Windblade (G1)
| The name or term "Windblade" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Windblade (disambiguation). |
- Windblade is a Camien Autobot from the Generation 1 continuity family.
Windblade is a young Transformer who puts duty and truth first, even when both are difficult. Her friend and bodyguard Chromia can get frustrated at times with the strength of Windblade's convictions, and Chromia believes Windblade trusts too much. This may not be a worldview that can survive sharing a planet with Starscream, and she may learn that at times she will have to choose between truth or duty.
Windblade is a better-than-average swordswoman, but her claim to fame is her rare talent for communicating with dormant Metrotitans, for which she bears the title of Cityspeaker. Like other Cityspeakers, her face bears the markings of Caminus. Unlike her peers, however, she is not particularly religious.
Fiction
IDW Generation 1 continuity
Windblade was a Transformer who hailed from the planet Caminus, born from the hot spot within the Metrotitan Caminus who colonized the world and for whom it became named. As on the other Metrotitan colonies and unlike on Cybertron, the citizens of Caminus maintained gender dimorphism, with Windblade being female. Long cut off from Cybertron, Caminus's isolation ended with the arrival of Thunderclash; Windblade, her bodyguard Chromia, and quantum engineer Nautica joined his crew in hopes of reconnecting with their homeworld and gaining aid for their ailing planet. A 'Bot and Her City Days after their joining Thunderclash's crew, his ship the Vis Vitalis came across the Autobot sage Alpha Trion, who informed them that his longstanding partner, the Titan Metroplex, was grievously wounded and required help. With Trion unable to help due to a quest that otherwise occupied him, and Thunderclash unwell, Windblade and her friends boarded a fast shuttlecraft and sped to the ocean world of Hydrophena, where Metroplex was currently in hiding as an alchemical virus ravaged his body. The trio set themselves up inside his body, and began attempting to repair him. Burning Bright
Yes, Windblade and the brain
One is an organ
The other's fan-made!
After some time, Windblade's group was found by a team of Autobots from the Lost Light, who had been summoned there through complicated means by Metroplex himself. Using their ship's engines, they were able to give Metroplex's spark a jump-start, giving him the strength to space bridge back to Cybertron, where a battle between its inhabitants and the Necrotitan was taking place. Burning Bright Though surprised by the sight of another Titan, Windblade and the other Autobots refused to abandon Metroplex's body; presently, Megatron returned Metroplex's severed thumb, laden with the transmutative Ore-7, to him, healing him allowing him to defeat the Necrotitan. Finis Temporis Following the battle, Windblade asked Metroplex about the ore's origins, and he explained that he had picked it up during his travels and jettisoned it when he was attacked by Ammonites. Windblade related her findings to Ultra Magnus, but was unable to coax any information out of Metroplex that would help Magnus and the rest of the Lost Light crew in their search for the Knights of Cybertron. The Becoming Not long afterwards, Ammonites began to swarm Cybertron, forcing Magnus to radio Windblade to ask Metroplex for aid. The titan needed no encouragement, and began to fight the horde. Black Planet The Ammonites were subsequently destroyed by Metalhawk, after which Windblade and her fellow Camiens were called on by Mainframe to engage the splintered components of Monstructor. ...And the Damage Done
When the fighting was done, Windblade sought out Optimus Prime, to pass on a one-word message given to her by Alpha Trion before she had parted company with him: "Earth". Hello Cruel World The Mind Bomb Prime first had to preside over the trial of Megatron, which Windblade was in the audience for, Towards Peace Predestination: A Beginner's Guide but after that was done, he prepared to leave to follow Trion's trail. Windblade and Ironhide stayed behind on Cybertron, now under Starscream's leadership; Prime warned her to be wary of the Seeker, but Windblade simply returned that she was wary of everyone on this war-blighted world. Hello Cruel World
Six months after the battle of the Titans, Windblade had tried settling into life on Cybertron as it had settled into Metroplex. She had an important role as Cityspeaker to the heavily-damaged Metroplex, though she was a novice at it and Starscream, the planet's leader, grew impatient and suspicious of her. Rolling blackouts threatened the city, and after she investigated the cause of those with Chromia, she also sought advice for how to best interact with Starscream. After talking with many of the denizens of Blurr's bar, she came to the sobering realization that Starscream was a scheming opportunist who shouldn't be trusted. Not long after this revelation, an explosion seriously damaged her and put her under medical care. Moments before the explosion, she had seen Rattrap, Starscream's henchman, leaving the scene, and as she awoke from her medical bed, seeing Starscream approach her, she suspected Cybertron's leader had tried to kill her. A 'Bot and Her City
