Vector Prime
From Transformers Wiki
This article is a featured article, and considered to be one of the most informative on this wiki.
Vector Prime is Primus's appointed guardian of time and space. Though recorded history pegs him as 25 million years old,[1] he has identified himself as 9 billion years old,[2] making the clockwork-covered Transformer one of the Thirteen. He's so old that in many timelines, the locals have called him "the First Autobot".[3] Despite his age, Vector Prime is very powerful, and can warp both space and time, though excessive use of this power can severely weaken him. His powers allow him to traverse the multiverse at will, allowing Vector Prime to track and record events across a countless number of realities.
Vector Prime was once a holder of the Matrix of Leadership[2] before he left Cybertron to guard space and time, a lonely job which isolated him from Cybertronian culture for tens of millions of years. Though he has rejoined the timestream on occasion to protect it from large-scale dangers,[4] his extraordinary exile has left him emotionally, culturally, and politically disconnected from his race. He speaks in archaic terminology steeped in chivalry from an age long past, which has led some to believe him to be little more than a doddering relic (a front he admittedly finds useful at times). Despite this disconnect, Vector Prime never forgets that these strange modern creatures are the reason he guards space and time so fiercely. It is the miracle of time that allows these precious lives to continue and flourish across the multiverse.
Vector Prime has a "Guardian Mini-Con" called Safeguard, and is also responsible for the Recon Mini-Con Team.
“ | I finally understand the true value of time, for it is the bonds between us that give time its meaning. | ” |
—Vector Prime's last words, "Guardian" |
Contents
|
Fiction
Unicron Trilogy continuity family
Fun Publications comics
Vector Prime was created by Primus at the very beginning of its struggle with Unicron, 'drawn from the sublime material of a multiverse at the far end of entropy'. Vector Prime's profile in Club magazine #5 During the long dormancy of Primus and Unicron at the beginning of time, Vector Prime retreated from the march of history to prepare for when his skills would once again be called upon. From this isolation he watched the greatest victories and defeats of the Transformers across various timelines, intervening only when his hand was needed to preserve the balance of time. (For example, Vector Prime helped mend Optimus Prime and repair the timestorm that Predacon Megatron had unleashed in the Beast Wars.) However, the awakening of Primus and Unicron returned Vector Prime to active service, following the wake of Unicron across the multiverse to prevent or restore what damage the Dark God had inflicted with its contaminating presence.
After the Powerlinx Battles, Primus attempted to lock Unicron's essence away in the center of a newborn sun, but this plan backfired and the sun collapsed into a black hole, also known as the Unicron Singularity. This threatened the multiverse itself, so Vector Prime was called back to Cybertron to assist the Autobots in locating artifacts which would destroy the black hole. Vector Prime: In the Beginning
During the Autobots' search, Vector Prime would routinely confer with Alpha Trion on their progress. During one such visit, Unicron's heralds Ramjet and Nemesis Prime attacked Cybertron, prompting Alpha Trion to recruit some extra-dimensional help in the form of Sentinel Maximus. Wreckers: Finale Part II No sooner had Maximus arrived than Ramjet and Nemesis came blasting into Alpha Trion's chamber; Vector duelled with Ramjet, but was unable to prevent him from heavily damaging Alpha Trion and destroying Vector Sigma. Balancing Act After placing Alpha Trion in a repair chamber, Vector Prime explained to Sentinel Maximus the extent of the peril they faced; it was Ramjet's plan that Nemesis Prime would unleash his Dead Matrix to destroy their Creator. Balancing Act, Part 2 Deducting that their opponents would likely next strike at the Kalis Primary Energon Reserves Control, Vector Prime and his allies preemptively traveled there to defend it. Sure enough, another one of Unicron's pawns, Dark Scorponok, soon turned up and attacked the facility. Balancing Act, Part 3 Dark Scorponok was felled, but Vector Prime came to realize that the shambling creature had acted as a distraction while Ramjet and Nemesis Prime had made their way towards their true target: the chamber housing Primus's essence, deep within Cybertron. Vector Prime opened a warp gate and traveled with Sentinel Maximus to head off their enemies before the wicked machinations came to fruition. Balancing Act, Part 4 Vector Prime and Ramjet's fight left the chamber and took them high above Cybertron. Ramjet offered Vector Prime another option to his plan: it was within Vector Prime's power to restore Unicron from the Singularity, dooming this Cybertron but saving all others. Vector Prime refused, claiming that they could restore balance to the multiverse without saving Unicron. Balancing Act, Pt 5 Though Vector Prime was able to defeat Ramjet and seal him away in another dimension, Revelations Part 1 this act weakened him considerably. The guardian of space and time returned to the Autobots on Earth and left Cybertron in the care of Over-Run, a Mini-Con who had taken the reins of what remained of Vector Sigma. Revelations Part 2
While on Cybertron of Primax 509.28 Epsilon, Nexus Prime decided to tell his companion Aquarius about the ancient artifact he was trying to find, the Star Saber. As he explained to Aquarius that the artifact was originally intended to serve good Transformers, the face of Vector Prime flashed through his mind. The Coming Storm: Part 1 Eventually, Nexus succeeded in finding all the pieces of the shattered sword, and united the rebuilt blade with the Terminus Blade with the intention of strengthening the multiverse and making the walls between dimensions less permeable. Vector Prime and the rest of the Thirteen were drawn to this momentous event from across space and time, but as a consequence of Nexus's actions, Vector and his brothers and sisters ceased to exist as multiversal singularities. They were splintered into infinite variations of themselves and scattered throughout the multiverse, sentient reoccurring themes each appearing in their own way, if at all, in all the worlds of the multiverse. Out of the One, Many
Cybertron cartoon
- Voice actor: Richard Newman (English), Show Hayami (Japanese), Joscha Fischer-Antze (German), Sepuh Apikian (Armenian), Ossi Valo (Finnish), Fredrik Beckmann (Swedish), Michel Dodane (French), Davide Marzi (Italian), Salvador Serrano (Castilian Spanish), José Mendez (Latin-American Spanish), Mariusz Leszczyński (Polish), Phil Cruz (Tagalog, HERO TV dub)
Vector Prime spent much of his existence outside the linear flow of time, observing reality from afar. When he sensed the effect of the Unicron Singularity upon the timestream, he attempted to voyage further into the future to see what the outcome would be, only to strike a barrier which he found he could not pass beyond. Peering through the barrier and seeing only endless nothingness, Vector Prime realized that the black hole would go on to consume all space and time if he did not finally leave the safety of his extra-dimensional realm and re-enter the linear flow of time to help seal it. Guardian Appearing in the skies over Cybertron, Vector Prime immediately made contact with Optimus Prime and his Autobot team, making them aware of the Cyber Planet Keys and how they could stop the black hole. As Vector Prime then synchronized his map of the keys’ locations to the current arrangement of the cosmos, he was approached by the evil Megatron, who exploited Vector Prime's diminished memory of the Autobot/Decepticon conflict and convinced him to hand over the map. Alas, Vector Prime realized his mistake just as the other Autobots arrived to attack Megatron. The villain made good his escape, but not before his lieutenant Starscream caused Autobot warrior Landmine to be caught in the black hole's gravitational pull, forcing Vector Prime to open a portal to save him, transporting him to Earth.
