#transformers exiles

[keferon]

Head in hands. Guys. Book version of Tfp Blurr……..

[evetronia]

A clash of tyrants

[emperor-kumquat]

You ever want to read the Covenant of Primus or the other Transformers Prime novels or the Art of Prime? Magic link, boom

[peace-hunter]

I wonder how the Primes feel about the fact that Megatron was the one who avenged them and Optimus was the one sacrificed his life to protect the guy who betrayed and murdered them.

uh. that is certainly a way to interpret what happened! incheresting.

from a personal perspective i guess i could see some of them getting a grim satisfaction from the fact sentinel died at the hands of one of the many people he hurt right after all his crimes were broadcasted for everyone to see. i don't think any of them would hold any love for him after he murdered them plus fifty cycles of betraying the world they died trying to protect and i do believe more than one grew bitter enough to enjoy the fact the bastard died like the coward he was.

on the other hand i also think they'd be mature and wise enough to understand their personal satisfaction cannot come before the good of cybertron. revenge, theirs or anyone else's, was not more important than the bigger picture, which in this case was the fact that cybertronian society was already about to go through an incredibly tumultuous time with lots of changes and like it or not, publicly executing someone without any sort of trial or accountability is Not A Good Idea when you're trying to begin a reform for an entire society.

i cannot stress this enough, as good as it may sound, murdering someone because you think they deserve it is not a good way to start a new government. i know it sucks, i know it's frustrating, i know we all cheer when a politician/ceo/guy-who-sucks gets murked, but it's still not a good basis for a society to (re)start with!

and from yet another more personal perspective, megatron's revenge, in their behalf or otherwise, was already tainted for them the moment it happened by orion's death. the fact an innocent, who only wanted to do the right thing (naively or self-righteously as it may look to some), died in the process automatically made it not worth it in their eyes.

they dearly wish orion hadn't died. much less for someone like sentinel. but they understand perfectly why he protested against megatron killing him like that. and him risking his life for what he thought was right for cybertron, even though it meant keeping the person who'd oppressed him his entire life alive, only makes him more worthy of the matrix and the responsibilities it carries as far as they're concerned.

they're... content knowing that the well-being of their people is in the hands of someone who can, has and will put the greater good above his own feelings of anger or desire of revenge.

tldr: megatron's revenge had too high a price to pay for it to be worth it in their eyes, no matter what personal satisfaction they could've gotten from it. and they understand that orion wasn't trying to protect sentinel because he cared for him, but because he was seeing the bigger picture and trying to do what was right for everyone and not just himself and d-16.

haunted au

[scribescrawls]

"How much longer must we suffer now? (Reconsider) How much longer must we push through doubt? (We can get home) How much longer must we go about (Eurylochus) Our lives like this when people die like this?"

(The quotes in the sketch and above are from the song "Mutiny" from EPIC: The Musical by Jorge Rivera-Herrans)

I heard Starscream had another friend in a different continuity, what if TFOne Starscream also had his own Genvo too, but he died during those 50 cycles when they were being hunted down. I like to headcanon TFOne Starscream used to be a scientist before but decided to join the High Guard when the war with the Quintessons got more serious. Imagine Starscream decided to join the High Guard first and his friend decided to follow him when he heard Star was enlisting, but only one of them makes it back alive.

I think about how hopeless and desperate the High Guard's situation was throughout the 50 cycles with no end in sight as energon stopped flowing probably going hungry, they were being hunted down by Quintessons/Sentinel, their strongest leaders/comrades in arms were killed in front of them, betrayed, and trying to survive on the surface's dangerous landscape. I think as time passed many gave up hope or resigned themselves that they would never see home again giving into despair after cycles of suffering. Starscream probably feels the same way and feels pretty hopeless about their situation too. But as the leader Starscream probably knows he does not get the luxury of expressing those doubts without sending everyone else spiraling so even if he feels hopelessness about their situation he has to pretend he is okay and put on a front that he knows what he is doing and that they will succeed in taking down Sentinel one day to get them to survive another day.

