Tyrest creates the Magnus Armor and recruits load-bearer Autobots to wear it, effectively becoming Ultra Magnus. The Gloaming

With both sides searching for a way to bolster their numbers, Cybertronians discover reserves of cryogenically frozen Sparks created via Nova Prime’s Matrix bleeding. These new sparks are used to create new Transformers which become known as "Made to Order" soldiers for specific campaigns in what is later termed the "Silver Harvest." Twenty Plus One

The Decepticons move to conquer several nearby cities, and their string of major victories is remembered as the Fall of the First Five Cities - the conquests of Vos, Tarn, Helex, Kaon, and Tesarus. Life After the Big Bang These cities become the inspiration for the Decepticon Justice Division, who name their five operatives after the cities. Rules of Disengagement

Optimus Prime and Megatron repeatedly clash over the course of the war; their very first showdown at the Battle of Sherma Bridge (2nd Cycle 087) becomes legendary. Chaos Theory Part 1 Early into the war, Optimus Prime turns down Megatron's first and only invitation for an Autobot surrender. How to say Goodbye and Mean It

Ironhide is injured saving Optimus Prime from an assassin. The Iron Age Tyrest attempts to broker peace between the two sides. His efforts ultimately fail, but do result in the creation of the Tyrest Accord, limiting the spread of Transformer technology to other races. House of Ambus

You weren't there, man. You don't know.

The Autobot-Decepticon war expands beyond Cybertron and encompasses many other worlds, and thousands of battles occur both on and off Cybertron over a period of time. During this period, Soundwave leads a detachment back to Junkion in order to recruit the natives. They are opposed by Prowl; the struggle goes on, neither side able to gain an advantage over the other, until one faction decides to detonate the planet entirely to keep it out of the other’s hands. The surviving Junkions, led by Wreck-Gar and Rum-Maj, flee the destruction of their home aboard a gigantic vessel and become galactic nomads. A Lonely Pillar on the Plain

3 million BCE

A battle takes place on the planet Clemency for control of the Nightmare Engine, and a flight of K-Class Decepticons succeed in killing a bearer of the Magnus Armor. The Gloaming

The early phases of the war culminate in the destructive Simanzi Massacre, a cataclysmic battle over the Crucible. Details are unclear, but the fallout from the conflict irradiates a sizeable percentage of the planet whiele cutting the Cybertronian population in half. Among the casualties is a bearer of the Magnus Armor. The Gloaming The Simizani Massacre leads to the Forced Flood and the Endless Retaliation. Twenty Plus One

Electrohamster balls were a popular accessory for the well-equipped commanding officer.

Bolstered by their victories, the Decepticons form the Constellate, marking the peak of Decepticon power. In this brief period, the Decepticons conquer and colonize many worlds, using grandiose weapons of war like the gigantic Worldsweeper-class warships. Who's Afraid of the DJD? The devastation visited on other races is enough to prompt the Galactic Council to permanently blacklist the Cybertronian race, You, Me, and Other Revelations and develop anti-Cybertronian weapons to safeguard their member worlds from future destruction. The Waiting Game

With both sides now defending on-planet and offworld footings, the conflict enters a state of total war as both sides pour all available resources into defeating the other. Optimus and Megatron seal themselves inside omniglobes to direct the war effort. Rules of Disengagement. Eventually, the Constellate collapses, marking the decline of the Decepticon’s imperial phase. Imperial assets are recalled to Cybertron to fight on the home front. Rules of Disengagement

Comes with its own cheerful theme tune!

Skids joins the Autobots as a “bomb negotiator,” disabling anti-personal mines. One negotiation session goes wrong and lands him in the notorious Grindcore prison. Speak, Memory: Part 1 There, he befriends Quark and catches the attention of Decepticon Damus – Skids’ old friend, now a Decepticon. Damus plays a sadistic game where the Autobot repairs the camp’s “teleporter”, in reality a smelting chamber, and then kills the fifty Autobots he promised to send away, including Quark. The experience proves traumatic enough for Skids to suppress the memory. Speak, Memory! (Part 2) At some point after this, Damus is promoted and joins the Decepticon Justice Division as "Tarn". Do Not Go Gentle

Skids eventually escapes prison and joins the Autobot Diplomatic Corps, working to persuade other races to support the Autobot cause. Who's Afraid of the DJD? Skids later moves to Prowl's covert Special Operations, necessitating faking his own death. Hangers On Partnered with Getaway, he is sent to "assassinate" on Tyrest, using a nudge gun to implant the impulse to resign in the Chief Justice's increasingly disturbed mind. The plan fails, and Skids barely manages to escape. Aboard his escape craft, he uses the gun to erase his own memory before setting the shuttle to hone in on the coordinates of his handlers, the Duobots. Arm the Lonely

After several other Magnus Armor wearers succumb to battlefield injuries or ailments, Minimus Ambus becomes the latest and final bearer of the Armor. The Divided Self

100,000+ years ago

650,000 BCE

Shockwave realises Cybertron will soon die and fully launches Regenesis, distilling energon into a catalyst which he then launches at various planets, including prehistoric Earth. Spotlight: Shockwave

500,000 BCE

Shockwave leaves Cybertron to begin examining the fruits of Regenesis. Over the ensuing thousands of years, he discovers that the ores that have formed on the different planets have taken on wildly different attributes, and begins formulating a scheme to use them in conjunction to achieve his dream of fuelling Cybertron forever. Syndromica (1) Alpha Trion takes Metroplex off Cybertron to keep him out of Megatron's hands and investigate Shockwave's plot. Hello Cruel World

Still searching for usable Titan technology, Megatron has a team of Decepticons led by Bludgeon search outer space for Metroplex. Crew member Thundercracker finds the Titan, but has a crisis of conscience and ends up letting him go. The Hunting Party Another member, Waspinator, is able to find and injure another Titan, causing it to teleport to Gorlam Prime where it goes dormant. Homecoming

18,000 BCE

The Eukarian ship Axalon, headed by Domitius Major, departs on a deep-space mission at the behest of Onyx Prime, carrying with it the mysterious Talisman. Strange Visitors

10,000 BCE

All this has happened before
All this shall happen again

The Dynobots attack a Decepticon-held Energon silo in Sub-Sector-Nine. Maximum Dinobots issue 1 Later, they depart Cybertron to hunt down Shockwave in pursuit of revenge for a past defeat. Spotlight: Shockwave

The Axalon, needing to refuel, stops by prehistoric Earth after tracking the energon surges from Shockwave's experiments. Shockwave, present to check on his work, shoots them down, and the crash scrambles their memories. As an experiment, he brainwashes and retrofits the crew to think they are prominent Autobots and Decepticons so he can run the "Ice Age Wars," a control experiment of the Great War while he studies the Talisman.Hearts of Steel #1 Strange Visitors

8390 BCE

"A six-inch retractable claw, like a razor, on the the middle toe. He doesn't bother to bite your jugular like a lion, say... no no. He slashes at you here, or here..."

The Ice Age has ended and Ore-13 has started to grow unstable. Shockwave abandons his miniature Great War to stabilize Ore-13 but the Dynobots – seeking revenge and sporting energon-shielded beast modes – have finally tracked him down, and they engage him in combat. While he defeats them, he is deactivated by a failsafe set by Grimlock, as the Dynobots' ship triggers a volcanic eruption which buries all six in what would later become Eureka, Nevada. Spotlight: Shockwave The abandoned Axalon crew fight on for a time, but low energon levels eventually force them all into hibernation in secluded regions. Strange Visitors Megatron assigns Bludgeon to investigate Shockwave's projects Spotlight: Shockwave — and Soundwave to watch over Bludgeon. Spotlight: Soundwave

Tracks is rescued from the Predacons by an unknown Autobot. Spotlight: Jazz

Cliffjumper crashlands on an unnamed planet and spends a period of time there watching over young aliens named Kita and Coll until Kita dies when Cliffjumper is discovered by Decepticons. Spotlight: Cliffjumper

A Decepticon named Deadlock leaves Turmoil's command when he feels disillusioned by what the civil war had become, and he stumbles across the Circle of Light. Drift issue 1 His coming prompts the Circle to raise their hidden city above ground. Drift issue 4

3000 BCE

At some point before this period of time, ancient humans discover the Enigma of Combination. The influence of the Enigma "combines" their thoughts and ideas, allowing them to to work together and found the city of Uruk. ONoffON

Sumerians develop an early civilization. Revolutionaries #1 timeline

2560 BCE

The Pyramids are constructed. Revolutionaries #1 timeline Around this time, the Talisman somehow winds up underneath the Tomb of Altomec in Dashur, Egypt. The Secret of the Mummy's Tomb

100+ years ago

603 BCE

The Predators put down local resistance in the Skomiloch Territories. They remain while Skyquake rules a mini-empire there. Snare's personnel evaluation

27 BCE

Octavian establishes the Roman Empire as Emperor Augustus. Revolutionaries #1 timeline

220

The Han Dynasty in Ancient China ends. Revolutionaries #1 timeline

1320

Dante Alighieri publishes The Divine Comedy – in reality, an allegorical warning about the ancient conspiracy Cobra and its long-term goals. Revolutionaries #1 timeline

1408

Fortress Maximus is instated as warden of Garrus-9. Last Light

1516

Runaway blacksmith turned adventurer-archeologist Anode and her sidekick Lug travel to Luna Two at the behest of prospective client Techy in search of a rare piece of "widowed metal". They run afoul of a Decepticon Cybernought, but Censere, the "Necrobot", intervenes. He spirits Anode away through time and space, but Lug is left behind and perishes. Some Other Cybertron

1550

Pod People.

Decepticon scientist Thunderwing comes to the conclusion that Cybertron – between ever-dwindling supplies of energon and the fallout caused by millennia of warfare – will soon be entirely uninhabitable. Believing that the Transformers must find a way to adapt to changing planetary conditions, he develops an upgrade based off of “polydermal grafting” procedures. Unfortunately, he uses himself as a test subject for the process and, driven mad, he ends up destroying the planet even faster before perishing. Stormbringer

Shortly after Thunderwing's rampage, Soundwave uses Bombshell to take control of Beachcomber. Beachcomber attempts to assassinate Blaster, leaving him adrift in space. The Decepticons began a massive offensive against the demoralized Autobots. Spotlight: Blaster It's all for naught anyway as the planet is soon abandoned, a lifeless, radiation-saturated wreck. With Cybertron now completely uninhabitable, the war does not abate, but moves permanently off-planet. Stormbringer

Following the loss of Cybertron, the nature of the war changes, becoming a series of cloak-and-dagger operations on alien worlds. The Decepticon war machine reorganizes around the infiltration protocol, a step-by-step process by which Decepticons covertly infiltrate a planet's society and manipulate events to bring it down from within. As part of this process, three of the Warriors Elite are promoted to Phase Sixers, including Overlord - who promptly deserts from the Decepticon army. Last Stand of the Wreckers #2

1586

England creates the original Action Man Programme. Revolutionaries #1 timeline

1610

Galileo charts the moons of Jupiter. Revolutionaries #1 timeline  

1800

Following the destruction of his homeworld Elonia at the hands of the evil Dire Wraiths, Romm K'atsema joins the Solstar Order. Revolutionaries #1 timeline

Shortly afterwards, the Dire Wraiths discover Earth, drawn to Shockwave's supplies of Ore-13 to amplify their powerful dark magic. The New Colossus Using their shapeshifting talents, Dire Wraith scouts begin infiltrating the worlds' governments and militaries, preparing for an eventual encounter with the Space Knight. Earthfall: Part Three

1860s/70s

John Henry was a man just six feet high
Nearly two feet and a half across his breast
He'd hammer with a nine-pound hammer all day
And never get tired and want to rest

Still believing themselves to be the Autobots and Decepticons, the lost Eukarians are roused from their slumber by human activity sometime in the late 19th century. Centurion (believing himself Bumblebee) awakens to the sound of John Henry laying railroad track. While Centurion takes the form of a steam locomotive and makes contact with John Henry and his friends, the brainwashed "Shockwave" fools disgraced scientist Tobias Muldoon into helping him create a 'Golden Age' of progress. Hearts of Steel #1 Hearts of Steel #2

Muldoon realizes he's been tricked in time and manages to alert mankind by reaching Mark Twain, helped by "Ravage" following him and Twain defeating him. Hearts of Steel #3 Human industrialists Vanflint and Jacob Lee Bonaventure collaborate with the Decepticons in Muldoon's place, while John Henry and his friends join the Autobots in heading out to stop the Decepticon's "Astrotrain" reaching New York City (running through United States Army blockades). The Autobots fight a running battle down the railroad tracks before knocking the Astrotrain, and the human collaborators riding it, off a cliff. With the threat over, the "Autobots" return to their slumber. Hearts of Steel #4 Strange Visitors

1887

Dormant Eukarians are found by the Deep Ones that lurk in our oceans and taken to their unearthly city to join the forces of a slumbering Elder God. Infestation 2: The Transformers issue 1

1888

Iä! Iä! Optimus primhagn!