Vector Prime joined with Optimus Prime's Autobots in relocating to Earth. En route, Vector Prime explained to Optimus that the black hole threatened not only Cybertron, but would go on to swallow all of creation if not dealt with. He then doubled back, explaining he had to retrieve the cosmic map Megatron had stolen. Optimus Prime insisted on having Jetfire, Hot Shot, and Overhaul accompany him, deeming the task too dangerous for Vector Prime to handle on his own. Vector Prime's team came upon Megatron and Starscream inside an asteroid belt. While Jetfire and Vector Prime dealt with Starscream, Overhaul and Hot Shot tackled Megatron. Unfortunately, the Decepticons proved to be simply too powerful, and the Autobots were unable to prevent them from escaping once more. Vector Prime then rendezvoused with Optimus back on Earth, where the Autobots had already befriended three human children. Upon meeting these humans, Vector Prime recognized a symbol decorating the T-shirt of the female, Lori, as the pattern of the Omega Lock, the device that focused the power of the Cyber Planet Keys, and deduced that it lay in hiding somewhere on Earth. Fallen Inferno
Vector Prime then aided his Autobot allies in building their base of operations on Earth. During the blasting that preceded construction, he discovered that the children were able to hear the Omega Frequency, the trans-sonic signal given off by the Omega Lock that was inaudible to the Autobots. This would make them invaluable in the search for the artifact. As the base neared completion, Megatron and Starscream were detected heading towards Earth once again. The base's stealth coating had yet to be fully applied, and so Vector Prime joined Optimus, Jetfire, and Hot Shot in keeping the villains out of sensor range while the rest of the team finished this task. Vector Prime used the power of a Cyber Planet Key to send the Decepticon leader and his lackey fleeing, awing his comrades. Having deemed them worthy, Vector Prime then granted Optimus, Hot Shot, and Jetfire the ability to also summon their own Cyber Planet Keys. Haven
Walking in on the Autobots receiving word that the latest attempt at collapsing the black hole had failed, Vector Prime reiterated that they needed to track down the keys to the Omega Lock. The Autobots were doubtful at first, but Red Alert spoke up on Vector Prime's behalf, convincing his comrades that the keys should be their priority. Thundercracker was then detected by the airforce, forcing Vector Prime to help take him down before he caused too much trouble. He saved two human pilots from the Decepticon by opening a temporal portal for them to escape through. Megatron and Starscream then joined the battle, and explained that they had already found the first of the Cyber Planet Keys before they were forced away. Hidden
Further studies on the Omega Lock's pattern around the world led the Autobots to a museum in Mexico. While Vector Prime studied the artifacts within it, the rest of the team held off Thundercracker and Starscream, who had been tracking them. This Omega Lock turned out to be merely an imitation, but Vector Prime's scans yielded the co-ordinates of Velocitron, the Speed Planet, resting place of the first Cyber Planet Key. Using his sword in conjunction with Optimus Prime's Matrix, Vector Prime opened a portal to this other world, through which Hot Shot and Red Alert were sent as an advance party. Landmine The search for the Omega Lock next took the Autobots to the British Isles. They excavated an ancient druid site, only to be met with another dead end. Once more, they were pestered by Starscream and Thundercracker, who managed to isolate Vector Prime and Optimus from their ground-based reinforcements. Though Starscream was fighting more strategically however, the Primes managed to lure their opponents close enough to the ground to overpower them and force them into another retreat. Space Vector Prime teamed up with Landmine to continue searching for the Omega Lock, but returned from their excursion with nothing to show for it. That evening, Lori alerted the Autobots to a strange beacon emanating from a nearby forest, depicting the Lock's "Atlantis Pattern". Vector Prime and the team sped off to what seemed like a lucky break at last, only to find that the signal had been created by the Decepticons to lure them into a trap. As Optimus took on the enemy, Jolt reported that humans were inbound to their location. As neither side wanted to be discovered by more of the locals, the battle was brought to an abrupt halt, and all combatants withdrew. Speed
Jetfire and Vector Prime were contacted by Scattorshot and Optimus to alert them of an emergency in Rockville: the nearby Mount McDermott was about to collapse into an underwater reservoir, which would lead to a catastrophic flooding of the entire town. Thankfully, Coby came up with a plan to drain the reservoir, and the Autobots created a controlled collapse of the mountain to prevent further harm from coming to Rockville. After this plan was successfully implemented, Vector Prime congratulated his comrades on a job well done. Collapse
Returning to the search for the Omega Lock, Vector Prime next headed for a tropical island, allowing the children to tag along for a mini-vacation of sorts. This turned out to be another false lead. Before heading off to their next destination, Vector Prime took the time to discuss his temporal powers with the children, informing them that though they might seem impressive, they had become limited in his old age. The group next headed for the Sahara, where they were joined by Optimus and Jetfire. There, they found what appeared to be the Omega Lock on open display within some ancient ruins. But the Decepticons had been following them, and the battle for the artifact had catastrophic consequences: Megatron's managed to kill the Mini-Cons! Distraught over their untimely demise, Vector Prime drew on a greater portion of his powers for the first time in ages. He rewound time to save the Mini-Cons, though the resulting drain on his systems left him too weak to continue fighting. The lock in question was proven to be a fake. Time
After rescuing an Autobot civilian from Thundercracker, the Autobots were led to another iteration of the Atlantis pattern. The inscription detailed the coordinates to the next planet where a Cyber Planet Key was hidden: the Jungle Planet. Vector Prime opened a dimension gate to transport Overhaul and Landmine to this new world, but was struck by the returning Thundercracker before Landmine could traverse the portal. Due to his injuries, Vector Prime couldn't open up another dimension gate, leaving Overhaul stranded on an alien world alone. Search Shortly afterwards, another Autobot civilian alerted Optimus Prime's team to another sighting of the Atlantis seal, this time on the ocean bottom in the Bermuda Triangle. Making their way underwater, the Autobots explored the area. Vector Prime, the Mini-Cons and the children found an entrance leading to a control room, and the elder Cybertronian concluded that Atlantis was in fact an ancient Cybertronian ship that had crashed in Earth's prehistory. In order to keep it out of the Decepticons' reach, Vector Prime activated the craft and teleported it away with only himself, the kids and Mini-Cons aboard. Deep Using the children's sensitivity to the Omega Frequency, Vector Prime tracked down the Omega Lock in the bowels of the Atlantis. Though Megatron appeared to claim the relic for himself, activating the ship's self-destruct mechanism in the process, Optimus caught up to his old foe and dueled him for the Omega Lock. Meanwhile, Vector Prime took the children to safety. Optimus emerged victorious. When Vector Prime laid hands on the Omega Lock afterwards, it created a new spacebridge network, linking all of the planets hosting Cyber Planet Keys. Vector Prime accompanied Optimus and Landmine to the Speed Planet in response to a distress call from Red Alert. Ship
There, he observed Hot Shot try to win the world's Cyber Planet Key in a racing tournament. Hero He did not actually participate-mainly because his vehicle mode lacked wheels-but he offered encouragement and advice when he could. Race The races were intense enough to get even him worked up, although he did his best to restrain his enthusiasm to Optimus Prime's mild amusement. Detour
While Hot Shot trained for a particularly grueling track, the Autobots received a transmission urging them to come to the Jungle Planet to help Overhaul, sent there in advance to seek out the second Cyber Planet Key. Landmine offered to go, but Vector Prime and Optimus decided to make the trip, as they could open the dimension gate necessary to go there anyway. When they arrived, they were attacked by a massive plant monster, but Overhaul-now in the form of Leobreaker-saved them with his claws. Vector Prime joined Optimus in explaining the black hole's threat to Leobreaker's new friends, Snarl and Backstop, but was confused to learn that they had not, in fact, sent a distress signal at all. He then joined the others in confronting world leader Scourge, battling Sideways (who had sent the distress signal simply to watch the factions battle) and witnessing Optimus and Leobreaker's first combination into Savage Claw Mode. Savage
Soon after, Vector Prime and the other Autobots met Scourge and Megatron's forces in another battle, lured into a canyon thanks to Sideways's trickery. He was also among the 'bots who watched Leobreaker's attempted interrogation of the two-faced trickster when the battle ended, Sand and returned to Velocitron in time to stop Megatron from stealing the Planet Cup after Hot Shot defeated Override in the final race. Champion
While most of the Autobots went back to Earth to investigate a disturbance created by the Omega Lock, Vector Prime returned to the Jungle Planet with Optimus Prime and Leobreaker, intending to secure the second Cyber Planet Key. Ice Their attempt to reason with Scourge failed miserably, leading to Leobreaker separating from Optimus mid-speech and futilely attacking the dragon-bot himself. With the lion storming off in a huff, Vector Prime accompanied Optimus back to Backstop's cave, where he learned of Scourge's beginnings as a student of Backstop's. Vector Prime was also present at the volcano Leobreaker had chosen to seclude himself in, and witnessed his reconciliation with Optimus Prime, the latter at last deciding to face Scourge in battle. Honor The Autobots ran into a Decepticon ambush en route to Scourge's temple, and Vector Prime had to use his sword to free the beast 'bots and Hot Shot from a net. He later stood back and watched Optimus and Leobreaker finally defeat Scourge in battle, winning the right to take the Cyber Planet Key. Primal