After giving Windblade a veiled threat, Starscream and Rattrap departed. Windblade revealed to Chromia that she had found traces of explosives, before the bodyguard discovered reporters spying on them. Later the two of them met up with Ironhide, who they had sent to guard Metroplex's brain. Windblade searched Metroplex's brain for reasons why Starscream would cause the blackouts, when Chromia noticed that Waspinator had let slipped in an interview that he knew something. Windblade was able to convince him to show her what he discovered despite his unwillingness to talk; a "mine" Starscream had build inside Metroplex, used to sift the Titan for the Regenesis ore in his body. Windblade returned to the reporters and brought them and the denizens of Blurr's bar down there to reveal the mine to them. Three of the Terrorcons guarded the mine, and they were more than happy to try to take down Windblade and her friends. Windblade vol. 1 #2 Though she fought back valiantly, at a moment of weakness Starscream and Rattrap interrupted the battle to arrest Windblade and the others (minus Chromia and Sky-Byte) for "crimes against Cybertron."
While the others were jailed, Windblade was interrogated violently by Rattrap. However, this interaction convinced her that while Starscream may be responsible for the mine, he was not responsible for the bomb that killed several citizens and nearly her. Then, Chromia and Sky-Byte invaded the compound to free Windblade and the others, and Windblade confided in her friend that she had discovered that Starscream was not the culprit they were after, to Chromia's shock. Windblade vol. 1 #3 Starscream and his goons were swiftly upon them, and the battle recommenced. Windblade and Chromia barely managed to duck inside Metroplex's brain room as Windblade attempted to hook up directly to Metroplex and solve everything. Merged mentally with Metroplex, finally she understood everything. She saw other Transformer colony worlds that had also broken off from Cybertron. She saw Caminus before he went lost. And, sadly, she saw Chromia in all her rage, and realized that her friend, her bodyguard, was the one who had placed the bombs in that street corner, that Chromia was willing to murder others to scare Windblade off the planet and to safety.
Supremely disappointed in Chromia, Windblade nevertheless had to keep the peace for the greater good. She plotted with Starscream to keep things buried, so that there would be a Cybertron for those lost colonies to eventually return to. Windblade left the both of them, wiser, but morally compromised. Windblade vol. 1 #4
Windblade was present when Wheeljack emerged from medical rehabilitation. Recently betrayed by Chromia and bewildered by Starscream's machinations, Windblade sought out the nearly-murdered engineer as someone she could potentially trust. After Wheeljack reluctantly agreed to help rebuild Superion, she and Ironhide observed in silent solidarity. The World of Tomorrow
When Optimus Prime returned from Earth, Windblade, Starscream, and Sludge told him about a series of murders that were targeting Decepticons. City of Steel The murderer struck again outside of Gutcruncher's bar, killing one of his friends, and so she helped Optimus Prime follow this apparent lead. Inside the bar they found a very angry Gutcruncher and an expatriated Sandstorm. It seemed to be a dead end, and the two left, but shortly afterwards the bar exploded, Fight or Flee killing everyone inside. After Windblade returned with them to investigate, Sandstorm snapped at Optimus Prime for killing his friends. This anger was short lived, and the shell of an infernus bullet was found in the wreckage, so another lead was found to follow. Quest for Fire The lead culminated in the brutal treatment and incarceration of the Firecons, and Windblade took this opportunity to raise an eyebrow at the Autobots' violent methods. Things escalate further when it seemed Slug was responsible for the murders, causing Windblade to pull Optimus Prime out of an imminent battle with him. The Killing Jar Optimus Prime realized who the real culprit was, and he enlisted Windblade and Starscream to set up a ruse to draw him out. Ultimately, the murderer was revealed to be Sandstorm. Afterwards, Windblade accompanied Optimus Prime on a personal errand to return the remaining half of the Matrix of Leadership to the spot where he had been given it millions of years ago. Optimus confided in Windblade that he was worried that violent Autobots like Slug and Sandstorm who had trouble acclimating to a post-war climate were the greatest threat to their race's newfound peace. Forever Is a Long Time Coming