Shipping is being sunk by the fishy foes and their "Seacon" slaves, and "Ironhide" (riding the USS Miskatonic identifies the threat. The steam-powered "Autobots" are rallied again and seek 1,000,000 volts to power up "Optimus Prime" (actually Domitius Major) with the help of Muldoon and Nikola Tesla, but Port Cenotaph, Canada is overrun before they reach it. Infestation 2: The Transformers issue 1 Domitius Major is awoken just as a combined naval fleet of the world's powers reaches Port Cenotaph and runs into the Elder God. Domitius Major joins the battle and wounds the Elder God badly enough to provoke a retreat, leaving the Royal Navy bemused and questioning Tesla and Muldoon. Infestation 2: The Transformers issue 2

1900s

Wheeeeeee!

Over the course of his travels, Sixshot is challenged by the alien Reapers. He refuses to join them. Spotlight: Sixshot Hot Rod leads a team to secure the Magnificence. Doubledealer, posing as an Autobot, sabotages the raid. Hot Rod hides the Magnificence. He later infiltrates the Decepticon penal colony Styx to rescue "Dealer", who befriends him. Spotlight: Hot Rod

Meanwhile, Kup and Outback crash-land on the planet Tsiehshi, one of Shockwave’s Regenesis test planets. The barren, uncharted planet is covered with radioactive crystals of Ore-8. Outback is killed in the crash, and Kup is slowly driven insane by the radiation. Spotlight: Kup

The massacre at Babu Yar takes place, which sees the deployment of the controversial bioweapon Gideon's Glue against Flame's Autobots. Bullets

1914-1919

The Eukarian Autobots are, by this time, slowly dying off, though several beginning to shake off their reconditioning and realizing that they are not who they believed themselves to be. Several of the Eukarians try to find the Talisman and perish in the attempt. World War I breaks out on Earth, and Domitius Major and Centurion stumble on a battleground. Seeing real conflict causes their artificial memories of the Great War to unravel; Domitius perishes, but Centurion, confused and enraged, dedicates the remainder of his life to hunting down the remaining Eukarians on Earth. Strange Visitors

1943

During World War II , Sgt. Savage’s Screaming Eagles are deployed to Kalistan. They are startled to find robot drones – in reality, creations of the Talisman – fighting for the Axis. Garrison Kreiger becomes fascinated by them. The Secret of the Mummy's Tomb

1945

We're leaving together, but still it's farewell

Of the Axalon crew, only Centurion and "Shockwave" are alive. They face each other in final battle in France and, before the Screaming Eagles' eyes, Centurion wins and takes "Shockwave's" gun as a trophy. The Screaming Eagles agree to help him return to the Axalon to die, and eventually locate its frozen remains in Brasnya. The Iron Troopers jump them when they get there, puppeteering Domitius' corpse to attack the group. Though Centurion defeats his reanimated commander, energies unleashed by the Talisman caused the ship to vanish, with taking Sgt. Savage with it. A confused and upset Centurion agreed to assist Kreiger, who spends the next several decades 'grooming' him to get his mitts on the Talisman. Strange Visitors

1982

"If it is there, at Tanis, then it is something that man was not meant to disturb."

After serving with the Green Berets, Joseph B. “Joe” Colton is selected to join the Adventure Team, an crack team of American operatives. Hasbro Heroes Sourcebook #1 He serves alongside elite military assets such as Stalker and Miles "Mayhem" Manheim, and super-powered operatives including Bulletman and the Atomic Man. The Secret of the Mummy's Tomb As "G.I. Joe," Colton and the Adventure Team enjoy numerous globetrotting escapades, on one occasion meeting the British super-spy Action Man. Secret Raiders

1984

Soundwave is sent to investigate Bludgeon’s activities on Earth Spotlight: Soundwave but first makes a detour to Egypt to investigate unusual energy readings.

A few days later, the Adventure Team is deployed to Egypt to rescue Garrison Kreiger, who has vanished following the unusual energy beacon emanating from within the Tomb of Amtoltec. The team battles an army of mummy-themed Iron Troopers before they discover Soundwave and the Talisman. The Talisman upgrades Mike Power’s cybernetic limbs; thus empowered, the team is able to see Soundwave off and recover the Talisman, which they entrust to British intelligence. The Secret of the Mummy's Tomb

Soundwave returns to his main mission on Earth, but is deactivated when Bludgeon, after some of Shockwave's Regenesis ore — which he calls "Ultra-Energon" — triggers the eruption of Mount St. Helens. Spotlight: Soundwave

Shortly after their mission in Egypt, the Adventure Team is disbanded, and Colton is shunted into a desk job. Hasbro Heroes Sourcebook #1

1985

Decepticonism killed the radio star.

Soundwave, Ravage and Laserbeak are excavated by Skywatch. Interest is taken in the cassettes, found in "robot mode," but Soundwave, in cassette player mode, is apparently discarded. Spotlight: Soundwave

1988

Scorponok lands on the backwater planet Nebulos. The latest in a series of flagrant violation of the Tyrest Accords, he develops a working relationship with Mo Zarak and the Zarak Consortium as part of his modus operandi. The duo develop a variation of the Headmaster process involving hybridizing Nebulans and Cybertronians. Ultra Magnus tracks Scorponok to Nebulos, but despite taking severe damage, the Decepticon escapes. Spotlight: Ultra Magnus

Tyrest constructs the supercomputer/judging machine Aequitas, based off of Mesothulas' old designs. Sins of the Wreckers #3 The Aequitas trials begin, a catalog of Autobot atrocities. House of Ambus What nobody but Tyrest knows is that every Autobot on trial is 'constructed cold', a process he'd help develop. The revelation is enough to gnaw at his conscience, and eventually Tyrest vanishes from the public eye. The Divided Self

1990

Obsessed with defeating Squadron X, the Wreckers track them down to the planet Pova. After capturing them, Impactor is ordered to release them due to a technicality. Instead, he executes the prisoners, and as a consequence is himself imprisoned in Garrus-9. Springer subsequently takes over leadership of the Wreckers. Last Stand of the Wreckers Bullets

1997

Alpha Trion and Metroplex return to Cybertron. Hoping to return the planet to habitability, Alpha Trion slowly begins cleaning Cybertron's polluted atmosphere. Any Old Iron

2000s

2001

"The music was dope."

The current era of Transformer activity on Earth begins. Starscream heads a unit on Earth as part of the now-standardized infiltration protocol, and the Autobots retaliate by deploying an Autobot cell led by Prowl. Infiltration #1 Advance scout Jazz is the first Autobot to make planetfall, What It's Really Like and is eventually joined by the rest of Prowl’s team aboard the Ark-19. Infiltration #1

Conspiracy theorists like Hunter O'Nion begin searching for evidence of extraterrestrials after the anomalous “Buchanan crop manifestations” in Iowa. Infiltration issue 1

The Cybertronians discover that Earth is not as unaware of their presence as they might have thought – the Decepticons become aware of the Machination. In reality, this is merely a front for Scorponok’s latest operation, intending to build off his Headmaster research on Nebulos in the hopes of supplying himself, by this point reduced to little more than a ruined head, with a new body. Escalation

2006-7

This is your Starscream on drugs.

Shockwave's hand is discovered in an excavation in Nevada. Spotlight: Shockwave News of the dig reaches the conspiracy theorists but is considered a fringe theory, the "paleo-purists". Infiltration #1

From the Dead Universe, Galvatron lures Nightbeat to the rapidly-evolving world of Gorlam Prime and implants a device in his brain. Spotlight: Nightbeat

On Earth, Starscream’s infiltration unit discover ripe samples of Shockwave’s Regenesis ore, dubbing it “Ore-13”. In Arizona, wandering drifter Verity Carlo steals a palm computer from a travelling businessman, unaware that her victim is really an agent of the Machination. Possessing a record of Cybertronian activity on Earth makes her, Hunter, and Jimmy Pink targets of the Decepticons, prompting Ratchet to intervene. Infiltration #0 Infiltration #1 Ratchet brings them back to the Autobot base, and, learning that the Decepticons have preemptively initiated “siege mode”, brings the humans along to investigate their abandoned base in Nebraska. Infiltration #4

The thunder of guns
Tore me apart
You've been
Thunderstruck!

The humans discover that Megatron has come to Earth; Megatron learns from the base’s old files that Starscream plans on overthrowing his leader using Ore-13. Disgusted by the power games – and infuriated when Blitzwing and Skywarp accidentally bomb their old base with him inside – Megatron sets off to the new command bunker in Oregon to retake command. Megatron quickly puts down Starscream’s insurrection and announces the beginning of “phase 2”. Infiltration #6

Orbiting the dead husk of Cybertron, the crew of the Calabi-Yau pick up an anomalous energy burst. Jetfire and several Technobots investigate the strange readings and discover that Bludgeon has used his “ultra-energon” to reanimate Thunderwing’s corpse. Stormbringer #1 Thunderwing lays waste to Nebulos and overruns the Decepticon cell already located on the planet before returning to Cybertron. Stormbringer #3 Optimus Prime calls in the Wreckers to combat the threat, and bringing their full firepower to bear the Autobots blast Thunderwing until he runs out of energon. Jetfire analyzes Bludgeon’s files and discovers information related to Earth and the Regenesis project. Stormbringer #4 The news prompts Optimus to set course for Earth, and he arrives shortly after Megatron removes Starscream from command. Infiltration #6

Meanwhile, Soundwave, still trapped in his alternate mode, is purchased from a pawn shop. Spotlight: Soundwave Springer orders a costly mission to rescue the stranded and demented Kup, whose Spark is beginning a fatal meltdown. They eventually succeed, but not without taking significant losses at the hands of the elderly Autobot, who mistakes his rescuers for zombies. Spotlight: Kup

Canon status: questionable.
Awesomeness: extremely.

Shortly after Megatron arrives on Earth, Ramjet joins the Decepticon's Earth unit. Megatron initiates a plan to increase political unrest on Earth using technology stolen from Doctor Doom. Facing resistance from the Autobots and Avengers, the Decepticons initiate mirror response mode and boost their powers by tapping into Spider-Man's superhuman abilities. Megatron's plan is thwarted by the Autobots and Avengers, helped in part by Ramjet's increasing disloyalty to Megatron. Man and Machine

While returning the humans to their normal lives, Machination forces successfully tail and capture Sunstreaker and Hunter O'Nion while incapacitating Ironhide Escalation #1 Prime, Jazz, and Wheeljack join Ironhide to search for the attackers. Meanwhile, the Decepticons proceed to phase two by activating numerous facsimile sleeper agents within world governments to further destabilize human society. Escalation #1

The Decepticons use their facsimiles to, among other things, escalate tension between Brasnya and Russia. The Autobots intervene, and Prime summons Hot Rod, Hardhead, and Nightbeat to Earth. Escalation #3 During the battle, Prime is nearly killed and encounters the form of Nova Prime within infraspace as he shunts his consciousness into his trailer. Escalation #6

Ironhide, Ratchet, Jimmy, and Verity continue to search for Sunstreaker’s disappearance, but Ironhide is severely damaged in the process and left behind. Unbeknownst to them, Sunstreaker and Hunter are sent to surgical prep to test the Machination’s binary-bonding process. Escalation #4

Skywatch takes over the excavation of Shockwave and the Dinobots, while also reactivating and reprogramming Ravage and Laserbeak into loyal Skywatch operatives. Escalation #5

Quickly, give him your face and he'll go away!