Unfortunately, Megatron led his Decepticons on an immediate counterattack, desperate to obtain the Planet Key. While most of the Autobots fended off Starscream and Thundercracker, Vector Prime came up with a plan to splinter the Decepticons. He distributed boxes amongst the Autobots, with the key's location unknown to even them, and bade them scatter to force the Decepticons to spread out. Vector Prime himself came face-to-visor with Sideways, intent on acquiring the "key". The enigmatic jet managed to steal the box, warping around Vector Prime and bypassing Safeguard with his faction-switching abilities, but learned it was a fake when he found naught but a rock inside. He later joined the rest of the Autobots in fending off Megatron and Starscream's attempted theft of the true key. Trust
The insertion of the Jungle Planet Key into the Omega Lock transported the Autobots into a strange dimension that Vector Prime identified as the consciousness of Primus. The god himself briefly spoke to them through the Mini-Cons before fading away, and a signal again alerted them to something in the North Pole. Trap Unfortunately, what came out of the North was Starscream, Sideways, and legions of Ancient Decepticons, hell-bent on finding the Cyber Planet Key hidden on Earth. Vector Prime soon joined the fray, using his sword to warp in the main Autobot forces to back Snarl up. The Autobots were eventually forced to fall back, but made two new allies in the form of Crosswise and Evac. Invasion
Knowing that Starscream would come looking for the Omega Lock and the other two Keys, the Autobots established a communications blackout, using a direct link to the human telephone network to keep the refugee Autobots calm. Vector Prime soon brought up another worry, however-the children and Mini-Cons were missing! The kids soon returned, bringing the eccentric scientist Lucy Suzuki with them, but Jolt's advance transmission about the government's knowledge of the Autobots allowed Sideways to find the Autobot's base. With no other option, Optimus Prime led a full retreat to Velocitron while Evac retrieved the Cyber Planet Key of Earth, but Starscream followed them up the space bridge and launched a one-bot assault to claim the artifacts for himself. Vector Prime was the last to stand in the Decepticon's way, vowing to give up his spark before he relinquished the Lock. Despite being blackened and battered from previous attacks, Starscream still managed to take down the ancient guardian of time, stealing the Lock and all three Planet Keys. Retreat
Vector Prime was present at the Autobot's base when it received a strange signal after Starscream inserted the third Cyber Planet Key. Enlisting the aid of Red Alert to decrypt it, he reported that it came from Cybertron itself, instructing them to return the Lock and Keys to the planet itself. Unfortunately, the part about what happens when the Lock is returned was lost due to interference from the black hole-and worse yet, Megatron's Decepticons were on their way to Earth to settle their own grudge with Starscream. Vector Prime generated a warp to speed his allies' trip to Niagara Falls, and found himself battling the traitorous Autobot Mudflap. He was shocked to discover that Landmine had practically raised the disgruntled warrior back on Cybertron...and even more dismayed to see Megatron cut down Hot Shot, Red Alert, and Scattorshot with a single volley from his newly unlocked Cyber Key machine gun. Revelation
While others kept Megatron busy, Vector Prime evacuated the fallen warriors, assuring the pessimistic Scattorshot that they'd be fine. Upon returning to the battlefield, however, he grimly informed Optimus Prime that the situation of the trio was dire at best. Thankfully, Hot Shot, Scattorshot, and Red Alert recovered and reformatted, returning as the powerful Cybertron Defense Team. They kept the Decepticons occupied while Vector Prime warped Optimus, Override, and Evac to Starscream's newly discovered island base. Critical
Megatron's forces soon made a break for the island, causing Vector Prime to warp the rest of his team into the fray as well. He and Optimus pursued Megatron into a volcano, and Vector Prime saved Optimus' life by blocking Megatron's shots with his own body. They would have both met their ends nonetheless, had Wing Saber not chosen that moment to join the party as well. In response to Coby's warning that the black hole was distorting the space around Cybertron, Vector Prime would suggest sending an advance team to clear a path for the return of the Omega Lock. Assault
The two Primes continued their descent into the volcano, soon joined by Leobreaker. Vector Prime used a small warp to redirect one of Sideways's traps, hitting Scourge instead of them. When they finally met Sideways in battle, Vector Prime had the novel idea of attaching Safeguard to the warping enigma's back, allowing him to detect where Sideways would appear. When Starscream manifested himself as a giant, courtesy of Primus' stolen power, Vector Prime was trapped in the volcano, unable to move and with his sword out of reach. Wing Saber came to his rescue, and the pair escaped with the Omega Lock after fending off Thunderblast. Starscream After seeing the Lock off with Leobreaker, Evac, and Override, he continued fighting against Starscream, and witnessed Optimus' combination with Wing Saber into Sonic Wing Mode to defeat the behemoth. United
With Starscream defeated, Vector Prime joined the rest of the Autobots in crossing the space bridge to Cybertron. They engaged Megatron, who managed to escape with the Omega Lock, but Optimus Prime battled him for possession of the Lock and keys within Megatron's personal fiery dimension. At Optimus' order, Vector Prime used his portal-generating abilities to collapse the dimension in upon itself, forcing Megatron to use all his power just to keep it open. Combining his own power with that of the Lock, Vector Prime fired a beam straight into the occupied Decepticon, apparently destroying Megatron. Vector Prime later encouraged Optimus to place the Lock within Cybertron-and the planet started coming apart beneath their feet. After evacuating the team to a nearby moon, Vector Prime realized that the planet wasn't separating; it was transforming into Primus himself! Cybertron
After Primus revealed that the fourth Cyber Planet Key rested on Gigantion, homeworld of the Recon Mini-Con Team, Vector Prime recounted how he met the diminutive Transformers when they were lost playing hide-and-seek. He joined his friends in confronting the Decepticons (tenuously led by Scourge), and then joined everyone in gaping at Starscream's brazen attack on Primus himself. Vector Prime doubted Starscream's sanity for daring to attack their creator, but Primus' disposal of the treacherous jet allowed Vector Prime to finally regain the Planet Map. Balance
Sadly, a series of problems presented themselves after this small victory; Megatron returned in a mysterious ghost-like form, and the Mini-Cons seemingly disappeared along with the children. Vector Prime left to investigate the latter development, and reviewed the security camera footage at their headquarters. Discovering that Sideways had stolen the Mini-Cons and that the children had pursued him, Vector Prime requested Scattorshot and Red Alert's aid in locating them. Darkness Continuing to work as the battle raged outside Memory, they finally received a signal from the kids, reporting that they were trapped on the Atlantis in the shadow of Earth's moon. Vector Prime led Scattorshot and Red Alert through a warp gate to the ship and caught an escape pod carrying Coby, Lori, and Six-Speed. Unfortunately, the other pod (carrying Bud, Jolt, and Reverb) was caught in the warp field of the Atlantis before the Autobots could retrieve it and was teleported away to parts unknown. Escape
Predicting that the Atlantis would be heading for Gigantion, Vector Prime reassured Coby and Lori that their friends would be fine in the warp gate to the planet, thanks to their flexible minds. Transformers, however, are not so flexible, and so Red Alert began working on a stabilizing program, partially based on Vector Prime's sword. Vector Prime would join Optimus Prime in convincing the kids' doubting parents to allow Coby and Lori to join them on the trip to Gigantion. He also denied their fathers' wish to go as well, citing the requirement of an open mind (which the adults had just proven they lacked), but joined Optimus in promising to protect the children with his life. Family
With the children's assistance cemented, Vector Prime began rigorously studying the Planet Map for the location of the dimensional rift that led to Gigantion. He discovered the gate just after Primus defeated a superpowered Starscream, Titans informing the others that the gate was open for only a few days every year. After again reminding Coby and Lori about their immunity to the warp's effects, he helped load supplies onto the newly arrived Ogygia starship. After receiving his copy of the stabilizing program via injection (and observing Primus shooting down Jetfire's attempt to avoid getting one), Vector Prime boarded the Ogygia as it entered the warp, warning everyone that even the slightest moment of doubt or fear could destabilize the tunnel. After an unpleasant encounter with the Starscream-controlled Atlantis, he joined his comrades in blasting a hole through a massive asteroid in the Ogygia's path before finally arriving in the dimension of Gigantion. Warp
After landing on the Giant Planet, Vector Prime joined the search for the Cyber Planet Key, and came up empty-handed. When the Autobots met planet leader Metroplex and his lieutenant Quickmix, neither of whom allowed them access to the lower levels of the planet, Vector Prime attempted to create a warp, but found he could not due to security measures around the planet. After a confrontation with Megatron's goons, now including rebellious Gigantion native Menasor and enigmatic impersonator Soundwave, Metroplex and Quickmix were more willing to cooperate, Giant but admitted that they deleted all data on the lower levels from their memories to escape their past.