There's a line in one of my favorite book series (Animorphs) where one of the characters reflects that "A leader has to give people hope. Even when he doesn't have much himself" and I think Starscream knew this. But it is a very lonely way of living being leader in such a hopeless situation as others can at least potentially express doubts about things or commiserate with each other, but as leader you cannot do that without affecting those under your command. I think some part of him subconsciously adopts the mindset that to an extent, on an emotional level, to be a leader is to be alone. And every decision you make holds the burden of potentially getting your troops/friends killed, but someone has to make the hard decisions even if some decisions are ruthless as you weigh the lives of those you may consider friends to keep as many people alive.

I was inspired to sketch this when I was listening to the song lol, I linked it down below in case anyone wants to hear it :D

[rescuebabiesau]

"Anything from Crown City, Chase?"

"Negative. The signal's not even going through."

"Well, that's not a good sign..."

..........................................

"Huh... huh... Hang in there, Sideswipe...! Just hang in there...!"

Bumblebee had carried many a bot off of the battlefield and into a safer location for the medic to tend to, but this time, there was no medic, and the bot in his arms was no soldier. He was just a kid, a kid that had no business being in the condition he was in right now.

The attack had happened quickly— rifle fire raining down from the cliffs above and onto the lieutenant and his team. The humans had gotten away, as did Strongarm, Fixit, and Grimlock, but in the midst of the two final team members making a run for the groundbridge, a shot from their enemy sent a cataclysmic failure that led to the portal exploding.

Bumblebee had been flung into the cliff, and with a stray shot having disabled his comm link, he couldn't call for Sideswipe to locate him amongst the collapsing stacks of vintage collectibles that made up the scrapyard. By the time he found the young autobot, Sideswipe's frame was spotted with blast marks and his lower half was partially crushed under a fallen crane arm.

Bumblebee had hauled him from the wreckage and managed to break free of the Scrapyard's walls, but he couldn't race down the road with Sideswipe like this. He'd need to find somewhere to hide until their attackers stopped their rain of death and weren't looking for a yellow and red bot escaping down the road... If Sideswipe was even in the condition to travel by then.

Fortunately, Bumblebee was a war veteran, and he'd learned a few tricks— both from his own experiences and that of his comrades.

Tip number one, save the special toys for emergencies.

The cliffs held some small caverns under them, the exit typically inaccessible by bots or humans, but not if you had a Phase-Shifter stuffed in your subspace for such a time.

He carried the young bot into these caverns, ducking under low ceilings and feeling the squeeze of the tight tunnels, but it would be enough for a little while until it was safe.

"Buh...Bee..."

Sideswipe's voice crackled in his throat, his audio receptor twitching just a bit but really being the only thing moving.

"Just take it easy, Sideswipe... Just take it easy..."

Bumblebee's lights were the only thing lighting up the cavern, but for now, they would rest... Strongarm would be panicking, probably trying to come back to the Scrapyard to search for them.

"Bee... You... Thank you..."

"Shh..." Bumblebee soothed like a parent trying to comfort their child, "...Just get some rest, okay? I'll keep watch..."

What he wouldn't give for Blades' medical expertise right now...

[dirtydragonthoughts]

I'm finally getting around to reading Transformers: Exiles and

omg. It is so bad. Like, bad on multiple levels.

I read Transformers: Exodus a few years ago. It was... OK. Definitely not a great work of literature, and there were some "huh" moments in it, but it was fine. But now I'm starting on the next book. I didn't look at the TFWiki entry for Exiles until last night, but just the Errors section is absolutely sending me. (The idea that the book was panic rewritten by Hasbro just before publication would explain a LOT of the issues I'm seeing.)

As someone who loves the franchise, it physically hurts that this guy was paid to write this. It is completely phoned in. Now, I'm sure he was writing on spec, and was probably handed an outline or specific plot points/characters that needed to be included, but even with that limitation it could have been a LOT better.

Anyway I'm going to jot down some of my impressions in this thread because I want to make sure I remember why I didn't like this book, years down the road when I see the book still sitting on my bookshelf. (If I even keep it, that is up for debate.) I'll even keep away from the things mentioned in the Error section of the wiki entry, since that's low-hanging fruit.

(If you enjoyed this book I'm glad for you, but I am down to just hate-reading it now. Sorry about that.)

