Age of Wrath
| The name or term "Age of Wrath" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Age of Wrath (disambiguation). |
The Age of Wrath is a period early in Cybertron's history, characterized by the Quintesson invasion, their temporary rule of Cybertron, and the planet's revolt against their masters.
Conceptual history
The Age of Wrath's origins stem from the unproduced script The Secret of Cybertron, which introduced the concept of the Quintessons. Many of the ideas introduced in The Secret of Cybertron would find their way into the Five Faces of Darkness arc, particularly its fourth episode which introduced two key concepts: the Quintesson's control over a pre-Great War Cybertron, and their claim to having created the Transformers.
The name of this Cybertronian epoch, the "Age of Wrath", originated from Dreamwave Productions' G1 continuity Transformers: War Within: The Age of Wrath miniseries. While this miniseries involved the Quintessons and an invasion of Cybertron, the "Age of Wrath" was meant as an early name for the Expulsion of Unicron. Unfortunately, this information never made publication due to Dreamwave's collapse, and is only found in Simon Furman's script for the unpublished Age of Wrath #5.
Sometime in the late 2000s, Hasbro creatives would create the "Binder of Revelation", a 354-page production bible that combined elements from across "generations" to create an "aligned" vision for a new universe. Some of the early pages of the Binder would cover Hasbro's rough outline of this universe's timeline, with the "Age of Wraith" [sic] being placed between the "Fall of the Primes" and "The Golden Age" periods. This era, taking the concepts from G1 and the name from Dreamwave, would be explored in Transformers: Retribution and Transformers: The Covenant of Primus.
Fiction
Aligned continuity family
Because the Great Cataclysm had severely disrupted the development of Cybertron's societies, the comparatively young Cybertronian race had lagged behind in their technological and social development and lived in a largely feudal society ruled by scattered kings and warlords. When the Quintessons — the forgotten efforts of Quintus Prime — discovered the planet, they began observing the planet and its inhabitants remotely. Before long, the Quintessons began abducting lone Cybertronians and implanting probes in their bodies. One early victim was the menial worker Coldwelder, who sought medical treatment from Ratchet and Cogwheel after his traumatic experience.
Soon afterward, the Quintessons revealed themselves to the masses, landing their ships in all of Cybertron's population centers. Claiming to be emissaries sent to "uplift" Cybertron, they won the adoration of Cybertronians by revealing the secret of the T-cog, which allowed Cybertronians to assume other shapes. The Covenant of Primus Transformers: Retribution The Quintessons shared their technological knowledge with Cybertronians, artificially accelerating Cybertron's public and private infrastructure and introducing the Transformers to spaceflight and dimensional travel. The Quintessons established the rule of law and helped regulate the High Council, overseen by Sentinel Prime, a member of the Elite Guard.
Hoping to subjugate and enslave Cybertronians, the Quintessons began re-organizing the Cybertronian social structure based on the ideals of Form and Function. Many Transformers were organized into working collectives, while others, such as the Seekers, had their bodies modified with cockpits to carry their new masters around. Exodus The Covenant of Primus
The Quintesson presence on Cybertron interfered with the Well of All Sparks, to the point where some Cybertronians began emerging without names or personalities. The Quintessons claimed that this was for the best, since these new Transformers would not yearn for anything more out of life. One Transformer created during this time was D-16, who was assigned to work in the mines. The Covenant of Primus Transformers: Retribution Perhaps the most ominous development was the establishment of the Supreme Court, a kangaroo court where anyone could be imprisoned or executed based on hearsay. The Covenant of Primus
The Quintessons also began building mysterious structures, which Prowl and Bluestreak analyzed. They discovered that they were dimensional gates, or "space bridges", although it was unclear just how they worked. The final straw came when a young scientist known as Shockwave translated the Quintesson language, which Senator Soundwave analyzed... and realized that the Quintessons were discussing selling off the population of Cybertron.
The Council enacted "Plan T-Cog", which involved raiding the Well to prove that Cybertronians could transform without Quintesson assistance. The Covenant of Primus Once this was done, Sentinel Prime declared war on the Quintessons, and called the Transformers to arms. In the conflict that followed, D-16 was one of the many Cybertronians who fought the Quintessons under Sentinel's command. Transformers: Retribution One archivist known as Orion Pax did not fight on the front lines, but embarked on a secret mission to inform resistance leaders of the various Quintesson subspecies. The Covenant of Primus
With the defeat of the Quintessons, Cybertron entered its Golden Age. Exodus The Covenant of Primus Over the course of time, many Cybertronians forgot their memories of the Quintessons entirely. Although they were denied Cybertron, the Quintessons eventually annexed the Cybertronian colony world of Aquatron. Transformers: Retribution
Energon Universe
The Quintessons were responsible for the Age of Wrath centuries before Darak and Solila joined forces to return to the Sacred Ring. A Quintesson Prosecutor they met in their quest noted that his species had yet to live this down. Void Rivals #3
| Timeline of the Aligned continuity family | |||
|---|---|---|---|
