Autobot
From Transformers Wiki
| This article is about the faction. For Generation 2 watch-Autobot, see Autobot (G2). |
The Autobots are one of the primary factions in the Transformers mythos. They usually find themselves defending both their own race and other species against the Decepticons and upholding justice and freedom throughout the galaxy.
They are considered "the good guys" in most, but not in all Transformers stories.
A generally heroic, honorable group, they tend to be dedicated to peace, and feel a need to protect other races from the Decepticons. As a result, they are usually Transformers who change into non-combat oriented alternate modes such as domestic vehicles, cars, trucks, or rescue vehicles. This is not always the case, however, as their ranks certainly contain ne'er-do-wells, malcontents, and unsavory types, and the necessities of war have led many to adopt more combat-oriented alternate forms. While the Autobots have usually found themselves outnumbered by the Decepticons, the Autobots have always had home-field advantage, having not only the humans' military support, but also having more places on Earth to fall back on, while the Decepticons are entirely unwelcome on Earth.
Key concepts that repeat throughout most continuities are the use of the name Prime (or a variation thereof) to denote Autobot leadership, and the existence of an artifact of great life-giving power, usually referred to as a "Matrix", traditionally held by their leader.
The collective noun for Autobots is an "exaltation".[1]
| “ | Few beings think of themselves as evil. Many justify their actions as good, even if they are not. But if you believe the 'good guys' would not harm any life-form, then you may consider me a member of that team. | ” |
Generation 1 / Beast Era
Marvel Comics continuity
Marvel The Transformers comics
In the beginning Primus created the Transformers, a race of living robots that could change their bodies into the likeness of weapons, vehicles, and machinery, and all Transformers were Autobots, and he saw that they were good. The Autobot symbol (or Autobrand as it is sometimes called) was based on the face of the Last Autobot, the sleeping guardian Primus left for the day when his plans came to fruition.
At first Autobot numbers were small (a mere 13 began things), but through budding they expanded their race to fill the planet. When the correct level of population was reached, a mechanism triggered and memory of the process was wiped from the Transformers minds. At some point in these early days Unicron was able to reach through the mental link he shared with Primus and sow the seeds of corruption in a few Autobots, though this dark cult of Unicron would not bear fruit for a long time.
Eons passed in relative peace. Autobot society formed its own traditions, institutions, city-states and politics. From a human perspective this society resembled that of ancient Rome. Senators and Emirates governed wisely or corruptly, priests worshipped Primus and passed his holy Matrix to the chosen bearer (the lineage: Prima to Prime Nova, Prime Nova to Sentinel Prime), gladiatorial games were held for sport and entertainment, and above it all the Overlords ruled.
It was only with the advent of Megatron at the end of the Golden Age, coinciding with the death of the last hereditary Overlord, and the subsequent rise of the Decepticons, that the words "Autobot" and "Transformer" ceased being necessary synonyms and the population was divided by war.
In the early days of the war the Autobots were overwhelmed by the Decepticon war machine. They fell back again and again and for a while it looked like the war would be quickly lost... and then a young warrior rose from their ranks and rallied the troops to fight back. He made his reputation by denying Megatron access to the Underbase, soon rose to command the Autobots' elite air corps, and then, at last, was granted full command of all Autobot armies. Optimus Prime had turned the tide, and under his leadership the Autobots fought back until Megatron's war machine was stalled out and stalemated.
The war ground on until Autobot scientists detected that their planet's path was going to pass through a deadly asteroid belt. Putting the planet-wide conflict aside for the moment they turned their attention to planetary salvation and the Ark was built.
Optimus and a crew of his best soldiers took the Ark into space and cleared a path for the planet through the asteroid field. Unfortunately with their power depleted from that Herculean task they were then ambushed by Megatron and his Decepticons. The crews of both ships were lost to history.
Without Megatron or Prime the pace of the war slowed considerably. Still, fighting continued and both sides dug in for a long bitter struggle. In Prime's absence Emirate Xaaron led the Autobot forces in their struggle to retake their homeworld.
The next four million years passed quickly (as it is wont to do) and without any major alteration (only a general degradation) of the situation. Finally news came to Cybertron: Optimus Prime and his forces lived! Yet this news came at a steep price, as it meant a new front had opened in the war. Optimus Prime and his forces fought the Decepticons on the distant world of Earth, while Xaaron, his Wreckers, and others carried on the war for Cybertron.
Despite Prime's dedication to protecting Earth, Autobot/Human relations were not good. Humanity viewed all Transformers as threats and attacked any they discovered regardless of faction. Industrialist G.B. Blackrock tried to inform the public that there were two factions, with the Autobots being the benign faction, but the Intelligence and Information Institute, the government agency tasked with countering the Transformers, was either unable or unwilling to distinguish between factions.
Not long after his survival was discovered, tragedy struck and Optimus Prime was killed on Earth. The Dinobot commander Grimlock took on the leadership of Prime's soldiers, though he favored the abandonment of Earth and a renewed focus on Cybertron.
At roughly the same time, the great Autobot warrior Fortress Maximus reached an important decision. He was tired of the war and if he could not end it he would leave it behind. Gathering a large following of likeminded warriors he left Cybertron for the world of Nebulos in hopes of a new and peaceful life. This was not to be. Decepticons followed Maximus and opened a third front to the war. In the end both factions abandoned Nebulos and Maximus led them to Earth to unite with the forces under Optimus Prime.
However, when they arrived they discovered Prime dead and Grimlock less than welcoming. Grimlock and Maximus attempted to establish a single Autobot leader with trial by combat, but were interrupted by a devastating Decepticon attack. The upside of it all was that they ended up putting their differences aside and Optimus Prime was soon reborn to take up leadership of the Earth-based forces once again.
Not long after, a dimensional transporter accident led to the rediscovery and accidental disturbance of Primus deep in the center of Cybertron. The Autobots learned that their ancient myths about Primus were the truth, and Unicron was now coming for them. Since the Creation Matrix had been lost and corrupted, Optimus Prime offered the Autobots' unconditional surrender to the Decepticons in the hopes that this would lead the two factions to stand together against the coming threat. It did, and the Matrix was retrieved and purified in time to stop Unicron. Both Optimus Prime and Emirate Xaaron were killed in the battle, and Grimlock ascended to Autobot leadership again, this time over all Autobots.
The alliance with the Decepticons would be short lived. Cybertron appeared to be destroying itself and the Decepticons betrayed the Autobots, leaving them to die with their world. Grimlock's leadership led to the Autobots escaping that trap, and walking right into a different one. Oops. Thankfully, the awakening of the Last Autobot saved Cybertron and led to the rebirth of Optimus Prime, who reclaimed Autobot leadership and beat the Decepticons once and for all.
(From this point the Marvel Generation 2, the Fun Publication's Classics comics and Regeneration One continue the story in separate and mutually exclusive directions.)
Marvel Generation 2 comic
The war finally over, most of the Autobots retired to the revived and prosperous Cybertron. It wasn't to last. Grimlock led a crew of Autobots not ready to take a vacation and put their feet up to try and track down any remaining Decepticon trouble. They found more than they could imagine as they discovered a vast and militant Empire constructed across the stars by Decepticons who left Cybertron long ago.
At the same time, Megatron reared his head again on Earth and soon the surviving Decepticons from the end of the war joined him, intent on restarting the war on Earth. It was not long before Decepticons and Autobots were teamed up against the forces of the Cybertronian Empire. Though this new conflict never touched the revived Cybertron, Earth was devastated by it. The Bot/Con alliance won, but how long this new alliance would last and what new threats awaited remained a question.