Impressions will be behind cuts in case you don't want to spoil yourself for this masterpiece. XD

I've finished Part 1 and some of the things that stuck with me have been:

There's a thing in fiction writing that's often bandied about, how you should show and don't tell. It's hard to explain to new authors what this means, and why it's a bad thing. Well, this book has about a million examples. Instead of showing how a character is feeling, it just tells us. Optimus was stressed. Optimus was worried. Prowl was irritated.

Related to the showing/telling thing, this book loves just giving a laundry list of things that happen, regardless of how important it is. For example, we got a whole paragraph on what happened after a race on Velocitron. None of these details mattered to the story in any way, but we still got a whole half page of detail about it:

We got a multi-page scene of Prowl cultivating an informant. He gets named (Armco). A few chapters later Prowl brings him in saying "Here's someone who can keep his mouth shut" and then IMMEDIATELY someone tries to blow up the Ark, and Armco falls out of the plot, never to be seen again. RIP Armco, we never knew ya.

Weird character note: The Autobots show up on Velocitron and discover there's a schism in the leadership there, with factions forming on both sides. While the Autobots are preparing to leave the planet, the "bad" leader says something relatively innocuous to Optimus, who then punches the Velocitronian in the face. This sets off a giant battle between the two factions, whereupon the Autobots dip and go through the space bridge. Brilliant.

More when I finish part 2.

[1ll-ogical]

Toxic old bot yaoi idk; Senator Talonstrike can’t get over his ex-boyfriend, Senator Solstice.

[novafire-is-thinking]

Idealistic and Stubborn

In TFP, one of the defining aspects of Optimus’ characterization is his stubborn belief that Megatron is not lost—that he can overcome his lust for power.

By the end of Predacons Rising, he was proven correct, but there was very little beforehand that gave any indication that Megatron would change.

In spite of this, Optimus refused to believe Megatron had fallen beyond redemption.

Potential, Potential, Potential

“Everything always fools you,” Makeshift said. “Megatron was right about a lot of things, but he especially knew you. Naive, he said. Vulnerable because you keep on insisting that the best in bots might show through even when all the evidence is to the contrary. (Exiles)

Optimus views the world and other people in terms of their greatest potential for good. He can’t help but look beyond the present reality and see a perfect ideal. He then finds it nearly impossible to let go of this perfect ideal, no matter what reality looks like.

But I Can Change Him!

Peace with the ones with whom war had been waged for eons. . .The Autobots might have believed it to be impossible, but Optimus was willing to give it a try because whatever anyone else might say, he knew that Megatron wasn’t entirely evil. (Retribution)

There was absolutely nothing anyone could have said that would have convinced Optimus that Megatron was evil to his core. This strength of conviction made Optimus a force to be reckoned with. I can only assume that after a while, those under his leadership gave up trying to change his mind. They recognized his incredible strength of will as an asset to the Autobot cause, even if they didn’t agree with him when it came to Megatron.

“Idiotic” Instincts

What happened next was pure instinct. Optimus reached out and grabbed Megatron with one arm, then used his legs and other arm to climb, pulling them both out of the rising white water. A dazed Megatron looked around.

“What are you doing?” he yelled.

“Saving your life,” Optimus told him.

“You’re an idiot, librarian.”

“Thanks for your opinion,” Optimus said. (Retribution)

This was only one of several times Optimus could have ended Megatron’s life.

However, the belief that Megatron could and would change was so deeply embedded in Optimus’ psyche that even though he may have reasoned Megatron’s death was best, his instincts overrode everything.

At that point, Optimus was operating on the old assumption that there was still a part of Megatron left untainted by the lust for power. I believe some part of Optimus hoped that the act of saving Megatron’s life would make the warlord reevaluate things. Optimus was blind to the reality that Megatron’s purely opportunistic mindset would just see it as an opportunity to continue working toward his twisted personal vision.

More than once in TFP, we saw Optimus hesitate to kill Megatron when he could have done so and ended Megatron’s reign of chaos and destruction.

Optimus did eventually snap and confront Megatron as Unicron was awakening, but by then, it was too late. Megatron had grown too powerful from giving himself fully to the influence of Dark Energon and Unicron himself.

