Who Are They, and Where Do They Come From?
"The Autobots are a highly advanced form of robot. I don't really know if they're from the past, or the future, but they can think, and have real feelings."
—Spike, child of Earth, "More Than Meets the Eye"
Cybertron is a planet far beyond our galaxy, which is populated by an intelligent race of people. These people just happen to be mostly made of metal.
Cybertron civilization is old, older than most humans can even fathom. And as long as there are Cybertrons, there have been wars. Wars fought between races, wars fought over territories, wars fought crossing galaxies.
Now are the Beast Wars: where robots who have learned to transform themselves into animals fight to secure the promises of their past and the uncertainties of the future.
But to understand the present, we start with the deepest past.
"Well, it all began about nine million years ago."
"Oh, great. It's gonna be one of those LONG stories."
—Optimus Prime and Ratchet, "War Dawn"
Legend has it there was a time before the war. Cybertron was a planet inhabited by the Autobots: peace-loving, hardworking robots who lived their days in golden cities basking in sunlight. The Autobots were bound to their lovely cities. They burrowed deep into the ground for energy, but had no wish to defy the gravity that held them there.
However, someone—no one is quite sure who—had the notion that there might be something beyond the sky. To discover it, he designed a new type of robot. This robot would be like others of the race, but for one thing: the ability to fly. This robot was called Megatron.
Soon, more of these flying robots were built. They immediately recognized their differences from the Autobots, and took a new name, the Decepticons. Not only, Megatron realized, were they different from the Autobots, but they were superior. They had mastery over the air: an element that Autobots did not understand. They considered themselves to be the rightful rulers of Cybertron, and, as their numbers grew, they decided to conquer it.
Megatron, in command of his Decepticon forces, made a single, foolish error when he attacked a group of innocents, wounding a young Autobot named Orion Pax. Alpha Trion, an Autobot leader who was repairing the injured, saw a great energy in the nearly-destroyed Orion. He rebuilt his body, fashioning a war commander for the Autobots, one whom he knew could fight back the threat to their peaceful ways. Alpha Trion called his creation Optimus Prime.
However, the war was far from over. Creating a fighting force to counter the Decepticon threat perpetuated the violence rather than finishing it. The Autobots were forced to adapt themselves to the Decepticon's ability of flight, eventually creating space travel and taking their war into far-off galaxies. Both races colonized, spreading throughout the universe; their virtually limitless lifespan allowed them to continue to increase in number despite the constant battling. Autobots and Decepticons eventually spawned many other races on many other planets, countless in number, but the battle between Optimus Prime and Megatron remained the same; they would fight until one failed.
Five million years of fighting showed little change in the struggle, but there was one great, infamous battle that seemed at first to be the conclusion. Prime's Autobots, far from Cybertron in their ship, the Ark, were battling Megatron's forces over an unknown, blue planet. The Decepticons, always eager to finish the fight, had boarded the Ark. Their fantastic battleship, Nemesis, had already been lost, somewhere in the oceans of this alien world.
There was an accident on the Ark.
The ship, peopled with Autobots and Decepticons alike, crashed down on the foreign planet, and embedded itself in a long-dormant volcano. The Cybertrons, weakened from their battle and losing power quickly, were forced into emergency stasis. They would remain this way for four million years.
At last the volcano erupted, waking the Autobots and Decepticons from their sleep. When the Cybertrons finally awoke, their battle was ready to resume. The fighting on Cybertron had continued without its commanders, and the citizens of Cybertron had long been missing their greatest warriors. However, these commanders found a new race on this planet they had encountered, one that had developed while they were slumbering. These were called Humans.
On Earth, as this planet was called, Autobots mainly chose ground-bound vehicles as secondary froms, to reflect their origins as those who came from below. Decepticons still ruled the sky. Humanity, a seemingly primitive race in comparison, realized that the Autobots were the race most inclined toward peace. Over a period of less than thirty years after Prime and Megatron reawakened, the Humans helped the Autobots to finally win their ancient war.