Undeterred, the team set up equipment to help Vector Prime determine the general location of the Cyber Planet Key. Using the Omega Lock, Vector Prime found the Key, but also realized that someone else had drawn power from it. Fearing the worst, the Autobots split into teams, with Vector Prime accompanying Optimus and Metroplex. Unfortunately, this allowed them to be picked off by Megatron, who had used the Cyber Planet Key to upgrade himself. By the time Optimus's team caught up with the Decepticon leader, he had dealt with every other Autobot, completed his transformation, and renamed himself Galvatron! In this state, he struck down Vector Prime with a single blow, and only the combined strength of Optimus Prime and Metroplex was enough to force his retreat. Fury
When Scattorshot determined that there were four potential routes to the Cyber Planet Key, the Autobots again split up to cover all of the paths. Vector Prime teamed up with Optimus, Metroplex, Bud, and the Mini-Cons to travel down one of the trails. He joined Optimus in pursuit of Ransack and Crumplezone when the bumbling lackeys snatched Jolt, unable to fire for fear of hurting his friend, and gave Coby an approving thumbs-up when he dramatically transformed his personal mech to save Jolt. City After that, the journey was mostly uneventful, save for watching the Velocitronian partners in grime get beaten up and sent off (repeatedly), Ambush and meeting up with Lori and Override. Challenge
When Bud and the Mini-Cons accidentally fell down a secret passage, Vector Prime remained with the group, as Optimus claimed they would be more effective as a team searching for their lost comrades. When they found their small friends, Bud had given Scourge an eye-opening talk, and the Jungle Planet leader immediately challenged them all to a duel (for reasons only they seemed to understand). Vector Prime was the second opponent, and easily defeated the dragon, who nonetheless challenged the next comer with enthusiasm. Scourge
At last, the Autobots reached the central, organic layer of Gigantion, where the Cyber Planet Key rested in the ancient starship Lemuria. Unfortunately, both Galvatron and Starscream chose that moment to make their appearances, and the former's taunts were enough to force Optimus into a breakdown of self-doubt. Finding his best logic to the contrary useless, Vector Prime was forced to drastic measures: punching Optimus in the face. Berating his peer for his arrogance, Vector Prime explained that Optimus' men trust him with their lives, but he has to trust them to do their jobs. His words snapped Prime out of his momentary funk, and the duo continued on in time to see a super-sized Landmine defeat Starscream and engage Galvatron. The combined strength of the Autobots was enough to send the Decepticon leader into retreat, leaving Optimus to claim the Cyber Planet Key and thank Vector Prime for his support (and comment on his mean right hook). Optimus
Vector Prime personally inserted the final key into the Omega Lock, opening a path to their home universe (via opening the planet layers and creating a space bridge). Barring their path, however, was Galvatron, intent on taking the now-completed Lock and achieving his dark plans. Vector Prime moved to stop him, but was aghast to learn that Galvatron could warp-as well as summon a massive blast that sent all the Autobots sprawling. With the Lock in Decepticon hands, Vector Prime made a final attempt to take it back, but Galvatron simply electrocuted the ancient Transformer through his own sword and knocked him back. Perhaps due to this beating, Vector Prime was only able to watch Galvatron's apocalyptic confrontation with Starscream and subsequent escape through the space bridge. He theorized that Starscream (and the two Planet X survivors also caught in the final clash of superpowered Decepticons) had been blasted into another dimension rather than destroyed, but bigger concerns arose when the gate between universes closed, leaving the Autobots stranded on Gigantion. Showdown
In the wake of this shock, Vector Prime was the only Autobot with any ideas on what to do, but Jolt, seemingly aware of what was coming, insisted against it. Instead, an attempt to create a space bridge generator was made, but Vector Prime was forced to destroy it after it released hordes of bird-like drone robots. Optimus assured Vector Prime that he had done the right thing, but it was realized by all that the only way back was through the warp, which would not open again for a year. With no other options, Vector Prime revealed the only way to get back to Cybertron was for him to reverse time to the point where the warp to Gigantion was open. Jolt cut in to point out that the effort would be enough to destroy him-in the conventional sense, anyways. Despite this, Vector Prime was adamant, knowing that the black hole would destroy all of time itself if left unchecked. In preparation for this final act, he released Safeguard, telling his old partner to live on Cybertron with the other Mini-Cons, gave his Planet Map to Bud, and told Optimus Prime that it was an honor to work with him. As the three Autobot starships took off, Vector Prime gave it his all to get his allies back to Cybertron, finally returning them to their own dimension before his energy gave out and his body dissolved into green particles of light. Guardian Primus was aware of Vector Prime's sacrifice and assured Optimus Prime that Vector Prime would live on and that he would be honoured by the closing of the black hole. Homecoming
However, as Vector Prime had already explained to the Autobots, since he had existed for most of his life outside of time, he would always exist there, able to observe the passage of time, even though he could now no longer enter the linear universe. He swore to always watch over Optimus Prime and the Autobots, and would be there for them in spirit when their need was greatest. The first such moment came during Optimus Prime's pivotal moment within the black hole, as he appeared alongside the Autobot leader as he reached for the Omega Lock. End
Subsequently, the black hole was sealed, but Galvatron was not yet through, and challenged Prime to a final one-on-one duel. During the battle, as Galvatron stood poised to deliver the final blow, Vector Prime's Planet Map flew from the pocket of the watching Bud and moved between the two combatants, blocking Galvatron's blow. Vector Prime spoke to Optimus once more, promising to always be there for him, and bestowing upon him the greatest of gifts—his own sword, Rhisling, with which Optimus Prime defeated and destroyed Galvatron once and for all. Unfinished Not long afterwards, as the Autobots departed on a mission across the universe to create a new space bridge, Vector Prime appeared to Optimus once more, smiling at his old friend. Beginning
Vector Prime was last seen dueling Galvatron in an existence after death. Beginning
Cybertron toy bios
Inspired by an old movie he once saw on Earth, Vector Prime once picked up a hobby whereby he would phase in and out of time to visit a small-town store in the Midwest, looking in the window every day. In 1896, he "befriended" a gentleman in a fine suit who was always standing still in the window. For the next 110 years, Vector Prime visited the store to see the gentleman's different outfits. Eventually, after changing owners, the store closed down, but Vector Prime regarded this temporary diversion fondly.[5]
Galaxy Force manga
When the Grand Black Hole began to devour Cybertron, Vector Prime opened a warp and sent Landmine to Earth. When the humans Coby, Bud, and Lori failed to repair Landmine, Vector Prime arrived through a warp and thanked the kids for their efforts before repairing Landmine himself. Vector Prime revealed he was unable to save Optimus Prime, but his despair was distracted by the human children bombarding him with questions about Transformers (sound familiar?). Then Megatron showed up and used his hypnotic powers to mesmerize Vector into handing over the Map to the Ancient Power. Luckily, Coby was able to yell loud enough to snap Vector out of it. And then Optimus Prime showed up, alive and well, and forced Megatron into retreat. Touchdown! Optimus Prime
Beast Wars Reborn
When his brother Logos Prime plucked the sparks of Optimus Primal and Megatron out of their home dimension following their deaths and brought them into the "Unicron Trilogy" dimension with the intention of choosing one of them to be his successor and the recipient of his power, Vector Prime was forced to intervene. Master of the Game Remembering his sibling as a noble being, Vector was horrified to learn that he planned to pass his power to the evil Megatron, and the two did battle on the astral plane. Planetfall
Kiss Players
When the human Kiss Players became scattered across the dimensions after their vessel Brave Maximus collided into the "wall of time" while pursuing a mysterious golden hand through the timestream, Shaoshao Li found herself in another universe, around the time of the search for the Cyber Planet Keys. Finding herself on the deserted Cybertron, she was set upon by a horde of Scrapmetal, but was then saved by Safeguard. He explained what had befallen her, then Vector Prime showed up and used his sword to slash a hole in spacetime itself, from which the golden hand—actually that of Primus himself—emerged to pull Shaoshao through. Kiss Players #50 Sparkbots Volume 3
Ask Vector Prime
As a multiversal singularity
At some undetermined point in Vector Prime's life, he took the time to answer a series of questions about himself, other Transformers, and the Transformers: Cybertron toyline in a recurring feature on Hasbro's official Transformers website, to be reprised in The AllSpark Almanac II, The Complete AllSpark Almanac, and a Fun Publications-provided Facebook account, called Ask Vector Prime. Because of his mastery of time and space, it is impossible to determine when exactly he communicated with our universe, but it may have been during the course of events in the Cybertron animated series, as he answered questions regarding those events and other characters who he had not met before the series began.
Vector revealed much about himself in these pages, including much new information about his early life. He fondly remembered all his brothers, even knowing how three of them turned into dread monsters, and listened with rapt attention to the Liege Maximo's tales of the Covenant and Primon, stories he was not even sure were real or just legends. He and his brothers and sisters spent an extended period of time on Earth in ancient Greece, where the holomatter avatar he used formed the basis for human legends of Hermes, while Rhisling was likewise interpreted as the Caduceus.
Following the final falling out between the Primes, after the shattering of the Star Saber, Vector helped hide away the five components that Nexus Prime had split himself into, then went into hiding in the universe Aurex 404.11 Kappa and locked away all memories of his trauma. Out of necessity, he took a much simpler form, one that turned into a device similar to a wristwatch. There, he became the Autobot leader and wielded the Matrix of Leadership. He had a bodyguard, Scorpia, during his Matrix-bearer days, and the two became close despite the difference in rank (and his initial reluctance to act on his feelings for a subordinate). After leading the Autobots to victory in the second Cybertronian war against such foes as Devron, Megazarak, and the Destructons, he was called on by the Chronarchitect to help fix damage to Time itself! Reluctantly, he passed the Matrix to Guardian Major.
With a group of fellows, the Time Warriors—Scorpia, medical officer Kaltor, intelligence officer Autoceptor, and quantum scientist Deceptor—Vector Prime faced foe and threat innumerable, with some timelines only knowing him as "First Autobot" or, when shortened, "Autobot" as a slur, meaning his watch self has often been mistaken for a person called Autobot. Eventually the Warriors discovered their true enemy, Mogahn the Mass, an indescribable entity that absorbed entire star systems into itself. In the final battle, Vector found his mind entering the Realm of the Primes and learning his true identity once more; Adaptus gifted him the power to create the mighty sword Rhisling, and he smote Mogahn so hard that his remains went back in time and detonated in the Big Bang. Now once more aware of his true role in the multiverse, Vector Prime had to say a tearful goodbye to Scorpia. He tries not to remember her and does not like talking about it. Ask Vector Prime, 2015/07/10 and 2015/07/12
In another adventure, the GoBot Vec-Tor was forced to intervene after the always-mischievous Sideways recruited Gong to destabilize two universes, using the Omega Locks far beneath Gobotron. After warping to a Primax universe, Vector Prime managed to undo the damage before Unicron could devour Cybertron, allowing history to progress along its proper course. Echoes and Fragments
Notable other revelations:
- His favorite human authors were Peter David and Alan Dean Foster, though he seldom had time to read.
- He was a fan of the Dinobots.
- His favorite planet was Cybertron, and his favorite city there was Apophenia.
- He was over nine billion years old, almost as old as the galaxy itself.
- He did not need to shave.
- He used to "boogie down" with Disco ball when he was younger, but not so much any more. He still enjoyed the symphonies created by the Eurythma natives. On the other hand, he was not a fan of the Knights of Unicron, since he found their name tasteless.
- He found the Viron universal cluster to be underrated.
- He was unable to visit the Quadwal universal cluster.
- He knows which universes have manifested as fiction in Quadwal.