Responsibility vs. Hope

Megatron’s obsession with Unicron disturbs me. I see that he is convinced that awakening the monster would grant him the power he’s always desired. Only I know the absolute naivete of that assumption. Still, nothing I can say alters his course. You can tow a bot to knowledge, but you cannot make it think. He has had a taste for Dark Energon for a while now, and constant exposure to it only accelerates his departure into delusions. Must I wait for one of his aides to start an insurrection, as his madness increases? What is the likelihood? Starscream is too fearful, Shockwave is served well by Megatron no matter how insane, Airachnid has failed and must be considered out of play. Soundwave—well, who knows what goes through his mind since the war? The rest are too small-minded to organize a rebellion in a tack factory. No, it will not be any of them who topple him from his throne. Rightfully the deed is mine, though I did not make him into what he is; he was my friend, and once my brother. I would not see him fall farther, but at the same time, I find no way to hold him back other than by recruiting the humans to the Autobot cause, if not for our survival, then certainly for theirs. (CoP)

Megatron refused to allow anyone but himself be the one to kill Optimus. Similarly, Optimus believed the responsibility to stop Megatron fell on him alone.

For Optimus, there was a constant inner war between his sense of responsibility telling him he was the “right” one to stop Megatron, and his instincts rooted in idealism telling him that Megatron still had the potential for change.

When Strength Becomes Weakness

Optimus’ refusal to believe Megatron had fallen beyond redemption was closely tied to his difficulty unseeing potential and seeing things as they were. This stubborn idealism was one of Optimus’ greatest strengths and one of his worst weaknesses. It enabled him to survive the most brutal of circumstances, but it also enabled him to allow Megatron’s reign of terror to last much longer than it would have otherwise.

“Megatron has fallen, Optimus.”

“I cannot bring myself to believe that.”

✧ ✧ ✧

series master post

[krinsbez]

A Question/Poll: Please Help Pick My Next TTRPG Read, 2/22/24 Edition

I'm more'n halfway through the Army of Darkness RPG corebook, so it's time to pick next.

Gonna try streamlining a bit. Instead of my usual series of pulp/not pulp, licensed/not licensed, I'm going to pick a semi-random collection of categories, some of which will produce additional polls, some of which won't.

So, here goes!

(I have purchased so many things I really cannot keep track; I keep thinking of more things I wanted to add)

Gonna try to tag game creators below, but I suspect I'll end up with too many tags, and probably won't include 'em all in the reblogs.

[keferon]

……….deep sigh

[evetronia]

My guess as to what the leader class Thundertron is for the Star raiders sub line is that it’ll be the Legacy voyager possibly with the transformers GO black deco and it’ll come with either the armada or machinama recreum blaster because he used in in Exiles

[autobot-ironhide]

"greetings "

@exiled-megs

Ironhide heard someone greet him and looked over, he turned to face him "Megatron" he replied.

[postapocalyptic-cryptic]

A missing scene from MTMTE, in which there is some deliberation over what should be done with Drift, and exile isn't the first answer Rodimus comes to.

After his conversation with Rodimus, Ratchet wastes no time in storming down to the brig. Quick as he is, he’s not the first one there. There’s a crowd gathered around cell three, and as he gets closer, Ratchet realizes someone’s busted the door open. A dozen members of the crew are inside, beating on Drift.

Drift isn’t fighting back.

“Hey!” Ratchet hollers, and everyone freezes. It’s almost comical. Most of these bastards are young, war-born idiots who still freeze at the sound of an officer’s voice. Good. “Break it up!”

A particularly bold blue and purple much turns to face him. “Are you really going to defend this t--”

“Yes,” Ratchet interrupts. “I am. And unless you want Ultra Magnus to hear about this, I suggest you listen to me.”

Blue-and-purple opens his mouth to retort, but one of his companions grabs his shoulder. Clearly, comms messages are exchanged, and blue-and-purple deflates. The crowd disperses, and Ratchet is left alone with Drift, crumpled on the floor of his cell and staring up at Ratchet with something like awe in his bright optics.

He’s not too badly hurt, all things considered. It’s mostly cosmetic damage, scrapes and dents, but energon splatters the floor and drips from a cut on his right arm, and Ratchet wants to get him to the medbay sooner rather than later. He’s still shackled to the wall, and Ratchet hopes that’s why he made no attempt to defend himself.

“Drift?” he calls, stepping into the cell. No reaction. “Kid? Can you hear me?”