Classics
Regeneration One
Twenty one years after Klo, the Autobots had cemented their rule over Cybertron and rebuilt their planet. The ardent pacifism of Optimus Prime however prevented decisive action to end the renascent Decepticon threat on Cybertron as well as the tying up of loose ends on other planets. This attitude proved unpopular among the command staff of the Autobots with both Kup and Grimlock breaking ranks to deal with these issues themselves. Loose Ends, Part 1 Loose Ends, Part 2
While on Nebulos, Grimlock was detained by Scorponok, Loose Ends, Part 5 who revealed he had developed the Gene Key, a device that altered the CNA of Cybertronians to activate the "warrior gene" and turn all Autobots into loyal Decepticons. Natural Selection, Part One Though pretending to agree to join Scorponok, Grimlock managed to inform Perceptor of the plan who managed to neutralize the Gene Key before its abilities could be broadcasted on a planetary scale. Natural Selection, Part Five In spite of this, the actions many Autobots turned themselves in for war crimes they felt they had committed under the Key's influence. Destiny, Part One
After an attack by Bludgeon and Soundwave, Hot Rod was turned into "Rodimus Prime" and became the new leader of the Autobots. Concurrently, a group of Autobots construction workers was loaned to Optimus Prime to aid in the construction of a Space Bridge network between Earth and Nebulos. The War to End All Wars, Part 1 When the rogue senator Jhiaxus returned to Cybertron, he engaged in some false pleasantries with Rodimus Prime before the Autobots went to war with the Cybertronian Empire. The War to End All Wars, Part 2 The War to End All Wars, Part 3 The War to End All Wars, Part 4
The victory proved pyrrhic at best. While the Autobots were away, the Dark Matrix had turned the entirety of Cybertron's population into shadow-leeches. Though the Autobots managed to defeat the malignant entity, it left them deprived of their biological immortality, eventually dying out millions of years into the future. The last Autobot, indeed the last Cybertronian, wound up being Rodimus Prime. Upon his death, the last vestiges of his spark energy served to ignite the new generation of Cybertronians. The War to End All Wars, Part 5
Transformers '84
Though managing to offer sufficient resistance to divert Megatron's attention away from Project Dreadnought, Secrets & Lies #1 the Autobots were outmatched by the aggressors. Feeling that Megatron was the lynchpin of the Decepticon army, Optimus Prime conspired to trap his opposite off Cybertron, feeling that it would give his army a fighting chance. Aware that such an act would be sacrificial, Optimus left command of the Autobots to Ultra Magnus. Transformers '84 #0
Despite Optimus' gambit succeeding, Straxus emerged as the new Decepticon leader and aggressively accelerated the campaign against the Autobots. When Punch brought the news that Straxus sought to restart Project Dreadnought, Ultra Magnus received a pep talk from Impactor and Roadbuster that inspired him to take a more decentralized approach to command. Secrets & Lies #3 After the new commando team, the Wreckers, had destroyed Project Dreadnought, Autobot High Command was led by Magnus, Star Saber, and Fortress Maximus who opted for a decentralized response to the increasingly fragmented war. Secrets & Lies #4
Generation 1 cartoon continuity
The Transformers cartoon
The Autobots originated as a line of non-living consumer goods robots, created by the Quintessons alongside the military hardware robots that would become the Decepticons. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4 Developing sentience and emotion, the robots turned on their alien masters, though the Quintessons' gargantuan Dark Guardian robots made victory an unlikely prospect. A major tipping point occurred when the rebel leader A-3 used his Coder Remote, hidden within his slave brand, to deactivate the Dark Guardians, striking a major blow against the Quintessons and forever transforming the brand into a mark of autonomy that eventually became the Autobots' faction insignia. Forever Is a Long Time Coming At some point in these early days, the Autobots somehow gained possession of the mysterious Matrix of Leadership, which was carried by each successive leader of their race, and became a repository for their consciousness upon their passing. During the early days of Quintesson rule, it was carried by Primon, who was succeeded by the first robot to challenge the Quintessons, Prima, followed by the leader during the rebellion, Prime Nova. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4
After the Quintessons were successfully forced from Cybertron, a period of peace descended during which the Autobots—as they now called themselves—began building a civilization, but the warlike Decepticons soon declared war on them, claiming the lives of leaders Guardian Prime and Zeta Prime. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4 Outmatched by their enemies, many Autobots fled Cybertron, seeking to start new lives free of conflict elsewhere in the universe, Desertion of the Dinobots, Part 2 settling on planets such as Paradron. Fight or Flee Outmached in strength and firepower, the Autobots turned instead to stealth, inventing the art of transformation. Using this power, Autobot leader Sentinel Prime defeated Trannis, and ended the war. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4
Peace settled over Cybertron and what became known as the Golden Age began, but around nine million years ago, the Decepticons struck back, now under the command of Megatron. Megatron slew Sentinel Prime, who passed stewardship of the Matrix to A-3—now Alpha Trion—who was busy working on a means of rebuilding the Autobots so they would be able to fight the Decepticons on equal footing. When a wounded young robot named Orion Pax was brought to Alpha Trion, Trion repaired him using the process, rebuilding him as Optimus Prime and giving him the Matrix that he might serve as the leader of the first of a new breed of war-ready Autobot. War Dawn Under Prime's leadership, the protracted warfare ran for five million years, draining Cybertron dry of energy and forcing the Transformers to seek new power sources on other planets. Optimus Prime's best and brightest departed on this quest aboard a spacecraft, but were pursued and attacked by Megatron's elite, leading all involved to a crash-land on prehistoric Earth, entombed in stasis for four million years. More than Meets the Eye, Part 1
In 1984, a volcanic eruption awakened the Transformers, and their war for energy continued on Earth. Believing the Decepticons had been defeated, the Autobots entered into an alliance with Earth's governments for the energy needed to repair their ship and return to Cybertron, More than Meets the Eye, Part 3 but the unanticipated return prompted Optimus Prime and his men to stay on Earth to defend the planet. Transport to Oblivion The Autobots rebuilt their spaceship to serve as their headquarters, integrating it with the volcano it lay in, and maintained a position of superiority on Earth over the following years, aided by their human allies in world's governments and the Witwicky family, and regularly bolstered by the addition of new troops from various quarters.
Over the next twenty years, the Decepticons managed to drive the Autobots from Cybertron, forcing them to operate out of two bases on Cybertron's moons with a reserve force at Autobot City on Earth. In 2005, learning that the Autobots were preparing a major assault, the Decepticons besieged Autobot City, leading to a battle which saw the deaths of many Autobots, including Optimus Prime, who passed leadership to Ultra Magnus before dying. Subsequently, the planet-eating Unicron attacked Cybertron, but the young Autobot Hot Rod was able to prove himself Optimus's true successor when he used the Matrix to destroy Unicron, transformed in the process by its power into Rodimus Prime. Under Rodimus's leadership, the Autobots routed the remaining Decepticons on Cybertron, shattered by Unicron's attack, and they finally retook their home planet. The Transformers: The Movie
The Autobots remained in control of Cybertron throughout 2006, slowly working to revitalize their homeworld while defending with comparative ease against various attacks by the surviving Decepticons, and the manipulations of the returned Quintessons.
In 2007, when the Decepticons mounted an all-out attack on Cybertron's Plasma Energy Chamber, several Autobots were hurled across the galaxy by a blast of the chamber's power to the planet Nebulos. There, they became binary bonded to a cell of local rebels as Headmasters and Targetmasters, helping them to defeat the planet's evil rulers, the Hive. Returning to Cybertron with the key to the Plasma Energy Chamber, they were able to thwart the Decepticons' plan to destroy Cybertron and Earth with the chamber, instead using its power to revitalize their home-world and restore the Golden Age. The Rebirth
Japanese cartoon continuity
Following Optimus Prime's resurrection, the Decepticons retreated into hiding, allowing the Autobots to expand their operations. A new major command post was set up on the planet Athenia, and plans were made to terraform the planet into a second Cybertron, but this was tabled when the Decepticons returned in 2011, attempting to seize control of Cybertron through Vector Sigma. Four Warriors Come out of the Sky Bolstered by the addition of Headmasters to their ranks—Cybertronians who had left their planet long ago and taken up residence on the planet Master, led by Fortress—the Autobots were able to thwart their plan, but in the effort, Optimus Prime died once again, and Rodimus Prime became leader again. Birth of the Fantastic Double Prime Rodimus's tenure was short-lived when, after a Decepticon bomb plot resulted in the destruction of Cybertron, he passed leadership to Fortress and set off into space to find a new homeworld for the Transformers. Cybertron Is in Grave Danger, Part 2 Under Fortress's leadership, the Autobots succeeded in preventing a Decepticon plan to destroy the Earth with plasma energy, and finally forced the evil robots off the planet for good. The Final Showdown on Earth (Part 2)
The Autobots likewise withdrew from Earth, and, staging their operations from Athenia, proceeded to engage their enemies in a series of space-based exchanges known as the Master Wars. Master File No, 1 Learning that the mysterious alien Devil Z had taken control of the Decepticons and had a scheme brewing on Earth, Fortress left defense of the planet to a small team of Pretenders led by Metalhawk, who had been operating there in secret among human civilization since neolithic times. Rise Up!! Pretenders To protect Earth against Devil Z's schemes, the Pretenders recruited human beings to become merged with Transformer technology as Headmaster Juniors and Godmasters, and the most powerful of their number, Ginrai, destroyed Devil Z in combat. A Battle... and Then...