- Despite having traveled far and wide, he could not see why kids loved Cinnamon Toast Crunch.
- He feared the Elder Gods.
- He missed Safeguard, as well as Lori, Bud, and Coby.
- If he had to choose an Earth mode, he would choose a dirigible, though he didn't because he was "not here to blend."
- If he had to choose a beast mode, it would be a large sea mammal.
- He was not a fan of dragons.
- He was definitely not Santa Claus.
- He held several misconceptions about humans, such as how long we could survive decapitation, and whether or not they enjoyed molten boron.
- Though he vehemently dismissed the Decepticon ideology, he did find his species too quick to jump to philosophical extremes, and wished they were more apt to find a middle ground.
- He could view events from elsewhere in the Omniverse, and was impressed by the adventures of Ben 10.
- He cherished his relationship with each of his fellow Thirteen original Primes, though he acknowledged that some of them had gone bad.
- He enjoyed Energon Z and Stanixian energon wine, but did not care for Red Energon.
- The large glowing hole in his chest was a Critias Gateway.
- He answered to many names, including Vec-Tor, Vector Convoy, Vector Maximus, Vector Maximo, and Vector Prima-Vectorum.
- He was in the process of absorbing the memories and experiences of his Uniend counterpart, which would eventually alter his physical appearance.
- Since there were constant threats across the multiverse, he had no intentions of retiring anytime soon. If Vector Prime ever got the opportunity to settle down without jeopardizing space or time, however, he would like to become a factory and help build useful things.
- He eventually grew tired of having people ask him about the identities of nameless Transformers, and politely suggested that his audience could ask him more cosmically significant questions.
- In his downtime, he enjoys the art galleries of Axiom Nexus.
- Everyone he ever cares about will grow old and die in what, to him, is just the pulse of a spark. Sometimes, he feels alone even when he's in a crowd.
- He had bravely faced down many threats during his life, but he dreaded the prospect of going up against KSI's legal department.
- He found biological functions confusing, and thus he had no wish to become a synthoid.
- His favorite anime was Galaxy Force. (don't think about this one too hard)
- His favorite character from Babylon 5 was the ambassador Kosh.
- In some universes, Vector is female. She would purchase Venus as a guilty pleasure more often than when she is male. She sounds like Kate Mulgrew.
- Though he doesn't have a birthday, per se, he suggests that a celebration could be held on September 19, the day he first arrived on Earth (and, not coincidentally, the day the first episode of Cybertron aired in the U.S.)
- He doesn't like talking about the various conflicts and tribulations that his species regularly undergo. He'd rather discuss music, art, and the beautiful things that he's seen across the multiverse; he rarely has the opportunity to talk about the nature of his work to someone on an equal level.
- His favourite human movie was Back to the Future, due to the performance of lead actor Eric Stoltz.
- Among his favorite human television shows are Doctor Who, Mystery Science Theater 3000, Sliders, and Quantum Leap.
- He revealed himself as a Point One Percenter (after the Shroud).
The answers Vector Prime gave on Facebook were delivered at a time when he was living in Axiom Nexus, and was employed to write an advice column position with Axiom Nexus News in Nexus 208.0 Epsilon. Axiom Nexus News Editor, 2015/05/13 He was viewed by the TransTech public as a respected if a bit eccentric elder 'bot, but ANN journalist Rook (correctly) suspected that Vector Prime was merely putting on an act. Rook - Axiom Nexus News, 2015/06/05
At one point during his tenure at ANN, he was kidnapped and tortured by Sideways. While Vector Prime was indisposed, Sideways took over his inventory of unanswered questions, and offered decidedly unhelpful answers. Ask Sideways, 2015/06/27 He was able to escape the clutches of Sideways when a particularly infuriating question caused the head of the Herald of Unicron to suddenly explode. However, Rook was part of the OZSA team sent to rescue Vector Prime, and the Mini-Con initiated a Headmaster sequence with Sideways, allowing the Herald of Unicron to escape capture via a Dimensional Interfacer. Rook - Axiom Nexus News, 2015/07/08
After a few decades of recovery in other universes, Vector Prime resumed his advice columnist position in Axiom Nexus but, after Nexus Prime summoned him Ask Vector Prime, 2015/09/30, the column fell into the hands of a Grimlock. After being falsely told that Vector Prime lied about Dinobots and said they looked like jerks, Grimlock snarled "him look like jerks!" and, in a burst of wit, said Vector was old. Grim Grams, 2015/10/03 When Cy-Kill took over the column, he was dismayed to note that he was filling in for a "filthy Guardian do-gooding dunce" and refused to answer any questions about Vec-Tor. Renegade Rhetoric (1), 2015/10/18
As a TransTech
- Voice actor: Richard Newman ("Special Guest")
Vector Prime returned to Axiom Nexus soon after "the Shroud" had cut it off from every other universe. ANN live coverage, 2015/10/29 Little did anyone in the city know, this "Shroud" was the product of Nexus Prime's unification of the Star Saber and Terminus Blade, and the Vector who returned was not truly the same being as the one who had left: per the results of Nexus Prime's actions, the Vector who resumed his duties as host of the column was no longer a multiversal singularity, but a single incarnation of the many that now existed throughout the multiverse. This was a TransTech Vector Prime, native to Axiom Nexus, a "mere" 25 million years old, with a unique history of his own as a professor at the Academy of Science and Technology who had been the teacher of the local Rhinox, and who had come up with the theoretical foundation of the universal stream classification system. Accordingly, he was left with only unclear memories of exactly had happened, much like a dream, and was no longer aware of his original nature: he believed his exploits as one of the Thirteen had happened to the (possibly newly created) other Vector Primes.
Briefly leaving his column in the hands of Spacewarp while he responded to a summons from the city's Ministry of Higher Dimensional Sciences, Vector Prime's experience with multiversal travel led to him taking part in an Axiom Nexus scheme to try to establish contact with one of the nine fundamental realities: specifically, Primax 984.0 Gamma, requiring him to be stationed on Nebulos as a factory manufacturing hoverboards, binary bonded to a local codenamed Safeguard and with a bodyguard known as Scorpia. He hoped he'd got on well with them!
In the interim, he endeavoured to answer questions and among his answers:
- He has 'dreams' of the exploits of other Vector Primes and believes this is down to an unusual physiology of his. While he has a vague sense of having been greater once, these memories "are but oneiric wisps, gossamer threads that vanish when I touch them."
- He's dramatically less interested in questions about who came from what universal stream. Stop wasting his time, nerds!
- He has visited a few other realities as a scholar. It was Rhinox that challenged him into getting out into the field.
- The students he remembers the most fondly after Rhinox are Perceptor, Apelinq, Proxima, and Brainstorm, who all did great things in their respective fields. Shockwave, on the other hand, often challenged him to excel but they did not go on, each believing the other had deep problems. Deluge and Herr Fiend were frustrating as neither seemed likely to do nice things with their skills.
Not long into his voyage on Galaxy Shuttle, he started to develop tentative feelings for Scorpia. Unfortunately, his trip was interrupted by an abduction. Ask Vector Prime, 2015/11/19 Spacewarp came to his aid on behalf of the wounded Galaxy Shuttle. Spacewarp's Log (2), 2015/11/21 and 2015/11/22 During the long, meandering journey, he fell in love with Scorpia and they became Conjunx Endura. He eventually arrived safely at Nebulos. He looked forward to exploring its wonders with his new guide and binary bonded Target/Powermaster, Safeguard. Ask Vector Prime, 2016/02/14 and 2016/02/15
Animated cartoon continuity
When the battle between Starscream and Optimus Prime caused the AllSpark to discharge an energy flare, this massive surge of cosmic power caught Vector Prime's attention. Peering through the dimensions, he observed the growing conflict between these Autobots and Decepticons and recorded his thoughts in a journal. Dispatches The AllSpark Almanac When he manifests in this dimension, Vector is known by the grandiose name of "Vector Prima-Vectorum".[6]
Revenge of the Fallen film
After the Fallen was caught trying to harvest a star from a system with life, he turned on the other Primes and made war on them. In order to prevent the Fallen from harvesting the star, the remaining Primes (including Vector Prime) hid the key to the harvester inside a tomb made of their own bodies and sealed it with their own life essence. Revenge of the Fallen Ask Vector Prime
Generation 1 continuity family
Alternity
Vector Prime was contacted by his fellow defenders of space and time, the hyper-evolved Autobots known as the Alternity, when they were facing their final hours. At the Alternity's behest, Vector Prime communicated with a race of two-dimensional beings called Planicrons who were under threat from Megatron, and discovered that they were attempting to evolve beyond their two-dimensional existence. To do so, they had to pass through a doorway that took the form of a diagram somewhere on the Earth of universal stream Primax 903.0 Beta. A team consisting of Bumblebee, Elita Seven, and Nemesis Prime successfully located the diagram, and Vector Prime proceeded to lead the Planicrons through it, successfully evolving them into higher-dimensional lifeforms that took the Alternity's place as defenders of reality. Alternation
2005 IDW continuity
- First Appearance: Transformers vol. 2 #47 (mentioned); Transformers: Till All Are One #9 (obscured image); Optimus Prime #10 (full appearance)
Vector Prime was one of the Thirteen Primes, who led the Thirteen Tribes of Cybertron that formed after the Knights of Cybertron left the planet. Lagrange He joined his tribe with those of Solus Prime, Alchemist Prime, Nexus Prime, and Alpha Trion, the quintet commissioning the construction of Crystal City, on the site where Primus had supposedly delivered his Prime Pastoral, as a way of honoring their creator.