On their way home, Optimus and Windblade were attacked by a group of angry Decepticons, but their attackers dispersed following the arrival of Ironhide and Chromia. Windblade escorted the other three back to Metroplex, where she revealed that the Titan's space bridge portal was back online and ready to interact with the long-lost Cybertronian colony worlds. Though she knew that reconnecting Cybertron and her homeworld Caminus could mean rebuilding the latter, she also expressed her worry to Optimus that Starscream could turn her world and the others into mere cogs in his empire. As they suspected, after Starscream learned the news of the operable space bridge, he chafed at the idea of opening up a truly representative system of government, but she and Optimus were adamant this would be the case. Later, after an awkward communication with the Lost Light, Windblade realized that something elsewhere was wrong—Ironhide and Chromia, who had been guarding the active spacebridge portal, had been struck down, and Swindle and a strangely rejuvenated Menasor had traveled through to Caminus! First Contact Chromia and Ironhide were roused, and they dashed into the portal after Menasor, and Windblade followed them once she asked Optimus to stay behind for reasons she'd explain later. Once she was back on her homeworld, she rescued Chromia (though seemingly not 100% pleased to do so), and after sizing up their challenge, she radioed to Optimus Prime for support.
Optimus sent Superion, and the battle was quickly over. Quietly, Windblade met with her world's Forgefire Parliament and pleaded for understanding in response to Cybertron's terrible first impression, and then she returned to Cybertron to explain to Optimus why she had asked him to stay behind. Caminus was a theocracy and desperate for help, Windblade explained, and spelled out to Optimus that him being a "living Prime" would mean her people would regard him as a god. This would undercut Starscream's grab for power, but she noted this would be a potentially volatile situation. As Windblade expected, when she and Optimus walked back to Caminus through the space bridge, the Mistress of Flame and her citizens immediately ignored Starscream's bloviating and circled around Optimus to bow. The Sum and Its Parts As Starscream tried to salvage his grab for power, Optimus Prime and the Mistress of Flame bristled at their differences—Optimus insisted on helping Caminus rebuild, the Mistress of Flame considered the Prime's devotion to the will of the people to be sacrilege, and Windblade grimaced at the awkwardness. As Windblade and Optimus attended to survivors, Optimus fielded a call from Prowl, and the former neglected to mention to the latter the involvement of Superion. Windblade noted that recently Optimus had claimed he never lied. The Possible Light
Back on Cybertron, Windblade, Optimus, Starscream, and two other Camiens tried to decide who would be representatives in the council, and Windblade and Starscream once again clashed in ideologies. Just as a group of representatives from the Lost Light had arrived, Windblade received word that Caminus was under attack by Prowl's Devastator, who was determined to cut off Cybertron from its colony worlds in order to stop Starscream from growing an empire. In order to stop Devastator, Starscream created Defensor, who teamed up with Superion to defeat Devastator. Windblade, acting as Caminus's representative, wanted to imprison Prowl on Caminus for his actions for an eventual trial, thus saving him from immediate execution. Mistakes and Mayhem
Although she was busy with her political duties, Windblade found the time to work on Metroplex's space bridge with Wheeljack. As they worked, they chatted about the future and the implications of re-contacting the colonies. Windblade maintained that all Transformers had a common origin in the Guiding Hand, although neither of them knew if they were doing the right thing in following Starscream. You, Me, and the Universe Things quickly heated up after Menasor escaped from captivity and rallied the disenfranchised Decepticons; Windblade was present to see the newly-born Optimus Maximus charge through the space bridge while she and Wheeljack tried to hold their positions against the rioting 'Cons. They were bolstered by the arrival of Starscream and his Badgeless, who provided crowd control. This allowed Windblade to set the space bridge back to Caminus, allowing Chromia and some emigrant Decepticons to help out. No sooner had they restored order before Defensor appeared, dragging the defeated Menasor behind him; Chromia, Starscream, and Windblade joined the fray and helped keep Menasor down.
