Maximal
- The Maximals are a faction in the Beast Era portion of the Generation 1 continuity.
Arising from the ashes of the Great War, the Maximals are the descendants of the Autobots, controlling Cybertron under the Pax Cybertronia.
Japanese name: Cybertrons
Physiology
The Maximals retained many similarities to their Autobot ancestors, and many of the Autobots who underwent the Great Upgrade basically took on smaller, newer versions of their old bodies. The downsized Maximal body was apparently intended mainly for better fuel efficiency and greater durability. Their has been some hinting that this was an offshoot of Micromaster technology. As was the case with the Autobots before them, Maximal robot modes frequently lack a robot-form flight option unless a flight mechanism is specifically included or unless the Maximal has an airborne alternate mode.
The greatest and most common innovation of the Maximal era is the development of pseudo-organic Beast Forms, which allow Maximal alternate modes to blend in seamlessly with the organic lifeforms found elsewhere in the universe. This technology, an offshoot of earlier Pretender tech, sheathes the Maximal's alternate form in an artificial organic "skin" and integrates organic systems and instincts into the Maximal's form. While still primarily using Energon for fuel, such Maximals have been shown to be able to eat food like organic creatures, though it is unknown if they require such food to survive or merely as an alternate energy source. The beast mode instincts are integrated to such a degree that they have been able to dominate—if not override—logic circuits on occasion. When Maximals take beast modes, they tend to favor mammals, birds, and fish, though this is not a hard-and-fast rule.
At the time of the theft of the Golden Disk, the technology to adopt such forms was reliant on external mechanisms situated in stasis pods and CR Chambers. They were mainly used for explorers and military personnel, while the general Maximal population retained classic mechanical body forms. Some time after the Axalon and Darksyde left the planet, an upgrade was instituted that incorporated DNA scanners and the ability to adopt beast forms directly into the mechanical-style bodies of the general populace. This move suggests a likely intent to increase exploration or colonization programs in the near future. In all likelihood, the subsequent planetary conquest by Megatron derailed these plans.
Variations
- Transmetals - Beast-style Maximals hit by a Quantum surge have been shown to mutate in such a way that their physiology "reverses", so their "beast" forms take on mechanical properties while their "robot" forms become more organic. Such robots are undetectable to Vok technology.
Prehistory
The exact origin of the Maximals has never been fully explained, nor has the time of their emergence as a faction. Dreamwave's The War Within depicts a Maximal symbol in Cybertron's prehistory, and IDW's Beast Wars Sourcebook references Maximal and Predacon conflict before the Pax Cybertronia (thus before the end of the Great War). The Sourcebook also seems to place its versions of Beast Wars II and Beast Wars Neo in this pre-Pax Cybertronia era by indicating that Predacons (specifically BB) were being "re-educated" in Maximal prisons during the Great War.
At some point, possibly after the Pax Cybertronia had restored peace to Cybertron, the Maximal Upgrade program was introduced. The program emphasized fuel efficiency through downsizing. Many of the surviving Autobots eventually upgraded via bio-tech overhaul and cloistered themselves away, but some few stayed active in Cybertronian society to guide the emerging Maximal faction into the future. The Maximal Elders locked away much information about the Great War (and especially the location of Earth) from the young population, fearing it would re-ignite old grudges or inspire Predacon insurgents to rewrite history using transwarp technology.
The theft of the Golden Disk by Megatron, which set in motion the "Beast Wars," occurred approximately 300 years after the end of the Great War. (Note: Specific dating for this has been suggested in ancillary material, but in the Beast Wars cartoon itself, this date is fairly indistinct, as 1) there's no way to know when exactly the Great War ended, and 2) it's not clear if those are Cybertronian or Earth years.)
Organization
The Maximal Imperium was the state that the Maximals formed. The term "imperium" would imply an empire, though the Maximals have never displayed any militaristic-expansionist inclinations, something more in line with the Predacons. However, it might be speculated that their exploration programs, referenced in Beast Wars and Beast Machines, were a precursor to an expansion-minded colonization program.
The Maximal Imperium appeared to invest both legislative and executive power in a bicameral legislature, the Maximal Elders and the High Council. It is unknown what the relationship and division of powers were between the two legislatures, although it appears the Elders were the more senior legislature. Like their Autobot ancestors, the Maximals had a strong belief in democracy, even going so far as to elect their military leaders when unable to communicate with the high command. This could cause problems when there was an even number of voters. Some evidence suggests that the Maximal elders were more repressive and secretive than strictly necessary. One powerful political body is the bi-partisan Committee for State Affairs, whose appointed members include both Maximals and Predacons.
The Maximals were by nature peaceful, but the realities of the universe still compelled them to have armed forces. Usually, the highest rank was Supreme Commander, awarded to Maximals of Convoy status, who were given an Energon Matrix linked to the Vector Sigma supercomputer. The Supreme Commanders answered to the Maximal Elders, and there is some evidence to indicate that the Maximal Elders included former Supreme Commanders.
Maximal society
Not much is known about the Maximal-led, post-Great War Cybertron. There does appear to have been commerce (holo-chips), entertainment (Six Lasers Over Cybertron), and industry, but what we do know is that the Maximals focused heavily on exploration. Exploration vessels, filled with stasis pods containing newborn protoforms, would search out new planets and seed them with those protoforms, who would assume modes based on the native lifeforms and collect data. Post-war Cybertron experienced a visible boom in scientific and technological curiosity. Some of this curiosity, however, resulted in monsters such as the seemingly immortal and murderous Protoform X.