Following Devil Z's defeat, the Decepticons reorganized under Deathsaurus and began attacking planets all across the galaxy, prompting the Autobots to step up their game, allying with humanity and many other races to form the star-spanning Galactic Peace Alliance. The Autobot swordsman Star Saber was appointed the Autobots' new Supreme Commander and head of the alliance's Galactic Defense Force, and led his elite Brainmaster and Multiforce troops in defending the Earth when it was targeted by Deathsaurus as a source of energy to re-power his Planet-Destroying Fortress in 2025. The Brave Hero of the Universe - Star Saber
Star Saber was later injured defending the planet Feminia against the Nine Great Demon Generals and was succeeded as Autobot leader by Powered Master Dai Atlas, who foiled the evil entity Violengiguar's plans for conquest using the power of the enigmatic Zodiac. Zone The Zodiac presented a possible avenue to resurrect the legendary Optimus Prime, so Dai Atlas entrusted both it and interim Autobot leadership to Sky Garry, who rescued Prime's body from the evil alien Dark Nova. Revived by the Zodiac as "Star Convoy," Prime destroyed Dark Nova. Return of Convoy
In the year 2035, with Autobot/Decepticon conflict mostly occurring in space once again, the Autobots and humanity joined forced to develop Power Core Combination technology. This powerful new tech drew the Decepticons' attention back to the planet, but the schemes of their current eader Scrash were put down by the new Autobot Power Core Combiners, Guard City, and the Micromaster six-combiners. Operation Combination United EX Following this, the Autobots and Decepticons laid down their arms and united to established the Cybertron Alliance, rebuilding Cybertron. Unfortunately, Megatron soon turned to evil again, and Optimus Prime was forced to battle and defeat him in the Mirtonian constellation, apparently bring the war to an end once and for all. G-2 Alas, the Autobots had not reckoned with the time-travelling Galvatron II, who arrived from another timeline to take control of the Decepticons and continue the war, and so bolstered their ranks to fight back with mass-produced Eldedroids. e-HOBBY storyline
Beast Wars cartoon
During the Great War, the Autobots launched the Ark, a warship containing their mightiest heroes. The Agenda (Part III) When the war reignited on Earth, the Autobots would be aided by the native humans, an act which history recorded as having been an important factor in securing an Autobot victory in the war. Code of Hero
The war finally ended with the Autobots defeating the Decepticons; peace was declared with the signing of the Pax Cybertronia, with a few Decepticons granted amnesty and retiring to live in peace. The Agenda (Part 1) The Autobots would eventually be succeeded by the Maximals, who had little hard facts regarding their ancestors, viewing the Autobots as ancient legendary figures. Possession However, the Decepticons' descendants, the Predacons, lived as second-class citizens as a consequence of their ancestors having surrendered to the Autobots. The Agenda (Part III)
Beast Machines cartoon
When Megatron subdued Cybertron's population with his virus, he extracted their sparks and used their bodies as raw materials for building Vehicons. Optimus Primal and his team discovered a junkyard/factory with acres of these corpses, one of which very clearly bore the Autobot symbol (and an uncanny resemblance to Prowl). Revelations Part I: Discovery Also, among the Vehicon generals were the revived Great War veterans Obsidian and Strika, who may have been Autobots themselves. Sparkwar Pt. I: The Strike
3H comics
Many of the great Autobot and Decepticon heroes (such as Optimus Prime, Grimlock, Soundwave, and Megatron) retired to a strange quasi-reality called J'nwan. Almost all who tried to reach J'nwan and seek their aid succumbed to madness, and the ancient heroes did not appreciate being disturbed by any survivors. However, the great figures did eventually decide to fight once more at Point Omega, an event which erased much of the timeline they had come from. It's unclear whether or not J'nwan or the events regarding it remained intact.
Meanwhile, some other Autobots and Decepticons, such as Rodimus, Arcee, and Devcon did not enter J'nwan but remained active on Cybertron. Some Autobots became Maximals while others did not. Departure Betrayal
2006 IDW Beast Wars continuity
The three components of the combiner Magnaboss are the Autobots Silverbolt, Prowl, and Ironhide. They vanished after the Pax Cybertronia was signed, but it is said they will return in a time of great need. Beast Wars Sourcebook
Dreamwave Generation One continuity
The Autobots arose as the group who sided with Sentinel Prime and the Council of Ancients and opposed Megatron's desire for the conquest of Cybertron, but their inexperience with warfare led to a serious tactical disadvantage. Sentinel Prime led the war effort for half a million years, until Megatron killed him in combat, hoping to secure the Matrix from him. Sentinel's successor, Optimus Prime, originally decided to evacuate Cybertron, fearing that, even if the Autobots won, Cybertron would be a wasteland. However, a subsequent encounter between Optimus Prime and Megatron, where he learned of the planetary engines the Decepticon leader hoped to power with the Matrix, convinced Prime to remain on Cybertron. The War Within
Later, Optimus Prime and Megatron disappeared in a space bridge explosion. Without strong leadership, both sides degenerated into factions. The Wreckers and the Lightning Strike Coalition broke off from the main Autobot army, which was led by Prowl. War Within: The Dark Ages After Ultra Magnus took control of the Autobots, he reunified the factions, and manage to negotiate a cease-fire with Shockwave's Decepticons and Ratbat's Ultracons. However, Starscream's Predacons made a last ditch assault, and Megatron suddenly returned leading the Aerospace Extermination Squadron, an army of Seeker drones created by the Quintessons. Megatron managed to conquer Cybertron, forcing most of the Autobots into slavery and the escapees into hiding. The period of Autobot enslavement ended when Optimus Prime returned to Cybertron and the Air Warriors were destroyed. We don't know how. War Within: The Age of Wrath
Four million years before humans arose, Cybertron was threatened by a massive asteroid. The Autobots developed the Ark to destroy the asteroid. They were successful, but Megatron attacked with the Nemesis. Both ships crashed on Earth, with both crews aboard the Ark. On Cybertron, Ultra Magnus and Fortress Maximus worked to keep the Autobots from splitting up again. With energon growing scarce, Magnus agreed to work with Shockwave to create the Micromasters, downsized Transformers intended for better fuel efficiency. Magnus also launched Operation: Containment, a twofold program intended to prevent the Decepticons from threatening other planets and locating the Ark. Transformers: Micromasters However, with the Great Shutdown, all Transformers entered a period of enforced stasis lock. Shockwave was the first to be reactivated, and made peace with the Autobots, installing himself as Head of State with an Autobot High Council as a legislature.
On Earth, the Autobots on the Ark awoke in 1984. Cut off from Cybertron, and seeing that a sentient species had evolved around them, the Autobots resolved to defend Earth from the Decepticons. Over the next fifteen years, the Autobots were largely successful at preventing a Decepticon conquest, while also befriending the Witwicky family. Eventually, the Autobots allied with the humans and defeated the Decepticons, capturing them. However, rogue elements of the United States Military, apparently being manipulated by Shockwave, sabotaged the Ark II, capturing several Autobots and most of the Decepticons, until the chief scientist, Adam Rook, went rogue and set himself up as an arms dealer. Robert Hallo, the original mastermind of the conspiracy, used Spike Witwicky to reactivate Optimus Prime, who revived the Autobots and stopped a reactivated Megatron. Prime Directive A year later, Shockwave came to tie up loose ends and acquire the Matrix from Prime. A rebel Autobot cell managed to rescue Prime, who united the other resistance groups, and Shockwave was overthrown, bringing Cybertron under Autobot control. War and Peace
2005 IDW continuity
Over four million years ago, "Autobot" was a term used by other races to describe Cybertronians. It was derived from "automaton", describing how the species lived routine, monotonous lives without any change. Orion Pax was the first Transformer to lay claim to the name for their own use, saying it could stand for "autonomous" instead. Chaos Theory Part 2 Under unknown circumstances, the name then came to be used by the Sentinel Prime's pre-war security forces. The Last Autobot
The symbol that would become the Autobot insignia was created over six million years ago by Onyx Prime to symbolize the alliance between eight Primes, an alliance that would later become the Thirteen Primes. Onyx claimed that it was based on the face of Primus himself, described to him by Metrotitan, but in reality, Onyx was a temporally displaced Shockwave with the symbol being one of many ontological paradoxes he'd seeded history with. Origin Myths The First Who Was Named As a symbol of the Primes' reign, it became considered a universal symbol of Cybertronians, and after their fall went on to be used by many other factions. Omega's Conundrum By the time of the Senate, it was used to represent Sentinel Prime's Autobots. Megatron Origin
Following the uprising of Megatron's Decepticon movement, Zeta Prime succeeded Sentinel and, joined by Orion Pax, refashioned the Autobots into an army to fight the Decepticons. However, Zeta's increasingly ruthless methods and neglect of the civilian populace made the faction widely unpopular. Law and Disorder Following Zeta's death, Orion Pax became Optimus Prime and convinced many neutral Cybertronians to join the Autobot army for the sake of defeating Megatron. Broadcast
With both Autobots and Decepticons now having powerful leaders and large armies, the Great War between them broke out. Eventually, the Autobots spread across the galaxy and formed into small units to counter the Decepticon units infiltrating various planets. The two sides joined forces to combat Thunderwing and the ensuing battle rendered Cybertron uninhabitable. Stormbringer
Once the war ended, the Autobots governed over a "reset" Cybertron in an Iacon populated primarily by returning neutrals. They were disliked by most neutrals, who held them equally responsible for the war as the Decepticons, prompting Optimus Prime to step down and pass the mantle of Autobot leader to Bumblebee. The Death of Optimus Prime Bumblebee's attempts to control the situation went poorly, and following a resurgence of violence between Autobots and Decepticons, the neutrals voted to exile both factions from the city. Some Autobots responded by leaving the faction and becoming neutrals themselves. Heavy Is the Head Following the Dark Cybertron event, they were allowed back into Iacon, and their fair trial of Megatron won back enough of the public trust that the neutrals even stopped referring to them as the "Autobot regime". Words Hang in the Air By contrast, the humans viewed Megatron joining the Autobots as a betrayal, being incentive enough for them to agree to an alliance with Galvatron. Detonation Boulevard
The Autobots experienced a major PR boost when Optimus Prime raised Metrotitan live on camera. As Above...So Below After Galvatron had been slain, No Fair Fights Optimus toured the colony worlds and recruited a new generation of Autobots. Post
Soon enough, Onyx Prime returned to Cybertron and revealed himself as Shockwave. Unforgivable When the final stage of Shockwave's master plan, Unicron activated and launched its attack on the galaxy, the Autobot fleet tried to defend both the colonies, Last Stand Stranger Eons and Cybertron from the monster but were forced to evacuate their homeworld for Earth, leaving Cybertron to be destroyed. Our Finest Road's End Once Unicron had been felled, the Autobots settled onto Earth as their new home. Ceremony Post
Beast Wars: Uprising
After a Predacon from an alternate future had slain Optimus Prime, A Change to the Agenda the Autobots reactivated in 1984 under the command of an unidentified leader. The Mini-Bots attempted to respond to a Decepticon raid at the British Museum but failed to stop their foes from making off with their prize. Cultural Appropriation In 1993, the Autobots worked with the humans to construct a warp gate on the edge of the Sol system. The war later moved off Earth and grew increasingly violent.