After Septimus Prime perished, Vector ran to his fellow Primes to inform them of the development that the killer had conquered Septimus's lands and was on the warpath. There was a mixed reception to this news. Origin Myths In the era that followed, Vector would come to command the loyalty of the Titan Tempo. Ceremony
The death of Nexus Prime at the hands of Galvatron prompted all the remaining Primes, except Alpha Trion, to flee Cybertron. Eons later, Shockwave would send one of his Regenesis ores, Ore-1, to LV-117, a planet associated with Vector. The Crucible The First Who Was Named Ceremony
In the modern day, Vector Prime's name was remembered in the Way of Flame, the religion of Solus Prime's colony Caminus. Lagrange
Beast Wars: Uprising
In the 34th century CE, Vector Convoy was one of the Convoy Council. He usually abstained from voting the same as his peers. When the stolen ship Terrastar left the Milky Way Galaxy, in violation of the Council's decree, Vector took part in the vote to send Astral Knight and his crew after them. Surprisingly, he agreed, though Astral noted it was with "infinite sadness". The Inexorable March
Prime Wars Trilogy marketing material
Vector Prime's Spark passed into the possession of one of the twelve Prime Masters; hidden within a suit of decoy armor, they safeguarded the abilities of the Primes until the present day. By uniting with a larger Transformer, the Prime Master could channel the powers of Vector Prime's Spark and grant them unique abilities that varied with each new partner. Power of the Primes Metalhawk / Vector Prime online bio
2019 IDW continuity
Vector Prime was one of the Thirteen. Sea of Rust I
Aligned continuity family
The Covenant of Primus
Stern, serious, Vector Prime considered himself a force of order and balance in the universe, a mere extension of his creator Primus. His powers over time and space allowed him to create and prevent temporal paradoxes to suit his needs, and even distort reality as he saw fit. His personal artifact of power was the Blades of Time, which he could use to travel through other dimensions. He also had a badge, seemingly for decoration.
The second of the Thirteen Primes to be created, Vector was a warrior Prime, joining Prima, Onyx, Amalgamous and Megatronus in the groupings among the Thirteen. After Optimus had caused Unicron to fall into stasis, Vector Prime created a time loop around the inert form of the Chaos Bringer ensuring he would never awaken. Like the others however, Vector Prime was tainted by a touch of Unicron's darkness, which would mark the downfall of the Thirteen.
In the aftermath, Vector joined with Prima and Alpha Trion to create rules and order for a new community and the upcoming birth of the Cybertronian species, though their rules were found restrictive by the other Primes. Along with Trion and Prima, Vector was greatly confused by the romance between Solus and Megatronus. Despite this however, Vector commissioned a new mandala from Solus.
The end of the Thirteen came after Prima discovered that Megatronus, Quintus Prime, and Liege Maximo had worked on a secret "farm" of robotic creatures, which Alchemist found troubling. Suspecting a sinister motive, Prima forced the rest of the Thirteen into a vote on the matter, and Vector voted against letting the project continue. Furious with the results of the debate, Megatronus inadvertently killed Solus in a dispute that Liege Maximo had orchestrated. Drawn by the commotion, the rest of the Thirteen arrived in time to see Solus's body return to the Core, its passage creating the Well of All Sparks.
Even after Megatronus offered his side of the story, accusations began to fly. The investigation degenerated into a free-for-all brawl between the remaining twelve siblings, which ended with Maximo getting killed by the Requiem Blaster through uncertain means.
The survivors buried Liege Maximo's remains in a chasm and held a memorial to Solus Prime in deep space. Hoping to put their ugly past behind them, the Primes then turned their attention to Cybertron and their plans for the future. They decided to use Onyx Prime's Triptych Mask to create a new race of robotic beings, as Primus had created them, with Onyx, Micronus, and Optimus travelling into the Well resulting in the creation of a new wave of Cybertronian creatures which the surviving Primes oversaw. Vector Prime's faith in his siblings however had long since been shattered and he quietly retreated to another dimension when no one was looking.
One way or another his badge wound up in Vector Sigma's possession. Millenia later, Alpha Trion would gift it to Sentinel Prime. Millenia after that, Optimus reassembled the Blades of Time.
The Covenant of Primus
Aligned novels
In the past, the once idealistic Vector Prime held the Thirteen together with his idealism, but despaired as his fellow Primes fell to fighting and backstabbing. He could understand a moment of anger that caused Megatronus to lash out and kill Solus Prime, but when he discovered Liege Maximo actively scheming against his brothers, he could tolerate no more, and created a miniature pocket dimension for himself. This could only be accessed through the Blades of Time, which were scattered across the Cybertronian colonies and guarded by Nexus Prime's fractured selves. Exiles
When he defeated Sentinel Prime in combat, Megatron noticed he wore the sigil of the noble myth of Vector Prime. Exodus
After discovering and assembling the Blades of Time, Optimus stepped through into Vector Prime's pocket dimension. Vector Prime had been expecting him, and called Optimus "Prime". He agreed to aid the Autobots, and seemed surprised that Alpha Trion was still alive. He wondered how many of the Thirteen were still around. Exiles
Prime cartoon
According to legend, at the beginning of time, Unicron and Primus battled each other for eons, with neither side remaining victorious for long. Till, that is, Primus created the Thirteen. These Thirteen defeated Unicron and cast him into space. One Shall Rise, Part 1
At some point, statues of Vector Prime and his brothers were made. They were placed in the chamber of the High Council. One Shall Rise, Part 3
Ask Vector Prime
The Uniend incarnation of Vector Prime was initially not part of the "multiversal singularity" Vector, as the Uniend Cluster was separated from the rest of the multiverse by a quantum membrane. When this membrane was punctured by the Dark Spark, Uniend Vector began to be absorbed into the wavestructure of the living quantum event that was the singularity incarnation. As this process carried itself out, the singularity Vector began to experience and absorb the memories of the Uniend Vector, recalling how he had convinced Ironfletch to join the Autobot cause, and briefly worked alongside Rampart Punch and Avatar Brave. In particular, he expressed a fondness for his Uniend equivalent's beard, and wondered if he would adopt it into his own facial structure. Ask Vector Prime
2015 Robots in Disguise cartoon
- Voice actor: Troy Baker (English), Yasuhiro Kikuchi (Japanese), Xavier Percy (French), Glauco Marques (Brazilian Portuguese)
When the evil of Megatronus threatened to return, endangering both Earth and Cybertron, Micronus Prime brought Optimus Prime before Vector and the other four Primes who dwelled within the Realm of the Primes. Speaking for the group, Vector announced that they could sense Optimus had not yet completed the necessary preparations that would allow him to safely receive a portion of power from each of the assembled Primes so that he could effectively combat Megatronus, but an impassioned speech from Optimus convinced them to go through with the power transfer. Battlegrounds, Part 1
Kre-O online comic
In a universe built out of blocks, Vector Prime witnessed a Decepticon attack on Metroplex. Two Giant Bases! Everybody Getting Along, Come On, Fight!
Cyberverse cartoon
Vector Prime was one of the Thirteen. Dweller In The Depths Silent Strike The Other One
One film
Vector Prime and the other twelve Primes were created by Primus at the dawn of Cybertron, and they ruled Cybertron benevolently through its Golden Age. When a war with the Quintessons meant their world was in danger, throwing the planet into a protracted, violent conflict, the Primes' secretary, Sentinel Prime, herded the thirteen into a Quintesson ambush within a remote cave. Vector would be killed during the battle, with his brothers' and sisters' bodies resting in a hidden cave for fifty cycles before being rediscovered by miners Orion Pax, D-16, Elita, and B-127.
A vision of Vector Prime and the other Primes later appeared as Alpha Trion declared a damaged Orion Pax to be the next wielder of the Matrix of Leadership, Optimus Prime.Transformers One
Games
Transformers Power Up: The Game
Transformers Power Up: The Game
Transformers: Earth Wars
When Cliffjumper and C.L. were surrounded by Decepticons, Vector Prime temporarily stopped time and stepped in to have a talk with the two Autobots. Introducing himself, Vector explained the slow-time bubble was necessary for him to enter regular spacetime to act against Nova Prime, who wanted to destroy all timelines in the multiverse to reset the slate. Mayhem: Enemy of My Enemy Vector gave a hint: "Unite or perish." before departing. History Repeating
Vector Prime also appeared to the time-lost Optimus Prime in 1984, explaining that Optimus was needed to stop Nova Prime. Vector Prime arrival
Toys
Generation 2
- Autobot (Watch, 1993)
- Accessories: Watchband
- Known designers: Takashi Matsuda (TakaraTomy)
- Autobot originated in the 1983 Microman Micro Change line as MC-06 Watch Robo, where he was available in four different colors. In 1993, he was released directly by Takara in North America as part of Generation 2, alongside Scorpia and the wristwatches of Superion, Galvatron, and Ultra Magnus.
- He transforms from a boxy silver chrome robot to a boxy functional digital watch that attaches to a plastic wristband.