"Now is a day of reckoning for those who would make us slaves!"
—Predacon commander, "Megatron," "The Agenda, Part Three"
The Pax Cybertronia was signed, declaring peace on Cybertron for the first time in over nine million years.
Now, a mere three-hundred years later, society has changed again.
The descendants of the Decepticons are beginning to revolt. Their society, now blossoming of its own right, has been punished by the mistakes and failures of their once-proud ancestors. These self-named Predacons began a silent uprising, working against the Autobots' children, the Maximals. The conquest is whispered in the alleys of Cybertron... On other planets, especially Earth itself, it is again a full-scale war.
"Freedom is the right of all sentient beings."
—Maximal saying, said to be first uttered by Optimus Prime
Maximals are the sons and daughters of the victors: descendants of the Autobots. Maximals carry with them their ancestors' sense of peace before war. They believe in the peace codes signed at the end of the Great War, and they believe in the teachings of Optimus Prime. They are in a fine position to make these kinds of statements, having enjoyed for centuries the benefits given to victors. They are the upperclass citizens of Cybertron, its rulers and its protectors. They are also its artists, poets, actors, and musicians, its doctors, its lawyers, its scientists.
Maximal rule is upheld by a Council of Elders, who is in effect the ruling body of all of Cybertron. Maximals run and operate the tightest and cleanest military operations on Cybertron. They are also its prime explorers and colonizers. Maximals subjugate the Predacons and keep them at bay, disallowing them from the centers of their cities. They fear an uprising from below, but, most of all, they fear another Great War. Cybertron was a planet that fought itself for millions of years. If only the Predacons would realize that there's a more peaceful solution...
The treaty signed to end the Great War was called "The Pax Cybertronia." In it, the long tradition of racial violence on Cybertron was supposedly ended for good. Maximals keep their own code, based on the details of the treaty, which was named for an ancient word meaning "peace" and the nearly lost name of one of the Autobots' greatest leaders.
1. Race is meaningless; All Are One.
The Letter: The "All Are One" saying is said to date back to the Third Great War, when Autobots promised they would fight for freedom "until all are one." Assumedly, this problem was resolved when the Great War finally reached its conclusion. Maximals and Predacons alike are one under Cybertron, and should be considered equals.
The Truth: One of the most scoffed-at sections of the Pax. Though many Maximals do indeed regard Predacons as their equals in life and law, there are just as many who are racist against them, seeing them only as the Decepticons from whom they have descended. The conflict between the Maximals who follow this element of their peace code and those who do not is sometimes as great as the conflicts between the races themselves.
2. Freedom is the right of all sentient beings.
The Letter: Optimus Prime's saying has filtered its way into Maximal parlance. Taken literally, it means that no race should be subjugated under Maximal law. It is the "Prime Directive" of Maximal space travel—conquer no planets already inhabited; make peace with other cultures and nations; allow them to govern and provide for themselves.
The Truth: This directive is followed universally, save on Cybertron itself—where domination over Predacons is the expected norm. The occasional rogue Maximal commander who violates this rule does so usually under the penalty of criminal prosecution.
3. Let peace prevail over battle.
The Letter: The Maximal race is in constant fear of a return to Cybertron warring. Therefore, this code states that peaceful solutions can and must be found over any violence, even the retaliatory type.
The Truth: This is all well-and-good on Cybertron, where warlike acts can be discussed in committee, but this rule simply doesn't work on foreign planets if there's a sudden rebellion. It's scrap or be scrapped when you're out on your own, and Maximals know this just as well as they understand the good intentions behind their own code.
4. Respect the heroes of the past.
The Letter: The Great War was a terrible time, but it was also a time of great heroes and great deeds. Respect those deeds for what they are; though war is in the past, it should be understood.
The Truth: A very popular addition to the code, for hero-worship is a common trait of any intelligent race. On the good side, this rule has led to everything from war documentaries to novels to comic books. However, it is just as easy to make light of the past, and some of the racist "stupid Decepticon jokes" Maximals compose are even better than the "Autobot jokes" Predacons like so much.