Drift cycles his optics and vents sharply as if awakening from a trance. “Ratchet?”

“Yeah, it’s me.” He kneels at Drift’s side and, when Drift doesn’t move, unlocks the shackle around his wrist. “Come on,” he urges. “Up. I’m taking you to the medbay.”

Drift says nothing. He doesn’t move, doesn’t react other than to angle his finials further back and keep watching Ratchet with that awed, confused look.

“Why didn’t you fight back?” Ratchet asks after a long, silent moment.

Drift just shrugs.

“Let’s go. Up, on your feet. You need some energon in you; Rodimus says you haven’t fueled since Overlord.”

Drift, who had been pulling himself to his feet, freezes at the sound of Rodimus’s name. “Did Roddy say this was alright?”

Ratchet rolls his optics. “He agreed under duress.” He agreed under threat of exposure, he thinks to himself. Selfish bastard.

“Ratchet…”

“Listen, do you want to get out of here, or not?” He tugs Drift’s hand, trying to get him to follow Ratchet to his feet.

“But Rodimus said--”

Ratchet growls. “I don’t care what Rodimus said.”

Drift watches him carefully. When he speaks, it’s just one word: “Why?”

“As far as I’m concerned, the legal system decided you deserve a second chance, and it’s not up to Rodimus to take that away from you.” It’s the truth.

Drift shakes his head sadly. “I’ve already had my second chance, and I blew it. This is what I deserve, and I’ve been trying to get out of the habit of dodging my punishments.”

“This isn’t responsibility, Drift, this is idiocy! You know he’s planning on dropping you off at the nearest prison, right?”

Drift flinches hard. Oh. Ratchet wouldn’t have broken the news to him that way if he’d known-- He would have been gentler. He’s never been good at that.

“I,” Drift starts. “If that’s what he thinks is best.”

“Damnit, kid, listen to yourself! You spend half the time expecting everyone to just forget your past, and the other half expecting them to shoot you for it. What is with you?”

“It’s what I--”

“If you say it’s what you deserve,” Ratchet warns, “I swear I’ll start screaming.”

Drift yanks his hand of of Ratchet’s. “It is! You know what I’ve done, Ratchet.”

“You’re right. I do. I also know what Rodimus did.” Drift cringes. “And I know he’s using you to get out of his own punishment.”

“He’s the captain,” Drift argues. “The crew--”

“Exactly! He’s the captain, so he should bear the responsibility. That’s how it’s supposed to work. That’s what Optimus would want. He would want Rodimus to own up to his mistakes, not shove them off onto the nearest vulnerable idiot with a guilt complex.”

“Ratchet…”

“Drift. Listen to me. You infuriate me. You are, without a doubt, the most annoying, most difficult person I have ever met, and that’s saying something. Despite that, for some Primus-forsaken reason, I care about you, and I know you deserve a second chance. Yes, even if you blew the first few. That’s how life works, kid. You can’t just give up.”

Drift stares at him, tears welling in his optics. He frowns, searching for something in Ratchet’s face or field or aura or whatever, and then, without warning, surges forward and hugs him so tightly Ratchet feels something in his spinal struts pop. “Thank you,” he whispers like a prayer.

“It’s gonna be okay, kid. I promise you, we will make it okay.”

[leewolfx]

From Russia with Love TFTG

A Valentines Day tftg idea I had

Hope some of you enjoy it

Happy Valentines Day 💝

[novafire-is-thinking]

Per aspera ad astra: “through adversity, to the stars”

The Vision

“You see a future in the stars?" Alpha Trion asked him quietly.

. . .

“The stars look endless to me,” he [Orion] said eventually. “Out there, you could just go and go, and there’d be enough space for everyone, and things to do and see that go on forever.” (CoP)

In an earlier post (Orion the Dreamer), I shared the full scene where Orion reveals his hopes and dreams to Alpha Trion.

And I mentioned in the previous post (Desire vs. Destiny) that it was Optimus’ deepest desire to peer behind the veil of life and study its secrets by collecting stories and seeking knowledge wherever he could find it.

Putting together both of these, one can see that Orion/Optimus’ personal vision for his life was to be a lifelong learner—one who learned through exploration, discovery of new life, the seeking of stories, and deep reflection.