After the conclusion of the "Combiner Wars", Windblade reported back to the Mistress of Flame, with the news that the Council of Worlds had been successfully formed. Although Windblade was still troubled by her looming duties, the Mistress's words provided encouragement. All That Remains She later returned to Cybertron. Now and On Earth
The Mistress of Flame decided to celebrate the Caminus-Cybertron alliance by declaring an official holiday; Windblade temporarily donned some ceremonial paint in honor of the occasion. Windblade was soon contacted by Chromia, who informed her that Arcee had just stolen the Enigma of Combination. The duo chased Arcee out to the Sea of Rust, where they encountered the Torchbearers: Camien explorers on a mission of their own. In the ensuing fight, Rust Dust accidentally activated the Enigma, fusing the Torchbearers together into the huge and angry Victorion. Windblade and Chromia pulled Arcee to safety before fighting Victorion. After taking out Victorion's weapons, Windblade was able to talk the combiner down and persuade her to disassemble. With the Enigma back in Starscream's hands, Windblade requested that nobody speak of this event to protect the fragile peace. An Uneventful Night
With a growing number of Camiens emigrating to Cybertron, Windblade was forced to intervene in a dispute between the Camiens and Decepticons about the usage of energy from Metroplex. As a result, she was late for the first meeting between Cybertron and Velocitron, another of the colony worlds. Knock Out wasn't impressed by her tardiness or her offers to help Velocitron improve its fuel efficiency, noting that on Velocitron politics were settled by races and no Cybertronian could outpace a Velocitronian. Undaunted, Windblade vowed to Starscream that she'd win over the Velocitronians. To this end, she invited Knock Out and his cohort Moonracer to a party at Maccadam's. Windblade took the opportunity to talk with Moonracer, who confessed that Velocitron was in a period of cultural stagnation. She informed Windblade of a race taking place on Velocitron, and encouraged Windblade to send Blurr in the hopes of brokering an alliance anyway. Windblade discussed the matter with Metroplex, although the Titan's cryptic comments about his brother Navitas proved unhelpful. With Rattrap's help, Windblade, Chromia, Blurr, and Ironhide secretly bridged to Velocitron, where they were immediately confronted with freezing cold, a wall of fire, and the wheeled city of Delta bearing down on them! Windblade vol. 2 #4
The quartet desperately tried to keep up with the city, and with Moonracer's help they were soon safely aboard. Moonracer filled them in on some of the less pleasant aspects of Velocitronian culture - in particular the steep social divide between racers and non-racers. While Blurr registered for the Benefit 500, Clocker showed Windblade and Chromia to Navitas's brain chamber; Windblade hoped to use her talents to help Blurr win the race. However, years of neglect had rendered Navitas all but senile, forcing Windblade to take drastic action. Clambering into the Titan's brain, Windblade took manual control of the Titan, reshaping the racetrack to eliminate the other competitors and guide Blurr to a suitably flashy victory, persuading the Velocitronians to join the Council. Windblade's elation was swiftly quashed when Wheeljack contacted her to reveal that Starscream was about to meet with ambassadors from one of the other colony worlds. Race Against the Light
The other planet turned out to be Devisiun, which Starscream and Superion had visited while Windblade was adventuring on Velocitron. She was momentarily confused by the dual presence of Devisiun's representatives Vanquish and Fireshot, although they assured her that they would always vote as one entity. Windblade confronted Starscream about his deceptions, and together they agreed to visit the next colony world together. The next day, they bridged to Eukaris. The Eukarian beast mode Transformers proved distrustful of Transformers with vehicle modes, although Windblade's Camien origins allowed her to speak. On Rattrap's advice Windblade concentrated on winning over Blackarachnia and Cheetor. The meeting was cut short by the revival of Chela, who was intent on killing the two offworlders. Windblade tried to reach his brain so that she could negotiate with him, but Chela manipulated his own internal structures to pin her down. Starscream took a more direct approach and simply destroyed the Titan's brain, killing him. Although Windblade was saddened by Chela's death, Blackarachnia consoled her by reciting one of her prophecies: that Chela's death was the first step on changing Eukaris for the better. Windblade vol. 2 #6
