Which bots can be traced back to which Primes?
The Original 13 Primes has been part of the Transformers mythos for quite a while now. Be it in the Aligned Continuity, the Movieverse, the Power of The Primes Trilogy, or even retroactively into G1 via the IDW Comics, the idea that Primus originally created 13 Primes in order to battle Unicron has become an established part of Transformers lore.
The next instalment of the Generations toyline is Transformers: Age of The Primes. And there are some interesting concepts in the trailer for the toys, even stating “Every Transformers Bot can be traced back to one of the original 13’.
So the question is, who can be traced back to who?
It’s a bigger question than you think. There are thosands of Transformers characters, and Cybertron is meant to have a populace of millons. Yet all trace back to 13 – sounds a bit like Astrological signs doesn’t it (though perhaps less ridiculous). At any rate, lets look at who the actual 13 Primes are, and who is likely to be descended from them:
Those Primes with obvious descendants
Solus Prime—The master artificer and creator of many of the Primes’ weapons through use of her incredible Forge. She was the first female Cybertronian.
As the only female bot amongst the Original 13, it is safe to say that the majority of female Transformers can be traced back to her, even evil ones such as Crasher.
Given her Forge can create weapons as well as heal, it may be that many Transformers who are medics or have weapon modes are descended from her as well.
Micronus Prime—The conscience of the Thirteen, and the first Mini-Con, able to link up with and enhance the power of his siblings through the use of his Chimera Stone; responsible for creating the alternate dimension of Microspace.
One could say it’s safe to assume all the small bots can be traced back to Micronus. Mini-Con’s, Micromasters, Targetmasters, Headmasters, Power Masters – all seem likely to be his descendants.
Nexus Prime—The first and greatest combiner, granted the ability to divide himself into separate forms by his Enigma of Combination. Unpredictable, fascinated by change, and a lighthearted prankster.
As the first Combiner, one could assume that groups such as the Constructicons, Stunticons, Aerialbots, Technobots and so on can be traced back to Nexus.
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Onyx Prime—The first beast-form Cybertronian, a primitive and spiritual being able to view other times, places, souls, and even the afterlife through his three-faced Triptych Mask.
As the first Transformer with a beast mode, it is safe to say that most, if not all Transformers with beast modes can be traced back to Onyx.
On a personal note, I would love to see the ‘Primacron’s Assistant’ from the G1 Episode ‘Call of the Primatives’ retroactively be turned into Onyx Prime!
Quintus Prime—A daydreamer and perfectionist whose drive to express his ideas led him to become a scientist. His artifact was the Emberstone, which gave him the ability to create life; the Quintessons were among his creations.
A no brainer. The Quintessons are as stated his creations, as would likely be the likes of the Sharkticons and Allicons. Possibly other bots with aquatic features such as Sky-Byte, Finback & Submaurader can be traced back to Quintus as well.
The Fallen—Once known as Megatronus, guardian of entropy and wielder of the Requiem Blaster, the Fallen’s name was stricken from history when the dark warrior turned on his siblings.
As many see him as the first Decepticon, surely many in the Decepticon ranks with a thirst for warfare and violence can be traced back to The Fallen, the most obvious of which being Megatron.
Those Prime’s with less obvious descendants
Prima—The leader of the Thirteen, a warrior of light and the first Matrix-bearer who wielded the Star Saber.
Being the first ever Transformer and the leader of the Original 13, it could be said that those bots who show natural leadership qualities can be traced back to him. Ultra Magnus, Springer, Thunderclash, Dai Atlas, Heatwave and Deathsaurus would all be likely candidates.
Vector Prime—The master of time and space, which he could manipulate through his Blades of Time.
Very few Transformers have shown the ability, to manipulate time but they exist, examples of such being as Elita-1 and Meantime. Blurr’s speed could be put down to a manipulation of time, moving so fast everything else seems stationary. And Skywarp could be said to be a master of space with his teleportation ability. It could also be conjectured that Transformers with space-faring capabilities such as Galaxy Shuttle hail from Vector Prime.