Ten years later however, Autobot/Human relations had deteriorated significantly as a result of the pan-galactic collateral damage to the point that the Earth Defense Command was formed to fight against all Cybertronians before a battle on New Earth caused humans to declare their space off-limits to Cybertronians. In 2026, the Autobot shuttle Star Arrow asked the human world of Tamil Duniya for aid only to be destroyed. Micro-Aggressions
At some point during the 21st century, the Autobots and Decepticons joined forces to save their homeworld from Unicron before the war resumed. The Inexorable March After the Decepticons had invaded the planet Nebulos, the Autobots travelled there to combat their foes, managing to use Nebulan technology to resurrect Optimus Prime. A Brush With Infamy–Prologue Derailment The arrival of the Confederated Terran Colonial Fleet turned the Nebulan war hot. The Autobots responded to the violence by creating Fortress Maximus, an act which ultimately ended in the Scouring of Nebulos. The sheer loss of life resulted in the humans containing all Cybertronians in the Allowed Zone. The Autobots then fought Galvatron's troops for control of the Allowed Zone but were ultimately defeated, forcing them to fall back to Cybertron. Micro-Aggressions
After Thunderwing seized control of the Decepticons and the Underbase, the Autobots joined with the not-completely bonkers Decepticons to combat this mutual threat. Once Thunderwing had been defeated, the Autobots and Decepticons reorganized themselves as the Builders of Cybertron. With Vector Sigma lost to them, Cerebros constructed the Energon Matrix to creates the Maximals, the successors to the Autobots. Broken Windshields Head Games Safe Spaces
During a raid on Fortress Maximus, Buzzclaw despaired that the Autobot symbol, once a symbol of hope and freedom, had become the symbol of the new generation of tyrants. Head Games
Of Masters and Mayhem
Once the ruling faction on Cybertron, the Autobots quickly found themselves outmatched by the Decepticon aggressors. The Truth We Make As the war continued with no end in sight, the Autobots commissioned Project: Ark to escape their wartorn world and serve as a representation of their hope that the war would one day end. The Toxic Transformer A few individual Autobots abandoned the cause and struck out on their own as the conflict continued. Life Finds a Way
The Decepticons eventually unleashed Thunder Mayhem on the planet, the combiner's destructive rampage wiping out Cybertronian civilization, the Autobots included. With Optimus Prime presumed, but not actually, dead, the Autobots were, for all intents and purposes, dissolved, factional allegiances taking on far less significance in the post-Cybertron era. Deadly Aim
Ask Vector Prime
In Primax 185.0 Beta, the Autobots launched the S.T.A.R.S. initiative. While the program met with initial successes, it would have disastrous long-reaching consequences as the Decepticons responded to it by creating the Decepto-Packs, their hypno-chip derived technology enslaving hordes of humans that the Autobots proved unwilling to fire against. As a result, Galvatron ordered the humans to construct a fleet of Zod drones, their raw power driving the Autobots to extinction, only Ratchet being known to survive. With their foes defeated, the Decepticon Empire launched an aggressive campaign of galactic conquest. The legacy of the Autobots would live however as Ratchet, aided by the Dreadnoks, managed to kill Galvatron. Ask Vector Prime, 2015/06/04
Star Trek vs. Transformers
When an asteroid belt threatened to destroy Cybertron, the Autobots launched the Ark to clear a path for their homeworld. The task done, they were then boarded by the Decepticons, the Ark crashing on the nearby Earth. When the two factions awoke in the 1980s, they commenced a secret war over the planet's energon supply, the Autobots working alongside a handful of humans. Earth, however, soon fell victim to the Eugenics Wars and later World War III, Optimus Prime deciding to abandon the blighted world aboard Fortress Maximus. Witnessing the extreme level of savagery and barbarism that humanity had inflicted upon itself left the Autobots with a decidedly low opinion of those whom they'd once sworn to protect.
After decades in space, the Autobots found the energon rich world of Cygnus Seven only to be once again boarded and sent crashing by the Decepticons. This time, they reawakened in the 23rd century by a Federation mining party that had roused Maximus' autonomic security protocols. Though the Autobots initially clashed with the landing party of the USS Enterprise, they soon allied with them against the Decepticon/Klingon alliance. Prime's Directive, Part Two Prime's Directive, Part Three
The Decepticons, however, promptly abandoned the battle after Starscream had absconded with a bounty of dilithium. Brought to the Enterprise, the Autobots used Cybertronian engineering to more quickly repair the ship. Prime's Directive, Part Four During the flight, the Autobots helped build the "Crewbots" allowing their allies to join them on Kronos, the capital of the Klingon Empire. Backed up by Starfleet and the Klingons, the Autobots reengaged their foes only to fall victim to Soundwave's audio disruptor waves, being saved by the Klingons, deaf to Soundwave's frequency, summoning a fleet of warbirds. In the aftermath, the Klingon High Council allowed the Autobots to go in peace, though at the cost of leaving the Decepticons on Kronos. While James T. Kirk invited the Autobots back to the now peaceful Earth, Optimus declined, feeling his people's destiny lied elsewhere, and the Autobots resumed their own interstellar voyage. Prime's Directive, Part Five
2019 IDW continuity
The Autobots were the oldest known faction on Cybertron. Orion Pax: Free Fall The movement's founder carried the Matrix of Leadership with the talisman subsequently becoming the symbol of office for the Autobot leader. Titans Over time, the Autobots accumulated enough political power to become Cybertron's ruling body. They fought in a war against Exarchon's Threefold Spark under the leadership of Nominus Prime. In the aftermath of the conflict, Nominus passed the Nominus Edict, a law designed to help Cybertronian society heal. Orion Pax: Free Fall
In the modern day, Sentinel Prime had succeeded Nominus as Autobot leader. By this time, Autobot law was increasingly frowned on by the common citizenry who began viewing the outdated policies as ones of constraint more than self-restraint. The Cracks Beneath Your Feet Part Two Despite this, the Autobots still held the majority in the Senate. The Cracks Beneath Your Feet Part Four
Transformers/Ghostbusters
With the Great War lost to them, the Autobots fled Cybertron, the Ark launching minutes before Gozer arrived to destroy their planet. Believing themselves the last Cybertronians in the universe, the Autobots drifted aimlessly in the Ark before they picked up a Cybertronian signal from the planet Earth, sending Ectronymous Diamatron to investigate. Ghosts of Cybertron Part 1 After befriending the Ghostbusters, Ectronymous found the source of the signal was the ghost of Starscream who'd sent out a signal to speak to the Autobots in the hopes that they could help him return to life. Ghosts of Cybertron Part 2
After Optimus Prime had been summoned to Earth, Ghosts of Cybertron Part 3 it was found that Starscream was working with the supernatural entity Kremzeek the Scavenger who sought the AllSpark. With the help of the Ghostbusters, Optimus and Ectronymous - now calling himself "Ectotron" - were able to dispel Kremzeek but this act freed the trapped ghosts of Decepticon High Command. Ghosts of Cybertron Part 4 While Starscream managed to flee the planet, Megatron, Shockwave, Soundwave, were imprisoned in ghost traps with Optimus taking them back to the Ark in the hopes of rehabilitating them before reviving them while Ectotron went his own way, becoming the first interstellar Ghostbuster as he searched for any other lost Cybertronian ghosts. Ghosts of Cybertron Part 5