Cybertron
- Vector Prime (Voyager, 2004/2005)
- Takara ID number: GC-03
- Takara release date: December 28, 2004
- Accessories: Sword, missile, Cyber Key
- Cyber Key Code: v38g
- Known designers: Aaron Archer and Eric Siebenaler (Hasbro), Takashi Kunihiro (TakaraTomy), Hirofumi Ichikawa (detailing)
- Part of the first wave of Cybertron/Galaxy Force toys, Vector Prime transforms into a large Cybertronic space cruiser with "solar panel" wings and a ton of clockwork/filigree detailing. His nosecone has a spring-loaded missile launcher at the tip, and an indented area over his cockpit for his pack-in Mini-Con partner Safeguard to attach in jet/cannon mode. The nosecone also holds his sword, the guard sticking out of the side to form a small stabilizer fin (with an immobile matching fin on the other side). In robot mode, raising his right arm triggers electronic laser sounds; inserting his unique Cyber Key into his
flyabdomen in either mode activates a vague electronic charging sound, and replaces his arm-activated laser sounds with those of a clashing sword.
- First made available in Japan by Takara several months ahead of Hasbro's release, Galaxy Force Vector Prime has some significant differences between these two separate releases. Where Hasbro's release features a high-contrast color scheme of stark white and rich chocolate-brown plastics, Takara's uses a softer metallic-tinged grey and burgundy. For safety reasons, Hasbro uses a softer, bendable translucent plastic for Vector Prime's wings and sword, where Takara was able to cast these parts in firmer materials. Finally, there are numerous paint operation differences between the two: Takara's version features a burgundy trim that runs all around the figure's wings, extra red circles on his shoulders, silver paint on the thigh vents, and several additional gold details on his forearm guards, helmet crest, and the sides of his legs, while Hasbro's does away with these and adds instead a larger gold application around his midriff and Cyber Key slot, and an Autobot insignia on his vehicle-mode cockpit. Hasbro's Cyber Key is entirely unpainted translucent blue with a Cyber Key Code printed on the back, Takara's features a generous metallic silver paint coating and no code.
- Unhelpfully, stock photos of Vector Prime depicted a conglomerated version of the figure with Hasbro's white plastic, Takara's burgundy, and all the different paint applications from both versions.
- The Korean Mocom Toy version of Takara Vector Prime replaces the silver paint of his Cyber Planet Key with a light gray.
- This mold was also used to create BotCon 2007 Alpha Trion.
- Starscream vs. Vector Prime (Multi-pack, 2005)
- The Vector Prime in this Toys"R"Us exclusive set is identical to the regular-retail version. He comes with a unique version of Starscream, a Voyager-class mold that was otherwise not available at normal US retail, and in an entirely new deco to boot.
- Vector Prime (Legends of Cybertron, 2006)
- As part of the Legends of Cybertron line, Vector Prime is a miniature, heavily-simplified version of the Voyager-class toy, yet retaining much of the sculpted detailing. He was part of the third wave of product, the first wave to be sold outside of "market six" stores and in "big box" chains like Toys 'R' Us and Kmart.
- Some stock photos of this figure, including the ones on the back of its packaging,[7] depict Vector Prime with functional elbows. Evidently, a design change was implemented at some point; on the final release, the arms are cast as one piece, with fake elbow joints as moulded detail. OK then.
- This mold was redecoed into Universe Scattershot.
- Galaxy Force Vector Prime (Voyager, 2006)
- Accessories: Sword, missile, Cyber Key
- Cyber Key Code: vz74
- Known designers: Eric Siebenaler (Hasbro)
- Not to be confused with the Galaxy Force release of Vector Prime, Hasbro's "Galaxy Force Vector Prime" is a matte gold & clear-orange redeco of Vector Prime released in the eighth and final wave of Cybertron Voyagers, the only new toy in that assortment. The packaging photography shows the prototype as considerably more blinged out than the rather yellowish matte gold plastic actually used for the production run. He retains all of his normal gimmickry from the original release.
Universe (2008)
- Vector Prime with Mini-Con Safeguard! (Voyager, 2009)
- Series: Cybertron Series
- Accessories: Sword, missile, Cyber Key
- Known designers: Andrew Scribner (deco artist)
- Vector Prime was re-released in the fourth wave of the 2008 Universe series Voyagers, redecoed in black, brown, and blue. Notably, this is the first Hasbro iteration of the figure to have painted wings like the Takara Galaxy Force version, as well as being the only version with a painted sword blade. Like BotCon exclusive Alpha Trion, sadly, he has been gutted of his electronic features, rendering the Cyber Key pointless; though the battery compartment can be opened.
- This toy was shipped in extremely low quantities, and as a result was a very rare sight at U.S. retail stores.
Power of the Primes
- Vector Prime (Prime Master, 2017)
- TakaraTomy ID number: PP-03
- TakaraTomy release date: May 25, 2018
- Accessories: Metalhawk decoy armor, cannon
- Known designers: John Warden (Hasbro)
- Power of the Primes Vector Prime is a Prime Master with Metalhawk "decoy armor", visually based on the original Pretender's inner robot and shell.
- This toy has identical features to the other Prime Masters in the line. The decoy armor has a weapon piece that can fold out to create a weapon mode, or detach and be held in the armor's 3 mm-compatible hand. The Titan Master-like robot can store inside the decoy armor or ride Legends Class figures in vehicle mode, and is fully compatible with toys from the previous Titans Return line. The "Power Swap" gimmick means its spark form can plug into any decoy armor's weapon form (which has a 5 mm post to be held by larger figures), Deluxe Class figures' chest armor, Voyager Class figures' bucklers, Leader Class figures' Matrix (in place of their Matrix core), combiners' torsos (in place of their Enigma of Combination), or the Scepter of Sparks. With the power of your imagination, this bestows the Prime Master's unique power on the larger figure.
- Unlike every other Titan Master/Prime Master, Vector Prime and his fellow first-wave Prime Masters feature backpacks/symbols secured by pins instead of screws.
- Though designated for a first-quarter 2018 release, Vector Prime/Metalhawk's wave reached U.S. store shelves in November 2017.
- Vector Prime/Metalhawk was retooled with a new Prime Master sigil and decoy armor front as Alpha Trion/Landmine, and again replacing the entire gray sprue with new parts for Quintus Prime/Bludgeon. Vector Prime alone was given a different replacement sprue for the Thirteenth Prime.
Legacy
- Cybertron Universe Vector Prime (Voyager, 2024)
- TakaraTomy Release Date: December 28, 2024
- TakaraTomy ID Number: TL-80
- Accessories: "Rhisling" sword, Cyber Key
- Known designers: Mark Maher (Hasbro), Yūya Ōnishi (TakaraTomy)[8]
- Part of the third wave of Legacy United Voyagers, Vector Prime is a partial retooling of G2 Universe Jhiaxus, retaining the legs, arms and part of the chest. While teased at Hasbro's WonderCon panel with his Binder of Revelation appearance, the toy itself is based on his Cybertron design. He transforms into a chunkier take on his original spaceship alt-mode.
- He comes with his Rhisling sword and his personal clockwork-style Cyber Key. Like most Cybertron-derived Legacy figures with Keys, it is only there as a callback to its functionality on the original toy, not activating any gimmicks. The key is inserted in a different location than as before, as it doesn't plug into his waist like his original toy, instead attaching to his chest or backpack (presumably to not block his new waist articulation). His wing panels can also be taken off their pegs fairly easily, if one wants to make use of the Powerlinx posts on them to equip him with shields.
- Like with most characters partnered with Mini-Cons, Safeguard is omitted from this release, though Vector Prime’s jet mode has a port for the original to plug into and rest.
- Vector Prime was revealed on the April 25 fanstream, with pre-orders going up later that same day.
Merchandise
Attacktix
- Vector Prime (Booster, 2006)
ID number: | TF11 |
Rarity: | |
Faction: | Autobot |
Class: | Leader |
Special: | Vengeance—2525 (77%) success ratio |
Point Cost: | 40 |
Base Speed: | 4 |
Attack Type: | Shooter (Energy Blast) |
- Part of the first assortment of Attacktix Transformers-series Booster packs, Vector Prime is one of the less stable shooters of his size. He has three points of articulation (shoulders and waist) which you can use to put him in a more stable stance than his default, though it doesn't look very comfortable.
- Vector Prime appears to have been created as the counterpart to the powerful Decepticon Scorponok figure. His Special Power is the antithesis of Scorponok's, allowing you to instantly remove up to two of your opponent's in-play Insecticons. Who knew Vector Prime hated Terrorcons so much?
Jollibee
- Vector Prime (Jollibee Kids Meal, 2007)
- Accessories: Cup topper stand
- Released under the "Robot Blasters" promotion from Jollibee, Vector Prime is a simplified rendition of the Legends of Cybertron figure, missing several joints and shaving off a few transformation steps in the process. Like all four pieces in this set, Vector includes a stand with his name and faction symbol sculpted on one side and the Cybertron logo on the other. This stand can also be used to cover up a regular-sized cup from a fast food joint.
Notes
General
- Like other members of the Thirteen, Vector Prime was once established as a multiversal singularity, existing as one being across all of time and space, but that is no longer the case.
