ALLEGIANCE: DECEPTICON

SUB-GROUP: TRIGGERCON
FUNCTION: DATA COLLECTOR
FIRST APPEARANCE: TRANSFORMERS # 48

“Things are never as good as they seem.”

Profile: Crankcase is a wheezing, whining ingrate who is about as welcome
as a rash of rust-rot, even among his fellow Triggercons. His favorite pastime
is complaining about everything and everyone. Nothing is good enough for him.
He delights in the misfortunes of others. Apparently, their misery makes him
feel superior in some misguided, muddle-headed way. This juvenile “I’m-better-than-you-are”
need in him stems from his youth, before he became a Decepticon. At that time
he was little more than a gangly collection of circuits and servo-motors, performing
a menial janitorial function in the Fuel-Spill Section of the Ministry of Energy
and Nutrition on Cybertron. More robust fellow workers mocked his feeble physique
and bullied him. Feeling alienated from and hatred of established society, Crankcase
eagerly joined the Decepticons when they began their war against the Autobots.
Megatron himself rebuilt Crankcase to give him increased bulk and strength.
Crankcase’s first action in his new body was to attack the Ministry of Energy
and Nutrition. Millions of years later, the fuel spill he caused has yet to
be fully cleaned up.

Abilities: Crankcase has a vast data storage capacity. His memory can
contain 400 trillion trillion bits of information, which are encoded in patterns
of light within microscopic crystal matrices. His titanium-steel alloy armor
is resistant to all explosive shells having yields of ten megatons or less.
Twin infrared probes can penetrate and analyze most unshielded electrical circuitry.
He is armed with two high-impact laser blasters and a distortion modulator that
scrambles internal electrical signals within most targets that it hits. It can
effectively cause temporary paralysis or uncontrollable, spasmodic seizures
within a victim. He transforms into a ground vehicle with the same armor and
sensor properties. In this mode his maximum speed is 90 miles per hour and his
range is 480 miles.

Weaknesses: In vehicle mode, Crankcase is prone to frequent tire blowouts.
On rare occasions, a sharp blow to his head module causes small data dumps in
different areas of his memory – a form of amnesia similar to the type found
in some humans who have undergone similar trauma.

ALLEGIANCE: DECEPTICON
FUNCTION: RECONNAISSANCE

FIRST APPEARANCE: TRANSFORMERS # 1

“My bite is worse than my bark.”

Profile: Given his reputation for civility and sophistication, it might
seem surprising at first that Buzzsaw is also one of the cruelest and most destructive
of all Decepticons. But his two sides are not contradictory. He carries out
his lethal tasks with the careful, reasoned approach of a fine artist, with
the cool precision of a neurosurgeon. He views every awful undertaking of his
as the beginning of a new masterpiece. Every opponent he defeats marks a completion.
And, like any true artist, nothing can sway him from his commitment to his deadly
craft. He will only end his career when the Autobots are no more.

Abilities: Using his optical sensors, Buzzsaw can pinpoint and photographically
record a thumbtack at 20 miles, making him invaluable on spy missions. He can
fly virtually soundlessly at speeds up to 250 mph for a distance of 1500 miles.
He’s equipped with twin mortar cannons that can fire five rounds per minute.
His most feared weapon is his beak, which, with its diamond-hard, micro-serrated
edges, he can use to carve up all except the most strong-skinned opponents.
And, like the artist he is, he uses his beak with great finesse.

Weaknesses: Buzzsaw has a tremendous ego. If one of his carefully planned
operations should go astray, ruining what he considers a work of art in progress,
he will often stop and sulk rather than improvise and proceed.

ALLEGIANCE: DECEPTICON
SUB-GROUP: CONSTRUCTICON
FUNCTION: MINING & SALVAGE

FIRST APPEARANCE: TRANSFORMERS # 10

“Everything is worth something, even me.”

Profile: Scavenger is driven by a manic urge to find things of value
in a desperate attempt to prove his worth to his comrades, particularly his
fellow Constructicons. And it makes no difference to him whether he has to dig
up a hillside or someone’s backyard – he could care less about personal property
– in order to accomplish his goal. But more often than not, what he brings back
is useless junk, which only reinforces his own image of uselessness to the others.
Decepticon Leader Megatron has gravely noted that, “such behavior would
be charming in a puppyoid, but ill-becomes a Decepticon warrior.” It is
only because Scavenger’s unique abilities sometimes prove to be of vital importance
that Megatron tolerates his continuing existence.

Abilities: In vehicular mode Scavenger’s power shovel is equipped with
a variety of magnetic, ionic, electrical and gas sensors that allow him to detect
the presence of a variety of materials within a 500-yard radius. He can also
emit sonic charges into the ground. By analyzing the echoes that come back to
him and using his other sensors he can determine with 80% accuracy the composition
of the ground underneath him to a depth of 1.2 miles. His power shovel and detection
powers combine to give Scavenger the ability to locate and uncover any number
of materials, from trace metals to fuel sources, that might be useful to the
Decepticon cause. He carries a missile launcher in vehicular mode and a laser
pistol in robot mode. When combined with his fellow Constructicons, he serves
as the right arm module in the giant robot known as Devastator.

Weaknesses: Scavenger’s abilities are diluted by his poor judgment,
which causes him to squander vast amounts of his fuel supply. He is also prone
to overtaxing his power shovel, causing it to break down from metal fatigue.