War for Cybertron Trilogy cartoon
Transformers vs. The Terminator
Millions of years prior to the human era, the Ark crashed on Earth, knocking the Autobots and Decepticons aboard in stasis. In the year 1984, the ship rebooted and reactivated Skywarp who proceeded to revive the rest of the Decepticons who executed most of the Autobots. Enemy of My Enemy Part Two A few of their number survived to leave the ship but they had all been killed by the year 2029. Enemy of My Enemy Part One
To prevent the Decepticon conquest of Earth, the AI Skynet sent a single T-800 back to 1984 to destroy the Cybertronians. Its interference caused Optimus Prime to survive who proposed an alliance between his forces and the T-800 to defeat the Decepticons. Enemy of My Enemy Part Two
After Arcee, Ratchet, Velocity and Wheeljack had been brought online, the Autobots located the Decepticons and quickly set out to meet them. During the subsequent battle at a Cyberdyne Systems facility, the Autobots were betrayed by the T-800, which had helped itself to their explosives, who remotely detonated Mount St. Hilary and buried the Ark. Enemy of My Enemy Part Three
When Starscream betrayed the Decepticons, the Autobots managed to turn the tide of the battle. Once the Seekers and Insecticons had been taken prisoner, Starscream flew off before the T-800 and Sarah Connor destroyed Soundwave. Following the death of Megatron, the Autobots parted ways with Sarah and returned to the Ark, only to discover the T-800's duplicity. Unable to return to Cybertron without the Ark, Optimus proposed an alliance between Autobot and Decepticon until they could find another way home. With their situational allies, the Autobots made their way on Earth, covertly observed by Sarah who did her best to hide them from the world. Enemy of My Enemy Part Four
My Little Pony/Transformers
While battling for control of a malfunctioning spacebridge, a gaggle of Autobots were magically transported to Equestria by Queen Chrysalis. The friendly and rational sort, the Autobots quickly made allies with the equines who inhabited the land. Transformation Is Magic
Aware that the Decepticons would regroup and launch an attack on the ponies, Optimus traveled Equestria with Twilight Sparkle to rally the scattered Autobots, mustering the troops in time to mount a defense of the Crystal Empire against the Decepticon/changeling alliance. As the battle raged, a spacebridge opened through which Grimlock and Twilight's assistant Spike came through. Realizing that changeling magic was not required to return to Cybertron, Optimus combined the power of the Matrix of Leadership with Twilight's magic of friendship, returning the Decepticons to Cybertron. After a delightful tea and energon party, the Autobots returned home, Optimus destroying the spacebridge to protect Equestria from further Decepticon incursions. Finale
When the Decepticons managed to open a new space bridge to Equestria and began pilfering magical relics, a clash with Twilight and her friends caused King Sombra to be unleashed on Sombra. Enthralling several ponies and Decepticons, the Autobots, at the firm insistence of Applejack and Rarity, joined forces with the remaining Decepticons to combat the invader. The Magic of Cybertron
After the Cybertronians and Equestrians had worked out how to free Sombra's thralls, The Beauty of Cybertron the alliance attacked the tyrant as he sought to unearth the Titan Scorponok. After the Titan had been destroyed, and Starscream seen off for attempted regicide, Megatron agreed to end hostilities as Cybertron and Equestria moved towards an official trade alliance. Finale
Transformers/Back to the Future
By 2015, the Autobots had emerged as the victors of the Great War. When Rumble, having used Doc Brown's DeLorean time machine to skip ahead to 2015, witnessed this, he stole the time vehicle to retroactively win the war. Breaking into the Ark ahead of schedule, Rumble hacked into Teletraan-I and had it revive only the Decepticons. When informed of Rumble's journey, Megatron turned his fusion cannon on the Autobots. What few survived became a, literal, underground resistance led by Rodimus Prime. Transformers/Back to the Future #2
The Decepticon turncoat Gigawatt and Marty McFly eventually managed to travel back to 1984 and reactivate the Autobots before Rumble arrived. After the Decepticon had been defeated and Marty used the DeLorean to return to 2015, the Autobots recruited Biff Tannen as their local mechanic and guide, defending the Earth for the next thirty-one years until Marty returned. Transformers/Back to the Future #4
Last Bot Standing
During the Great War, the Autobots were led by Optimus Prime before he was replaced by Rodimus Prime. As the conflict continued, it consumed all known sources of energon, ending the war. Last Bot Standing #2
Sometime after the war's end, the Autobot trio of Rodimus, Gripper and Strongarm stumbled onto a pair of Decepticon warships, Last Bot Standing #1 who pursued them to the planet Donnokt. The Autobots managed to pick off the Decepticons until only Fangry and Talon remained. Last Bot Standing #4 Discovering that an organic species evolving on Donnokt, the three Autobots decided to stay on the planet to safeguard it and its people against any future Cybertronian incursions. Last Bot Standing #3
Elsewhere in the universe, the ex-Decepticon Steeljaw assumed command of a pack of Cybertronian survivors who rebuilt themselves to run on biofuel, the pack shedding their factional allegiances in spite of still wearing their insignias. Though the majority of the group was composed of once Decepticons, the former Autobots Wedge, Override, Last Bot Standing #2 Wildwheel and Wheelie joined on. When Rodimus was reenergized to fight against the invaders, he admonished Wheelie for abandoning the Autobots' morals for the sake of survival. Last Bot Standing #3
2001 Robots in Disguise cartoon
Here, the Autobots are the main race on Cybertron, and their enemies are the Predacons. The Autobots fought in the Cybertronian Civil Wars, presumably against the Predacons. Vector Sigma, the Allspark, chooses which Autobot is to be granted the Matrix and thus the position of commander-in-chief.
The Autobots were already on Earth when the Predacons arrived, having taken the form of Earth vehicles to work as camouflage and established a Global Space Bridge network and a central base monitoring the entire planet.
In their disguises, the Autobots integrated themselves into human society; Team Bullet Train worked as actual trains, X-Brawn was owned as a car by Kelly, and Optimus Prime was working for a fire department. This continued after they went public; both Prowl and Tow-Line, for example, were shown enforcing human laws in an apparently official capacity, suggesting the Autobots had official ties to human authorities.
It's known Optimus fought the Predacons on other worlds, presumably using the same tactics as on Earth.
Unicron Trilogy continuity family
Dreamwave comic continuity
Dreamwave Armada comic
Originally, the Autobots were not a faction, but the name of a peacekeeping organization; under the command of Optimus Prime, they defended Cyber City. Their headquarters was adorned with the motto "Truth - Justice - Freedom". They were unable to stop the Mini-Con-powered Decepticons from taking Cyber City, and for a million years they were reduced to a rebel organization desperately trying & failing to protect Cybertron. The reactivation of the Mini-Cons on Earth gave the Autobots an opportunity to gain Mini-Con power of their own, but eventually the Decepticons were beaten not by them, but due to the attack of Unicron.