Windblade returned to Cybertron disgruntled at how events had gone, but after some encouraging words from Chromia and Metroplex, was soon accompanying Starscream to visit the next titan, Tempo. They found not the ship of pacifistic philosophers they were expecting, but a ship of warriors led by Elita One. When Elita was going to execute Starscream for lying, Windblade managed to talk her out of it and into joining the alliance. She was disturbed, however, at the secrets Elita One's people were keeping: Elita One claimed that her people had renamed Tempo to Carcer when Windblade knew from talking to Metroplex that "Carcer" was in fact the name of a different Titan. The Will of the Few
With a steady tide of colonists travelling to Cybertron, Starscream suggested a new holiday in his honour: "Chosen One Day". Although Starscream's egocentric holiday didn't turn out as he had hoped, Windblade, her friends, and several Council members visited Starscream's quarters to throw him a party anyway, putting aside their differences for one night. Choose Me
After Optimus returned from a trip to Caminus, Windblade filled him on on recent events, and the pair watched as the Dinobots came into conflict with visiting Camiens Aileron and Sterling. Aphelion Starscream later contacted Windblade after a Needlenose's Decepticons sparked a riot. Lagrange Windblade and her team tried to maintain order against the Decepticon mob, who were trying to reach Metroplex's space bridge and warp to Earth as part of Galvatron's plan. Starscream and Optimus Prime deployed Victorion and Superion to disperse the remaining Decepticons. After Wheeljack brought the bridge back online, Optimus travelled to Earth and announced that Earth was now a member of the Council of Worlds Perihelion, much to Windblade's concern. Once Upon a Time on Earth The Council of Worlds held an emergency meeting to discuss Optimus's course of action. Windblade suggested that they wait to get Optimus's side of the story, although she maintained that Optimus should not have a seat on the Council, and that the governing body should only limit itself to affairs between pre-existing colonies. Starscream was left agitated by how Windblade was willing to give Prime that benefit, when it was worse than anything he'd done.New Worlds Order
Shortly after, Windblade was left distraught by a broadcast from the Lost Light: her old friend Velocity, among others, facing execution and stating how she wanted her funeral to go. How Bright Their Frail Deeds
Kre-O online comic
Windblade was one of several Autobots under attack by Bruticus. New Military Unit Combaticon! Bruticus, Combine!
Transformers Legends comic
Windblade, "little sister" to Nijika, was created by the Zamojin to keep watch on their dream world of the Legends Universe, where wishes could come true. When it was decided that the experiment had come to a conclusion, Windblade announced the universe's imminent destruction to its denizens and used her fans to form a devastating storm. Rattrap, realizing that the universe could grant any wish, summoned Metroplex to his world; the gigantic robot pulled Windblade from the sky, causing her to reset in the process and forget all about her mission. Bonus Edition Vol. 12
Without any memory, Windblade fell into a waitress job at a "little sister cafe" in Akihabara, where she proved skilled at selling very expensive lunches to adoring customers. She also ended up squatting at Tigatron's home, much to the chagrin of Airazor. Windblade Sequel Windblade was among the dimensionally-displaced Autobots and Transformers sickness-afflicted Maximals who gathered to defend the Legends Universe from the intruding Slipstream. Bonus Edition Vol. 16 During Halloween, she dressed up as a schoolgirl to attend a Halloween party with Tigatron and Airazor, but they were interrupted by the trick-or-treating Slipstream, Blackarachnia, and Nightbird Shadow. Windblade teamed up with the similarly dressed up Arcee and Chromia to stop the Decepticons' antics, but all three were defeated and tied up by Blackarachnia. Bonus Edition Vol. 17