Change of Plans

I will recover the AllSpark, thought Optimus Prime. Then I will retrace my steps across the galaxy and sow peace on my return wherever our initial exodus has inadvertently fomented division and war. (Exiles)

Life rarely goes as planned, as Optimus found out as the war dragged on.

Where a young Orion dreamt of setting out on his journey with curiosity and hope, a war-torn Optimus came to expect nothing more than a future quest of reparation and what he determined to be a moral duty.

A Fresh Glimpse of Hope

After so long, it was strange indeed to reach this planet again. Although I had heard it was full of life, I did not expect what we found—civilizations, technologies. For the last months, as we have been on final approach, we have learned to know them by their broadcasts, and though the others say nothing about it, what amazes me is how alike we are. Our bodies are different, our lifespans and our needs unalike, but what drives us and moves us is very much the same: humans talk about the heart, and Cybertronians the Spark; they love and fear, think and fight one another, as we do.

I looked for signs as we came within the light of their sun, and I find them everywhere—the many readings of Cybertronian technology on their world, the intensity of their struggles, the strange richness of their stories—against all odds, Unicron the Destroyer of Worlds has borne eons of life. I feel everything hangs in the balance. The Nemesis still pursues. We still track the AllSpark. So long this journey has been, and in spite of all its battles, so unchanging. (CoP)

Upon meeting and observing humans for himself, Optimus saw a glimpse of future potential—a future in which two very different, yet oddly similar species could learn and grow together, just as he’d wanted before the war. After all, Earth was also home to Unicron—the antithesis of Primus. There had to be a connection somewhere, and if not, Optimus intended to create one.

Of course, the war prevented him from getting his hopes too high, but judging from the fact that he trusted a human with the Key to Vector Sigma, it seems he allowed himself to hold onto a sliver of hope that humanity would not only survive the Cybertronian war, but would be part of Cybertron’s future in some way.

Endings and Epiphanies

I saw my death in the descent of the Dark Saber in Megatron's hand. I was surprised a little, disappointed. And then suddenly Megatron was no more. The reprieve was beyond belief. It shook me to my Spark and I felt suddenly with incredible force the fool I had been. I was not alone. I had never been alone, Prime or not. We, the Autobots, were one. (CoP)

After eons of hardship and carrying what he thought was primarily his burden to carry, Optimus was reminded that he was part of a greater whole.

The bigger goal was to see Autobots and Decepticons become one again, but this monumental shift in awareness was a necessary first step on Optimus’ journey to heal and open himself up to possibilities involving Cybertronians of either faction and humans.

A Shared Destiny

Thus ends the story of the Age of the Primes and of the origins of the Cybertronians, though not the whole story of course, for that is still being written in time and space on Earth, and all over the galaxy where the seeds and the sparks of life are growing.

I, Alpha Trion, one of the last Primes, now give this book into your hands, human friend, so that you shall know who your allies are, and your enemies also, how they are made, and where they have come from. Be sure that wherever and whenever you need our aid, the Autobots will respond to your call.

This is the Covenant of Primus, as given to all Cybertronians by right, and to humans by the last wish of Optimus, the Thirteenth Prime, so let it be.

TILL ALL ARE ONE.

Alpha Trion’s wording tells me humanity is probably the only other species that was given the Covenant of Primus.

This is incredible, to say the least. Of all the races Optimus encountered, he asked that humans be given one of the most sacred texts of the Cybertronian race.

But why humanity?

Well, Optimus firmly believed humans and Cybertronians shared a common destiny.

Alpha Trion, the relics, Unicron, the end of the war.

To Optimus, all of it pointed to Earth and humanity being an excellent starting point to launch into his original dream. He saw in humanity the future he’d endured so much hardship for: a future of learning and growing—not just alongside fellow Cybertronians, but alongside other races as well.

And depending on what each fan chooses to believe is the end of Optimus’ story, he either never got to see the fulfillment of his dream, or he did in some imagined way outside of canon.

Dreamers suffer more, but they also live more.

✧ ✧ ✧

Today, this post and the entire series are dedicated to Peter Cullen on his 82nd birthday, and to one of several beloved Optimi he’s poured so much of his heart and soul into. ❤️