Cartoon continuity
Armada cartoon
Four million years prior to 2010, Optimus Prime led the Autobots into the war against the Decepticons for control of the Mini-Cons. When the Mini-Cons expressed a desire to leave the conflict however, Optimus Prime agreed to aid them, ordering the construction of the Exodus to allow them to leave Cybertron. Despite the Mini-Cons' departure, the war continued without them. Prehistory
In the year 2010, the Exodus reactivated and sent a signal back to Cybertron. Optimus Prime led his inner circle to the distant planet Earth to reclaim the Mini-Cons, First Encounter leaving Jetfire in command. Prehistory
After the Mini-Cons had been recovered, Optimus' force returned to Cybertron in time for the planet to be threatened by Unicron. Uprising Entering into a formal alliance with the Decepticons to defeat Unicron, Alliance the Autobots managed to fell the Chaos Bringer. Galvatron sacrificed himself during the course of the battle, leaving behind an order for his troops to work with the Autobots. Mortal Combat
Energon cartoon
Megatron's final orders to his troops still stood: work with the Autobots. The Decepticons maintained a degree of autonomy, still wearing the faction sigil and often taking military/defensive positions in the growing number of energon-mining colonies, but they were ultimately answerable to Optimus Prime and the Autobots. There were, of course, dissenters, most of whom were captured and imprisoned. For a decade, Autobot and Decepticon worked side by side in a somewhat stable truce. Cybertron City
Both sides found themselves the target of attacks from Unicron again; hordes of Terrorcon drones, sent by Alpha Quintesson to steal energon ore with which to revive the now-shattered husk of Unicron. What the alien did not count on was that Megatron's spark had survived within the remains, and was siphoning energon from Unicron's body. Soon the Decepticon leader had revived himself in a new form, driven off Alpha Quintesson, and, along with an elite cadre of soldiers and a seemingly inexhaustible supply of mindless Terrorcon drones, begun his new plans for conquest. Energon Stars
When news of Megatron's return reached Cybertron, hundreds of Decepticons rose up and rebelled, eager to get back to conquering. Megatron's Sword But having been joined to Unicron for so long apparently had given Megatron a taste of godhood; he had no more interest in amassing a galaxy-spanning army of troops. Countless Decepticons died in the resulting battles, with Megatron more than willing to sacrifice them without a thought to attain ultimate power for himself. As the "Powerlinx Battles" - as they came to be called - came to their climax, Megatron found that his actions and thoughts were being influenced and controlled by the dark spark of Unicron. Unwilling to let Unicron stand in his way, Megatron ultimately sacrificed himself (again) and seemingly destroyed Unicron's spark by plunging himself into a newly formed energon sun created by Primus. The Sun
Cybertron cartoon
Another ten years after Energon, the energon sun created by Primus was gone, collapsed into the Unicron Singularity, a giant black hole threatening to devour all of existence. Faced with Cybertron's destruction, the Autobots evacuated the populace to Earth. As the evacuation began, Vector Prime approached Autobot High Command and told them that only the Cyber Planet Keys and the Omega Lock could close the black hole. Fallen Inferno
Unwilling to so readily dive back into mysticism, the Autobots continued to explore technological means of collapsing the black hole, such as a gravitron grid but were ultimately forced to follow Vector Prime's plan. Hidden
The search for the Cyber Keys led them to Velocitron, Landmine and the Jungle Planet. Search After acquiring the Cyber Keys of both colonies, and Earth's, the Autobots brought the three Keys and the Omega Lock to the core of Cybertron, using the Matrix of Leadership as a substitute for the missing Key, and triggered Primus' transformation to robot mode. Cybertron
The god informed the Autobots that the fourth key, on the planet Gigantion, had been dragged into another universe. Balance With the Ogygia, the Autobots travelled to the lost colony. Warp
Though the Autobots managed to claim the last Key, Optimus Galvatron managed to claim the Lock and the Keys, stranding the Autobots in the other reality, Showdown the Autobots only managing to return home, at the moment that they'd left, through Vector Prime's sacrifice. Guardian
With Galvatron threatening the universe with total event collapse, the Autobots found reinforcements from the whole of their species. Homecoming When Primus managed to reclaim his full power, he sealed the black hole. End
In the new era of peace, the Autobots embarked on a new era of colonization, in honor of their ancestors' dream. Beginning
Live-action film series
The Autobots (autonomous robotic organisms) are the second Cybertronian civilization, being the descendants of the early workers who served the Dynasty of Primes. Following the outbreak of the war, the Autobots became the Transformers who rallied around Optimus, the last of the Primes, to prevent Protector Megatron from claiming the AllSpark. They were formed mostly from the Science Division, the Security Force, and what few members of the Defense Force rejected Megatron's violent ambitions. Although they fought valiantly, the Decepticons were more warlike, and they began to gain ground. Defiance
In a move to prevent the Decepticons from acquiring the AllSpark, Prime sent it hurtling into deep space. Megatron followed, and disappeared. After years of warfare, the Autobot resistance abandoned Cybertron once it had fallen into the Decepticons' grasp. Optimus had the scout B-127 establish a base on a well-hidden planet called Earth while he and others would gather the scattered Autobots searching for the AllSpark across the universe. Movie Prequel Bumblebee
Following some twelve thousand years of searching, the Autobots encountered a stranded vessel in space. Known as Ghost 1, the creatures aboard, named humans, revealed that they had developed the ship based on studies from Megatron. Recognizing that Megatron would destroy their world if he came back online, Optimus tried to send them back to Earth, but they sacrificed their lives to save Optimus from Starscream. Already suspecting that the AllSpark was on their homeworld, the Autobots made efforts to find Earth. Ghosts of Yesterday In 1987, Optimus and others made planetfall shortly after B-127, now calling himself "Bumblebee", had prevented the Decepticons Shatter and Dropkick from rallying the Decepticon army to the planet. Bumblebee
By the early 2000s, the Autobots discovered a link to the AllSpark with Sam Witwicky. Bumblebee came into Sam's possession, and contacted Optimus Prime. Prime came to Earth with Jazz, Ironhide, and Ratchet to retrieve the AllSpark and eliminate Megatron, fearing the Decepticon would use the Cube to raise an army from human technology. However, Starscream's retrieval team was also on Earth, having come for the AllSpark. The Autobots were further hampered by Sector Seven, the human agency tasked with dealing with Transformers. Eventually forming a brief truce with Sector Seven and a group of Army Rangers who had encountered Blackout and Scorponok, the Autobots fought off the Decepticons in Mission City, which saw the deaths of Megatron, Blackout, Bonecrusher, and Brawl, but Jazz was killed and the AllSpark destroyed when Sam Witwicky extinguished Megatron's spark. Without a means to restore Cybertron, the Autobots decided to remain on Earth, and Optimus Prime sent a message into space for Autobots to come and protect their new home and newfound allies in humanity. Transformers
Over the next two years, more Autobots including Arcee and her sisters, Sideswipe, the Twins, and Jolt began making their way to Earth and joined a human military force known as NEST. Under the classified Autobot Alien cooperation act, the Autobots entrusted the remaining AllSpark shard to humanity and gave them intelligence about the Decepticons they were facing. However, the Autobots refused to share weapons technology with humanity, knowing their history internecine warfare. Transformers: Alliance The Veiled Threat
In 2009, NEST had five encounters with the Decepticons on different continents, indicating that the Decepticons were searching for something. During a sweep of Shanghai, NEST encountered Demolishor and Sideways, who caused substantial damage to the city during their attempts to escape. Although they were neutralized, Demolishor relayed a warning to Optimus Prime: "The Fallen shall rise again". Following this, NEST returned to their base of operations at Diego Garcia, where they relayed the warning to General Morshower and Director Galloway. Having been appointed liaison by the President, Galloway concluded that the Decepticons only interest in Earth was to hunt down the Autobots. Unfortunately, Galloway also revealed both Megatron's resting place and the presence of the shard on Diego Garica. Soundwave was listening to the briefing, and directed Ravage and the Constructicons to raise Megatron. Meeting with his master, The Fallen, Megatron was commanded to retrieve Sam Witwicky, who had absorbed the knowledge of the AllSpark, and kill Optimus Prime, the only one who could defeat The Fallen. Optimus died helping Sam escape, and the Decepticons launched multiple attacks to have the humans turn Sam over to them. Galloway used the attacks as an excuse to have himself placed in charge of NEST and place the Autobots under guard.
Meanwhile, Sam, his girlfriend Mikaela Banes, and his roommate Leo Spitz were being hidden by Bumblebee and the Twins Skids and Mudflap, and with help from Seymour Simmons of Sector Seven, discovered Decepticon-turned-Autobot Jetfire, who told them that the Fallen, one of the founders of the Dynasty of Primes, was looking for the Matrix of Leadership needed to activate the Star Harvester, which would destroy Earth's sun and make energon. As only a Prime could defeat the Fallen, Sam and his group started a search for the Matrix and located it, leading to a massive battle with the Decepticons near the Star Harvester during which Sam tried reach Optimus to resurrect him and the Decepticons attempted to stop him and get the Matrix. After most of the Decepticons were killed, Megatron killed Sam, but he was resurrected by the Dynasty of Primes and granted the Matrix which he used to resurrect Optimus Prime. With help from Jetfire, who sacrificed himself to give him his parts, Optimus was able to destroy the Harvester, defeat Megatron, leaving him seriously injured and kill the Fallen. Revenge of the Fallen
A few years later, as there had been no major contact with the Decepticons since the death of the Fallen, the Autobots helped set up energon detectors in Earth's major cities to watch for a Decepticon presence. The Autobots, now common knowledge among Earth's people, helped out with major human threats. After Colonel Lennox learned of something alien at Chernobyl, the Autobots traveled there and encountered Shockwave and his Driller after retrieving a mysterious part. After Shockwave was driven off, Optimus was shocked to discover that it was an engine part from the long-lost Ark, which had crashed on the Moon. He and Ratchet traveled to the Ark and recovered five of the space bridge pillars along with Sentinel Prime who was revived by the Matrix of Leadership. Sentinel eventually revealed himself to be a traitor, murdered Ironhide and used the space bridge to bring an army of over 200 Decepticons to Earth. Earth's governments forced the Autobots off the planet, with the Decepticons attempting to learn the Autobots' plans to fight back via Sam. Without revealing any plans, the Autobots left Earth in the Xantium and were apparently destroyed by Starscream.