As the spirit energy generated by Armada Megatron's greed empowered the Zamojin, they began working to regain control of Windblade, causing her to fall ill. She collapsed in the street, prompting the nearby Armada Starscream to fill in for her at the cafe. When she arrived there herself, she had fallen back under her makers' control and was muttering that she would destroy the world. Armada Starscream Super Mode Prologue 1 Getting a hold of herself, she explained the situation to Starscream, lamenting that she was enjoying her new life in the Legends world and didn't want to destroy it. Starscream set out to put at end to Megatron's ambition, but warned Windblade that if it bad came to worse, he'd stop her himself. Armada Starscream Super Mode Prologue 2
Megatron would not give up on his desires, however, and the Zamojin were able to take full control of Windblade. Starscream was ready to sacrifice himself to destroy her in a bid to save the world, but Alpha Trion found an alternate solution that led to both Megatron and Starscream being returned to their own universe. Restored to normal, Windblade was left chastising the local toy nerds for being just as greedy as Megatron when it came to rare toys. Bonus Edition Vol. 18 When Springer arrived in the Legends Universe, Windblade and Chromia were very impressed with his handsome new body. Bonus Edition Vol. 19
TransTech
Two separate Windblades were members of a crowd of countless off-worlders in Axiom Nexus's Under City on the morning of the Waruder invasion. One of them had black thighs, the other had red thighs. Cybertron's Most Wanted
Games
Transformers Legends
Windblade and Nightbeat were dispatched from the Lost Light to explore a distant planet. There they met a group of Decepticons, and joined forces with them to battle their mutual foes, the Ammonites. Though several Ammonite attacks were thwarted by the alliance, soon differing opinions caused infighting in the group. Eventually, both the Ammonites and the Decepticons were defeated, and the two Autobots returned to their spaceship. Into the Abyss
Transformers: Battle Tactics
Windblade participated in battles against a variety of opponents, both Autobots and Decepticons. Sometimes there were many of her! She was an Epic character who could be recruited by collecting 500 units of Cybermetal, 250 units of Transmetal, and 50 cores of this character. Transformers: Battle Tactics
Toys
Generations
- Windblade (Deluxe, 2014)
- 30 OF 30
- Series / Number: 02 / #019
- Accessories: "Stormfall Sword", scabbard, tessen
- Part of the tenth wave of 2012-onwards Generations Deluxe Class toys, Thrilling 30 Windblade transforms from a jet with tilting, spinning VTOL fans and fold in front landing gear, into a robot with 'facepaint' evocative of Japanese Kabuki theatre makeup. She comes with the Stormfall Sword, a translucent blade with a turbine at the hilt, which she can hold via its 5mm post. The sword sheathes into the included scabbard, which can be held or tabbed onto slots on her thighs and back/cockpit sides, as well as be stored underneath her jet mode. Her headdress can also detach and be used as a "tessen" fan. A port under her nosecone is compatible with some action figure stands.
- She comes packaged with a copy of "Burning Bright: Dark Cybertron Chapter 8", and has a designated number as part of the Thrilling 30 line.
- Care must be taken when detaching her headdress, as its painted and clear-plastic nature makes it very tight and susceptible to breakage. It must be pulled/wiggled back, not pulled up as the instructions say.
- She was retooled to create Legends Slipstream, who was then redecoed into BotCon 2016 souvenir Airrazor. This mold also served as the basis of the non-toy Beast Wars: Uprising incarnation of Stiletto.
- Combiner Hunters (gift set, 2015)
- Accessories: "Stormfall Sword," scabbard, tessen, Spectrospear
- The Combiner Hunters redeco of Windblade not only has many of her coloring details changed, but in fact mostly stands out for its new accessory: a gigantic Spectrospear pole-arm which is taller than Windblade herself. The tooling for this weapon was originally used for the 16"-tall electronic version of Robots in Disguise Titan Heroes Bumblebee.