With Megatron’s other forces busy, Ramjet initiates an ambitious plan to overthrow the Decepticon leader and sieze control of the Decepticons, involving, among other things, a group of jive-talking Mini-Constructicons. His bungled plan ends when Megatron returns from Brasyna, beats him to death, and throws his parts across the globe. Spotlight: Ramjet

Blaster is found drifting in space and returned to the Autobot fold. As he reintegrates into the Autobot command structure, he helps free Beachcomber from Decepticon control. Spotlight: Blaster

Optimus Prime briefly leaves Earth to meet with the ancient warrior Omega Supreme, from whom he learns more about Nova Prime and the nature of Nova’s original quest. Optimus winds up defeating and capturing Monstructor, and he sends the “Monstructor Six” into the care of Fortress Maximus on Garrus-9. Spotlight: Optimus Prime Around this time, Wheelie’s original distress signal from LV-117 finally reaches Autobot space… only to be ignored due to more pressing concerns. Spotlight: Wheelie

Galvatron briefly leaves the Dead Universe to travel to Cybertron to retrieve Thunderwing’s body, defeating Hound's unit on the way. He takes his trophy to Gorlam Prime. Spotlight: Galvatron

Banzaitron initiates an attack on the Autobot prison facility at Garrus-9 in an attempt to free the long-imprisoned Monstructor team. Realizing that they need another of Jhiaxus’ creations to track down the unpredictable escapees, Fortress Maximus takes a gamble by releasing Arcee and sending the warrior-bot after them. Spotlight: Arcee

His defeat at the hands of Optimus Prime turns Megatron’s behavior increasingly erratic, and so the Earth-bound Decepticons reactivate Starscream to help deal with the problem. Hoping to get an edge over Optimus Prime, Megatron summons Sixshot to Earth, violating the infiltration protocol. Sixshot, though internally conflicted, follows orders and opens fire on the Autobot assets stationed on the planet, destroying the Ark-19. He is, however, followed by the Reapers. Devastation #1

Wheeljack and Hot Rod attempt to rescue Ironhide but are attacked by the Machination’s army of mass-produced Sunstreaker clones. With Hardhead's help, they defeat them and rescue Ironhide. Devastation #5 Devastation #6

"And I have freakishly long fingers now too!"

Meanwhile, Hunter awakens at Machination headquarters and finds Sunstreaker's head. He undergoes the Headmaster process as Abraham Dante does the same with Scorponok. Stealing a spare clone body, he links with Sunstreaker’s mind to become a Headmaster and uses his new body to escape the facility. However, the Machination takes Sunstreaker's real head. The hybrid Sunstreaker/O’Nion entity agrees to search for Sunstreaker’s real head in the hopes of undoing the process. Devastation #6

From the Dead Universe, Nova Prime orders Galvatron to Earth to deal with the Reapers, whom Sixshot has aligned with, before Starscream shuts him down using a failsafe trigger. Devastation #5 The other Decepticons engage the Reapers, losing the Battlechargers, before being covertly assisted by Galvatron. Triumphant in his mission, he returns to the Dead Universe with Sixshot's body. Devastation #6

Learning of the breakout at Garrus-9, the majority of the Autobots prepare to leave Earth, though Hot Rod and Sunstreaker remain. Concurrently, Skywatch is notified of the battle and prepares to deploy their latest and most powerful asset: Grimlock. Devastation #6 After he is awoken, he escapes from Skywatch and refuses an offer to join forces with Scorponok. Spotlight: Grimlock

On Cybertron, Cyclonus arrives and attacks Hound's crew as revenge for the devastation wrought by the war. His attack is interrupted by Ultra Magnus, and he is forced to retreat to Corata-Vaz. After activating the Nega-Core, Cyclonus is again set upon, and activates the Nega-core's reanimated guardian, Thunderwing. He is forced to return to the Dead Universe as his body has been in the "living" world too long. Spotlight: Cyclonus

"Death walks among you."

In the wake of the attack, Optimus and his crew arrive at Garrus-9. They meet with Jetfire and Fortress Maximus and head back to the Ark-32. Spotlight: Cyclonus

The forces of the Dead Universe – including Jhiaxus, Galvatron, Straxus and Grindcore – leave the Dead Universe to begin the Expansion. Leading the charge is Nova Prime, now calling himself “Nemesis Prime”. Spotlight: Cyclonus

Nightbeat and Hardhead travel to Gorlam Prime to investigate Nightbeat's missing memories, and they encounter a large group of Micromasters trying to impede their progress. The pair makes it to the Dead Universe portal and Jhiaxus takes control of Nightbeat, forcing Hardhead to kill him, and dive into the portal himself. Spotlight: Hardhead Jetfire decides to use Pretender technology to enable Cloudburst, Landmine, Groundbreaker, and Waverider to survive the Benzuli Expanse. Spotlight: Hardhead

Optimus receives a transmission from Dealer, who says that he's been monitoring the current situation, and he thinks that all of the answers they seek lie in the Magnificence. Spotlight: Hardhead Hot Rod agrees and both travel to Ki-Aleta, the planet where Hot Rod had hidden it earlier. Using the oracle, Hot Rod discovers that Dealer betrayed him, and sends the traitor to his death moments before he could do the same to him. The Magnificence later provides useful info to Ultra Magnus about the machinations of Nemesis Prime. Spotlight: Doubledealer

On Earth, Straxus and Grindcore mine energon in China. Spotlight: Doubledealer They are prevented doing this by Hound's team, primarily Sideswipe. Spotlight: Sideswipe

To infinity and beyond!

Galvatron and Cyclonus attack the Mirror-Manifold, the ship of Cloudburst and crew. Spotlight: Doubledealer They are beamed out seconds before their ship explodes by the Technobots in the Nightbird, who present them with their own personal Pretender carapaces. Using these, they battle Galvatron and Cyclonus, defeating one and allowing the other to escape. Using their shells as temporary shields, they cross into the Dead Universe and manage to seal the gate to the Dead Universe. Spotlight: Sideswipe

Nemesis Prime arrives on Garrus-9, and is faced by Optimus Prime. Optimus is attacked, using the Darkness. Spotlight: Doubledealer However, the Darkness reaches out to Optimus as a successor. Nemesis continues the attack but is blasted in the back by Galvatron and falls dead. The Darkness enters Optimus Prime. Galvatron offers Prime a choice: kill himself in the nearby Solar Pool, or willingly pass on the Darkness to him. Prime does both, passing on the Darkness and tossing Galvatron into the pool. Spotlight: Sideswipe Meanwhile, Arcee manages to track down Jhiaxus beneath Gorlam Prime, and with some help from an undead Hardhead, defeats him. With Jhiaxus rendered functionally immortal due to the energies of the Dead Universe portal, Arcee gleefully kills him over, and over, and over, and over… Spotlight: Sideswipe

Above ground, the residents of Gorlam Prime finally complete their evolution into wholly mechanical beings. In honor of their great leap forward, they rename their planet… Cybertron. Spotlight: Sideswipe

Because "Skree-onk" was copyrighted.

Back on Earth, Grimlock and the other Dynobots end up fighting Sunstreaker clones in Fallon, Nevada in an event orchestrated by Scorponok and the Machination. Hoping to repair their ship, the Skyfire, Grimlock calls the Monsterbots for help. Maximum Dinobots #1

Hot Rod takes on Scorponok and fails, while Sunstreaker and Hunter try to reclaim Sunstreaker's original head. Maximum Dinobots #2 The Monsterbots arrive on Earth just in time to rescue the bedraggled Dynobots. The Dynobots begin to have misgivings about Grimlock's increasingly unstable leadership – feelings which come to a head when it appears Sludge has died from a blast by Scorponok. Maximum Dinobots #3

Soundwave, Shockwave, Laserbeak, and Ravage plot together and free themselves from Skywatch's control; Maximum Dinobots #4 Shockwave involves himself in the battle with Scorponok, and both are ultimately are defeated by Grimlock and the Dynobots. Ultra Magnus arrives to arrest the group. Though Grimlock willingly goes with Ultra Magnus, the other four Dynobots walk free thanks to his sacrifice. Shockwave, Scorponok, and Grimlock are all sent to Garrus-9 after a trial, though Grimlock’s sentence is shortened thanks to bringing in two wanted Decepticons. Maximum Dinobots #5

2008

He's your huckleberry.

Hoping to bolster the Decepticon ranks, Megatron and Deluge create the Insecticons. The process is highly imperfect, however, and the thousands upon thousands of failed clones are abandoned on Cybertron to become the feral "Swarm". All Hail Megatron #7

Shortly after their creation, scientist Bombshell completes Shockwave’s project regarding Jhiaxus’ combination technology. The end result is Devastator: a mentally stable, combat-ready combiner using the like-minded Constructicons. Before the Dawn Shockpoint

Perceptor rebuilds Kup using Pretender technology, reversing the deleterious effects of Ore-8 on his mind. At Prowl’s insistence, however, Perceptor also adds technology into Kup’s new body that will allow Prowl to take control of the elderly Autobot. Everything in Its Right Place With his new lease on life, Kup organizes a team to rescue captured Autobots. They receive assistance from former Decepticon Deadlock, now known as Drift. Spotlight: Drift On their first mission, they rescue Hot Rod from Bludgeon and the Monster Pretenders; Perceptor is injured and upgrades himself into a sniper. Lost & Found

On Earth, Ratchet succeeds in separating Sunstreaker and Hunter. Horrified and disgusted by what humans did to him, Sunstreaker makes a Faustian deal with Starscream to help him take out Megatron in exchange for the Autobots permanently abandoning Earth. All Hail Megatron #8 Ratchet returns Hunter to his house and leaves, unaware that Bombshell is preparing to abduct the young human to gain access to the Headmaster technology still implanted in his body. Our Steps Will Always Rhyme

"I come in peace. Shoot to kill."

Using Autobot access codes acquired from Sunstreaker, Megatron launches "The Surge:" across the galaxy, Decepticons abandon infiltration protocol and launch an all-out attack on every major Autobot outpost. Bullets The Autobots on Earth are led into a Decepticon trap and are soundly defeated, leaving Optimus Prime in critical condition. Megatron takes the Matrix and exiles them back to Cybertron while he and his Decepticons run amok on Earth. All Hail Megatron #8

During the Surge, Skyquake's Predators assault Garrus-9. Rogue former Decepticon Overlord kills Skyquake and takes over the prison, turning it into an arena for his own amusement. Former warden Fortress Maximus is lobotomized and repeatedly tortured. Last Stand of the Wreckers #1 As part of a deal, Overlord releases Shockwave and restores him operational status; in return, Shockwave removes the Achilles virus implanted in Overlord’s body as a failsafe.Last Stand of the Wreckers #3

YOU - ARE NOT - PREPARED.

