Predacon (BW)

The name or term "Predacon" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Predacon (disambiguation).

The Predacons are a faction in the Beast Era portion of the Generation 1 continuity.

You know they're evil. Their icon could poke out an optic.

Arising from the ashes of the Great War, the Predacons are, at least in part, descendants of the Decepticons, some sorces suggest they were born from what remained of the original five Predacons. By order of the Pax Cybertronia, they exist as something of an underclass, appearing to be equals, but firmly under the Maximals in the social order. This has led many Predacons to hold bitter grudges against the Maximals.

When Predacons take beast modes, they tend to be dinosaurs, reptiles and arthropods, although this is not a hard-and-fast rule.

The adjective for "of or pertaining to the Predacons" is Predaconial, though it is extremely common to simply substitute 'Predacon'.

You do not know the Predacons. We—they live for the glory of conquest.Dinobot to Tigatron, "Law of the Jungle"

When Predacons talk truce, it just means they need time to reload their weapons.Optimus Primal, "Before the Storm"

Prosper or perish is the Predacon way of life, and we plan to survive by driving the Maximals into extinction!Megatron, Beast Wars video game site

Japanese name: Destrons

French-Canadian name: Prédators

Polish name: Predatony

Origin

We do not know the origin of the Predacons, beyond the fact that they are descendants of the Decepticons. They were in existence and at war with the Maximal Imperium prior to the signing of the Pax Cybertronia, at which time most laid down their arms, but a few went rogue.

Different contiuities present differing, sometimes conflicting accounts. One account says that Razorclaw founded the Predacons (reusing his old team's name) after the Decepticons' defeat, and that they took the fight to Cybertron and could have won if the Tripredacus Council hadn't stolen control for themselves. Timelines Razorclaw's bio card Others have the Predacons and Decepticons co-existing for a time. The Razor's Edge Descent into Evil Beast Wars Sourcebook When Megatron was in a bad mood, he's said the Predacons came after the Great War. Code of Hero The Agenda (Part III)

In at least one Micro-continuity the Predacons existed as far back as the 1990s, operating on human inhabited Earth under a Megatron. Optimus Primal vs Megatron! Tarantulas toy bio It has ben recorded that their way of life was to prosper or perish, and their leader swore they'd do this by driving the Maximals into extinction! Megatron (1996) bio Of course, this may be Maximal Elder propaganda.

Organization

The Predacons, although apparently governed by an organization known as the Predacon Alliance, appear to be a rather splintered faction. One of the major ruling bodies is the Tripredacus Council, but it is possible they represent only one political voice within the Alliance. As Predacons are known to look down on a democratic system of governance and appear able to accept power plays and treachery if it succeeds Master Blaster, Predacon government can be assumed as autocratic and based on whoever can hold on to power successfully.

The Tripredacus Council keeps its followers pacified under the Pax Cybertronia with the promise of a slow, sly return to power, whispering of a long-term plan to overthrow the Maximals when the time is right. A number of Predacons have expressed dissatisfaction with this approach, leading renegades such as Megatron, Galvatron and Magmatron to recruit private armies of followers and, either covertly or overtly, strike out against the Maximals on their own. Nearly all known Beast Wars-era Predacons tend to fall within the arms of these criminal renegade militias, with the exceptions of Tarantulas and Ravage, who were members of the Predacon Secret Police, and the Tripredacus Council itself. It is unknown whether the Predacons have any sort of official standing army or defense force other than this internal Secret Police.

In one continuity, following the Great Reformatting, a revived Predacon force under Razorclaw was preparing for war; though the Tripredacus Council seemed absent and we don't know how large this new insurgent force truely was. Dawn of Future's Past In another, seperate continuity, thousands of years after Beast Machines, the Predacons have been shown to be actively at war with the Maximals across the galaxy Autorollers Roll Out! Big Convoy, Move Out and have an official army with a military academy. The top military rank at this time is "Emperor of Destruction", and any governing force beyond that is unknown. (Note: The placement of this last material is a rather dubious Japanese retcon wich creates numerous issues within the material as originally presented. )

Society

We don't know much about the Predacons' general lifestyle. All evidence suggests a very militant warrior culture, with power grabs endemic. This is even enshrined for some in an honour system, where seizing control by force if you think you could do a better job was seen as an honourable, proper act. Predacon honour also put great stock in bravery in battle, a glorious end, and paying off your debts. The fact that the honour system allows for treachery has left Maximals confused. We do not know how widespread this honour system actually is, as the majority of Beast Wars (admitedly criminal renegade) combatants were happy to ignore it.

A number of Predacons are scientists. Academic knowledge and expertise seems respected as long as you can also fight; if you can't, you get looked down on.

Some Predacons have gone for more esoteric skills, such as magic.

Unsurprisingly, Predacon society has a strong criminal element. Both individual thieves and organised gangs are known. Some gangsters, such as Cryotek, have become hideously powerful and bold enough to attack the Maximal government.

Bases of operation

It is even unknown where exactly the Predacons are based.

The Tripredacus Council holds meetings aboard a space station, Predacon Command Outpost One.

While one would presume the Predacons also had some sort of presence on Cybertron itself, there's evidence to the contrary. After the Beast Warriors' return to Cybertron following the events of Beast Wars, Optimus Primal, Megatron, and others refer frequently to the missing population as Maximals only. This seems to suggest that they expected the number of Predacons on the planet to be negligible, if not zero. The only notable mention of Predacons in the series comes when Rattrap wonders what the murderous Tankor would have been like if he'd been reformatted from a Predacon instead of the Maximal Rhinox.

In real life terms the Predacons were excluded from the Beast Machines show and toy line for fear of confusing children with a third faction. Beast Machines story editor and head writer Robert N. Skir suggests in his FAQ pages that the Predacons suffered the same fate as the Maximals, though that leaves their absence rather odd.

Note

Most of the Predacons' alternate modes from Beast Wars II are vehicles instead of animals. While the Predacons from Beast Wars Neo transform into prehistoric reptiles and animals such as Dinosaurs, Pterosaurs, and ammonites.