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Alchemist Prime—Student of the elemental structure of the natural world, aided in this by his Lenses, which allowed him to see further and deeper than anyone, in both material and spiritual senses; fond of the occasional tipple, with some claiming that he still walks Cybertron in the form of a humble bartender.
Being an expert in the material & spiritual realms, bots who show a penchant for such things could well trace themselves back to Alchemist. This could include bots such as Wheeljack, Beachcomber, Mindwipe and Shockwave. And since Alchemist likes a tipple, maybe we could throw Trailbreaker in for good measure.
Liege Maximo—The “Prime of Lies”, a black-hearted and amoral manipulator. Though his artifact was notionally the toxin-loaded Liegian Darts, his real skill was his ability to talk others into his way of thinking.
Stepped in cunning, trickery and with a gift for the convincing others, it is perhaps those bots that exhibit these traits that can be traced back to Liege Maximo. The likes of Starscream, Swindle, Tarn, Smokescreen & Jackpot spring to mind. Also any robots that use weapons akin to stinging darts, such as Venom and Waspinator.
Amalgamous Prime—The joker of the Thirteen and the first Shifter, unpredictable and easygoing. He was first Cybertronian with the ability of transformation, granted him by his Transformation cog, which became the basis for the cogs in all subsequent Transformer life.
Since (almost) all Transformers can transform, it makes no sense that all of them can be traced back to Almalgamous as the first Transfromer, as it would mean none are descended from any others. So perhaps it would be Transformers with special Transforming abilities. Triple changers such as Blitzwing and Sandstorm, 6-changes such as Sixshot and Quickswitch, or Transformers whose transforming cogs allow them to transform incredibly quickly such as Runabout and Twin Twist.
Those with few obvious descendants
Alpha Trion—Holder of the Quill, which he uses to record the past, present, and future of Cybertron in the Covenant of Primus as part of his role as recordskeeper of the Primes.
Alpha Trion, being the one Prime that stayed around the keep watch over the Transformers race, could be said to be the father of all while being the father of none. Perhaps some more scholarly bots could be traced back to this ancient sage such as Skids, Rung and Sky Dive.
The Thirteenth Prime— the last and most mysterious of the Thirteen, all we can say for certain is that he bore a strong connection to the Matrix of Leadership and his depictions look awfully familiar…
The Thirteenth Prime is a puzzler. Said to be Optimus Prime, who gave up his Primehood and his memories to become the ordinary bot Orion Pax, only to become Optimus Prime once again when chosen by Primus to wield The Matrix and lead the Autobots. Perhaps some bots that share physical similarities such as Pyro, Ginrai, Leo Prime and especially Opitmus Primal can be said to trace themselves back to Optimus.
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But… but.. what about the Seacons?
There are lots of Transformers that have traits or altmodes that make them obviously descended from a specific Prime. But what about those that could have multiple?
The Seacons are a very obvious example. They all have aquatic modes, making a link to Quintus Prime very obvious, especially given Overbite turns into a shark-monster with limbs much like a Sharkticon. However they all have beast modes which calls out to Onyx Prime being their progenitor. But then 5 of the 6 can turn into weapons which screams Solus Prime. Additionally they are Decepticons with Snap Trap being particularly brutal so that says Megatronus. And to top it off they can combine, which harkens to Nexus Prime.
There are numerous other examples. Sky Lynx has beast modes, a special transformation cog allowing him multiple modes, can combine (albeit with himself), can travel through space as a shuttle and is a Lieutenant Commander. So who does he trace himself back to – Onyx, Almagamous, Nexus, Vector or Prima?
So I will be very interested to see with the new Transformers: Age of Primes toyline if they indicate via the packaging which non-Prime characters are descended from specific Prime. Given that sadly tech specs are mostly a thing of the past perhaps they will do this via symbols specific to specific Primes on the boxes or instruction manuals.
However they choose to move forward, it will be interesting to see if this latest iteration of the Transfomers toy franchise has a lasting impact on the Transformers lore. And if nothing else, it will be great to finally get some decent official toys of the Original 13 Primes.
Check back soon for my examination of what “Every Transformers Bot can be traced back to one of the original 13’ could mean for the lore of the Titans!