On May 29, 2008, the Earth-based Decepticons make their presence known to humankind. Their combined forces demolish New York City and easily defeat the US military. All Hail Megatron #1 Colonel Daniel Witwicky is brought to New York to aid in its defense, though his troops can do little to defeat the onslaught. The Decepticons rampage across America and annihilate major cities across the nation. All Hail Megatron #2 Within a matter of hours, Washington, D.C. falls. All Hail Megatron #3 College student Marissa Faireborn, in New York as part of the Occupy Wall Street movement, has her worldview shaken by the scope and horror of the invasion. The Mind Bomb

Over the next few days, the Autobots and humans struggle to get back on their feet while the Decepticons continue to ravage cities across the globe. On Cybertron, Kup’s team crash-lands on the planet and joins the stranded Autobots, who are fighting off the Swarm.All Hail Megatron #4 On Earth, Colonel Witwicky appoints a team lead by his son Spike to take out Megatron. Spike’s team is killed by Ratbat and Spike is the only survivor. All Hail Megatron #5

Without the Autobots, the Decepticons quickly grow bored and start squabbling among themselves. The European Union decides to end the threat by deploying nuclear weapons against New York. All Hail Megatron #6 Frustrated by Megatron’s sudden listlessness, Starscream plots with the Insecticons. All Hail Megatron #8

On Cybertron, the Autobots decide to use their remaining energon to repair Prime. All Hail Megatron #6 The Autobots struggle to elude the Swarm, but Perceptor is injured. Guilt ridden, Sunstreaker makes the ultimate sacrifice and detonates a bomb to blow up a bridge (and himself) to keep the Swarm away from the other Autobots. Just before he does so, he reveals to Ironhide that it was he who brokered the deal with Starscream that betrayed the Autobots. All Hail Megatron #8

Sarah and Bridge run into Spike, and are later joined by Charles, seeking revenge against Rumble for killing his son. With a weapon reverse-engineered from Shockwave, Spike brings Rumble down with the help of his new friends. On Cybertron, Optimus Prime is repaired, along with the remaining Autobots. All Hail Megatron #9

Bombshell builds a space bridge and reveals that he helped hack into the Autobots' defenses using technology gained by dissecting Hunter O'Nion. Starscream teams up with the Insecticons and Constructicons to attack Megatron, but they are not successful. The Autobots on Cybertron are saved by the arrival of Omega Supreme and taken back to Earth. All Hail Megatron #10

2009

According to "Ride-Along", the events of All Hail Megatron spanned over a year, though it's unclear exactly when the transition to 2009 happened.

One Shall...oh, you know the drill.

The Autobots arrive on Earth and battle the Decepticons. All Hail Megatron #11 Megatron gets the upper hand against Prime and orders a retreat, leaving the Autobots to be nuked by the humans… but Spike Witwicky, welding a powerful weapon reverse-engineered from Transformer technology, shoots Megatron in the face, allowing Prime to smash Megatron in the face with his own fusion cannon. With Megatron grievously wounded, Starscream takes command and orders a retreat.

The Decepticons do so, but Thundercracker stays behind to dispose of the EU’s bomb. He succeeds, but Skywarp blasts him out of the sky for his efforts.

Discovering that his brother's old Headmaster partner has been horrifically mutilated under Bombshell’s custody, Sideswipe mercifully terminates the vegetative Hunter. All Hail Megatron #12 In the aftermath, Optimus Prime talks Ironhide out of retiring. Old Ways

Believing the Matrix to be purely symbolic and now devoid of any power it might have once held, Starscream prepares to dump it into space. When Shrapnel reminds him that the Autobots use it to choose their leaders, Starscream declares that with Megatron incapacitated, he will use the Matrix to lead the Decepticons to victory once more. Uneasy Lies the Head

Though the Decepticons have been defeated and mostly driven off-planet, Earth is largely in ruins. More than a billion people have died worldwide from the invasion, and most major cities are left utterly devastated by the Decepticons. Military assets begin hunting for Decepticon stragglers; as part of these early missions, Spike defeats Ravage, but is injured. Faced with a persistent Decepticon threat, Skywatch is heavily reorganized, going from a clandestine paramilitary organization into a international peacekeeping unit designed to hunt down and eliminate rogue Transformers on Earth, wielding reverse-engineered Cybertronian technology. Sparkplug is made head of Skywatch and recruits Spike to work for him. The Man of Steel This new incarnation of Skywatch does not differentiate between factions, and hunts both Autobots and Decepticons indiscriminately. Bumblebee briefly breaks cover to save some humans and is injured for his efforts. Hidden

Eight years later and we still haven't gotten him off the couch.

Over the next two years, humans and Cybertronians alike struggle to recover from the Surge. With their infrastructure across the galaxy in shambles, many Autobots seek shelter on Earth. Humanity slowly repairs the damage caused by the invasion, but are enraged at the Cybertronians that remain on their planet. After witnessing a defenseless Thrust executed by a group of police officers, Prowl decides that with their numbers so reduced by war, all Cybertronian life–even Decepticons–needs to be protected. Spotlight: Prowl

Thundercracker survives his ordeal, but is badly damaged and unable to transform or fly. Stranded in the ruins of New York, Thundercracker takes refuge in an abandoned building and watches television to pass the time until he's rescued. Seasons in Flight

Geronimo!

Skywatch continues its anti-Transformer operations, reverse-engineering Cybertronian technology to produce new weapons to safely combat rogue Transformers on Earth; this initiative culminating in the development of the unit’s signature crash suits. What Skywatch doesn’t know is that this technology is secretly being provided to Skywatch via Spike Witwicky, whose disregard for the rules drives him to cut a deal with Swindle. A Second Chance at Eden. Gears and Windcharger are amongst those captured. ...For All Mankind

Dominus Ambus, now a mole within the Decepticon Justice Division, reports that the Decepticons have lost contact with Garrus-9 and DJD scouting parties do not return. Prowl authorizes Springer to assemble a new team of Wreckers. Their mission is twofold—to rescue any Autobot prisoners and to download data from the Aequitas supercomputer. Last Stand of the Wreckers #1 Bullets At some point after this, the other four members of the DJD discover the mole in their organization and subject Dominus to “domestication,” reducing him to a feral “Pet.” Another Decepticon thus steps up to become the next “Vos.” At Close of Day

Still marooned on LV-114, Wheelie discovers a Decepticon shipwreck with surviving crewmembers Spectro and Spyglass (Viewfinder alas, didn't make it.) He saves an alien from them and in the process blows them and his escape ship to pieces. And so, he waits... Spotlight: Wheelie

At some point after Gorlam Prime's transformation, the malevolent Dead Universe entity known as the D-Void lures the entire population of the planet into his domain and devours their sparks. Heart of Darkness #2

2010

Botkind, well, that was another story.

Thundercracker is rescued by a rag-tag team of Decepticons led by Swindle. He discovers, however, that he has lost his taste for fighting, having come to respect humanity and its culture. Seasons in Flight

Prowl is captured by Skywatch, and Hot Rod's rescue mission leads to Ironhide's death. Depressed, Optimus Prime resigns as Autobot leader and surrenders to Skywatch. ...For All Mankind Frustrated by recent events, Hot Rod and a group of like-minded Autbots make preparations to leave Earth. They decide to join forces with Swindle's Decepticons, while the other Autobots chose to remain on Earth, and Bumblebee is elected the new Autobot leader. New Arrivals, Old Encounters

Cue the A-Team theme.

Eight months after Dominus Ambus’ report, the Wreckers – bolstered by new recruits Verity Carlo, Pyro, Rotorstorm, Guzzle, ascended fanboy Ironfist, and lead by a returned Impactor – arrive at Garrus-9 and begin their assault. Overlord retaliates by ordering the death of all Autobot prisoners upon the Wreckers' arrival save Grimlock, who has vanished. The Wreckers take heavy casualties over the course of their mission, but succeed in capturing Overlord and securing the data from Aequitas. Overlord is captured and the remaining Decepticons scatter, glad to be free of Overlord's oppression. The data slug that contains the various records from the Aequitas trials are entrusted to Prowl. Last Stand of the Wreckers

After dropping off the Wreckers on Garrus-9, Ultra Magnus arrives on Earth to investigate the death of Ironhide and surrender of Optimus Prime. Afraid of being arrested by Magnus, Hoist, Tracks, Beachcomber and Blurr leave to join Hot Rod, but all except Blurr are captured by Skywatch and used as leverage by Spike for Optimus Prime to talk. Magnus leaves to find Hot Rod. A Rude Awakening

Bumblebee’s feelings of inadequacy, combined with the derision he faces from his fellow Autobots, pushes him into making a reckless deal with Colonel Gordon Horiuchi. Horiuchi promises the Autobots protection from Skywatch if they capture Decepticons, but at the price of being immobilized if they disobey. Skywatch quickly forces Bumblebee's troops to capture other ‘’Autobots’’, starting with Blurr. After Bumblebee's immobilizing badge is damaged, he locates the creator of the badges and personally destroys them, defeating Skywarp and proving his worth as leader of the Autobots in the process. The Transformers: Bumblebee

Ultra Magnus shows up and tries to arrest Swindle, but Rodimus defends his ally. Seasons in Flight Ultra Magnus takes several Autobots from Bumblebee's group with him to help him detain Swindle and the rebellious Rodimus. Swindle uses the Stunticons to test some experimental combiner technology, and when Ultra Magnus arrives Swindle betrays Rodimus and unleashes Menasor to kill the Autobots. Enemies of the System

Spike releases Optimus Prime to battle Menasor, but the combiner is undone after the Stunticons fail to unite their minds into a workable gestalt. The battle prompts Spike to realize that the Autobots are not part of the problem. Skywatch forges a new alliance with Bumblebee's Autobots, while Rodimus steals Ultra Magnus's spaceship and strikes off on his own. Earthworks

The space-bound Decepticons fare little better than their Earth-bound counterparts; Starscream’s poor leadership, combined with dwindling fuel sources, leads to the collapse of the Decepticon faction. Altered Carbon On a desolate asteroid, the Decepticons scrounge for fuel and cannibalize each other for Energon and parts, All His Engines‎ a barbaric practice encouraged by Predacon general Razorclaw, who travels to space following a failed combiner experiment. The Iron Klaw The other Predacons remain on Earth, where they eventually join the government of China as border guards. Hawk Among the Sparrows

Well, I'm back, back
Well, I'm back in black
Yes, I'm back in black

Tiring of Starscream’s bungled leadership, Soundwave and Shockwave revive Megatron in a new body equipped with Titan-derived spacebridge technology. His old body is used to create replicas of his old gun mode, which contain small pieces of the Decepticon leader's consciousness. Altered Carbon

Rodimus arrives at the Decepticons' asteroid base, intending to retrieve the Matrix. He succeeds in stealing it back from Starscream, but is confronted by the newly upgraded Megatron who blasts him and the Matrix into space. Heart Like a Wheel

In his new body, Megatron retakes leadership of the Decepticons Spotlight: Megatron and sends the Megatron guns to Earth, where they quickly spread amongst unsuspecting humans with anti-Transformer sentiments. Altered Carbon

Spike disobeys orders and goes rogue, hunting down and executing Scrapper in an attempt to prevent Devastator from ever being formed again. Scrapper

On Cybertron, Alpha Trion continues his project to clean the desolate world, though these efforts are threatened by the increasingly ravenous Insecticon swarm. Trion decides to resurrect a copy of the one Autobot most suited for the job: Ironhide. The confused duplicate lacks all of Ironhide's memories from the war, but does his job well. He also recovers Sunstreaker, having survived his sacrifice years earlier. Alpha Trion and Metroplex take off for parts unknown, leaving Ironhide and Sunstreaker on the planet to finish off the Swarm. Over the course of their campaign, Sunstreaker adopts one of the failed clones as a pet, which he nicknames "Bob." The Transformers: Ironhide

As Rodimus floats through space, the Matrix bonds with him, saving his life. He crashes on the planet LV-118, where he meets Wheelie. Together with him and the alien Garnak, Rodimus steals a ship and heads to Cybertron. The Stars My Destination

Alas, neither a pirate nor a ninja.

