Decoy (G1)

Decoys are drones from the Generation 1 continuity family.

"In fact, I'll do the Autobots one better: I'll destroy all my troops so my army is NOTHING but decoys!"

Decoys are drone replicas of Transformers used to distract the enemy. If Ultra Magnus's decoy is any indication, they're about half the size of the Transformers they represent. They seem to have the ability to fly, or at least fall with their arms outstretched.

Fiction

Toy pack-in mini-comic

In response to the Decepticons stealing the Creation Matrix, Ultra Magnus had RatchetFirst Aid build an army of decoys to keep the Decepticons occupied while the main Autobot team would infiltrate their base. First Aid claimed that there was a decoy in every Autobot's image.

As Magnus set the plan in motion, the decoy army flew into position and successfully distracted the Decepticons. An Autobot squad was able to get inside the base and take out the Sharkticons guarding the Matrix. Moments later, Galvatron fumed at the Autobots' ruse and declared that the Decepticons would develop their own set of decoys, presumably to try the exact same trick later on. Start Your Own Decoy Collection It is unknown if this flawless plan was ever carried out.

Toys

Takara

The Autobots will never see this one coming!

The decoys were originally developed as game pieces for Japanese Transformers board games. They were one-piece statuettes made from molded rubber. They were also sold in larger box sets:

• Cybertron Hero Collection 22

(Blaster, Bluestreak, Brawn, Grapple, Hoist, Hound, Huffer, Ironhide, Jazz, Mirage, Optimus Prime, Perceptor, Ratchet, Red Alert, Sideswipe, Skids, Smokescreen, Sunstreaker, Swoop, Tracks, Wheeljack, Windcharger)

• Cybertron Hero Collection 9

(Bumblebee, Cliffjumper, Grimlock, Inferno, Prowl, Slag, Sludge, Snarl, Trailbreaker)

• Destron Hero Collection 22

(Astrotrain, Blitzwing, Bombshell, Bonecrusher, Devastator, Frenzy, Hook, Kickback, Laserbeak, Long Haul, Megatron, Mixmaster, Ravage, Reflector, Scavenger, Scrapper, Shockwave, Shrapnel, Skywarp, Soundwave, Starscream, Thundercracker)

Several (if not all) of the Decoys were later re-released in a series of blindpacked boxes, with several new characters added to the mix: Galvatron, Rodimus Prime, Ultra Magnus, Metroplex, Bruticus, Menasor, Defensor and Superion. These figures came in multiple colors, including red, blue, yellow and green. Later still, larger figures of these eight new characters were released in a small wave of their own, standing at roughly twice the height of a normal Decoy.

Hasbro

In 1987, Hasbro brought over fifty-two of the designs as "decoys" and randomly packaged them with the smaller carded toys of the time: the Throttlebots, Aerialbots, Stunticons, Protectobots, Combaticons, Technobots and Terrorcons. The Throttlebots could come with either Autobot or Decepticon pieces, while the combiners only had decoys of the faction they belonged to.

There is one notable change in the Hasbro version of the decoys: the numbers on the back of the pieces are a simple "checklist" number.

While the Autobot pieces were only available in red, the Decepticon pieces came in both red and purple. The red versions are part of an early run and are much harder to find as they were only available early on and only with the Throttlebots, and therefore are considerably more expensive on the secondary market.

Though Laserbeak was made available in the Japanese Destron pack, he was supposedly not available as part of the Hasbro offerings, not being listed on the comic's checklist. Karl Hartman and Jon Hartman believe he was, though, and if anyone can offer photo proof of Laserbeak on a Hasbro card, contact them!

• Decoy information at TFU.info

Notes

• The one decoy drawn clearly is a copy of Ultra Magnus, yet that decoy toy was never available in the US. It is therefore unclear whether the fictional decoys correspond at all to the toys.
• The comic that advertised the decoys in US clearly states, both inside and outside of the fiction, that there is a decoy for every Transformer. Yet, this is clearly not so. In fact, nearly every decoy available was for a Transformer that was no longer being distributed. Conversely, Transformers that were then-currently available (such as Ultra Magnus, noted above) did not have a decoy available.
• This wasn't the first time that "decoys" showed up in Transformers; the concept goes all the way back to the Generation 1 cartoon episode "More than Meets the Eye, Part 3".
• A slightly tripped-out Italian Transformers commercial offered the suggestion that kids could paint their Decoy figures.