- The original concept for Vector Prime was for him to be a character who could cut through spacetime to summon different characters from across the multiverse.[9] In keeping with the idea of him being a much older Transformer than had ever been seen before, his design drew heavily from Egyptian imagery and Swiss made watches.[10] He was originally going to have two swords (as seen in the image to the right), representing the hands of a clock face.[11]
- During pre-production of the Cybertron franchise, Don Figueroa iterated on early concept art for Vector Prime. Figueroa's design depicted the character as much older and with a noticeable hunch, and ultimately went unused in favor of his final design.
- The vaguely pharaonic head of one of the earliest known sketches of Vector Prime had a resemblance to Giant Robo, but Aaron Archer had no idea what Giant Robo was when questioned about it—although, to be fair, the sketch was not one Archer had done himself.[12]
- His final head design was largely based on the Autobot insignia.[13] During development, a few possibilities were explored to give him a much more slavish version of the insignia for a face, such as a flip-down[14] or opening[15] battle mask.
- Vector Prime's spaceship mode was based directly on the Sith Infiltrator,[16] and needed to undergo revisions by Eric Siebenaler to reduce the resemblance for the final product.[17] Aaron Archer feels that Vector Prime's vehicle mode was a little undercooked, in comparison to the robot mode.[18]
- The "Galaxy Force Vector Prime" color scheme appears to have been inspired by a GONZO CGI color mock-up done before Vector Prime's final coloration was decided. A Hasbro design chart showing this and other concepts was first seen at San Diego Comic-Con 2005, and was present at BotCon 2005 later that same year. The image also made an appearance during a slideshow at one of Hasbro's BotCon 2006 presentations, and in Galaxy Force Vector Prime's unlockable online Cyber Key content.
- Aaron Archer's personal headcanon regarding Vector Prime's color scheme was that he originally had a shiny gold finish—as seen in this concept art and in The Covenant of Primus—but that the chrome flaked away over the years.[19]
- "Vector Prime" was the originally proposed name for Sentinel Maximus, going so far as to be printed on Sentinel Maximus's shipping cases.
- The released version of the Vector Prime Attacktix figure featured the Takara coloration of the Cybertron toy, gray with a metallic burgundy. A more Hasbro-release-like white-and-brown redeco was seen through various avenues, such as Toy Fair 2006 and Hasbro publicity photos, but ultimately never came out at retail.
- Vector Prime is Aaron Archer's favorite character he's created.[20]
Generation 2 "Autobot" watch toy
- After being released in Micro Change, Autobot was sold by Takara in a line called Watch Q in 1984. The watches who would become Kaltor and Scorpia were also sold in Watch Q, as were a bunch of other transforming watches who were never sold as Transformers. Autobot was also sold as part of Takara's North American Kronoform line, where he was called "Robot Time Machine" and had the unique honor of appearing in a television commercial that advertised him as being, at the least, a Six Changer (albeit a highly unconvincing one).
- He has the distinction of being THE prototypical transforming watch toy of the 1980s, with scores of knock-offs produced during that era. Surprisingly, one of these was advertised within an issue of Marvel's Transformers series! "The Next Best Thing to Being There!" featured an ad from the Nabisco company for a "Robot-Watch" (plainly Autobot, with "Quartz" replacing "Takara" on his chest) at the cost of $3.95 and 3 "Bonkers" candy labels.
- Two versions of Autobot's packaging are depicted in Transformers Generations, one using his Micro Change art with an Autobot symbol slapped on and the other with original art. According to the text, the former was a packaging mock-up; the one shown on this page is how he was released.
Foreign names
- Japanese: Vector Prime (ベクタープライム Bekutā Puraimu)
- Hungarian: Vector Fővezér
- Korean: Mega Vector Prime (메가 벡터 프라임 Mega Bekteo Peuraim)
- Indonesian: Dexter Prime
- Mandarin: Vector (Taiwan, 貝克達 Bèikèdá), Yǐn Tiān Xíng (China, 引天行), Xiàngliàng Zhìzūn (Earth Wars, 向量至尊 "Vector Supreme")
- Ukrainian: Vektor Naykrashchyy (Вектор Найкращий, "Vector the Best")
External links
- Ask Vector Prime archive at In Space, No One Can Hear Starscream
- Kronoform Robot Time Machine commercial on youtube
References
- ↑ Revelations Part 4
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Ask Vector Prime
- ↑ Ask Vector Prime, 11 September 2015: "Come to think of it, in many timelines, I was not called "Vector Prime" but "The First Autobot." Indeed, this was from time-to-time shortened to simply "Autobot," though usually as an invective hurled at me."
- ↑ Vector Prime: In the Beginning
- ↑ Galaxy Force Vector Prime's Cyber Key Code secret bio content
- ↑ Originally an idea of Derrick J. Wyatt's that never made it into any official media; later referenced in Ask Vector Prime (2015/06/24)
- ↑ Legends of Cybertron Vector Prime's packaging at Shmax.com
- ↑ April 25, 2024's Hasbro Pulse Transformers Fanstream | April 2024 on YouTube, with Ben MacCrae, Mark Maher and Evan Brooks.
- ↑ "Multiverse travel was really what he was created for, he was initially created as a character that could cut through the Multiverse with his sword and potentially bring characters from different versions of the franchise together. Now that changed a little bit in the execution of Cybertron and how that finished up, but initially he would have been a character that would have helped the Autobots, or guided somehow them getting to the different places, and meeting up with different versions of different characters that maybe they would have brought forward."—Aaron Archer, The Toy Armada, "Toy Armada Friday night LIVE: Creating characters and lore", 2023/05/26
- ↑ "One of my favorite character designs. He was created for Cybertron animation and incorporated into the TF aligned continuity project. Heavily based on Egyptian influences as well as swiss watches, we wanted his age to show in his design that he came from an much older time than #Optimus and the gang. I altered his head colors to create a more uniform look."—Aaron Archer, Instagram, 2020/09/04
- ↑ "So his initial concept was that he was somehow going to be the controller of [...] time and space. That is why he was designed with clocklike gears and mechanism, 'cause he's a time machine, and the two swords that he was supposed to have represent like, a clock arm—the two clock arms—and that he would cut through, you know, the reality of time and space around him, to enter into other Transformer realities. So that was the original, like, need for the character. As we thought about that, that seemed pretty epic, that seemed like a skill set that no other Transformer seems to have—so are we going too far, right? You gotta be fair. And that's when it was like, "well what if this guy is even bigger than Autobot/Decepticon? What if he's one of the Thirteen? Then we can get away with a god power."—Aaron Archer, The Toy Armada, "17 - Transformers Created To SELL A STORY", 2024/06/14
- ↑ http://tfu.info/issue12/aaronsdesk.htm Stuff From Aaron's Desk, Day 22
- ↑ Hasbro panel at BotCon 2006
- ↑ BotCon - Friday - Vector Prime's original head
- ↑ "His head has a bit of an Egyptian vibe to it. It was the Autobot logo at one point, and that was just a little too on-the-nose for Hasbro, you know, we didn't want to define that [...] logo on a character forever. [...] And then the face was going to open up, like it was a shield kind of thing."—Aaron Archer, The Toy Armada, "17 - Transformers Created To SELL A STORY", 2024/06/14
- ↑ "The Sith Infiltrator was obviously part of the visual of the alt-mode."—Aaron Archer, The Toy Armada, "17 - Transformers Created To SELL A STORY", 2024/06/14
- ↑ "I know I did an image board with Swiss watches and this that and the other, Chris took that to a level, Don was working on the heads a little bit more, Eric was working on the spaceship after we got the first version back—we needed some refinement to get it away from the Sith Infiltrator vibe, and so that's when Eric did some overlays on the vehicle—so this is toy design, and this is classic character design when you have a big corporation: a lot of people are going to touch them."—Aaron Archer, The Toy Armada, "17 - Transformers Created To SELL A STORY", 2024/06/14
- ↑ "I wish we worked on the vehicle mode as much as we did the bot...."—Aaron Archer, Instagram, 2020/09/04
- ↑ "In my headcanon, he was shimmery shiny gold at some point—like you see in the Covenant book, he is gold in that book—and his VM has worn off over the millenniums, you know? tAnd that's why he's white and brown now, because the the chrome has flaked off of him! [*Laughs*]"—Aaron Archer, The Toy Armada, "17 - Transformers Created To SELL A STORY", 2024/06/14
- ↑ "mine too"—Aaron Archer, Instagram, 2019/05/03
The Thirteen | |||
---|---|---|---|
Primary roster
Alternate members
|
- Featured articles
- Character stubs missing fiction
- Attacktix
- Alternity Autobots
- Animated Autobots
- Beast Wars Autobots
- Beast Wars: Uprising Transformers
- Council members
- Cybertron Autobots
- Cyberverse Transformers
- Dimension hoppers
- Elderly Transformers
- Female Transformers
- Generation 1 Autobots
- Generation 2 Autobots
- Guardians
- IDW (2005) Transformers
- IDW (2019) Transformers
- Legacy Autobots
- Matrix bearers
- One Transformers
- Point One Percenters
- Powermasters
- Prime Masters
- Repurposed toys
- Targetmasters
- Thirteen
- Transcendent Technomorphs
- Universe (2008)
- Watches