Galvatron frees himself from the solar pool, fully fused with the Darkness. He tracks down the Dead Universe Transformers trapped on Gorlam Prime, Cyclonus and Scourge. Using his new powers, he revives Scourge, using him to create a personal guard in the form of the Sweeps. Rebirth They investigate the planet's missing inhabitants, Heart of Darkness #1 and upon learning about the D-Void's plans to destroy all Transformers, set out to raise an army to oppose it. Heart of Darkness #2

Galvatron and his men discover a block of ice in space, unaware that it contains a zombie virus brought from another dimension by the extradimensional vampire-zombie Britt. Several of Galvatron’s crew members are infected by the zombie virus, and his ship crash-lands on Earth in Las Vegas, forcing the Autobots and Skywatch to pitch in and contain the infestation. Kup is infected by the virus and transformed into a zombie, but uses Prowl’s mental link to thwart the swarm and warp Britt, her virus, and himself through time and space to the dawn of the Dead Universe. The Autobots refuse to join Galvatron's army. Infestation

Though physically unharmed by his experience, Kup is stranded within the Dead Universe and spends the next several billion years on a barren asteroid. Hello Cruel World He encounters the similarly stranded Nova Prime, who tries and fails to turn his body into a spacebridge back into the living world. No Exit

Galvatron takes his new army to Cybertron, declaring it the first line of defense against the D-Void. Rodimus also arrives on the planet where he meets Ironhide and Sunstreaker and learns of Galvatron's presence. The assorted Autobots leave Cybertron to warn Optimus Prime. Heart of Darkness #4 Out of the Silent Planet

Four months later, North Korean leader Kim Jong Du strikes a deal with three of the Combaticons, providing them with energon in exchange for their services. Under his orders, the Combaticons attack South Korea, prompting the United States government to declare the employment of Cybertronians equivalent to the use of weapons of mass destruction. The Land Ironclads Skywatch and the Autobots move out to defeat the Combaticons. To keep the public from learning that the US also employs Cybertronians, the Autobots remain in their vehicle modes throughout the battle, and are easily defeated. Ranks of Bronze

"NOTHING BAD EVER HAPPENED. EVVVVER."

Bumblebee meets with Thundercracker, who is now only interested in watching TV, and convinces him to help them. Cosmos hacks the spy satellites above Korea, allowing the Autobots to fight in robot mode. Backed up by these resources, the Autobots defeat the Combaticons. Hawks Among the Sparrows As the Autobots are attacked by the Predacons, who have a similar contract with China, Skywatch agent Sandra breaks the encryption on one of the satellites. The secret alliance between Skywatch and the Autobots is revealed to the world, and Russia attempts to nuke the Transformers, though Cosmos saves them. The energon factories in North Korea and China are destroyed, ending the threat from the Combaticons and Predacons. All My Sins Remembered

The incident turns into a PR nightmare for both Skywatch and the Autobots. Bumblebee holds a press conference, but fails to contain the unruly crowd and is grievously injured by Joe Gladki. All My Sins Remembered Megatron's Decepticons return to Earth, attacking the Autobot-Skywatch base and freeing the Decepticon captives within. The plane carrying Optimus Prime, Spike Witwicky and the rest of the Korea team is shot down over the Pacific Ocean. The Demolished Man Ultra Magnus takes charge and has the base evacuated. Altered Carbon He and his troops attempt to regroup, but are defeated by Megatron himself. Meanwhile, Starscream tries and fails to convince Thundercracker to return to the Decepticons. Woken Furies

After two days, Optimus Prime's team emerge from the oceans alive. Prime confronts Megatron, who is holding Magnus hostage, and causes him to flee by injuring Soundwave. Jazz is forced to kill a human in order to save his comrades, furthering Autobot distrust among human civilians. Burning Chrome After another meeting with Prime, Megatron surrenders himself so that he can watch from the inside as the Autobots are crushed by the humans they protect. Enemy Mine

2011

Prowl discovered his "Summon Leggy Dame" spell had failed.

Six weeks later, Rodimus and his crew arrive on Earth and return the Matrix to Optimus Prime. Learning about Galvatron's invasion of Cybertron, Optimus takes most of the Autobots and Megatron with him, Prime leaves Earth on Omega Supreme. Bumblebee, Prowl, Ultra Magnus, and several others remain behind to investigate Megatron's claims that Spike murdered Scrapper. Orphans of the Helix

Prowl investigates Spike by following him around. Police Action: Part 1 While investigating the site of Scrapper's death, he is attacked by Brawl, but defeating and interrogating yields nothing about his motives. The Autobots bring in Sandra, who enlightens them on Spike's sociopathic past. Only Forward Bumblebee and the other Autobots keep busy by tracking down rogue Decepticons, and Bumblebee singlehandedly takes down a Decepticon plot to activate a space bridge. The Question The defeat proves so humiliating that Wildrider quits the Stunticons forever. First Contact

After four months of investigation, Only Forward Spike shamelessly admits to killing Scrapper, but Prowl's fair share of questionable actions makes him unsure on what to do about it. During an attempted arrest of anti-Autobot pundit Ben Simpson, the Autobots learn that he was a facsimile created by Swindle. Under interrogation, Swindle reveals that he had been selling weapons to Skywatch via Spike for years. The alliance between Skywatch and the Autobots quickly dissolves and Spike becomes an international fugitive. A Second Chance at Eden

En route to Cybertron, Optimus Prime must choose life imprisonment or execution for Megatron's punishment in anticipation of his future trial. He tries to talk to his nemesis, but is only goaded into torturing him. Chaos Theory Part 1 When he asks Megatron what he would choose, Megatron chooses death. Chaos Theory Part 2

Cyclonus and the Sweeps take over Kimia Facility. The Autobots arrive on Cybertron, where Optimus Prime again declines to join Galvatron's army, causing Galvatron to responds with violence. Lamentations In order to reach Cybertron's core, Galvatron uses Kimia to fire on the planet's surface until the facility is destroyed from within. As the Autobots fight Galvatron's army, Megatron escapes from captivity and powers himself up using his Megatron-guns. Numbers

Excuse me sir, do you have a moment to talk about our lord and savior Deceptigod?

Megatron uses the space bridge technology in his body to summon his Decepticon army to Cybertron. The D-Void, acting through Galvatron's Heart of Darkness, mind-controls them into combining with Galvatron's troops to form the "Deceptigod". Kings While Megatron fights and defeats the Deceptigod, Galvatron reaches Vector Sigma and inserts the Heart of Darkness into it, hoping this will stop the D-Void from entering the universe when in truth it does the opposite. Optimus Prime stops the D-Void from turning Cybertron into a portal to the Dead Universe by opening the Matrix of Leadership into the planet's core, emptying the artifact completely. Genesis Galvatron and his forces are defeated, and the cleansing of Vector Sigma has the unexpected side effect of “resetting” Cybertron back to a living, primordial state. Though the planet is habitable once again, it is also wild and untamed, and all indications of Transformer civilization have been lost. Every Cybertronian in the universe receives a simple message, courtesy of Vector Sigma: “come home.” With the Decepticons in shambles and Megatron missing, the Great War is considered over, though the Autobot victory proves pyrrhic. The Death of Optimus Prime

Over the next three weeks, Bumblebee’s team returns to Cybertron, taking care to remove every piece of Cybertronian technology they can find on Earth before they depart. Secret Raiders Joining up with the other Autobots on Cybertron, they successfully inter the weakened and disoriented Decepticons within the wreckage of the Kimia satellite and plant them with I/D chips to keep them docile. Before they can begin rebuilding society, however, they are joined by tens of thousands of neutrals, deserters, refugees, and other assorted noncombatants. Prowl dubs the hordes of civilians “NAILs”.

Remember to share, kids. Peace, I'm out.

Tensions between the three groups grow until Optimus Prime, having inadvertently time-jumped three weeks forward following his defeat of Galvatron, arrives in the shantytown that was once Iacon. The Autobots bring him up to speed, though ex-Autobot Metalhawk, de facto speaker for the NAILs, makes it clear that his people want neither the Autobots nor Decepticons on “their” planet. When riots break out in the streets due to his presence, Prime departs the planet and entrusts the empty Matrix halves to Bumblebee and Rodimus, who are split on whether to stay and rebuild Cybertronian society, or go in search of the Knights of Cybertron in the hopes of starting anew on Cyberutopia . Prime leaves, and declares that, without the Matrix, he is “Orion Pax” once more – and that Optimus Prime is dead. The Death of Optimus Prime

Though the Cybertronians have left Earth alone for the time being, the effect they have on the shellshocked planet is profound. Embroiled in controversy, Skywatch is considered defunct and is shut down by the United States government. Several operatives are shunted into its successor, the international Earth Defense Command, headed by Marissa Faireborn. Detonation Boulevard The Iron Klaw Determined not to let another invasion happen on her watch, Faireborne and the EDC reverse-engineer what technology they can find, producing new anti-Cybertronian weaponry such as mind bombs and particle-based warheads. The Mind Bomb Around this time, eccentric tech industrialist Garrison Blackrock comes to prominence, head of the Onyx software and engineering firm. Unbeknownst to anyone on Earth–including himself–Blackrock is a false identity constructed by Sovereign. As "Blackrock," Sovereign succeeds in collecting dozens of Transformer artifacts from their recent conflicts on Earth, including the corpses of Ramjet and Thrust and the Enigma of Combination. ONoffON From the former two artifacts, he creates an army of Seeker clones for the EDC, which are augmented to combine through the energies of the Engima. I Dream of Wires

"It is well that war is so terrible, otherwise we should grow too fond of it."

Among their many anti-Transformer initiatives is “Project Spectrum;” a series of experimental weapons designed to use the Transformers’ chameleonic natures against them. Following the mysterious loss of Cornelius Trakker, Adventure Team alumni Miles Mayhem steps up and refines it into the “M.A.S.K.” program. Matt Trakker profile in Revolution #3

The Transformer war is soon overshadowed by a new crisis on Earth: the threat of Cobra, an omniscient human conspiracy centuries in the making. Joe Colton becomes the head of a special missions team named in his honor. G.I. Joe’s victory turns pyrrhic when their conflict leads to the nuclear devastation of Nanzhao, remembered as second only to the destruction of New York in modern history. Though Cobra is no more, G.I. Joe is mothballed shortly afterwards, with some operatives like Ayana Jones transferred into the ranks of the EDC. Secret Raiders

2012-2013

Wait for it...wait for it...

Rodimus gathers a crew of two hundred Autobots and purchases the Unitrex-1 during the Festival of Lost Light. The event inspires him to rename the vessel the Lost Light. Hoping to learn more about the secrets behind creating Phase Sixers, Prowl manages to convince Rodimus to take Overlord with them in the hopes of using Chromedome’s mnemosurgical skills to probe the Decepticon's memories. Remembrance Day The Sound of Breaking Glass Before they depart, Chromedome, his Conjunx Endura Rewind, and Ratchet discover Tailgate and take him aboard. The Lost Light departs Cybertron shortly afterwards... but the quantum engines malfunction shortly after the ship launches due to a mishap involving Overlord's slow cell The Chaos of Warm Things, and the vessel vanishes in a fiery explosion. How to Say Goodbye and Mean It

"You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy."

The loss of the Lost Light causes ructions between the Autobots, Decepticons, and NAILs; the latter faction believing that the Autobots are now publically discouraging anyone from leaving their shantytown. Having made the difficult choice to release the Decepticons to help keep the peace, Bumblebee is forced to put down Horri-Bull when the Decepticon oversteps his authority. The Autonomy Lesson

Around this time, war hero and all-around do-gooder Thunderclash decides to strike out on his own search for the Knights of Cybertron aboard his own ship, the Vis Vitalis. He discovers the lost colony of Caminus and recruits three of the inhabitants – Windblade, Chromia, and Nautica – to join him on his quest. Burning Bright A 'Bot and Her City

An attempt on Bumblebee's life via Ratbat leads to the latter's death and prompts Starscream to start working with Bumblebee's Autobots in their efforts to rebuild a functioning government. The World & Everything in It Bombshell secretly continues Shockwave's old combiner experiments, which results in Prowl, at the end of his tether and increasingly emotionally closed-off, seemingly executing him. Devisive Ironhide salvages the situation by petitioning to have the I/D chips installed in the Decepticons deactivated. A Better Tomorrow

After Barrel Roll dies, Silverbolt and his crew of Aerialbots leave Iacon to start anew in the wilderness beyond. Stick Together Ironhide then recruits the Dinobots to try and find the missing fliers; they discover that the lands beyond Iacon have a disorienting effect on Cybertronians. Dinobot Hunt

HEEEEERE'S JOHNNY!