- This version of Windblade was only available in a gift set together with Combiner Hunters redecos of Generations Arcee and Chromia, each with their own giant new melee weapons. In the U.S., this set was exclusive to the Hasbro Toy Shop website and the Hasbro Toy Shop booth at San Diego Comic-Con 2015. In Asia, it was also available at Animation-Comic-Game Hong Kong 2015 and subsequently stocked by Toys"R"Us Hong Kong. Later, it was also available at The Falcon's Hangar booth at Singapore Toy, Game & Comic Convention 2015.
Legends
- Windblade (Deluxe, 2-14-2015)
- Japanese ID number: LG12
- Accessories: Sword, scabbard, tessen
- Legends Windblade is a redeco of Generations Windblade with various changes in color layout, mostly in vehicle mode which features much more red. Her wings and much of her fuselage are cast in red, pushing most of the black to her tail section and some highlights such as around the VTOL fans. Her nosecone features more extensive white paint and some new yellow eye-like markings on her nosecone, as well as a translucent dark blue canopy. In robot mode she has some changes to be more comic-accurate, like a slightly different hue of her Stormfall blade, red pelvis with black upper legs and much more accurate facepaint.
Notes
- Windblade is the first "officially fan-created" Transformer ever, the culmination of Hasbro's "Fan Built Bot" initiative program. Two polls on Hasbro's official website allowed fans to determine her character and physical traits (well, most of her traits - her Japanese motifs weren't an option in the poll and seem to be the work of the design team).
- From April 18th to May 5th, 2013,[1] fans decided her faction (Autobot over Decepticon), alternate mode (jet over car, truck, tank, spaceship, terran beast [land], avian beast [airborne], helicopter, motorcycle, and construction), signature weapon (sword over blaster cannon, flame thrower, mace, spear/harpoon, morning star, Cybertronian taser, nunchucks, crossbow, and long-range blaster), color scheme (red & black over green & gold, blue & silver, orange & white, or purple & bronze) and personality (valiant over sneaky, hotshot, secretive, wild man, and grumpy).[2]
- From May 10th to May 17th, fans voted on name (Windblade over Autobot Eclipse, Charon, Centuritron, Cashtron, Autobot Wraith), gender (female over male), origin (from Kaon, Iacon, Altihex, Kalis, and Praxus) and specialty (telepath over combat medic, bodyguard, recon, and close combat specialist).[3]
- Subsequently, Windblade was revealed at San Diego Comic-Con 2013, where concept sketches of her (and the piece of finished art to the right) were part of the Transformers brand presentation.
- Some of the concepts that fans voted for were tweaked or outright dropped when Windblade made her official debut. Rather than hailing from Kaon, she originated on the planet Caminus. Instead of being broadly telepathic, Windblade's job was being a cityspeaker for Metroplex.
- Concept sketches at San Diego Comic-Con showed that European knight (with visor, arm shield, and fencing foil-esque sword) and Roman warrior (with twin swords) concepts for Windblade were considered before her Japanese stylings were finalized. A different pre-production sketch gave her a Japanese hand-fan weapon in addition to her sword. Speaking of her Japanese motifs, her finalized helmet was apparently designed to resemble the hairstyle commonly worn by the onna bugeisha, the upper-class warrior-women of feudal Japan.
- At Toy Fair 2014, Windblade was noted as being the handiwork of designer Lenny Panzica, who put "probably five times as much energy" into her as the rest of his workload. A gallery of his work was posted by Hasbro on Facebook.
- Her name works on many levels: "Wind Blade" is a real variety of industrial fan blade; she turns into a jet with VTOL turbofans; Hasbro designers had said they envisioned her coursing more energy into her sword blade through a spinning turbine fan in the hilt; She has a tessen, or iron fan; and, of course, she was the fans' choice character.
- Like all non-toy robot Kreons in the Kre-O comics, Windblade is made from existing Kre-O parts. She uses the Mirage helmet, the Starscream wing-pack and the curved blade first used by Insecticon and Rampage.
Foreign names
- Japanese: Windblade (ウインドブレード Uindoburēdo)
- Mandarin: Fēngrèn (风刃, "Windblade")