5. Support a return to the Golden Age.
The Letter: Ages ago, Cybertron was a place of utter peace and prosperity. With continued work, the world can again be that bright, without the stain of racial disharmony.
The Truth: The Golden Age is one idea, but—most Maximals know—it was also a time of very little economic development, very little political development, and no exploration. Some question if a return to a backwater "age of peace" is really in the best interest of their planet...or if, perhaps, war is simply the unfortunate result of continued progress.
The Maximals, for the most part, follow their code well, though some more strictly than others.
"Three gigabytes of attitude on a two-gig hard drive."
—Rhinox, "Dark Designs," describing a Predacon
If Maximals are the happy descendants of victorious Autobots, Predacons are the downtrodden: the descendants of the Decepticons. Predacons feign respect for Maximals, but secretly many factions of Predacons work to usurp rule from the upperclass and take Cybertron as their own. Among the Predacons are a great number of hardened warriors, generals, and military leaders. There is also the veritable "scum of the planet," the poor, wretched, the rulebreakers, the unloved and unappreciated.
The upper echelons of the Predacons operate a tight, strict society. Rule among the Predacons is decided by strength in battle. The greatest ruler among Predacons is a triumvirate of generals known as the Tripredicus Council. Many rumors about the strength of Tripredicus abound. Some Predacons even believe that the three members of Tripredicus are in fact descendants of the infamous Unicron, a world-devouring Transformer older than Cybertron itself.
Treachery and cunning are the norm among Predacons, and any Predacon leader unprepared for these eventualities will not remain a leader for very long.
Just as the Maximals have a code for maintaining peace, Predacons have carried from their days as Decepticons an honor code, which of late is followed only by the strictest and truest of the race.
1. No fair challenge may be ignored.
The Letter: A law dating back to the ancient days of the Great War still holds true in the eyes of the most devout Predacons. Challenges for leadership are many, and challenges must be upheld with proper honor.
The Truth: A leader once in a position of power dare not allow such a thing as an archaic Decepticon rule to stand in his way. Leaders have been known to let their most loyal followers be the ones to put down a leadership challenge.
2. All challenges must be fair.
The Letter: It is not honorable to outnumber an opponent, nor outweapon him. There is great honor in winning, but never let a Predacon shoot an opponent while he is down, nor while he is unarmed.
The Truth: The most powerful of Predacons know how to cheat in a challenge: it's a rule they learned long ago. If to back down when one has a marked advantage would be foolishness, to lose a way to gain advantage is just as bad.
3. Failure is to be punished.
The Letter: Those Predacons that fail in their duties, either to allies or the Predacon force itself, should be chastised, ostracized, or terminated. Predacons do not allow for the weak among their ranks.
The Truth: Predacon leaders love this rule and love to evoke it to weed the unwanted out of their armies. However, Predacons in need of allies may let small transgressions go... Predacons in dire need ignore larger transgressions, too. Many of the Predacons who fight the Maximals do so because they are weak—war is their only chance to move up in the world.
4. Successful treachery keeps the leader strong.
The Letter: While failure is punished severely, when treachery within ranks is successful, it keeps Predacon leaders sharply focused. Treachery which does not fail is to be praised. The traitor himself should be destroyed.
The Truth: The most popular type of treachery of late has become desertion and defection: who wants to be a Predacon, when those rich Maximals are recruiting? This type of treachery cannot be conquered by a Predacon individual, but must be met on the battlefield. However, this rule is followed more carefully than one might think. Predacon leaders love a chance to point out when their troops have been disloyal.
5. It is an honor to die for one's cause.
The Letter: When a Predacon dies, let it be on the battlefield, winning the war for his side. Let it not be in hiding from the truth of war.
The Truth: Who wants to terminate, when Cybertron life can be so long? There are more self-serving Predacons than this rule suggests; plenty of Predacons are sick of the war, and while kissing up to the Maximals isn't their idea of a good life, it's better than the alternative.