The Decepticons, led by Megatron and Sentinel Prime took over the human city of Chicago unopposed and prepared to bring Cybertron to Earth to use Earth's natural resources and its people as slaves to rebuild their home. The Autobots, who faked their deaths to trick the Decepticons, arrived in Chicago and linked up with a team of humans led by Sam Witwicky and former NEST soldier Robert Epps who were determined to fight even against overwhelming odds. With the help of the team and later NEST, the Autobots launched an attack on the city and together the Autobots and humans managed to kill Laserbeak, the Driller, Starscream, Soundwave, Barricade, Shockwave and many other Decepticons, losing only Que and possibly Wheelie and Brains in the process. Optimus Prime battled Sentinel Prime and though Optimus was defeated and nearly killed, Megatron suddenly turned on Sentinel and severely maimed him, having realized that he would never be able to remain leader of the Decepticons as long as Sentinel was alive. Meanwhile, the Control Pillar was destroyed by Bumblebee, and the collapsing space bridge destroyed Cybertron and the remaining Decepticon forces in Chicago. Megatron then tried to deceive Optimus into thinking that he wanted peace, but Optimus saw through the ruse and killed his seemingly eternal foe. Optimus then terminated Sentinel. Dark of the Moon
However, after the devastation of Chicago, the Autobots' alliance with the humans was officially dissolved, and NEST disbanded, while Harold Attinger of the CIA was tasked with hunting down the remaining Decepticons. Attinger's unit, a secret cabal of the CIA known as "Cemetery Wind", instead set out to destroy all Transformers, Autobot and Decepticon alike. The public and even the White House were kept under the impression that Cemetery Wind was only hunting down the Decepticons and that they were preparing to send the Autobots away from Earth. When he learned of Cemetery Wind's mission, Optimus sent a distress signal to his troops, warning them of the betrayal and to run for their lives. The Autobots scattered, some remaining in groups and some striking out on their own. The neutral Lockdown, who was hunting Optimus for his own reasons, assisted Attinger's lieutenant James Savoy in hunting down the Transformers. Five years after the Chicago battle, Ratchet, Leadfoot, Sideswipe, and the majority of the Autobots had been slaughtered, their remains being used by Joshua Joyce's KSI to produce man-made Transformers, intending to replace the Autobots as humanity's protectors.
Around the same time of the demise of Ratchet, Optimus narrowly survived an ambush and went into hiding as a rusty old cabover truck. Optimus was inadvertedly discovered by Cade Yeager, and befriended the struggling inventor. The two escaped Savoy and Lockdown with Cade's daughter Tessa and her boyfriend Shane. After taking a new vehicle form, Optimus met up with the surviving Autobots - Bumblebee, Drift, Hound, and Crosshairs, with the sad truth that they were the last Autobots on the planet sinking in as they learned of Leadfoot's demise. The Autobots assisted in infiltrating KSI, until they were informed of Ratchet's gruesome fate. Optimus snapped, and led a ferocious assault on KSI, also freeing the imprisoned Brains along the way. However, Joyce confronted the Autobots, declaring humans didn't need the Autobots anymore, who were now little more than outdated technology for humanity to abuse. Disgusted, the Autobots left, but were pursued by KSI's Galvatron and Stinger, which resulted in Optimus and Tessa's capture by Lockdown.
In Chicago, the Autobots snuck aboard Lockdown's ship with Cade and Shane to rescue their friends, and succeeded in detaching a smaller ship from the whole before Lockdown learned of Optimus' escape. After regrouping and learning that Galvatron was a rebuilt Megatron plotting to use the Seed to kill millions of humans, Optimus ordered the Autobots to depart Earth forever and leave the humans to their fate. He was only convinced to stay when Cade convinced Optimus to have faith in who humanity could be. Hound and Bumblebee ended up separated from the group when they tried to retrieve the Seed from a repentant Joyce, only for Galvatron's new Decepticons to shoot down their ship. In the Wulong Valley, Optimus recruited the Dinobots to join them, which they did after he beat some obedience into Grimlock. The Dinobots' assistance proved invaluable in turning the tide against the Decepticons, who had nearly overwhelmed Hound, Bumblebee and Cade in battle. The entire group attempted to escort Joyce and the Seed out of Hong Kong, but Lockdown returned. Optimus, Bumblebee, and the Yeagers all worked together and were able to kill Attinger and Lockdown. After regrouping, the Dinobots were set free on Earth, and Optimus assigned his Autobots to defend the Yeager family, while he departed to take the Seed from Earth and to confront his mysterious Creators. Age of Extinction
Transformers were declared illegal on Earth except in Cuba, where Simmons fled with Topspin and others. Falling in under Cade and Bumblebee's leadership, the Autobots hid out in a junkyard in South Dakota provided to them by Sheriff Sherman. Their daily mission was to find Autobot refugees to rescue and repair, among them being Wheelie and Trench. The Autobots also tasked the vagabond salesman Daytrader with finding them a ship to get mobile or off of the planet. Things changed when Bumblebee accidentally led the Transformers Reaction Force straight to the base, leading to an invasion from Megatron's newly released gang of Decepticons. The Autobots fended off the attack, and in the aftermath, Cade took Bumblebee with him to England to meet with Cogman and Sir Edmund Burton. There, Burton recounted to Cade and Viviane Wembly the history of Transformers on Earth, including the tale of Hot Rod and Bumblebee fighting alongside the allies in World War II. Optimus returned to Earth, albeit brainwashed by Quintessa, but was brought back to his senses by Bumblebee. As Cybertron loomed in the skies, Daytrader finally delivered the gang a ship, and the rest of the Autobots joined Optimus, Bumblebee, and the Guardian Knights at Stonehenge for a great battle. Thanks to Viviane, the Autobots emerged victorious, and returned to a revitalized Cybertron, with Optimus summoning all Autobots across the stars to finally come home. The Last Knight
Titan movie comics
Alternate timeline
Animated continuity family
The Autobots first emerged as a sub-faction of the ruling Protectobots approximately 750 million years ago in the aftermath of the Third Cybertronian War. Though scientifically gifted, the Autobots were primarily a race of artisans. The AllSpark Almanac II Historically, Autobots did not fly. Where Is Thy Sting?
Eclipsing their predecessors in prominence, the Autobots advocated for an Age of Expansion, expanding the influence of their species beyond the Hadeen System, colonizing the larger galaxy and founding the Autobot Commonwealth. The Autobots acted as the scientific arm of this expansion, being protected by the Destrons when their empire-building came into border skirmishes with the Quintesson Pan Galactic Co-Prosperity Sphere. Though the Cybertronian race triumphed in these conflicts, tensions arose as the Destrons came to feel that they had done too much work for too little reward while the Autobots had grown rich on their sacrifices. The Destrons eventually evolved into the Decepticons, whose tensions with the Autobots increased. The AllSpark Almanac II
30 million years ago, PC Magnus oversaw the construction of Fortress Maximus, headquarters of the Cybertron Elite Guard. 18 million years later, his successor Ultra Magnus passed the Decepticon Registration Act, sparking the Great War. The Autobot invention of space bridges quickly cut off the early Decepticon expansion before the Decepticons began a bombing campaign, demanding that the Autobots turn over the AllSpark. In response, the Autobots threw the AllSpark into a space bridge, ensuring that no one would find it. The AllSpark Almanac II
As the war continued, the Autobots enacted Project Omega, creating the Omega Sentinels as twelve large-scale living weapons. TransWarped Armed with these giants, the Autobots won ground against the Decepticon fleet, crippling their foes in the Ambush of Floron III. The Autobots later enacted a "planet-hopping" campaign that freed all of the captured colonies, ending in the Battle of Omnitron. The AllSpark Almanac II
The Great War later comes to a close in the Battle for Iacon, the Autobots triumphing thanks to the sacrifice of the Omega Sentinels. The AllSpark Almanac II A Bridge Too Close, Part II TransWarped The war's end saw the signing of the Tyrest Accord, granting the Decepticons amnesty in exchange for exile from the Autobot Commonwealth. The AllSpark Almanac II
Autobot victory in the Great War was later credited to their space bridges, Project Omega, and removing the AllSpark from the combat theater. Transform and Roll Out Military equipment and hardware was subsequently decommissioned. Lost and Found Bereft of the AllSpark, the Autobots turned to Vector Sigma for new sparks. The AllSpark Almanac II Though military training was available for the new generation of Autobots, most would grow up without ever having seen a Decepticon. Mission Accomplished
When rumours spread throughout the galaxy that Megatron still lived, the Decepticon Uprisings began, the fringes of Autobot society coming under attack. Mission Accomplished TransWarped In response, Ultra Magnus ordered the Ministry of Science to study the schematics of the captured Starscream. Managing to extract the coding needed for flight, the scientists applied it to Jetfire and Jetstorm, creating the first flight-capable Autobots and prototypes for a future group of Aerialbotss. The AllSpark Almanac II
After Head of Intelligence Longarm Prime was discovered to be the Decepticon spy Shockwave, he attacked and crippled Ultra Magnus, Where Is Thy Sting? his second in command, Sentinel Prime took command and instituted a police state in Autobot society, locking down public venues and potentially subversive gathering places. This Is Why I Hate Machines
The Autobots eventually took Megatron prisoner when Optimus Prime's team captured the warlord Endgame, Part II though they had to contend with Decepticon loyalists trying to free their master. The Stunti-Con Job
Shattered Glass
In this universe, the Autobots are the evildoers, bent on conquering and destroying everything in their path, starting with Earth. On Cybertron, they are the dominant faction, ruled by the Prime, specifically Optimus Prime. Ranks are in constant flux due to their backstabbing nature. Rodimus may very well usurp rule one day. Shattered Glass
After a devastating battle at Decepticon City, Rodimus finally overthrew Optimus Prime, Familiar Reflections before Optimus, now reborn as Nova Prime through the power of Unicron, returned and overthrew Rodimus. Out of the One, Many Under Nova Prime's leadership, the Autobots sided with the Decepticons against their evil creator and attained a peaceful existence on Gaea. The Future Buried...