Meanwhile in space, the Lost Light rematerializes, twice; the peculiar quantum engines mean that the explosion creates a duplicate Lost Light, one on-course and one off-course. The on-course Lost Light and its duplicate crew embark on a series of improbable adventures that ends when the Decepticon Justice Division, on the trail of the traitorous Overlord and tipped off to his location by conflicted double agent Brainstorm, kill everyone aboard save Rewind. The Road Not Taken

The other Lost Light, however, materializes near the edge of the galaxy, where the crew meets Skids and contends with the Sparkeater. Hangers On The Chaos of Warm Things The Sparkeater’s rampage accidentally damages the slow cell containing Overlord, which alerts paranoid security director Red Alert to the stowaway. How Ratchet Got His Hands Back

Grimlock in stained glass.

On Cybertron, Wheeljack investigates a mysterious time machine brought to the planet by Turmoil. Interference Patterns This has repercussions across the galaxy; far away from Cybertron, Orion Pax, Hardhead, Garnak, and Wheelie discover that Jhiaxus, Bludgeon, and Monstructor are carrying out a part of Shockwave’s Regenesis program to alter the future using the chronologically-destabilized world of LV-117, a plan involving Turmoil's time machine. Thought they thwart Jhiaxus' scheme, the planet is destroyed. Syndromica (1) Syndromica (2)

On the planet Clemency, a band of misfit Decepticons stumble on Fulcrum, a cowardly K-Class suicide bomber. Together, they investigate an anomalous Worldsweeper ship containing numerous strange experiments and a brain-damaged Grimlock, whom they reactivate to battle the Decepticon Justice Division. The Scavengers reluctantly take him on. Who's Afraid of the DJD?

Shortly afterwards, the ship chances on the planet Theophany, former home of the now-missing Circle of Light. The crew discovers Metrotitan, and help the struggling Titan return to Cybertron by using Brainstorm’s mass-displacement gun to shrink him to a manageable size so he can safely teleport away. You, Me, and Other Revelations

This can't end well.

Metrotitan materializes within the ruins of Crystal City, where his arrival interrupts the search for the missing Autobots. Starscream investigates, and the Titan proclaims him the "chosen one" before his destabilized molecules explode and teleport him away All Good Things to Monument Valley on Earth. As Above... So Below Before Starscream can use his new standing to tip upcoming elections in his favor, Iacon is thrown into chaos when Megatron returns. City on Fire

Having experimented with combiner technology in the wake of the D-Void’s defeat, Megatron has secretly collaborated with several Decepticons to perfect the process and create a new, more powerful Devastator from the remaining Constructicons... and using Prowl, who has been under Bombshell’s mind control all along, as a guinea pig. Heavy Is The Head

The new Devastator lays waste to Iacon, but is defeated by Ironhide, the Dinobots, and the Aerialbots, the latter group having accidentally combined into a new combiner named Superion. The End of the Beginning of the World Wheeljack sacrifices himself to neutralize Megatron, while Superion helps defeat Devastator and return Prowl to his senses. Starscream kills Metalhawk to exploit the NAILs and uses the political leverage to declare himself as the sole ruler of the "Republic of Cybertron," casting both Autobots and Decepticons out into the wilderness. Heavy Is The Head Starscream recruits Rattrap as his second-in-command and finds a useful stooge in the religiously-inclined Scoop Three Monologues after taking custody of the comatose Superion and secretly placing Wheeljack into stasis. Heavy Is The Head

A subsequent stopover on Hedonia Cybertronian Homesick Blues brings the Lost Light crew into contact with a group of Ammonites, and a game of one-upmanship goes wrong when Whirl annihilates Terradore commander Imperius Drax. With Drax's successor pushing the Terradores towards a dangerous conclusion, the Ammonites join forces with Shockwave. The Dead Are Not Enough Megatron's defeat pushes Shockwave into accelerating the development of his Regenesis program – having evolved into an ambitious plan to end the universe so Cybertron can live forever. Shockwaves

Not far away, Metroplex detects Ore-7, and Shockwave dispatches his Ammonite army to reclaim the sample. The Ammonites prove incapable of bringing the Titan down, but are successful in incapacitating him with a sample of Ore-2. Having contracted an alchemical virus from exposure to the deadly ore, a grievously wounded Metroplex jettisons his thumb and the Ore-7 sample before splashing down beneath the oceans of Hydrophena to recuperate. The Becoming

Metroplex's thumb impacts the Lost Light, leaving a reluctant Trailbreaker to fight off Lockdown and his crew of Titan Hunters. The Reluctant Specialist Meanwhile, Hoist and a crew of Autobots cope with a leftover phobia shield. The Waiting Game

";"

When Rewind is grievously injured in a battle on Temptoria, the possibility of losing his beloved sends Chromedome into a grief spiral that eventually sees him tapping Overlord's memories. Remembrance Day Unfortunately, Chromedome accidentally allows Overlord to escape, and Rewind has to sacrifice himself to jettison the monster from the ship. Under Cold Blue Stars Not wanting to jeopardize a great destiny he has forseen for Rodimus, Drift volunteers to take the fall for the incident and is exiled from the ship. The Gloaming Overlord's drifting body is found and taken in by the Galactic Council, who rebuild and recruit him into their service. Your Fierce Tears

Ultra Magnus is also fatally wounded in the battle, but his body disappears from the ship's Medibay. The crew track the Magnus Armor and discover lost moon of Luna 1, The Fecund Moon where they discover Chief Justice Tyrest, who has gone rogue and constructed a universal killswitch designed to eliminate all Transformers who were constructed cold in an act of religious genocide, helped by mad doctor Pharma and knight Templar Star Saber. The crew discovers the secret of Minimus Ambus and eventually defeat Tyrest by using their half of the Matrix to overwrite the killswitch, sacrificing their map to Cyberutopia in the process. This Calamitous Life

They're Windblade and the Brain
Windblade and the Brain
One is a Titan, the other's a plane!

Alpha Trion makes contact with Thunderclash and persuades him to send his Camien crew members to Hydrophena, where Windblade uses her cityspeaking talents to tend to Metroplex's many injuries. Burning Bright

Believing that Shockwave's plans will involve the Enigma of Combination, Alpha Trion correctly deduces it to be on Earth. He travels there to retrieve it, but his vessel is shot down by the Earth Defense Command and he is taken hostage to forward the development of the EDC's weaponry. The Crucible Full Fathom Five

With his pieces in place, Shockwave puts the final pieces of his plan into play. At the request of his old student, Jhiaxus manipulates Orion Pax into awakening a Titan slumbering beneath Gorlam Prime and transports it to Cybertron, transforming it into a undead "Necrotitan" that lays waste to Iacon by unleashing a "death plague" that brings the dead back to life, including Metalhawk. Dark Dawn Winners & Losers

"Our arrows will blot out the sun!"
"Good; then we will fight in the shade."

Shockwave creates a portal to the Dead Universe to summon Nova Prime and his ancient Cybertronians. Dark Dawn Bumblebee makes an alliance with Soundwave to stop this, but their strike on Shockwave's base proves only partially successful, as Galvatron reemerges before they can close the gate. Finest Hour Gorlam Prime collapses into a Dead Universe portal, and Orion and his crew are saved by the Lost Light. Orion and Hardhead venture into the rift to stop Shockwave's plot. Black Metal Though Hardhead perishes, Orion succeeds in rescuing both Nightbeat and Kup from the thrall of the Dead Universe. In the ensuing fight against Nova Prime, Prime finally kills his villainous predecessor and retakes the title of "Optimus Prime." Finis Temporis

With the Lost Light on Jhiaxus' tail, the ship makes a detour to Hydrophena, where they encounter Metroplex’s body, Winners & Losers his Camien caretakers, The Dead Are Not Enough and an army of Ammonites. Into the Abyss The crew use their ship’s engines to power up the Titan and return him to Cybertron. In the ravaged remains of Iacon, Bumblebee and Megatron form a strange alliance, Burning Bright and the Decepticon leader uses his internal space bridge to teleport Metroplex’s thumb back to its rightful owner, giving Metroplex the energy to kill the Necrotitan and counter the plague. Finis Temporis

Unfortunately, all of this plays right into Shockwave's metaphorical hands; having lured all of the elements in his final plan to Cybertron – and having eliminated Nova Prime's control over the Dead Universe – Shockwave begins his final endgame , using Jhiaxus' chronal drive and the power of all fourteen ores to collapse all of reality into a singularity that will feed Cybertron for all eternity. Finis Temporis The Becoming

WHAT.

Prime, Bumblebee, and Megatron confront Shockwave beneath Crystal City Black Planet while Metalhawk sacrifices himself once again to destroy the Ammonite army. ...And the Damage Done Shockwave shoots Bumblebee Black Planet but the Autobot's sacrifice moves Megatron - having slowly realized the error of his ways – to announce that he is changing sides. Shockwave's incredulity breaks the shadowplay, and, horrified at what he has become, he allows Optimus Prime to put him down. Crystal City collapses into a singularity and drags Bumblebee’s body with it. ...And the Damage Done

Though the Transformers have saved reality, the events of the crisis have changed Cybertron forever. In the aftermath, Autobot Megatron allows himself to stand trial for his crimes against the species, Towards Peace while the three Camiens struggle to adjust to their new lives. With the Decepticons left betrayed and rudderless, a new warrior steps up to take command... Galvatron. Hello Cruel World

2014

Cast in the name of Primus.

Megatron’s trial in the Raskol Arena lasts for five months, and though Megatron initially pleads guilty, Starscream's blustering testimony convinces him to change his plea to "not guilty." Words Hang in the Air The ex-Decepticon escapes immediate sentencing on a technicality. Requesting to be judged by the Knights of Cybertron, he joins the crew of the Lost Light as co-captain alongside an annoyed Rodimus. Before leaving Cybertron, he announces that the Decepticon cause has failed and that all active Decepticons are to stand down. Predestination: A Beginner's Guide

Awkward!

Those Decepticons still loyal to the cause rally under Galvatron’s new banner. Soundwave joins Galvatron’s splinter group, announcing that they will follow the true Decepticon path and seek peace. Galvatron leads his new troops to Earth, where they meet with General Witwicky and Director Faireborn. The neo-Decepticons convince the skeptical humans of their good intentions by telling them that Megatron has defected to the Autobots, though Galvatron openly chafes under the idea of working alongside humans. Detonation Boulevard In exchange for aid against the Autobots, G.B. Blackrock sponsors the construction of Sanctuary Station in orbit around Jupiter, which will house the new Decepticon movement. Full Fathom Five

As the Autobots and their new allies settle in, Optimus Prime decides to lead a small crew of Autobots (and Prowl's Constructicon hangers-on) back to Earth aboard the Ark-7 in search of Alpha Trion. Hello Cruel World Detonation Boulevard

Metroplex transforms into his city mode and links up with the ruins of Iacon, providing housing, power, and infrastructure for any in need. Towards Peace In time, a "ghetto" of Decepticons springs up around his outskirts, while the Autobots and NAILs live inside the Titan. First Contact Though alive, Metroplex is barely functional, and over several months Windblade slowly nurses him back to health. A 'Bot and Her City As Metroplex recovers, he begins searching for his Titan brethren, scattered throughout the galaxy. Eventually, he locates Navitas on Velocitron, Chela on Eukaris, the remains of the dead Titan on Devisiun, Windblade #4 and Carcer, disguised as Metroplex’s lost brother Tempo.Rubicon Though most of the colonies have survived their millennia of isolation unscathed, one world is not so lucky: Micronus Prime's colony world of Mini-Cons is sterilized by the robophobic Black Block Consortia. The sole survivor, a young female named Nickel, joins the Decepticon Justice Division when they happen on the planet days after the attack. The Permanent Revolution

They're Windblade and the Brain
Yes, Windblade and the Brain
Their robotic campaign, is easy to explain

Chromia comes to the conclusion that Cybertron is too dangerous for Windblade to stay, and engineers a public crisis that will allow her access to Metroplex’s space bridge by surreptitiously bombing districts within Metroplex. Windblade #4 Windblade investigates and repeatedly clashes with Starscream Windblade #2, who has by this point established the Badgeless troopers as enforcers of his will. Windblade #3 Windblade is horrified when she learns the truth, but strikes an uneasy deal with Starscream in the name of the greater good: in exchange for keeping Chromia’s crimes hidden, Windblade will allow Starscream to contact the other lost colony worlds, help her impoverished home and rebuild the Cybertronian empire with himself at the helm. Though her friend walks free, Windblade is left conflicted by her friend's duplicity and her own moral compromise. Windblade #4

Old Primes never die, they just get to be lab rats.