Ironically, the Predacon Honor Code has created as many harsh rulers as it has created fine warriors. Those who follow it to the letter are few.
The original "Predacons," a faction of Decepticons, would probably be mistaken for Maximals by the Predacons of today, as they took mammalian and avian secondary forms. Only those who are very knowledgeable about the Great War realize this about the ancestors who gave them their name.
"Such a simple name, for so ARROGANT a race."
—Tarantulas, "Other Victories," staring down a Vok
This malevolent alien race was first encountered by those fighting the Beast Wars on the planet Earth. Not only did aliens deposit energon on earth—not only did they build structures on Earth of their own design, but, it seems, they made this planet, for their own experimentation.
When it became evident to the Vok that the Beast Wars on Earth were skewing their data, they decided to destroy the planet. Earth was eventually spared due to the work of Maximal forces. However, the Vok unwittingly shared some impressive technology: the Transmetallization beam and the Transmetal II Driver.
The Vok are present in many things; their work is evident in much of planet Earth, their technology even beyond Cybertronian imaginings.
A member of this race appears as a ghost-like creature: the image of a floating, skull-like face, with streams of wind and light behind it. It does not appear this way for long; all who have seen a Vok face-to-face have not survived the confrontation.
"Aw, frag, I can never remember the answer to that slagging question!"
—Bob Skir, "Beast Machines" story editor, responding to a question about Beast Wars profanity.
Autobot: The peaceful race of transforming robots who inhabited Cybertron before and during the Great War.
Cybertron: The Transfomers' planet of origin. Also the name given to the species in general, and the word used throughout this document to describe a Transformer.
Decepticon: Race of transforming robots who lived to conquer. Ancient foes of the Autobots, near-annihilated during the Great War.
Energon: The main source of fuel for a Cybertron. Also his main source of weakness.
"Gear!": Positive slang expression among younger-minded Maximals.
Matrix: 1) Maximal Valhalla. Where the sparks of heroes are laid to rest, and All Are One.
2) The name given to the birthplace of Maximal protoforms.
3) "Matrix of Leadership," the physical device within the body of Optimus Prime and all Primes to follow him, symbolizing his role as leader of the Autobots.
Maximal: Descendants of the peace-loving Autobots and the upper-class citizens of Cybertron. Maximals typically seek an end to the warring on Cybertron, but believe one must make war to make peace.
"Maximize!": Battle cry and activation code of the Maximal race. Often shouted before a transfer from beast mode into robot mode.
Pit/Inferno: 1) Maximal Hell. Where the sparks of the damned are supposed to reside.
2) Complex where Predacon protoforms originate.
Predacon: Descendants of the Decepticons, violent race who lost the Great War. The lower-class and downtrodden of Cybertron, who actively propagate the Beast Wars in an attempt to win back the past.
Prime: Maximal parlance for something great or extraordinary. Now used sarcastically as often as literally. A reference to the Autobot commanders of the same name.
Primus: God of all Transformers, sometimes said to be the first Transformer, or Cybertron itself. Worshipped mainly by Maximals.
Protoform: A Cybertron who has not yet been born; a Cybertron fetus.
Slag: 1) Cybertron remains.
2) Most vilely connotated yet most widely used Cybertronian swear word. A lesser version would be "scrap."
Spark: The soul of a Cybertron.
Stasis pod: Housing for unrealized Protoforms.
"Terrorize!": Battle cry and activation code of the Predacon race.
Unicron: The darkest figure in Cybertron history, a devourer of worlds who was a Transformer the size of a planet. Though he was destroyed during the last battles of the Great War, all Cybertrons fear and respect Unicron even today. His space-strewn remains were a long-time home for rogue Decepticons.
Units of Time
On Cybertron, time is measured differently from on Earth. The conversions are relatively simple, though approximate.
Nanoclick: one second
Cycle: one minute
Megacycle: one hour
Decacycle: one month
Stellar Cycle (Stellar): one Cybertron year (approximately 400 days).