Aligned continuity family
The symbol of that would later be appropriated by the Autobots was utilized by the Cybertronian government prior to the Great War. One Shall Rise, Part 3
"Autobot", a contraction of "autonomous robot", was an old philosophical phrase Orion Pax found on the DataNet and one that he suggested to his friend Megatron to be the name of their movement to abolish the caste system. At their hearing with the High Council, Orion used the term over and over again to remind his enthusiastic followers of the freedom they sought. He implored the Council choose a new Prime, so Halogen chose Orion as the new Prime, tearing Orion and Megatron's movement in two. In the war with Megatron's Decepticons, the Autobots only held fifteen percent of Cybertron, including Iacon and Kalis. The Autobots left Cybertron on the Ark, transported by the space bridge to the Milky Way. Ultra Magnus's Wreckers, Jetfire, Omega Supreme, and Alpha Trion remained on the planet. With the bulk of the Autobots off Cybertron, the remaining Decepticons took Iacon. Exodus
The Autobots remaining on Cybertron operated via a spy network based in Maccadam's Old Oil House. After rescuing Alpha Trion, the Autobots joined the Decepticons in fighting off a Quintesson invasion. Retribution Autobots continued to abandon their planet after the invasion, Rage of the Dinobots with the few that chose to remain on Cybertron reorganizing themselves into underground communities and settlements under the stewardship of the Dinobots. Beast Hunters #1
Soon enough, Cybertron became all but deserted, with Autobot forces stretched thin across the universe. Transformers: Prime (graphic novel) With the death of Cliffjumper, Optimus only had four Autobots with him on Earth, Darkness Rising, Part 1 though he would later be joined on Earth with Rescue Force Sigma-17, Family of Heroes Smokescreen, New Recruit rogue member Wheeljack, Loose Cannons Ultra Magnus, Prey former Decepticon Knock Out, Predacons Rising High Tide, Servo, Turning the Tide Salvage, and Blurr. The New Recruits
Discovering a manner to synthesize cybermatter, Megatron persuaded Ratchet to aid him in rebuilding the Omega Lock. Persuasion Ratchet's Autobot morals ultimately triumphed over his desire to see Cybertron restored and allowed Team Prime to board the Nemesis. Synthesis What followed ultimately turned out to be the final battle of the Great War, with Autobots emerging victorious. Deadlock
After Cybertron had been restored, Unicron attacked the planet in a bid to destroy Primus. The Autobots joined forces with the Predacons to defeat the Chaos Bringer. Though the alliance managed to defeat the Chaos Bringer, the battle ended with Optimus Prime sacrificing his spark to restore the AllSpark to the Core. Predacons Rising
Once the planet's population began to grow, a new High Council was established to rule the planet. Cyclonus and his troops however managed to replace the Council and made plans for a Decepticon-ruled Cybertron shoving the Autobots, particularly those close to Optimus Prime, into obscurity. The Autobots misinterpreted this as the will of the Cybertronian people and thus did not protest these acts. Enemy of My Enemy The people of the restored Cybertron all wore the Autobot insignia but by all indications, the vast majority were only civilians and had no military roles or functions. Pilot (Part 1) Freedom Fighters
To cement their rule, the High Council implanted mind-control techniques to control the Autobots and use them as a military force to rebuild the Decepticon Empire. Five Fugitives Freedom Fighters The Bee Team's interference however derailed Cyclonus's plans and allowed the Autobots to resume leadership of Cybertron. Freedom Fighters
Cloud
The Autobots of Cloud World, also known as the Spacetime Police (時空警察 Jikū Keisatsu), patrol the multiverse eliminating extradimensional threats in exchange for the fuel needed to sustain the energy being that propagates their home dimension.
Cyberverse cartoon
The ruling faction on Cybertron before the Great War, the Autobots fought a losing war against the Decepticons. After it was found that Megatron sought to pervert the AllSpark, Megatron Is My Hero the Autobots launched it off Cybertron, Allspark only to later decide that this had been a mistake, Optimus Prime leading the Ark to find and retrieve it. Matrix of Leadership
The journey took much longer than expected however, leading the Ark crew to go into stasis. The Journey While the Ark located the AllSpark, it crashed on Earth, cutting off the crew from their comrades on Cybertron, now reduced to a small resistance movement. After the Cybertron Autobots had located the AllSpark on Earth, they sent Windblade to Earth to find it where she reunited with an amnesiac Bumblebee. Memory After locating Teletraan-X, Teletraan-X and Grimlock, King of the Dinosaurs the group managed to located the Ark just as the Decepticon fleet arrived. Eruption
After decades of warring on Earth, the Autobots located the AllSpark and allied with its guardian Cheetor. Trials After procuring the AllSpark, the Autobots left Earth for home, Escape From Earth short cutting via a space bridge after a distress call came in from Chromia. The Crossroads
Arriving home and unable to raise Chromia, Optimus suspected a trap. Abandoning ship, the Autobot army met its Decepticon counterpart in the War's final battle, emerging victorious when the AllSpark was returned to the core. Battle For Cybertron I Battle For Cybertron II Battle For Cybertron III Battle For Cybertron IV
The peace would prove short-lived as the Quintessons invaded Cybertron and began draining the populace's sparks. The Loop Once the populace had been freed, the Autobots and Decepticons worked together to repulse the invaders, The Alliance before each claiming one hemisphere of the planet. The End Of The Universe IV
When it became apparent that Megatron was arming the Decepticons for another invader, the Autobots sent a strike team into Decepticon territory only to be surrounded by Decepticon supersoldiers. Silent Strike The invaders were revealed to be the advance guard of another version of Megatron who had won the Great War and killed his own kind. After Megatron X had disabled his primary counterpart and been disabled, the war was considered properly over, the Autobots and Decepticons accepting co-existence, The Other One officiating the peace with the Treaty of the Wall. The Immobilizers
Alternate universe
In another timeline, Megatron killed Optimus Prime in the Great War's opening stages. Bereft of Optimus' leadership, the Autobots quickly lost the War, being rendered extinct by the Decepticons. The Other One
Merchandise
Transformers (2007)
Transformers Movie Screen Cleaners
- Autobot (2008)
- Released by Tomy Yujin in January 2008, this dangler is a faction logo-shaped screen cleaner for your cell phone, with a stock image of Autobot insignia printed on the other side.
Kinnerton
- Transformers Tin (2008)
- Confectionery and... stationery company Kinnerton produced Movie-style Autobot sigil-shaped tins. It is currently unknown what these tins were used for. These tins and other Kinnerton products were available in Australia.
PTI Group
- Transformers Treat Containers (2008)
- Produced as an exclusive for Target stores, these blue plastic containers were molded in the shape of the Autobot symbol. They were sold in packs of three. While not dishwasher safe, they were perfect for containing any number of small treats.
Age of Extinction
- Autobot Shield (3D Deco Light, 2014)
- A three-dimensional wall light fixture from 3D Light FX in the form of a Movie-style Autobot insignia. It uses red LED lights and is battery powered. It comes with a sticker in the form of a wall crack, which is meant to look as though the insignia is somehow breaking through the wall.
Kidrobot
Enamel Pin Series
- Transformers logos (November 3, 2017)
- Rarity: 2 in 20
- Released by Kidrobot in their blindboxed Transformers vs. G.I. Joe Enamel Pin Series, this is a flat, enamel pin badge of the Autobot symbol, packaged in with a similar Decepticon pin in a release called "Transformers logos" [sic].
Pop!
- Autobot (Digital Pop!, 2022)
- Rarity: Series
- An NFT depicting a rotating Autobot symbol with the Funko Digital logo on the other side.
Icon Heroes
- Autobot Faction Bookend (2022)
- A set of bookends in the form of the Autobot insignia made of polystone and produced by Icon Heroes.
Notes
Foreign names
- Japanese: Cybertron (サイバトロン Saibatoron), Autobot (オートボット Ōtobotto)
- Cantonese: Bǒk Pāǐ (博派, "Fraternity Faction")
- Czech: Aubot (first movie's first dub only)
- French: Autobot
- Hungarian: Autobot
- Italian: Autorobot
- Korean: Cybertron (사이버트론 Saibeoteuron), Autobot (오토봇 Otobot)
- Mandarin: Autobot (Taiwan, 奧特巴 Àu Thè Pā), Bó Pâi (博派, "Bot Faction"), Qìchērén (China, 汽车人, "Car Person"), Zìyóurén (自由人, "Freeman"),
- Polish: Autobot
- Portuguese: Autobóticos (Portugal comic), Optimus (Brazil comic)
- Russian: Avtobot (Автобот, "Autobot")
- Ukrainian: Kiber (Кібер, Cyber), Avtobot (Автобот, "Autobot")
References
- ↑ "...more dangerous than an exaltation of Autobots." — Blackarachnia, Transformers Animated: The AllSpark Almanac (2009) p 101
- ↑ Movie Autobots toy listing on Takaratomy.com