Entering Earth's orbit, the Ark-7 runs up against post-invasion humanity, who deploy sophisticated orbital defense systems derived from Cybertronian technology against them. Sneaking to Earth aboard Sky Lynx, Optimus, Kup, and Jazz encounter Thundercracker, who has gone native on Earth and turned his love of television into a career as an aspiring screenwriter. Thundercracker and his new pet Buster are bait, however, and the Earth Defence Command arrives to arrest the Autobots. Hello Cruel World The Autobots flee to the town of Poverty Flat, where Prowl and the Constructicons deploy Devastator against their foes. Detonation Boulevard The Autobots escape custody and return to their ship, where they trace the development of the “mind bomb” to an EDC base on Bikini Atoll. The Autobots manage to infiltrate the facility, where they discover and free Alpha Trion. In the conflict, Galvatron kills General Witwicky. Full Fathom Five

Trion explains the sordid history behind the Enigma of Combination, prompting the Autobots under Prowl’s command to search for it The Crucible while Optimus returns to Cybertron. Signals, Calls, and Marches A globetrotting chase across the world ensues as Prowl's Autobots race Galvatron’s Decepticons to find the artifact before the Decepticon leader can destroy it. Vs. ONoffON As they close on the Enigma, Prowl and his Constructicons form an unlikely alliance with Spike Witwicky to infiltrate Blackrock’s Onyx facility in China. Devastator’s hatred of Spike jeopardizes the mission and causes him to lose control of the Enigma to the Decepticons… who in turn, lose it to Starscream’s double-agent Scoop, who has been working within the Decepticons as a mole. ONoffON The Obliterati

[Feels intensify]

In deep space, Megatron continues to grapple with his legacy while dealing with the less-than-accepting crew of the Lost Light, including his old nemesis Whirl. Predestination: A Beginner's Guide A freak transmission and a mysterious coffin causes the Lost Light and its crewmembers to start disappearing, a phenomenon caused by their approach to the quantum duplicate of the Lost Light. Twenty Plus One The Lost Light crew investigates the wreckage of the ship and discovers the "other" Rewind, who is reunited with his beloved Chromedome. slaughterhouse The Road Not Taken Immediately afterwards, Brainstorm, who has been perfecting the development of a portable time case, takes the Lost Light crew out of commission and escapes backwards through history with the intention of talking Megatron out of starting the war and saving Quark from his eventual fate. All Our Parlous Yesterdays A team of Autobots chase Brainstorm across time to prevent a alternate timeline from overwriting reality entirely and succeed in preventing the increasingly desperate scientist from killing Megatron at the moment of his creation - but not without creating some critically important time loops along the way. Predestination: An Expert's Guide

Good god, y'all.

Ratchet decides, after some soul-searching, to leave the Lost Light and go off in search of his friend Drift. Our Steps Will Always Rhyme He tracks the wayward Autobot to the outer rim of the galaxy, and joins Drift in confronting his old commander Gigatron and Hellbat over an army of ancient automatons. Ratchet agrees to help Drift, but only if he promises to return to the Lost Light at the conclusion of their adventure. Drift: Empire of Stone

Learning of Megatron's defection from a postwar edition of his manifesto, Tarn briefly despairs, but his grief hardens into a resolve to kill Megatron, whom he considers a traitor. He joins forces with Deathsaurus' troops in preparation for all-out war against Megatron. The Permanent Revolution

With Windblade’s repairs on Metroplex nearing completion, Optimus arrives on Cybertron and helps bring Autobot serial killer Sandstorm to justice. Punishment

2015

Starring: Space Jesus, Space Peter, and Space Judas.

Starscream resuscitates Wheeljack to help repair Superion with the help of the Enigma and aid Windblade on Metroplex’s space bridge.The World of Tomorrow Having established a stable link between the two worlds, Cybertron prepares to make official “first contact” with Caminus after millions of years of mutual isolation. Starscream uses both Menasor and Superion to stage a combiner attack on the planet to win them over, but discovers that the Camiens, like most colonists, consider Optimus Prime to be a divine being, and immediately fall behind him on learning of his existence. The Sum and Its Parts Caminus' leader, the Mistress of Flame, comes to believes that Optimus is the "Arisen," the legendary Thirteenth Prime, a belief not held by Pyra Magna or her Torchbearers. The Medium and the Message

"You have failed. We will find another way."

Windblade and Optimus collaborate to undermine Starscream’s imperialism from within, and manipulate him into announcing the formation of the “Council of Worlds”, a democratic parliament where Cybertron and its colonies will all have an equal voice. The Possible Light Infuriated by news of Starscream's scheme, Prowl and the Constructicons arrive on Cybertron to forcibly cut the planet off from the rest of the galaxy, but Starscream stops them by creating Defensor from a group of Lost Light delegates. Mistakes and Mayhem Starscream takes custody of Devastator and rebuilds him to incorporate Scoop, forcing the combiner into obeying him. Rattrap, who is secretly a double agent working for Prowl, releases Prowl from prison and gives him the Enigma. You, Me, and the Universe

When Devastator and Menasor go berserk, Prowl uses the Enigma on himself, Prime, and several other Autobots to create Optimus Maximus, who battles Devastator in a fight that spans across the lost colonies. Swindle leads a riot at Metroplex’s space bridge; he is shot and presumed dead,All That Remains but Rattrap and Wheeljack secretly hide the brain-damaged Cybertronian, knowing that he has incriminating information on Starscream. Things We Said We'd Never Do The rogue combiners are defeated, paving the way for the creation of the Council of Worlds. Across the other colonies, the inhabitants are alerted to the fact that Cybertron still exists, and prepare for their own first contacts with their ancestral homeworld. All That Remains Optimus visits Prowl to try and reconcile, but the increasingly unstable tactician rejects his attempts. Their disagreement escalates into a full-on fistfight, and Rattrap has no choice but to spirit Prowl’s broken body to safety. On Earth, Galvatron and Arcee arrange a clandestine meeting, where Galvatron reveals the otherworldly source behind G.B. Blackrock’s Onyx operating code. Now and On Earth

Bots of the Square Table.

Arcee travels to Cybertron and steals the Enigma, hoping to ensure that nobody else can be changed against their will. Windblade and Chromia track her to the Rust Sea, where they encounter Pyra Magna's group of Torchbearers. An accident leads to the creation of Victorion, the first Camien combiner. The Enigma is returned to its proper place, with Starscream none the wiser, while the Torchbearers opt to remain in the Rust Sea. An Uneventful Night Starscream and Windblade race each other to try and recruit more colonies into the Council of Worlds; after some adventuring, they succeed in convincing the citizens of Velocitron, Devisiun, Eukaris, and "Carcer" to join. The Will of the Few

In space, a series of whimsical events leads to the Lost Light crew braving the holographic "Swearth" in search of Swerve The One Where They Go to Earth, which, in turn, leads them to the Necroworld, where they meet Censere. The Not Knowing A discussion regarding the Necrobot's passivity inspires Censere to use one of Brainstorm’s discarded time cases to start travelling back in time and rescuing the “Disappeared” before they can vanish from history, storing them in stasis pods before they can overcome their timesickness. Among those brought to the present are Anode and Roller. Do Not Go Gentle

Come into my Noisemaze, said the spider to the bot.

At some point after this, Prowl is kidnapped by his old comrade Mesothulas, who has escaped from the Noisemaze and recruited Mayhem, a post-war terrorist group sporting experimental biomechanical beast modes, to capture a terminally ill Verity Carlo and Stakeout for the Aequitas data they carry. Prowl’s capture necessitates the return of the Wreckers , who assemble to rescue the disgraced strategist. Their mission takes them into the Noisemaze, where Prowl rejects Tarantulas' offer of an alliance. The Wreckers manage to free Prowl; Kup and Arcee finally sever ties with him and return to the Ark-7. Sins of the Wreckers

Aboard the Lost Light, crewmember Getaway decides that enough is enough and makes a move to incriminate Megatron by grooming Tailgate into performing a suicide mission. The Lopsided Triangle When this fails, he begins planning a large-scale mutiny, taking advantage of the crew's resentment of Rodimus' increasingly erratic leadership. How Bright Their Frail Deeds A subsequent encounter with Froid and Sunder results in a super-powered Tailgate, while Megatron decides to permanently lay down arms in the nane of pacifism. Speak, Memory: Part 1 Speak, Memory! (Part 2)

2016

Got tired of whining
A grander scheme with silver lining
For every boy and girl

The formation of the Council of Worlds brings great changes to Cybertron; Transformers from all five colonies start immigrating to Iacon, and the mix of cultures and traditions bolsters the rebuilding city. Aphelion Choose Me This new optimism has little effect on the increasingly frazzled Starscream, who starts experiencing recurring hallucinations of "Bumblebee". Unsure of his place in this rapidly changing society, Optimus Prime finds a sympathetic ear in Aileron, a young Camien who persuades him to seek out the Torchbearers. They do so, and Pyra Magna vows to build the agnostic Optimus into a worthy Prime. Aphelion At the same time, Galvatron begins recruiting new Decepticons on Cybertron, intending to restart the war on Earth via the space bridge network. The Transgressors

The Dinobots accept a secret mission from Camien-turned-Decepticon sympathizer Swift: transporting a payload of Sparks into the Cybertronian wilderness. They contend with Bludgeon’s latest wave of experiments and succeed in reigniting Alyon's old hot spot, gaining Strafe as the newest member of their team. Redemption

The old man's back again.

The faith the colonists place in Optimus pushes him into making ever more reckless decisions, and when Galvatron launches a unilateral attack on Earth, Optimus responds by using his authority to annex Earth into the Council of Worlds, permanently placing it under Cybertronian protection Once Upon a Time on Earth His actions throw both worlds into chaos; on Earth, the Earth Defense Command forms an alliance with the People's Liberation Army Mecha Force to prepare for total war against the Cybertronians, while on Cybertron, Starscream galvanizes the Council against Prime's actions. The Medium and the Message Blackrock, his status as a mechanical imposter fully revealed, forges an alliance of convenience with Galvatron’s Decepticons. It's Beginning To And Back Again Seeking a new advantage, Optimus travels to Sanctuary Station and blackmails Soundwave's Decepticons into joining him and taking down Galvatron. The Autobots battle the Decepticons underwater, where Galvatron uses the powers of the Enigma against his foes before Superion sacrifices himself to neutralize Blackrock's Enigma code. As Above... So Below

On Earth, events come to a head in Monument Valley, where Optimus, at Alpha Trion's urging, uses his control over Titans to summon Metrotitan. Optimus summoning a holy Titan convinces the colonists that Prime is, indeed, the Thirteenth Prime, and that Earth is a lost colony of Cybertron, which swings public opinion back his way. Prime, Arcee, and Soundwave subsequently pursue Galvatron to Jupiter, where Prime finally kills the ancient warrior. Hoping to repair relations with humankind, Optimus orders Metrotitan to transform and dubs the Titan "Autobot City," an embassy for Cybertronians on Earth. No Fair Fights

In space, the mutinous crew of the Lost Light make their move against Rodimus and his crew by luring them to the Necroworld under the guise of a psychic attack, and subsequently leave them to the mercies of the Galactic Council. What they don't know is that the Decepticon Justice Division has finally tracked down Megatron, and the Decepticon forces assemble to take out the traitor and his allies. How Bright Their Frail Deeds The Galactic Council arrives and deploys their new asset Overlord against Megatron. Your Fierce Tears With the help of the returned Ratchet and Drift - and through Skids' own self sacrifice - the crew manage to repel Deathsaurus' troops; Megatron renounces his pacifism and takes up arms once more to finally put down the DJD for good. In the aftermath, the crew discovers the fate of the time-hopping "Disappeared." Megatron is finally reunited with his old friend Terminus... moments before a GC geobomb detonates inside the planet. Do Not Go Gentle

They're heeeere!

