Thirteen

Vector Prime steps forward from the First 13 Tabernacle Choir with a heartfelt solo.

When Primus first created Cybertron, he created a crew of thirteen living robotic beings to man him. These beings, in imitation of Unicron's transformation abilities, were able to change their forms into the likeness of vehicles, weapons, and machinery. They were the first Transformers.

Many of the Thirteen died in a cataclysmic first battle with Unicron, where he was sucked down into a black hole and trapped along with his acolyte known as The Fallen, one of the Thirteen who had turned against his brothers and joined Unicron.

Of those that survived many abandoned their original functions and were lost to time. Only Vector Prime is known to still be following the path he was set upon by Primus.

The Thirteen

The identities of the Thirteen remain shrouded in mystery.

Confirmed members are:

• Prima, the first Transformer and first Matrix-Bearer
• The Fallen (original name unknown)
• Vector Prime

Possible hinted members are:

• Maccadam

Rumor on Cybertron says that he is one of the 13 and that his bar exists outside regular space-time, linking all realities, though sometimes this rumor is chalked up to the imaginations of the bar's drunken patrons. (The story "Prime Spark" from the Legends anthology confirms the rumor and the nature of the bar, but is of questionable canonical status.)

• The Liege Maximo

G2 establishes he was created at the same time as the first Prime, but implies that this was perhaps unintended, so leaving open whether he should count as one of the 13. Confirmed in Simon Furman's "Alignment" story as one of the first 13, but that story was "unofficial" and of debatable canonicity.

• Skyfall, Landquake, and Breakaway

In Fun Publications' fan club magazines, Unicron spends a period during Cybertron focusing his energies on gathering up the timelost original 13 Transformers in order to destroy them. In the accompanying comic, he has expressed interest in the members of the fan club combiner.

Numerous other very ancient Transformers exist, including Alpha Trion (A3), Boltax, The Keeper, and the Last Autobot but none have been yet included in the ranks of the first thirteen.

Functions

Aside from their base functions as "crew" for Primus' planet form and their duty to battle Unicron, two of the three known members of The 13 were also charged with protecting specific aspects of the multiverse. It is possible, but unconfirmed, that each of the other 13 might also have originally had an assigned role as guardian to some aspect of reality.

Vector Prime was tasked with overseeing the Space/Time Continum. The robot who would become The Fallen was tasked with overseeing the process of universal entropy and creation.

Multiversal Singularities?

There is some evidence to suggest that the original 13 are multiversal singularities like Primus and Unicron, with only one version of each of them existing throughout all the multiverse. This is however, unconfirmed.

From Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki, a Wikia wiki.