The detonation shunts the entire world into a alternate reality created by Brainstorm's time-travel misadventures. Bad Moon Rising Rodimus and a small crew of Autobots attempt to teleport back to Cybertron, only to find themselves on the wrong Cybertron! Some Other Cybertron The Functionist Cybertron stands on the brink of extermination, and the arrival of the Autobots threatens to push the uneasy peace completely over the brink. A World Misplaced The Functionist Council eventually deploy their ultimate weapon against Cybertron, and Megatron steps up to lead the counterattack and rallies the Anti-Vocationist League. Modes of Production Most of the Autobots return to their home universe, but Megatron and Terminus are accidentally left behind. Megatron joins the League and begins again, this time basing his revolution on "peace through empathy." This Machine Kills Fascists

On the "real" Cybertron, Windblade and the other Council members continue to keep the peace 07:00:00 while Starscream hires exiled Eukarian Fate Spinner Airachnid to search for Swindle’s body in the hopes of permanently silencing the loose end. The Price of You Things We Said We'd Never Do Increasing tensions between the Badgeless and the civilians prompt Ironhide to step up and reform Cybertronian security. Applicable Skills Chromia and Windblade continue to search for Swindle’s body as Airachnid surreptitiously racks up a mnemosurgical murder spree, while Blast Off joins the Badgeless to bring down their organization from within. Things We Said We'd Never Do Their inquiry ends when Rattrap and Wheeljack reveal the location of Swindle’s body. The Combaticons use the Enigma to probe Swindle’s mind and merge into Bruticus, who attacks Iacon. Ironhide’s new recruits bring down the combiner, but in the aftermath Chromia confesses to her old crimes and is sent to jail. The Line Between Us

The President of the United States, furious at the EDC's recent failures, dissolves the organization in favor of Joe Colton, leading a revitalized team of G.I. Joe veterans. White Light What she doesn't know is that Joe Colton and several G.I. Joe troopers have been replaced by Dire Wraiths. Concorde Hymn

"SHUT UP, DAMMIT!"

Metrotitan broadcasts a message to the galaxy at large... a message that reaches Cybertron and awakens Infinitus from his long slumber beneath Kaon. Disgusted at what Cybertron has become, "Sentinel Prime" returns to life and rampages through Iacon before bridging to Earth. The Last Autobot There, he captures G.B. Blackrock and forcibly awakens his "Sovereign" persona White Light before leaving for Prion with Soundwave and Optimus. Claiming to be the herald of Onyx Prime's return, Sentinel attempts and fails to convince Optimus to stand with him. White Light Subsequently, Infinitus and Sovereign travel to Luna One, where Infinitus uses his powers to reactivate the Titan graveyard and send them to "cleanse" Cybertron. Infinitus perishes and Fortress Maximus, Red Alert, and Prowl manage to send his fleet of Titans off-course so that it will take months for them to reach Cybertron. Last Light

On Necroworld, the stranded Lost Lighters prepare to attempt re-contact with Cybertron using a convenient alt-mode they found amongst the dead Decepticons. Tailgate accepts treatment for his hyperactive spark, but a vengeful Fangry buries him for another six million years. After Megatron

Behold the power of brand synergy*!
(* Synergy not included.)

Several months pass, and humanity and Cybertronians uneasily coexist on Earth in spite of the Autobot's continued humanitarian efforts. Concorde Hymn All this changes when extradimensional warlord Baron Karza, hailing from Micronus Prime’s dying dimension of Microspace, sets his sights on Earth’s ample supplies of Ore-13, which he can use to save his universe. The New Colossus He cuts a deal with the Dire Wraiths and Miles Mayhem and begins transporting supplies of the ore into his dimension, which has the side effect of destabilizing the ore on Earth and threatening the planet with nuclear annihilation. Concorde Hymn Believing the Cybertronians at fault, “Colton” seeks out Miles Mayhem, who gears up to deploy M.A.S.K. in the field by using his captive Blitzwing as a source of scientific development. Secret Raiders

Colton deploys G.I. Joe in Portland against Jazz and Arcee; during the battle, Rom arrives and immediately kills the false Colton. Concorde Hymn The Autobots pursue Rom while Windblade relocates to Earth to deal with the malfunctioning Metrotitan, and a cityspeaking session catapults her into Microspace. Informed Thundercracker defends the President from a Dire Wraith incursion Thundercracker & Buster Save the World while Action Man leads a daring heist to rescue Kup from MASK captivity. The Modern World. The heroic Micronauts cut a deal with their nemesis Karza and travel to our dimension. The New Colossus

"Enerchange."

The Scavengers briefly stop by Earth, where they befriend washed-up G.I. Joe recruit MP3 and Crankcase’s online boyfriend - in reality a pacifistic Dire Wraith - as part of a mystical “Crossover”. Nothing Will Ever Be the Same Again! Abandoned by Galvatron’s Decepticons, Skywarp throws his lot in with the newest incarnation of G.I. Joe, a grudging alliance until the humans can repair the Seeker’s onboard teleportation systems. D.T.A.

Miles Mayhem, M.A.S.K., and the Dire Wraiths launch an assault on Autobot City, which turns into a free-for-all when Baron Karza arrives. Only by teaming up do the heroes manage to force the villain back into Microspace and neutralize Earth's remaining stores of Ore-13. In the aftermath, Optimus Prime and his new allies realize that they will have to defend Earth together, as equals. Valley Forge

Nothing more need be said.

Windblade returns to Cybertron just in time for Sentinel Prime’s fleet of undead titans to make planetfall on Cybertron. The Republic of Cybertron musters its defenses and prepares to fight back… Ping but their efforts aren’t enough, and as a result Starscream orders his troops to storm Carcer against the wishes of its commander Elita One and force the Titan to transform. Desperate Times Windblade joins the infiltration team, but is horrified when she learns she has awoken Vigilem after years of slumber. Desperate Measures Vigilem destroys the zombie Titans, but proves too much for Windblade to control. Metroplex releases Chromia to help her, and Elita One manages to kill the Titan… but not before Vigilem disgorges Liege Maximo, the Prime teleporting away to places unknown.Rubicon

2017

They'll let anyone be 'chosen' these days.

Prime’s adventures prove inspirational enough to recruit a whole new generation of idealistic Autobots, recruited from the colonies and religiously devoted to their leader. With his new recruits, Prime and the Autobots continue their mission of global peacekeeping while preparing Earth to join the Council. This uneasy status quo is thrown into doubt when the Junkions arrive on Earth, hoping to rebuild their world using Earth’s supplies of Ore-13. To Walk Among the Chosen A series of mutual misunderstandings caused by Prime’s increasing ruthlessness escalate the crisis to the point of all-out war between the Transformers and Junkions, as Soundwave uses Megatron's original words to turn the Junkions' servant Sharkticons against their masters, Future Glories Lost but Optimus salvages the situation at the last moment by convincing his troops to lay down arms. Feel Safe Without Regrets

The Junkions relocate to an abandoned EDC base to start the construction of “Little Cybertron,” but Slide, who has lost her brother Oiler in the hostilities, is unable to forgive the Junkions and finds herself being groomed by an increasingly ambitious Pyra Magna, who has grown tired of Prime’s leadership, What It's Really Like even as Optimus and Pyra tentatively bury their hatchet...for now. Ghost Stories

On Cybertron, Starscream - increasingly "haunted" by the "ghost" of Bumblebee Ghost Stories - picks up the pieces from the leftover Titan crisis; as part of a deal between himself and the Mistress of Flame, he releases Chromia into the Mistress’s custody so that she can hunt down and kill Liege Maximo. Heavy He subsequently has Airachnid alter the memories of the Combaticons and turn them into loyal bodyguards for his own purposes. The Price of You Meanwhile Bludgeon reawakens Trypticon, intending to lay waste to the galaxy in the name of Cybertron; the Dinobots, Sandstorm, and Trypticon defeat him, sparks Bludgeon had harvested from the Alyon hotspot subsequently developing into a wave of newborn protoforms within the belly of the beastial Titan. Salvation

Remember me, from two-thirds up the page? I still exist!

In the country of Schlteva, G.B. Blackrock investigates the Talisman and provokes a crisis aboveground when his recklessness transforms civilians into Dire Wraiths. Crisis Intervention He, Action Man, Ayana Jones, and Kup team up to chase the Talisman across the globe and beyond in the hopes of returning Ayana's G.I. Joe comrades to normal, encountering foes such as Baron Ironblood, the Predacons The Iron Klaw, and Centurion, the last of the living Eukarian Autobots...even as the frozen corpse of Domitius Major is examined by the forces of Ironblood and Garrison Kreiger. Strange Visitors

Alternate timelines

Spotlight: Mirage

"Megatron's greatest mistake was in ever allowing you to live, Prime!"

The Decepticon Mirage tracks the ailing Autobots to the Pegasus Star Cluster, where he briefly succeeds in taking Optimus Prime hostage before perishing. Spotlight: Mirage

The issue is vague on whether this sequence of events is merely a dream by the "real" Mirage or a supernatural glimpse into a true alternate timeline. A later issue would go on to explain Mirage’s hallucination as a side-effect from a long-running medical condition. However, in that same issue, he experiences several accurate premonitions of future events, which leaves the original question up in the air.

Hail and Farwell

2008

Two years after becoming a Headmaster, Hunter O'Nion continues to have adventures with his partner Sunstreaker, their minds permanently fusing into a new, singular entity. Hail and Farewell

"Hail and Farewell" was declared canonical when it was first published online. However, the subsequent truncation of author Simon Furman's intended story arcs and the subsequent "All Hail Megatron" storyline, which among other things, saw Hunter horribly tortured and killed, means that this sequence of events is incompatible with the mainstream timeline.

"Pax Cybertronia"

15 million CE

And stay off his lawn.

In a far-distant future, the Great War is over and the Decepticons have perished. An ancient Ironhide, the last surviving veteran of the Great War, tells war stories to a new generation of Cybertronians on Gorlam Prime alongside Alpha Trion. Pax Cybertronia

This sequence of events was later established to be a vision that both Ironhide and Jhiaxus experienced during the reformation of Cybertron following the events of the “Chaos” miniseries, calling into question if it was a definite glimpse of the future or merely a vision of what might be. The apparent destruction of Gorlam Prime in the main timeline suggests that this particular future may not ever come to pass.

Functionist timeline

5 million BCE

"So this is how liberty dies; with thunderous applause"

Megatron perishes on the date of his cold construction. Without Megatron’s writings to upheave Cybertronian society, the Senate grows increasingly controlling, and eventually clashes with the Functionist Council regarding the use of Nova Prime’s spark stockpiles. When the Senate seals Vector Sigma behind a wall of impenetrable ununtrium, the Council overthrows the Senate, kills Nominus Prime, and institutes hardline Functionism across Cybertron, A World Misplaced periodically altering the Grand Cybertronian Taxonomy to declare "mass recalls" of "obsolete" Transformers. The Custom-Made Now

2014

Following the dissolution of the Primal Vanguard, Minimus Ambus returns to Cybertron to find his brother an empurata victim. Rewind dies in a mass recall. The Custom-Made Now

2016

Rung digs giant robots.

A geobomb accident sends the crew of the Lost Light to Functionist Cybertron. Some Other Cybertron They battle the forces of the Council with the Anti-Vocationist League in their quest to return home, as the Council deploys Luna 2 to "harvest" Cybertronians for reforging into crusaders to cleanse the universe of everything not having a role in the eyes of Primus. Modes of Production The crew manages to return to the main timeline victorious, but Megatron and Terminus are accidentally left behind. Megatron takes command of the League and prepares to start his revolution anew, as it always should have been. This Machine Kills Fascists